3.5 STARS

I have been sitting here trying to ponder my thoughts, and I am kinda all over the place. As soon as I read the blurb for Songs For Cricket, I knew I had to give it a go. I am a sucker for falling for your brother's best friend / friends to lovers romance, and this book checked those boxes, but it was just okay to me. With that being said I will give you MY pros and cons of Laine's newest book. The writing was great, and story had depth to it, with relatable characters. I loved how strong minded some of the characters were, even when the odds were stacked against them. I loved the whole lyrical aspect, but wish there was more of it, it really would have changed the trajectory of the story, and made it more believable, I felt like the first half of the story was just blah. I almost gave it up, because even though this story is based on freshman in college, it felt childish, and immature with the actions of the characters. I also feel like if more details were added throughout this whole book, that it would had made the story feel more wholesome. To me, it just didn't feel complete. In my opinion, there is so many questions that were left unanswered, that could have easily been answered in one or two sentences. I don't foresee some of the unanswered questions being answered in this future series, because they really are not that important to the story, but they are to me. It would have made it so much more enjoyable. With my pros and cons listed, this will not keep me reading from this author.

Finley is most certainly not your average heroine. She is a tom boy, who loves sports just as much as a man. She is fiercely competitive, and will stop at nothing to make her dreams come true. She doesn't let society or any one dictate who she is. She is a triplet and the only girl in the trio. She prefers guys to girls, and enjoys spending time with her brothers and a childhood friend.

Shepard has not been the luckiest guy in the world, he grew up much differently than most kids. He had a tough time growing up, but accepted it as it was, and wants to make something of himself. He finds solace in music, either in singing or writing. He is fiercely loyal to those he loves, including his mama. There is not one thing he wouldn't do for her. He has been fortunate enough to be included in triplets clan over the years, and does everything with them.

When the Farrow triplets and Shepard decide to attend college together, things are drastically different than they were back home. When Finley has the freedom that she has always desired, she follows her dream. After years on the sideline, Shepard thinks it's time to make the move on the one girl he has always envisioned as his. But what happens when outside forces interfere? Can Finley and Shepard finally be together as one, or is the pressure from the outside to much?

*I recommend this book.
*Reviewed For Reviews From The Heart

Conflicted on this one. Sweet but left me salty with some of the events. Loved these two and them finally getting together.

This is a coming of age story and goes in-depth into topics that are happening in society today. As a triplet, Finley has always ran with the boys and did boy things with her brothers August and Cooper. Entering college has her trying new things like joining the football team. She never expected to hear Shepard, a childhood friend be accused of something so serious. As time goes on, the truth comes to light. This book was so good. I love the storyline and the characters are amazing. Terri E Laine is one of my favorite authors.

Finley is a part of triplets with her brothers August and Cooper. Also part of the group is their best friend Shepard. They are protective of each other, love each other, their sibling/friendship relationship is something people dream of. It was great reading their experiences and protective nature towards each other.

This book follows them as they enter college. Finley and Shepard love each other but has not admit out loud. Shepard is worried about his best friends August's opinion. He is worried about losing him.

The foursome are on the football team, Finley's dream is coming true, and she is the badass kicker for the football team. I loved reading their games and how her brothers and Shep played and believed in her as much as they did. She held her own truly!

Shep is dealing with a major crisis, and while bad things will bring people closer together, it also places self doubt. I loved these characters. It was really great to see Ashton from a previous book in his siblings book. I can't wait to read about Finn, August and Cooper in future books. Loved Finley and Shep's story.

3.5 stars

I'm chirping all over this one! (I know that was lame but I can't help it.)

Songs for Cricket is sweet and wonderful. It's unrequited and long time love. It's a brother's best friend romance. It's also a sports Romance. It is a lot of things but most importantly it will leave you with a smile on your face and stars in your eyes.

It will also leave you with linger questions about the rest of the crew. Here's to answers in our futures.

