This tight end is at the top of his game. He’s good with his hands, even better with his sexy mouth, and the best at making me forget my own name. His—ahem—stats are perfect.But I can’t fall for him. He might be everything I want, all rolled into a glorious package of gridiron god, but there’s one teeny-tiny problem. The vile, loathsome team I’ve spent my entire life hating—my beloved school’s … hating—my beloved school’s arch-rival?
This guy is their star player.
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I am not a sportsball fan in real life. But in my fake reading life, I love me some sportsball books. I don’t know why but I love reading all of them, just not watching any of them on tv. When I bought this book, I had no clue it would be about Ohio and Michigan. I live in Michigan. 20 minutes outside of Ann Arbor. I really like U of M, especially the kick ass marching band. I have several family members that work for U of M and I’m a past employee as well. I totally get the whole hate/hate fans have for these 2 teams! It’s epic hate, y’all. I think it’s totally dumb but I get it. This book absolutely nailed all that hate, it was great! I chuckled so much at Kayla, she had some of the best one-liners. Her mom killed me! I thought Jay and Kayla were smokin’ hot together and it was such a fun book to read.
GO BLUE!
So I have been a die hard Nikki Sloane fan since the beginning. There isn’t been a story of hers I haven’t loved, and a leading man I didn’t fall in love with. Going into this one I knew I was going to devour it. Why you say??? Well only because this book centers around THE biggest rivalry in College Football; Michigan vs. Ohio State. Go BLUE!!!! Now you see, being from Michigan and a HUGE Wolves fan, yes I call them Wolves, I was excited to see where she would take this book. And let me tell you, she delivered 10 fold! This book couldn’t have come at a better time leading into THE game of the year this weekend either.
In The Rivalry, we follow the story of the head cheerleader of the Ohio State Buckeyes and a star player for the University of Michigan Wolverines. Kayla and Jay meet at a wedding one weekend. Neither aware of who one another was or where they went to school, who they cheered for on Saturdays. When the chemistry between them is so smoking hot you are rooting them on even knowing where their allegiance lies, you know it’s going to be an adventure.
Once Kayla discovers who Jay is, her gut reaction is there is no way in hell she can move forward with Jay! She can’t be with a member of her arch rivals team. But something about Jay keeps her attention drawn to him and surprisingly leaves her open to the possibility of what could happen between them. Jay is adamant from the get go he isn’t letting her go, regardless of where she goes to school. Their bond seems very unlikely with so many differences, but the more things fall into place the more you realize how many of those things are actually their similarities.
This was such a fun read getting into the details about sports, obviously my love for this rivalry, and the passion she has created between two sworn enemies. These two are passionate and Nikki wrote this story so well. She has stated that this story started out as a screenplay years ago and man I’d love to see this one unfold on the big screen one day. But she has intertwined what most OSU or U of M fans would never even fathom or believe to be possible. Such an interesting and significantly strong bond between two amazing characters.
GO BLUE!!!! Beat Ohio State!
The Rivalry is very different from Nikki Sloane’s previous books but I loved it just the same. It’s a sexy, star-crossed lovers sports romance.
Kayla McCarthy is a bridesmaid at her friends wedding when she meets the very sexy, irresistible Jay. What she doesn’t know at the time is the Jay is Jay Harris, number eight-eighThank t from Michigan, her colleges football rival.
Kayla lives and breathes OSU (Ohio State University). Her father was a coach at OSU, her mother went into labor at a game and Kayla is the cheerleader captain. Their family bleeds OSU red. So when Kayla discovers Jay is from Michigan she’s out of there.
Jay could care less about the rivalry, unless he’s on the football field. He’s attracted to Kayla. He likes knowing that Kayla likes him for him and not is football number. He’s ready for the to chase after her. Oh boy does he have a chase ahead of him.
The story is a whirlwind of conflicts. It’s Kayla and Jay’s attraction and growing feelings that finds a way to move past the rivalry. Now if only Kayla’s parents can accept their relationship.
I loved the crazy chemistry between Kayla and Jay. They faced unexpected challenges that solidified their relationship in the end. Love this story! 5 Playbook Stars!
This is the first time I have read anything by this author and I will be loading my TBR with her books! I thought by reading the blurb I knew what I was getting, wrong. The blurb doesn’t do it justice! I was hooked from the first page! I hoovered through this book so fast, I couldn’t put it down.
Kayla is a senior at Ohio State University. She is captain of the cheerleading squad and a die-hard OSU fan. Her dad was the defensive coordinator for years at OSU and her mother even gave birth to Kayla in the OSU stands. Her family bleeds Ohio State Red! Kayla knows football and she scares suitors away because she knows stats and facts. The joke between her and her friend is that she made one of the guys she tried dating cry. Kayla promises her friend that she wouldn’t talk football or sports while at her wedding, which Kayla was a bridesmaid.
Jay is a senior at The University of Michigan and the star tight end of the football team. He’s working hard to earn his degree and to also improve his game to enter the NFL draft. He is too busy to have a relationship, but he would like to meet someone that would love him for him, not his popularity as the football star. He is the ultimate book boyfriend. Gorgeous, smart, funny, sexy, the total package! He had me swooning!
Kayla and Jay have a chance meeting at their mutual friend’s wedding. They hit it off and shared a few kisses. Jay gave Kayla his phone number but left off the last digit on accident. Kayla thought he did it on purpose because he didn’t want her to call. That wasn’t the case at all. They finally get a chance to see each other but the problem is Kayla finds out he goes to Michigan. Kayla HATES Michigan. Her family HATES Michigan. There is no way she can date this beautiful man. He is funny, sweet, incredibly sexy and his kisses make her weak in the knees. It just won’t work. Her family would never accept him and how could she explain it to her friends or the cheerleading squad?
