The Play is a STANDALONE, CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE comprising of TWO books bundled into ONE, totaling 156,000 words. A troubled Scottish rugby player who doesn’t play by the rules.A vivacious man-eater who’s given up on love.When it comes to Lachlan and Kayla, opposites don’t just attract – they explode.From the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today Bestselling author of The Pact and The … USA Today Bestselling author of The Pact and The Offer, comes The Play, a standalone spinoff and contemporary romance about taking chances and rescuing hearts.
Kayla Moore has always been comfortable with her feisty, maneating reputation. At least it was fine until she hit her thirties and saw her best friends Stephanie and Nicola settle down with Linden and Bram McGregor, leaving Kayla to be the odd one out. Tired of being the third wheel with nothing but one-night stands and dead-end dates in San Francisco, Kayla decides to take a vow of celibacy and put men on the backburner.
That is until she lays her eyes on Linden and Bram’s cousin, hot Scot Lachlan McGregor. Lachlan is her sexual fantasy come to life – tall, tatted, and built like a Mack truck. With a steely gaze and successful rugby career back in Edinburgh, he’s the kind of man that makes her want to throw her vow right out the window. But Lachlan’s quiet and intense demeanor makes him a hard man to get to know, let alone get close to.
It isn’t until the two of them are thrown together one long, unforgettable night that Kayla realizes there is so much more to this brooding macho man than what meets the eye. But even with sparks flying between the two, Lachlan can’t stay in America forever. Now, Kayla has to decide whether to uproot her whole life and chance it all on someone she barely knows or risk getting burned once again.
Sometimes love is a game that just needs to be played.
The Play contains profanity and sexually explicit contact – reader discretion is advised. This is not new adult.**
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TEN STARS*********
First amazing to buy and book and support an animal charity BRAVO Karina. I love everything Karina writes so much, every book so different and fabulous.
Second this book was absolutely amazing! What a story to tell.
Lachlan McGregor is a tough Scottish rugby player in San Francisco for a week visiting his cousins Linden and Bram McGregor. He doesn’t say much and he is a huge beast of a man.
Kayla Moore has sworn off men. She feels like the fifth wheel when out with her girlfriends Steph and Nicola and their men, the McGregor brothers.
Kayla is drawn to Lachlan even though he is dark and brooding, even agreeing to interview him to help Brams Charity work and write an article.
Once again Karina draws the reader in and WOW’s us with her amazing talent and beautiful story. My heart broke for both Lachlan and Kayla and yet so full.
I’ve spent the last few days, yes DAYS which included reading a few books in between as well, trying to figure out how to express how I feel about this book in a coherent, not so verbal vomiting babbling way so I am going to start by simply saying: I ADORED this book. From the first page, to all of the feels that it pulled out of me, straight to the end, I adored Kayla and Lachlan’s story and didn’t want it to end.
I seriously need a Lachlan McGregor in my life, that’s what I kept thinking to myself as I read the book. He’s the tall, dark and hand yet silent brooding type. He doesn’t say much unless it’s something worth saying and when it is you find yourself amazed at it’s depth and falling slowly in love with the man because that’s when you see how huge his bruised heart is. And let’s not forget that whole dirty talking thing he has going on and combined with the scottish accent? Cue the fanning of oneself, needing a really cold shower, grabbing your B.O.B or all three. Take your pick. But the darkness that surrounds him isn’t just an affectation or a wall he puts up, it’s apart of him. What he lived through broke my heart and though the demons he carried inside him were crazy scary, I still wanted to hold him tight and tell him it would all work out.
Then there is Kayla. Before I go further with her let me state here that I did not read The Pact or The Offer, so I had no preconceived notions of who she had been prior to meeting her in The Play and I have to say that I adored the woman I met. She is sassy with a lot of moxie and yet there is tender and sensitive side to her that most miss because they only view her as something of a wild child with no edit button. I loved watching as she evolved throughout the book and became the woman she wanted to be, it definitely wasn’t an easy road, but she pulled it out in the end.
I loved watching as their relationship evolved. What starts out as both of them trying to deny the explosive sexual chemistry between them morphs into so much more as they spend more time together and actually get to know each other and none of the steps felt forced or rushed. Okay, one was, but it still made sense. Everything thing they went through, the good, the bad and the ugly ~ and dear lord were there some ugly parts, so talk about the FEELS~ showed why Lachlan and Kayla were perfect for each in every way and I was really, really happy when they finally got their HEA.
