I asked for his criteria for bed buddies–that’s the PG version.He swore at me and said he didn’t do groupies. And just like that, our friendship was off to a great start.Reese Forster was the starting point guard for the Seattle Thunder.Gorgeous. Cocky. Loved by the nation.He’s also attending preseason basketball training camp where I used to work.Correction: where I work again, because I was … work.
Correction: where I work again, because I was fired from my last job.
And dumped.
And I might have a tiny bit of baggage, but that’s normal. Right?
Reese and I shouldn’t have become friends. We shouldn’t have become roommates.
And we really shouldn’t have started sleeping together … (Except we did.)
I’m adorably psychotic. He’s in the NBA.
This is not a disaster waiting to happen, at all.
Teardrop Shot is a 107k standalone with brand new characters.
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Q: …you’re my teardrop shot. You’re the high arch in my life.
Teardrop Shot is simply incredible. Tijan absolutely blew me away with this book! In the spirit of honestly, I will say that I struggled initially to get into the story. I had faith in Tijan’s methods as I have yet to read a book by the author that I didn’t love. And in the end, I absolutely adored this book for its exquisitely beautiful story as well as the differences I found from other stories of the genre.
Q: ‘Who couldn’t communicate except through random outbursts of … questions.’
Teardrop Shot while not my favorite book by Tijan—sorry, that feat belongs solely to Bennett Mafia! However, it was a deeply satisfying romance that I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend far and wide! I knew from previous experiences that Tijan is a master storyteller who delves deeper with characters and plot development than is often shown in modern literature and Teardrop Shot was no different. By employing a (primarily) single perspective, Tijan wrote a beautiful story about two broken souls drawn to one another despite their desires to keep their hearts inaccessible. Reese and Charlie were equally fun, fresh, and unique—Charlie especially. A heroine who speaks her mind is no longer surprising in literature, however, Charlie with her brusque and brash questions and crazy façade definitely won me over long before I understood her nature. Reese was a little more of an enigma yet once he began to open up and we saw the true duality of his character, I was completely gone for him!
Q: Crazy was a nice firm wall that I kept around myself, shielding people from getting too close, or from me connecting as a real human being kinda way.
The contemporary YA, sports romance drew forth a wide range of emotions from laughter to true heart-wrenching angst and everything in between. With her customary connection, this hero and heroine quickly roped me into a story that I couldn’t put down. I’ve yet to read a story by the author that wasn’t captivating because I truly believe that she puts her all into each book she pens. I recognize several hallmarks whenever I read Tijan’s writing, these include: a true mastery of storytelling, the emotional roller-coaster, and exceptional character/plot development. And she exhibited these skills beautifully within the pages of Teardrop Shot, thus penning an entertaining romance. Additionally, I found that once again Tijan showed her range of talents as this storyline is much different from the previous books I’ve read by the author or within the contemporary romance genre. It was unpredictable and unique… and without a doubt, deserving of Five Stars!!!
Q: I was just now starting to stand. If I kept falling, sinking more and more into the Reese tsunami, he would spit me out broken in pieces. When did self-preservation kick in?
Teardrop Shot was my very first Tijan book. I was completely blown away! I started the book expecting some friends turn lovers sports romance. Well, I got that plus so much more! This story was full of laughter but al so emotional and heartbreaking. I wasn’t expecting to tear up and have so many feels!
Charlie’s personality is full on quirky. She was an odd little duck but it completely worked for her. She had so much heartbreak underneath and was hiding it from everyone. And she was obsessed with basketball. She loved it and Reese Forster.
Meeting Reese was completely unexpected. Spending time with him and becoming friends was as well. But for me, they fit. Reese may have been a hot shot, super fantastic player but had his own baggage as well.
Together, this pair was perfectly broken together. I loved them together and I loved them separately. My heart broke for each of their struggles. I laughed and cried within such a short time span. My emotions where all over the place. But I loved every second of it. I loved this book so much and never wanted it to end. Tijan’s writing flowed so perfectly. The story was so well written. A perfect 5 star read for me!
OMG! Where to start on this book? I have always loved Tijan’s books. So when i got the opportunity to read Teardrop Shot I was so excited.