Jay doesn’t have the distaste for OSU as much as Kayla does for Michigan. He reassures her that the rivalry shouldn’t get in the way of what they feel for each other. Their chemistry is scorching! He is so patient, but Kayla has a hard time of letting go of the rivalry. He could convince her though, all he had to do was kiss her and she melted.
I will tell you that this book had me laughing out loud! The banter, the parents, teammates and friends, added to the hilarity. I enjoyed this sweet, funny, and very sexy read. There is so much I want to tell you, but it would ruin the experience.
I highly recommend this sweet, funny and very sexy sports romance!
Kayla and Jay’s story was such a sweet and sexy read. Kayla and Jay go to opposite colleges that have had a hard fought decades long rivalry. Kayla is a cheerleader that loves her school and it is the same school her family have loved for years. Jay is fighting with so much burden of being the perfect son and perfect player. The chemistry between Kayla and Jay was scorching. The story kept me on the edge of my seat, not knowing what will happen next. I loved the development of not only the story but the relationship of Kayla and Jay and the struggles they faced. Definitely a must read book.
4.5 Stars
The Rivlary is a fun, sexy, passionate, and above all engaging sports romance with a unique and original plot.
From the moment I picked up this title, I didn’t want to put it down. I was captivated by Kayla’s opinionated, sassy, stubborn, borderline obsessive and kinda crazy personality. Whilst on the other hand I found Jay to be incredibly sweet, charming, determined and persistent in going after his goals.
The chemistry between Kayla and Jay is intense and undeniable, and the sexual tension just oozes off the page. Their banter is fun, witty, flirtatious, and argumentative with moments that are full of heat, heart and humor. Their interactions had a natural and believable quality and I loved that their story was told in a dual point of view.
Although The Rivalry does have an angsty plot, its well balanced with light hearted moments full of humor that had me laughing out loud.
I adored this title and cannot recommend it enough to anyone who enjoys a sports romance, or young adult collage romance.
I really liked The Rivalry it would be my first read by Nikki Sloane but not my last I hope to see more from the characters . The story line had me hooked from the start the only reason I gave this a four instead of five was because the heroine at times took the rivalry a teeny bit far at times to the point of irritation . Thought it was cute the way Kayla and Jay meet it’s a instant attraction that can’t be denied and the easy banter they share had me silly grinning , when they find out who the other was it was like looking at something and not being able to look away . Kayla is a sassy little thing who takes her school spirit to a all new level thought she was cool but at times she did frustrate me especially with how she was at the heroes game . I seriously love love loved Jay there was nothing wrong with him the selfless things he does for the heroine was swoon worthy . The sex scenes were super steamy and the witty banter they had made me smile . I’m so excited to read more by the author
copy provided for honest review
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hero=10 heroine= 7 secondary characters= 8 Chemistry=9 steam= 8
romance= 7 humor= 6 darkness level= 2 action= 3 mystery= 3
enjoyment= 8 angst= 4 story line= 10 Story ending=10
character development=10 pacing= 10
cover= 10 stars= 4 author= 8
would I recommend this book=yes
would I re read this book= yes
would I read future books by this author= yes
***ARC Provided by the Author and Give Me Books***
Kayla and Jay go to rival schools, Michigan and Ohio State. My husband is from Ohio, and I know how seriously these football fans take their football. Heck, we had a person ask me if I knew we had scheduled our WEDDING on a Saturday the Buckeyes were playing. So, I get it and I was expecting this book, and the rivalry, to be funny.
It mostly was, and maybe I haven’t experienced enough of it, but this went too far in places for me. Was it amusing? Yes, and it was a humorous premise for the “forbidden romance” so I mostly let this go and enjoyed the story.
It was well written as Nikki Sloane books always are. The pacing was strong and I mostly believed the characters. There were times where I thought, as I said earlier, that the rivalry was overdone in places and it did result in a few areas where I was not totally able to engage with the story, but I enjoyed it overall.
I do recommend this title.
Michigan and Ohio State are huge rivals and Nikki Sloane shows how intense it can get between the two in The Rivalry.
Kayla is a cheerleader and Jay is the star football player, they should be a match made in heaven. At first it is fun and they are really into each other, that is until they learn they are on opposite sides of the field. Kayla cheers for Ohio State and Jay plays for Michigan, two of the biggest rivals in the game. To start a relationship would be social suicide and can even cause troubles with family. What do you do when you fall for the enemy?
I have said it before and I will say it again, I am not a sports fan. My husband however is a huge fan, and this rivalry right here has caused many debates in my household. I’m not sure if you need to live in Ohio or Michigan to get the full experience, but let me tell you that it can get crazy. From harmless taunts to fist fights or worse. The best thing about this book is that it really gave you the feel of that intensity.
It can be easy to say that Kayla is annoying, and she was making things harder than they needed to be for Jay, but anyone who says that has never had the privilege of watching from a high top while two drunk adult men get physically violent over a call during a Michigan/Ohio State game. It can get brutal, and growing up in Ohio gives me the up close and personal knowledge to be able to say that Kayla handled it the best way she knew how.
Jay was resilient in his wooing of Kayla. Which is a good thing, because she would not have given in if he hadn’t been. It is funny to me how seriously people take a game, go ahead and get upset but it IS a game. Nikki did a terrific job with this rivalry and I felt that some of these scenes could have been taken straight from my own memories of the things I have witnessed.
The was a wonderful enemies to lovers and sports romance that was true to life and a fun enjoyable read. Totally worth the read, although I suspect if you are either a Michigan or Ohio State fan your view may be different. FOUR stars.