#ad much love for my advance copy @elisehartkipness #partner
& @thrillerbookloversthepulse #partner for the ALC

🎾🅲🅻🅾🆂🅴 🅲🅰🅻🅻🎾
ᴋᴀᴛᴇ ɢʀᴇᴇɴ, ʙᴏᴏᴋ 𝟥

ℍ𝕒𝕥𝕖 𝕥𝕙𝕖 ℙ𝕝𝕒𝕪𝕖𝕣, ℕ𝕠𝕥 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝔾𝕒𝕞𝕖

Kate Green is back y’all! One of my most loved characters ever written. But this time she’s back investigating a kidnapping! Oof! One of my favorite tropes ever. Per usual, the story grips you from the start and keeps you fully entertained throughout.

Green is covering a story of two of the best tennis players to ever play, Lucy and Brynn. But things take a turn when Lucy goes missing and Brynn gets a text message of a picture showing Lucy bound and gagged. It’s a race to find her.

This might be my favorite Kate Green book ever! Seriously so GOOD! Who knew tennis could be so fun. 😉

𝕄𝕖𝕞𝕠𝕣𝕒𝕓𝕝𝕖:
Kerry Washington Scandal - my fav ever!
Heather 💁🏼‍♀️

🎧: Also listened to the audiobook while following along and definitely loved this audiobook. Chanté McCormick is just as great as some of the greatest narrators. She has one of those voices that are just perfect for audiobooks. She brings Green to life and does it effortlessly. Can easily be listened to at 2x.

The writing is flawless, the characters vibrant, and the plot will keep you on the edge-of-your-seat. One of the things - of the many - that Kipness does so well is keeping us on our toes. And keep us on our toes she does! Suspects galore.

Is this goodbye to Kate Green? 😭😱 Idk but whatever comes next you can guarantee I’ll be reading it.

✓ Short chapters
✓ Whodunit
✓ Kidnapping
✓ Fast-paced
✓ Suspenseful

What a perfect book to come across during The US open . It is a fun suspenseful thriller set in a world of tennis . The author did a fabulous job introducing characters in way that you love or hate them instantly !

I love tennis and this was the perfect book to read this week !

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

Thumbs up for me !

A missing tennis star, a dangerous secret, and one reporter racing against time.

Close Call by Elise Hart Kipness follows sports reporter and former Olympian Kate Green as a high-profile tennis feature spirals into danger when one of the players vanishes. With the kidnapper threatening to expose devastating secrets, Kate teams up with her estranged detective father to uncover the truth before it’s too late.

I was so excited to dive into the third book in the Kate Green series, and it did not disappoint. Elise Hart Kipness has such a talent for blending the adrenaline of the sports world with the tension of a mystery, creating a fast-paced thriller that kept me hooked from the very first page. While this can absolutely be read as a standalone, I recommend reading the full series to appreciate Kate’s personal journey and growth. The stakes felt high right away, and I was completely invested in discovering what happened to Lucy.

I especially loved the return of Kate’s father, Detective Liam Green. Their strained father-daughter dynamic added an emotional layer to the mystery, and I enjoyed watching their relationship develop alongside the case. The addition of new characters brought fresh energy to the story, and the tennis backdrop made this installment stand out in such an exciting way. Just when I thought I had everything figured out, Kipness threw in twists that kept me guessing until the very end. This series continues to impress me, and I highly recommend checking this one out!

Chanté McCormick once again delivers a fantastic narration as Kate. She captures the urgency of the mystery while giving Kate’s voice authenticity and strength, making it easy to root for her as she works to untangle the case. Her performance pulled me even deeper into the story and kept me engaged from start to finish. If you’re an audiobook fan, this series is definitely worth adding to your listening queue.

Thank you Thomas and Mercer and Brilliance Publishing for advanced copies in exchange for my honest review.

This was such an entertaining and suspenseful listen, I couldn’t stop! Close Call blends sports journalism with mystery in a way that feels fresh and exciting. Even though I don’t know much about tennis, the story completely pulled me in.

Kate Green is the kind of character I love: smart, curious, and deeply human. She’s driven to uncover the truth, but she also genuinely cares about the people she interviews. A lot is happening behind the scenes of her latest assignment, which should’ve been a simple sports feature, turns into a full-blown investigation when a tennis player suddenly vanishes just before the US Open.

The plot is packed with tension, twists, and surprises, and I never once guessed how it would all end. It kept me fully engaged, and by the time everything came together, it felt so satisfying.