Of course we have the angst that she always does, but we also had the humor, etars, love, loss and friendship through it all. There were moments I would lauh so loud i think my husband thinks im crazy lol
Charlie and Reese hit it off really quick with sparks flying everywhere! What these both had gone through, is so much more so when they finally get there chance, well BAM!
Check out Teardrop Shot because its awesome and so is Tijan
Charlie and Reese’s story is so much more than what I anticipated. There is so much raw emotion that pours into these pages. Charlie’s baggage, so she says, is heart wrenching. My heart broke for all involved. Reese on the other hand has his own past that breaks him down from time to time. When he opens up to Charlie about it my heart broke. These two found each other at the most poignant time in their life. The road they take to get their HEA is beautiful and fulfilling.
The only thing that was difficult for me was that it was only from Charlie’s POV except ONE CHAPTER!! For some reason I have a hard time when it’s only one POV…I need DUAL…lol. It’s definitely a personal preference but helps me feel more emotion for the characters throughout the story. I always like to know what’s going on in their minds.
There’s a certain something special about Tijan and I didn’t know what to think about the craze until I finally picked up Ryan’s Bed. I’ll read just about anything she writes, and it somehow always takes me a bit by surprise!
Charlie is a special kind of girl. She’s spunky and a little weird and mostly adorable. Reece is… sweeter than I anticipated from an NBA star, but I should have known better. Together they pilot the Hot Mess Express into Swoontown and as always, the story packs more of a punch than I was ready for.
This is still a lighthearted romance, but there’s a lot of digging and serious issues and past baggage to work through for this pair. Highly recommend!
Teardrop Shot was an emotional, romantic, funny and sweet ride. Once you finish reading it, you want to love and protect both characters, they have been through a lot in their lives that you only want for the best for them. It’s a sport romance, there are hot basketball players, but there is more to it than that, it’s an inspirational and profound story that will make you feel ALL THE FEELS.
Charlie came back to the old sports camp she used to work at. She wasn’t that well, she’s been through a LOT, but she needed a job and she can’t refuse her friends proposal to go back to the place she always loved to work at. But she is not the same person her friends met once, she has changed. She is kind of quirky now and that’s the facade she has hidden herself in.
She’s a basketball fan, she knows stats and she was surprised that a basketball team was staying at the camp. What she didn’t expect was that Reese Forster, her forever crush, was staying there with the Seattle Thunder team as well.
Reese immediately loves how Charlie is. She acted so weird around him and he liked her, they started as friends but their relationship developed as they knew each other more. He was very patience and sweet with her, because she is not what she pretends to be. He has all the patience to make all her walls fall. He really was meant for her, no one and absolutely no other man, will cope with all her issues.
I loved the way Tijan showed us flawless people with real issues that overcame their problems in order to move on and find happiness. Reese and Charlie were meant for each other, they’re fate was to meet each other, no one will get what Charlie was feeling but Reese and vice versa, they will take care of each other. This was one more beautiful Tijan story that you won’t want to miss.
Teardrop Shot is a book that will stay with me always. It is a sweet, sexy, slow burn, sports romance that pulled on my heartstrings.
I just loved every single thing about this book. I loved the endearingly awkward Charlie. She was so lost and broken that she adopted the quirkiest behaviors to cope with life. Her friends tolerated these quirks, though she had lost touch with them over the years. But when she meets NBA superstar Reese Forster he goes that extra step. When she flings a gazillion of the most random questions you have ever heard at him… he actually answers each one of them. She may play the crazy card but Reese rolls with it. What ensues is a beautiful friendship.
I love that Tijan took the time to build up their relationship. We got to see the bonds of friendship form and strengthen before their relationship began.
Both Reese and Charlie come into this relationship with baggage from the past that they haven’t fully dealt with. For me personally, what Charlie was dealing with got me right in the gut. I’m not in Charlie’s shoes but rather the flip side of it. And I can’t help but think of my loved ones in her position. (I know that was as vague as vague can be… but I don’t want to spoil the book!)
Teardrop Shot had my emotions all over the place. I laughed, I cried and I cheered as my heart was pulled, broken and put back together. This book will be staying with me long after that last page was flipped.
This is without a doubt a book you don’t want to miss!
My heart! Oh gosh y’all, this book wrecked me. It turned me into an emotional mess. I may have slobbered cried at one time it was way more emotional than I thought.
