The Tiger in the Sack

The Cocky Kingmans #7

by Amy Award

There's freedom behind a motorcycle helmet.

Nobody knows who you are.

No name. No jersey number. No six brothers who'd been famous longer than I could legally drive, and no one stopping me on the sidewalk to ask if I was actually related to the Chris Kingman.

So when I find Clover stuck in a tree with her cat, I keep the helmet on.

I crack Mandalorian jokes, rescue her and her cat, and feel like an absolute genius when I ask for her number and she gives it to me.

I am, in fact, an idiot. She's the new Dance and Cheer coach for the Cincinnati Tigers. The team where I happen to be the starting quarterback.

I can't keep this secret from her. That's a douchepotato move.

She figures it out before I can tell her. Which somehow manages to be worse.

And just to throw a monkey in our wrench the boss has assigned us to work together on a super-secret project to unmask whoever is sabotaging the team, and our cover? Of course, it's fake dating.

We’ll do it because Clover moved to Cincinnati to do the impossible: build a body-diverse professional cheer squad in a league that's never had one, for a team that everyone says is going nowhere.

Someone powerful is betting she'll fail. She's taking that bet, and I'm going to be there to make sure nobody hurts her.


This sports romance features a chaotic quarterback with a secret business empire and zero chill about his feelings, a plus-size heroine holding the door open for every woman who was told the dream wasn't for her, two cats with better emotional intelligence than their owners, and that Bridgertons-meets-American-Football family who will absolutely deploy every brother and one mastermind sister before this season is over.

Genres: Romance, Sports Romance, Sports, Audiobook, Fake Dating, Football, Contemporary Romance

362 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 9, 2026

About the author

Amy Award is a curvy girl who has a thing for football players, fuzzy-butt pets, and spicy romance novels. She believes that all bodies are beautiful and deserve their own love stories with Happy Ever Afters. Find her at AuthorAmyAward.com

Amy also writes curvy girl paranormal romances with dragons, wolves, demons, and vampires, as Aidy Award. If that’s your jam, check those books out at AidyAward.com

Reviews

[Emma]

“You’re a man who loves in secret so it can’t be taken away, and it has never once occurred to you that loving in secret is just a slower way of not having it.”

✔️football romance
✔️fake dating
✔️hidden identity
✔️plus size rep
✔️found family
✔️no 3rd act breakup

Okay, so it pains me to write this review and rate this book so low because I love the rest of this series, however this book is the weakest in the series and, in my opinion, just not great overall. This is marketed as a romance. Which means I am expecting some romance and a reason to root for the couple to end up together. I’m not talking about spice (just so you know, there is one barely open door scene, which in comparison to the rest of the series is like not having any), I am talking about the romance being the main plot and reason for the book to exist in the first place, which is not happening here. Clover (FMC) is the main character of this book, and Isak (MMC) is essentially a prop to create internal strife for her and be yet another thing for her to overcome and grow because of, not a person. The main plot of this book is truly Clover’s journey to create the first body positive/inclusive dance/cheer team for the pro football team that the MMC plays for, and in turn, take down the misogynistic middle-aged white man who is trying to derail her dreams (not the MMC, one of the men who works for the team). All of that is great and I love, but the romance is thrown into the background and disappears often, only reappearing when it’s convenient for the FMC to have a moment of character growth.

The author is trying to do too much here, and it shows. The romance starts with a super cute hidden-identity meet cute with their cats, but after the truth is discovered and she walks away from him for lying by omission, it goes majorly down hill and there is no recovering from that. Then in an effort to throw them back together, there is a half-baked fake dating scheme, and it is seen as “drama” that he is in love with her despite the “rules”/even though it’s fake, when it has been established that it was basically love at first sight for him. He basically can’t do anything right and though he does have character growth it’s majorly overshadowed by everything else going on and the heavy-handed setting up of the next (I’m assuming final because it’s the last Kingman sibling) book in the series.

Don’t get me wrong, I think the FMC is an excellent character. I just don’t think this should be marketed as a romance, or frankly, as part of the Kingman series. This book doesn’t fit the vibes of the rest of the series, and doesn’t have the same charm. Unfortunately, even the “Kingman sibling needs help rally together time” and the “dad pep talk that’s really a way for the MMC to feel bad about himself” feels overplayed and like the author threw it in because it was expected. I just don’t understand what happened here. It honestly feels like it was written by another author, or that she really had no idea what to do with Isak but had to write a book for him because there is one for each of his other siblings. His personality that we saw when he was a side character is completely missing from this book.


*Thank you so much to the author (Amy Award) and Valentine PR for the opportunity to ARC read this book! All opinions are my own*

[Darlene I read WAY to many books]

I love Amy's books! And I wanted to love isak and clovers book but ill be honest. Clover kinda dropped it for me. I felt she was more in love with her dream then she was with Isak. So it was a huge turn off also i felt the romance in this book felt less romantic then the others.
Even when the hidden identities were revealed. The way she acted yes it was a lie but it wasn't a huge bad lie.

Isak I felt bad for him I really wanted him to shine but I just felt like this story could've been more. 😭
I love the siblings and cant wait for the last book with Julie's and Fox?