Coming of Age

Finley and Shepard grew up together; literally in some ways. Due to his father’s convictions Shephard had moved in with the Farrow’s until he finished high school. He was best friends with Finley’s triplet brothers August and Cooper. Finley grew up running with the boys playing football and anything else the boys were up to.

Upon going to college and sharing a town house with her brothers and Shepard, Finley was finally going to take a chance and try out for the football team. She was also ready to deal with her feelings for Shepard. It was her spirit and never gives up attitude that I liked which would also bleed over into the drama that ended up falling into Shepard’s lap.

This book did touch on a subject that is facing many colleges today. It also brought to the forefront that some things are not always as they seem.

This was a book that kept me turning page after page. It took my heart on a ride that I didn’t want to get off and left me with some unanswered dealings with August.

I really struggled with this and didn’t enjoy it as much as I wanted to. The beginning was ok but I lost interest about a third of the way in. I skimmed some of it just to get to the end. The storyline was ok, characters likeable, but it didn’t flow very smoothly. Wish I enjoyed it more.

If you have read others from this series your going to fall head over heals for Finley and shepard.

Terri has another hit on her hands with this one and I look forward to seeing what comes next. Plus love getting to know Finn a bit better as well.

Can’t wait for what come next from Terri

4.5 Stars – A must-read college sports romance!

This book took place in the world of the Chasing Butterflies Series but with the younger generation from Sawyer and the gang. I absolutely loved that we’re brought back to the place where everything started, and even though there were now different characters I still felt the lingering presence of Ashton and the others. Especially since the new group took up residence within the walls where Ashton, Sawyer, Chance and Kelley lived while attending Layton University. And now Finn, Sawyer's brother, was there as well! I’m so excited that he gets the chance to be a bigger part of this series because I’ve always loved this guy so much.

The story was told from Finley’s and Shepard’s POV and I adored them already when I first met them briefly in Ashton’s book. Well, I might have been biased with how much I loved them already before I started reading this book but I was confirmed in my love for them during this read.

Finley was stubborn but also a very brave and tough girl. I was in awe of her and of how she handled all the pressure and everything she had to deal with as the only girl around the boys.

Shepard was not easy to pin down because he was a great but rather normal kind of guy, he was one to stand back and assess situations first as opposed to August who had a very short temper, and Cooper the recluse who was the quiet and shy kind of guy. When it came to Finley though, all three of them didn't hesitate to stand in front of her for protection. While August and Cooper were her brothers, their friend Shepard has been in love with her for years. Since he didn't know if she reciprocated his feelings and he also didn't want to destroy his friendship with the boys, he'd only been pinning for her from afar.

Like typical teenagers, they didn’t talk about their feelings which led to a lot of misunderstandings and so many wrong conclusions. I loved that Finn was there to be the voice of reason and for the great conversations with him.

Oh to be young again. All the heartbreak and tough decisions. I didn’t envy them and even got frustrated to the point where I wanted to yell at them to just finally tell each other how they felt. Well, of course that would have been too easy and I was sitting on pins and needles until it was time for them to finally be together. Obviously, I rooted for them because I was a fan of them since the very beginning.

I loved the story and couldn't put it down with all the added drama that unfolded. It was nerve-wracking to follow all the lies and false accusation to the point of destroying a person’s life. Thank god for all the friends who had each other's back because that's invaluable.

The book had a familiar feel to it as the characters felt very similar to Ashton, Chance and Sawyer, plus the same environment at the University. But don't let this keep you from reading this book because after a few chapters, it didn't feel that way anymore as it obviously was a different story with different characters.

There were some football games in this book, what with all of them playing, which I loved especially because of Finley and how protective her guys were of her. I don’t know much about the sport but it was well enough explained, so even if you’re not into sports, this was an amazing read you really should consider reading! And if you loved Chance's book, you'll love this one as well.

