Thanks to the publisher and to Netgalley for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Matt Lancaster is a dream -- a fantasy. Trevor is so lucky to have one of my fantasies come true for him! :) Alas, it's not all rainbows and unicorns for these two -- they have an uphill battle in their path to love.

The writing was a little juvenile and the plotting was a little predictable and the characters were a little stereotypical... but I really enjoyed it. It was nice knowing that, even though it wasn't deep literature, the author made great efforts to show that life is hard for the LGBT community, especially in the deep south... that true families aren't always the ones we're born into... that the future is always a beacon for hope and a chance for change... and that sometimes, even through the hardest of circumstances, love can help get you through.

I'm not sure it's realistic that these two would end up together permanently... but the ending was sweet and provided happiness for now, and I think it was the way it needed to end.

I'd definitely read more from this author, because she did provide depth to the main characters and those main characters had to deal with some real life situations that happen to many LGBT young people -- myself included.

I can't find a motivation for a star...
I'm a bit upset by my own review and I really doubt to put it online....maybe later

I always try to look for the strength in a book I’m reading, and with The Quarterback the strength was in how Trevor and Matt both treated their relationship. They struggled, particularly with Matt’s need to keep their romance quiet. They had fights, but they didn’t dwell on it. Trevor and Matt both worked hard to be together. That healthy bond is what I’m always looking for in a romance novel. I’m really tired of reading books that glorify unhealthy and emotionally abusive relationships, and that was NOT what The Quarterback was about.

I did also have some problems with the book. I think the biggest problem with this story was that I’m going to forget about it pretty quickly. While I liked both of the main characters, I didn’t think they were strong enough to carry The Quarterback’s plot. There wasn’t anything special about the story. It felt like a million other books with a similar theme. In the end, I didn’t think The Quarterback added anything original.

I’m giving The Quarterback 3 stars. Each star is for Trevor and Matt and their sweet romance.

*Review live on 9/11

I did a lot of reading this weekend. And one of the books that I devoured was The Quarterback.

First, if I am correct, this is the first book by Mackenzie Blair. I have not researched enough to see if she has written under other names or not, but I can say this, the writing of this book was spot on. Sometimes you get an ARC and it is littered with grammatical errors, as well as formatting issues. I honestly do not recall any in this book.

Second, the story was wonderful. It was a super sweet, sexy story of self discovery for a man who has been hiding who he is to please his father, to please his school, to please his team. He has never allowed himself to be free and he is suffocating. But then Matt meet's Trevor and all bets are off. What starts out as simple tutoring sessions regarding sex, quickly turn into more and the two are in a downward spiral toward love that neither one of them could stop even if they wanted to.

Sure this relationship was not perfect. They both have their insecurities but the one thing that is super evident is that they love each other and are not willing to throw the other away for no one or nothing.

If you love first time, steamy MM romances mixed with a hot quarterback, a gothy-like bad boy with a HEA, then this book is a must read!!

This is MacKenzie Blair's first M/M romance and I can see that the characterization and plot are pretty reserve. She went for the safest route and for seasoned M/M readers, I felt that I'm not being challenge. But on the other hand, I find it refreshing, not everything needs to be difficult. The part that I enjoy most are probably due to Matt and Trevor was pretty honest to each other right from the beginning. They didn't pour their heart out, but was pretty upfront about everything else.

Matt is the quarterback, the golden boy of the college. He is so deep in the closet that he is still a virgin. Well, at least we knew he isn't a manwhore who sleep with women to keep up appearance. The whole massage parlor incident happened because his best friends knew about his predicament and decided to help him out.

I watched plenty of gay massage porn before, but reading it is a whole different experience. There are a few session of erotic massage going on between Matt and Trevor, which is seriously hot. I thought it was kinky and fun and so illicit because those were Matt's secret outing. Anyway, the whole kinky massage did not took up the whole plot.

Trevor is a Korean American, but his race isn't really the focus of the story. Most of the time, I even forgot he is Asian because he got such an American name. Trevor is out and proud despite being in a conservative college. Trevor is the poor college kid juggling multiple jobs because his family is awful. He is more than happy to land the hottest guy in campus and love to teach Matt a thing or two about gay sex, but Trevor had no patience for Matt's bullshit. Trevor refuse to be a total doormat and his impatience shows.

Despite Matt being in the closet, he still wanted to pursue something with Trevor in campus. Most of the time, I don't like reading closeted case, they are either asshole or seriously depressing. But Matt seems like a very decent guy and he dare to admit he want Trevor although the journey to coming out is hard. The blow back that I anticipated isn't that bad, it seems convincing enough without going OTT. There are some moderate level of angst present whenever Matt and Trevor got into argument, mostly over 'coming out' of course. It did make me feel a tad emotional over it, but it doesn't make me want to throw anything. Far from it, I actually feel all these fight make their relationship seems more real and believable and it shows that not everything is hunky dory.