Even though this is book three in the series, it worked really well as a standalone. That said, I’m super tempted to go back and read the first two because I want to see how Kate’s story started.

The audiobook narration by Chante McCormick was amazing. She captured the mood perfectly and really brought Kate and the investigation to life. I could visualize everything so clearly, especially the intense moments.

If you’re into fast-paced thrillers with a strong female lead and a unique twist on investigative reporting, this one is worth checking out. I’m really hoping this isn’t the last we see of Kate Green!

Thank you so much to @elisehartkipness and @thrillerbookloversthepulse for the gifted ALC of CLOSE CALL!

Close Call had me hooked from the first page. Twists kept coming, secrets everywhere, and I could not put it down. Dark, addictive, and exactly the kind of thriller that keeps you reading way too late. I loved it!

I was interested in this series as soon as I learned about it - thrillers whose main character, Kate Green, is a sports reporter.

Close Call focuses around the US Open, where a tennis star is kidnapped. It was easy to follow along with Chanté McCormick's narration, and the plot itself was pretty fast paced.

Because I jumped in to the series with book 3, I wasn't exactly engaged with a subplot involving Kate's estranged father. The backstory is mentioned - it's not that I was lost - I just wasn't really into that part of the book. I imagine that part was much more interesting to readers who've been waiting to learn more about him.

While not a standout favorite, I am likely to read more from this series in the future. I hope the other books include more sports!

This really wasn't for me.

In the third installment of Kate Green, Kate is at the US Open interviewing athletes when one goes missing. Sadly, I found the storyline a little slow and predictable and could have used more twists.

Thank you Netgalley, Elise Hart Kipness and Brillance Publishing for this ARC audiobook. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

In this book 3 of the Kate Green series, Kate is solving crimes at the US Open. Kate is assigned to do in-depth interviews with two pro tennis players, Lucy, the veteran and the up and comer who are being pitted against each other. After interviewing Lucy and seeing that there is more to her than her image, Kate receives a text photo of Lucy bound and gagged. Working with the other player’s family, Kate tries to locate Lucy, and on the way learning secrets about everyone, including her own family in the process.

I love a good thriller and I thought it would be fun to read one that takes place at the Open right before the Open began. I knew going in that I was walking into a series midway and I decided to take the risk and while this book could be a standalone I do feel that I would have enjoyed it more if I had read the first two. It was still a great thriller to read in August at the beach, I didn’t guess all of the twists and I was engrossed in the story and the characters. The audiobook was also really good (and I probably listened more than I read this one), I thought that the narrator was the perfect choice for the story. I will go back and read the first two. I met the author at an event and she was so nice I wanted to read her books.

Thank you to Brilliance Audio and NetGalley

Fans of the Kate Green series will be fully satisfied by the newest entry. Kipness keeps the narrative propulsive and her sports reporter protagonist is engaging and feels authentic (in part, I imagine) thanks to Kipness' experiences as a sports journalist.

CLOSE CALL by Elise Hart Kipness
Audiobook ALC Review - Brilliance Audio
Thriller/Mystery

I don’t care for tennis, but Elise Hart Kipness could probably write about paint drying, and I’d still be first in line to get a copy of her new book! “Close Call” is the third book in her Kate Green series, and while you can read it as a standalone, I recommend starting with the first two. You’ll get the full picture of Kate, who’s smart, funny, and has a knack for landing herself in the middle of chaos.

This time around, Kate is covering the US Open when one of the biggest stars is kidnapped. Suddenly, her gig as a sports reporter turns into something closer to a high-stakes thriller. The opening is a little crowded with characters, but it didn’t take too long to get everyone straight.

Listening to the audiobook cranked up the tension. Every twist hit at the perfect moment, and I didn’t see the final reveals coming. There were some big shockers!

This series is fantastic and perfectly balanced. Sports drama meets mystery thriller; with a heroine you’d happily share a cocktail with. And you don’t need to know a thing about tennis to get hooked (that would be me🙋‍♀️).

Why pick it up:
Kate is a witty, relatable protagonist who refuses to sit on the sidelines
A kidnapping plot that plays out like a championship match
Twist after twist that will make you want to text someone the second you finish

Thanks to the author and Brilliance Audio for the gifted Audiobook provided via NetGalley. And thanks to @thrillerbookloversthepulse for introducing me to an excellent author that I wouldn’t have found on my own!

This one just wasn’t for me. There were no real twists or sense of mystery, and the ending felt rushed with too much information crammed into the last few pages. The characters lacked development and all sounded alike, as if written in the same voice

Many thanks to NetGalley and Brilliance Publishing for the free audiobook in exchange for my honest review. Chanté McCormick does a fantastic job of narrating this book and truly making it come alive.

