Romancing the Running Back by Jeanette Murray Pages: 350
Published by Intermix on January 19, 2016
Genres: adult, contemporary, Sports & Recreation, Romance
Source: eARC from Publisher
They’re not on the same page in the playbook...
When Anya Fisher is asked to be the maid of honor in her best friend’s wedding, she jumps at the chance to go to Santa Fe. There’s nothing left for her in Atlanta—except a bitter and controlling almost-ex husband. Starting over as an online personal shopper is challenging, but not as much as having to plan wedding festivities with uptight groomsman Josiah Walker...
As a Santa Fe Bobcats running back, Josiah wants to make his mark on the field, not on the earth. A serious conservationist, he’s all about saving energy. So why is he wasting so much on the flighty fashionista in his best friend’s wedding? One kiss leads to another—and more. But when Josiah discovers that Anya has just as much substance as style, their harmless little fling may go into overtime...
Romancing the Running Back is the fourth book in the Santa Fe Bobcats series. The Santa Fe Bobcats series is an adult sports romance series about a professional football team. I have not read the first three books in the series, but I thought this one was the perfect one for me to jump into the series with, because it was the wedding (planning) for the couple from the first book, Cassie and Trey. We get to see the couple from the first three stories, and it let me decide which ones I wanted to read, but the main focus was on Josiah and Anya, making it totally seamless for a new fan to the series to be able to jump right in and start with their story.
I loved how opposite, at first glance, Josiah and Anya seemed. He is an eco friendly to the extreme conservationist, and she is a purely aesthetic (at least on the surface) person. There is a lot more to Anya, but we don’t learn just what that is until later in the story. Anya and Josiah butt heads with each other early on, making for one of my favorite tropes- the bickering and bantering. It was so much freakin’ fun just to watch the two of them go at it. Even knowing they were going to end up together, it was fun to watch them forced together to help Cassie and Trey with their wedding. Eventually, the magic started heating up between them and they started to enjoy each others company. It was a slow transition, and it was really well done.
Bottom line: Romancing the Running Back, while being the fourth book in the Santa Fe Bobcats series, it is easy for a new reader to the series to pick up with their story first. It was flirty fun, and a really great story. Whether you start with book 1 or book 4, check out this series if you love sports romances.
danielle hammelef
I love stories that involve sports, especially if the authro writes play by play action. Plus, the characters are always in top shape! Thanks for the review and letting me know I can start this sseries anywhere.