I struggled with this one, primarily due to the heroine. I need independent, strong women in my romance, and Chloe wasn't it. She had very little growth throughout the book and was just incredibly difficult to like. Also, the build up of the forbidden aspect just felt forced and stupid. These weren't "step siblings" who grew up together and had that sibling type relationship - they're grown adults who met without even knowing their parents were dating. It just didn't make sense for that to be the whole conflict here. Overall, I love Tessa, but this was miss.

Unfortunately, I DNF’d this book halfway through. I am not a fan of the step-sibling trope. I know Tessa Bailey likes to push the envelope a bit and I can appreciate that, but this one was just not for me.

Unfortunately I had to DNF this one. I’m not a fan of insta love/make out and I’m also not a fan of dumb helpless FMC. This book had both. Chloe is ditzy, spoiled, and helpless. I couldn’t even force myself to read this.

I enjoy Tessa Bailey's writing, I'm all for giggling and kicking my feet banter (which she delivers) -- however I was not a fan of the forbidden love trope. That being said, I will continue to read anything she writes, this book was entertaining and a good time.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

In true Tessa Bailey fashion, readers are catapulted into drama and hooked from beginning! As the book progressed, we got to know more of Sig and Chloe, saw friends we've met before, and held our breath as we waited to learned what Tessa had in store for us!
The twist at the beginning had me low-key stressing the whole way to see how Tessa would iron everything out and - yes - she delivered!
Sports Romance fans will probably (definitely) enjoy this one (and all the others in the series!)

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

When professional hockey player Sig Gauthier’s car breaks down and his phone dies, he treks into a posh private country club to call a tow truck, where he encounters the alluring Chloe Clifford, the manic pixie dream girl who captivates him immediately with her sense of adventure and penchant for stealing champagne...
However, there is just one problem. One, tiny, teensy bity problem....
ACTUALLY, IT IS A HUGE PROBLEM!!!! Sig's father is engaged to Chloe's mother....which means they will be stepsiblings soon enough...
While they both hope their parents' whirlwind romance will somehow fall apart, seeming very unlikely at this point...
This leaves Sig and Chloe in a complicated emotional bind and they both try their hardest to ONLY be friends.

I already enjoyed seeing bits and pieces of them from their previous appearances in the other TB books, but man oh man...my heart in this...I just feel like I am truly bursting with so much LOVE! Sig is so protective over Chloe and she has this strength about her that I haven't seen in a FMC in awhile...it was all just so beautifully written.

The Twist at the end was something however...I WAS NOT PREPARED FOR THAT!
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oh my goodness. Anyway, go read this....like YESTERDAY!

Tropes Included:
Insta Love💘
Forbidden Love❤️‍🔥
Hockey Player🏒🥅
Opposites ⬅️➡️
Dysfunctional Family❌
Spicyness🌶️🥵

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon books, and of course, TESSA BAILEY, for my copy of this digital ARC. All opinions are my own!

Tessa Bailey returns with another steamy installment in her Big Shots series, delivering on the sizzling chemistry and tension fans of sports romances have come to expect. If there's one thing Fangirl Down nails, it's the slow-burn heat—so palpable you’ll find yourself metaphorically clawing at the walls, desperate for that long-awaited payoff. Bailey’s mastery in building romantic tension is on full display, and for many readers, that alone will be enough.

However, while the chemistry between the leads is undeniable, the characters themselves left much to be desired. Chloe, our heroine, aims to embody independence but ends up simply shifting her dependency from her overbearing mother to Sig, her love interest. It's frustrating to watch a character who claims to want autonomy consistently retreat into comfort zones where she’s insulated from true failure. While some have called her "childlike," I’d argue she chooses a kind of willful ignorance—living in a world where the stakes never feel real.

As for the forbidden romance angle, which should have added a layer of emotional complexity and delicious angst—it falls flat. For a book that flirts with taboo themes, Fangirl Down plays it surprisingly safe, and in doing so, does a disservice to readers who were expecting something a little more daring or emotionally charged.