While this is book #3 in the series, it can be read as a standalone. However, if you have time to read the prior books in the series, I highly recommend that as you will have a fuller knowledge of the characters.

Kate assigned to cover the US Open tournament and interview one of the players for a documentary. However, when a player is kidnapped, Kate calls her estranged father, an NYPD detective. As the secrets start to emerge, so do the twists.

This is a well written, sports focused story. The pacing is on point and the characters are well developed. There are plenty of twists and turns that build the suspense up to the ending and the big reveal. Highly recommend!!

Kate, a sports reporter on the eve of the US Open, is profiling the top seed in women’s tennis when the player
doesn’t show up for their next session… and we learn she has been kidnapped. Motives, means, and opportunities abound. There were a lot of characters in the book: current players, spouses, coaches, former partners…Kate calls in her ex-cop father who shows up with a colleague from the FBI. Also she kept calling her kids who were not part of this story, so it was a bit crowded in my head! 3.5 rounded up.
The audiobook narration was good. It was interesting to get a behind-the-scenes view of a big tennis tournament, and to finish it on the eve of the US Open, which also coincides with today’s publication day!
My thanks to the author, publisher, @BrillianceAudio, and #NetGalley for early access to the audiobook for review purposes.

My Thoughts: This was a predictable but engaging read. Thank you to NetGalley and Elise Hart Kipness for the opportunity to read and review this ARC audiobooks.

A kidnapping story revolved around tennis wasn’t something I knew I needed but now here I am, completely obsessed with Kate Green. The connection between the female tennis players and the relationship between Kate and Liam were both written so well - I had thought I had the whole story figured out but; surprise/plot twists! I loved the main characters and all of the little side stories happening between forming relationships and figuring out current relationships both with family and friends. I feel like this story would have flopped without Elise’s ability to keep all the details together. I wanted to keep reading and didn’t get bored. The ending was sweet and I hope to read more of Kate Green in the future!


Thank you NetGalley and Brilliance Publishing/Brilliance Audio for the advanced listening copy of this story. Although I thought the narrator’s voice itself was fantastic, it didn’t really match the story for me. But the book was better than I anticipated

Thank you to NetGalley for the audiobook ARC of Close Call by Elise Hart Kipness

This first book in the Kate Green series gripped me from the start. Kate, a former Olympian turned Emmy winning sports reporter, is covering the US Open when one of the young female players disappears. As unsettling clues emerge and danger closes in, she reluctantly turns to her estranged father for help. The insider detail on the world of tennis feels authentic and adds real tension to the unfolding drama. Chanté McCormick’s narration captured Kate’s character beautifully and kept me fully engaged. A fast paced and immersive thriller with a strong female lead and a compelling cast of characters.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #BrillancePublishing for the book #CloseCall by #EliseHartKipness. This is the third book in the series in the Kate Green series and it’s phenomenal. I love going along on Kate’s adventures. Kate is featuring two of the biggest tennis players, Lucy and Brynn for her tv show. When Lucy turns up missing, Kate is right in the middle of the scandal. There is a photograph sent to the other player, Brynn, confirming that Lucy has been beaten and held for ransom. Secrets start spilling out at every turn about all involved. Cans they find Lucy before it’s too late? And what secret does Lucy hold?

I’m the kind of person that gets a little too INVESTED in her media.

Like, I get heart palpitation and pace if things get too stressful.

This book was the perfect amount of tense.

Propulsive and exciting, but I didn’t have to put the book in the freezer, if you know what I mean.

I loved the sports reporter/investigator angle.
I loved learning about the world of professional tennis.
I loved the secondary story arc involving her dad.

I ADORED Cameraman Bill and was sad when he was Sent on Assignment. Now, while this book word very well as a standalone, I really do think I want to go back and read the first two in the series, just so I can get the whole picture.

This is my first book by this author and was excited to find her. This is a fast paced mystery that will keep you guessing, as there are plenty of possible suspects. Sports Reporter, Kate finds herself in the middle of a police investigation when a tennis star that she was interviewing gets kidnapped. She becomes entangled in the investigation and plays a critical role in solving it. To help her solve the mystery, she calls upon her dad, Liam, who is an NYPD detective. Kate and her father have a rocky history and this allows for another storyline and gives Kate the opportunity to dig deeper into her father’s past to get more details about what happened. A great blend of sports, news reporting and crime solving. Thank you to Elise Hart Kipness, NetGalley and the publisher.