No ow/om drama, no cheating, drama, sexy time, no virgins

Recommend-maybe
Cover-⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Heat level-🌶

Prologue
Slowburnish
Push away from h
Forced proximity
Body postive rep
Praise kink
Hea
Epilogue

[Kai]

I wanted to like this as much as I've liked all the others in the series, but I had a hard time getting through this story. Some of the charm and chaotic cuteness from the other books was just missing here. It was repetitive (quite literally in some instances), there was very minimal character growth, and next to no actual romance. They didn't even start "fake dating" until 61% into the story and even then that was barely shown before they were kissing for real. And that was immediately diminished by Clover saying "I guess we had an audience after all".

Logically, I understand the reasoning for the characters to fake date each other, but it didn't pay off the way I thought it would. Had both of them said no to the people pursuing them only for it to be ignored, then it would have really been worth it. As it stands, it reads as if they were both too cowardly to stand up to the Tiki & Warner respectively & were taking the middle school way out of things by portraying that they were in a relationship with someone else.

Both MCs having nosey older brothers was highlighted in the social media & email promo & yet Clover mentioned having brothers only for them to never be seen or even mentioned again. It's like they were forgotten as soon as they were brought up. Same goes for the Kingman twins. I know they have their own season with their team in another state, but how are they not even mentioned at least once? Nor are their partners? Family seems to be a big thing for Kingmans but they ignore them...at the very least could have mentioned playing against them the way the Mustangs were mentioned.

I'm not usually so nitpicky about this but the book could have also used another round to two of edits. The name for the same character was different within a few sentences to the point where I wasn't sure who was being talked about. There were so many grammar mistakes that it sometimes became hard to overlook and there were occasions where the timeline was off. For example, when the cars were broken into, Isak called security & told them there were several cars damaged yet on the next page, he mentions noticing it for the first time after he told Clover that her car was smashed. There was another during the confrontation with Monty. He's told to sit down when the page before it's plainly pointed out that he sits without being told to as part of his power move 🙄😒. Not to mention the discrepancy in her age. It was advertised that she was younger than Isak at 23, but more than once in she mentioned being 30...which is it?! There were definitely others but those stuck out the most to me.

All in all, I'm sad this one was a miss for me because I was looking forward to the book. A plus-sized FMC who is also a POC getting a HEA? As a plus sized black woman, I was all for it because sadly it didn't quite hit the mark. I'll probably finish the series because I'm curious about Jules and Fox, but I'll definitely be going into it with lower expectations.

[sam steffens]

Where's the editor?

Sweet story. But wtf is the editing? Grammatical errors, punctuation errors, misspelled words, incorrect words. Every missed error took me out of the story.

Also, we get it. Clover is an engineer. We know because it was mentioned 30+ times. And the edges. We get it. She stuck to the edges. She clocked the room. She got left off the roster. I understand making a point. But this was beating a dead horse at this point.

The story really was sweet. But the whole story felt inconsistent. First Clover is 22, then she's been waiting 30 years. Then 22 years again. The meme usage was also a bit much. I appreciated the first books because of the nerdy references. This felt like trying too hard with some meme or tiktok trending sound bite on nearly every page.

And, going back to the last book, there was much less smut in this book. It's been getting less and less each book. Which, I read for things other than smut. But I also read FOR the smut.

Overall, this whole book felt like it missed the mark. I've loved the Kingmans since the beginning but I'm feeling hesitant about the last book coming.

[Sim-fully Ever After]

4🌟, 1🌶️

This book had all the ingredients for a fun, comforting romance.

The fake dating, adorable cats, and uplifting themes made it an easy, enjoyable read, and I loved the focus on confidence, belonging, and challenging outdated expectations.

Clover was easy to root for, and I admired how determined she was to fight for something she believed in. Isak was sweet, supportive, and impossible not to like. Their relationship had plenty of cute moments, although I found myself wanting a little more time with them as a couple to fully buy into the depth of their connection. The chemistry was there, but compared to other books in the series, the romance felt softer and the spice was much lighter, more fade-to-black (which I don’t mind, occasionally).

While some storylines felt like they could have been explored a bit further, there was still a lot of heart packed into these pages. The lovable characters, family dynamics, and feel-good atmosphere kept me turning the pages, and by the end, I was left happy to have spent time in this world again.

