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Wild Pitch #1

Summer Heat

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Can baseball's bitterest feud become its greatest love story?

A long time ago I fell in love with the wrong man. Wrong because there was no chance we could ever be together. Roman St. James was off limits. Forbidden. The enemy.

Except the Daniels-St. James feud isn't my feud and it most certainly isn't Roman's. He's nothing like his father. And while the rivalry between our families is one of the most famous in all of baseball, I couldn't help myself. One smile turned into one date, and one date turned into so much more.

Of course it was a disaster. And now, five years later, I can still barely bring myself to think about what could have been.

Until one night in a locker room changes everything...

Summer Heat is a full-length romance and is the first book in the Wild Pitch series. Each book is a stand alone romance featuring a different couple and ends with a happily ever after. The Wild Pitch series is a spin-off of the Storm Inside series.

330 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 10, 2017

972 people are currently reading
917 people want to read

About the author

Alexis Anne

78 books559 followers
Alexis Anne writes page-turning romances that will leave you breathless and wanting for another happily ever after. Her new book KING OF WANDS is available now!

Fast. Volatile. Gorgeous.
Those are the words they used to describe Kingston Reynolds on the first day of my internship. Well, it wasn’t so much of a description as it was a warning. Do not fraternize with the drivers if you want to keep your job.

“My very first Alexis Anne book and now I'm wondering what I've been waiting for. It was a real page turner!! Gripping, edgy and very exciting.” --Tish Cocktails and Fairytales

Website: https://alexisannebooks.com/
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5 stars
382 (43%)
4 stars
285 (32%)
3 stars
163 (18%)
2 stars
42 (4%)
1 star
15 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 87 reviews
Profile Image for Clau.
1,002 reviews122 followers
June 17, 2020
3.5 ⭐️

It was free on Amazon!

I really liked this one. Roman St. James and June Daniels should hate each other. After all, their parents can't be in the same place without causing trouble. But it's never been like that for June and Roman, who realized early on that they were meant to be together, regardless of their last names.

This one is a second chance romance. But it is kind of different than the rest of the books I have read. That's because both characters know that they belong together, and the only reason they are not in a relationship is this irrational feud.

I liked the characters and their story, but I can't help thinking that I would have been better with an epilogue (for me, every romance book requires an epilogue).
Profile Image for Coco.V.
50k reviews128 followers
Want to read
August 20, 2020
💝 FREE on Amazon & on iBooks today (12/9/2018)!💝

Blurb:
Can baseball’s bitterest feud become its greatest love story?

A long time ago I fell in love with the wrong man. Wrong because there was no chance we could ever be together. Roman St. James was off limits. Forbidden. The enemy.

Except the Daniels-St. James feud isn’t my feud and it most certainly isn’t Roman’s. He’s nothing like his father. And while the rivalry between our families is one of the most famous in all of baseball, I couldn’t help myself. One smile turned into one date, and one date turned into so much more.

Of course it was a disaster. And now, five years later, I can still barely bring myself to think about what could have been.

Until one night in a locker room changes everything…
Profile Image for Helena.
580 reviews9 followers
July 9, 2020
3.5 stars!
I think this book was really sweet, and it was free on Kobo!
Roman and Jude are meant to be.
i must admit, i'm a little jelaous i don'thave a Roman for myself.
Definitly interested in reading more books from this author, particularly the stories about the other characters in the book.
Profile Image for poppy.
4,589 reviews28 followers
May 16, 2019
This was a great read it is a super second chance romance. I just loved Roman and June they were great characters and were just wonderful together. This was a well-written read and had lots of drama there was a really enjoyable book and I would recommend it.
Profile Image for Pratna Imrith.
188 reviews
April 23, 2018
I am a huge fan of sport romances and I really enjoyed this second chance love story filled with family feuds and unconditional love. This was my first time reading a book by Alexis Anne and her writing was good, but I wished the book was written from a dual point of view because as I reader at time I wanted to know what was happening with Roman's family and what was going through his mind. I also did not enjoy the past and present style of writing as I wished that they had just given us the background story first and then continued with the story because it sometimes felt like we were missing important facts about their past. Roman's character was your typical alpha male sportsman however I enjoyed the fact that he did not let his injury ruin him but instead he made it positive and became a better person. June's character always seemed confused as she did not know what she wanted or needed and this kind of annoyed me. The chemistry between June and Roman was good, but it could have been better. I also enjoyed the secondary characters of all Junes family members as they added to the humor of the book. Overall this was a good second chance sports romance filled with family drama
Profile Image for Kathleen Bradbury (Bulfon).
16.4k reviews217 followers
June 4, 2019
Absolutely fantastic! A well written emotionally deep romance. The storyline is flawless, funny, witty, enjoyable, and very interesting. The story flows smoothly and moves along at a brisk pace with a few ups and downs and a mix of emotions on every page. The chemistry between them is intense and their sex scene is beautifully written and HOT!

