"Wicked Serve" is the fourth book in Grace Reilly's "Beyond the Play" series. I've never read any of Reilly's books, so I wasn't sure what to expect. This book centers around college students Nikolai and Izzy, both of whom are student athletes (Nikolai-hockey, Izzy-volleyball) trying to juggle practices, academics, and their social lives. While they had a secret summer fling, it's harder for them to keep quiet when Nikolai is transferred to Izzy's school and isn't states away anymore. Any hopes of keeping their relationship quiet are dashed when the sparks between them just can't be ignored.

I typically like the forbidden romance/athlete trope, but this book was lacking something for me. While the two did have good chemistry, it was hard to see what else they liked about each other. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

i enjoyed this book so much! i loved the growth of the two characters throughout the book and the many spice. we definitly cannor complain about it being boring.

however, this book was very long. it did not need to be this long.

I didn't realize this book was part of a series until I finished this book, but I was able to read it as a standalone. I enjoyed a sports romance where the female character is also an athlete, not just a fan for her boyfriend. The plot line of brother's enemy was emphasized a little too much considering how quickly that changed. The story was dragged out a little bit, but overall it was a great book, and I would recommend it to others.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Wicked Serve by Grace Reilly. If you've read the other books in the series, you will enjoy this one. Wicked Serve follows Izzy and Nikolai. Just like the other books in the Beyond the Play Series, Izzy and Nikolai have a ton of chemistry. The back and forth banter between them is on point. I enjoyed the story, and look forward to reading more books by this author.

I've been in a sports romance kick, lately, and was recommended Grace Reilly's books. Wicked Serve was the first of her books that I've read, although it is the fourth in a "series" of stand alone books that center on a set of college-aged siblings.

In Wicked Serve we meet the youngest, and only daughter, our FMC. She is playing volleyball for her college, and trying to convince her coach to give her a chance at her preferred position. She is also trying to live up to a legacy of family athletic excellence, especially her former pro-athlete father and current pro-athlete oldest brother. She is also struggling with the realization that she doesn't know what she wants to do with her life once college is over. A summer internship leads her to meet Nik, a hockey player from her brother's rival team. They have a summer fling, and then separate to go back to their respective colleges. Until... uh-oh... Nik's college suddenly closes and he transfers to Izzy's college. Circumstances lead them to team up to help each other solve some problems, which, naturally, leads to a revival of their summer fling.

You've got plenty of romance-fav tropes in this one- brother's friend, brother's enemy, second-chance romance, etc. It was good, my only complaint being that it dragged a bit in the middle and that the some of the events of the book seemed really contrived to move the plot forward. But I overall enjoyed it, and will definitely check out more Grace Reilly books.

I loved everything about this book! This was my first dual sport romance and I loved it. I did not expect the depth of which we dove into the MCs with their past and trauma. I laughed, I cried, I was emotionally invested and wanted to fight our MMC's dad on his behalf. I will absolutely be recommending this to everyone and buying this as soon as it is released.

Such a cute and fun read! Everything I want in a romance- spice, emotional depth, and growth. I was hooked from the beginning and enjoyed every minute!

Such a big fan of this series and author. I’m glad I got to read the lady in the series but not necessarily my favorite. I was surprised to see a third act “breakup” from her as she normally doesn’t do them but I felt it was warranted. Very sunshine meets grumpy book. Can’t wait to see what else she has in store now that this series is over!

What a beautiful love story! This book took me on quite the journey! The characters are amazing. Nikolai is perfection. He is such a gem. The things he says are just chef's kiss.

There's a great balance between spicy, mental health, and relationship development.

I recommend this book to all romance sport readers. Both main characters are in sports. Such a fun read!

Wow. Just wow. The Beyond the Play series by @gracereilly is one of my favorite sports romance series and I have to say that Grace knocked it out of the park with this one. Izzy and Nikolai’s story is so beautiful 🥹

If this series isn’t already on your TBR, I’m aggressively encouraging you to immediately add it. The Callahan family is SO special and every sports romance lover should experience their stories.