This was a sweet, comforting romance that left me with a smile.

~~~~

Huge thank you to Amy Award & Valentine PR for the ARC! 😍 All my bookish thoughts are completely my own. ✨

[Robin]

I was so excited for this book. Isak had such an energetic and fun personality in the earlier books. He never showed up. This book was all about Clover but even her character was lacking. Isak was left in timeout in the corner from the beginning. He was left out of his own story. There was no chemistry. No romance. I was so disappointed...

[Mishelle]

I have to say that I love Amy Award, as a writer and a person and was so so excited for this book. But someone please please tell me that I received the roughest first draft and not the actual book!

I was so excited for this book and the tropes when it was announced, but then received a book with different tropes. The coach’s daughter aspect and then overprotective older brothers aspect, gone. Poof. Like it never existed. Yeah, I know things change, so I will let that pass. But I do have to say that each book feels like it picks up from the previous one and this book felt like it didn’t follow the previous one. Like there is a time jump and it felt off. Maybe that was just me. I thought we were picking up from The Goat in the Bedroom, not years after.

But this book felt very different from all its previous books in this series. A series I love with everything in me. There were just a lot of things that felt like it wasn’t an Amy Award book. A lot of things that made it feel like it was rushed and incomplete. I know I did receive an ARC, but this is not my first ARC, much less my first ARC from Amy Award. So, I know and kinda expect some things not being perfect and a few errors, but not like I found in this book.

Rushed. That is how this book felt. But also inconsistent. Push aside the several times where they said someone left the room and then were there on the next page like they never left. Push aside the little errors because those are expected. But it was inconsistent. An example is that the team owner got the team from her dad and had to share it with her sister that she doesn’t agree with. But then in the last few chapters it went on about how she bought the team herself and worked hard to achieve that. Which then just undermines the whole plot with her sister. Things like that.

I’m not even going to touch the lack of spice. Not every book needs spice, but I did expect more from this book considering the rest of the series. Okay Okay, I am salty that they said Isak was pierced and then never went into detail about and had a fade to black and only said Clover enjoyed it! What about me?!

Okay, but seriously, I was confused with this book. Not just because of the inconsistency of it, but the way a few things were written, had me confused. So there is a secret identity trope in this book and how it was discovered was so confusing.

There was just a lot of rushed and inconsistent aspect of this book and I was so disappointed. I love this series so much and this book had so so much potential!

Will I read the next book in this series? Yes, and I hope it isn’t like rushed like this one. Do I still love this series? Yes, and I recommend you read all the previous books because they are amazing! I am just sad that this one wasn’t like the others. But I will continue to keep reading Amy’s books and really hope that this is a one off.

Spice Rating: ❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

[Gabi]

I was extremely excited for Amy to write a Black FMC because she did a pretty good job writing Tempest’s culture and racial identity into her story without making it her entire identity. Even though I have related to all the FMCs, I was so looking forward to meeting Clover.

I am deeply troubled by Clover’s inner monologue and the signaling of her Blackness to the reader.
There are several instances in the book that make her feel like a caricature of a “strong Black woman.” I don’t want to write an exhaustive list, but these are some of the highlights I had:

(22) “…I was more of a Proud Family girl.”
(22) “She was the epitome of black girl magic.”
(78) “…like the successful black woman she was.”
(239) “I was a proud, confident, black woman with a whole lot of junk in the trunk.”

These instances feel like signaling Clover’s Blackness without addressing the racial aspect of why Clover’s Blackness may have also been excluded in the spaces she wanted to be a part of. The anti-Blackness we face as Black women compounded with the fatphobia of our society means we experience fatphobia differently than white women. Our Blackness is ever present in our lives, but I don’t know anyone whose inner monologue includes saying “I am a proud Black woman” or “black girl magic.” Those are terms that were created by white media in an attempt to recognize Black women, but actually feel like an additional layer of “othering” by having to point out our Blackness. So Clover’s feelings of exclusion feel centered on her fatness, and do not touch at all on the possibility that she would have experienced a lot of racism as well.

Also, Clover Freeman’s name itself feels like a caricature. I want to read it as a nod to Black history and the importance of formerly enslaved people embracing their freedom, as Clover’s story is very much about her finding her own voice. But again, her name feels like a signal to readers that she is a “proud black woman,” when her name could have been an opportunity to explain her family dynamic and history.

I would also like to say that I sent Amy a more detailed message both on facebook and her website and she hasn’t replied. I was such a massive fan of this series and the Kingman family, but this entire book and experience has been disheartening and disappointing.

[Camille Davis]

Honestly disappointed 😢

I love the Cocky Kingmans series. Like truly I do. The first few tickled me with all the Colorado jokes and renames. The animals are always a great character addition. These last few books have taken me out of my fun little romance land because of how disappointingly bad they’ve gotten. This one is particular is making me write a review, which I don’t do often. Clover and Isak are barely together in this book. Truly I do not know how they even fell in love other than by proxy because of their cats. There are so many inconsistencies it’s astounding. Is Clover in her early twenties just out of college? Or is she thirty having lived a life? You just don’t know because in almost the same paragraph she describes herself having learned something in her thirty years but then go and say for the twenty-two years she’s been alive. So which is it? This is just one instance of the mental gymnastics you have to do to get through the book. Also I wanted to like Isak but other than being secretive and that he has a cat you know nothing about him.

