Game on is another hot and delightful story from Marsh. She is one of those few authors that can write in first person. Her technique is to do one chapter in her voice and the next chapter in his voice. Each chapter advances the story and the story is fast paced. Angelique wants to play for the newly formed Woman's Aussie Rules league. Her dad, a former professional soccer, player is not the most supportive person, and that bites. She works for her dad at his bar. But when she is not working she checks out other bars while waiting her time to play some footie. She meets Jax one night and, oh, what a night. Later she meets a sports agent that helps her an audition and is shocked when she discovers he is the man from the bar. They both have rules about mixing business and pleasure, but that line has already been blurred. So, Game On...

Game On by Nicola Marsh
Subgenre: contemporary/sports romance
Series: Women of W.A.R.
Release date: 1 Feb 2018
Publisher: Escape Publishing
Format: ebook
Length: 79 pages
RRP: A$2.99
Angelica Bryant wants to make it. She desperately wants two things, a job and a place in the new women’s footy (read Australian Rules) team. Her father is the owner of a bar called The Scissor Kick, which is reflective of his career as a footballer (read soccer). He never tells his daughter what he thinks of her abilities and she reads this as chiding or non-acceptance of her dreams. Then one night she meets Jack (but really Jaxon).
Jaxon Flint is a sports manager and this time he wants to have the woman attracted to him for himself and not for his job. He thinks that women want him for the contacts he has with some of the top sporting talent. But Jaxon has a secret about why he won’t date sportswomen.
One night the pair meet, there is insta-lust, and they go to his place for ice cream (read sex). She leaves in the morning without saying goodbye and he feels somewhat affronted. They meet later in the day when she turns up at his office to thank him (she doesn’t know it was her ice cream man) for the ability to try out for the Melbourne Muses (women’s Aussie Rules team). She obviously discovers the Jack and Jaxon are the same person. While Jaxon is on the phone dealing with one of his top sports people, Angel is outside his office placating another. He is astounded, and offers her a job.
Jaxon follows Angel’s season and finds that he is really scared when she suffers a concussion. It brings back too many memories of his sister and how she died. He goes back to the place where his sister died and he reflects on what happened and what cannot be. As with all good modern romances, the couple do get together.
I’m not a keen sports watcher. But I did like this story, and the series, even though it was about football (sorry about the back-handed compliment). I liked that Angel was prepared to go to almost any length to achieve her dreams of playing sport and working in the sports industry. Although she has a fractured relationship with her father, in the end, her father does admit his admiration for all that she has achieved. Naturally, Jaxon is able to resolve how he feels about his sister’s death and Angel playing sport, so they can be together.
Reviewed by Heather

Did not quite enjoy all the books in the series. Two books were excellent however the third one was so short and abrupt, it spoilt the entire experience

One of the new Women of W.A.R. series about the women of the Australian Rules football competition, Game On follows Angie Bryant, the daughter of a legendary soccer player determined to forge her own path. Gifted with superior sporting genes, Angie still has to prove herself as the star player for the Melbourne Muses - and to Jaxon Flint, the biggest sports management agent in the business - and also the guy with whom she had a fantastically sexy one-night stand without knowing his real identity.

There are a couple of hilarious moments when Angie finally figures out her mistake, but the relationship quickly turns serious, and not in a good way. Jaxon has a lot of baggage and Angie needs to focus on her career. Finding their way to a happily ever after looks impossible for a lot of the story.

Game On is only about half the length (at 79 pages) of the other two books in this series, and it felt really rushed to me. Though I enjoyed the story, there was a lot covered in a short time, and a couple of big time skips in the book I felt could have been fleshed out more. I liked it, but I was left wanting more and feeling vaguely short-changed. Four stars.

This story was great & hooked me from page 1. Nicola Marsh did a great job making a novella seem like a full length novel.

