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Playing For Keeps

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Kate Warner has never had time to think about love -- at least not the romantic kind. Her focus, for the past fourteen years, has been on making sure her daughter Dana has everything she needs. After losing her own mother at an early age, Kate vowed never to let her daughter feel that kind of loneliness — even if that means missing out on the love Kate truly desires.

Joy Sizemore has been living the dream. As one of the top professional softball players in the world, her life is filled with great times on the field, exotic travel, and more than her fair share of post-game fun. But all of that changes when she suffers what might be a career ending injury.

Forced to return home to her parent’s house to recover, Joy tries to forget her sorrows in the bottom of a bottle — with nearly tragic consequences.

When Kate and Joy's lives unexpectedly collide they both have to decide whether they’ll give up on the game of love or stay on the field and try Playing For Keeps.

217 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 22, 2019

94 people are currently reading
54 people want to read

About the author

Carla Kincaid

5 books1 follower

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5 stars
110 (37%)
4 stars
90 (30%)
3 stars
73 (25%)
2 stars
13 (4%)
1 star
5 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
Profile Image for Jo reece.
553 reviews61 followers
March 30, 2019
Not a bad story, but felt like the ending was rather rushed. Nearly a 3*
524 reviews53 followers
February 11, 2019
It’s not that I didn’t enjoy this book at all, because I did, but it would have been much better in my opinion if it would have been a lot shorter. Though the storyline and characters were ok, I sometimes was bored because of the lack of pace of the story. I would have liked the writing to be a bit tighter than it was. As it was I had to skip quite a few passages to avoid getting bored and to keep enjoying this book. As far as I know this is the first book by this writer. I think this is a promising beginning. All in all I give this book 2.7 stars, wich rounds up to 3 stars.
Profile Image for Dawn.
139 reviews8 followers
April 24, 2019
This was a nice read. It automatically had me with softball. I could relate to Joy in many ways.
233 reviews5 followers
March 8, 2019
A keeper.

This was a great book. Concentrated on relationships with all the characters. I have never read this author before but she did a great job bringing me into the story until you are invested in the characters and want to see what happens to them a sign of a good story to me is you want the book to continue . There are so many openings for a follow up I will be amazed if this is not just the first instalment. Thank you very much. Hope lots of women had a good day on international women's day.
Profile Image for Kelly.
403 reviews25 followers
April 26, 2019
2.5 stars. I love sports themed books but this one is a bit lackluster. One is s star softball injury recovering player Joy. She's developed an issue with alcohol due to repressed issues with her family & sexuality. The other mc is Kate who works at an assisted living facility. She has a daughter Dana who plays softball.Through a bunch of unforeseen fortuitous events their worlds become entwined. The romance is a slow burn with very little fire, yet this book is still a HEA. Free on KU
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
617 reviews21 followers
March 21, 2019
Found this one when browsing titles on Amazon and it happened to be an unlimited title. I thought it was light and cute. Good chemistry between the MC's and even though the sex scenes were light, the book still held my interest for the most part. The thing that bothered me the most is the book was too wordy. I found myself skimming here and there when the the MC's were in their head. Most of the time it wasn't even necessary. If some of those moments were removed this could be closer to a 4star for me. I will give it 3 stars.
Profile Image for Tere.
261 reviews57 followers
February 23, 2019
Nice and sweet romance with charming characters but feel there were some issues unresolved.
17 reviews3 followers
January 25, 2019
Cute story

Fast moving i felt addressed very important social issues. Left you with a happy ending. Could use more backstory,but at least it didn't drag.
Profile Image for Lorraine Rusnack.
1,136 reviews32 followers
February 23, 2019
Really liked this story. Glad they were able to work through all their emotional issues
Profile Image for F..
311 reviews15 followers
March 15, 2019
I finished this a few hours ago... and have already forgotten almost everything about it....

A softball star (who people think might not be gay...lol), a single mum of a teenage softball player come together.

Some drama.

The end.

I couldn’t get a hang of any of the characters. And that made it hard to care. Or - apparently - remember. There’s also no need to understand softball (I don’t know the game) as it doesn’t really feature in the any great detail.