It’s beautifully written with wonderful characters and an original storyline. And it has basketball in it! Basketball! The greatest sport out there, that we get way to few books about.
Charlie’s quirky personality had me loving her character right off the bat and my heart broke deeply for her. You’re going to love this book, it’s a definite must read!
*Review by Michelle
Wow. This book has all the feeling in it. I laughed my butt off. I got really mad. I was crying my eyes out. Two people who are broken who need each other to make then whole again. Both trying to find them selves after great losses !! What a ride Tijan put me threw with this book. Hold on guys this is a must read book!!! Thank you Tijan for another amazing read!!
As I’m not a huge sports fan, I began reading this story with some trepidation but was soon fully engulfed with all of the feelings….I was laughing one moment, sad another, giggling over the crazy questions along with Reese’s responses to them. A brilliant love story that highlighted real life problems, along with the grief that goes along with them, and working together to work through them. The friends in the story should be mentioned as well. They are quirky and protective, and I loved how they went out of their way to not include Janet on the “inside” stories. I so rarely give five stars but this story got me, the emotions it invoked, I had to give them to this book.
Teardrop Shot by Tijan is a slow burn sports romance standalone filled with so much humor, love, lust & loss. Tijan continues to write novels that are set so far apart from the norm, with surprises you’ll never see coming. This novel is one of those books that sneaks up on you. You’re distracted by the setting, the scenes and the idea of your normal romantic comedy, that when it hits you, it completely consumes you.
This book absolutely gutted me. Such a beautiful and tragic story that will probably remain with me forever. Soooo much more than a sports romance, and resonated so deeply within me I am having some serious problems coming back down to reality. It was all so unexpected and strategically written so that all these emotions were charging out of me. I cried (like a baby), laughed (a lot), loved and lived through this novel and through Reese and Charlie.
Charlie; broken, so strong, selfless, full of love and hiding from the world. And also an avid basketball fan. Reese; basketball superstar, angry, haunted, protective and a little bit lost. An unusual coupling but one that makes so much sense. Their journey is a weird one. It’s angsty, dysfunctional and funny as hell, filled with so much sexual tension, I swear I was permanently flushed. The obstacles these two have gone through, in the past and currently, is a testament to the strong people they are today and is one of the best things they share in common. They help each other heal, they continually challenge each other and watching them together is such a beautiful thing.
I don’t know what else I can say without spoiling it but this book is everything to me! Tijan is blowing the book community away with her genius. She always manages to set herself so far apart from every other author with her unique talent for spinning tragedy, love, and new adults. Thank you Tijan for giving me this story. I will never be able to let go of it. Nobody is ready for this story!
Phew, even a day later my feelings for this book are all over the place!
Charlie had it rough for the last years, and got a job back at the camp she used to work. The camp, the Seattle Thunder used as a private retreat, because one of their players had it bad with the press and needed some privacy.
Reese Forster is estranged from his family, so he comes with baggage as well as Charlie does. He’s her biggest sports crush, and she’s acting a little weird, to hide behind that facade. Because she doesn’t know differently. That’s what she did for the last years….
His eyebrows dipped down. “You’re a little odd, aren’t you?” I snorted. “Fantastically so.”
I loved this line. My heart was flying out to Charlie once more. She’s a great person, and is trying to find her way back into a ‘normal’ live. Which is definitely not easy. What she went through is a personal hell, nobody wants to go through.
Reese is going through some tough things as well. He doesn’t have it easy with his family, but he’s trying. He’s drawn to Charlie, because she’s different. It’s amazing to see how these two form a friendship, even in that short amount of time. But Tijan has a way of describing everything with so much depth, you wouldn’t doubt it a bit.
That book had me in tears from laughing, and the next page I was crying because I hurt so much. I had a hard time putting it down, and I loved every word of it! Thank you for taking me on a roller coaster ride and leaving me in shambles after finishing.
Life’s different at this stage, and I think, I really think, you’re my teardrop shot. You are the high arch in my life.
This is one of a few books that will remain with a piece of my heart!
The first book I’ve read by Tijan and I’m shook!! It was incredibly emotional and touching. This book sounded like a sports romcom, with an adorably dorky heroine and a typical professional athlete. But there are nothing typical about this book!
