It was so good!! Something that I really liked is that the fmc had a life outside of the way she was perceived by the people she knows. The mmc was so cute too.

Playing Games by Max Monroe is a laugh-out-loud, sizzling rom-com that delivers banter, chemistry, and just the right amount of chaos. With a swoony football star, a feisty heroine, and a game of love neither saw coming, this book is pure fun from start to finish. If you love witty romance with plenty of heart, this one’s a touchdown!

Oh, Max Monroe!!! Our Lexi Lou has grown up and found a love of her own. I've been a fan of your writing from the first book you published and do re-read a few of the backlist ones each year for the laugh, giggles and sighs. With each book you keep moving the goalposts for which is my favorite Max Monroe MMC.....Brock has entered in the top 5.

Thank you for the opportunity to download this advance reader and I apologize for the late read and review I've learned to space out my MM new reads so I am not left too bereft while waiting for the next one. Perfect timing as my Monday email this morning tells me of a special opportunity available on Friday to download some of the books missing from my e-library. As always, thank you for the great reads and so excited for the publishing opportunities coming your way to the Mass Merchants and Independent stores.

Grumpy x Sunshine and our FMC is the grumpy one? I’m sold. I love reading a good opposites attract love story and seeing how their relationship grows. This story starts with Blake having it bad for Lexi and Lexi not being into it as much. However, as the story progresses and the two start to interact more and get closer, their relationship grows. These two have some of the best banter i've ever read. Lexi is so witty and keeps Blake on his toes. I really loved that even though there were times that Lexi was missing social and conversational, Blake still was so patient and understanding throughout the story. He never treated her differently and ended up being super protective of her. Not only that but once they started to get closer their chemistry was so much fun to read and experience. Although this was my first Max Monroe book it will definitely not be my last. After reading this, I’m for sure going back to read the first book in the series.

Thank you, NetGalley and Max Monroe for this ARC.

Usually love Max Monroe books because they are downright hilarious but this book fell flat for me. Don’t get me wrong — I liked Lexi & Blake a lot. I found the story really endearing and above all just sweet. But also kind of boring at times. It was just missing something special.

Thank you NetGalley & Max Monroe for this advanced reader copy.

There's nothing not to love about a Max Monroe book - their writing is flawless. I'm so in love with Lexi and Blake - I can't deal. This had absolutely everything that I adore about a sports romance and I already want to read it again!

Playing Games by Max Monroe is an absolute winner.
Blake Boden is everything I love in a romance hero—cocky, charismatic, and completely relentless in his pursuit. He walks into every situation like he owns the place, but what makes him truly irresistible is the way he meets his match in a woman who refuses to be charmed. The dynamic between him and the razor-sharp, emotionally guarded heroine is electric from the very first page.
The banter? Perfect. Every conversation is a battle of wits, filled with sharp retorts and underlying tension that had me grinning like an idiot. The push-and-pull is addictive, and watching the heroine try to keep her emotions in check—while Blake is dead set on breaking down her walls—is pure entertainment.
But what really sets this story apart is how well it balances humour with real emotion. It’s laugh-out-loud funny, but there’s depth beneath the snark and sarcasm. The slow unravelling of the heroine’s carefully structured world, the realization that maybe love isn’t just a “chemical reaction,” and the way Blake steps up when it matters most? Flawless.
This book is everything I wanted—funny, swoony, and impossible to put down. A total touchdown.

Playing Games by Max Monroe is the second book in the Dickson University series and I look forward to reading the next book in the series. I like that, for a change, the grump in the grumpy-sunshine romance trope is the FL. Also, the jock versus genius romance was interesting. Quite spicy too.
I got a complimentary copy from Max Monroe LLC via Netgalley. All opinions expressed are mine

Not my style. Should have read more on the author and/description before choosing this one. This is more for YA.

I loved Learning Curve so I was extremely excited to read Blake's story. He is so likeable that you can't help but root for him and his dream girl! Though Lexi didn't want to give Blake the time of day and resisted him for quite some time, he never gives up. Such tenacity! I also loved seeing the growth and strides that Lexi makes in this book.

In all honesty, my favorite part of the book didn't involve Blake and Lexi. Instead, it has to do with Ace and his girl. I can't wait for their story to come out!

This was overall a great read. Thank you for the advance copy to enjoy!

This was a great book! The romance and banter was so good! I would highly recommend reading this book. It was so addictive.

„Playing Games“ is a novel and the second installment in the Dickson University series by Max Monroe.

This is my second book (after Meet Me At Midnight) by Max Monroe and I ate it upppp. Finished it in less than 24 hours. I love a feel-good sports romance and this was exactly what I needed after reading some heavy-topic books.

Playing Games is a spicy college romance which follows the story of Blake who is a popular, handsome and extroverted quarterback and Lexi, an intelligent, introverted chem-nerd. The POVs change from his to hers in every chapter which allows the reader to get to know their individual characters really well while they are getting to know each other.

In this novel, opposites attract and oh boy, how they do. While he is used to getting every girl he wants, she is the only one who is not interested. While Lexi is the rational one, always focused on statistics and analytics (even regarding her love life), Blake is more on the emotional side. While she is very much a control freak, he is the one who can make her feel comfortable being OUT of control. On top of that, I love romance where the MMC falls first and that was a great example for that.

