4 stars!- I was looking forward to reading this one because I love sports romances and second chance is one of my favorite tropes. I flew through this cute story and I was really rooting for Brenna and Nathan! I really liked the character development and navigating how their relationship can work in the present. This was my first Kathryn Kincaid book and it definitely will not be my last!

3.75 stars rounded up to 4 stars. I'll start by saying I adored the first book in this series but the tropes in this book (second chance and duel timeline) are not my favorite which lowered the rating. This book was about Nathan and Breanna. They grew up next door to one another, were best friends, and were together for a short time in high school. They are forced together back together years later when they inherit a house and business. Being forced together forces them to deal with issues of the past and present together. Overall this book was good. It barely connects with the previous book, so if you have not read it you won't be confused. The sports aspect is barely there as well. However, the connection, slow burn, and tension of Nathan and Breanna is great. I also loved the HSP rep and the realistic display of how others react to invisible illnesses. This book might not have been as good as Play Your Part, in my opinion, but it is a quick, easy, good read.

Thanks NetGalley, Kathryn Kincaid, and Victory Editing NetGalley Group for the Free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Kathryn Kincaid hit it out of the park with her second chance, small-town romance. Brenna and Nathan's story captured my heart with the sweet romance between two childhood best friends who are forced to reconnect after inheriting a house and business together. By the end of the book, I guarantee you will have a smile on your face.

This book was like having all my favorite tropes wrapped into one. It had best friends turned lovers, enemies to lovers, forced proximity, and sports romance tropes and I was all here for it!! I didn't read the first book in the series but don't worry because it can be read as a standalone. However, if you read out of order like me you will most likely want to read book 1 right after.

Brenna and Nathan were neighbors and best friends. And they played baseball together. Before they realized their friendship could be something more, everyone could see the one-of-a-kind connection they shared. Brenna always had a crush on him and it took Nathan longer to realize it. But once he did they made it official and they were inseparable. Then, an unexpected affair between his father and her mother causes a firestorm and leads to their breakup. It's tough for both of them, but he doesn't think he can ever forgive her for not telling him once she found out.

Fast forward six years later and they are back in town. Tensions are high and they are trying to act like seeing each other isn't a big deal. When they inherited his father's house and business, he made a stipulation in his will that they would both have ownership. No selling for at least six months. They decide to put their differences aside and agree to add some repairs and updates to get ready to put them on the market. Now, living together under the same roof is going to be a challenge. Brenna still feels a connection but is engaged and Nathan barely wants to communicate if it isn't business-related. In a short amount of time, they are breaking down all their walls and falling in love again. The slow burn is so worth it and I was so satisfied with how things turned out for them. It wasn't an easy journey but this second chance was right for them.

I loved this book so much. Reading this book felt like a blanket was wrapping me up. The romance is captivating and the chemistry is so electric. I think readers who love second-chance romances will enjoy this book.

Slow burns are typically not my style, but anything this hot is worth the build up.

Brenna thought she had moved on; from her heartbreak, from her toxic mother, from her messy childhood. But has she? The ring on her finger implies her heart is full, but she still feels like something..or someone is missing. She had her future planned, yet she’s blasted to the past - not just taking care of her mother and the little sister’s existence that catapulted her life into disarray, but to the loss of her only father figure and only tie to the boy who wrecked her.

Nathan’s life isn’t what he planned. The anger and pain of his teen years have followed him into adult life and multiplied as his dream career stays out of reach and he watches the one who got away find her way to someone else. He was determined that pro baseball would be his future and his one true love in life…as long as he could keep running from his hometown and the betrayal that burned his bridge back there. Enter his father’s will, not just the will that left his worldly possessions behind but his will to fix what he broke.

Nate and Bren are back in that small town, in that broken home, just trying to figure it out. How will they survive each other? How will they survive without each other?

This book builds up tension to the sweetest and spiciest moments, and while it starts off slow and unsure, I was entranced by the growth of the characters, the transparency of mental and physical health struggles, and the friends to enemies to friends to lovers will they won’t they slow burn that brings us a new family to root for.

I first want to start off by thanking Kathryn Kincaid and NetGalley for the ARC I was graciously sent. I am so thankful for taking a chance on a small booktoker who loves romance books!

This book was amazing! I loved the tension, the banter, the romance, and the spicy scenes. 5/5 stars all around!

Nathan and Brenna are childhood best friends turned lovers turned enemies turned lovers again. After growing up next door to one another for years, family matters got in the way of their relationship in high school and they went their separate ways, that is until Nathan’s father died and left half of everything to both Nate and Bren. Did I mention Brenna is engaged to someone else? No? Oops.

After hearing the stipulations of the will, Nathan and Brenna decide to try to put their past aside and fulfill the contingencies laid out for them. Eventually, both realize the feelings they had from their childhood have not subsided and after a break up, a winter storm turned power outage where they’re stuck in one room together with 4 cats, and confessed feelings, they finally realize what they’ve been missing all this time.

There’s romance, there’s representation for HSP (highly sensitive person), there’s spice, and there’s a beautiful coming of age story.

Highly, highly recommend and I cannot stop thinking about Nathan, Brenna, and Brenna’s little sister Molly.

I will be posting a review on my TikTok page by March 24, 2024 as well and have added a link to my page.