I love a good MM romance—and this one absolutely delivered!
I picked it up hoping for something sweet, emotional, and impactful, and it did not disappoint.

This was my first read from this author, and I was immediately hooked by the fun yet heartfelt plot, the smooth, engaging writing, and the incredibly layered characters. I laughed, swooned, and even teared up at one point—the emotional beats hit perfectly.

What really stood out to me were the deeper themes: high school bullying, internalized homophobia, and the struggle of living in the closet. Both MCs had such meaningful growth, and I really appreciated how the story showed compassion and understanding—even when one of them (looking at you, Andrew 👀) definitely could’ve handled things better.

This is a beautiful love story—raw, real, and romantic. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves emotional, character-driven romance.
Definitely adding this author to my auto-buy list! 🫶🏽

Just wow - the way I loved this one. I flew through it in a weekend. Loved the two guys and the connections between them (and the cats!).
The only small thing was a couple throwaway lines about Leo that seem to be unnecessarily setting up connections to prior or incoming books.

only a little bit smutty (could always use more) but it's also rather sweet and tenderhearted.

these things always go better when one of the enemies-to-lovers is a millionaire, right?

definitely recommend!

*received a free copy from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Revenge story turned gay romance? Sign me up! I always love a good enemies-to-lovers, and I absolutely adored all the twists and turns of this story. I did skip through a few sections (I have zero interest in reading sex scenes and wouldn't have picked up this book if I'd known that was coming), but overall, I really enjoyed Andrew and Justin's story and was cheering them on until the absolutely perfect ending!

The Revenge Game was a good love story, even if it didn’t fully win me over. I really enjoyed the way the relationship developed between Andrew and Justin—it felt natural and heartfelt, and there was a moment where my heart was absolutely racing (in the best way). Calder definitely knows how to write chemistry and tension.

That said, I did feel like Andrew fell in love a little too easily. I mean, I get it—Justin’s charm is hard to resist—but the emotional shift happened a bit quickly for me. Also, the revenge setup, with all the pretending and lying, dragged on longer than I would’ve liked. It made it harder to stay fully invested when I was just waiting for the truth to finally come out.

Still, despite those reservations, this was an enjoyable read overall. A solid romance, even if it didn’t quite hit “favorite” status for me.

Okay I totally devour this book, I think right now I'm in my romance era, or maybe this book came when I needed a good love story.

Andrew was bullied in High School by Justin the popular futbol player, years had passed and now Andrew owns a billionaire company and he's looking for something to do with his life and free time, he has achieved success at young age, so when he spot Justin at the bar in London and he didn't recognize him Andrew get mad, and now he knows what to do with his free time, revenge. But little does he know that Justin keeps secrets too and maybe they're more alike.

Like I said, this booke gave me revenge, drama, rom com and love, I couldn't put down the book, the writing style was so good that I was hooked from the beginning, and the plot I mean, we knew about the revenge but a lot of things happened, and it felt like a rom com, tragedies but make it fun.

Yes, we also have the sad part, Justin comes from a place where he was bullied by his stepdad so there's a lot to unpack there, the emotions were there, Justin and Andrew are just beautiful.

I highly recommend this book, if you're looking for something romantic, wholesome and that makes you laugh this is the book, also we have a little of spice, so be ready.

The Revenge Game was such a fun book. The banter was engaging and I was 100% invested in their romance. I give The Revenge Game 4/5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to review The Revenge Game by Jax Calder. All opinions are my own

Andrew went from being bullied in high school for being gay to being a tech-genius. After selling his tech start up worth millions he's not sure what to do with his life. That is until he runs into one of his high school tormentors randomly in a British pub. And so a revenge plot is born.

Justin was the quarterback, golden boy in high school. He now does sports equipment sales in England and he does not recognize Andrew. He's also hiding a secret of his own. When "Drew" starts as a new IT person at his company he has no idea Drew is out to get him.

I am such a fan of how Jax Calder writes their characters. They can take an ex high school bully and make him a a lovable cat dad? This is an adorable enemies (on Andrew's side) to friends to lovers. I wasn't sure how I felt at first that 1/2 the couple was a bully in his younger years but Justin had so many layers and so much guilt for his past. And Andrew coming to terms with his past and learning that there's more to people than what you first think.

The story was very sweet and had a lot of humor. I absolutely adore Justin's cats and it was heartwarming seeing Drew help Justin come out of his shell and allowed to be himself. Their workplace was full of fun characters and there was some sprinkling in of Leo's story (for the next book in the series).

This book had me smiling, laughing and emotional at some points. I really enjoyed this story and highly recommend for anyone looking for a sweet romcom with a touch a spice.

Thank you NetGalley and Xpresso Book Tours for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

5 Things about my experience with this
👍🏻 Depth of themes (toxicity and acceptance)
🧀 A bit too cheesy for my taste
😮‍💨 Why in these books all the friends go through the same exact plots?
🆗 The writing style was nice. The pacing was off.
✂️ Dragged/unnecessarily

0%-22%
A bit slow to build, setting seemed
a bit too convenient, but OK.

23%-52%
Cute and interesting enough.
Went deeper on the long lasting effects of bullying and abuse.

53%-100%
It may be me, but I felt this part dragged a bit too much, and I found myself losing interest slowly. It was still nice, and full of important themes, but the pace felt a bit off and there wasn't enough tension to keep me wondering what was to come.

Jax Calder has become one of my go to authors for romance. Even when I start the book thinking there is no way these two characters should begin a relationship - Calder makes me believe.


Tropes:
Enemies-to-Lovers
Bully
Slow Burn
Identity Reveal

I’m not gonna lie, when the book first started I was like “ehn 3.75 stars, nothing special” but when their relationship started properly!!! I was SOLD!! SCREAMING, CRYING, THROWING UP & SLIDING DOWN THE FREAKING wall because yes!!! ANDREW YATES IS THE STANDARD!! really they’re both great and ughh my freaking heart 😭

There is so much soul to this story.. the lore, the humor, the growth, the representation and important conversations. The prose captivated me slowly and deliberately, written in such a way that gave careful consideration to all the focal points of the plot while not allowing any particular sentiment to overtake another.

Andrew and Justin’s character arcs are written so well.. the high school outcast (Andrew) bullied so much by a group of jocks in school it still affects his view of himself in the present.
Your classic jock (Justin) at the top of the social hierarchy in HS. Charming as hell, everybody loves him, dating the also equally popular head cheerleader (yes we all know the song and dance) but it’s not just that because there’s so much more to the story that cannot undo his past actions but makes you want to give him grace

This is a story of self discovery.. for both the popular and the not so popular, it’s a story of learning freedom and contentment. It’s the story of rewiring your mind to reflect the things that matter to you. Andrew are Justin are perfect individually and together.

I ADORED this book, and had to immediately go read the novella Hired by the Enemy and get Matthew's story.

Is this plot of Andrew going under cover as "Andy," the new IT guy at his high school bully's company to exact sweet, sweet digital revenge on him - going so far as to move into the flat down the hall from him, btw - realistic in any way, shape, or form? Absolutely not. Did I eat it up with a spoon anyway? YOU BET I DID!

I love the chemistry between Andrew and Justin. For being a tech genius, Andrew sure isn't too bright, what with telling himself his developing feelings for Justin are just "keeping your enemies closer." And Justin... oh, sweet golden retriever Justin. He means well, but sure makes a lot of mistakes. He's the poster boy for whatever the saying is about bullied people bully.

This is book one in The Revenge Club series and can be read as a standalone. I can't wait for book two, The Revenge Mishap, where we get Andrew's partner Leo's story (which sounds like it involves some mistaken identities mishaps - my fave!)

Justin and Andrew share a common past: Justin was Andrew's high school bully. A past Andrew never got over, and when, ten years later, he runs into Justin again by chance and Justin doesn't even recognize him, Andrew decides to get revenge. Obviously, that's not how it's going to happen at all.

I really liked the internal conflicts of both characters, the highlighting of the difficulties of adolescence and high school dynamics between teenagers. And invisible disabilities!

Justin and Andrew are so cute together. I can't believe it took Andrew so long to realize Justin was gay (seriously, it takes months and months after their reunion for them to kiss ?).

One thing bothers me : who takes care of Justin's cats while he's away ?

Thanks to Netgalley and Jax Calder for their eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Jax Calder is a superstar whose books are always engaging. My only complaint is that I stay awake far too late reading them instead of sleeping.
The Revenge Game is the story of Drew (Andrew) and Justin. Andrew Yates is a tech genius who has just sold his company and it sitting in a pub in London trying to decide what to do next with his life. There he sees Justin who he went to school with., although Justin doesn't seem to recognise Andrew. Justin was part of the group of kids that bullied Andrew until he went away to university so Andrew devises a plan to get revenge on Justin by humiliating him as he did to Andrew all those years ago.
In the way of all good stories, life never tracks as you planned and both Justin and Drew learn about redemption, with much hilarity along the way.
Jax Calder writes such engaging characters that it's easy to completely lose yourself in the story. Justin and Drew are 2 perfect examples. A tech genius and a former high school golden boy who are trying to overcome their own insecurities while helping the other deal with his. It's a beautiful book that is going on my 'read when I'm having a bad day' list when I need to read about good.

3 stars

I like this one overall, but I didn't love how long the secret identity part was kept from Justin. That made me not fully enjoy their cute moments.
still, this was another solid read from Jax.

"The thing about walls is they don't just keep other people out. They keep us trapped inside too" Mom says quietly. "If you've found someone who helps you tear down your walls instead of building higher ones, maybe that's worth fighting for".

OMG, this was such a lovely book. We get Andrew, a geeky nerd guy who runs into his High school bully, Justin, and decides to infiltrate his life and help karma along and get some revenge after his miserable experience in High school. However, Andrew gets to know Justin, and as usual things are more complex that we want them to be and we are all going/struggling through something. We go along Andrew;s journey as he explores his feelings toward Justin, which are initially anger and rage and then evolve to curiosity as he gets to know Justin and then maybe love! However, Andrew hasn't disclose who he really is and that house of cards will eventually fall... There was so much emotion and feelings in this book. It had be laughing, smiling and crying along with the characters. Both went through so much and deserve their HEA.

I do love a bit of petty revenge in a story.
Andrew - The gawky, geeky, gay kid is now a multi-millionaire with time on his hands and revenge on his mind.
The recipient of his revenge - his high school bully, Justin, now a sales rep at a company Andrew is able to get a job with.

This book has some lovely light moments, some uncomfortable moments looking at the effects of bullying and homophobia, and some truly tender moments when the revenge plan blurs into something else.

Perhaps a tad long for me, but maybe it was just that I wanted to get to the HEA. Either way, I’ll be checking out other books by this author.

Thank you to Jax Calder for this e-arc in exchange for my honest opinion. The Revenge Game had some really sweet moments- the grand gesture at the end was one for anyone who loves a real romcom moment! Justin and Drew were both very sweet and their relationship progressed in a way that felt genuine. However, the big lie between them and Drew’s revenge plan was a tough hang- it went on for so long. The plot felt a little drawn out, but it meandered eventually into an ending that will make you swoon!

Perhaps the lesson learned for me is that bully romances are not for me. And that I can only tolerate so much suspension of disbelief. While I am certainly uncomfortable with the teenage bullying, I cannot get behind the immaturity and implausibility of Andrew's plan. Even if he does slow down/tone it down. It just did not work for me.

Thank you Jax allowing me to read an advance copy - admittedly I am late to feedback. I think I've found a new fave author and want to explore amazing MM romance.

Set against the backdrop of London, The Revenge Game follows millionaire tech mogul Andrew Yates, who, by chance, spots his old high school bully, Justin, in a pub—only Justin doesn't recognize him. Seizing the moment, Andrew decides to infiltrate Justin's work and home life, determined to finally get his revenge.

But as Andrew gets deeper into Justin's world, he realizes that Justin might not be the villain he remembered. Instead, both men find themselves confronting old wounds, including bullying, an abusive step-parent, and the long journey toward healing.

This was such a fun read! It struck a beautiful balance between lighthearted moments and more sensitive, emotional topics. I honestly thought I was reading a no-spice romance until the halfway mark—then, surprise! 🔥 It definitely kept me on my toes and made the story even more engaging.

If you love a romance that’s both heartfelt and a little bit mischievous, you’ll adore The Revenge Game!

*Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this free ARC in exchange for an honest review. Pub date: April 11, 2025

Umm…lowkey obsessed with these characters and this book?! This has it all…enemies to lovers, revenge, humor, undercover ops, London, cat overlords, adorable nerds, open door steam, communication, emotional growth, big gestures, and more! This gave me so much anxiety leading up to everything hitting the fan, but I was rooting for them with everything I had because I’m a sucker who loves love. Read this in one day because I couldn’t put it down!