(3/5 stars) This is my second Jodie Slaughter book and I was excited to jump back into her world. The premise of this book (Miri wins the lottery, second chance romance) was appealing but I feel like it fell flat for me. I wished more of the character development had happened on the page instead of it being inferred; for example, there was a discussion of couples therapy and individual therapy but no therapy occurring in the on-page plot. The first half felt pretty slow, and while there was obvious physical chemistry between Miri and Leo, I wanted them to explore more of their emotional chemistry and actually work through their issues instead of just inferring it.

*3.5

I liked this but I wanted it to be longer. It felt like they didn't interact enough throughout the book. It's not that I don't believe they love each other, because I do, but I wanted them to talk more.

I received an arc through netgalley.

Slaughter returns to the South Carolina world of her last book, Bet on It. Written in dual POV, I very much enjoyed Slaughter’s writing and her ability to create complex characters who are also incredibly relatable. And I very loved Miri's friends and I hope Slaughter plans on returning this world as I would love to read their HEAs. Slaughter also thoughtfully portrays Miri and Leo's mental health and personal growth journeys; as there are some topics covered take care and check the CWs. Oh and if you’re looking for a steamy no holds bar book than look no further as the OPS is off the charts. If you love a great marriage-in-trouble / second-chance romance be sure to pick up this fun and fast read.

I received this eARC thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin in exchange for an honest review. Publishing dates are subject to change.

a cute and sizzling romcom that was delightful.

thank you to netgalley and to the publisher for this review copy.

Play to Win is a great marriage in trouble/second chance romance with a twist. It was a quick, easy, generally lighthearted read. Mari wins the lottery and everything seems to come together and fall apart all at once. I think Slaughter writes great tension, the longing looks, the physical attraction. It helped bring Mari and Leo together. My criticism would be that it takes us a long time to find out why they’ve been estranged, and even when we do it sort of fell flat somehow for me. The reason for them needing to be together felt a bit artificially forced instead of natural. But overall I breezed through the book and it was an enjoyable read! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to provide my honest review.

OKAYYY. I loved this book with everything in me. The way that Leo is and has always been in love with Miri, but was just not confident enough broke me. I loved the progression of the book and how they fell back in love with each other. Miri is a strong black woman with flaws. Her and her mom reminded me of my childhood. Absolutely worth 5 stars. i will be rereading and buying the book when it comes out!!!!

This was a great plot with second chance romance and I loved the characters.
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I hit that request button immediately when I saw Jodie Slaughter had a new book out because I absolutely loved Bet On It. Her characters are so well-rounded (some pun intended, haha), funny, and girl knows how to write a spicy scene!
I liked it a lot but this book wasn’t as much to my taste as Bet On It - however, I think that’s just a matter of preference. I’m general I prefer new love over second chance romance because I’d rather read about the falling in love than the baggage of the past. And this one was incredibly angsty and a slow burn. It was just too heavy for me, and heavy is not what I look for in my romcoms. If that’s your jam, this is the book for you.

There is quite honestly nothing I love more than a second chance, and I loved seeing Miri and Leo working through their stuff to finally come back together. I love this small southern town and the entire cast of characters. There was so much depth and heart. There was also so much inclusive representation and I loved to see it!

Miri won the lottery and now she has to have her estranged husband come back to down so they can get a divorce so she doesn’t run the risk of him eventually asking for half of her winning. I really liked that this wasn’t a story of someone winning the lottery and then going buck wild and spending it willy nilly. Miri took it so seriously, because she had to! She needed the money for actual real life things and that’s what she intended to use it for. And she really struggled with getting the money and NOT having all of her problems instantly solved and that is real life and it was written so well.

I loved Miri and Leo. They loved each other SO MUCH. They has so much history and so much love for each other. But they had so much tension and her feelings between them, and that had just been sitting for eight years. I really struggled with the fact that he just left and now he’s back and wants to just FIX everything and thought Miri would just be in. I didn’t necessarily hate the reason he left?? He felt like he wasn’t enough, and that he was failing Miri. But Miri was so understanding?? So why couldn’t they have just TALKED?? And not to mention that hurt hai family when he left too. That HURT. Because they not only lost Leo when he left, but Miri felt as though she had no right to his family, even though she was close to them as well.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and St Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!!

What a fun romance! What to expect:
- second chance romance
- fun side characters
- people who deserve it win the lottery!

Recommended!

This novel read more like a women's fiction to me. Because Miriam had so much to work through which I really enjoyed how it was represented throughout the book. The author does a really good job with minority representation which is why I keep going back to her time and time again. I'm just not a huge fan of her writing I feel like.

Also I really enjoyed the education of generational poverty and how it affected Miriam winning the lottery and coming into money all at once. And how poverty reduces the ability to regulate their emotions. I loved the therapy representation she included in the book and how it was done properly. How Miriam made them both do it together and separately. That's why it felt like a women's fiction more than a second chance romance. Overall, this is a fantastic summer read/ vacation read.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review as always, all words are my own.

The tone of this book feels more of women's fiction almost literary fiction with romantic elements. That aside I think what sticks out to me is that having money doesn't erase the hurt. Mari has the money to take care of her mother and her loved ones but she still feels the abandonment and guilt of now having. The back half of the book leans into the to the romance. Leo had a lot to make up for and one of his biggest hurdles was his ego.