Overall, a solid NA, M/M, sport romance with lovable characters, hot erotic scenes, some family drama and college drama. All drama in moderation without going OTT. I agree the supporting cast left a lot to be desire. They seems to say those inappropriate stuff although they are suppose to be supportive. But I don't think this inappropriate moments ruin Matt and Trevor's story for me.

*´¨✫)
¸.•´¸.•*´¨)✯ ¸.•*¨)
✮ (¸.•´✶ (¸.•`❤️ 4.5 Riviting Stars ❤️

The quarterback.

"...he had a crush on the hot masseur at a happy ending parlor."

The quarterback's boyfriend.

"He wanted to give the big middle finger to all the haters."

The game to end all games.

"They were just two guys in love. And the people around them couldn’t care less. It was perfect."

One of the most guilty pleasure reading I have had in a long time.

Trevor, finance student, barista, tutor, masseuse, met Matt, college quarterback when Matt's friends took him to the parlor to loosen up. Little did Matt know what was going on. That scene was exquisite and the plot just exploded from there.

Every MM reader has read one or two college footballer trope so it's like, again? No. This one had something else. It had a story that needed to be heard. This one had me laughing out loud at the funny moments, taking to heart the seriousness of certain situations and reflecting on why love is love cannot be a thing without homophobic snares. Trevor and Matt had their ups and downs like any couple, and they proved time and again, fighting wins.

I so recommend this book. A great Sunday read.

I enjoyed this one, although for a bit in the middle it got a little slow but the last quarter picked up again.

I loved this coming of age romance. Both Trevor and Matt are adorable but facing a rough road ahead with not a lot of support.

I really enjoyed reading how these two opposites fell for each other. Their relationship wasn't always roses but they worked together to make their relationship work.

The pair also had amazing chemistry. They were hot both inside and out of the bedroom

~4.5~

~ a virgin quarterback ~ a forbidden massage ~ one very happy ending ~

Matt Lancaster is blonde and built. He's a star quarterback at a small Christian college in Alabama and a good student. Every guy wants to be him. Every girl wants to fuck him. Matt's living the American dream.

Except Matt's dream doesn't include a girlfriend or a pro career. Matt is gay and so deeply closeted, he's suffocating. His abusive, homophobic father schemes people out of money and keeps his son on a tight leash. Not wanting his younger twin sisters to suffer, Matt toes the line.

Until he meets Trevor, an edgy, tatted-up Korean-American boy from Texas who works three jobs to put himself through college.

The first time Matt meets Trevor, Trevor attempts to give him a DELUXE massage. Which is code for "I'm going to milk your dick until you come."

Matt freaks; Trevor blushes. It's the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

This book has it all:

- banter & great dialogue

- STEAM and more steam

- cool friends, and even cooler sisters

- a "tutor / student" relationship that moves way beyond biweekly sex lessons

- complex, lovable MCs (Matt does some stupid things, but he tries really hard and is so damn cute with Trevor. Trevor pushes too much and gets defensive, but he's also an excellent teacher and quick to forgive.)

- some angst & homophobic bullies (enough to lend the plot tension, but without OTT melodrama)

- awesome epilogue

- potential for a series (YES, please)

I'm so glad I took a chance on this new author!

Pretty much 5 stars for an overall awesome book with an AWESOME cast.

Absolutely LOVED Trevor. He's sweet, cynical, part Asian with a bit of a bad boy image, hitting all of Matt's buttons (mine too!) Trevor's adorable, really, caring and FUN; wonderful boyfriend material. Matt agrees, and after their chance meeting at a massage parlor can't get the edgy cutie out of his head! Their first meeting didn't go so smooth though and Matt's a bit at a loss for a while, unsure how to approach Trevor, should he at all?

The first chapter drew me in instantly. It was something else, something a bit different from the norm. I took an instant liking to Matt and his friends. I admit, I wasn't sure where this was headed with Trevor and the creepy massage parlor, heh.

Glad I gave it a chance! Turns out Matt and Trevor's journey was a fun one. Very sweet, über sexy, a bit cliche at times but the wonderful guys made it all worth while. I like a good cast! And even Matt and Trevor's friends were pretty awesome here. So yay.

Matt is one of those guys you can't dislike no matter how stubborn or at times frustrating. He means well, loves hard and wants to do the right thing. He's a bit ordinary and yet, not. He cares about his twin sisters and wants what's best for them, even if it means he's got to suffer a little longer.