This is my first book by the author and I got totally invested in the story from the first page, hell I kept doing the whole ‘hide my Kindle under my paperwork’ thing because I just couldn’t stop reading it. The writing was engaging and well paced. The first person dual POV’s were very well done and I really enjoyed the author’s voice. The plot twists were well thought out and even though there were some things I guessed were going to happen, they still surprised me when they did. I like how the topic of addiction was handled. It showed all sides of it with respect and honesty. I thought all the characters we met were well written, though I have to be honest and say that I don’t think any of the other McGregor’s will be able to out do Lachlan. But outside of the McGregor’s I loved Amara and Thierry and hope they get their own stories down the road. And then there are the puppies (I call all dogs regardless of age, puppies) they just added so much to the story that it just pulled me in even more.
The Bottom Line: I simply adored this book from start to finish!
This book was my favorite out of the whole series. Man, this book made me emotional, but in a good way.
I love Kayla- “I made the decision to abstain from dick.” She’s funny, a notorious man-eater, pretty much has no filter, opinionated and has no qualms speaking her mind. Love her! I want to be besties with her!
“Why is everyone so surprised when I try and do something nice? It’s not like I’m one hundred percent pure evil. Just like forty percent. That’s less than half.” Hahahaha!
Then in walks Lachlan. Scottish rugby play and animal lover. He’s a bit broken, doesn’t have a lot to stay and keeps to himself.
“Sometimes…solitude can be blinding.”
He stole my heart in this book. Even though he doesn’t say a whole lot, what he does say, it’s amazing.
“Kayla. That tiny sprite. I kissed her. I fought and I fought and I fought against it. But there was nothing I could do. She’s a riptide. I’m just a man without oars.” *girly sigh*
These two are just so perfect for each other, they do go through a lot though. The last 30% of the book got this cold dead heart a little farklempt! I’m definitely going to reread this book. It’s that wonderful
4.5 stars
I have seen so many teasers and reviews of this book that I was super excited to get my hands on it. First of all I want to thank Karina for being so generous and donating money to animal charities. I never had a furry pet, but after reading this book I want to run to the closest animal shelter and adopt a dog. I will do that when I have my own place!
I can split this book into two parts. The first part was fun, Kayla is one of a kind and I would love to have a friend like her. She wanted Lachlan from the minute she saw him, and hey who can blame her. I wanted to climb him too. I have a weakness for silent and mysterious guys with beards who are covered in tattoos. Thanks to all the amazing teasers I had the perfect image of how Lachlan looked like, and let me tell you Tom Hardy was PERFECT. When I am reading a book I just can’t picture the characters so I heavily depend on teasers and the muses of the authors.
Kayla is done with men. She is done with casual sex, but when Lachan comes in the picture she can’t help but want to do him. There is more to Kayla than this fun having girl, she isn’t happy with how her life is going and she especially dislikes her job. She has other passions but never had the opportunity to pursue them. Let’s talk about Lachlan! The prologue killed me, it was so sad and had me crying already. This guy has been through so much, and he still has demons he needs to fight. When Kayla and Lachlan came together and went at each other it was like fireworks going off. The sex was scorching hot. I couldn’t get enough. Lachlan is a beast and I want one for myself!
Karina did an incredible job with this book. It was so much more than just a contemporary romance. I was feeling everything Kayla and Lachlan were feeling. I could really connect with them, which I find very important! The writing was great as always! It was also a real eye opener. I learned new things in regards to animal shelters and what the majority of people think of pitbull breeds. It really broke my heart.
This was my first read of Karina Halle’s and has me wondering where she has been all my life! This was an impulse buy for me (gotta love the e-reader and instant access) due to all the amazing reviews my book friends were posting on social media – needless to say, I was NOT disappointed!
The Play was a book I absolutely could not put down, I carried my Kobo with me constantly and stole reading time at every corner. The troubled exciting romance between Kayla and Lachlan just pulled me in and kept me turning those pages, so in love with them and cheering them on till the end. This book had me smiling, laughing, and full-on crying at points with my chest held tight. It will leave you with lots to think about and the realization that sometimes love is not enough – people really do need to hit rock bottom sometimes and want to pick themselves up for themselves. Love cannot conquer all, but hopefully it can be the light at the end of the tunnel that helps us pick ourselves up and strive for the best we can be.
The Play has left me in a huge book hangover – one where I can only overcome it by re-reading some of the best-loved parts of the book until I am ready to move on. I’m left imagining the beautiful scenery of Napa and Scotland as well as the amazing relationship of Kayla and Lachlan, how they love, how they support each other and how they deal with sorrow and past demons. Do yourself a favour and dive into this book as soon as you can and bring along a box of tissues.