Angel is a young single mom, working multiple jobs while going to school. She's nearing the finish line for nursing school, and so close to providing her son with a more normal, less struggling to get by, sort of childhood. Nothing has come easily to her, but luckily she has a best friend, Gabriela, who has her back no matter what. Things can be especially difficult financially since her son Jose suffers from asthma and paying for his medication often means no groceries. As she's finishing up her clinic practicum, she's forced to avoid the slimy doctor who gets a little too close and touches her shoulders too often. But she has to play nice so he'll help with Jose's medication.
Caleb, aka the Duke, is a Yankee pitcher who is not quite recovered from an ankle injury. To save face, he pays the clinic doctor under the table for treatment, but while there can't help but be captivated by Angel, who he runs into again and again (sometimes by accident, sometimes on purpose). To keep the press off his trail, he asks Angel to play his fake girlfriend to explain his presence at the clinic. Angel's thrown into the deep end of what a rich baseball lifestyle looks like, and what secrets may be hiding beneath the glitzy surface.
This book was a quick read, with a lot of redeeming qualities. The characters had fairly rich back stories, allowing for you to really understand their motivations throughout. No one was perfect (as in life) and they screwed things up and made questionable calls, but ultimately, they were realistic. Angel and Duke's attraction and romance made a lot of sense, especially since they started off pretty rocky. I liked seeing a badass feminist woman take charge of her life. Angel was a powerful woman with her priorities in place. One thing I'll say is I thought there would be a lot more baseball in the book, and there really wasn't.
The writing style left a bit to be desired, and I wasn't 100% thrilled with the ending, which felt abrupt. Overall though, a good diverse addition to the growing contemporary romance genre.
A review copy was sent to me through netgalley.

I don’t know what I expected, from the summary you know that the love interest is someone famous. But I did not like that aspect of the book at all. Or more specific how Angel acted towards him, and because of him. In the beginning of the book we learn that Angel is this strong independent teen mom. She is about to get her
nurse diploma, get a good job, and create a great life for her son. Then this famous baseball player comes around and everything changes.. I don’t like that at all!
I really liked how in the beginning of thee book they were showing that being a teen mom can turn out in a good way. Angel was putting her son before everything, but her son became less and less present towards the end.
What I really did not like is that Angel started to feel bad for him, and was putting her own problems aside. Like yes some bad things were happening in his life, but that doesn’t mean her problems, which were created by him, were not important.
I don’t like it when people totally disregard there own problems/life for this love interest that’s been in there life for 2 days..
So by the ending I was quite annoyed by him and didn’t like the ending..
This rating is given because I did like the beginning couple of pages. And her son was quite. And she had a really good friendship with this girl, and I think I liked her better than the main character!

This is a fake to real romance but with lots of mean attitudes and behaviour.

Angel Gomez may have become a single Mum whilst only sixteen years old but she's determined to do the best for herself and, more importantly, for her son. She's studying to become a nurse, currently on placement in an emergency clinic and also working in a cocktail bar to help pay the bills. She has lots of sass - and needs it. However, she lives up to her name in many ways but has no time for love or romance. She is extremely worried about her young son's asthma, so much so that she's actually writing the final paper for her nursing degree concerning the horrendous difference in death rates for children with asthma depending on their ethnicity.

Caleb Lewis is nicknamed 'The Duke' and is a star pitcher for the Bronx Bolts. He's had a terrible year after being shot in a gangland shoot out which also resulted in the death of his best friend and team mate. As situations develop which have her pretending to be his girlfriend to enable him to explain visits to the clinic without confessing that his injury isn't fully healed, romance starts to blossom but his attitude and her concerns over her son both put strains on their potential relationship. Add in to that unexpected money worries for him, his father's secrets and what really happened in the shoot out and it definitely isn't just a romance!

There are some humorous moments in this story which also has a significant element of suspense. It is an engaging read though with characters who seem nastily real, often somewhat derogatory in their comments and attitudes because they are portrayed warts and all. Both main characters have others trying to push them to do things which they don't want to but will the pressure be too irresistible? The story is a part of their life journeys and whilst the romance is a key element, there is also a developing of the rights and wrongs of decisions made by various characters. If sexual harassment is a trigger for you, avoid this book - though the perpetrator does get caught. You're never quite certain how these will be resolved but I will say it has a heartwarming happy ending and I found it an easy, relaxing read though I don't think I'd relate well to anyone at all like either of the main characters at the start of the story! If sexual harassment is a trigger for you, avoid this book - though the perpetrator does get caught.

I requested and was given a copy of this book, via NetGalley. This is my honest review of the book after choosing to read it.

These authors are new to me so I wasn't sure what to expect. I really liked how the book started off where they took a single mom who was kicking butts to make something for her and her son, and that's where it stopped for me. I felt like Angel was built up as this independent women and was make something for herself and the she caved to a real jerk. I was not a fan of "the Duke" at all, they tried to make him the hero of the story and I was done at that. The story I guess you could say gives you an eye into what its like for some of the rich in famous with drug use, sex, unfaithfulness, parting and guns. In the end I felt it was abrupt and kind of leaves you to finish what happened with the main story line. Over all this book was not a book I could say I would recommend it was not a book for me that's for sure. There is a lot of cursing and graphic details in this book so it may not be for all readers.

I saw the adorable cover of this book and downloaded it from Netgalley based entirely on that and a cute description. I... should have waited for more reviews before taking a chance on this one. I'm hoping the final version of this book has better separation between the point of view switches- in the e-galley version that I read, points of view will very randomly switch mid-scene with no indication, but that jarring change was far from the only problem int his story. I was never sure what the attraction was between the characters- they are kind of consistently terrible to each other (ESPECIALLY Duke to Angel), often in ways that, to me, would have been unforgivable. Duke's friends and their wives/girlfriends are also pretty terrible- both to each other and to Duke and Angel. I know there has to be conflict in a romance novel- but I guess I need to find something likeable about the characters as well.

Unfortunately this one just wasn't for me.
The writing, the inconsistences... I just couldn't finish it at this time. Maybe after a while, I'll come back and try to read it again but I just couldn't at this time.

*Ignore the star rating, I couldn't submit unless I rated it.
At this time, it's a "no rating" review from me.

The Story:

Angel Gomez lives in the Bronx. An unwed mother by age 16. Her son Jose means the world to her and she has worked and studied tirelessly to get to where she is now. Passing her finals at nursing school. She has no time for men or playing around.

Duke Lewis, a star pitcher who parties hard and is basically a drunk with issues. In order to keep his place on the team, he needs to clean up his act. What could be better than a nurse? A pretend girlfriend until the headlines die down.

My Take:

Angel has a rather uppity attitude towards other women. I could not understand why she would agree to do something that seems so out of character for her. All of the men were disgusting stereotypes of male athletes and their money hungry wives. 

For me, this was much like the Real Housewives. Bad and embarrassing. 

NetGalley/ St. Martin's Griffin  June 11, 2019

I love contemporary romance so when I saw the cover and read the description I was excited to give this one a read. Unfortunately, I did not like this. The writing is very choppy and characterization is very poor. It's very high on the drama and that seems like it the focus more than the characters. I didn't like anyone and wasn't engrossed in the story. My dislike is unfortunate since there is such a low number of people of color as leads in a contemporary romance novel. I wish this was better than it is.

Sorry not my type of book. I could not get interested in any of the characters and the story did not live up to my expectations. Sorry.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

This was such a quick little rom-com that is smart, witty and endearing. Caleb and Angel both have a ton of baggage, yet they somehow manage to make it work. As a single mother, Angel is doing everything she can to juggle nursing school, two jobs and her son’s asthma, while Caleb “The Duke” is recovering from a potentially career-ending injury sustained during a traumatic event.

It’s definitely a super quick read ( I finished it in about 4 hours) and loved how it mainly revolves around POC characters. Overall, it was a great read.

