One of NPR’s Best Books of 2019A second chance doesn’t guarantee a touchdown in this new contemporary romance from the author of Intercepted.Single-mother Poppy Patterson moved across the country when she was sixteen and pregnant to find a new normal. After years of hard work, she’s built a life she loves. It may include a job at a nightclub, weekend soccer games, and more stretch marks than she … and more stretch marks than she anticipated, but it’s all hers, and nobody can take that away. Well, except for one person.
T.K. Moore, the starting wide receiver for the Denver Mustangs, dreamt his entire life about being in the NFL. His world is football, parties, and women. Maybe at one point he thought his future would play out with his high school sweetheart by his side, but Poppy is long gone and he’s moved on.
When Poppy and TK cross paths in the most unlikely of places, emotions they’ve suppressed for years come rushing back. But with all the secrets they never told each other lying between them, they’ll need more than a dating playbook to help them navigate their relationship.
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If possible, this book is even more funny, warm, and charming than Alexa Martin’s debut, Intercepted. Fumbled contains a secret baby and three people who want more than anything to build a family together. There’s a sexy, loving second chance romance, a hard-working single mom who won’t be shamed, a deep and profound look at the health risks of football, and fabulous female friendships. I read this book in one day and didn’t want it to end. Bring on more books from Alexa Martin!
I wish I could jump into the Fumbled world and hang out on the couch and drink wine and gossip with Poppy and her friends!
This book was a bit of an impulse selection — the blurb was interesting and the cover grabbed me right away and since I love a good sports romance, I thought I’d give it a try. Alexa Martin is a new author for me and delivered a terrific story.
I’m not going to rehash the plot, the blurb takes care of that. The star of this book is Poppy Patterson. She’s just terrific in so many ways, I’m not even sure I can list them. TK is terrific too — there were so many scenes where I really felt for him. And Poppy and TK together are just amazing! I was pulling for them all the way.
Not only was the second-chance romance + secret baby story terrific, Poppy has some terrific friends and it was a pleasure to see female friendships portrayed in such a positive manner.
I just loved everything about Fumbled. Looking forward to more!
I had the pleasure of reading Intercepted and Fumbled right after one another. I remember liking TK in Intercepted, so I was happy to go ahead and read his book.
I wasn’t disappointed. Fumbled was just as entertaining and engaging as it’s predecessor. Humor is definitely a hallmark of Martin’s writing and is as sharp as ever in Fumbled. She also deftly addresses the safety issues players and their families face and how it affects the player and family members.
I appreciated how she handled those issues, she wasn’t heavy-handed or preachy. Sprinkled within the seriousness, Martin gives us more of the player wives hilarious drama.
I truly enjoyed Fumbled and I cannot wait for more in the series!
*Copy provided by the publisher via Netgalley
Not as laugh-out-loud funny as Intercepted, Fumbled is more serious, but still full of heart. I was a big fan of TK before, but when he showed up in this book I wasn’t sure if I would like him. Obviously, that changed once I understood him. I love the way they became such a happy little family. It probably happened way too easily though. And the thing with the flowers was anticlimactic and pointless. I guess I expected there to be more drama. I’m not disappointed though because Poppy & TK & Ace are super sweet together. And TK did the right thing in the end, so I’m definitely a fan again.
Intercepted set the bar high, and Fumbled was a great follow up. TK is a cocky athlete who know women adore him. Poppy is a single mom doing what she’s gotta do to take care of her son. When Poppy runs in to TK, her high school boyfriend, she wants to run away as fast as she can, but TK isn’t going to let her slip away. Fumbled is steamy, sweet, and funny! TK and Poppy have a history, so their connection comes back quickly, but Poppy is hesitant to hand over her heart to someone who broke it once before. TK turns out to be a sweetheart who proves over and over how much he cares about Poppy. Their story is a sweet second chance romance
Head back to Denver in the second installment of The Playbook series. This book can be read out of order. In this story, we meet Poppy, a single mother who rekindles with T.K. Moore, a member of the Denver Mustangs team. I enjoyed the independence that Poppy showcased, not beeding anyone to rescue her. I was enthralled with seeing how this book would play out.
