She’s a girl with a plan. He’s a guy who thinks he knows what he wants. Can the quirkiest girl in school win over the coolest guy on the football team? This is it—Tori’s senior year. Her last chance to leave Nelson High without a bucketload of regrets. Number one priority—get Colt to fall in love with her. So what if he’s the Raider’s number one playmaker? So what if he’s so far out of her league …
So what if he’s so far out of her league the idea of them together would rupture the school’s social order?
She has to try, before it’s too late.
She’s come up with the perfect excuse to spend more time with him. All Colt has to do is think he’s helping her win over one of his teammates, and in the process he’ll fall madly in love with her.
Or will he?
Colt wants one thing: to play football after high school. But his grades are tanking and his dreams of playing college ball are fading…fast. He doesn’t really have time to waste helping out Tori, but they were friends in middle-school and he just can’t turn her down. Besides, how hard can it be to get one of his teammates to notice her?
He’ll help her out, and then he’ll focus on what’s really important: football…assuming he can stop thinking about the last girl who could ever steal his heart.
If you’re a fan of small-town football, field parties, high school angst and melt-your-heart kisses, then you’ll love The Playmaker.
Buy this YA sports romance and cheer on the most unlikely playmaker.
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I received a free copy from the author and voluntarily reviewed it.
The Nelson High Raiders series was one of the few series by Jordan Ford I hadn’t read yet and I am so excited to have the chance to read these now as well. The Playmaker is the first book in this series, which introduces the Nelson High Raiders football team and I had fun reading this book. It was one of those books I wanted to keep reading as I had to know how it all turned out.
This book follows Tori and Colt. Tori wants to make her senior year great and to do that she has this big plan to make Colt notice her. Colt is a cool footballer and she’s the daughter of a hippie. They don’t run in the same circles, so Tori knows she has to do something to make him notice her. To be honest I totally agreed with Tori’s best friend Amy when it came to Tori’s plan to get Colt notice her. And at the same time it sounds exactly like the type of a plan a teenager would come up with, it felt realistic. There is teenage drama, romance and football.
While I wasn’t a fan of Tori’s plan how she lied to Colt about her real reason she wanted to spend time with him, I couldn’t help but like these two together. There are some great scenes where they spend time helping each other. One of my favorite scenes is where Colt shares one of his secrets with Tori and opens up to her and she accept him and his secret and helps him instead. I really liked that and it really shows what a kind person Tori is. There was more to both of these characters than I first thought and I liked them even more as the book progressed.
I like how Jordan Ford can really capture the essence of teenage drama without making it over the top or too much. I thought Colt’s worries about Tori not fitting in with the football crowd were realistic. Same with Tori’s worries that she had to change to fit in. I all felt realistic, even though it made me sad. I wanted Colt to not worry about his status and Tori to realize she could be herself. I like how in the end it gets wrapped up in a great way. My only complaint is that I would’ve loved to see a bit of them together, they only get together late in the book and I would’ve liked to see a bit more of them as a couple. As this is the first book in the series I hope to get that in book 2.
Besides the two main characters there are some great side characters too. I really liked Tori’s best friend Amy and am hoping we will see more of her in future books. Then there are the other Nelson High raiders team members, I liked how they stuck together and helped each other out, they felt like a close group and I am excited to see who will get their own story and romance and spend more time with these characters. The sport aspect is an important part of the story, but it doesn’t overtake the romance plot line and even tough I don’t know a lot about football I was able to follow those scenes.
To summarize: This was a great young adult contemporary romance book. I liked how the author gives it this realistic vibe, I could understand the characters worries and insecurities. I liked Tori, although I wasn’t a fan of her plan how she wanted to win Colt over, I did like their romance. There are some great scenes where they spend time together and I enjoyed them growing closer and Colt realizing how he felt for her. I liked how the book got wrapped up and some of the realizations they have. I liked the side characters and look forward to more books in this series.
I thought this book was really cute. It had an early 90s teen movie feel to it, which I loved.
