New York Times bestselling author Rachel Van Dyken kicks off a brand-new series in which romance is a game and love is a touchdown.Emerson just made her dream come true as a professional cheerleader for her favorite pro football team. But even though the plus-size athlete is breaking down boundaries, she still has to contend with the massive rulebook. Carbs? Nope. Chocolate? Definitely not. … Chocolate? Definitely not. Still, Emerson loves her curves, and she’ll rock the hell out of this job even if it kills her. Except for one mandate that is easier read than done…
No fraternizing with the players.
Problem one is Miller Quinton: Emerson’s first love, first sex, and the guy who still ignites her daydreams and R-rated fantasies. Thrown back together, Miller and Emerson feel the undeniable pull of passion again, even if the conflict that tore them apart seems insurmountable. Then there’s way-too-sexy Grant Sanchez. He has a serious reputation with the ladies, and when it comes to winning someone he wants, he doesn’t let anyone stand in his way.
Now Emerson is breaking every rule in the manual. But what she doesn’t know is that she’s part of a wicked little game—one that could steal both her dream and her heart.
more
Sweet, sometimes emotional, lover’s triangle, friends-to-lovers of a sort, romance.
Emerson and Miller were best friends since they were kids. Until the day he took her virginity, then left her and she never saw him again until he was traded to the professional football team, The Bucks, where Em had just been hired as a cheerleader. She can’t believe it’s him, the man whom she loved with all her heart, who broke that heart when he left her behind, never to call her again. But, wait, he acts as if he doesn’t know her and he looks at her with anger. Why is he mad at her? What did she do to him?
And why is Em having lusty feelings for the team’s resident manwhore, the oh so hot Grant Sanchez? He with the golden skin, sweet, cocky grin and insistence that he and she are going to be best friends. The man who calls her Curves, seems to lust after the curves of her body that aren’t conducive to being a cheerleader for a professional football team.
I loved Fraternize. It’s sweet and sexy, and Van Dyken nailed the emotional component. It’s less angsty than I had been expecting, but it’s not without its emotional moments. I love that Grant, Miller and Em all end up as friends and I think Em made the right choice when she chose the man for her. And the man who lost Em? He gets his own story with the other sweetest character in Fraternize, Em’s new friend and fellow cheerleader, Kinsey. Can’t wait to read, I have a feeling it’s going to be even better than Fraternize.
I absolutely loved this book!! Rachel Van Dyken is a masterful storyteller!! Emerson finds herself got between an old Love and a very determined man who wants to be her new love. I really didn’t want to like Sanchez, because I really wanted Quinton & Emerson to get together! This book will have you laughing, crying and cheering until the end! Rachel Van Dyken at her best!
************ PROBABLY CONTAINS SPOILERS, ALRIGHT IT CONTAINS SPOILERS***********************
This isn’t the normal love triangle one man is trying hard, too hard in my opinion, the other seriously hates Emerson, and Emerson is still holding out for one man and then has a realization and has a comes to Jesus moment, but there was some major entertainment in this book, Sanchez who you can’t help but fall in love with the man just always brings a smile to your face with his sarcastic ways, “no, it’s fake, because I only make fifteen million a year compared to Miller’s eighteen.” I felt my cheeks heat. “It’s real, Curves, just like my ***k.” Both Miller and Sanchez are cocky, sarcastic men but it was Sanchez who was the most entertaining out of the two, “I sighed. “Baby, I’m not made of money.” She tilted her head. She knew my net worth. It’s not like I hid **** from my girl. “Yeah okay, I’m made of money.” I shrugged. “That better not be why you’ve been letting me take you on the kitchen counter and eat off—” I loved this book, and am really eager for the next in the series.
I’ve been wanting to read this since it came out. I have no idea why I haven’t picked it up before now, but I stupidly waited and waited and waited. I blame a lack of Rachel Van Dyken knowledge. I blame my friends for not being pushier than they are. I blame myself for being too cheap to dig up the dough to buy this. I blame lots of things, but mostly I blame poor timing.
And that brings us to earlier this week, when I was perusing my KU options and stumbled across Fraternize. Again. Why it wasn’t one of my first KU reads, I’ll never know, but somehow I had forgotten this existed. Until I didn’t. And as soon as I saw it, I rearranged my KU library and downloaded this bad boy. Or should I say boys?
This is the story of a lost love, a missing best friend, a high school crush, a first time, a first love.
This is the story of a new love, a new bet friend, a high school crush who is makes a reappearance, and a lost love.
This is the story of Emerson, Miller, and Ethan.
And this story, told from Emerson and Miller’s POV isn’t anything like I expected. It’s one of those weird times where the author completely blindsided me. She got me good, I tell ya! I thought it was going to go one direction, but then it takes a sharp turn into HOLY MOLY WHAT JUST HAPPENED! Yeah, I didn’t see it coming. One could say I was tricked. One could say I have become very comfortable in the romance formula and tropes. One could say, that as much as I wanted one thing to happen, I wasn’t upset when the exact opposite happened.
So, what happened?
*singsongs* I’m not telllllllllllingg!
You’re gonna have to read it for yourself. You need to take this journey.
I’m going on record and saying this is a top 2018 read for me. It’s only April. This book is that good. And a large part of that is because I was caught unawares.
Silly me, getting comfy in my romance genre. That’ll show me.
I’m amazed at how quickly I became invested in the love triangle that was the basis of this book. From the beginning of most love triangle stories, the reader already has an idea of who the person at the center is going to choose. And I was seriously surprised at how this one went!
