I had no idea what to expect with this book. I just requested it on NetGalley after the seeing cover and reading the blurb. After reading it, I am absolutely in love and I need to read anything that this author writes.

Honestly, it’s not a super long book and it’s very fast-paced. It doesn’t go into extreme detail, but it does talk about the loss of her ex so if that’s not something you wanna read about don’t read this book.

Maggie and Tommy are so flipping cute. Maggie hasn’t dated anyone since her ex died four years ago. Tommy is known as a playboy and his last real girlfriend left him heartbroken. They go out with friends after their first time meeting each other and get caught on camera. Tommy just got in trouble for being a playboy so, they have to fake date.

I just thought it was adorable and that fake dating was the perfect way for them to get together. Maggie was obviously traumatized by her ex dying, and so she was never gonna put herself out there to be in a relationship. The two of them had an instant connection, but if it weren’t for being forced to be together , she wasn’t going to do it. I loved all of the little moments between them that were building their trust with each other.

Tommy didn’t know all of the circumstances, but he knew that he would have to work hard to win Maggie‘s love. He wanted to do better and be the person that Maggie deserved. The two of them were a little stupid in that they wouldn’t just admit their feelings, but I think it worked. I love both of their best friends kept encouraging them because they knew it was what was best for them.

I want books about the best friends and I wouldn’t be opposed to getting more. I also would love a bonus chapter of the proposal from Tommy or Maggie’s POV.

I received an arc through NetGalley.

- Tattooed Baseball Player
- Team Photographer
- Workplace Romance
- Fake Dating
- Overcoming grief
- Debut Novel

I am loving the fake dating trope lately and add in baseball romance and I am SOLD. This one was super cute and for this being the authors debut novel I was very impressed! I loved Maggie and Tommy. They both had past traumas that they were working toward overcoming and I just felt like they complimented each other very well and had great chemistry.

Thank you netgalley and the author for an eARC.

I was super intrigued by this one. Professional sports photographer and “bad” boy baseball player forced into fake dating situation? You’ve got my attention. Overall, I thought this was a really cute and sweet romance. I liked Tommy and Maggie. I really liked Maggie’s best friend, Olivia. She’s the only reason I let the miscommunication trope at the end slide! It reads a lot like a cheesy romance movie, which is not a bad thing at all. It’s a quick. Maybe a little too quick? I think I craved a little more of Tommy’s perspective, yet his perspective of the miscommunication trope could have been a little better. Felt very rushed and dismissive, which I didn’t peg him for (even if it was his ex).

I liked it overall, and will keep up with the series!

Maggie is a photographer for the Chicago based MLB team, the Cougars. She loves baseball, works with a wonderful friend, and is a talented photographer. New recruit to the team, Tommy Mikals, is a bit of a distraction though. He's known as a bit of a playboy and party goer - in fact, that's why he was kicked off his previous team. Needless to say, Maggie does not want to be distracted and is not ready to be in a romantic relationship after experiencing a tragic loss. Turns out, Tommy is not what he seems. He's grown up a lot and has turned a new leaf. After a photograph of the two of them ends up in the tabloids, the Cougars execs propose the two of them fake a relationship to help Tommy save face. Maggie agrees, and as they go on publicity stunt dates, the lines begin to blur.

This was a cute story, fast paced and under 300 pages! Some open door scenes, but also a lot of sweet moments as they got to each other and started to develop feelings for each other. The action/plot starts pretty much right away and the timeline of their relationship did seem fast. I do love a fake-dating trope, and then it was friends to lovers. Both characters had things from their past that were very formative and drove their decisions, making them hesitant to further their relationship. The way they stood up for each other, boosted each other up, and helped them to be their best selves was exactly what you would want in the person you love! Tommy was also new to Chicago, and it was a fun part of the plot to see Maggie introduce him to the city. If you're looking for a sweet sports romance, something fast paced, this is for you!

I enjoyed this debut novel by a Texas author. Perfect book to read now that baseball season is here. Each of the main characters had depth which I like. I can't wait to see who the has the next love story in the second novel in this series. Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy. #NetGalley #advancedcopy

This was cute enough but my god, did I hate Olivia from the beginning. Her quips took away from the story. I liked Maggie and Tommy, I just wish this was a little longer and more developed.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc ebook in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I picked up "First Base" because I was craving a baseball romance. (I'm in my sports romance era). However, this one just didn't do it for me.

