Playing with Fire

Grove Valley High #0.5

by Emma Doherty

Sophie Steele is looking forward to summer break: no school, no responsibilities, hanging out with her best friend, Livy, and the boy she’s been casually dating for the last couple of months. But, when her brother’s gorgeous friend moves in with them while he completes a summer internship, her goal changes. Suddenly the only thing she wants this summer is him.

She wants him even more when her brother warns her off him, and even more than that when Livy tells her it’s a bad idea. Then when he starts dating one of her brother’s friends? Well, that makes him irresistible.

Because that’s the thing about Sophie—she’s always wanted what she can’t have.

Genres: Young Adult

Unknown Binding

About the author

Follow me on Instagram @emma.doherty.author

Reviews

[Jessica Hull · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasnt sure about this little novella at first because Sophie is super annoying in the way most teenage girls are .. she's indecisive and self absorbed, she's impulsive and she seems to love chasing boys who are unavailable or off limits. But I grew to really like her because isn't she just doing what teenagers do... making wrong choices without really thinking about how they'll effect her and those around her in the long run? Those choices along with her charming personality definitely made for a fast paced, enjoyable read that truly sets up what is sure to be an interesting storyline in future books. Emma Doherty sucked me in, making me absolutely desperate for stories about all these characters... especially Livy, Jesse and Chase in The Stand-In Boyfriend! I can't wait to see where these characters are headed as they begin their senior year!

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a prequel novella to The Stand-In Boyfriend. When I readThe Stand-In Boyfriend I fell in love with Sophie's character and her friendship with Livy. Sophie is a lot different to the protagonists we see in most YA literature. She's bold, flirty, confident and goes after what she wants. She's also reckless, impulsive and makes some very questionable decisions. Yet she feels like a realistic 17 year old.

The story takes place over the summer. Sophie is getting serious with Mark, her almost-boyfriend, yet gets distracted by her brother's friend, Garrett, when he comes to stay at her family's house. Garrett is hot - and Sophie immediately wants him. She's bored of Mark and enjoys the chase of an older college guy who seems happy to flirt with her too (that is, when her protective older brother isn't around). Sophie's choices are frustrating and obvious, yet she learns from her mistakes and I can't hate her for her reckless decisions. I was also glad at how the book addressed how questionable a college guy dating a high-school girl could be and the imbalanced power-dynamics of this.

It was also nice to see more of the other characters from the The Stand-In Boyfriend, especially Livy, Jessie and Chase. Livy, however, did seem like more of a Mary-Sue in this story, though perhaps it was because we were seeing her from Sophie's eyes. Seriously, she doesn't do her makeup or brush her hair and yet she's the hottest girl in the school? Still, the story set-up the next book well and I'd recommend reading this one before The Stand-In Boyfriend. Sophie and Livy's friendship is honestly one of my favourites.

[Shiuli · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this one of the greatest books ever written.. I've always been a fan of her books and here she is with an another excellent story.. If Im being honest the ending was a little abrupt and but I feel that she would cover up in her next following book in the series.. Though I still feel that no book can beat the four doors down series but still it's a must read and would keep you engaged❤❤💙💙

[Michelle Claypot_Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun novella about the stupid decisions everyone makes when they’re 17. Sophie is a fire cracker & I am definitely going to read the next book in this series. Livvy’s Story has me intrigued

[☠︎︎༒︎✞︎ ѕℓιм ☠︎︎༒︎✞︎ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good but Sophia one dumb chick


https://ladiikeiii.wordpress.com/2019...

•••••I mention some spoilers in this review, and couldn’t help but speak my mind**•••••


Sophie is smh... it’s so many women that’s like her.... & some women/girls want a guy like Mark... I wanted to smack her silly. Reading this book. After reading the other book with her friend Olivia... have me thinking Mark is/was stupid... for even giving her another chance... because once she saw that Garrett was horrible and gotten caught a second time she felt some way. Then going to be upset when Mark started dating that girl Jenna... I didn’t blame Mark.

