She's an easy breezy rom com, and was a fun little excursion from the usual reads. First Base is your classic she saves him/he saves her type deal with a little *misunderstanding* twist plopped into the plot. Predictable, but like all hallmark rom coms- highly enjoyable!

What I Enjoyed
Didn’t Get Lost in the Sports: Sometimes you read a book, and it uses so many words/phrases and terms specific to the sport that you’re lost in the sauce. First Base didn’t do that. I felt comfortable in the amount of “baseball” and felt like I could still follow along with what was happening. I mean, I think I even learned a little bit!

Tommy’s Character: Legit the cutest that he was so determined to make things right, and be different, and be better. The followthrough was consistent and his character stayed on point. Also, very cute dialogue.

The sprinkling of 90’s-2000’s references: This might end up being dated after a while, but the references to the different 90’s + 2000’s happenings and pop culture was fun. Always an enjoyable experience.

Family Healing: There’s also this element of reconnecting to your family, reassessing and finding your place within while also holding fast and true to yourself (possibly with the help of others). I loved the development of Tommy & his dad’s relationship; cheesy, cute, heartwarming. You name it.

What I Didn’t Like
The Timing Felt a Little Off: At first, I felt like we were FLYING through this relationship. Things were moving at warp speed, then all of the sudden it felt like it was slowing down again- then *zoom* warp speed again. I kinda lost track of the timeline half way through and just kind of shrugged it off.

Over All Thoughts
Overall, just really truly a cute cheesy rom com. A fun and flirty read that has a little but of deeper elements, family healing, and self healing as well. Definitely recommend if you like a hallmark style rom com! Tommy and Maggie’s love story has opened my eyes to reading more of these quick & fun sports reads in the future.

If you're looking for a short, cozy sports romance book then this is it! This was my first baseball sports romance and what a lovely read! I really enjoyed Maggie and Tommy's story and when I tell you this book had me in tears, I wanted to reach through the book and give Maggie a hug. If you're a reader like me who enjoys fake dating, forced proximity, "he falls first", and you want a great start to your spring time reads then I definitely recommend this book. Maggie and Tommy's story is a real home run!

To say I loved this book is a complete understatement.

Sweet and innocent Maggie and bad boy baseball superstar Tommy are somewhat forced into a fake dating for PR situation. They navigate this fake dating with Maggie trying to protect her heart and Tommy trying to work his way into it.

My favorite part about this book is that they both have a past trauma that they each help each other through. Most books will mention the trauma but not really face it; with this book Ally did an amazing job from start to finish showing how bad the trauma was to the heartbreaking relief when both realized it was time to move forward with their life and grow from the past. Books don’t normally make me cry but there was multiple times I had to wipe my eyes.

Again saying I love this book is a serious understatement.

I have never read a sports romance before, so this was my first one. I will happily say I will read more! This is perfect for readers who need a happy ending to their books. I do think this story was predictable however, I am very interested in what the rest of the Chicago Heartbreakers will be. Overall, the style of writing was right up my ally and I would recommend this book to others.

I absolutely loved this book! Super quick pacing and to the point which I love. Ally did a great job giving the background of each of the main characters without over-doing it with unnecessary information.
After losing the love of her life Maggie is content with the thought that she’s had her one great love and she’s meant to life the rest of her life working her dream job as a photographer for Chicago’s MLB team. Until she meets Tommy, a reformed playboy on his last strike (get it hehe) with the MLB - Chicago is his last chance to prove he’s more than just a party animal.

-Fake dating
- insta love
-he falls first
-forbidden workplace romance

Maggie is a professional photographer working for her favorite baseball team: the Chicago Cougars. She has sworn off love after the tragic death of her soulmate and late fiancé until she meets the eye of the team’s newest (and hottest) star, Tommy Mikals. She isn’t sure if she’s ready for a new relationship but after a misleading photo hits the media, she doesn’t have much of a choice.

Calling all rom-com lovers: this one’s for you. This fake-dating romance was adorable and I was rooting for them throughout. Definitely a fun and quick read!

Some of the plot felt a little unbelievable and corny, which is why I had to drop my rating but overall I enjoyed the read!

This book was so adorable and for once touched on issue more than just guy meets girl, fake relationship etc. So so cute and I loved the support both offered each other. Perfect if you like fake dating and sports romances!

Baseball photographer Maggie Redford is happy to watch life from the stands. Playboy Tommy Mikals needs a reputation overhaul. He has been newly traded to the team, and is looking at this season as a chance at redemption. Vowing to give up his party-boy ways, he can't afford to be distracted by the gorgeous team photographer. When a wild team outing leads to Maggie getting caught on the wrong side of the camera with Tommy, the photo goes viral—making Maggie look like just another of Tommy’s hook-ups. With his reputation and her job at risk, the PR team devises a fake a romance to convince the world that the two are an established couple. But as their pretend relationship plays out in the spotlight, real feelings come into play. I am a sucker for a fake dating trope that is done well. The book was fade-to-black, which my only negative, but will be a huge selling point to other readers. The third act miscommunication was weak, but it did not last long, thankfully. This made a fun and easy palate cleanser, and it was nice to see a sports romance that included baseball.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exhange for a review,

This book is full of feels. I was not expecting that from a light-hearted sports romance and it was delightful. Both Maggie and Tommy are so well written. They are compelling characters, aside from their pasts, and the story around them is unique. I loved the way they fall into this fake dating scenario both knowing they have feelings for the other. It was a good twist n the classic trope.
I loved Maggie's relationship with her best friend and only wish we could've gotten more of her story as well as Tommy and his teammates. I wanted more of their involvement and interactions throughout the story, but this is a perfect romance and a great read for the beach and pool season.

