MOST VALUABLE PLAYBOY by Lauren Blakely-Review, Excerpt & Giveaway
MOST VALUABLE PLAYBOY
by Lauren Blakely
Release Date: September 1, 2017
Genre: adult, contemporary, erotic, romance, football
Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon. uk / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo /ibooks / Google Play
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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date September 1, 2017
Hands down, my favorite thing in the world is to score. Touchdowns.
Don’t let the fact that I’m the leading pick in the Most Valuable Playboy charity auction fool you. These days, I’m only a player on the field. I’ve kept my pants zipped all season long — and it has been long — because nothing’s more important than leading my team to victory every week. Except maybe escaping from the team owner’s recently-widowed and handsy-as-hell sister who’s dead set on winning more than a date with me.
Enter Violet and a well-placed Hail Mary.
She’s my best friend’s sister with a smile as sweet as cherry pie and a mind that runs quicker than the 40-yard-dash. After Violet saves the day with the highest bid, I don’t even give her a two-minute warning before I kiss her in front of the whole crowd and then announce that she’s my girlfriend. Which would be fine except my agent tells me we’ve got to keep up the act while he’s negotiating my contract.
Violet takes one for the team and pretends to be mine, but our boyfriend-girlfriend scrimmage quickly turns into a full contact sport, and I want it to go into overtime. The problem is — I’ve been riding the bench for years.
How can a guy like me, who finally has a chance to prove his worth on the field, convince the girl she’s most valuable to his heart?
••••••••••••
REVIEW: MOST VALUABLE PLAYBOY by Lauren Blakely is a stand alone, contemporary, adult, erotic romance story line focusing on quarterback Cooper Armstrong, and hair stylist Violet ‘Vi’ Pierson.
Told from first person point of view (Cooper Armstrong) with a few pages of text between Vi and her friends, MOST VALUABLE PLAYBOY follows several romance tropes including friends to lovers, best friend’s little sister, and fake girlfriend. At a recent auction for charity Cooper Armstrong pleads desperation when the team owner’s overly sexed sister makes a play for our leading hero. Hoping to save her brother’s best friend from a fate worse than death Violet Pierson offers up ten thousand dollars for a night with the man she has always loved. What ensues is the media frenzy and building relationship between our leading couple when Cooper reveals his life-long attraction for the girl who is pretending to be his current love.
MOST VALUABLE PLAYBOY is a story of romance, friendship and building love. There is very little conflict or outside interference to the couple’s relationship; any problem or fall out is quick to resolve including a potential threat from the owner’s sister. Saying that I felt the lack of controversy, hostility or discordant scenarios was surprising in the face of so many possible threats: a fake girlfriend , best friend’s little sister, and the probability of professional misconduct with the owner’s overly-aggressive sister.
The relationship between Vi and Cooper is a friends to lovers attraction; a life-long attraction that Vi knows could crash and burn if the truth were to be revealed The $ex scenes are intimate, seductive and intense without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.
We are introduced to several members of the Renegades including team owners, managers, PR staff, agents and players. Jones’ story line is next in MOST LIKLEY TO SCORE.
MOST VALUABLE PLAYBOY is a simple and fun read; a happily ever after romantic story line of destined lovers. The premise is entertaining; the romance is provocative; the characters are colorful and dynamic.
Copy supplied for review
Reviewed by Sandy
**10% of the proceeds from the release day sales along with a portion of pre-orders across all retailers of MOST VALUABLE PLAYBOY will be given to the Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund and Houston Humane Society to help those in need from the natural disaster**
Maxine’s eyes laser in on me, and she slashes an arm through the air. “Five thousand dollars,” she says, jacking the price up by nine hundred and staking her claim. I shudder inside.
The guy’s eyes widen, and he holds up his hands. “I’m out.”
My stomach plummets when the business woman shakes her head.
“Going once?” Sierra asks, scanning the tables, looking for perhaps one last big spender. My eyes scan the crowd, too. Hell, maybe I’ll find an escape hatch. A trapdoor to drop into and disappear like in a magic act. Maybe Trent will learn to read my mind. Trent, I’ll cover you for anything you bid. Just raise that hand, name a price, and save me.
My best friend’s expression is merely curious now as he watches Maxine and Sierra, waiting for the verdict. My opportunity to play yard boy slips through my fingers.
The look in Maxine’s eyes is pure satisfaction as she waits for the final word. She winks at me, as if we have a secret. Holy shit. She thinks I want this. She thinks I want her to win me.
A flash of chestnut brown hair in the back catches my attention. A flurry of silver. It’s Violet, hands in the air, wildly flapping over her head in the middle of the ballroom. She brings her finger to her nose. And she’s tapping it, like fucking Santa Claus coming down the chimney, and Harlan tapping his nose to signal his agent, and all the greatest solutions in the universe at once.
My heart goes crazy.
It hammers in my chest. This is like finding an open receiver a second before you’re sacked.
“Going twice,” Sierra says, trailing off as she waits.
I raise my arm and tap my nose, too. Violet is the only one who knows I need to get out of this jam. She’s the only one I mentioned it to. And she’s the only one now who can save me.
“Ten thousand dollars.”
Holy shit. Violet does not mess around with my money. Her eyes widen, as if she’s surprised she bid that high.
My gaze finds Trent. He’s staring at his sister, slack-jawed.
Sierra’s smile is bright and wide. “Ten thousand dollars. Do we have ten thousand, one hundred?”
The room is hushed. Maxine’s expression is blank. She must be shocked. She probably didn’t expect anyone to vie with her to this extent.
I tap my foot, willing Sierra to close this quickly. Just slam the door shut, please, fucking please.
“Going one. Going twice.”
I say a silent prayer. I cross my fingers. I hope.
Maxine blinks, opens her mouth, and I steel myself for a disgustingly high counter bid.
But there’s only silence. No words come. Violet has shocked her speechless. This type of bid wasn’t in Maxine’s playbook.
Sierra raises her arm. “And a night with the quarterback is sold for ten thousand dollars.”
Talk about a Hail Mary.
A #1 New York Times Bestselling author, Lauren Blakely is known for her contemporary romance style that’s hot, sweet and sexy. She lives in California with her family and has plotted entire novels while walking her dogs. With fourteen New York Times bestsellers, her titles have appeared on the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestseller Lists more than eighty times, and she’s sold more than 2 million books. In June she’ll release THE KNOCKED UP PLAN, a standalone contemporary romance. To receive an email when Lauren releases a new book, sign up for her newsletter! laurenblakely.com/newsletter
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Wonderful review, Sandy. Looks very good.
great review, sandy. sounds like a nice sports oriented romance.
Sounds Great Thanks for sharing
Sounds like a great book! Please enter me into the giveaway.
Wonderful review Sandy!! I’ve been wanting to read this story. It sounds more fun than Blakely’s usual sex-filled stories; not there’s anything wrong with those. Sometimes I just need something lighter.
Another wonderful review, thanks Sandy! Congrats to Lauren
Very nice review. I usually like the sports themed stories, but some are too erotic.
Love the review, thanks Sandy. Congrats to Lauren
Great review, Sandy. Thanks.
Thanks for the review and excerpt. Looks great.
Sounds great, Sandy. Thanks.
Love Lauren’s books, thanks for the great review !
Thanks everyone for the great comments