I’m bingeing this series, because why not? The Superbowl was lackluster at best this year. Reading this series is a more than pleasant way to feel the football fandom pre-pandemic. I thought Intercepted was hilarious and diverting. Fumbled is a different kind of enjoyment.
Secret Baby is maybe my least favorite trope next to Secret Billionaire. Will I still read it? That’s a big fat yes. I think that Alexa handled it really well. I love that the standard angsty hurt was mild and dealt with quickly. Plus TK is a dreamboat and Poppy is protective and sassy and my new motherhood role model.
Alexa’s writing style is just what I like. She balances the heavy topics with a lot of light hearted moments and the supporting cast is fantastic. I didn’t love this narrator after adoring Intercepted’s but the plot/trope change needed a more serious tone.
TW – steam and language
Alexa Martin is a goddess who creates a world that you want to live in. I totally want to be friends with the characters in her series. She creates such a vivid world that you can totally imagine all that is happening and at the same time she creates real characters who aren’t perfect and who live real lives. This is a series I highly recommend, even if you don’t love sports or know a football from a golf ball.
This is a fantastic series! Alexa Martin has done a great job creating the Playbook world. Poppy and TK’s story was lovely however I would have loved some TK POV. Once again the best part for me were the strong friendships with witty, intelligent women!
DNF
I am not a huge footballer fan, but this story took me right into the heart of the sport and made me care. Can’t resist a story with a message that is told well. Loved the characters.
I had never read anything by Alexa Martin, but I picked her football book Fumbled as my honorary Super Bowl read for this year. I found it thoroughly entertaining. Some parts stretched credulity for me, but then, I don’t know what it would be like to navigate in the world of football superstars and world-class athletes. It was fun to dip my toe into that world with this otherwise identifiable couple. Now I should go back and check out Intercepted, the first book in this series.
So much more than a sports romance.
I’ve had Fumbled, book 2 in Alexa Martin’s Playbook series, on my TBR since last summer but picked it up recently because of NFL playoff fever! Having read the first book I knew I was in for a sassy female lead, girl power friendships, and of course some smokin’ hot football player lovin’ but what I got was so much more.
Poppy and TK were high school sweethearts who were torn apart so seeing each other after 10 years is a bit of a shock as is the fact that the share a child and love that never went away. But block their way to the fairytale HEA is the fact that Poppy has some well earned trust issues, TK’s mom is still awful, and football while fun is also dangerous.
I really liked the exploration of CTE and the fact that TK respected Poppy’s parenting choice about football. The ending was also very well done and satisfying. Speaking of satisfying, the steam level on this one was absolutely perfect and I loved the slight objectification, all in good fun, of TK by Charli and Vonnie.
I can’t wait to see what’s up with Brynn and Max!
Who wouldn’t want a real-life glitter bomb fairy as their BFF? While I’m glad none of my besties go near glitter, it’s one of the many funny character quirks in this hilarious but cause-conscious RomCom.
This follows new character Poppy Patterson, and hero TK Moore (mentioned in Intercepted ) in a second-chance-with-a-kid sports romance.
Poppy was a lot like Marlee from the first book, but some key moments you could see, this woman is a different character. Even though, both are 5-star books to me, this one has a comfort level I like better. Poppy seems funnier, and TK is more relate-able than Gavin was. The suspenseful plot (sorry, not going to spoil it), could have been left out, and it still would have been awesome.
And on a personal note, thanks for making Brynn so wonderful in this book ( and the last), because the next book is about her and Maxwell Lewis. And after some of the other white ladies in these books (Dixie comes to mind immediately), I would have gone into that one with a little….side eye, is the best word I could think of.
I read Intercepted a few months ago and was super excited to find out there was another book in the Playbook series already out. In Fumbled we are introduced to Poppy who is a single mother, working at a nightclub. Her life revolves around her son Ace and she’s not had anything to do with his father and her high school sweetheart since she moved across country when she was 16.