I think this book could have done with a lot more editing and plenty more beta readers.

I still give it two stars because I like the author and the world she has created.

[Southern Lady Reads]

I shouldn’t be surprised anymore when I like one of Amy Award’s books! The thing about this whole series is that each book tackles a little something more than brain candy but still with a main couple to root for!

Really like the body positive nature of this one specifically in comparison to the whole series because The Tiger in the Sack talks a lot about body positivity and inclusion in a space where it’s definitely NOT traditionally been: professional sports dance teams !! Even the way the dancers were found and developed was by finding women who have traditionally felt excluded from even tryouts!!

P.S. we love a groveling tattooed hero!! This is one of those slow burn romances that made me hug my kindle! 💕💕

HOUSEKEEPING:
* Spice: 🌶️🌶️/5
* Reader Age Suggestions: new adult to adult
* Content Warnings: micro aggressions/ r4cism
* Kindle Unlimited: ✅
* Part of A Series: ✅ / Can it be read alone?: I think so! There are ALOT of tropes throughout this whole series so you can pick the ones you like the most.

**Thank you to Valentine PR for the book! I rec3ived this book for fr3e, but all thoughts are my own. – SLR🖤

Follow me on Instagram for honest reviews, bookish freebies & giveaways! 🖤

[Vanessa]

2.75 stars (rounded up)

Thank you to Valentine PR for the opportunity to read an Advanced Reader's Copy (ARC). All thoughts are my own.

As with the author's other books, I found the cat names funny and the opening banter was cute! Overall, I enjoyed the body positivity message woven throughout this story but there was one part that really resonated with me:

“I’m not waiting for him to leave because I think he will. I’m waiting for him to leave because if he doesn’t, I have to actually have this. I get to be a plus-size woman who got the whole fantasy, the quarterback and the family and the home and the love, no qualifier, no ‘in spite of,’ no asterisk, and I don’t⁠—”

My voice went somewhere I’d never let it go in front of another person. “I don’t know how to be a woman who got the thing. I know how to be the woman who was brave about not getting it. I’ve been so brave, Zahra. For so long. About not getting it. And he’s going to make me find out if I’m brave enough to actually get it, and that is so much more terrifying than being left, you have no idea, being left I know how to do, I’m an expert, I could teach a workshop…”

However, I struggled to get through this one because the romance part was just kinda meh. There was one open door scene, although that door was only cracked open...no one could see much! Their relationship was not that interesting honestly. This book did not feel like the others in her series.

[Megan Schneider]

Let me start by saying I absolutely adore this series and I never leave reviews but I feel like I have to.

I am super disappointed with this book. The entire thing didn’t make any sense. It was not the lovable Kingman family we know and love, it was a weird story about Clover and her lists and her doors and her edges.

There was zero connection, passion between her and Isak. There was no getting to know Isak from past books, he seemed like a completely different person.

This book made Bridger Kingman seem unlikable, it referenced April more than once as a “dead woman” which seemed highly disrespectful for a character who continues to shape other characters and leave a legacy for, it left out the classic third act Kingman troop team rescue.

There was no true story of how Isak and Clover fell in love, no spice, not much witty banter that these stories are know for.

The typos, the repetition of phrases, words, paragraphs…whoever edited this book needs to try again. It was so distracting and took away from the book. There is so much more to say, but I don’t want to give spoilers.

I wanted to DNF so many times, hence why it took me weeks to read when I’ve read all the other books in this series in a day but I wanted to see it through.

I really pray that Jules book closes the original Kingman story the way we are familiar with.

[Erin McN]

Isak Kingman is an NFL quarterback with a huge family in football. Clover, the plus-size dance coach, just moved to Cincinnati to bring her diverse cheer vision to fruition. These two meet when Clover & her cat are stuck up in the tree together. Isak, the masked motorcyclist & his cat, save both of them. Sparks fly between these two, even with Isak’s hidden identity. Then Clover & Isak must fake date in order to investigate team sabotage. You will not be able to put this book down!

“Take up two chairs. Then go fly.” This will be my new mantra. I loved everything about this book. I felt seen in every version of Clover Freeman. I was the curvier cheerleader that somehow made Captain. Thank you Amy for making the curvier heroine feel visible & deserving of a HEA! Such a feel good book with mystery & the feel for justice should be served. Now I’m going back the beginning of this series & start on this whole journey!

[Tyla 🧚 🗡️ ☠️ 🩸 🖤]

Netgalley ALC
This one wasn’t for me sadly. I didn’t feel connected to the characters. They felt quite boring all the way through this. I liked the names of the cat 😂😂😂 but the romance fell flat. The actual characters fell flat. Plus the male audio narration didn’t do it for me either, it made him seem even more boring than the writing. I do think this authors writing could be for me with the humour, maybe I just started with the wrong book. But very much not my kind of thing 💀

[suonnahbooks]

Tiger in the sack by Amy Award
Audiobook ARC from Libro FM
-book just started and I’m already blushing and giddy
-her being in the tree to save the cat is giving me get a life Chloe brown vibes (my fav book by Talia Hibbert
-he sounds fine also tattoos , motorcycle 🤪👀 we love a man that admires a women’s curves
-clover is an interesting and cute name
-love seeing a boss ass black plus size cheerleader 🫶🏾✨
-forced proximity, fake dating, cheerleader and football player gobble gobble