Fangirl Down felt more like a fumble than a touchdown, and I’m not sure I’ll be sticking around for the next play.

It was ok, but not really my favorite of this author's. I found myself drifiting and skimming thru parts. Just never really grabbed me and I honestly stopped reading it part way. Myself and 2 other fellow employees chose to do this for book club review and it was a let down. They as well thought the same thing. It's a no for me

A cute hockey romance! All of the subplot of the family drama and secrets added to the overall tension.

This book was not a favorite of mine from Tessa but it was good nonetheless!! I wish it wasn’t as insta love as it was but it’s something I can tolerate!

This book drags a little and I am still readng it. Please this with a grain of salt because I am not sure if I am a Tessa Bailey fan yet:)

Such an entertaining book with a great plot twist at the beginning. There's definitely step sibling trope, but it still was entertaining and fun to read. The story was quite predictable, but I still enjoyed it.

What happens when your car breaks down and a dead phone, you get to the nearest location to call for help. Well Sig, the professional hockey player, had to do. He was just able to make it to a private country club, but the country club is not very apt to help him. Chloe, a harp prodigy, happens to walk out and help him, but not before stealing some champagne. They happen to hit it off right then and there. Sig finally makes it to dinner with his dad to meet his dad's new girlfriend, but the woman just so happens to be Chloe's mother. And what else could go wrong, not their parent announcing their engagement, no but yes. They can't hide their attraction to each other but their parent's relationship makes it super difficult to keep it out of the spotlight they are under. Will they be able to let this relationship go or will they give into their truest desires and ignore what the world thinks?

First off, I don’t think the step-sibling romance trope is my cup of tea. They’re not related by blood or anything (it’s through their parents marriage), but ehhh, was not a fan. Also, there was no sense of relationship building in this story. The two characters just hit it off right away and had instant chemistry. There were also random time skips, which I can understand if the whole book is going to formatted that way, but these were just random. That just made the story feel even more unexciting and clumsy. I’m not normally a hater but sorry, this was just so cringey and bad… just don’t waste your time with this one. It Happened One Summer is still her best work (by far).

Thankfully, I received this as an ARC so it was free to read. Thank you NetGalley for giving me the opportunity in exchange for an honest review!

Another great book from Tessa Bailey! Sig and Chloe are great characters and have fantastic chemistry together. Loved all of Chloe's mishaps trying to live on her own in the city, and the way that Sig took care of her without making her feel badly. I didn't really get the high level of taboo around the reason why they couldn't be together - my one real criticism of the story.

As much as I love Tessa’s quirk and banter and her general writing style, this one unfortunately fell a bit short for me. I LOVE a forbidden romance and I love EVEN MORE a stepbrother romance and while this started off very promising, the main and major sole focus was the fact that they were step siblings. Which normally, ok, I can get the taboo in that if you’re growing up with someone your whole life as only that but these were older and late life characters that had no idea their parents were even together and met before even knowing that. I just, don’t truly understand the road block here. I just feel like it missed the mark a bit for me. 3/5 stars.

Could not get into this one! I tried quite a few times to trudge through and just couldn’t do it folks. I hate to DNF. A book—especially and ARC—but I really struggled with the dynamic between the characters. It felt like a teenager relationship and I wanted them to just grow up a bit.

Overall, this was a very cute read. I loved the characters together and anticipated this story after reading the first two books in the Big Shots series.
I felt that the FMC was very immature and I know that was the point at first but I did not feel that she learned enough to make me love her individually by the end. The MMC was a complete pushover. He was cute and great as an NHL player but every time he was doing things for the FMC he dropped down a couple of pegs for me.

I love Tessa, and this is no different! I was a little skeptical going into this trope because of how different it is, but she handled it so well! I love this series.

I understand the FMC was supposed to be an inexperienced, sheltered adult and those qualities are meant to make her perhaps a quirky foil to the MC, but it went a little too far for me. I could not enjoy this book because of how clueless and immature she was.

That being said, this series is harmless. If you want to shut off your brain, escape to delulu island for a bit, go at it.