Wall Street Journal bestselling author Ilsa Madden-Mills returns with an all-new swoon-fest of a novel about what happens when you look beyond labels and take a chance on love. Badass Athlete: I dare you to… girl.
Lover of fluffy kitties and Star Wars.
Curious.
His dare? Spend one night in his bed—a night he promises will be unforgettable—and she can solve the mystery of who he is.
She knows she shouldn’t, but what else is she going to do with her boring Valentine’s Day? One sexy hook-up later, her mind is blown and the secret’s out.
Maverick Monroe.
Bad boy.
The most talented football player in the country.
Just ask him.
Too bad for him Delaney’s sworn off dating athletes forever after her last heartbreak.
But Maverick wants more than one night and refuses to give up on winning Delaney’s heart. She isn’t one to be fazed by a set of broad shoulders.
Will the bad boy land the nerd girl or will the secrets they keep from each other separate them forever?
I DARE YOU is a full-length stand-alone novel. For a limited time, when you buy or download the book in KU, you’ll also receive an extended excerpt of her #1 Amazon romance Dirty English!
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I Dare you not to love this book. I fell head over heels for Maverick in this story. Yes he’s a Jock and has all that Cocky bravado associated with a college football player but you can’t help falling for his cheeky charm and flirty banter.
Then as you read you realise this guy is so much more than the typical stereotype you expect him to be. He is very loyal and caring to those close to him and will do anything to protect the ones he loves.
Delaney is a geeky animal loving quirky girl. I absolutely loved her to bits. She’s fun and very creative. Also sassy and independent she can hold her own and never likes to back down from a Dare.
This gets her into some hilarious situations that had me laughing my ass off.
These two will bring a huge smile to your face. This is a fantastic feel good story.
This Author knows how to write some swoon worthy males that’s for sure.
There are some great characters in this book that I’m dying to know more about, they definitely deserve their own stories.
If you love a good football player romance this one will tick all your boxes.
I could not put this book down!!
Once I started I was hooked. This was a fun sexy read. With a bit of an emotional twist. I loved the dynamic between Delaney and Maverick. Nerdy girl meets jock. I loved Delaney’s awkwardness and quirkiness. And even though Maverick is a jock. Never judge a book by it’s cover. This was a great read. I DARE YOU TO READ THIS BOOK!!!!!!
I Dare You was just the book I needed to pull me out of this book hangover I’ve been “suffering” from for the past month or so!
I LOVED it so much! And I cried more than I probably should have, or more than would be expected from this book, but I *may* have issues. Okay, I do have issues. But once you meet Maverick and see how wonderful and devoted and selfless of a person he is you’ll hopefully understand!
I devoured this story, I did not want to put it down once I started! I even skipped the gym, which wasn’t really a hardship, so I could sit and read it straight through. Delaney and Maverick couldn’t be anymore perfect. Ok, they probably could be, but for the life of me I can’t imagine anything that needs improving, with either one of them.
Delaney is quirky and sassy, with a unique sense of style. She’s the kind of gal you’d want to be best friends with. I just loved how she uses dares to step out of her comfort zone, not able to turn one down no matter what, which allows her to do things she never would normally. What a way to live life!
I already rained down some praises on Maverick, but he deserves them all! In some ways he’s the typical star jock, but really, there’s much more to him than what you see on the surface. So much is resting on his shoulders, but he doesn’t let it bring him down, he just buckles down and does what he needs to do to take care of the people he loves. He is the swooniest of the swoony.
I really adored these 2 so, so much, they made me so happy! I was completely besotted with them. I loved how smart and strong, and determined and dedicated they both are. They had their troubles but they didn’t let them fester and grow, instead they communicated, which is sometimes lacking in a lot of stories!
This book didn’t need angst and drama to make it wonderful- Delaney and Maverick and their relationship made it so.
Wow…I enjoyed reading and listening (gotta love kindles hand off feature) to I Dare You. I Dare You was entertaining and made me laugh and get a little teary eyed during part of the I Dare You. Delaney and Maverick may not have hit it off right away but they sure had some chemistry. They both had some past issues that made it hard for them both to overcome as individuals and as a couple. Their chemistry though was panty meltingly hot. Delany and Maverick did not have an easy time trusting each other with their past histories and their current struggles. That will be all I will say as I don’t want to ruin or spoil I Dare You for future readers. I will say that I highly recommend I Dare You and, Waylon University series, and Isla Madden Mills (author). Isa did a fantastic job with I Dare You. Delany and Maverick were wonderful characters and their stories really worked too. The best of all is while reading I had a smile on my face and my husband even had to ask why I was smiling so much. Isla creates characters with original personalities and past histories that works for the storyline. I have read and listened to both I Dare and I Bet You from the Waylon University series (just had to continue but decided to write my review before diving into I Hate You and I Promise You from the Waylon University series) and I have already added Isla to my favorite authors list. I off to dive into I Hate You which is up next I. The Waylon University Series. Happy Read or listening lol.!!
