REVIEW: For the Win by Sara Rider

For the Win by Sara Rider is such a fun and refreshing read that will have you smiling in no time! The competitiveness between the characters, the love of the game, and the budding romance between our two main characters is only a sample of what makes this book a must read. Even if you’re not a soccer fan, I encourage you to check this book out. You will not be disappointed.

Lainey Lukas is at the top of her game playing women’s soccer. She’s sacrificed everything to get to where she’s at and she plays to win. She plans to lead her team, the Falcons, to a national championship and gain the respect of everyone in the league. The only problem is, some people still think it’s a man’s sport and believe the men’s team is the best there is.

Gabe Havelak, the main star for the men’s soccer team, Surge, turns the Falcons into a joke when he crashes their press conference. This turns into a war between Lainey and Gabe. A Battle of the Sexes competition is the only way to prove that the women can hold their own with the men. The challenges are entertaining and really prove how equal the two teams are with regards to fitness and strength. The banter between the characters is a cross between witty and sarcastic but it’s all in good fun. But the longer they spend time with each other, it’s clear to see that their mouth is saying one thing while their hearts are saying something completely different.

“He expected sex with Lainey to be explosive and angry, based on the kind of chemistry they’d had leading up this weekend. He hadn’t expected to feel like his heart had been scrubbed raw afterward. This was more intimate, addictive, and mind-blowing than he could have ever imagined.”

The chemistry between the two is intense and once Lainey and Gabe give into the explosive chemistry that has been simmering since day one, the more they realize that there are other emotions under the surface they need to face.

My first thoughts on Gabe was that he was full of himself. Everything comes easy to him and he craves attention. But, the more Gabe got to know Lainey, the more I liked his character. He shows Lainey that there is more to life than soccer and shows her how to let loose. We see plenty of character growth in Gabe, as well as, in Lainey.

Overall, I loved this book and can’t wait for the next story in this series. If you are a fan of sports romances or just enjoy a friendly competition between the main characters, this is the book for you.
 

Book Info:

Publication: June 6th 2016 | Pocket Star | The Perfect Play #1

What happens when you fall for your biggest competition? Sara Rider scores with this charming romance about soccer stars battling their tough opponents and playing the field of love.

Lainey Lukas has sacrificed everything—sleep, family, carbs, a life—to earn her spot as the top player and captain of the Seattle Falcons women’s soccer team. She’s determined to lead her team to a national championship and finally earn the sport the respect it deserves—and nothing will throw her off her game. When Lainey’s hero Gabe Havelak, star of the Seattle Surge, crashes her team’s first press conference—making the Falcons look like a joke to the local media and humiliating Lainey in the process—she’s hell-bent on revenge.

Charming, confident Gabe is practically a god to Seattle soccer fans, but he doesn’t mind a little friendly competition from tough-as-nails Lainey, with her top-notch athletic skills, her mile-long legs, and her girl-next-door freckles. But when he learns the Falcons are booting the Surge from their coveted practice space to the notoriously cursed Cricket Field, those warm feelings give way to crippling superstition. With his contract up for renewal and his thirty-fourth birthday just weeks away, Gabe will risk anything to protect his position with the Surge.

The rivals agree to settle their differences in a Battle of the Sexes competition—a test of skills, fitness, and willpower. At first the situation seems win-win: Gabe gets the chance to earn back the Surge’s practice space, and Lainey’s team will finally get some much-deserved media attention. But as the friction between them becomes hot enough to spark and smolder, Lainey and Gabe are entering new territory—and with both of their careers on the line, love might just be the toughest opponent of all.