The description of this book sounded so good. A little spicy second chance romance um yes! Sign me up! I was lucky enough to receive an E-ARC and Audio ARC. I decided to listen to the audiobook and I must say the narration made me love this book even more. All the character voices the narrator used help bring this story to life. This was such a good read. It had several laugh out loud moments. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I recommend listening to this book when it releases.

Book Releases July 11, 2023

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the E-ARC and to Macmillan Audio for the Audiobook ARC.

All thoughts and opinions are honest and my own.

Play to Win was an entertaining second chance romance with estranged married couple Miriam and Leo. After Miriam wins the lottery - she finally has the chance to stop struggling with money, give back to people she cares about, and finally get a divorce from her estranged first love. But calling her husband back to the small town of Greenbelt and having him close by again has her starting to question if their love story is really over. And Leo is not about to give up the chance to get her to change her mind, throw away the divorce papers, and give their marriage another chance. The novel was a little slow to start but Miriam and Leo have crazy chemistry and all of the side small town characters of family and friends added a lot of humor and drama to the novel. Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this novel.

I’m not sure how I felt about this one to be honest. I usually love a good second chance at Love but I think it’s because I didn’t feel like Leo deserved to even shoot his shot with Miri again!
For the most part I liked both Miri and Leo, however they had their faults, the biggest of which is that they are both stubborn and can’t make up their minds.
Overall, Play To Win was kind of cute, I loved Mama Patrice and Thea (and everyone else who had to have a come to Jesus talk with Miri and Leo), but I felt that this fell a little flat for me in the end.

Thank you to St Martins Press for sending me an advanced digital copy via NetGalley in exchange for review.

Play to Win, the newest novel from Jodie Slaughter, was a cute and fun romance, perfect for Summer. It follows Mira, a woman struggling with life in general in South Carolina, who wins the lottery and then tries to fix her life. While I love a second chance romance, and this book definitely met that standard, I will confess it loved a tiny bit slow for me. Overall though, the book was well-written and I would definitely recommend it for a lazy summer day!

Special thanks to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for providing an advanced reviewer copy to me in exchange for my honest review and opinion!

Jodie Slaughter created a sizzling second chance/marriage in trouble romance with Miriam and Leo. Miriam is struggling in life, stuck in an underpaid job, and living with her mother. Her life changed overnight after winning the Mega Millions Lottery, and one of the biggest hurdles to her enjoying her new life is her estranged husband who has a right to claim some of the money. After receiving an unexpected call from Miriam, Leo hurries back to Greenbelt hoping that Miriam wants to give their marriage a second chance, not realizing she wants him to sign divorce papers and name his price.

I loved Bet on It, and Jodie did not disappoint with this follow-up in the small town of Greenbelt. I absolutely devoured Miriam and Leo's story. Miri is one of the best female main characters that I've read in a long time. She is unapologetically herself and doesn't apologize for it. She also has such an amazing group of friends that defend her in every way. Leo struggles with the expectations of masculinity that he was raised with and how that impacted his marriage with Miri. The tough topics were handled well and the writing was very fluid and satisfying.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for a copy of the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this one! Miri takes a chance and buys a lottery ticket never expecting to win. But that is exactly what happens. She learns that her estranged husband may have a claim to her winnings so she needs to deal with that situation once and for all. I had a great time getting to know this cast of characters and couldn’t wait to see how things would work out in the end.

I liked Miri and Leo a lot and I could tell that the chemistry between them was still very much alive. I feel like eight years seems like a very long time for them to be apart to have any hope for a reconciliation but I was excited to see them give it a try. It takes a long time for the romance of the story to fully kick in but I was eager to see how things would develop.

I listened to the audiobook and thought that the narrator did a great job with the story. I think that this is the first time that I have listened to Lacy Laurel’s narration and I wouldn’t hesitate to listen to her work again in the future. I thought that she had a very pleasant voice and that the character voices that she used helped to bring the story to life. I do believe that her performance only added to my overall enjoyment.

I would recommend this book to others. I thought that the characters were very well done and I loved the overall premise. I would love to read more of this author’s work in the future.

I received a review copy of this book from St. Martin’s Griffin and Macmillan Audio.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of PLAY TO WIN by Jodis Slaughter. This book started really strong, I loved the concept of the FMC winning the lottery with the numbers all related to her estranged husband, who she now needed to reconnect with because of all her new money. But things kind of seemed to fall apart by the end, including an extended epilogue that felt super unnecessary. I think once the two MCs got together in the same place, there didn't seem to be much keeping them apart and a lot of the tension just vanished, especially when the main reason they broke up was money related and...that was obviously not a factor anymore. So, it didn't quite live up to what I hoped it would be, and I think I enjoyed Slaughter's previous book a bit more.

Miri wins big in a mega millions lottery the very first time she plays, in a whim no less.
It forever alters her life, but not the way she expected.
I like how she was generous with her money and didn’t flaunt it. However, she should have chosen the 30 year payout, in my opinion, because she sacrificed money with choosing the lump sum.
My favorite was Leo. I liked his attitude about husband roles, but wasn’t crazy about how he left Miri.
I liked his persistence and diligence in winning her back.
It’s a cute read.