Baseball photographer Maggie Redford is happy to watch life from the stands. At twenty-five, she's already lost the love of her life and is content to focus on her job snapping shots of Chicago's MLB team instead of her lovelife. But Maggie's thrown a curveball when the team signs Tommy Mikals, a tattooed hotshot whose talent for making plays is matched by a playboy reputation.
Tommy knows he was traded because his last team grew tired of his tabloid escapades, but he's looking at this season as a chance at redemption. Vowing to give up his party-boy ways, he can't afford to be distracted by the gorgeous team photographer.
When a wild team outing leads to Maggie getting caught on the wrong side of the camera with Tommy, the photo goes viral—making Maggie look like just another of Tommy’s hook-ups. With his reputation and her job at risk, the PR team devises a plan: fake a romance to convince the world that the two are an established couple.
But as their pretend relationship plays out in the spotlight, real feelings come into play. Maggie's already loved and lost, Tommy's never learned to commit: Can they even make it past first base?

Grab a box of tissues. This book will give you all the feelings. I laughed and cried so much. It will hit you right in the heart. I really loved this book and it is in the running for my favorite book of April. I loved Maggie and Tommy. I usually don't like fake romances but this one was done so well. Add this to your must read list.

This was a really cute and easy Baseball romance! I really enjoyed it!! I love a fake dating trope and the slow-burn was perfect!

3.5⭐️

I thought this was a cute easy baseball read!! A lil slow in the beginning but definitely picks up.

Maggie and Tommy needed to meet each other when they did in life,I feel like they really helped each other out emotionally and created a cute lil bond when doing so!!
Tommy just wanted to love Maggie so hard… He definitely found what he needed in Chicago!!

Thank you NetGalley and 8th Note Press for a ARC in exchange for an honest review!! 🤍

Ok, obsessed with the series already. It was totally cute and a devoured it on a plane ride! I am a sucker for fake dating and a sucker for a MMC who is kinda obsessed with the FMC almost instantly (in a non-creepy way!)

Maggie and Tommy find themselves in a fake dating contract to improve his reputation when he starts on the baseball team where Maggie is a team photographer. They find themselves enjoying spending time with each other more and more but have some personal obstacles to get through to be able to fully accept each other.

This book was so sweet and I thoroughly enjoyed it! I can't wait for more in this world!

Definitely a slow-burn sports romance, but I enjoyed it! Loved the fake dating trope and the fact that Tommy is my new standard for men lol.

This was a feel good, low stakes romance. It took me about two hours to read, and was a good palate cleanser. I think people who love baseball will like it more than I did.

First Base is a second chance, baseball, friends to lovers, fade-to-black romance. This was a really cute, quick read. It was Fate that I checked netgalley with a baseball romance in mind, and this was the first book to be suggested to me.

Maggie hasn't even thought about dating in over 4 years after a loss, and Tommy has sworn off women completely after almost upending his career. An innocent picture on a night out gets taken out of context, and the next day, they find themselves in their company conference room with a contract between them.

This is Ally's debut novel, and she knocked it out of the park (pun intended). Thank you, Ally and Netgalley, for the ARC!

This book was a home run! I don’t often see a lot of baseball romances so this was a fun one. I enjoyed getting to see the FMC grow throughout the book. Maggie deals with grief through the book and I think it was written very well. I also like the character growth from the love interest Tommy. Something I also really enjoyed about this book was how it deals with overcoming challenges. It also doesn’t have too much or too little spice. It was the perfect amount. This book is definitely worth the read.

Not going to lie this is the first “reformed playboy” type romance I’ve ever read and don’t know how to feel about that part.

Everything else tho! I really enjoyed this. I’m not a big sports romance gal but this was so fun and such a neat concept. Very easy read in my
Opinion especially after I read a few heavy books. This helped relax myself into looking for more rereads rather than falling into a slump

This book was the perfect book to read during baseball season. Maggie loves baseball but she doesn’t expect to find love with Tommy a baseball player trying to fix his image. This story has tropes that many love such as fake dating. Maggie and Tommy were both awesome and relatable characters. This was a great story.

Overall I’d give it four out of five.

Fantastic debut by Ally!

I absolutely loved the fake dating aspect of the book!! And then thrown in the fact that it’s a sports romance… eek!! And baseball at that!! Who doesn’t love a MMC in some tight baseball pants-
Hellooooo eye candy!! My favorite of all!!

I loved the fact that the MMC is a MLB player and the FMC is the photographer! What a fun trope I have not read before, but throughly enjoyed! Such a fun read. Great character development and the storyline was so much fun!

Thank you @netgalley, the author and 8th note press for this eARC in return for my honest review.