Cooper the recluse reminded me a bit of Ashton which was probably why I felt an instant connection to him. I love him already and can’t wait for his book especially because this story hinted at August's and Cooper’s coming stories but nothing concrete was revealed.

A few words came to mind when reading this. Angsty. Frustrating. While I did fly through this book, and for the most part I enjoyed it, there were some things that bugged me. I get the whole feelings of unrequited love thing, but nobody is that dense. Literally everyone else saw it but three characters. I mean, really?
I also felt that the book skipped parts. I don't know if it was the writing style or what, but I felt like things jumped ahead without warning, and it left me confused. There were pages where I was flipping back and forth and re-reading whole pages to make sure i didn't accidentally skip over something.
Overall, it was a pretty good read, and I flew through it in a day. It was cutesy and worth reading, but yeah some things just really bugged me.

Finley and Shepard's story is a sweet coming of age, young adult novel. I realized that I'm probably too old for this genre when I found myself rolling my eyes at the internal thoughts of the main characters. The writing was great, and the characters were fun. I love sports romances, so having the main female character be a football player was a huge draw. Very cool addition to the best friend's sister, secret crush, sports and psychopath mixture. Songs for Cricket was a quick, enjoyable read.

This is a cute, easy read for those who enjoy typical sister-and-brother’s-best-friend-already-know-what-will-happen stories.

Such a cute and sweet fast paced read. Truly enjoyed their story and can't wait to see who's story we get next!

*ARC kindly provided by author/publisher via NetGallery in exchange for my honest review.*

So I have to be honest I was a little nervous to read this story. Since this is based in the same setting as Terri's Chasing Butterflies series, Layton University, I was afraid this was going to be much like those books.

And in the beginning of this story I thought it was similar. I almost gave up reading it because I was doing more eye rolling than reading, it seemed. But I am thankful I stuck it out, because around 40% this story took on more of it's own feel for me. From that point on I was truly invested in Shepard and Finley's story.

I enjoyed the storyline for the most part. Some of it was predictable and I saw certain things coming before they happened, but how it all played out took me by surprise. I did think that some of the storyline (Billy's part) was kind of unnecessary and just added to much drama for my liking. That is where a lot of my eye rolling happened.

But since I am such a huge fan of Terri's books I had to keep going. I truly enjoyed Finley's storyline, showing that females can do anything they set the hearts to. She showed that what once was a man's sport, can also be for females as well. No matter what her family said. I thought that message alone was strong enough for en enjoyable story.

In this story we meet Finley, Shepard, August and Cooper. They are the next generation of Layton University students. Where the connection to the first group of Layton Students comes in is, Finley, August and Cooper are the younger siblings to Ashton (Craving Dragonflies). Also Finn who is Sawyer's (Changing Hearts) brother is living in the house with the newest freshman. We do get a little but of Sawyer, Shelly and Ashton in this story, but those books do NOT need to be read to enjoy and follow this story.

Finley is determined to come to Layton and make the football team, but she is also determined to move on from her unrequited feelings for Shepard while in college. Shepard is Best Friends with August but has known the family for a long time. Making his growing feelings for Finley dangerous. He has been in love with her for many years but because of his friendship with August has done nothing to pursue her. That is until his chance to make a move might be gone forever. Can these two get on the same page?? Will they find their HEA?? What happens when a life altering situation occurs, can they get through it together?? Read this book to find out.

If you are a fan of a New Adult sports romance novel, then you should give this one a try. It is a standalone novel and told in Dual POV.

The blurb and cover of this book had me picking up this book. Brothers best friend books are my favorites to read. And this one definitely didn't disappoint. This is my first time reading this author and definitely won't be my last. I absolutely fell in love with Shep and Finley and their story was a rough one but it was perfect. I didn't want this book to end. I want so much more from these two characters and the others In this book. This book was completely different than any other brothers best friend book I've read and I loved it so much. I was hooked from the first page until the last. I can't wait to see what this amazing author comes up with next. This authors words hooked me completely. So in love with this authors words and need more words from her.

