Such a cute romance. I loved the characters loved their story. The chemistry was cute hot and on pointe. Cannot recommend this book enough.

"Start shit, get hit."
"Yeah, well, I imagine that's frowned upon at casual suburban get-togethers."

Role Playing is one of those rare romances that can make miscommunication fun rather than infuriating. It starts up front when an antisocial Maggie is trying to get out there and make friends in her small town. She's not doing it from any actual desire to be friendly but because she's worried about how lonely her son Kit seems as he starts his freshman year of college. Kit is always ready to point out hypocrisy (teenagers, man), so her urging to go out and meet people won't get him to budge unless she can prove she's willing to do it, too. Book club and football party misadventures only go to show her that staying home is where it's at. These IRL people aren't enthused about her video gaming hobby at 48, but one of them does pass on her information to a church friend whose son runs a guild in an MMORPG she enjoys. Maggie is suspicious of this group of local community college kids and has had her fair share of bad experiences online as a woman gamer, so she tests them and pulls no punches. She can't help but be impressed with their leader, who keeps everyone else in line. He's awfully wise for a twenty-something.... probably because he isn't.

Fifty-year-old Aiden is home in their small town in eastern Washington putting his nursing and hospice skills to work. He cared for his dad until the cancer finally ran its course. Now, he keeps an eye on his unwilling mother, who's experienced some falls and driving accidents that have Aiden worried. His little brother is no help even though he's the favorite son, too conflict-avoidant and too "busy" to help with a much-needed intervention. Dear Mom claims that she'll have these conversations about her health, but she has an ultimatum. She's tired of the local gossip around Aiden, his brother, and his sister-in-law who was once his fiancee. If he would just bring a date to his cousin's wedding and everyone was seen getting along, the gossip might die down. Aiden isn't interested in dating despite his mom's meddling, but he's desperate to get her thinking about her health for real. In light of all this stress and drama, his guild is kind of a final refuge from it all, and he's delighted by his cantankerous new guildie with all her wisecracks about how aged she is and her noninterest in the bullshit of the kids he met taking community college classes. When his mom passed on the info for "Bogwitch" to join their group, she indicated it was from some sad, old lady who still plays video games. Aiden assumes this means "Boggie" is his mom's age.

As the two become closer in game, Maggie starts to freak out about whether her friendship with such a "younger" guy is even appropriate. The two start hanging out more in game without the other guildies and even messaging about things unrelated to the game. Imagine their shock at meeting each other face-to-face. In some ways, it simplifies what they have, now that all the cards are on the table. But Maggie's still wary of any entanglements, and Aiden has a lot of other worries on his mind. Their relationship grows organically, rife with sweet and spicy moments that show them how much better their lives could be together.

And then and THEN we find out Aiden is bi and demi, but he hasn't had the language for all of it. That's a way Maggie can help because she has more understanding and comfortability with different queer identities, though she doesn't share one. It's the perfect moment of allyship because she shares information (when Aiden brings it up and asks, to be clear) that helps him feel seen and gives him the curiosity and enthusiasm to look into it more himself. Readers should know he's experienced some acephobia and biphobia from people who should love him unconditionally. It's on the page, too, and that's always hard. BUT. You're also in for a scene where Maggie LITERALLY passes Aiden her earrings so she can take someone out. And I found that intensely satisfying on all fronts.

Here are some final notes about why this is an excellent romance that revived my faith in the genre:
1. Hallelujah for no final act breakups. Enough said.
2. It's steeped in gamer culture-- the good, the bad, and the ugly. And can I just say that it one hundred percent makes sense that he's a healer and she tanks on her main??
3. We see Maggie's experience as a biracial woman who was kept from her Vietnamese heritage by the white grandparents who raised her.
4. The story takes a heartfelt look at mom-ing and worrying about getting everything right, especially in the face of an ex-husband who certainly did a lot wrong.

This romance hits all the right notes, and all lovers of the genre should pick it up ASAP. Thanks to Montlake for my copy to read and review!

I gave Role Playing by Cathy Yardley four stars.

A mature romance between to older (couple in their late 40s - 50s. Maggie’s son just went to college and is worried about her being lonely and she is worried about him not branching out in college. So they make a deal they bought try to be more social. Aiden moved back to town to take care of his ailing mother. Video games plays an important role in their romance. The people around them in the town besides Maggie son made me want to pull my hair out. But Maggie and Aiden were fun characters you couldn’t help but root for and want out of that town. Really fun read.

Thank you Net galley and the publisher for this arc.

Role Playing by Cathy Yardley is a GenX romance featuring online gaming, a grumpy single mom, and a cinnamon roll love interest. After making a deal with her college-aged son to socialize more, Maggie joins an online gaming guild as Bogwitch, making it clear that she does not want friends and is there only to play. Otter, the healer and leader of the guild, quickly grows on her as they complete quests together. Maggie believes that Otter is a college-aged kid like her son, but when they finally meet in person, she’s in for a shock.

Maggie is a grumpy, introverted hermit living her best life after her son leaves for college. At forty-eight, she doesn’t want a man, and she has plenty of time to do what she wants with her life. But her son is worried for her. So she promises to try to make friends if he will. Her favorite pastime with him was an online game. Starting over with a new character named Bogwitch, she joins an online gaming guild that quickly becomes the highlight of her day.

Otter, the leader of the guild, aka as Aiden in real life, is not in fact a college student. He’s older than Maggie and uses the game as an outlet while he cares for his aging mother and attempts to get over his fiancé choosing his little brother over him. He tends to look on the bright side of things, making him the sunshine to Maggie’s grump. When he has an accident that leaves him somewhat dependent, Maggie makes her way over with food expecting a college kid. The shock that he is in fact not a child leaves Maggie feeling all the feels.

