such an amazing read!! wish we could've learned more about gen's mom but it was still so good! i loved seeing them stand up for themselves but i do hate third act breakups😭

If your a fan of Icebreaker by Ali Hazelwood you will LOVE THIS!!!

I feel like this book was so well written and truly prefer it over any Ali Hazelwood book I’ve read!

Not only did the romance build up very well but the characters had more depth than just being revealed around the actual romance that takes place in the book. I’m very intrigued to read the other books in this series!

Very much a theme of nobody is perfect and everyone has stuff to work through personally.

Anyway 10/10! Loved this!

The DRAMA!! Oh my gosh, the drama in this book was amazing. I love books with drama, but it has to be done right, and this was done PERFECTLY! This book was like if One Tree Hill and Gossip Girl had a baby. Genevieve was so refreshing as a FMC. She was guarded, imperfect, so caring and sweet, but mess with her and she’ll kick your butt. Grant was so incredibly sweet, but headstrong, which I loved. The push and pull with Will and Grant was so painful to experience, it broke my heart for Genevieve. She only ever wanted to do the right thing and be loyal. I laughed, I cried, I gasped! Jean and Sloane were the ultimate besties! My heart broke so many times for Genevieve and the unfairness in all aspects of her life. Grant’s struggles and pressure were so relatable. The chemistry between Genevieve and Grant was so intense, it had me blushing and swooning! I did not want this book to end. I can’t wait to go back and read the first in this series, and I can’t wait for the next one. I’m so sad to have finished reading this book, but it was so much fun, so much angst and heartbreak! Just a truly amazing read.

3.75⭐️

this was a great contemporary romance. it is one of those books that is going above and beyond just your typical romance novel and the trauma and exploration of both gen and grants pasts/present add a lot of depth to this story and to their character development. genevieve had her moments that gave me some pause but overall her character was incredibly special and real! this was my first book by this author and i certainly enjoyed my time. i do wish the ending was a bit more concrete and put a tighter ribbon on things but overall a solid contemporary romance!

ARC - PUBLICATION DATE 25TH JULY 2025

5 ☆

『 tropes 』
•college romance
•basketball player x ballerina
•he falls first
•found family
•secret relationship

『 plot 』
gen loves two things, ballet and her best friend, will chapman. despite her complicated home life, those two things have always been something that has kept her grounded, they were her two constants but will chapman is spiralling after a secret and heartbreak wreck him, and he’s no longer the boy she fell in love with. she’s now coming to terms with the fact that will will never be hers, and she needs a life outside of him. in comes grant, who plays for the same college basketball team as will chapman. grant is kind and genuine but he has his own demons, so when gen approaches him and asks him to lose her virginity to him, he can’t help but be intrigued by this person that he’s never really known, and kept at arms length because of will. could this deal make them both believe they are good enough, or will it break them further?

『 my thoughts 』
they’ve done it again! i absolutely adored gen and grant’s story, it was beautifully done. the drama in this story is unmatched and whilst you know parts of the drama from the first book, it was still so intriguing to read and understand it from gen and grant’s pov and you also got to understand them so much better in this book. their relationship added so much more to everything that was going on. gen and grant are so very likeable and endearing!

this is the second book in the astor hill series, and even though it can be read as a standalone, i would definitely recommend reading the first book. the authors did it all so well, with ben’s pov in the first book they only scratched the surface of grant’s story and with liv’s pov in the first book, they really had you loathing gen (for the most part). second position overlaps the first book but it doesn’t read like you’re just going through the same storyline, it was so well done and highlights the importance of different povs and how sometimes those pov can be biased.

When I tell you I felt so incredibly bad for Gen, the way people walk all over her. She gives herself to others and they use her kindness and end up bleeding her dry. My heart hurt for her!!

Grant is just a lover boy, ugh I mean he has been through A LOT but he still makes all the time in the world for Gen. They were drawn to each other and found solace within one another. Both having experienced their own trauma they try to navigate what they mean to each other while also diving deeper into their own personal relationships with family and friends.

A beautifully written book that highlights not only romance but shows the reader it’s okay to put yourself first.

Thank you to NetGalley for this wonderful ARC!

This book was good? Okay? I didn't hate it but also didn't love it. I felt it dragged a bit and there were still a lot of questions I had at the end about the relationships and what happened and why certain things had happened, I thought the characters were emotionally diverse but very conflicted and the book overall just felt a little confusing at points.

In all I liked the story and thougt it had potential there was just a few things I would've liked to be more fleshed out.

This was my first Sydney Madison book and I was not disappointed in the slightest.