-the cat is adorable and funny😂
-this was cute I did find myself disconnecting a lot tho
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

[Queenie2023 aka Rita]

Now this is how you start out a new month! A 5 star audio of a series that you have loved so much. I absolutely love all the body positivity in Amy Awards books and this one is definitely no exception. I really enjoyed their meet cute and the fact that (due to a motorcycle helmet) the FMC got to know him without knowing who the MMC was having never seen his face. And, as with the rest of the series- adorable animal representation throughout the book. Highly recommend this series !!

[Deidre White]

I wanted to like this more than I did. There were a LOT of grammar and continuity errors, to the point that it made certain parts of the story a bit confusing. Clover's age was listed as 23 in one place, but something else later on. There was another part where almost everyone in Isak's family was in his apartment, going over lots of plans, but then he and Clover went back up there to talk an hour or so later, and suddenly everyone is just gone and there's no explanation.

There was also a lot less of the Kingman family in this book, which took away from it. That's the fun of these books. Having everyone in everyone's business and all the chaos is the point, besides the romance.

I did like Clover, as a character, as well as Isak. But their reason for needing to fake a relationship was really weak. Both of the people they didn't want relationships with were very overtly sexually harassing them in the workplace. They could've both easily gotten help to get them to leave them alone. The two cats were awesome.

[Val]

Super disappointing, this one felt like it was rushed to publish and was written by ai prompts. I enjoyed the majority of the other books so this was pretty off putting. It was like all the continuity and personality traits from the previous books were just thrown out the window, completely pointless. I did like the relationship set up but it was kinda lacking still. I really really really hope they don't screw up the last book cuz I love Jules.

[DomsLitCorner]

3 ⭐️

The Tiger in the Sack follows Isak, the youngest Kingman brother, as he struggles with the pressure of living up to both the Kingman name and the football legacy his older brothers have built. When he rescues a woman and her cat from a tree, he’s immediately drawn to the fact that she has no idea who he is. For once, he gets to be just Isak instead of “one of the Kingman brothers,” and he loves the chance to get to know her without all the expectations attached to his name. Things get even more interesting when he discovers she’s the new cheer and dance coach for his team.

Clover was one of my favorite parts of the book. As a plus-size Black woman, she’s spent years feeling overlooked and underestimated in the cheer and dance world. Now that she has the opportunity to lead her own program, she’s determined to create a team where everyone feels welcome and represented, regardless of body type. I really appreciated how the story highlighted both racial and body diversity in a space where that representation is often lacking.

I also thought the individual character growth for both Isak and Clover was handled well. They each had meaningful personal journeys, and I found myself invested in their stories. Unfortunately, the romance itself didn’t quite work for me. While there were definitely some sweet and swoony moments, I never fully felt the emotional connection between them. The chemistry just wasn’t there for me, so the relationship ended up feeling a little flat and less believable than I wanted it to.

Overall, this was an okay read for me. I didn’t dislike it, but I also didn’t love it as much as I expected to. The representation and character development were definite highlights, even if the romance didn’t completely land.

Thank you Amy and Valentine PR for an advanced reader copy of The Tiger in the Sack (publishing June 9, 2026).

[Dominika]

⭐ 4.75/5

Quotes:
• "There's freedom behind a motorcycle helmet. Nobody knows who you are. No name. No jersey number."
• "Holy shit. I completely forgot what I was doing for approximately two seconds. Damn she was pretty. Whoa, okay, focus lover-boy or all three of us would be spending the night in this tree. Could be fun. No, fuck. I held out a hand to the cat, palm up. Waited for his sniff of approval."
• “You know what it’s like,” I said to the ceiling. “When someone—” I stopped. Started again. “When you can tell they’re talking to the real you and not to the thing they think you are.”
• "It wouldn’t be that much trouble, I just did not currently have the bandwidth for thinking about any other woman’s needs at the moment. I had a cheerleader who’d texted me a cat in a cereal bowl and had not yet agreed to get on my bike. That was the only weather I was tracking."
• "Isak Kingman’s voice sounded behind me. Lower. More careful. And every hair on my arms and the back of my neck stood up on end. Not because I was scared. No. I absolutely recognized the way that voice said my name. It was protective, and charming, and meant to be helpful. Helpful getting me down out of a tree. There were no snags in my brain this time. Isak Kingman was Cat Daddy."
• "The door closed. The taillights went down the hill and disappeared around the curve and the overlook went quiet, the way parks go quiet after people leave them, like the space was recalibrating around the absence."
• "“I was wrong,” he said. “I made a terrible mistake and I knew better the whole time, which makes it worse, not better. I had four hundred chances to tell you and I took exactly none of them.” He looked up at me steadily. “And the worst part isn’t that it blew up in my face. The worst part is that you had to figure it out yourself. You deserved to hear it from me. I’m sorry.”
• "She didn’t deny that she was mine. That was a hopeful romantic heart talking. It needed to shut up. I was barely back in her good graces, much less getting into her heart."
• "My family, the loud beautiful disaster I’d moved eleven hundred miles away to prove I didn’t need, packed into a home I’d bought in secret, because the second it looked like the world was coming for me they’d dropped everything and come for me first."
• "I’ve been waiting for him to leave,” I said. “The whole time. Even now. Even after the podium. There’s a part of me running a countdown, and it’s been running since I was nine and got left off a roster for not looking like the others, and it ran when Warner told me I wasn’t League WAG material the week I thought he was going to propose, and it’s running right now, tonight, while a good man tells four million people he loves me. The countdown doesn’t care what’s true. It just counts. And I built a whole life of rules and lists and not-needing-people so that when the leaving finally comes, I’ll have seen it on the schedule. I’ll have planned for it. It won’t be able to surprise me into wanting something I can’t keep."
• "I don’t know how to be a woman who got the thing. I know how to be the woman who was brave about not getting it. I’ve been so brave, Zahra. For so long. About not getting it. And he’s going to make me find out if I’m brave enough to actually get it, and that is so much more terrifying than being left, you have no idea, being left I know how to do, I’m an expert, I could teach a workshop... But being chosen..."
• "And I’m terrified. I want you to know I picked this scared. I didn’t stop being scared. I just decided I’d rather be scared with you than safe without you, and if that’s not the most romantic thing anyone’s ever said to you I don’t want to hear about whoever beat it."
• "God they were like a song from the dirtiest and raunchiest of gods. Bacchus and Caligula and Aphrodite had nothing on my Clover."
• "Yeah. I was thinking of forever. With Clover."
• "You stopped hiding.The building. The cat. The girl. The whole empire you built in the dark so nobody could clap.” He bumped my shoulder pad. “You let us clap, Isak. Took you twenty-five years. Worth the wait.”
• "In this house, we bleed green. She sent back a green heart and a photo of a room full of people of every size and age and shade, mid-leap, all of them in the air at once. When pigs fly. We did. We do. Forever."

[Emily]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Read this book for:
🐈 Workplace Romance
🏈 Cheerleader x Quarterback
🐈 No Third Act Break Up
🏈 Hidden Identity
🐈 Fake Dating
🏈 He Falls First and Harder

Synopsis
Being a famous quarterback was never supposed to feel this suffocating.

For once, he just wanted to be anonymous. No reporters. No famous family name. No expectations. So when he meets Clover while wearing his motorcycle helmet and helps rescue her cat from a tree, he enjoys the rare chance to be seen as just a normal guy.

Then he realizes she’s the Cincinnati Tigers’ new Dance and Cheer coach.

And she realizes exactly who he is.

Clover came to Cincinnati determined to change the game by building the league’s first body-diverse professional cheer squad. But not everyone wants her to succeed, and someone seems intent on sabotaging the team from the inside.

When they’re forced to work together undercover to uncover the truth, fake dating becomes the perfect cover.

At first, it’s only pretend. But the more time they spend together, the harder it becomes to ignore the chemistry between them.

Because somewhere between secret investigations, stolen kisses, and impossible dreams, they both start wanting something real.

My Thoughts
After reading the first six books in the series, and with Cocky Kingmans being one of my all-time favorite romance series, I had pretty high expectations for this one. Thankfully, it did not disappoint, and the series gets to keep its place as one of my favorites.

One thing that surprised me was that this was probably the least spicy book Amy has written in the series so far. I was not really used to that because her books are usually packed with spice, but honestly, it did not take away from my enjoyment at all. The story between Isak and Clover was so unique and refreshing, and I found myself completely invested in their journey. And that plot twist? Absolutely chef’s kiss. I genuinely did not see it coming, and it made the story even more memorable.

But can we talk about Vito and Tig for a second? First of all, those names are iconic. I loved them immediately. And secondly, a cat wearing a helmet on a motorcycle? That image lived rent-free in my head for the entire book. If that existed in real life, I would absolutely pay money to see it.

One thing I always love about Amy’s books is that they carry an empowering message, and this one was no different. Even though the Kingsman family had a slightly smaller role compared to some of the previous books, they still felt like the warm, chaotic, supportive family everyone wishes they could be part of. Every time they appeared on the page, they brought so much heart to the story.

Fox Daws was another standout character for me. I loved every second of his goofiness, his antics, and the way he brought humor into every scene he was in. I am already crossing my fingers that he ends up being Jules’s love interest because I just know that book would be an absolute masterpiece. The chemistry and chaos potential are already there, and I need it immediately.

Going back to the empowering message, I absolutely loved seeing the women come together and fight for their worth, their voices, and the space they deserved to take up in the world. Those moments were inspiring and added so much depth to the story. And honestly, I would have loved to see the flying pig routine in real life because it sounded completely badass.

Even Tiki, despite being one of the antagonistic characters, was someone I enjoyed reading about. She brought so much energy to the story and made every scene more interesting. And then there was Coach. I swear, every time he found another excuse to eat one of his cookies, I could not stop laughing. It became one of those little running jokes that made me smile every single time.

And now, after spending more time with Jules in this book, I need the next book immediately. I am so invested in her story already, and the thought of waiting another year feels way too long. I am hoping with everything I have that the next book will be released by the end of the year because I am definitely not ready to leave the Cocky Kingmans behind yet.

[Carol Cooper]

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ (3 Stars) — Fantastic writing and great body positivity rep, but it sadly lacked the romance, chemistry, and spice of the previous books! 🐅📣

This was a quick and fluffy romance! I had fun with the story, but what I really loved was the writing style! As with all of Amy Award's books in this series, she has a unique, chaos-filled, very direct way of writing and writing dialogue that I just adore. Unfortunately, I didn't like the storyline or characters in this one as much as I liked the previous books.

