✨️Ballerina + Basketball Player
✨️Slow Burn
✨️Pining/He falls first MMC
✨️She falls harder
✨️HEA
✨️Sports Romance
✨️Academia Setting

I absolutely loved Grant and Gen. Their story was so emotional and complex. Grant has a hard time letting anyone in due to past traumas, and at his core, he's still that little boy waiting for his mom and wishing he came first. Genevieve is icy on the outside but has such a big heart on the inside. She has spent years pining after her best friend, and just like Astor Hill, Will is at the center of it. Her choices and the fear of losing the one person that puts her first force her to make a decision and ends up seeing that for once, she should do what is right for her putting herself first. In the end, all the yearning and the tough choices that Grant has to make help him see that he either has the choice to close himself off or lose the one good thing he's had since his parents found him.
Astor Hill is quickly becoming one of my favorite series, and Sydney Madison are such a dynamic duo they have built characters with such complex back stories that affect their personal lives, but watching them navigate those problems and feelings make these stories worthwhile.

This is my first read from Sydney Madison and I LOVED this book. I ate it UP and finished it in one sitting. It was so easy to read and care for the characters. It loosely reminded me of Wildfire by Hannah Grace... except BETTER.

There is no way you can not like Grant and Gen together and separately. Gen & Sloane's connection felt so pure and genuine.

The writing was outstanding. I have so many highlights for this book! The authors have a great way of describing feelings youve had but didnt know how to put into words.

I attempted to post my review to amazon and it said it cannot be reviewed. I have a screenshot if needed

**Not posted in my review on GoodReads and Fable:**
I noticed 1 Typo:
“Because now I know. I know this insane secret, and you just expect me to keep if for Will fucking Chapman?”
It not if!

Once I picked this book up, I couldn't put it down. I read it in less than a day. It's so emotional, and heartbreaking, and just all the emotions. This was my first book by this author duo, but it won't be my last.
I will say at times, the FMC did annoy me with her seemingly never-ending patience and commitment to her frankly awful guy best friend Will. The way she couldn't see how toxic and mean he was, was so annoying. I get that they went through a lot together, but at some point, she really needed to choose herself. And I didn't appreciate how she got angry with Grant and expected him to apologize after she chose to check on Will over him during the Halloween party. She literally brought back his own worst childhood fears of abandonment, but she is upset because "I want someone to choose me"? I wished she had had to grovel a bit more.
Grant is almost perfect. He is the quintessential good guy. I will also agree with Gen's point on how he needs to work on his foster/ bio mom abandonment issues himself, and she can't fix him, but that is his one issue. Otherwise, he cares about people so much, not just Jen, but his sister, Ben, and his family. But also his flirting is top-tier. I loved his banter with Gen.
And overall, I really loved Grant and Gen together. The chemistry practically flew off the page. Can't wait for more books in the Astor Hill series.

If you're looking for a swoon worthy - cant put the book down - romance, this is definitely the book for you.
It is so hard to find a romance book where the love is oozing from the book, without having such irritating characters and decisions that make it feel agonizing to get through, and being so mad that you want to stop reading along the way. This book perfectly captures the way to do it, and adds dimension using realistic moral boundaries that make you frustrated in the BEST way. It had me stepping back and wondering what I would do in these situations.
The romance in this book is young and longing, honestly making me giddy reading it.
I could not recommend this book more, it deserves 5-stars, not only because the story and depth, but because I could see myself rereading it in the future.

Let me start by saying I read and loved Astor Hill. I was completely drawn into Liv and Ben’s story, and Grant ended up being one of my favorite characters from the first book. Gen, on the other hand, was decidedly my least favorite, so I went into Second Position a little apprehensive. But after finishing it, I’m happy to say I was completely wrong to doubt it.

Gen’s willingness to open up to Grant, and Grant’s ability to see through the version of her that the public sees, felt honest and emotionally grounded. Their chemistry was immediate and believable, and it kept me fully invested from the very first chapter. I was also pleasantly surprised by the increase in spice compared to Astor Hill. It felt natural, like it was meant to deepen the emotional connection rather than just add heat for the sake of it.

One of the standout elements of this book was seeing Gen’s perspective, especially her relationship with Will, through her own eyes. It added depth to her character and gave me a new appreciation for the broader Astor Hill storyline.

What I’ve really appreciated about this series so far is how it doesn’t shy away from difficult topics. Themes like mental health, loss, abandonment, and the weight of parental expectations are handled with care, and they feel relevant and relatable without being overwhelming.

Overall, this book was heartfelt and completely satisfying. I adored it. I’m now counting down the days until we get Sloane and Andy’s story, and I’m still holding out hope for a Will Chapman redemption arc.

Thank you to NetGalley and the authors for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Rating: 4.25/5

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..

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

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.

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.