This book is much deeper than just a romance, it tackles some deeper issues such as family, abandonment and eating issues (I recommend looking up trigger warnings). All of this made it easy to connect with the characters and understand them as people. While there were times that Gen was annoying, it becomes apparent why she acts the way she acts and you get a much deeper understanding of both Gen and Grant throughout the book.

I cannot wait to dive into other Sydney Madison books.

Another, great book by Sydney Madison! This story follows Gen and Grant along the same timeline as book 1 - Astor Hill. While you could read this second book on its own, I would suggest reading book 1 for the full picture. During book 1 we have a tense relationship with Gen that slowly grows to a likeness, but we never knew her whole story. In Second Position, her story brings together so much compassion to why there was always a struggle with her best friend Will. You slowly peel back layers of her "iciness" and learn she is struggling just like everyone else. Grant, seemed like a good friend to the MMC in book 1, but you soon learn all of his tension to what happened and how bad he was fighting when people left him. The authors bring you a great story while touching on the emotions all of us have experienced, unfortunately, at points in our lives. I love their vulnerability they bring to the characters in those moments. Also, normally in books when the MMC does something to hurt the FMC or you know they make a bad choice, it's given me an red flag, but these authors really bring that depth to the character where you're just still rooting for them to fix and heal themselves because they are just humans experiencing life. Thank you to the authors for allowing me to have an ARC of yet, another, great book.

It was so nice being back in the Astor Hill universe for Gen and Grants story. There was so so much going on within the lives of these characters and so many emotions swirling around from sadness to happiness. And there were moments where the relationship dynamics between some of the characters reminded me of the relationship between characters in Magnolia Parks!

Overall this was a really sweet story with many heart fluttering moments, where we get to see behind Gen’s “cooler” exterior and into the true person she really is especially with the help of Grant 😍 our basketball golden boy.

This was my first book by Sydney Madison. I was intrigued by the synopsis. Gen and Grants story was so sweet and pure and came together so organically. They developed a beautiful friendship that blossomed into the most swoon worthy romance. Gen’s relationship with Will was so toxic and can’t believe nobody intervened before Grant. Both of these characters went through so much and you could feel the pain and trauma emanating from the page. I devoured this book so quickly. I cannot wait to dive back into Astor Hill! #netgalley #secondposition

I'm going to start this review the same way I started my Astor Hill review, truly if you are a Gossip Girl/One Tree Hill fan - this is for YOU. These books are like sitting down to re-watch your old favourite 2000's shows.. the drama, the lies, the secrets, the money, the cut throat sports, the college setting. It's so fun and fast paced you could read these books in one sitting with the addicitive way they are written.

On the Astor Hill point, I will add that you should read that first. These books are set during the same time period and so in order to understand what is happening with these characters and the other side characters, you will follow along much easier if you start with book 1 first! Also it's fab and you should read it.

Grant is a backwards cap (hot) wearing basketballer with deep rooted abandoment issues. He's loyal to a fault, protective of the people in his life and hated by Genevieve's best friend, Will. Genevieve is a ballerina with the world's most critical mother. She's inexperienced in intimate relationships and fiercley protective of her friends. Oh, and she's been in love with her best friend for years. So naturally, Grant and Genevieve make a deal to sleep together. I mean what could go wrong?

This is sports romance, slow burn, love triangle, D R A M A. He falls first, and she falls hard. Their romance is forbidden and surely will cause some issues with this Astor Hill friendship group. There might even be a fist fight, or two.. The characters have complex issues and depth as well as passion and chemistry. It really is everything you want in a bingeable romance story.

Astor Hill was the first book I reviewed on NetGalley and this feels very full circle for me. I will be here waiting for book 3 and 4 and whatever comes next. Thank you so much to Sydney (&) Madison for sending me an early copy to read I feel very grateful to be on this journey with you! When I tell you I am SAT for Andy and Sloane, I am literally sat..

I liked the writing right from the start. It was very easy to read. I was a bit worried it might be hard to keep track of all the characters since they’re all introduced early on (I didn’t read Book 1, and I think that would have helped with that).
I liked Grant right from the start too—he’s a great MMC: respectful, kind, and cute.

However, I didn’t connect with Gen at all. I felt she lacked maturity, and reading her story made me uncomfortable, which is ultimately why I DNFed the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for this ARC!

Loved that I was able to return to the Astor Hill world for the second book is the series, Second Position. I read the first book and when I find out this was Gen’s book, I was a little nervous because I really didn’t like her in the first book but I ended up adoring her. I really enjoyed that this book was happening at the same time as the first book so the reader was able to understand what Gen was thinking and see now she was growing as a person and continue to see Will’s behavior. I instantly liked Grant even though I wanted to kick a couple times near the end of the book. The book is dual POV and it kinda secret relationship but it doesn’t really fit one of the standard tropes (it’s kinda a mix) which was refreshing.