The Perfect Date ⚾️

“Just a minute, the Duke is about to pitch...”

This book was definitely not what I was expected but I liked it non the less!
When I first saw the cover and synopsis I thought it was gonna be a rom-com, but it definitely turned out to be much more suspenseful and drama filled.
This book was fast paced, kept my attention, and I finished it in one sitting!
Definitely recommend for someone that isn’t into super steamy romances and likes a bit of a hard-to-get love story.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thanks to @stmartinspress for an early copy!

Can you make this work? Caleb "Duke" Lewis has it all a good career at the Yankees as their star pitcher and all the money that he needs but he is lying to everyone around him. Can he really recover from his ankle injury or will this be the end of his career? Angel is trying so hard to hold everything together she just needs to get through these last exams then she will be a nurse but her son Jose has just taken a bad turn his asthma is getting worse and she just hopes that she can make some more money at her night job to be able to get all the medicine that he needs. Duke can't get the nurse out of his mind he knows that he is taking a big risk by going to the clinic but he has no choice he just hopes that the doctor will keep his mouth closed. So he is surprised when he sees the nurse at the local club but things go downhill quickly as he had been drinking and he thought that he was clever. Angel is fired and now she knows that she can't afford to get the rest of Jose's medicine and she just hopes that she can talk to her boss and that he will forgive her from throwing the drink into clients face. She knows that things are only going to get worse so when she sees that man again and she finds out who he is she is confused why he even wants to spend time with her. She knows that she had agreed to be his girlfriend but she doesn't belong in his world everyone is fake and they are all out for themselves. Can Duke win her back or will it be the end even before they got to know each other? Do they really have a chance at making this work? Will Duke be able to walk away from his old life for Angel & Jose or will he be too afraid to? Has Duke got the guts to be honest about his problems and to do the right thing? A good read. I was lucky enough to receive a copy via Netgalley & the publishing house in exchange for my honest review.

This had a cute premise, but it fell very short. I didn’t like any of the characters. There was nothing appealing about Duke.

Not for me. This book was heavy on the drama and had unlikeable characters. I had high hopes but this one fell flat.

the plot of this book sounded fascinating so i was really looking forward to reading it so it's tragic how disappointed i was...
i wish i liked the (main) characters better but i just couldn't deal with their "holier than thou" attitudes.

despite all that, angel was such a good mom that just wanted to make a good life for her son even if it meant not being able to see him as often as she'd like. i'm glad they got the happy ending they all deserved.

one of the only things that made this bearable was the fact that i could relate to duke's constant fears and insecurities while it made me sad how constant he was putting himself down.

2.5 stars only because i really like the cover.

I so wanted to like this book. When I saw the cover on NetGalley, I was intrigued to learn more and the title also sounded like a contemporary romance I'd enjoy. This book had so much potential to be something enjoyable but fell short in so many ways.

The book was choppy and would change narrator voices throughout a chapter without any clear sign things were changing. (I'd like to think this is because I was reading an eARC of the text and not the final physical text). This was only a minor flaw in comparison to some of the more significant ethical issues (ex: womanizing, sexual coercion, law breaking).

I also found it hard to really like any of the characters, they often seemed presumptuous and naming the main characters Angel and Duke just made them more unlikable. While I understand why the writing/conversation seemed unpolished, it seemed like it was written more for a movie script than a novel.

Overall the story was just okay, I think it could have been better researched (I know it is fiction but it seemed there were some gross inaccuracies) - it could have been a much better story but failed to live up to my expectations and also ended abruptly.

This was my first read by Evelyn Lozada, Holly Lorincz & it was good. I wasn’t too sure about it at first but as I got further into it, it caught me. The characters were strong, funny & damaged. I loved the strength they put in Angel, her life wasn’t easy & she never gave up. Duke was a determined character with a sad recent history that prompted pity from him sometimes & wanting to smack him other times. Their chemistry was great & the back & forth between them was interesting.

Some romance with a little baseball!