Her high school sweetheart turns out to be none other than TK Moore and when TK sees her at the club she’s working at he immediately wants to reconnect with her. I loved the relationship between TK and Poppy. Right from the moment they interact with each other you can feel the sparks flying off of the page. Poppy and TK have a lot of issues to work through, but I loved their dedication to one another. Their past shared history and love for one another really connected me to both of them.
As with Intercepted, I loved the relationships between the females in this book. Poppy is so strong and independent, but it doesn’t make her any less independent when she has such a strong support group to lean on when she needs them. Martin touches on important topics including CTE, concussions and the repercussions NFL players have after their career is over. I felt like these issues were handled in a great way without overtaking over the book. This was a great follow up to Intercepted and I’m excited to read the next book in the series, Blitzed
I love the characters sense of humor
Every now and again, you need to read a sweet and sexy romance! Fumbled fits the bill. Poppy Patterson is a single mother to Ace, and is trying to make ends meet as a cocktail waitress at the Emerald Cabaret. All is going well until TK Moore walks back into her life. TK is Poppy’s high school sweetheart, father of Ace (although he doesn’t know it) and super hot football star.
The story is funny and sad and happy and sexy. It has great scenes between TK and Poppy, both funny and serious. It has great girl friendship scenes where Poppy’s friends have her back in every situation. It has jealousy and love.
I really enjoyed Poppy and all her thoughts and emotions. I loved the way TK treated Poppy and Ace. I also appreciated the author’s awareness of CTE and concussion, as well as the brain damage caused by all the hits in football. This needs to have more and more attention.
Although I am not a football fan, I do look forward to reading more of the Playbook series by Alexa Martin. The stories are smart, sexy, and sassy, with a lot of heart and humor.
#Fumbled #AlexaMartin
I hate when I see that everyone else in the world has given a book the best rating and I don’t feel it. I read Intercepted and loved it to pieces, but I was on the fence with this one. The story follows Poppy Patterson as she and high school sweetheart, football God, TK Moore, collide back into each other’s lives. He learns that she didn’t just walk out of his life, she had a helpful shove and a secret. The romance started and I was into it, but before I could fall head over heels for TK, angsty Poppy drops the bomb and the romance goes stale. The rest of the book, I fell for her friends Sadie, Vonny, and Charlie. There was even some suspense with a whodunnit situation, but it pan out either.
I still love the writing, the world building, and the setup. I will read Martin’s next book, Blitzed. I just hope Brynn is not as angsty as Poppy.
I am always a little skeptical on reading a new author, but nonetheless I find some of my favorite authors by doing so. With that being said, I am so glad I took a chance on Alexa Martin. Her writing is flawless and I could instantly tell, she put parts of herself and her experiences into Fumbled. This was not only a second chance romance, but a book about the consequences of a career that takes a tole on ones body. This author hit points that are imperative in today’s world. I truly am humble enough to have learned a few things that could be detrimental for my life so for that, I thank you Alexa Martin. Poppy and Tk were easily relatable, which in turn drawled my attention even more. They both had amazing character development, with witty but strong personalities. The secondary characters were also astounding, and I truly enjoyed the take in this story. Poppy and Tk’s story was also very well developed, I just wish there was a little bit more about them together. All in all, this was a good read, I cant wait to see what else this author does in the future.
Poppy is one bad *****. She is honest and witty, but so strong. She has a bigger backbone than most men, she doesn’t take to kindly to disrespect and will fight for what she believes in. She is a hard worker, and wants no handouts.
Tk, when I picture him I get goose bumps. He is mellow and comes off as soft spoken. He gives his all in everything he does, and that is why he is so successful. He doesn’t trust to easily, but has always been a mommas boy.
When high school sweethearts cross paths almost 10 years later, there is a lot of emotions that rush back. But when secrets are spilled, are Poppy and Tk strong enough to withstand the unknown?
*I RECOMMEND THIS BOOK.
*REVIEWED FOR REVIEWS FROM THE HEART