This book is definitely for gossip girl fans as the characters deal with toxic relationships and the drama. Overall I think the authors did a great job writing Gen’s growth as a person and Grant working through his abandonment issues (he still needs to keep working on it). They seemed to have teased the third book being about Sloane which I’m excited to read. Hopefully Will continues to work through his issues and I’m intrigued to see how these authors handle his future.

Thank you Sydney Madison for inviting me to read this book and NetGalley. I really enjoyed this book and I can’t wait for the 3rd one!

I thought it was a good romance but it was overshadowed a lot by the family subplot. I also thought that there would be more steam in the book, given how it started, but the chemistry between the two leads fizzled out quickly.

First things first I read this book in one sitting because the writing style was just so addicting.
However I read this not knowing that this was book 2 of a series and although it's said you could read it as a standalone I personally think it would have been a better reading experience if I would have read book 1 first.
The world building in itself was minor (as it is for most romance books) but I still could follow it along perfectly.
The FMC brought up mixed emotions in me. For the half of the book part I wasn't her biggest fan because why on earth would you stay beside a person who has no appreciation for you, doesn't respect your feelings and treats you like a back-up plan? But the more I read and understood about her I kind of got it. And i was amazed by her character development.
The MMC was someone i really, really liked. The way he treated our FMC was chef's kiss. And yes some maybe won't like how he handled his abandonment issues but honestly? I can't blame him. I'm just happy it all got resolved in the end.
What I really loved about this book is how the authors wrote so delicately about complicated characters that made it easy to follow along and feel with them. I found myself really connecting with those characters which isn't always easy for me.
However the reason I didn't rate this book higher was just that some scenes felt a little too fast paced. I feel like some issues got resolved too fast which wouldn't happen in real life.
But overall it was a good book! Thank you so much for sending me this ARC!

I was so excited to read about Grant and Gen since I read the first book of the Astor Hill series. Grant is a walking green flag and Gen is the misunderstood pretty girl.

You REALLY have to remember things that happened in Book 1 because this basically takes place at the same time as Book 1. Basically a parallel narrative but with Grant and Gen's POV/story.

There are quite a few typos and funky formatting. Some parts felt rushed too, almost making me think I skipped something by accident.

Gen and Will's friendship/situationship is so tiresome. I think this book would've done well if it after all the events from Book 1.

The d r a m a was drama-ing in this book!

They weren't wrong when they said this book is for fans of Gossip Girl because the similarities were a little jarring. Toxic characters, gossip columnist, rich entitled college kids and horrible parents.

While this does say you can read it as a standalone (which I did), I would definitely read the first book. I was confused quite a few times as things weren't properly explained, especially in regard to the dynamic between Will/Olivia/Lily and why the characters are the way they are.

The FMC, Gen was insufferable honestly. I don't know why Grant was so down bad for her. Personally if someone I liked was constantly pinning over her best friend since forever when he clearly has no interest, I would be running the other way. I felt so bad for Grant on multiple occasions when he clearly wanted to give Gen his all yet it was so obvious she still has unresolved feelings for Will. She would run to his side the second he gave her an ounce of attention. It was beyond toxic.

Grant was the best part of this book! He was SO sweet and he was such an emotionally layered character 🥹

I think I would have enjoyed this a lot more if some plot points were more fleshed out rather than being quickly resolved.

Pre thoughts
- Ballerina FMC

Overall
- A genuinely swoon worthy book. This is my first Sydney Madison read and i loved every second of it, Grant and Gen are quite complex characters and the story is complex. Gens character developed, this allowed for the reader to be immersed by the story and did a great job in conveying the challenges of relationships. Lovely mental health representation, I will be revisiting this book in future.

Stars 4/5

Tropes
- Slow burn
- FMC falls first
- Sports romance
- HEA
- MMC pining
- Ballerina X basketball player

Thank you netgally and Victory editing for the eARC, all thoughts and opinions are my own xx

There were things I liked, but overall it just didn’t work for me :(

There were definitely things I liked about Second Position. Grant and Gen had really cute chemistry, and I loved how emotionally layered Grant’s character was. Some of their soft moments really hit, and the various characters in Astor Hill added a lot to the story. I also appreciated how the story touched on tough topics like abandonment, complicated family dynamics, and figuring out when to finally put yourself first.

That said, I had a tough time getting through this one. A lot of the emotional weight depends on things that happened in book one (I didn’t realize it was a series) and since there I was no explanation/recap, it left me confused during big scenes. The writing also had a TON of grammar mistakes and weird sentence formatting that kept pulling me out of the story, and some plot points felt rushed or unresolved by the end. I think with some tighter editing and a bit more clarity, this would’ve landed a lot stronger for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC!