Intercepted (Playbook #1) by Alexa Martin ~ Review

Source: Apollycon 2019 swag bag.

Intercepted (Playbook #1) by Alexa Martin

Marlee thought she scored the man of her dreams only to be scorched by a bad breakup. But there's a new player on the horizon, and he's in a league of his own...

Marlee Harper is the perfect girlfriend. She's definitely had enough practice by dating her NFL-star boyfriend for the last ten years. But when she discovers he has been tackling other women on the sly, she vows to never date an athlete again. There's just one problem: Gavin Pope, the new hotshot quarterback and a fling from the past, has Marlee in his sights.

Gavin fights to show Marlee he's nothing like her ex. Unfortunately, not everyone is ready to let her escape her past. The team's wives, who never led the welcome wagon, are not happy with Marlee's return. They have only one thing on their minds: taking her down. But when the gossip makes Marlee public enemy number one, she worries about more than just her reputation.

Between their own fumbles and the wicked wives, it will take a Hail Mary for Marlee and Gavin's relationship to survive the season.

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Intercepted has been on my radar since it released, but it has been especially on my tbr since I ended up with my own copy at Apollycon 2019. So in typically Jess fashion, it took me...oh, a year to pick it up. But I'm glad I finally did because I really ended up enjoying this one!

I loved the main characters. Marlee is awesome. She's kind and mature, but has her doses of snark both when she needs them and for humor. And Gavin is a sweetheart. From the beginning it is clear he's a great guy, and he never lets us down on that--though he does get a bit misguided. And the two of them together? I was so very HERE FOR IT.

As for the storyline, I really appreciated how Intercepted played out. There was of course the couple getting together--you know, as one does in a romance. And that was great. But then there was also a fair amount of time where they were together just living their couple life, and I LOVED that. I loved how the timeline of their story encompassed both getting together and their relationship growing pains. That's not something guaranteed in most romances, and I truly enjoyed seeing it here.

I also greatly appreciated Marlee's personal growth throughout the novel. Not only do we get to see Marlee and Gavin as a couple take off, but we get to see Marlee make decisions that are best for her as she strives to ensure she has a life that is happy and doesn't simply depend on a person. Especially since this IS a romance, so we got that along with the of course happiness of the couple in the long run. I just love that Marlee's independence is included along the way.

There were only two things that weren't my favorite about Intercepted:
- The hashtags throughout. I just never got into them as part of Marlee's mental narrative. They seemed out of place, and left me feeling pretty meh overall.
- I'm not exactly sold on the decision that spurred the final conflict. Like I said above, Gavin got a bit misguided but it's odd that he went from being so in tune with what Marlee wanted and then all of a sudden thought something so different--and without talking to Marlee about it, no less. The whole thing seemed kind of out of character.

All that said, overall, Intercepted was a super good sports romance with characters I loved and a romance I absolutely adored. I was 100% here for Marlee and Gavin and their story, and I definitely recommend picking this one up if you haven't yet! It's fun, quick, and the start to what I'm sure is going to be an awesome series. Now I just need to read book 2... :)

4 stars - A fun read with characters to love & a romance I adored!