Ah, young love! The shy glances, the misunderstandings, the angst...what's not to enjoy? I love new adult romances for their young adult conflict paired with very adult sexual situations. It's a coming-of-age type of romance, where they're starting to feel out what a real relationship looks like and figuring out how to navigate "adulting" when it comes to their problems. Mom and Dad aren't there to fix things - you have to figure it out yourself. I loved the two main characters in this story, and it's obvious that the secondary characters are very deserving of their own books. I became invested in all their lives, honestly, and you'll get sucked in too.

Shepard Connelly has loved Finley Farrow ever since they became teenagers and their feelings grew from friends to something more. But Shep lived with her family, and he knew she was off limits, so he kept his distance. Years go by, and now Shep, Finley, and her two brothers are all living in the same house, getting ready to start their first year of college. No parents are around to keep them in check, and with Finley having attracted the attention of the star quarterback on their college football team, Shep is worried he has some major competition. If he doesn't speak up soon, he may lose the change to be with Finley forever.

As I said before, shy glances, misunderstandings, and angst abound in this new adult romance! Poor Shep and Finley - so cute and yet so blind to each other's feelings. You feel the tension between them, and it's a push-and-pull sort of tension, where they come so close to getting together and then something pulls them away. And then, inevitably, they're pushed together again. It's a slow burn due to all the misunderstandings, where they each think the other is interested in someone else, and so the reader will spend several chapters tearing their hair out in frustration. If only they could see what we see! Shep was a sweetheart and such a gentleman. I loved how protective he was of Finley and never forced his attentions on her, even when he wasn't at his best. He wanted her to be happy, even if it wasn't with him. *sigh* Finley was a really confident woman who wasn't afraid to go after what she wanted, even if it meant being the only female on an all-male football team. She proved herself time and time again, and she always took the high road. I really respected her. As the story progressed and things got more difficult for her and Shep, I was happy to see that they both didn't change for other people, and they didn't let opinions sway how they felt about each other.

I can't wait to read what's next for this series! This was my first book by this author, and I loved it. My guess is either Cooper or August will get their books next, but I really, badly want a book for Finn as well. Pretty please?

Fantastic read with interesting characters and a gripping storyline. I applaud the author for topics touched within in this story. While they may not always be the most popular they need to be told, which she did beautifully. I was enthralled from page one and did not want the story to end. I hope to read more with these characters in the future.

A sweet coming of age, friends to lovers college sports romance, with the added bonus of, she’s also his best friend’s sister. It pretty much covers all my favourite genres in one story. Finley has grown up with three brothers (four if you include their best friend Shepard), so it’s no surprise that she’s into football, she’s practised with them forever, she can play with the best of them, and she does. When they finally get to college both Finley and Shepard struggle to hide their secret crushes from each other and everyone else. Loved the writing, and the story, which had everything from sweet secret love and romance to a scorned and broken psychopath. I loved the Farrows children and mum, dad not so much, but Shepard really stole the show for me, he was adorable, and always tried to do the right thing. I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is my honest review.

Shep's girl sometimes just has to speed him up a little, "I glanced down at her with a crooked smile. “Hopeful. But if you don’t—” Her hand around my ***k was answer enough. “I have to get this on if you want me to eff you.” Shep's girl is often amused by his embarrassment, "she pulled me down for a hug and kissed my cheeks like she’d done when I was a boy. “Mom,” I said, a heat coloring my cheeks. Finley only grinned at my embarrassment." I liked this book, I loved the characters hopefully this is the start of a new series because I want them all to get books.

5 STARS FOR SONGS FOR CRICKET!! This book will hit all your emotion buttons and the characters are perfect. The story of Finley and Shepard is forbidden, but it is hard when you love someone. There are tough subjects this book hits on, but so worth the read, perfectly executed by this author. You definitely need to 1-Click this book.