The characters were likeable and funny. I love an underdog story and this one kept me entertained.
I enjoyed this story a lot. The characters were great. I could really relate to Tori and what she had wanted out of her senior year. She wanted to make the most of it and to go after something that she had wanted for years. I really appreciated that. The characters were well written and relate-able. Tori is taking her cue from some older romantic movies on how to get the guy that you like/want when you are out of the same social circles. I really enjoyed both Tori and Colt along with the rest of the characters that we are introduced to (that they are close too). I would love to read their stories as well so will definitely be checking out the rest of this series. The story flowed very smoothly and while I would have loved to have gotten more of Colt and Tori together, I’m hoping that in the other books in this series we will get to see some of that. I was pulled in from beginning to end and was not ready for it to be over yet.
It’s her senior year in high school. Tori is determined to et Colt to notice her. Colt is one of the stars of the high school football team and he agrees to help Tori in her quest to become a part of the “in” crowd.
I thought this was a wonderful YA romance, it’s sweet, and maybe a little silly, but it does have ,
teenage angst, and a happily ever after. Tori and Colt are pretty typical teenagers, in my opinion. They find out that in the end, it really is their feelings that matter, and not the judgements of their social group. I highly recommend this book, I thought it was fantastic!
I am voluntarily leaving an honest and non-incentivized review of this ARC.
Tori is been in love with Colt since she was twelve. A now, she is determined to win him and have the best senior year ever. Her plan is to ask Colt help her been notice by Mack, the quarterback. But the more time Colt spend with Tori the more he realise she is unique. Is Tori willingly to go so far as pretend to be someone she is not to win Colt? Is he going to step out his comfort zone to date the weird girl at high school? A sweet story about friendship and be true to yourself.
Thoroughly enjoyed reading The Playmaker. I was hooked from start to finish and could not put it down. I just loved it.
I love a good YA in between other books and this was one not to be disappointed with. In fact I absolutely enjoyed every bit of it.
Teenage angst…so long ago for me and I’m an Aussie so American sports is another world away.
Tori is not one of the ‘popular girls’ as she is different and unique, she’s hot for the football jock who is also a childhood friend. Colt the football jock has his own self doubts that he keeps hidden to stay cool. Circumstances bring them together and we watch Tori change herself, her clothing and makeup to try and fit in. Their journey is amusing, the banter funny, but I’m sure to a teen it’s total drama.
Ultimately it’s about friendships and the journey through the final year of high school.
The story flowed well and the characters were engaging, I look forward to more from this author.
This is an awesome début for Jordan Ford – it has everything here that a Young Adult Contemporary Romance should have. Tori and Colt are both fantastic characters, with enough quirks to make them interesting and ‘real’. Of course, the miscommunication and confusion leads to some amazing scenes, that will make you laugh and wince at the same time.
Well-written, with no editing or grammatical errors that I could see, this book was a delight to read from the first page to the last. I loved the different characters and situations that were brought into it. I honestly can’t wait for more! Absolutely and definitely recommended.
* I received this book from the author in return for a fair and honest review. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian – I Dig Good Books!
I received this book as an ARC exchange of an honest review.
I loved this book and I’m anxious for the next one in this series!
I found myself laughing in various parts with Tori, she’s a really weird girl, but in a good way. And Colt’s a great kid too, facing his problems in school and chasing his dream of playing football. They are a really special couple!
Colt partners on the football team and Tori’s best friend are also very interesting and well-developed characters.
Tori Lomax creates a plan, Operation Fall For Tori, to get Colt Burgess to fall in love with her before the end of her Senior year. This is a challenge because she is not part of the popular crowd at school and doesn’t fit in with Colt and his friends. Part of her plan is to convince Colt to help her get the attention of his teammate, Mack.
Colt secretly meets with Tori after school to teach her the rules of football and gives her tips on how to get noticed by Mack. As Colt and Tori spend time together, they grow closer and learn about each other’s secret struggles. I enjoyed Tori and Colt’s journey as they navigated their senior year.