Fantastic start to a promising series! I really enjoyed the characters and the story. I loved the setting and emotions and the quirky nerdy girls getting scooped up by the popular football player! Great new adult romance!
This was fast paced and a fairly quick read/listen. The first half was much more enjoyable for me, but overall it was okay. Sometimes it could be cute, at times sweet, and sometimes sexy.
Maverick’s a bit cocky and arrogant, but his heart is huge and he is a good person and wants to do what he can to help his sister. Delaney just got her heart broken, so she’s a bit hesitant to jump into anything. But as they spend more time together, they can’t deny their attraction.
They each had their own issues that needed to be worked out. Not too much drama, except with an annoying little twit named Muffin.
Even though I didn’t catch too many feels with this one and didn’t love it, I did enjoy some of it.
*Some parts of the blurb didn’t match the story.
**I listened to the audiobook and I thought the narrators did a good job.
“Legend says the first person you kiss at the party is the one you’ll never forget. It might be years later, and still their face is the one you dream about.” “Sounds like hocus-pocus.” “I like to believe in legends—after all, I am one.”
An easy to read sports romance that had me turning pages late into the night. It’s all about timing and making the right decisions. Some people have had to endure immeasurable pain and loss and others like to cause it. Geek meets football player, who is actually a hit of a geek himself. He can’t help that he has hidden talents in many fields…what a legend. However there is much more to both of the leading characters than meets the eye. This one has heartbreak, angst, swooning moments intertwined with some steam.
A cute, fun, sweet, and heartwarming story. Maverick and Delaney have an instant connection, they have some bumps in their journey, but their chemistry is undeniable. I enjoyed this story.
Ilsa Madden-Mills gives us two strong main characters in I Dare You. Delaney has this confident geeky girl vibe going on and she has no idea how appealing she is to men. Maverick is cocky, but that’s only one side to this big-hearted young man who is carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. I really appreciated their back stories and how they share some of the same struggles.
Unfortunately, the texting ruse didn’t work for me. It goes on way too long, especially since it was pretty obvious to Delaney who the anonymous texter was. There is a bit of emotional whiplash in the second half of the book as Delaney and Maverick grapple with which is more important: football or their relationship, as if there had to be a choice. I felt like Delaney should have been more understanding and Maverick should have communicated more.
Despite some pacing problems, this was an enjoyable read. I’ve heard great things about this series of books so I’m hoping the next book will be stronger.
Ugh, why was this so short? Don’t get me wrong, it packed a romantic and emotional punch. But that’s exactly why I want more!
I’ve bypassed this book when scrolling through Amazon I don’t know how many times. For whatever reason, I decided to take a chance and read it today. I’m so incredibly sorry I didn’t read it sooner because it was amazon (and now I want to binge read everything Ms. Madden-Mills has written).
Cocky Athlete? Check.
Sassy Nerd Girl? Check.
Off the charts chemistry? Double check.
There’s more to Maverick than most people see, and when Delaney finally gets to know him, she realizes he’s not the typical jock. I loved seeing the interaction between these two, and what’s not to love about a football star who’s secretly a geek? Not to mention one with a heart of gold who only wants to take care of his sister.
If you want a crazy, drama-filled ride, with a hero who is more than he seems, a heroine who is scared of getting her heart broken again, and a love that will last a lifetime, pick up a copy of I Dare You — you won’t be disappointed.
I was freaking giddy throughout this 4.5 stars read. The mysterious texts, the banter, the exchange of words that will have you swooning and hoping for a HEA. It also had me LOL. This was just the read I needed. A change from the typical and one that had me smiling, filled with some angst and lots of playfulness.
The sexy football player, Maverick Monroe who is going places in this sport, and the nerd, simple and laid back Delaney Shaw’s story is one for the books. It kept me intrigued and captivated from the start.
So let me get this straight
Maverick meets Delaney for the first time during a bonfire party
Feeds her this crap about “the first person you kiss during the bonfire party you will never forget them.”
So he kisses her and then WALKS AWAY TO BE WITH TWINS. Now I don’t need to explain to you what he did with those said twins.
Apparently Delaney left an impression on him somehow, even though he ended up leaving her dry and hanging for a set of two pairs. But still he apparently felt something, but again couldn’t do anything about it because the next time he saw her she was dating Alex, one of his teammates.
I mean if you hadn’t left her for the twins maybe she would have been in your arms instead of his?
So fast forward two years, Delaney is hard broken because she caught Alex cheating on her and she is eating out her feelings when she gets a text from an anonymous person.
Not even two minutes into the conversation and they are kind of already sexting each other
Anyway she continues texting this stranger on the phone because she felt some “sort off connection with him” just from a 2 minute conversation. (The stranger is Maverick if you couldn’t tell)
At the same time Maverick is magically appearing in front of her at college and tries to coax her into going on a date with him.