Charlie is a wonderfully wounded character. She has a past that is both heartbreaking and soul-crushing. You feel every one of her emotions and you empathize. Your heart breaks right along with hers. Reese is an NBA player that is dealing with family issues. He is a truly remarkable character. He is nothing short of swoon-worthy. Kind, caring and strong are just the tip of the iceberg for his character.
Both wrecked by life before they even meet, yet they give so much hope. Charlie and Reese have found their own coping mechanisms, for Reese it’s basket ball, and for Charlie it’s her humour. She made me laugh, cry, she made it real! Reese with his burdens, is truly a rock, a man with patience and thoughtfulness. I can honestly say that Reese and Charlie have easily become two of my favorite couple.
This story is only told through Charlie’s POV. It was the only downfall. I would have loved to know what’s going on in Reese’s mind and his feelings.
I highly recommend this book.
I am definitely a Tijan fan and so, of course, I want to read every book she releases…I did not, however, expect to love this book so much, that from now on, Mason will have to share his number one spot. I absolutely adored Charlie and Reese !!!
From the moment I started reading, I was pulled in and I did an all-nighter so I could finish in one go. I loved it that much. Maybe it was the writing style…maybe it was the awesome characters or maybe it was the interesting storyline. It was probably all of those combined though
Now this book was pretty long, but for me…I could have done with even double the pages !!
Anyways, I love sports book, awesome heroes and quirky heroines, so I really hit the jackpot with this one 😉 I also love me some angst and emotion and I got that as well.
How would you feel when your whole world is crumbling, but then, when you think you are at your lowest…you meet your idol and he turns out to be everything and so much more !!!
I have to admit that I don’t know crap about basketball, but I would definitely go to every game to cheer Reese on !! That man was fine…in every way 😉
It took me some time to get used to Charlie though. The questions felt a bit weird in the beginning, but once Reese started answering, I was actually hoping she would ask him more.
These two were absolutely adorkable. This book was filled with heartache, laughter, steam, friendship and most of all…love !!
It shows that everyone deserves a second chance at love. It is definitely gonna end up on my “favorite MF reads of 2019” list.
I am a fan of Tijan and all her books, but Teardrop Shot was so much more than I expected. My emotions were not prepared at all.
Charlie is literally just barely surviving day by day. She has been emotionally checked out for some time, but is determined to start living again.
Reese is at his team’s camp and is focused on the game. He had no expectations of making any friends, especially one as different as Charlie, but fate has a different idea. Reese has his own past he deals with. Will they be able to overcome them together, or will they come charging back and destroy the both of them.
SO MANY FEELS in this book. It is a MUST read!!
4.5 Crazy Stars! I really fell in love with Charlie. She had so much adversity thrown at her and somehow she just kept right on moving. Not without issues. But she still did it. I love the angst in Tijan’s writing and I found Charlie’s story so unique. What she went through was something I never really thought of before. And Reese…actually it should be Reese Forster. Two names. The way these two “friends” fought their attraction. And then tried to explain it away. Attractive people gravitate towards attractive people…right? It’s only natural. LOVED IT! Fun, quirky, sad, broken, beautiful…it all spoke to me and made me keep turning page after page.
Teardrop Shot is more than a sports romance. So much more. I laughed and cried. Cried and laughed so many times while reading this amazing book. Their story is real and hard and will wreck you in the best way possible. I think this is Tijan’s best book yet and is one of my top favorites.
I’ve been a huge Tijan fan for years, I believe I’ve read every book she’s written. With that said, I’ve never giggled as much as I have with this book. As the book progresses though we get hit with the Tijan effect, yep I just totally made that up and I’m sticking with it. The Tijan effect is emotion so raw you feel it in your soul, and feel it I did. Tijan opened me up, broke me, left me there awhile to stew in it, and then decided to put me back together again. I loved every second of it.
Charlie is gonna blow your mind. This chick. Damn. She’s been through way too much. How she is still functioning is beyond me. But her friends and a certain basketball player she’s crushed on seem to slowly break her out. I didn’t know how to feel about Reese at first, I wanted to flick his ear cause he pissed me off a few times , but then he showed us who he truly was and I was a drooling mess.
Charlie and Reese have an amazing relationship. From the start. Goofy dialogue, true friendship, hot sex, and then finally opening up to each other. *sigh* This book was absolutely perfect. If I could give more than five stars, I would.