Free on KU.
1,134 reviews6 followers
February 11, 2019
Single mother of a teen meets softball player recovering from shoulder damage and too much alcohol. Addresses issues of parental homophobia as well. Problems are dealt with a little perfunctorily. Teen's biological father is clearly a problem but is largely an annoying distraction from the plot. It all comes together for a somewhat contrived HEA (hopefully...)
432 reviews5 followers
February 16, 2019
Playing for Keeps

Great story and read about a soft ball pitcher who comes back to have a vacation and see a therapist to resolve issues. She also an ? .alcoholic.
This is a love story with a difference the author Carla Kincaid did an. excellent job writing this book and it well worth reading.
6 reviews
February 18, 2019
A good read

I enjoyed this book and wish I could give it 5 stars but for the loose ties hanging out there. I’ll be careful about excessive criticism but the story also fell into one of my pet peeves of hurry up and end story in last chapter syndrome. All in all though I enjoyed this book.
894 reviews3 followers
February 20, 2019
Sometimes it is worthwhile to let the other person explain.

The author has created a believable story about being honest with yourself and with your family. An injured softball player seeks help after a D.U.I. and in the process meets her hopeful future partner. The author creates the story where the reader feels the anger, joy and relief. Enjoy!
Profile Image for Lisa.
11 reviews
March 10, 2019
Good Story

This was an enjoyable story. I enjoyed getting to know Joy and Kate. There were a few grammatical and spelling errors that were noticeable, but the story was engaging enough to complete the book. If you like sports themed romances, this fits the bill nicely.
63 reviews
March 16, 2019
Happy Endings!

I love happy endings and all the angst leading up to them. The Warner's are like any small town family. Trying to make ends meet until Joy comes to town. Bring lots of extra baggage doesn't keep her heart from finding its way.
109 reviews
April 5, 2019
Love at first sight.

Because I like how joy and katie they meet on the side of the road and they started flirting with each other the next thing you know joy is renting they guest house for three weeks
Profile Image for CJ O'Hara.
91 reviews8 followers
May 12, 2019
Charming!

If you want to feel alive, to care about a couple being together and a believer of romance, read this story. Being a sports enthusiast is a bonus but not needed. Great characters that you are rooting for throughout! I want Sam to meet Karma! 😉
Profile Image for Kexx.
2,382 reviews105 followers
September 14, 2019
Had the basis of a really good story, had me hooked - lots going on & all seemingly on track when suddenly, wham! - story ended! What was that? Did Carla get bored? A real shame as the foundations were strong.
16 reviews2 followers
February 17, 2019
Loved it!!!

Great read, was drawn into the story from the beginning, would recommend this book it your looking for a down to earth romance during everyday life.
Profile Image for charles clayson.
1,354 reviews6 followers
February 20, 2019
💞HOME RUN💞
Haven't read any of this writer's releases except for this point . Yet after enjoying this book I intend to indulge in more of her releases !😘
10 reviews1 follower
March 2, 2019
Softball and Love What could be better?

Wonderful, happy romance! As sappy as it gets and a real joy that speaks to love of family and love of The Game!
Profile Image for Emma Hancox.
5 reviews
March 6, 2019
They played and won

What a wonderful story and such lovely genuine characters.
Well written book. Thank you for such endearing characters and a lovely true to life romance.
Profile Image for Lisa Raymond.
1 review
March 15, 2019
Fantastic

Must read book. It will truly make you smile. I would highly recommend to all my friends. 5 star bpok
8 reviews1 follower
March 21, 2019
Softball romance!

I really enjoyed the story. As a former slow pitch and fast pitch player, I can really relate to the story line. Well done!
Profile Image for Kirsty Grant.
48 reviews3 followers
March 27, 2019
I really enjoy this book, the build up in the relationship was lovely but the ending left me wanting more... kind of felt like the writer got a bit bored and just wanted it finished ☹️
3 reviews9 followers
August 2, 2019
Would like to have more of an interaction between the woman and more details of their love story.
Profile Image for Michelle.
511 reviews7 followers
September 18, 2019
Very Cute

I liked reading this sport's romance. The characters were nice to get to know. I enjoyed the very cute storytelling
Profile Image for AL.
684 reviews6 followers
February 22, 2019
Beautiful story however I wanted a bit more between the chemistry of the two main characters. But an easy going book with some emotional moments and smiling moments.
Profile Image for The Queerblr.
24 reviews2 followers
August 15, 2020
Playing for Keeps will scratch the readers itch for a sports light romance story, but I think it will leave the reader wanting a lot more when they’ve finished. Ultimately, Playing for Keeps had really good bones and has the potential to be a really stellar story. Kincaid shows that they know how to craft an interesting narrative while using two individuals as perfect foils for each other and shows that they know how to use side characters effectively. Playing for Keeps just needed another round of edits and a beta reader or helpful editor to help flush out some of the scenes that devolved into summary and to help craft a more satisfying ending.

Read my full review at https://thequeerblr.com/2020/08/12/bo...
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews

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