From my understand this book follows Poppy and Jack. They’ve known each other for years, having met when they were children and Jack was parentless? I think he killed his own parents, truly I might be wrong. I was only able to get through 20% before deciding the book wasn’t for me. The best way I can describe it is I felt like the book had already started without me and I was sort of confused on what was going on. Also, I’m not the biggest fan of 3rd person POV but when a book captures my attention, I will over look it. This book however, it was extremely confusing whose POV it was. It would be mid chapter and just switch out of nowhere. Maybe it’s me, maybe I’ll give it another chance in the future since I don’t really like DNFing books.

DNF at 26%.

The premise of this book looks so interesting, I was so excited to read. But unfortunately, I just couldn't get into it at all. It flipped back and forth within a chapter to different POV with no marking. The storyline was a bit all over the place, and writing style just wasn't for me.

DNF at 32%

Just don't think this was the book for me! Enjoyed the writing style, I just had a hard time enjoying that characters.

Play Dirty is book one in the Tempting SEALs: Triton series by Lora Leigh.
I think I found my newest obsession!
Poppy and Jack had the absolute best chemistry and connection.
Lora Leigh done a terrific job crafting her characters and plots that keeps you turning the pages.
Play Dirty is a real page- turner that kept me up all night until I finished.

Thank You NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group | Bramble for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

The synopsis of this book caught my attention. I feel like it was poorly executed. Many plot holes and it lacked originality and character depth

I didn’t really know what to expect, I had high hopes for this book but it left me a bit confused and I struggled to wanting to pick it up and keep reading it.
It had lots of potential but I’ve found it boring at times and hard to follow with the change of character’s point of view without being clearly marked.
I wasn’t too keen on the MMC, found him very overbearing.

Thank you for giving me the e-arc for this book to read and review. All thoughts are my own opinions after reading the book.

I'm a huge Lora Leigh fan. But it's been a while since I last read one of her stories. So when I saw PLAY DIRTY available to review on NetGalley. I jumped at the chance and I'm really glad I did.

As this is a story that drew me in from the start. With two main characters who share a strong connection. But for a variety of reasons have been on very different paths since childhood.

With Poppy growing up in a big loving, safe family and Jack with an abusive father who he murdered when he was just a teenager.

Yet, no matter the paths these two have taken. They share a tight bond.

So when Jack is given the opportunity to get out of Leavenworth and help investigate Poppy and the two friends she works with he jumps at the chance, because he knows there is no way Poppy is guilty.

And he'll go to any lengths and kill anyone to prove it and keep her safe.

Whilst also trying to keep his distance.

But that is easier said than done. As these two are meant to be together and have the battle scars to prove it.

And with secrets, spicy moments, and danger. This is an enjoyable read. That does however touch on some sensitive subjects that could cause upset including several mentions of sexual assault and the rape of children.

If you love a jealous possessive over the top alpha hero ,LIKE ME, this book is must must must read for you! Lora Leigh set my Kindle on fire with Play Dirty. This one had every single thing that makes me obsessed. A larger than life broken alpha military hero. A sweet but fierce heroine. The thrill and angst of an age gap forbidden romance. The jaw dropping breathtaking suspense and twists. All the spice. I mean all the kinky filthy deliciousness. This book just kept me captive from first page to the last..and even now, I am under it's spell.

Jack Bridger, "dishonorably discharged" navy SEAL, is back to the town with four of his SEAL friends. Poppy never thought he will be back again and also..that he will claim her finally. The scared beaten down boy whom she rescued years ago in a rainy night is no longer there. He has become someone hardened, someone dark, someone dangerous but she knows he will never ever harm her. Little does she know that Jack is here on a big secret mission & she is key to the secret.


I won't give you any spoilers but there are so many moving parts and missing points those don't make sense till the end. Even the end is just mind blowing. This story spans across years. Decades. Little Poppy saved Jack once and since then, she is his only saving grace. I am so obsessed with Jack. He has been labelled as a psychopath with anti social personality and the military used his lethal skills but in reality..he is far from that. He is an expert at hiding his emotions..except when it comes to Poppy. He is so deliciously ridiculously possessive and protective..it gives me chills and butterflies. His life has little meaning without Poppy & he will die for her. His current mission is crucial for the country and the world but nothing is more important than Poppy. He has to use her to get close to the information he needs and it is killing him slowly. Poppy is hopelessly in love with him. She understands and accepts his shadows and his scars and his monsters and yet, she doesn't want to run. They are such a contrast and they fit with each other. Poppy is so kind and a complete sweetheart but she is strong too. Specially when it comes to Jack. The chemistry is just nuclear hot. The suspense was amazing and I want to read more and more about these men! Jack accepted he is damaged and he will never find love but Poppy proved him wrong. It just melts my heart to see an alpha being so soft for his woman.