For one; yes he on the rebound, but Sophia gutted him; I tried saying hurt him with ed at the end but autocorrect kept saying gutted. But like I said she hurt him so bad not once; but twice more, than two times because she kept ignoring his text messages... because she assumes she wanted Garrett. What her idiot self didn’t realize was maybe Whitney was more than likely pretending and also Garrett probably only wanted to make her jealous. You could tell her (Sophia) didn’t care about what Benji her (Sophia) brother thought of him (Garrett) hitting on his sister.


But what I can agree on; is when it came to Garrett, he stated Sophia kept coming on to him and flirting which was true. I blame them both because for one she knew he was a grown ass man and he knew she was only 16 turning 17... she was underage, and he was like twenty-one... he didn’t care. Mark should’ve punched him (Garrett) too, hell right after Benji punches him (Garrett). You could tell Garrett knew what he was doing.... when it came to Benji sister... like boy bye you could’ve said NO... plus; I die of laughter when she realize Garrett kisses suck 😂😂😂 I was like she should’ve stuck with Mark the “teenager” you kept dissing for a “grown man” aka “sloppy kisser”.... It was priceless. She felt so stupid after what happened. I was like welp Livi tried to tell your butt; even wack ass Jessie.... gosh I could tell he was horrible in this book too but more so in the book with Livi... but anyways I’m off topic...


What I do want to know .... was... did Mark taken Sophia back because the one with Livi they were talking and stuff and getting all close I wanted to know more like the book one (w/Livi & Chase) did versus this one. Mark was a good guy; often more likely we all need guys like him. I be telling people (I know this is fiction) that women cheat too; what I realize both Livi and Sophia cheated on two of the guys who actually cared about them and ONLY felt stupid once they were caught. I highly doubt either of them would’ve felt bad if they didn’t get caught. But what was in my head when Garrett was kissing Sophia I kept thinking he was going to rape her or something by how he was acting while kissing her. But in the end, I was happy he left... I can’t say it was a happy ending in this book, but it was good though... I should’ve read this before the “Stand-In Boyfriend” but oh well!

[Irma *Irma The Book Whisperer* · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Must be something in the air,” Jessie comments, eager to get back into the conversation. Chase turns to him. “Courtney and I are done too.”
“What?” The word is out of my mouth before I can check myself. I can feel everyone’s attention turn to me. “When did that happen?”
Jessie shrugs like it’s no big deal and I’m not hanging on his every word. “Before first period.”
My jaw falls open. We had lunch together and he didn’t think to mention that he broke up with his girlfriend?

Oh, Emma, thank you for giving me my next fix. I couldn't wait to read something by you again and I so can not wait to read The Stand-In Boyfriend. I absolutely loved this one, even though I wasn't all in for the heroine.

[Abby Nichols · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read Stand in Boyfriend before this so I had high hopes. It was a good story but nothing too interesting to me. Big fan of the next book so this was just a let down! Sophie was annoying to me in this book with her indecisiveness.

[ju · Rating 4 out of 5]

at first i thought this would be a totally creep book about a 16 year old dating a 21 year old boy but thank god it wasn’t

[funkelbunt.liest · Rating 2 out of 5]

To be honest, I knew I wouldn’t like this one because I couldn’t imagine liking a cheating MC. And I didn’t.

I read this novella which introduces the characters of the Grove Valley High Series because I loved both books, especially book 1, and was interested in reading more about them.

This novella did nothing for Sophie. Nothing.
From Livy’s POV she’s a great friend and I thought she was … well, okay I guess.
She wasn’t my favorite character in Livy’s book and I wouldn’t want to be friends with someone like her. (been there, done that…) but I could accept her as a good friend for Livy and as someone who wasn’t afraid to speak her mind. We see this too in book 2.

But in ‘Playing With Fire’ Sophie is so selfish, shallow, superficial, ignorant of other people’s feelings (Benji, Mark, Abigail, …) as soon as they stand in her way.

What would she have done if Garratt was Livy’s boyfriend..?

But that’s not the point actually.