Teardrop Shot is full of goofy giggles, raw emotion, healing, and a perfectly imperfect love.
Holy Crap on a cracker! Gah! This freakin book ,Y’all! This is a little different that some of the angstier books we are used to from Tijan. Her main men are usually anti-Hero arrogant alphas that you hate before you ever love them. That’s so not the case here. Ahh! Reese is swoony and yummy! This book was so much more than I could have even imagined, and it’s Tijan, so I knew It would be absolutely magnificent. Reese and Charlie’s story was just the emotional wrecking I was looking for. It brought me laughter, tears, heartbreaking moments, steamy moments and sweet-swoony moments. Charlie is this adorably sexy and beautiful not-stalker ,super fan. She has been a fan of Basketball since she was little and has lots of knowledge of all her favorite players. She has just been through years of devastation, sadness, and more than most of us could imagine. The cherry on top of that crap sundae, was her current BF (the one with a pervy grandpa) cheating on her and her losing her current job the same day! She’s dealing with the fact things are not how she had planned for her life. It’s not easy to accept that or to cope with how she handled everything she went through. She carries so many emotions and guilt and loneliness. All of these emotions she is feeling you will better understand after reading the book. I am vague because #SpoilersSuck She uses her quirky and a little bit crazy (but not psycho) ways to deal with things. After her loss of job and BF an old friend gets her a job at the summer camp, Echo Island Camp,she used to work at years ago.She meets her idol Reese Starting Point Guard for the Seattle Thunder Basketball team, when the team comes to Echo Island Camp. You realize right away, Reese is gorgeous, but he also has issues river deep and miles wide. These two are both broken, while mostly different ways, it’s similar in some ways. They form this friendship quickly and it grows from there. They open up to each other about things that neither would share with anyone else. They are nothing short of perfection when they are broken and vulnerable like that together. This book…better prepare y’all, definitely some heartbreaking things going on. I shed many a tear in this book. It was so worth the journey though. Ever struggle, every heartbreak, every bad decision, was necessary for Reese and Charlie to grow and to strengthen into who they were meant to become. Oh how I love them and who they became. This is so much more that a sports romance. There was “real life, real world problems” put in this story. I loved that. It was such a great balance between funny, and quirky Charlie and her questions with Reese, and then the seriousness of those things. It brought awareness to things some people out there are dealing with in real life everyday. It wasn’t beat into the book so much that Reese and Charlie’s story was lost, it was weaved in there perfectly. That’s because Tijan’s writing is Straight Fire! Everything about this book is just magical. All of the Charlie’s and Reese’s friends from camp and His team mates are great and it was awesome to get to see so many other characters in this book as well. I would definitely recommend this book. Tijan does a great job. You will not be disappointed.
*I voluntarily reviewed an advanced complimentary copy of this book. I am totally buying my own PB copy this book!
MY THOUGHTS AFTER READING…
I haven’t received an ARC from Tijan since 2017. And when I learned about this one, I was totally over the moon.
When I read the teasers and the blurb, I got so curious and excited because I don’t think Tijan has ever published a sports romance before! Correct me if I’m wrong though. It was also a huge bonus that I’m a basketball fan and since the NBA season just concluded, receiving the ARC was very timely.
In all true Tijan fashion, the characters were great and relatable… the pacing works… the flow is seamless…
I think Charlie is charming and I greatly admire her candor and her quirks, but she can also frustrate the h€ll out of you, lol.
And Reese… well he is humble despite his superstar status and I can’t blame the guy for being reticent because some people would use and abuse you without remorse… and I also can’t help but compare Reese to Mason (Fallen Crest), lol. I think they’re more similar compared to Logan.
I know I shouldn’t be surprised on how much I enjoyed reading it but I think this is the first time my heart really broke for a character that was written by the author. I was mourning along as well… and while different people have different takes about what to do with such a sickness, I don’t think I can blame Charlie for her decisions. You know that flight instruction about putting your own oxygen mask first before helping the next passenger? I think that’s what she did there.
I hope I haven’t given away any spoilers… I tried to be as vague as I can discussing my thoughts.
This is not an easy read but it has all in all it has comedy, romance and of course, drama. What more could you ask for? It’s definitely something you don’t want to miss!
5