TOUCHDOWN FOR LOVE

It’s been years since Lily’s heart was shattered by her college sweetheart and star quarterback, Tate Donaghue. Now, he’s a high-profile NFL player, and unfortunately for Lily, her latest security assignment.

For Tate, Lily left all those years ago without so much as a backward glance let alone an explanation. But pretending he’s in love with her now is easier than he’d like to admit…

With the countdown on to the biggest game in the NFL’s history and the threat level intensifying, can Lily and Tate move on from the past – or will they fumble the ball, and their relationship, when it matters most?

My Review:

As the third book I’ve read by Cassie Connor, I have appreciated the unconventional storylines she has migrated towards in her last two books, especially in a genre full of rinse-and-repeat tropes. With that being said, I found that The Big Game burned bright and burned fast, with its intensity and intrigue tapering off after the first quarter of the book. The book starts off promising, pulling you right in and hinting at what seems like a sweet college romance, only to suddenly knock you off your feet with an unexpected twist. From there, you’re buckled in for one heck of a rollercoaster ride – the first six chapters are full of action, excitement, chills, and thrills. But, like most rollercoasters, the ride is over faster than you’d expect, leaving you wanting more. That’s exactly how The Big Game felt. The book had so much potential, but it kept getting in its own way by focusing too much on the repetitive, lust-driven back-and-forth between the male and female protagonists, rather than delivering on what made it stand out as “Miss Congeniality meets the Super Bowl.”

Tate and Lily were the couple everyone envied – big dreams, deeply in love, perfectly in sync. Or so Lily thought, until a conversation she wasn’t meant to hear brought everything crashing down around her. Eight years later, Lily has learned from her mistakes and swears she’ll never let the rug be pulled out from under her again. But being accidentally bowled over by a 6’3” football player rushing across the room? That’s a different story. Arriving at her new assignment, the last person Lily expects to see after being unexpectedly knocked over is Tate Donovan. Determined to keep her past firmly where it belongs, Lily is thrown completely off-kilter when she discovers that Tate – known to his teammates as “Don” – is the very reason she’s been hired.

Tate has been receiving death threats, and the team owner insists on round-the-clock protection. As the best in the business, Lily is assigned to the job. To keep things quiet and placate the press, the two are forced to pretend they’re engaged. The problem? There’s no way this is going to work. For Lily, Tate is the man who used her, broke her heart, and reinforced a lesson her father had always tried to teach her – that love and dependability are weaknesses. For Tate, Lily disappeared like a ghost in the night, offering no explanation, no goodbye, just silence. There’s too much bad blood to pretend to be anything other than enemies – but try telling that to the chemistry that still zips between them. With Tate’s life on the line and the most important game of his career quickly approaching, these two will have to figure out a truce, all while keeping what should be pretend feelings from becoming all too real.

I absolutely LOVED that Lily was MI6! The scene in the office, when she challenged Tate to “come at her,” had me sitting up in my seat. He thought he had the upper hand, and all I could think was, “Man, she could drop you if she wanted to!” I also enjoyed Tate’s teammate Blake and the moments of insight, wisdom, and humor he brought to the book.

What didn’t work for me is how the book starts off incredibly promising, only to trip over itself. It can’t seem to decide if it wants to be a sappy romance or romantic suspense. Instead of seamlessly blending the two, it keeps shifting the tone and character dynamics, making it hard to respect the overall portrayal of the female protagonist. I adored the concept of Lily being a highly-trained, unflappable professional, with Tate as her one undeniable weakness – the person who short-circuits her otherwise honed and controlled demeanor – her kryptonite. That said, I was disappointed how much this angle was exploited. One moment, Lily is a world-class agent; the next, she’s back to being the college cheerleader to Tate’s football star. Again, I understand he was her weakness, but he should not have been her “off” switch. While there are moments where she draws on her professional skills, her overall demeanor feels very amateur for someone with her background and too inconsistent with the hardened, capable, professional we’re told she is.