The Setup & Characters: 👥
• Isak (MMC): We've met him in all the previous books. He's the youngest Kingman brother and a pro NFL player, and he constantly feels like he has to thrive quietly in the shadow of his older brothers. His family has never actually made him feel that way, it's just how he feels. Because of this, he has quiet moments of victory that he doesn't share with his family because he doesn't think they will clap for his wins. 🏈
• Clover (FMC): A plus-sized woman who has always tried to fit into rooms not made for people who look like her. She makes it her goal to create a cheerleading/dance squad made up of women who don't fit the mold of a "typical" cheerleader/dancer. 📣✨

What Worked: ✅
• The Writing Style: The author's chaotic, direct voice is still going strong here!
• The Rep: I loved the overarching themes of body positivity and the concept of Clover's cheer squad. I liked each of these characters individually, and I liked the side characters just fine.

What Fell Flat: ❌
• Zero Chemistry: This was supposed to be a romance book, but the romance felt pushed to the side for most of the story, and when it did happen, it felt incredibly forced. It didn't feel organic at all. 📉
• Where was the Body Worship? In previous books, we got men who went out of their way to show exactly how much they loved their women's plus-sized bodies. This one just had Isak making one or two internal comments on her body and only one comment out loud to her.
• The Spice Level Dropped: Since this is a fluffy romance, I expect lower spice, which is totally fine. Except, there was at least a 2 to 3 chili pepper rating on all the other books in this series! 🌶️ I would only give this one half a chili pepper. There was a total of one sex scene that we didn't even get to see fully. That was disappointing, and I honestly think more intimacy would have helped make the romance actually believable.
• Unresolved Justice: There were 2 main villains in this book, and only one got any kind of justice. Again, I know this is marketed as a fluffy romance, but justice of some kind for both bad guys would have been greatly appreciated! ⚖️🙄

Final Thoughts: 💭
I've loved all the books in this series, all the men and women, and especially their pets, but this one just flopped for me in the romance and story department. I will still be picking up the final book (Jules' book!) and hoping that when it comes out, the author will bring back all the things I loved about the books before this one. 📖🏃‍♀️💨

[Laurie]

✨ Tiger in the Sack – Amy Award ✨

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5)

🏈🧡🐯🎭🔥

If you love:
• sports romance (football)
• fake dating
• forced proximity
• grumpy/sunshine vibes
• secret identity / helmet anonymity
• protective MMC

THIS BOOK WAS SO FUN, SWEET, AND ADDICTIVE 😭🔥

Chris Kingman starts off living his best “no one knows I’m famous” life behind a motorcycle helmet, and honestly?? That opening scene with him rescuing Clover and her cat was ICONIC 🐱😂

He’s trying so hard to be anonymous, mysterious, and cool… and then immediately fumbles everything in the best way 😭

And Clover???
I LOVED her.

She’s confident, passionate, and determined to build something meaningful with a body-diverse cheer squad in a sport that clearly isn’t ready for it yet 🧡🔥

Their meet-cute is hilarious, but the real story starts when they realize who each other actually are 😮‍💨

Because suddenly:
• he’s the quarterback
• she’s the new cheer/dance coach
• they have to work together
• and now FAKE DATING enters the chat 👀

The chemistry between them was instant and so easy to root for. Chris becomes incredibly protective of Clover in a way that never feels controlling—just deeply supportive and genuinely invested in her dreams 🥹

I also really loved the deeper themes in this book. Clover facing pushback for trying to change the system added emotional weight beyond the romance, and it made her story feel really empowering.

The banter, the tension, the secrecy, and the fake relationship all blended perfectly into a romance that was both funny and heartfelt.

For me, this was just pure enjoyment from start to finish. It’s the kind of book that makes you smile while reading and immediately want the next chapter 😭🏈

If you love football romance with fake dating, protective heroes, strong heroines, and lots of heart… this one is a MUST READ 🧡🐯🔥

[Lynn_G]

Isak, the youngest Kingman brother finds his Queen in the lovely and competent Clover in this slow burn, fake dating, wonderful romcom with major heart and soul.

Although she’s just a masters degree away from becoming a full fledged engineer, Clover has been handed a challenging yet groundbreaking position overseeing the creation of the first ever size- and age-inclusive cheer and dance team for Cincinnati’s professional football team. More than up for the task, and used to handling everything on her own, when her precious feline Tig escapes the confines of their new apartment and gets himself well and truly wedged up a nearby tree.

Cinci quarterback Isak is riding home on his motorcycle with his trusty tuxedo cat harnessed in (like one does) when both his and Vito Catleone’s attention are arrested by a gorgeous young woman stuck in a tree having unsuccessfully attempted to save her orange tabby. Keeping his helmet in place, and therefore his anonymity, the burly Cat Daddy plucks both critter and cheerleader from certain doom. While the pair then exchange numbers and flirty texts, Isak declined to give his name or reveal his face.

At the stadium, Isak learns Clover’s identity but doesn’t let on who he is, which of course comes back to bite him. As the pair work together to uncover the saboteurs working to sink Clover’s pilot program, unwanted attention from both Clover’s ex and an entitled, influential divorcee looking to bag the only remaining Kingman bachelor necessitate a fake-dating situation between Clover and Isak. Isak, however, is in it for real, for real.

Will they get to the bottom of the plot against the squad? And will Clover be able to forgive Isak for thinking keeping his secrets was a good idea? Will Cincinnati survive an invasion of Kingmans???

Amy Award has delivered another winning installment in the idyllic Kingman universe where creeps get their comeuppance and all bodies are beautiful. Full stop. Oh to live in such a world.