I reviewed an early copy voluntarily

I started this book with a lot of expectations but unfortunately I didn't enjoyed as much as I was expecting to. In the beginning I was enjoying the story and the characters but then all of it started to get really confusing for me. In general this book, unfortunately, wasn't for me.
Thank you so much to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for giving me this ARC for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit. I loved the dynamic between Jack & Poppy. Bonded through childhood trauma where each of them were there for the other at different times of their lives, makes for two kids who grow up forever changed by the other's impact on their own lives. She loved him since she was 7. He was her protector when she became a teenager. Don't get me started on the plot - it was fast paced and unpredictable. Also, the spice was really good. This reads as an interconnected standalone, since the plot is not resolved, but it seems like we will be jumping to a different character's story to resolve the plot. Would read the next one.

ARC REVIEW
2.5 ⭐️
This book was alright. The love story between Poppy and Jack was cute and the spice was there. It just felt rushed and there was so much happening. It was hard for me to keep up and felt lost throughout the book. Also the beginning where it kept jumping back and forth was too much for me. I caught myself skimming. The ending left me really confused. Overall this book wasn’t for me but I could see other people really liking it. Thank you Netgalley and the author for giving me this ARC to read for an honest review!

I really tried getting into this book as the premise of the story of so interesting, unfortunately the writing style was just too difficult for me to get in to. I made it to about 25% but half the time I didn’t understand whose POV I was reading.

I gave this a 3.5 stars! The spice level was definitely there and was exactly what I expected. But there was some back door play which is really hard for me to read — without that, I probably would have rated it a full 4 stars! I think the author did a great job adding a foundational storyline to this, one that’s very real and raw right now. I think this is a very smart read, and it’s one I fully enjoyed. The chemistry between characters was there. The DRAMA. The betrayal. Though I did expect some of the twists, the epilogue had me FLOORED and shocked. And I cannot wait for a second book!

Thank you NetGalley and Lora Leigh for the ARC in exchange for the review.

Fifty Shades of Grey meets hard-bodied ex-Navy SEALs in this red-hot, suspenseful friends-to-lovers, girl-next-door romance from #1 New York Times bestselling author, Lora Leigh.

She saved his life when they were kids and then he saved hers. When she became a young woman, Poppy knew she would never love anyone the way she loved Jack Lee Bridger.

But after a near tragedy, Jack left home to become a Navy SEAL and Poppy knew there wouldn't be another like him. Not for her.

She remembered the way it felt when he looked at her with those smoldering eyes.

The way he kissed her.

Touched her...

Now it's years later and danger is dogging her footsteps and Jack is back.

And Poppy knows that he will do anything--absolutely anything--to keep her safe. She trusts him to protect her body, but can she trust him with heart?

I like the beginning of the story but it fell flat to me going through the book. The only thing keeps me going is the twist, but some part has me confuse. This book may not really be for me.

I have read everything Lora Leigh has written and for the most part loved them except a few outliers. This book as the start of a new series was ok but fell short.

I really enjoyed Jack and Poppy. Would have liked some actual dating to happen instead of relying so much on their past to fulfill the present though. Some weird moments of chemistry but overall good. Poopy was clearly the best of the relationship. She is feisty, demands respect and to be considered an equal. Honestly I enjoyed the other SEAL men more than Jack.

The AI aspect and how they started Jack’s squad was not fully thought through. The ending was like yay AI they were correct and then a couple weird curve balls thrown in that didn’t make sense to the plot of the rest of the 99% of the book at all. Then the squad is going rogue which makes no sense to who the men say they are.

With all that said I would definitely still try the next in the series because I liked the other men in Jack’s squad better anyways. Still love Lora Leigh this one just was a miss for me.

Hi unfortunately I couldn’t get into this book I tried so hard to get through it but made it up to 21% read and still couldn’t get the flow of it. What was hard for me to get into the book was the pov’s changing so much but hopefully others will like it, but I will not post a review on my socials but I will still promote it for the author starting on the 20th of March to get people hyped and hopefully wanting to read and buy the book

3.5 stars

This is a childhood friends-to-lovers story between Poppy Porter and Jack Bridger. Ever since 7-year old Poppy found and took home a beaten up 14 year old Jack, he has been protective over her. Even though he has kept his distance throughout the years, he made sure to keep tabs on her. At 17, Poppy is attacked and Jack was the one to save her. Her feelings towards him definitely grew but Jack didn’t think he was good enough for her so he left and joined the military. Now Jack is back, and he is once again there for Poppy when danger surrounds her. But this time he is not holding back from her. Even though he is keeping secrets of the real reason he is back and it could potentially make her hate him, he is determined to protect her and keep her.

There is definitely a lot happening in this book. The suspense and drama surrounding artificial intelligence and the secrets Jack was keeping from Poppy lowered my rating a tad bit. The chemistry and steam between Jack and Poppy was definitely there. Overall, I enjoyed their story and with the way it ended, I do want to keep on with this series.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Tor Publishing Group for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book. All opinions are my own.

I wasn't sure what to expect with this book, but truthfully this one missed the mark for me a little bit. It felt kind of all over the place. The romance fell flat for me- Jack's NEED to CLAIM Poppy was a bit much and the AI plotline was weird for me. I didn't HATE the book, I just feel like it was not for me.

Play Dirty is the first book in a new series by Lora Leigh, Tempting SEALS, and since I've been reading and loving her novels for years, I was thrilled to receive an advance reader copy of this novel, but I now also wish that I could give this novel more than 3 stars, but I had problems with Play Dirty, and so 3 stars it is.

First, the main characters, Poppy and Jack. Seven-year-old Poppy find 14-year-old Jack out behind a dumpster, beat up, bleeding, and freezing in the cold, and she order him into her house where her parents clean him up, tend to his wounds, feed him, and give him warm clothes--he's stunned by their kindness and generosity because his father is an abusive alcoholic/drug addict, and kindness and caring are alien to him.

Fast-forward about 10 years, Poppy has been waiting for him for all those years, but when he's returned home for short visits in the past, he's barely acknowledged her. Yes, Jack saved her from a would-be rapist when she was 17, but that's as much contact as they've had, and Poppy has loved him from afar for all that time, although at some point she purchased her own home, directly across the street from the house Jack now owns and to which he periodically returns.

During those no-contact years, Jack becomes a Navy SEAL, is threatened with a dishonorable discharge unless he and several other SEALs he knows, who are in the same situation, are tasked with a dangerous mission, and this is where the problems begin. A human-like AI (think Terminator II) is being shipped to his small hometown by some evildoers, possibly Poppy's employeres? Although we're never really told exactly who or why, Jack and his buddies are tasked with finding and destroying the AI before it becomes fully operational. His buddies are also tasked by Jack to make sure that Poppy is kept safe from everyone--another problem because it was hard to figure out who was who in the large cast of characters, which other groups were trying to be the ones to get to the AI first and get a promised huge payoff. They are not above using Poppy as a pawn in this high stakes game of military espionage/power struggle.

Meanwhile, Poppy and Jack finally get it on, as often as humanly and logistically possible. There are few authors who write steamier scenes than Lora Leigh, and I never thought I'd ever say this in a million years, but I found myself wanting fewer sex scenes and more relationship-building, character development, character identification, and a more detailed understanding of who the secondary characters were, who the bad guys were, how they planned to get control of the AI, and why all this subterfuge was going on in this tiny, out of the way location--the town Jack and Poppy call home.

Yes, there's the eventual HEA in your future, but it's not quite an ending, unless you call a cliffhanger an ending, which I don't, and if I was confused before, the cliffhanger left me even more confused as to where Ms. Leigh was going with this story, and these characters, because they don't seem to be part of her next book in the series, or are they? Your guess is as good as mine.

So, diehard Lora Leigh fans will probably eat up this novel like candy, but this Lora Leigh fan wanted to be left satisfied by the end of this novel, but all I was left with were more questions and uncertainty. I wish I could say I loved this book, but I know that Ms. Leigh is capable of better. I sincerely hope that happens in the follow-up to this novel.

As mentioned at the outset, I read an advance reader copy of this novel. The opinions stated are my own.

As I delved into the pages of Play Dirty, I couldn't help but feel the undeniable chemistry between Poppy and Jack. Their connection sparked with intensity, but as their story unfolded, I found myself yearning for a deeper exploration of their relationship. While Poppy's fiery personality and Jack's 'Fifty Shades of Grey' allure kept me on the edge of my seat, I couldn't shake the feeling that their bond needed more depth to truly resonate.

Amongst the steamy scenes, which were undeniably hot, I noticed some repetition that left me craving more variety. Additionally, the frequent shifts in perspective felt like a whirlwind, pulling me between viewpoints at rapid speeds.

In essence, Play Dirty offers a thrilling mix of highs and lows, perfect for fans of military romance with a twist of covert operations. While there are areas for improvement, such as the need for deeper character exploration, the undeniable tension between Poppy and Jack and the well-crafted spicy moments ensure it's an entertaining read for spicy romance lovers.