Garratt is so boring as a character. The only thing he is is hot. Wow.
I’m already annoyed that everyone in romantic books - at least the male MC of course, because women are seemingly more allowed to have flaws and still be sexy - has to be sooo smokin’ hot and good looking because this is what love is all about. Or isn’t it..?
But - Garratt takes it to a new level because he has absolutely nothing else to offer.

Maybe I’m not superficial enough to understand why Sophie is even tempted. I wouldn’t be but if I would, I would have stayed away.

Her brother warned her, her best friend warned her, she has a boyfriend (without the label… - maybe talk about it?) but Sophie needs to “have” Garratt.

And what does our oh so mature MC learn from her mistake?

“Don’t just assume because someone is insanely hot, they actually have any substance - lesson learned.”

Wow… I just can’t… Seriously???
This is what she learned? Shouldn’t this be like common knowledge for everybody over the age of 5?
Shouldn’t the lesson be
“Don’t cheat”?
“Don’t lead someone (Mark) on if you’re not serious”?
“Don’t mistake attraction for actual feelings”? or even
“Listen to your brother”?

Seems to me Sophie is as stupid as before and I’m not happy Mark took her back in the next book. But he must be a bit of an idiot (or very superficial himself) to fall for her in the first place.

I try to forget all about this book to like Sophie again when I reread book 1 and 2. Right now just argh…

But - I enjoyed reading about the other characters and I have an even higher opinion of Livy after she called Sophie out for all the right reasons and told her to leave Garratt be and to treat Mark better. So not a complete waste of my time…

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

“What’s Livy doing?” Chase asks casual, shoving another piece of brownie into his mouth. I pause for a second, wondering why he’d be interested, but then I dismiss the thought.

This is interesting. Livy told me a couple of months ago that she doesn't think Chase likes Jessie. I dismissed her thoughts at the time because Chase doesn’t have a problem with anyone, but looking at them now, it looks like she might be right. Jessie loves Chase. He’s everything he wants to be: rich, popular, good-looking, a great soccer player, and his Abigail baker on speed dial whenever he wants her. He tried hanging around with these guys more and more last year at school, but Chase wasn’t having any of it. I’ve never seen Chase be uptight about who he hangs out with and he has a million friends, but apparently he doesn't want Jessie as one of them.

Aaron’s head snaps to Chase in surprise, and after a few seconds a wry smile covers his face as he shakes his head in understanding-understanding of what, I have no idea.

“You have Mark on a silver platter. He’s crazy about you and is there whenever you want him, so you’re bored. Garratt shows up and Benji tells you to back off, so now he’s what you want.”

He did absolutely nothing except be the perfect guy.

I read The Stand-In Boyfriend first, then I read this book. I definitely love the first book, The Stand-In Boyfriend. This book was good. It’s about Sophie’s story before what happened in The Stand-In Boyfriend book. I definitely like who Sophie ends up with in The Stand-In Boyfriend. I still adore Chase, Livy, Aaron, and Brendon (who is not in this book but is in the first book). 3 stars.

[Madison · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick novella with Gossip Girl level drama. Taking on Sophie's perspective through the summer before senior year. She expected the summer to fly by filled with her working as a lifeguard, hanging out with her best friend Livy and hooking up here and there with the guy she's been casually seeing the last month of school. What she doesn't expect is a special house guest, her older brother's friend and roommate from college staying with them for the summer. He's super hot and Sophie's set her eyes on him.
She's not all that innocent and it's not the first time she's hooked up with one of her brother's friends so it's not that big of a deal... right?

Sophie always gets what she wants. She's honestly self centered and doesn't think about the consequences of her actions. She doesn't intent to be cruel but her choices have her ghosting a great guy that really likes her, lying to her friend (who would more than likely make her face the mirror of her choices) and pinning after the hottie in the room next door, even after being sworn off by her brother. This summer was meant to be carefree and fun, but there are a couple life lessons that Sophie needs to learn and apparently it's her time to learn them.