I was generously provided an advance reader copy from the author, and I’m pleased to share my honest and enthusiastic impressions.

[Kat]

The Tiger in the Sack is the seventh book in the Cocky Kingmans series. Since I hadn’t read any of the previous books, I was curious to see if a book this far into a series could really stand on its own.

Here’s the thing: it failed at being a true standalone because now I want to read the entire series!

In all seriousness, it does work as a standalone novel. There are a few backstory elements that probably would have added more depth if I had read the earlier books, but everything was explained well enough that I never felt lost or like I was missing essential information from the earlier books.

One thing I especially enjoyed was the tone and family dynamic, which felt like a modern-day Bridgerton. The characters are well developed, lovable, and easy to become invested in. I ended up enjoying this book far more than I expected.

If you’re looking for a heartfelt story about positivity, found family, and not being afraid to take up space, this is the book for you. I was also surprised that, despite the raunchy title, there wasn’t much spice until about 90% of the way through the book. For readers who pay attention to spice levels, this one is fairly tame overall.

I absolutely loved this book and wasn’t quite ready for it to end. It’s exactly the kind of story that makes you want to immediately pick up the rest of the series.

[briebriereads]

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 | 🌶️

tropes:
🏈 sports romance (football)
🎭 secret identity / masked stranger
💍 fake dating
🏢 forced proximity (workplace)
🐆 plus-size heroine / body positivity
🛡️ protective hero
😂 banter-heavy / found family vibes

I’m a longtime Amy Award girlie, so I went in with high expectations and while this one didn’t hit my absolute favorite spot in the Cocky Kingmans series, it was still a solid read. Chris and Clover’s fake dating/secret identity setup gave me everything I want from this author: chaotic charm, protective-hero energy, and genuinely funny banter.

That said, I noticed the spice has been dialing down as the series goes on, and this one landed pretty mild for me compared to earlier books. I also felt like the tone leaned a little heavier/less lighthearted than I’ve come to expect from this world which isn’t a bad thing on its own, especially given how much Amy continues to nail representation (the body-diverse cheer squad storyline is genuinely great), but it did shift the reading experience for me.

Still an enjoyable pick for sports romance and fake dating fans, just maybe not the one to start the series with if spice is your priority. 🐯

I did receive an ALC and I think the narrator’s nailed the voices for the characters. I think they were a solid choice. Overall, the production is a great audio.

[Brittany Steminist Booknerd]

STEM FMC: aerospace engineer
Sigh. This is the first stem girlie we get in the series, and her engineering background is a tagline about spreadsheets. While engineers do love spreadsheets, don’t get me wrong, it was literally the only thing about her that wasn’t cheerleading. It made me sad.
Also, you can tell that Amy rushed to finish this one. There was a load of typos and sentences that didn’t quite make sense and some timing that was off in the progression of the storyline. And there was so much less of the rest of the kingmans and their wives and Bridger in this one than the others. I missed them and their shenanigans.
This was the least spicy of all of the series so far, so if you’re looking for spice, this one really isn’t it.
Overall this one was disappointing for me, but still relatively silly and light. I’m really pumped for Jules and Fox next.

[Lissereads]

I swear Amy Award puts something addictive in her books because I was planning to listen to a few chapters… and suddenly I was completely invested in Isak and Clover.

Isak was easily my favorite part of this book. Watching this confident quarterback slowly realize he was absolutely gone for Clover had me smiling the whole time. I love a hero who falls hard, and he definitely delivered.

Clover was so easy to root for. She knew exactly who she was, and I loved that she never tried to be anyone else. Seeing someone love her for exactly that made this romance even sweeter.

One thing I absolutely love about the Kingman family is that no matter how far apart they are, when one of them needs help, they show up. Every single time. Those moments always remind me why I love this family so much.

This was one book I genuinely enjoyed from beginning to end. If you love sports romances with heart, humor, and a hero who’s completely down bad, with the biggest heart, this one is worth adding to your TBR..

4.25 ⭐️
2.5 🌶️
4.50 🎧📚

Thank you very much Valentine PR and Amy Award for never letting me way for my favorite releases

[Megan Tolley]

4.25⭐️1🌶️
Thank you to Amy Award & VPR for sending me the advanced copy of this book! Isak Kingman is up there with Hayes as my favorite Kingman brother - he’s so sweet and loving that he doesn’t quite know how to show it. Clover is our badass FMC who is blazing a path for plus-sized women who’ve been told they don’t belong in sports (specifically dance and cheerleading) their whole lives. I love her and everything she stands for, as well as how Isak lets her fight her own battles.

My favorite characters of the book have to be our cats - Tig O’Bittlesworth and Vito Catleone. First of all, cutest cat names ever. Second, I love how they sneak away to be with each other - it’s so freakin sweet! 🥹

Book 7 of this crazy series that I’ve loved so much - I can’t believe just one book is left!

[Nicole Wheelbarger]

I’ve loved this series and was really looking forward to this book but it didn’t hit like the others. I’m not sure if it’s because I did the audio where I’ve read the last few books but the humor was really missing from this story. While the fat phobia story line is still present, the general story is both the FMC and the MMC are extremely unsure of theirselves and it’s a bit repetitive. The cat dad lines are very cute but this didn’t fall into the same category as the previous books. Likewise, the male narrator - Stephen Borne - sounds like a 50 year old smoker, not a young NFL player - I couldn’t connect with the audio at all. The female narration by AM Elizabeth Kay was fine.

Obviously I encourage you to finish the series but I’d suggest to skip the audio!

3.75