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for READ ME ROMANCE.
617 reviews164 followers
October 10, 2020
Summer Heat is a full-length sports romance in the Wild Pitch series. It is a standalone and the first book of a series that features interconnected couples that each find love. This is my first book by Alexis Anne and I was pleasantly surprised. I was in the mood for a romance and this enemies-to-lovers and second chance romance kept my interest as well as me swooning the entire time.

It features Roman St. James who grew up in the shadow of his professional baseball father, George, who endured a career ending injury inflicted accidently by our heroine’s father many years ago. To say Roman’s dad was bitter is putting it mildly. That man could hold a grudge like no other and sadly, took his belligerence out on his son who was only trying to make him proud by following in his career path.

I loved Roman from the start. The book goes back and forth between five years ago and the present to give the reader a peek into how he met June Daniels in college, how their relationship began, and why they couldn’t be together. But over time, as Roman matured and his career path took an unexpected turn, he was steadfast to correct the biggest mistake of his past and that was letting June go.

Roman loved her fiercely and the words he spoke were beautiful, raw, and real. He put his heart on the line repeatedly and loved June unconditionally. His efforts paid off because June returned his feelings, and the second half of this book is filled with angst and drama as they both try to get their families on board with their union. These two were meant to be and I loved strong, smart, and compassionate June was.

I loved Alexis’ writing style, the pace of the book, and the character development. I loved the moral code of both our hero and heroine and how they lifted each other up. There’s plenty of steam as these two share amazing chemistry, and plenty of tears as this book was often emotional.

Summer Heat was offered FREE when I downloaded it, and is a standalone, and I encourage you to read it as it had all the feels! I immediately purchased the next two books in the series.
Profile Image for Anto~mcbr.
699 reviews41 followers
November 27, 2025
DNF 73%

I kept and kept on reading, waiting for something to happen, and nothing did. I finally decided to throw in the towel and DNF this cause I can't be bothered to slog through it anymore.

This book was so freaking boring. Normally, by the time you reach the halfway mark in most stories, you're right in the middle of the action or about to hit that tipping point where the roller coaster starts plummeting down into a series of terrifying and exhilarating twists and turns. Not the case here. There was a lot of reminiscing, a lot of talking, and zero drama. It was all so calm, tempered, and grown-up. Bland. Tepid. Not what I want from the star-crossed lovers trope.

I never managed to connect to the story. Emotionally or otherwise. Never felt the angst that should have been an ubiquitous feature. The longing. Didn't feel much of anything, really—except boredom, that is.

Maybe the single POV didn't help? I don't know. All I know is that there was very little that made the characters interesting, unique, or memorable. And virtually no plot. Nothing to stir up drama aside from "what will her family say", cause his sucked, so their opinions weren't relevant. Even the all-important rift that turned the Daniels and St. James into mortal enemies happened off-page and long before our main protagonists entered the scene. And it's not like it even influenced June and Roman in any way. They never disliked one another. They barely had to date in secret. Where was the struggle? Where was the star-crossed love? What even was the point of this book? Beats me.
464 reviews17 followers
May 16, 2020
Oh my my my.. That was the absolute perfect blend of steamy and cotton candy fluffy and sweet.
The whole book was all romance and it was simply poetic. Honestly, their love is all-consuming and overwhelming for me to even read about.
All those declarations of love to each other are so beautiful and I will detail them here because they are all heartfelt and I love their journey back to each other. i felt that the book was perfectly paced and the rivalry was done perfectly, the tension was very tangible to me. I also love how they had similar dreams and they made that come true on their part and came together to create a very admirable project. This was a lovely and deeply romantic read and I got swept away. I really recommend this for anyone looking for a soul-consuming romance.

"Because you hold me together when all I want to do is fly apart."
"You never lost me"... "And that makes all this time we lost that much worse."
"When we're kissing it's like it was yesterday. And when we're not, it's like I haven't seen you in a decade."
"When we're together, I get lost in you... I don't want to be found by anyone but you ever again."
Profile Image for Bette Stanek.
2,148 reviews3 followers
July 28, 2023
Being about baseball automatically earns this one a bump in stars, but I don’t really think it needs that automatic bump. Summer Heat is a second chance story among baseball royalty. Roman and June always knew of one another but had not actually met until college. Their families HATE one another with the hate of a thousand suns. Their fathers destroyed one another's careers. That’s the story the whole world knows. But did it really start there?