Angelica has always dreamed of playing football (soccer) for years, as her father is a legend in the sport. She cannot wait to play for the newly formed women's league. For her, it's a dream come true.

Jaxon Flint is a sports agent & never lets anything get in his way but when he meets Angelica everything changes. They click & even though they are strangers when they meet & Jaxon wants to see her again, he is very happy when she walks into his office. I loved their banter and relationship. Angelica is a strong woman & has hurts from her childhood but Jaxon allows her to lean on him & does his best to help her heal from those hurts.

I started out the Women of W.A.R. series in reverse order, leaving Nicola Marsh’s novella for the last, and to my relief, discovered that reading the books in any order had no bearing on my understanding of the timeline at all.

There was so much I liked about the initial setup, the pacing of the opening scenes and the conflict that Marsh had set up between Jaxon and Angie. And then it felt like everything was over before it began. It was clear that both Angie and Jaxon struggled with issues that I was looking forward to see Marsh unentangling, which unfortunately, didn’t quite happen at all. As a result, Jaxon seemed more like a bundle of contradictions (and an arse to boot in the way he blew hot and cold with Angie despite his own self-awareness), whose flat denial about not wanting commitment in order to keep his life uncomplicated wasn’t entirely given much depth, as was Angie’s somewhat abruptly resolved situation with her father as she tried to find her own way forward.

While Marsh did capture key moments for Angie and Jax, the brevity of this novella meant that the passing of time felt very pronounced with each chapter and with it, came a bit more telling rather than showing. I thought ‘Game On’ had so much potential, but was ultimately, disappointed by the lack of development that could have otherwise, made this a brilliant read.

This story just grabbed me from page one and I practically inhaled it, it is fast paced, steamy, witty and moving, MS Marsh has packed a lot into this one and left me one very happy reader, Jaxon and Angie come to life on the pages as we get to know them and they get to know each other, my advice is to make yourself comfortable for this one because you won’t want to put it down.

Angelica Bryant has always wanted to play Aussie Rules it has been her dream forever and now she has the chance with the Female competition starting and she has made the team, although her famous soccer Dad doesn’t seem to be too happy about her footy code she is in and stoked about it. When a one night stand (that she never does) with a stranger she meets in a bar turns, who turns out to be a top sports manager her world changes but she must put footy first.

Jaxon Flint managers some of the top sports people in the country, he is handsome and up front with people so when he meets a gorgeous woman in a bar and they seem to click instantly and he takes her home for the night, he is wanting more but when morning comes she is gone only to meet him again later that day when she walks into his office. It is a small world and fate has brought Angie and Jaxon together, but can he overcome his past hurts to allow himself to love Angie the way she deserves to be loved?

This really is such a great story the witty banter and one liners were fabulous as was Jaxon and Angie’s journey to such a sporty fabulous HEA, Angie is such a strong feisty heroine who knows how to love even with the hurt from her childhood and Jaxon I loved him what a hero but he was vulnerable and Angie was just who he needed. I love my sports and my romances and MS Marsh has combined them in a sensual, touching story that had me turning the pages woohoo I highly recommend this one, truly it is one not to be missed.

The first chapter of this book had so much potential for me. The banter, wit, secure female lead, charming guy. Then the story progressed and I never got a true sense of who each of the MCs were outside of their individual conflicts.
Conflict does not equal character development. A more cohesive relationship development or plotline would have gone a long way to helping me understand where each of these characters was coming from, their motivation, their personalities, what they saw in each other outside of physical chemistry and how they could get along long term.

Jaxon has some internal demons over his sister's death. This is a major thing in his life and has caused major emotional upheaval. This event has colored his whole life, affected his personal relationship with his mom, changed his view on the world...and yet the author seemingly resolves his conflict in a few conversations.
Angie has wanted to play Aussie Rules football for as long as she can remember. She also wants to be a sports agent. She has worked so hard to achieve these goals while working for her father. A father who, for some reason, is the least supportive person in the world. Was this conflict there to have Angie have something to strive for, someone to prove herself to? Knowing her father hates football, it doesn't seem like a realistic way for her to get positive attention from him.