In my opinion, this was a nice feel-good read with a pleasant amount of needed drama to make it an interesting novel. I rate it 3 ⭐️.

The e-arc was provided by NetGalley and Max Monroe LLC in exchange for an honest review - thank you so much! ☺️

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Huge thank you to Max Monroe and NetGalley for the ARC eread. 🤍

Start QB MMC and over achieving superior intelligent FMC. Ovi a combination for a great story. Max Monroe does not disappoint. Blake and Lexi make a delicious couple.

Blake with golden retriever tendencies. Lexi is an independent woman who is trying to be better with her feelings/relationships. They work so well together and help bring out the better traits. This was only my first book in the Dickson Universe series but I am looking forward to Ace and Julia’s story. In the meantime I will be reading Finn and Scottie’s book.

I absolutely fell in love with this book and the characters! I can't wait to read more from this author in the future! Thank you for this opportunity!

I loved everything about this book! The humour is effortless, the character development is top notch and the actual story was utterly consuming. A perfect rom com!

ARC Review: This was my second Max Monroe book and I kind of wish I would have read more books related to this world before jumping into this one.

This is a college aged romance set at Dickson University in NYC. Lexi (25), a neurodivergent grad student, is finishing up her second PhD. Girl is SMART! Spitting out random facts or reason all throughout the book. I really loved it. As a neurodivergent female myself, I found myself connecting with her inner thoughts throughout the entire book.

Blake (21) is the star QB for Dickson university, finishing up his junior year with the intent to go pro. Blake met Lexi at an event a year prior and has been fawning after her ever since. He finally gets his chance and boy, does it play it right. He is so patient with her throughout the story and really starts to understand how her brain works.

The banter, the spice and the plot were on point! The pacing of the story worked very well. I enjoyed learning about the friend group but I was a little confused by all the connections. I felt like it was repetitive and overwhelming when they listed all the family members attending an event and their relation to one another. I could have done with a family tree of some sort at the beginning of the book. Even if I would have read the previous books in this world, it still would have been confusing.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and cannot wait to read Ace and Julia's story. Ace realizing he has feelings for his best friend is one of my favorite scenes of this book.

Some of my favorite quotes...

<i>"She's not a pick-me girl - she's a don't-pick me girl, to be honest."

"I don't want to hurt him, but I don't know how to be anything else but me. And one of the hardest parts about being me is that I don't feel things the same way most people do."</i>

Thank you Max Monroe LLC for providing this book review for consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Scrumptious!

I’ll be honest, I was pretty much all in from the Dedication page— THEY ARE MY PEOPLE!

This book kept me engaged, and I really appreciated the chuckles had throughout. Lexi & Blake are just magic together, and I was a little sad when it was over — I wanted MORE!

Well tickle & pickle me— imagine my complete and utter delight to realize there’s more in this series!

Just— YAY!

I received an ARC for this title in the hopes of my voluntarily leaving an honest review, and an honest review is what I’ve left.

I have been anxiously waiting for this book and was so excited to receive an ARC. It did not disappoint. Lexi and Blake had amazing chemistry and I could not put this book down. You will not be disappointed. I promise!

Author: Max Monroe
Publish Date: 2/7/25
ARC provided by Max Monroe for an honest review!

This is my first time reading a book from this author. It definitely gave opposites attract/sports romance one of my favorites.

Lexi is on the spectrum and a genius. Blake is the star quarterback for his college team. Blake had been pinning over Lexi for a long time and she has sent given him the time of day. Blake finally gets her to hang out with him and now they enter into relationship where one person wants it out in the open and the other doesn't.

The banter between these two was great. I felt Blake needs allot of credit for his patience because I even got frustrated with Lexi a few times. I felt Lexi grew the most through out the book since she had such a hard time with emotions.

I would recommend this book to someone. It was a quick sweet read.

Blake loves playing football. He wants to play in the NFL one day. First, he has to get through college. Second, he needs to get Lexi’s attention because he is sure she is “the one”. Lexi is finishing up her PhD and is trying to figure out what she wants to do next. She knows a lot about Blake and she is concerned about their age difference among other issues. She has spent her life surrounded by football players and she isn’t sure she wants to take a chance on one. Will Lexi take a chance on Blake or will she break his heart because she is scared?
The author does a good job showing how Blake and Lexi know each other and all of the little connections they have. For example, they are part of the Double C group (I am oversimplifying). This relationship was set up in the prior book. If it weren’t for Double C and Blake being on the football team, they would still have ended up in each other’s orbits due to family and friends. They are good for each other. She helps Blake to grow up a little bit and he helps her to see that she might be a little different from other people but that isn’t a bad thing. Their love story is very sweet. I love that he wants to be with her to the point of distraction and she finds ways to help him focus on what’s important for his future. I thought there would be the big dramatic break and makeup or maybe the family doesn’t approve so there’s angst but the author chose a different route. It was refreshing. But more importantly, it made me smile.
Playing Games is book 2 in the Dickson University series. You don’t have to read the books in order but I think it will give context about the main couple of this book as well as better understand the second storyline that is in the background of this book. This is a college romance with a splash of football. This book continues the story of Finn and Scotty from book 1 and it sets up the next book in the series. I will read more from this author in the future.