The story unfolds through chapters from “the present day” and “five years ago.” Roman and June are both different people now, but the connection they had when they first met has never waned. Five years is a long time to regret, and figure out how to correct, mistakes made. Roman has taken time to develop a plan. All he has to do is convince June it is all worth it and that it will definitely work. The two of them are perfect together. You will absolutely love Roman!

Once again, AA is great at telling her story through the characters’ dialogue. The banter is witty, endearing, and honest. While this book is a light read, the family feud makes it more than just a fluff read. Summer Heat is a great summer read during baseball season!
1,149 reviews7 followers
May 1, 2018
June is a Daniels and Roman is a St. James which according to their families makes them mortal enemies. The feud between the families started when they were too young to remember but had been drilled into their heads. Their fathers famous baseball players from the past. Roman is a college ball player on his way to the Major League and June is an athletic trainer on an internship at the same school. They realize they have no reason to hate each other but their families would never forgive them. Several years later both feel the loss of the one they couldn't have, until a chance meeting in a locker room, turns their world on end.

I really like this author's style. The characters are well developed and you really become attached to them. You spend the whole book rooting for them to take the leap and say who cares what anyone else thinks. The story is a stand alone and the series continues with other characters. It is a love story but not too sexy. I recommend this book and look forward to reading more of this author's work.
2,286 reviews13 followers
June 8, 2019
I volunteered to read this ARC for an honest review. I loved this story about Roman and June. This story bounces between the present and five years ago when they first meet and were in college. June Daniels is the youngest daughter of ex pro baller Joe Daniels. Roman was George St James's son. Joe and George had a feud going on for years, since June was little. When the first meet it's at college they have a six week romance that crashes and burns because of "King George" and a fight during Super Regionals. This tearing them apart. Fast forward five years, June is called to the locker room and finds Roman in a suit with Wes. Roman got hurt and is now an agent. She feels blindsided, but the reaction between the two is still there. The book is about how they try to come to terms with the draw and how they can get past their families feud. Love the chemistry and the reactions between the characters. Everyone is important in this story. Great HEA. Love how the characters grow through out the book.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for PepperP0t .
5,108 reviews86 followers
September 21, 2019
Sports agent Roman St. James has moved back to his home town and a problem with his client gives him a reason to contact his ex-lover, sports trainer, June Daniels. Taken aback by June's candid assessment of his skills and the tension between Roman and June, Roman's client discovers their shared past.

Emotionally ragged after their meeting, it's clear Roman and June want to restart their romance without their father's legendary personal feud interfering with their relationship. When things got serious five years ago, Roman watched June walk out of his life rather than face his father's anger and feelings of betrayal.

Intentional or not this semi-cute outing puts June and Roman in a loose Romeo and Juliet retelling that didn't suit this reader. Multiple flashbacks to their college years, dithering about being together or not, sneaking, etc gave the read an extremely juvenile slant.
Rating 3.25stars
771 reviews5 followers
September 2, 2025
Didn’t finish after chapter 1. I feel like I started this book in the middle of the story. Which I guess technically you do because the next chapter goes back in time so the author was trying to do a little peek in the now and then go back to the past at the beginning. But I didn’t like this setup at all. There was no build up. Which should still happen even if we are in the present day and plan to look back at the past. You still introduce the present. But in this story you’re just diving right into the hokey romance. The writing is so over the top and in your face. I need more subtlety and nuance and mystery and layers to be compelled to continue reading a story. I don’t want everything laid out for me in the first paragraph. If you want an obvious, easy read where the romance is over emphasized and over exaggerated, you may like this.
2,200 reviews
May 30, 2019
This is the first book in The Wild Pitch series and I really enjoyed reading it. We are introduced to June and Roman who want very much to be together but how do you get around a family feud? This story is a well written, character building and strong story line book that made for an entertaining and pleasurable read. I really appreciated the change of time, flipping from past to present just enough to give you a better idea of the history of these two families and how the course of history is impacting the present and future of June and Roman's relationship. A really good book and I am interested to see how the series moves forward.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
1,059 reviews10 followers
May 18, 2019

***I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review***

I enjoyed this book a lot. Even though family feuds can be a bit cheesy to read about. This wasn't at all. I loved reading the flashbacks to their time together. It gives me a chance to really feel their connection. It just read like a genuine love story, with a good mix of sexual chemistry but with romance too. Loved the secondary characters too. Just loved the genuinessness of all the characters and the story.

June and Roman had an explosive few weeks years ago but the family feud tore them apart. 6 years later, Roman is back in town and he knows exactly what he wants. Screw the feud.
Profile Image for Holly.
2,889 reviews
May 30, 2019
This book is about June and Roman, two people who started as friends in college and feel in love .
Thanks to family interference and other personal issues they had to break relationships
Their fathers played on separate teams and they were rivals one game they were really into and they both got hurt and blamed each other. The hate and anger from this day was imposed on next generation.
These two knew about the feud and understood they could not be together even though they wanted to be.
Will they finally break this unfortunate feud?