Sports has never been my thing. I’ve never enjoyed watching any sport. But come to find that I really enjoy sports romance! It’s like sport themed movies. Love them! I don’t know why, but I was so into this football book. It wasn’t just a romance who’s characters happened to be football players. The football and cheerleading were characters in the story. I was totally able to follow the scenes where the football was described as the characters played.
I loved Emerson and I loved that despite that fact that she was plus sized (even though that phrase isn’t even used in the book), it didn’t stop her from reaching for her dreams! Em is described as generously curved, with wide hips, a big butt, generous breasts and weighing 190 lbs. She’s obviously mostly muscle since she’s a professional cheerleader and also happens to have a thick frame. Which I loved since I myself definitely fit into the plus size, extra curvy category!
There are quite a few flashbacks to when Em and Miller were teens. She had a lot of body issues as a 16 to 18 year old (who didn’t?!) but I was extremely pleased that at age 24, she was completely at peace with her body. When other people had an issue with her size, it was THEIR problem.
I am not going to give anything away about the two men in the love triangle, Miller and Sanchez, except that I think they are both wonderful and I was surprised and pleased with how it all turned out! I can’t wait to read the next book!
There’s a bit of language in this book, quite a few F bombs as well as the less colorful words, but I didn’t feel like it was overwhelming. There’s a lot of talking about sex and two and half sex scenes towards the middle and end.
There are also loss of friendship, loss of a love, and tragic events from youth that shape us. I really liked the characters. Can’t wait for the next book.
5 stars is not a high enough rating to do this book justice. It was pure perfection and I absolutely loved it. The characters were amazing. This book made me feel as if I was a cheerleader cheering on the sidelines. Cheering for each character, the team as a whole and their relationships. I had so many laugh out loud moments and smiled so much while reading that my face actually hurt. I finished this book in one sitting and I highly recommend this book to everyone who loves a good sports romance. This book will not disappoint. This is one of those books where no review will ever do it the justice it deserves, because its that amazing. It’s sweet, funny, sexy, corny, unpredictable and simply perfect. There is no doubt that when the next book in this series comes out it will be my top purchase. I can’t wait to see what happens next.
Full disclosure… I’m a huge fan of this author. However, I will always be honest in my reviews. But there’s a reason I read almost all of her books! I’m not a huge fan of sports fiction, and I really could care less about the NFL, so I was a bit wary to read this. Once again, I should have known better. It was so much more than just football, cheerleading, and hunky guys.
Fraternize is the story of a curvy girl who finally gets her dream come true… to be an NFL cheerleader. Emerson is a girl who is no stranger to hard work, and she’s willing to put in all the work required to be good at this. She’s come to love and appreciate the body she has, yet still struggles with insecurity at times.
Then there’s Miller. Her ex-BFF who became more… just before his dad moved him across the country in the middle of their senior year in high school. He’s the handsome, sexy, football player who gets traded to the Bucks… Just as Emerson makes the cheer squad for… the Bucks.
And last, but most certainly not least, is Sanchez. He’s the sexy, flirty, tight end for the Bucks.
Both men have a thing for Emerson. And she has a thing for them both… but in different ways. She has a big history with Miller. But there were secrets and other people and things that caused them to lose touch. Misconceptions that bred resentment. Sanchez just thinks she’s a super cool gal. Which she is.
WARNING!!!!!!! Just a small spoiler in this next paragraph!
So… in the beginning, I really, really, really wanted Emerson and Miller to work it out and Sanchez to be their BFF. But then I got to the point where Sanchez says that he’d never have left her in the first place, and I realized… this guy really cares about HER. He’s 100% on her side. And at the same time, he’s not a jerk about it to Miller. Amazingly, he’s Miller’s BFF, too! So then I realize… Sanchez truly is the better man. Quite frankly, he’s the bomb! He’s pretty much the voice of reason as far as Emerson and Miller’s relationship. Honestly… I’d love a Sanchez in my life! He has a way of being honest, and really telling you like it is in a way that’s not hurtful, or degrading, or disrespectful. He goes out of his way to figure out who Emerson is when Miller just assumes she’s the same girl he left behind years ago.
This book had a depth to the story that I really wasn’t expecting it to have. I knew the author would touch on the body shaming issues people face. But there was so much more to it. The characters were also much deeper than I expected. Let’s face it… we don’t really expect sports stars to be so deep. (And yes, I realize that is a sweeping generalization and not always true. But so many are just conceited jerks that it kind of makes us not so aware of the good ones.) There were so many other great characters, too. (But they get their time in the next book so I’m not mentioning them in this review.) So this story was truly a very pleasant surprise. I have to give it 5 stars! It owned me from the beginning. And I’m (not so) anxiously awaiting book 2!! So even if you aren’t big on sports romance books (like me), I think it’s still one that you will be happy you spent a few hours of your time reading. Give it a shot… I think you’ll thank me later!
Congrats on another winner, Rachel!
Ms. Van Dyken creates heroines that are an inspiration. Her stories may be a bit risque, but the messages are rooted in positivity. Fraternize is a sexy spin on self love. You don’t have be a size zero to go after what you want. Emerson is making her mark by living her own truth and working what she was born with. A couple of sexy guys and a chance in the spotlight are just an added bonus. Lessons to learn and characters to enjoy make Rachel Van Dyken a MUST read author.