This is a book that had a lot of potential but just wasn't executed that well in my opinion. I liked the premise, liked both of the characters, and enjoyed a lot of the character choices the author made. The FMC and MMC had personal issues that made a lot of room for them to grow together, but there was just no follow through. This is Wiegand's first novel, and I'm looking forward to seeing her develop as an author in the future. All of the ingredients are there.

As for the things I didn't love, the FMC had major "she's not like other girls" and "she's pretty but she doesn't know it" energy. Which feels a bit tired in 2024. As far as how the emotions were written, there wasn't a ton of substance and I felt like there was a lot of back and forth. I wish characters would sit with their feelings a little more. Maggie would feel anxious, and then have all her anxiety disappear (literally), and then have it all come rushing back, over and over. I also wish there was a little more development in Tommy. There was such a great opportunity to explore his drunk driving incident in the context of the story, but it was mentioned once and never returned to.

I wish there was more inside baseball (literally). The sports details felt sparse and not super well researched (a 12 strikeout game is good, but not record setting). And I was able to suspend my disbelief on the premise to an extent, but it didn't totally sell me. If a professional athlete had a large online following of fans and ended up in the tabloids a lot, wouldn't that drive ticket sales up not down? And the premise posits that Tommy was released from his former team, and the Chicago team begrudgingly took him as somewhat of a liability, but it's also mentioned that he's one of the highest players in the league?

Again, this book had really good bones. I'm definitely going to pick up future books from this author. But there were a lot of pieces that just didn't quite click for me.

2.5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and 8th Note Press for the eARC. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All thoughts are my own.

This was a very cozy and lighthearted romance. I had a good time following Maggie and Tommy as they had to fake date. The concept of why they had to date, and the overall inclusion of baseball made the story very fun. This was a fairly simple story and I do wish there had been a little more character development. Even though I had a good time, I wanted a bit more especially about the backstories about our main characters.

This book was pleasant but also not very original. It was an easy read and went by very quickly.

This was a solid book, and with it being under 300 pages I expected the plot to happen very quickly. If I wasn’t prepared for that I would have been totally blindsided. I ate up the playboy wanting to be reformed trope, and cannot wait for the next book in the series!

"How could you not be romantic about baseball?" 🥹

Maggie and Tommy had great personal growth throughout the story, but I feel like their relationship was soooo slow going. Once they finally admitted their feelings to each other, the lack of trust and miscommunication in the last quarter of the book had me struggling to get to home plate (pun intended).

I still enjoyed this read and definitely think we need more baseball romance!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

While I loved the premise of the book, I think some things in the book fell a little flat for me. The slow burn was just a little too slow, with not a whole lot of chemistry going on with the characters. At times it felt like the characters did not even like each other at all. Insta-love is something that I find so hard to write and read, and it's something I have yet to be able to get behind.

However, I did love the sports romance of it all and the characters themselves were very well developed in my opinion. I love a fake-dating book and it was a quick read!

This was such a fun great baseball fake romance story. Maggie is a Chicago baseball team photographer for their social media. Tommy is the new baseball player transferee to the team. He was dropped from his last team due to his bad boy reputation. Loved the fake dating scenario on this for. I really think it helped with getting to know is the characters. Both Tommy and Maggie are coming from a very complicated past and dealing with overcoming those obstacles. I love how patient and caring Tommy is for Maggie. He just falls so quickly for her and wants the best for her which is really endearing. It’s a great summer time baseball read. Many thanks to 8th Note Press and NetGalley for the digital review copy of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This was such a feel good read!

I loved the dynamics of Maggie and Tommy as a couple. They both had realistic problems and it was so easy to connect with them. Their chemistry seemed real and genuine.

I loved Tommy. He was a cinnamon roll MMC and would do anything for Maggie.

Ally wrote the fake dating trope so well. I was impressed that this was a debut novel.

Thank you Netgalley and Ally Wiegand for the ARC in exchange for my review!