Tropes in this book include:
🏐 Brother’s rival-turned-teammate
🏒 Panic disorder rep
🏐 Sneaking around
🏒 Cute nickname - “solnishko” (little sun ☀️)
🏐 Family drama
🏒 BroodyxSunshine
🏐 LOTS of spice (like… you’re not ready 🥵)

This book is easily my favorite in the series.
The maturity and communication between the main characters was refreshing. Their relationship was endearing. I really appreciated the way Nikolai’s childhood trauma was handled in the end. I loved seeing a male lead that could admit he needed help and actively sought self improvement. We love healthy coping mechanisms 👏🏼

The epilogue was such a solid ending to this series. I loved finding out how each couples lives played out.

My one complaint is that I do wish we could’ve gotten a little more from Nik + Isabelle’s summer together. I felt like the book began before I even started it.

Tropes:
🥅 Brother’s Rival
💘 Broody x Bubbly
🩵 He Falls First
✨ Found Family
🤫 Secret Relationship
🏒 Hockey Player MMC
🏐 Volleyball Player FMC

Wicked serve is a yt romance of two college kids who are hooking up and keeping it a secret from her brother. This book reminded me of reading an immature late teen girl diary. This would be a book for a 16-20 year old reader

Thanks to netgalley for the ARC! I was not in love with this one. I don’t mind some sexual context, but this was pretty intense at times. I also didn’t find it realistic for college age kids. While the story itself was interesting for the most part, I felt like some of the interactions and conflict between the two love interests weren’t totally realistic. I like most substance and sweetness with my love stories, and this one didn’t really fit the bill.

Per-fection!! I would read Grace Reilly’s shopping list. Once again she wrote amazing college hockey romances that I devoured in one sitting! I really felt a connection with the characters and I love how nontoxic their story was!

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for a review.

This is book spicyyyy! I loved Izzy and Nikolai's relationship and this books is without a lot of the normal romance book tropes that get irritating. No miscommunication, no (real) third act breakup, their friendship to full romance is adorable and I like them so much together. They both have flaws and issues and their conversations made this book for me even more than the spicy scenes. I loved the Russian aspect to Nikolai's history and I like how that was a big part of him regardless of past trauma. I loved the sports in this book, and the idea that you might play a sport just because you love it without it being everything about your future career and monetizing it.

Nikolai
Hockey is my life, and I need to make this last season count. But when I’m forced to transfer to rival school McKee University for my senior year, I risk pissing off the captain, who happens to be the older brother of Isabelle Callahan: the gorgeous beam of sunshine I messed around with in secret this summer.
Rekindling our fling could risk her brother icing me off the team—not to mention the fact that my scarred past makes having a real relationship impossible—and yet the moment I see Isabelle again, all my wild, burning feelings come rushing back.
Izzy
I have two goals for sophomore year: win back my old volleyball position, and forget I ever knew devilishly handsome hockey defenseman Nikolai Abney-Volkov. As the youngest and only daughter in a family full of athletes, failure isn’t an option.
But when Nik crashes back into my life, I can’t stay away from his broody charm. I’m determined to guard my heart this time, but between the furtive hookups and the heartfelt conversations, the lines between friends-with-benefits and more begin to blur.
As we fall deeper into a place we can’t come back from unscathed, we’ll have to make a choice: fight for a future together, or watch it go up in flames.
Filled with swoons, spice, sports, and koalas, Wicked Serve is a don’t-miss new adult college sports romance.

Grace Reilly is my new auto buy author. Her characters are genuinely funny and heartwarming. The romance in Wicked Serve was wholesome and had me giggling. I love Reilly’s approach on modern romance and I love love her sports romances.