Nursing student Angel Gomez is almost finally done with her nursing school except for her practicum and passing her boards when she has to bring her son in with an asthma attack to the clinic where she is finishing her nursing training. Baseball pitcher Caleb “the Duke” Lewis needs help for his ankle quietly so the team management wouldn’t find out that it hadn’t healed enough after being out a year rehabbing it after being shot. Duke saw Angel at her second job working at a bar when he pissed her off. The second time Duke visited the clinic; he told reporters that he was visiting Angel, his new girlfriend at work. Angel wants nothing to do with Duke but he and his manager convinced her to play along so he would stay out of trouble.

The Perfect Date is a book that takes a turn towards the end that I wasn’t expecting about Duke but the authors made it more realistic to his character but there is lots of drama between all the characters.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

THANK YOU to St Martin's Press for the privilege of granting me this book for review. I do not (and never) take this for granted. Believe me.

To be quite honest I had no idea who Evelyn Lozada was. None. I am not one to watch VH1, let alone reality TV shows, so I had no premise on the author whatsoever. (which in hindsight is a good thing, right?, no bias here).

The story itself was good, but not stellar. I loved Angel's character the most. She's what I would call a 'LUCHONA', which in Spanish we refer to as a hard working woman, trying to fight any and all obstacles. She's had to deal with some heavy challenges throughout her life, and her being the sole breadwinner for her son puts her into perspective and makes her want to be a better version of herself, hence the nursing degree and her job at the bar. I do want to point out, -and possibly the reason why I don't feel 100 % comfortable giving this a stellar review - is that it would be easy for the reader to stuck her in the stereotype category of the latina who gets pregnant at an early age. I know this doesn't happen to all and not only in the Latino community, but I am a latina myself and I know how comfortable it is to fall into prejudice over something like that.

Caleb 'the Duke' on the other hand, also had multiple issues. his bad boy persona was expected, but I felt it dragged a bit too long throughout the story. It was obviously the perfect cover for him, Angel, but I felt this could have had a bit more depth in regards to exploring each character's feelings in a more profound way. I felt that the combined of all topics, -mostly dating, baseball, - had this overwhelming feeling and did not expand to the full potential they had without feeling 'too busy', if that makes sense.

I did like the read. I think it's a perfect summer one, but I would've loved to see more development and angst. Contemporary ones do have room for on a not so profound level, it's just a matter of balancing it a bit more.

Thank you again for the opportunity of reading this in advance.

The Perfect Date cover gave me major The Proposal vibes which is why I thought this would be such good book to read! Angel is a single mother who got pregnant as a teenager. Not only a few years after Jose was born, Angels mother passed away leaving Angel to pick up the pieces and get her life together. Angel is a nursing student trying to graduate so she can make a better life for her son, while also bartending at an upper class establishment. Jose is a huge baseball fan and has an asthma attack while watching a game which has Angel rushing her son to the clinic where she works. While her son is waiting to be seen Angel goes back to talk to her boss Dr. Collins to see if he can get Jose in faster. Whens he comes back, Jose is talking to a stranger. Little does she know it's the Yankee pitcher "The Duke". Later than night Angel runs into him while she is bartending and Duke is drunk and hits on her rudely causing her to throw a drink in his face and get fired. The duke has to go back to the clinic the next day to secretly get his ankle checked, because if the Yankee's manager catches wind he hasn't recovered his career is going to be over! He runs into Angel again recognizing her and tries to apologize but the press have figured out that The Duke is at the clinic. He then asks Angel to be his "girlfriend" to throw off the press.
I had high hopes going into this book because the romance that is being released right now is amazing! However this book just fell really short for me. I had a hard time falling in love with the characters. Angel is fiesta latina women who has been caring for her son she had when she was fifteen. I loved the strong woman power she had! But her romance with Duke was lacking fire for me. I didn't get the butterflies while reading this. I think the story line was good but it fell short in the character development for me. This book is a quick read and if you are looking for something easy this might be for you! I was just looking for a little more depth between the characters.