And the time passage is weird, days go by, weeks even? Sometimes the time passing felt odd to me and confusing, it was difficult for me to keep up. Then the ending was so abrupt, I was surprised it was the last page!
I will take a look at the rest of the books in this series, but I may wait for reviews before trying another one out.

After reading the blurb for Game On, I was beyond excited to read a book centered around a female athlete! Unfortunately, the book didn't live up to the expectations of the blurb.

Ultimately, it comes down to the author attempting to cram too many things in roughly 70 pages. The book lacks focus and everything is underdeveloped and one dimensional. None of the characters, nor any of the plot points have any real depth.

- Angie's sporting career - Seeing her passion for Aussie Rules really had me excited to see her in action. We get an awesome scene where she smokes everyone during her tryout, and I thought....aww yeah, girl. This is gonna be good. And then we barely get anything else. A few bits of information that she's a rising star and BOOM her team's in the finals. ZOOM the game is over. I won't spoil the score for you ;)

- Angie's rocky relationship with her father - This just had me scratching my head. It felt forced and like the author was attempting to add parental angst without really committing to it. Everything about it is cliched. A massive jerk father who of course sees the error of his ways and gives a grand apology right before a pivotal moment in the heroine's life.

- Jaxon's guilt over his sister's death - Another "I need to add angst" plot point. This was also forced and awkward...and underdeveloped. It wasn't fleshed out enough to feel like a good enough reason for why Jaxon avoids relationships. It felt like the author just picked something that sounded good enough..."well, I gotta give him some reason." His relationship with his mother suffered because of his guilt, yet that issue is never resolved because apparently he just needed to deal with this to get the girl...

- the express lane romance - A few scenes together does not a romance make. These two barely spent any time together, had sex...hmmm I think it's like 3 times....and by the end of the book it's all "I love you?"

I'm not even sure what time frame this book spans. It appears to take place over a few months maybe? So I went and looked up how long the women's Aussie Rules season lasts and it looks like a little less than 2 months. Another checkmark in the "underdeveloped" column.

I'm really bummed I didn't like this more because the book had some great ideas and a really great premise.

I just wish the author would have picked what she wanted to focus on and really crafted those ideas because there are so few romances out there with an athletic heroine. But on the positive side....can we just acknowledge the awesome cover!?!

I thought this book was going to be a good book to read from the blurb and I did read this book. Was hard to get into but I did finish this book. It was ok book, not really for me but others might like this book. I hope more people will give it ago as it was a ok book but just wasn’t for me. Sorry

Game On starts the new Women of W.A.R series featuring women who play Aussie Rules football. Here an in-control sports agent clashes with an ambitious female athlete and sparks fly. Control slips and guards come down as emotion begins to seep into what was a one night stand.
Angie has been dreaming of playing professional women's Aussie Rules football for as long as she can remember. She's strong, forthright and dedicated. I liked that Angie dealt with things head on, not afraid to call a spade a spade. I admired her ambition and passion for the sport, and her work ethic with her job, and the way she balanced the two. She's also not afraid to take risks and go after what she wants, so I'm glad she was confident enough to confront Jaxon when he was being a jerk. And despite not having the support she wanted, she never let that stop her. She set goals, took risks and accomplished lots.
Jaxon is a control freak. He's also got a wounded heart from losing someone very dear to him, making him afraid to take risks. Even without taking risks, Jaxom is successful and at the top of his profession. He has an honesty and sincerity to him that I liked. Even when he was hurting and confused, he didn't run from a confrontation, and he told the truth. I'm glad that despite his fears, eventually, Jaxon was able to admit his feelings and was willing to take a risk with them.
Since I don't know much about Aussie Rules football, much of the sports aspects of the story went right over my head but I think there was enough of the technical aspects of the game included to satisfy fans of the game. Don't ask me if any of it is correct, because I do not know, but I'm sure Ms Marsh did her homework and got it right. I'm also glad to see the focus of this series being about women in prominent sporting positions in what's been a mostly male dominated sport. It's very empowering.
This is a quick and sexy read, and it has a decent enough of a happy ending (although a bit rushed) to keep my romantic heart satisfied. I'm off to read the other books in the series.