I also wish the book had explored more of what happened during the eight years Tate and Lily were apart. We get a decent sense of Tate’s timeline through his friend Blake and a bit more when we learn that Lily had been checking in on him early on, confirming he was the first pick for the Patriots in his rookie season before joining the Armadillos later on. But for Lily, we’re left with vague comments about distant, emotionless relationships and various missions. There’s a brief mention of a mission in Paris that might explain how Sven recognizes her, but much of her backstory is left to speculation. For a character who supposedly poured herself completely into her career, the lack of flashbacks or detailed moments from her past feels like a missed opportunity.

Before I forget – football fans, take note of the disclaimer at the start of the book: Cassie makes it clear that she’s not familiar with American football, and that definitely shows. I believe Tate is meant to be a Tight End, possibly even a team captain. This would explain his leadership role and how crucial he is to the team’s success; however, his position and responsibilities are never fully defined. If I didn’t know better, I’d swear the author had Travis Kelce in mind while crafting Tate’s character, which might explain the assumption about his position and role as an offensive captain.

Going back to the overall book, while there are a few plot holes throughout, the most glaring one is the unresolved subplot with Sven. Was he caught? Did he escape? We’re also led to assume Sven is the one behind the haphazard threats on Tate’s life, supposedly to prevent him from playing in the game. But if Sven was planning to set a bomb in the stadium all along, was he indirectly trying to save Tate’s life by ensuring he wasn’t in the stadium when it detonated? If not, what was the point of the distraction, especially since he was already using Pammie for access and intended to set the bomb? My assumption is that he wanted to ensure Winston and Pammie didn’t reconcile, but that was already guaranteed with the fake photos and divorce filing.

Then there’s Pammie’s reaction – she’s happy that Tate is alive. But why? No one even knew about the accident or thought Tate was dead, so why would she be happy or surprised that he survived? If she was aware of what Sven was doing, then either she chose not to say anything, or she was involved in the plan. Either this was a poorly executed red herring, or this part of the plot just didn’t make any sense.

As for the romance itself, the undeniable chemistry between Lily and Tate fuels much of the story, but in this case, it ends up working against it. What was supposed to be a second-chance romance between two destined lovers torn apart by a misunderstanding instead comes across as two people who regretted never hooking up back in college and, eight years later, decided to rectify that. Their emotional connection felt shallow, overshadowed by lust rather than love. While I tried to give the benefit of the doubt, imagining their emotional depth was off-page, it would have been far more satisfying to see them connect on a meaningful level that didn’t immediately lead to another steamy encounter.

Honestly, The Big Game left me feeling conflicted. Yes, it was entertaining but you have to take a huge step away from anything resembling reality to not be bothered by some of the absurdities. As I mentioned before, the split genre is what divides my opinion of the characters. For a standard second-chance romance where a female and male protagonist are scorned through miscommunication and then forced into close proximity, the character dynamics make sense. She’s a strong woman who can’t resist the charm of the man who broke her heart. He’s the boy-turned-man who never stopped loving the girl who once had his heart. Both are trying to protect themselves while being helplessly drawn to each other. Got it!

The problem is that the female protagonist is supposed to be a tough-as-nails MI6 agent, one of the best in her field, and for most of the story, she acts like a lovesick puppy. If these were regular people trying to hide their feelings from one another – again, like a standard romance – it would be more believable. But she’s supposed to be a highly trained professional – not just recruited but trained from childhood. Watching her so easily lose control, become distracted, and act completely lovesick was more distracting than endearing.

I also felt like the story was incomplete. The epilogue shows Tate winning the Super Bowl, and while that was satisfying, it left so many things unresolved. Did Lily stay with MI6, or did she leave and move to the U.S. to be with Tate? What happened with Tate and his dad? That was a recurring conflict throughout the book, and seeing how it played out – especially with Lily back in the picture – would have been appreciated. And what about their fake engagement? Do they get engaged for real (does Tate propose)? Do they let the fake engagement evolve into a real one, or do they just get married right away? So much was left unanswered.

My hope is that the version I received was an early draft, prior to the editors working their magic. If so, hopefully the misnomers used to describe American football will be corrected, a few of the plot holes patched, and the focus brought back to the heart of the story. I had high hopes for this book, and while I wouldn’t say I’m entirely disappointed – I did enjoy reading it and was compelled to finish it – it didn’t quite live up to my expectations. I haven’t been as captivated by Cassie’s work as I was with her debut novel, Love Under Contract.