Thank you #netgalley , the publisher and author for the ARC of this book. I loved this book. Tommy and Maggie’s love story was so wholesome and perfect. Each of their characters developed in such a beautiful way. They way they connected with one another and their friends in this book was wonderful to read. I like to go into ARCs with little knowledge about the authors, so when I finished this and read that this was the authors debut novel I was floored. I have read so many books over the years, and I felt that this was written very well. I will definitely be adding Ally Wiegand to my list of authors to watch out for. Well done!

I’ve read a lot of good sports romances (and a lot of bad ones too) but this was high up on the list of good ones. Both of the main characters had complex backstories that perfectly intertwined with each other at the end. Reading this book felt like having a good conversation with a friend that you don’t see often because even though you don’t see them often, they’re still the same old friend. I’m not one for a baseball romance, but I thoroughly enjoyed this one in particular. I’m pretty sure this is the author’s debut novel, if that’s true, she has a long and great career in writing ahead of her.

I had really high hopes for this after reading the description and I felt like it fell pretty flat. Instead of a slow burn it was just plain slow. There wasn’t a lot of on page chemistry or tension throughout most of the book. I liked both Tommy and Maggie and their growth separately but I didn’t get that feeling for them as a couple. I also wasn’t sure of the timeline. At first it seemed fast and then I was shocked when Olivia made a comment about months going by. I will definitely try this author again in the future, this just wasn’t a favorite.

This book had the makings of a story I would typically enjoy, but it fell a little flat for me. While it featured many of my favorite tropes and centered around baseball, which I loved, I struggled with the pacing. From the male main character's point of view, it felt somewhat like insta-love, even though the characters did not exchange feelings until the very end. Despite this, there were moments where the story dragged, creating a disconnect between the instant attraction and the slower pacing.

Several repetitive phrases caught my attention, suggesting that another round of beta reading or editing might be beneficial before publication day. Additionally, there were some inconsistencies between the male and female main characters' perspectives that did not seem entirely justifiable, even though the author attributed them to insecurities.

Despite these issues, there were many positive aspects to the story. The structure made sense and worked well overall. The female main character's journey through her grief was particularly well-executed and believable, indicating that the author may have personal experience with loss. The depiction of guilt and grief was spot on.

The male main character's quest for validation from his father was relatable, as he constantly sought to improve himself and make his father proud.

Thank you to NetGalley, 8th Note Press, and Ally Wiegand for the advanced reader copy.

While I do think First Base will find an audience, it just wasn’t for me (DNF).

I couldn’t get past two specific things: (1) the flatness of the writing – all tell, no show, and quite cliché/cheesy at times, and (2) the immediacy of these two characters’ feelings for each other (and related plot pacing). If one of these two items had been different, I don’t think I would have DNF’d – because the premise of the story is a good one.

Style is such a difficult thing, often hard to pinpoint what isn’t working. I’d say aside from the clichés here, the sentence structuring was repetitive.

And, to the second point above, I can’t think of a single novel where the “insta-love” trope works well. Instant attraction? Absolutely. Instant connection? Sure. But what happens between Maggie and Tommy was hard to believe—and, as a result, I was never really rooting for them. Also, the moment we are introduced to Olivia's sister, Lottie, I felt like I knew the ending to her story as well. Why not introduce us to Lottie and have her profession be a surprise later on? It felt too neat and predictable. Romance novels are, by nature, often predictable - but the combination of the predictable plot elements and the "tell not show" writing style did not hold my interest - as if we know what everyone's happily ever after looks like right away.

Perhaps if we had gotten to know Maggie more before we were introduced to Tommy the immediate reaction these two had to each other might have been more convincing?

Ultimately, First Base should be popular among its target “New Adult” audience.

this book was a miss for me. i saw it was a baseball romance and after reading a few baseball romances in a row i thought this was going to be it for me! i didn't love this book but it was still cute and i enjoyed it for the most part. i just didn't really connect with any of the characters and it felt a bit rushed and i didn't really believe in these characters relationship. since it took me forever to get into it i think that also didn't help either. maybe I'll try another book by this author, maybe i won't it just depends.

This was a cute book overall. I liked the fake dating aspect of it, it's my favorite trope, but this book didn't make me squeal. Didn't give me the super feels as I read it.

I did like the growth for Tommy. The connection between Tommy and Maggie was there. We get those little cute moments between them.

I got an e-arc of this book on NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.