Winchester Book Reviews: ~*★Blog Tour with Review★*~ The Baller by Vi Keeland

Meet Brody Easton in THE BALLER!

A standalone Contemporary Romance novel by

New York Times & USA Today Bestselling Author Vi Keeland

Now Available

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/23atpbd

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1ZwJnI4

iBooks: http://apple.co/1QM9TfP

B&N: http://bit.ly/1Yi2xmp

Kobo: http://bit.ly/1SEiOhC

Synopsis

The first time I met Brody Easton was in the men’s locker room.

It was my first interview as a professional sportscaster.

The famed quarterback decided to bare all.

And by all, I don’t mean he told me any of his secrets.

No. The arrogant ass decided to drop his towel, just as I asked the first question. On camera.

The Super Bowl MVP quickly adopted a new hobby—screwing with me.

When I pushed back, he shifted from wanting to screw with me, to wanting to screw me.

But I don’t date players.

And it’s not because I’m one of the few women working in the world of professional football.

I’d date an athlete.

It’s the other kind of player I don’t date.

You know the type. Good looking, strong, cocky, always looking to get laid.

Brody Easton was the ultimate player.

Every woman wanted to be the one to change him.

But the truth was, all he needed was a girl worth changing for.

Turned out, I was that girl.

Simple right?

Let’s face it. It never is.

There’s a story between once upon a time and happily ever after…

And this one is ours.

Excerpt from

A new song had just started, and I was enjoying his company when a voice behind me said, “Can I cut in?”

My head whipped around, even though I had no doubt whom the gravelly voice belonged to.

Michael was gracious. “I hate to share. But I suppose I have been hogging the most beautiful woman at the event.” He let go of my hand and stepped back with a gentlemanly nod. “Thank you for the dance, Delilah.”

Again Brody Easton had caught me off guard. Before I knew it, I was dancing with the arrogant jerk. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled my body tight against his. Way tighter than Michael had held me.

“Good to see you again, Lois Lane.”

The man had balls; I had to give him that. I looked him straight in the eyes. “Nice to see you with clothes on, Easton.”

“Do you prefer me without?”

“I prefer you on the other side of the room.”

He chuckled. It was a hearty laugh. “That’s what happens sometimes when you decide you want to hang out in the men’s locker room.”

I tried to pull back, but he tightened his grip and held me in place. I craned my neck. “Let go of me.”

“No.”

“No?”

“That’s right. No.”

“I can scream at the top of my lungs.”

“I’d like to hear you scream.” His tone made it clear he meant he wanted me underneath him while I was doing the screaming.

“You’re an asshole. You know that?”

“I do. You asked me that yesterday. For a reporter, you should really try changing up your questions more frequently.”

My eyes bulged.

Easton shifted his hand down to the small of my back before twirling us around the dance floor. Figures the prick can dance.

“Are you seeing anyone?”

“You can’t be serious?”

He ignored my comment. “Would you like to have dinner tonight?”

“We just ate.”

“Dessert at my place, then?”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “Did you hit your head at the game yesterday?”

“On a diet, huh?”

“Yeah. That’s it. I don’t want to go to your place for dessert because I’m on a diet.”

“Well, that’s just a shame.”

Title: The Baller

Author: Vi Keeland

Release Date: January 18, 2016

Rating: ★★★★★

Reviewer: Melyssa

Other than works where she was a co-author, this is my first experience with a standalone Vi Keeland story and I gotta say, it did not disappoint.

Just based on the cover alone, I went into this book assuming things. Brody was going to be a hot, cocky and probably a jerk football guy. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Well, no. That’s not right. He was hot. He did have self-confidence on lock, BUT he definitely wasn’t a jerk. I also assumed that Delilah would turn out to be a doormat, and again, I was wrong on that count too.

None of the characters were “typical” of the genre. Delilah wasn’t a pushover, even though she did seem to be under the Easton spell right from the jump and Brody definitely wasn’t what he was presented to be. Things that happened in his past determining the man he was going to become in the present and future and adding a lot of layers to him that you don’t often find when you’re reading this particular kind of book. He made me hot, made me swoon and made my heart ache numerous times throughout, but most of all, I’m pretty sure he made me love him more than Delilah did. For all of his self-confidence and apparent alpha type personality, he was a whole lot softer under the surface and made him impossible not to fall for.

Marlene. This part both made me happy and broke my heart. I loved this lady and her addition to the book and to the makeup of Easton was fantastic. I had issues with the whole Willow point of view based on what I knew of her from Brody’s own explanations, but when it came to Marlene, I don’t think the book would have been quite the way it was without her.

This book read smooth, the flow moving from one scene to the next almost flawlessly and was jam packed with quite the emotional pull. Also, where it did have its steamier moments between the hero and heroine, the story wasn’t drenched in it. Everything that appeared in the story seeming to fit in the most beautiful way.

This story is hard for me to review without giving things away, but it’s definitely a book that sets a bar in terms of sports romances. It carves its own path from ones that came before it and is definitely a story that if you’re a fan of the author, romance at its most basic or sports (football) needs to be read. Just be prepared to both laugh and cry while reading because I sure did a hell of a lot of both.

My thanks to the author and all others involved in letting me read this before release. I’m so glad I got to experience the enigma that is Brody Easton (top book boyfriend material for sure) and the woman that completes him, in Delilah.

I can’t wait to read more from this author in the future.

About the Author

Vi Keeland is a native New Yorker with three children that occupy most of her free time, which she complains about often, but wouldn't change for the world. She is a bookworm and has been known to read her kindle at stop lights, while styling her hair, cleaning, walking, during sporting events, and frequently while pretending to work. She is a boring attorney by day, and an exciting smut author by night!