While he wasn't exactly hot-and-cold Matt could be frustratingly stubborn when it came to staying in the closet, but he had his reasons and Trevor understood why it wasn't so easy for him to be who he wanted to be. Football, his scholarship? Definitely his sisters. Matt wanted to keep them safe until they're eighteen and could move out of their awful father's house. Who really is a fucking sleezeball.

If I'm being honest–which I always am–I have to say 330 pages did feel a little long for this type of story, but once again, my adoration for Trevor and the rest made it fun for the most part.

There were a lot of sex scenes but never boring and a bit on the kinky side. Not full on BDSM, so don't worry if that's not your thing. I liked seeing a bit of cum-play, lots of rimming, some rough sex, spanking and biting :) And again, if I'm being completely honest, I thought some of those sex scenes could've been cut without it impacting the story, and perhaps it would've picked up the flow a bit. I never felt like skipping a page though, so there's that. The boys really were FUN!!


➷

Highly recommended!

Would read again, and totally recommend to everyone who loves a good New Adult, college themed story which is not too heavy on the sport but definitely important :)



I received an ARC from NetGalley to read and review. The below is my honest, unbiased opinion. Thank you, Mackenzie Blair, the publisher, and NetGalley, for allowing me to review.

THE QUARTERBACK by Mackenzie Blair is a gay romance novel. It can be read as a standalone. It follows the romance between Matt Lancaster, the in-the-closet star quarterback at Bodine College, a small Southern Division II school with an ultra-conservative Dean of Athletics, and Trevor Kim, a fellow student who works as a masseur to pay for college after his parents disowned him for being gay. After a chance encounter at a happy endings massage parlor, the two form a powerful romance.

I really enjoyed THE QUARTERBACK, and I'm impressed that it was a debut novel. I enjoyed the themes, and I liked that the author showed the dark side of humanity: both characters have been shamed for being gay--Matt shames himself and Trevor was shamed by his parents. Blair doesn't sugarcoat anything, and it made for a more enjoyable read when the two characters finally find love. I highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys sweet m/m romances.

I’m going to jump right in and say I adored this book! Matt Lancaster, star quarterback and school hero and fellow student Trevor meet in quite unusual circumstances; Matt’s friends think he needs a happy-ending massage and take him to a parlor but little does Matt know, fellow Bodine student Trevor Kim is the masseur and he gets the shock of his life when Trevor attempts the proverbial ‘happy-ending’. The story unfolds and we find that Matt – who’s deep in the closet and coming to terms with idea of being gay - has had a thing for Trevor since having a class with him, instantly intrigued by the edgy, tattooed and gorgeous guy. Matt’s worried that if ever his sexual identity was revealed, he’d be off the team and not to mention the ructions it would cause with his Father... Trevor is out, but this didn’t come without its own traumatic event though, he was disowned by his parents and now has no contact with them and he has to work jobs at the parlor and the local coffee shop - as well as studying - just to keep his head above water. Matt can’t stay away from Trevor and ends up going to his dorm twice a week for private sex ‘lessons’. These two begin to fall deeper and external factors don’t allow them to be together. The story is told really beautifully as I felt for both main characters and understood why they acted as they did, they have so many obstacles in their way before getting the ending they deserved. It was heartbreaking at times, to see something so new and pure having to be sacrificed for the sake of Matt’s place at the school and also the fear of the safety and well-being of his two sisters. My heart broke at times reading this story; it was so very good and made me feel so much and then the ending made it all worthwhile. It was a definite five star read for me and I won’t hesitate in reading more of the author’s works.

This story really wasn't what I expected- but in a good way. Going from the blurb I expected a lot of it revolving around that massage parlor when in reality that's only a miniscule part of the story. More like a not so cute meet-cute than anything else. 
After that it's all about the college life and football in a less than gay-friendly environment. So yes, this story doesn't really offer anything new BUT it doesn't have to. It was still a very entertaining, romantic, sometimes surprisingly funny, hot and most importantly hopeful read. It was just a feel good story with two lovely guys and sometimes that's really all I want in a book. :)

This was a great read with a fantastic storyline and amazing characters. Trevor was definitely sweet, handsome and completely understanding. He knew who he was, what he wanted but his life was far from easy. Matt had the weight of the world on his shoulders and his dad didn't make it any easier. Matt's image was everything to his father, but his true friends and family accepted him because, to them he was simply Matt. I enjoyed Matt's friends and teammates Connor, Damian and Ryan a lot. This was a lighthearted read with funny parts, but it was also a realistic read about two people who find love and just want to be accepted for who they are and love who they love freely. I enjoyed this book and I look forward to reading more books from this author.

I really liked this book. I loved the relationship between Matt and Trevor. They were wonderful together. Their story was interesting and fast moving. I recommend this book.