🏐Wicked Serve🏒
*Thank you to @gracereilly, NetGalley, @AvonBooks, and @HarperVoyagerUS for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is genuinely Grace's best book yet and is my favorite out of the series. It's been so amazing to see the growth in her writing in this book. Her last three books were amazing too, however, this one just feels polished. In this book we follow Izzy and Nik's lives separately and when they're together. I loved getting to know Izzy because in prior books she has not been a main component. Izzy is so strong, and Nik is so sweet. Our first impression of Nik is in Breakaway and it wasn't the best, however, we get to see a new side of his and I loved it. Also, don't even get me started on getting updates on all of the Callahan relationships!! Also just seeing the siblings interact with each other was one of my favorite parts! I also would like to mention my other and final favorite part which was the confrontation with Chance (you will find out who he is), it was 10/10 - the brothers stepping in, Penny and Mia stepping in, Nik stepping in, and finally Izzy standing up for herself AH it was just amazing. Anyway, if you've read Grace's other Callahan books, please, please, please read this one! Or if you were thinking about reading this series, you must! The whole series is a mix of hard topics and the right amount of fluff.

3.5 Stars! This is the 4th book in the ‘Beyond the Play’ series and this is the only book I’ve read in this series and it can definitely be read as a standalone. Tons of ‘sexy times’ scenes, and I mean TONS. They tend to drag on & on. I started skimming through or skipping them completely. After a while it was like, they’re going at it, again! Ugh. She’s mad at him but than gives him some ‘mouth loving’ instead of talking about it? Really?! Mentions her past hookups too much too. I’m sorry, but I don’t want to hear about every Tom’s, Harry, Dick you’ve been with in a romance book with a completely different man as the main male character. I mean, when do they have time to study & practice their sports & workout with all the ‘sexy times’ they participate in constantly?! I wanted to be an Olympic swimmer when I was a teen so I know how much training, eating right, & working out it takes and how exhausting it can be. There is little to no time left for anything else. Almost DNF but it got better so I’m glad I finished. The main characters, Nik & Isabelle, were cute together. (Wish I could get a super rich, major league sports player to fall in love with me, but here I am.) Some of the decisions Nik made had me wanting to slap sense into him but I liked the epilogue. This felt like a pretty long book. Every time I thought the book was wrapping up, it kept going. All in all, it was a decent read, especially if you like to read the ‘sexy times’ scenes.
*I received this book at no charge & I voluntarily left this review.*

If you enjoy a college sports romance with forbidden romance/second chance energy coupled with the “she makes him feel a feeling” microtrope, Wicked Serve is the book for you.

Probably my favorite book in Grace Reilly’s Beyond the Play series, Wicked Serve serves up a lot of spice, coupled with the right amount of angst. The chemistry between Nik and Izzy is off the charts from the jump, and the conflicts that are explored throughout keeps reader engaged from beginning to end. I love how strong Izzy is as a character, and the ways she doesn’t shrink away from conflict. And the ways that Nik overcomes his childhood trauma and becomes the best version of himself feels actualized and authentic.

My one very slight criticism is the book’s length. I think there were places where the plot could have been tightened and achieved the same aims. Overall, though, I thoroughly enjoyed the book and expect that fans of the series and new readers alike will agree.

Thank you to Avon and NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Isabelle's turn! This book was beautiful in every way. Nikolai had childhood trauma to deal with and it left a huge mark on Nik's life. When he realized he should go to therapy, I wanted to stand up and cheer for him. This is a much-welcome sight of a MMC who notices that he needs help and it's okay to receive it. These two were mature and communicated which I always appreciate since it's not written about enough. Although this was Izzy's book, I couldn't help but fall head over heels in love with Nik. His love for her was magical and wholesome. She was his sunshine.

The epilogue was perfect for a wonderful series.

"You're everything to me, Isabelle. You're stubborn warmth and wild summertime. You're sunshine."

*ARC courtesy of the author and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. Thank you to the valued author, the publisher, and Netgalley for providing a copy.*