Game on by nicola marsh.
Angie spends her time either studying for working in her dads bar. Jaxon meets angie at the bar what is it with this woman?4 He just dont know but he wants to find out.
A fantastic read. I loved how jaxon and angie were together. I loved the ending. Perfect. 5*.

3 - "Turns out I may be a risk taker after all." Stars.

Book one of the Women of W.A.R. series gives us a little introduction to the Sydney women’s Aussie rules football scene in the telling of Angie and Jaxon’s story. Essentially a ONS, that turns into something more.

"You’re way too charming for your own good."

I think when you are giving a story over such a short amount of page space you need to reel the reader in straight off the bat, and the author did that here, and there were parts of the couples story I liked, but what could have been used as more page time with them together was actually wasted on pointless Daddy drama for me. Being novella length, the story didn’t need it, and I think the book would have actually benefited from a bit more detail in the sex department if you know what I mean.

"You can’t control everything… Life is a big risk, and if you don’t take any you’ll miss out on so much."

I did like Jaxon and Angie though, when they were together the story was pretty easy to read, Jaxon’s own demons were enough for the inevitable conflict between them, I just didn’t need the added distraction of the Dad situation too.

An average start to the series, let’s hope, the only way is up with Long Game, which conveniently is up next on my TBR.

I was a little disappointed in this one. Part of that is because what I was expecting---based on the premise of the series--was Angie's life on the Aussie Rules team. But instead, that's a small and underdeveloped part of the plot. Angie tries out and makes it and then the same day she gets another day job, and honestly the whole thing just felt confusing. There's another big plot about her Dad that gets magically resolved. I just had a hard time believing that after YEARS of acting a certain way, her Dad would just *bam* change and give a big heartfelt speech.

The romance was also a little underdeveloped for my tastes. There were 4 major plots--her Dad, her day job, her life as an athlete, and her romance---and none of them end up feeling very satisfying.

Unfortunately this book didn’t work out for me, largely down to its very short length. On this occasion I won’t be posting a review publicly. As such no ratings will be negatively affected.

A fun, sassy and sexy read for the lovers of strong female characters and sport.

Angelica Bryant wants to play for the newly formed Australian Women's Aussie Rules Football league, until then she is working as a bartender in her father's bar and looking for a career in sports management.

Jaxon Flint is a hugely successful agent for numerous sports stars. He is sitting Angie's father's bar one night listening to a series of men trying cheesy pick up lines on her, one thing leads to another and the two of them have a one-night stand. Neither of them knows that their lives are already connected and are about to become even more entangled. But can Angie build a career in sports management when she's banging the boss? And can Jaxon watch a woman he loves play a dangerous sport?

I was enjoying this book, but it was so short (66 pages according to my Kindle) that nothing really got a chance to develop properly. Angie had issues with her father who had been a successful soccer star and had put down Aussie Rules all her life. Jaxon's sister had died in a freak ice-hockey accident. All this was brought up and then quickly dismissed. Even the ending was really abrupt. I think it needed to be a lot longer so that the characters and the plot could unfold and develop more naturally.

Game On by Nicola Marsh was such a great read! I loved how the author made a novella read seem like a full length novel, without getting too bogged down in detail, yet was still a read that managed to snaggle your attention and keep it. The story was bliss reading. It told enough detail about the characters, with enough drama to keep my eyes glued to the story and keep me turning the pages. What a fantastic series starter.
Review copy received from Escape Publishing via Netgalley