Delaney is all like “No I will never date footballers again” but proceed to stare at him as if she has never seen a man her entire life.
Then let’s him kiss her. And then idk what happened because I skipped like 15 chapters.
In between I got to know that Maverick had been taking part in illegal fights to earn money for his sister who is disabled. And kept it a secret from Delaney.
Then she gets to know and asks him to stop but he brushes her off.
Then she proceeds to tell him that she loves him and he just stares at her without saying it back. So she breaks things off.
And then he comes running back to her but see’s her ex and is like
“You tell me you love me one minute and the next you’re at the beach with your ex—what am I supposed to think?”
Like Maverick stfu. You didn’t even tell her you loved her back. Or tried to stop her from leaving. So like i don’t understand what your problem is dude?
PS: Nothing happened between Delaney and her ex because apparently the ex is into Delaney’s best friend now and vice versa.
Anyway then I just skipped to the epilogue and everyone is happy. So I was like okay peace out. Bye.
I have the biggest goofiest grin on my face after reading this!!!
Ugh Maverick I love you so so much the love you have is fierce and what you do to provide the security of your family is second to none, major swoon fest!
Delaney you’re the girl we all want to be, girly nerdy & comfortable in our own skin. #TeamNerdAlways
I can’t wait for Ryker’s story which we’re just waiting to go live
3.75 stars
I really do enjoy this authors work. It’s cute, there’s just enough angst to keep it interesting until the very end. I don’t think there’s anything I’ve read from this author that’s let me down.
I’m a little bummed to say that I Dare You was a just OK read for me. I read Dear Ava and wanted to read more from this author so I went back to an older book of hers with I Dare You. These books were annoyingly similar to me, which I suppose should actually count against Dear Ava more. There seems to be a standard recipe happening between these two books: nerdy girl with an obsessive love of Star Wars and cats and a football jock who has been secretly in love with the FMC for years. Oh and a secondary character named Tyler, which I found super random. Some things I enjoyed about this book were the banter between the two main characters. Delaney gets a mysterious text message on her phone (again a nod to the mysterious letter in Dear Ava) and it takes her a while to figure out who her mystery texter is we all know right away that it is Maverick. There were so many clues for her to pick up on that he was the mystery man that I found her inability to figure it out sooner annoying. Overall I thought the story was sweet but not necessarily unique.
I love jocks who fall in love with the nerdy girl. I loved this book. Ryker decides to help Penelope gain the attention of another boy. I love these kind of stories where the boy falls in love with the girl, but you know in the back of your mind that a secret is coming out that might just ruin it all. I loved Penelope she was a lot like me in High School. Lol
Loved SO many things about this book!!
Maverick is an awesome name for a character! I loved it right off the bat. The way Maverick speaks to Delaney gives me goosebumps! I love the words he uses either in text or in person. I seriously don’t know how she stands it! Staying away from it would be torturous! I also enjoy that he is not the QB on the football team. I mean he is arrogant enough to be one and obviously he has earned the title he has. I loved him with his sister and the drama all ensued from that issue. I really loved Maverick as a character even though I wanted to hate him just on principle.
Delaney is a Nerd girl! I enjoy that she is her own person. Makes a lot of her own clothes and her cat eye glasses! Love them! I love everything about Delaney! Her attitude, thoughts, job even her silly cat. Also how she doesn’t give up on people. Amazing girl!
There are highlights in here from previous readers and let me tell you they are Spot on in this book! It includes so many “butterflies in my tummy” moments I can hardly stand it! I mean I did tell you Maverick has a way with words right? All the princess bride references and Star Wars references. Dang! This is quickly becoming a favorite book.
This is a first time author for me. I started out using KU to read it. Then decided to buy it because it’s so good and reread material. There is a excerpt of Dirty English in the back. So I read that and bought that too. So it’s safe to say I really enjoy reading this author. I can easily relate to the characters (although i am older) and the writing kept my interest and made me want to read more! I loved it!
Super cute and short new adult romance!
Great narrators, a quick listen just a little over 5 hours and it’s included in the audible escape package.
Delaney and Maverick share a kiss their freshmen year at Waylon University and don’t reconnect until the end of their junior year. The way they reconnect is adorable and I loved it! The athlete and the adorable nerd will never be something I tire of.
Definitely worth the read/listen!
GEEK: Read a book with a smart character, a geek or a nerd.
I gave this book 4 stars simply because the male main character had a secret that he kept from the female love interest throughout the whole book. It got really annoying. Overall, the really liked this book and I will be reading more from this author. I liked how the female love interest was a total geek and lover of Star Wars and Cats. Would definitely recommend this book to any0one who loves reading New Adult as I do.
Reading this book second time round: Don’t know why I gave it 4 stars.