I had the biggest smile on my face reading this book. It is so much fun! Maggie and Aiden are easy to root for. They quickly move from online friends to more, but it moves naturally and feels true to life. Overall, I really enjoyed Role Playingand barely skimmed the surface of what to expect in the book. If you are a fan of contemporary romance, I highly recommend it.

This is such a cute romance between and introvert couple. Honestly it was so refreshing to have two characters who share those personality traits. I feel that most romance books are always trying the "opposites attract" rule.
There is so much representation in Role Playing and I feel that the author did it so well. Also love the reverse grumpy x sunshine trope and the healthy communication skills the couple shows.

This is the perfect novel for those who love small town romance with geeky introverted characters and a cute romance story.

This was my first Yardley but definitely not my last. The characters felt so deeply true and I loved having their love, miscommunications as there may have been, blossom from friendship!

Thank you to Montlake and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. Content warning for homophobia, verbal abuse, and emotional abuse. This book was a great but emotional story because I could understand completely what the characters were feeling in both romance and friendship. The video game references, and representation was also great, the humor was relatable and the spice level was the perfect amount in my opinion. I really think I will be rereading this and it's on par with Chloe Liese's Bergman Series! 5 out of 5 stars.

Romances with proper adults is a rare thing to find nowadays, and still to make them fully romantic or spicy is a feat from some authors. However, Ms Yardley wrote a brilliant book with characters who were easy to invest in and relate to.
From the cute misunderstanding between the characters and who they thoguht they were playing online with to the way they cared for each other it was beautiful to read. What made this book so superb was the acknolwedgement of Aiden's queer identity the fact that Maggie helps him realised that being demisexual is a valid identity.
Books which discuss demisexuality are hard to come across and when I do find them, they are often a must recommend, showing a valid person who is just like myself. I thoroughly understood the judgement that Aiden has faced, especially from his ex and her clear understanding of bisexuality.
Yardley wove an amazing plot that accepted life can be interesting and that age is a minute factor in a novel, just like hair colour or jeans size.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from #netgalley , thank you. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Cute, sweet with a bunch of nerdy gamers and I loved it!

I really love RPG games and an a huge ESO fan - so this book spoke directly to my heart. My husband was a healer to my DPS and we made a great team. SO I loved the adorable story. I had to suspend my disbelief - I'd been part of a guild too and we lived no where near each other (some weren't even in the same country!) so I can't imagine being lucky enough to live so close.

But I found their getting to know each other very sweet. I liked their different quirks, that they were older, and that they were both pretty comfortable (or getting comfortable) with who they were. It delt with some interesting themes and I liked the more mature lifestyles. It was a great audio book, too, the narrators did a great job!

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

- Mature characters
- Single mother
- Slow burn
- Small town romance
- Reverse grumpy/sunshine

I was thrilled to open this book and find that the characters were more mature. It was a nice change of pace.

Single mother Maggie would be content to be at home alone after her son leaves home, but he convinces her t seek out others. She "meets" Aiden through a video game and the two form a friendship. It is amusing to me that she thought he was younger while he thought she was older. However, they are the same age.

Their friendship slowly blossoms into a sweet romance. The journey is indeed a beautiful one. There is no insta love here. The thing that impressed me the most about this couple is that they actually communicated. I don't mind a minor miscommunication trope, but I prefer open and honest dialogue.

Easy to read and left me with a smile on my face.

Role Playing was a total delight!
I've really enjoyed Cathy Yardley's books in the past but this one is a favorite for sure!
I loved that we got to see older characters and although I'm not in that age bracket yet they were still relatable.
Maggie and Aiden were a joy! I loved the online gaming guild aspect of it too!

I absolutely loved this one. I related to the FMC so much it’s not funny lol. She’s a 40-something hermit after my own heart. I love a secret identity plot and this one really worked for me. Actually listened to the audio and really enjoyed the narration. Just a wonderful later-in-life romance that checked all my boxes.

Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

I had really high hopes for this one but I just could not get into it at all. The pacing of the first third of the book was just a bit too slow for me and made it hard to want to pick up. But I am interested in coming back to this one at a later time.

An already brilliant author at the top of her game. The vibes are immaculate and the characters rich and a pleasure to spend time with.

I liked how this novel was about a more mature couple. The cover is what drew me in. However, there was a good bit of plot holes. Overall it was just an ok read.

I liked having a romance novel with an older couple as I typically gravitate to 20-somethings. It was refreshing to see the mix of generations throughout the novel. Through the familial and societal pressures that come with living in a small town, it was good to see growth in the characters as they step away from the negative pressures. There were a few topics and terms that I was unfamiliar with that did cause a disconnect between the book and myself but overall did like the novel.

𝗡𝗼𝘁𝗲: Special thanks to Cathy Yardley for providing me an ARC copy to share my honest review.

I really wanted to love this book. It I just found the plot to full of holes and I didn’t warm to the characters. Would I read. Ore from this author though? Definitely but I feel this book had more potential that I wanted it to give me more

Loved that these characters were older and nerdy! The writing was super easy to get into and romance adorable.

I enjoyed watching this unconventional love story play out. Maggie's kid is so sweet, and I loved their relationship. Aiden deserved so much better, his mother and family in general was THE WORST!! Maggie and Aiden were so great for each other, and I loved that they showed that we still have growth at any age.

This romance book was a bit different than I am used too with romance books. It wasn't bad but it wasn't exciting. It was a cute romance read with older characters finding their self and romance with each other. It's a bit harder for them but they are willing to risk it outside of their comfort zones.