[Katie A · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I definitely liked this book more than the last one I read by this author, there was a lot of buildup with one guy that just sputtered out that kind of let me down. Although I kind of liked how the author tied that off, in a surprising ending I didn’t see coming, I wish she had gone further with the story after that ending.
After the protagonist’s thing with the one guy sputters off after she realizes he has no game and can’t kiss, the guy she’s been leading on throughout the whole story is broken-hearted after catching her kissing the guy she had chased all summer. A huge part of me wanted her to go after him and apologize and realize what she had found in such a sweet guy with him. Unfortunately, she just gave up. While I get that sometimes that’s just how it works I still wish there was more of a resolution to the story after all of the build up.
I enjoyed this short book in the end though, and was amused by the main characters boldness and quirks.

[Kara (Rotella Reads) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book so badly because of the author’s previous works but it just didn’t do it for me. It was a drama filled, quick, high school romance read.

The heroine was a total player and lusted after all the boys, especially her brother’s friends who were much older than her. She didn’t seem to have any remorse for her wild behavior or hurting those who cared about her. In the end she didn’t get the guy she lusted after or the one she was “dating” and cheated on. Karma bit her in the butt.

The ending was extremely abrupt, but I’m hoping the story flows well into the next book of the series.

Thank you to Enticing Journey PR for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sophie Steele doesn’t take herself or life too seriously. There’s too much fun and variety to be had. So what if she’s got heart eyes for the hot older guy whose currently staying at her house who is friends with her brother, even though she’s currently seeing someone else. As reckless and impulsive as she may be, she’s a fantastic friend to Livy and Sophie always knows how to do the perfect pep talk. Plus, Sophie doesn’t tolerate crap from anyone and she is extremely social. While she can be flaky where she’s attracted to the what she can’t have, she’s learning that actions have consequences. And as much as her big brother annoyed her, I loved how protective he was even when she makes him mad. I’m definitely looking forward to reading about Livy next.

[Robyn Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book. I have read all of Emma’s books and was so excited to hear another one was coming out!
There’s something in the way that Emma writes that captures you and I cannot put them down, staying up all through the night to see what happens at the end.
This book was not a disappointment, I was really invested in all of the characters and I cannot wait to see why happens next in the series.

[Pricilla Marcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute introduction to the new series from Emma Doherty.
I wanna hate Sophie’s action but who 16 year old girls doesn’t do the same thing like making stupid mistakes? It is part of growing up and I like how Sophie comes to own her consequences.
Anyway, excited to read the next book about Livy and Chase 🥰

[Lai · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5

The ending was too abrupt but overall it wasn’t too bad and I liked how it wasn’t a typical and cliche scenario with the boys situation. I hope Sophie gets another book tho! Would like to read more about her.

[Serena Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

read this book in a few hours. it was a fun easy book to read, it had me laughing, shocked and genuinely identifying with the characters. i felt like i wanted it to carry on and not end for a while longer but i know there is another book in the series that continues on the story.

[alexis · Rating 3 out of 5]

rating: 3⭐️
spicy? only talks on it
read on? kindle

a re read. not my favourite of the series and BRO i love sophie in the next two books WHY DID I HATE HER IN THIS ONE?! she is badass and cool in the other books and this one, she’s a horrible girlfriend and crappy sister and a desperate girl. like garatt just ain’t worth it… even his name is nasty. and who has sex in the house they’re guest staying at? like i was laughing cringing SO BAD at that scene. the ending was like something that i expected to happen and yet really didn’t want to happen. glad in the next books sophie chooses the right guy. MARKS A SWEETHEART. and overall a nice intro book to the series. 1. getting to see abigail baker when she was with chase and 2. watching chase still fawn over livy while she’s clueless.

[Catherine Chan · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite books are from this author. Hence, I bookmarked her new releases.

This one did not disappoint. I love the characters. Family and friendships importance is stressed upon throughout the book.

I read it in one sitting.

[Elyse Rosen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was nice getting back into Emma Doherty’s writing and I can’t wait for more!!

[Jessica Jeffreys · Rating 2 out of 5]

meh

very well written but just too short for me. I prefer longer stories and this just felt unfinished.. Could've just been a portion of another book instead of its own book.

[Maisie]

made me so excited to read the series.
I love Livy and liked that Sophie was flawed.
Poor Mark