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Kristen Lewendon.
8,429 reviews63 followers
March 15, 2024
I’d been fascinated by sassy, snarky June from the moment we first met her, and I badly wanted to know the rest of the story about what was going on in her life. Now that we have it, I can see so many parallels between her story and her sister’s. As I’ve said before, I’m a sucker for a second chance, and this Hatfields v. McCoys/Romeo & Juliet star-crossed pair desperately needed the right opportunity to finally make it work. I loved the way Roman showed her over and over again that he wasn’t anything like his parents. He simply loved her; wholly and completely. And, I think we all want to find a love like that.
1,147 reviews
May 24, 2019
I always enjoy reading Alexis Anne’s books. This book is no exception. The storytelling is something to savor. The back and forth between present times and 5 years past enhances the reader’s immersion in Roman and June’s relationship. You can feel the depth of their connection to each other. The conflict in the story reminds me of Romeo & Juliet without the immaturity. How the author handles its resolution was masterful. It is truly an exquisite experience reading one of this author’s work. [I received an advanced copy of this book and voluntarily chose to review it.]
Profile Image for Annemarie.
2,186 reviews16 followers
April 26, 2021
5 yrs ago Roman and June started a romance, but then their families feuding got in the way and split them apart. Now Roman's back and he's older and wiser and he knows that June is the only woman for him. But can he woo her back? Can he convince her that their love is strong enough to withstand their parents issues? I liked this storyline and the ending. I would've liked a epilogue showing them another 5 yrs later.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
6,147 reviews30 followers
May 7, 2019
Second time around.

Roman St James and JUNE Daniels had six weeks of the dream years ago. Then reality set in and now, years later. June is back in his orbit.

Their father’s are mortal enemies.
They went to college together.
They were twenty one, now five years later, will he stand by and be weak and stupid again? Cuz he’s got one mother of a sports papa.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Booknook Reviews .
443 reviews8 followers
May 15, 2019
Trigger warning: N/A

1) What worked for me:
-the characters were driven and likeable
-the steamy scenes were good
-the secondary characters were nice too
-I appreciated the resolution offered

2) What did not work for me:
-I didn't care for the alternating time lines but I appreciate how it told the story

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
4,627 reviews
May 23, 2019
A family feud in modern times that depicts that of Romeo and Juliet if there was baseball back then. Roman and June had six weeks before it all came crashing down. They were 21, now five years later they meet again in a locker room will they let their father's rivalry get in the way once again or fight for what they once had and can still be?

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for K..
208 reviews1 follower
May 23, 2019
This is the first book in the Wild Pitch Series. This is the story of Roman, and June. Years ago they tried to be together, but their family's have a long standing feud, that tore them apart. Now years later, the attraction, and chemistry between them is still burning, and one night they give into their feelings. This was a great story, with characters. Great sexy scenes too.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
10.8k reviews125 followers
May 31, 2019
This is the 3rd book I've read written by Alexis Anne; she has done a great job at writing a good book; I will definitely be reading more of her books.

The story line caught my attention at the very beginning and kept me interested throughout the entire book.

I loved the chemistry between the characters.

I received a free copy of this book via booksprout and I’m voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Jackie Roberts.
927 reviews8 followers
June 7, 2019
Roman and June are one amazing couple! This second chance love story is filled with drama and I love the baseball connected storyline. Although there is a lot of drama that follows each of these characters, as well as them together as a couple, they work to find a way to get their HEA. They each have to come to terms with the fact that this life is their life and their future is what they make of it.
Profile Image for Ashleigh.
3,411 reviews1 follower
July 1, 2019
I gotta say, this book was everything and nothing like I expected.
I could not put it down once I started it and did not want it to end when I got there.
An emotionally charged and heartfelt story-line that grabs you right from the start, keeping you engrossed in the love aspect and on edge while you are rooting for the team at the same time!

I received a copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Clarie Giselle Speights .
538 reviews1 follower
July 20, 2019
It’s like a bad case of deja vu

This book had the potential to be great but past and present tense was too much. One moment the story is in the present and the next it 5 years ago. Like once or twice is fine but every other chapter they’re back in the past. I was over it. Then the repetition and incessant need to speak about the feud we get their families hates each other. And their was no epilogue.
57 reviews1 follower
October 16, 2019
Steamy love story

Think of this as a steamy, sweet, baseball's ruling families in Romeo and Juliet...but without the tragic ending thank goodness. This was a fantastic read that alternates backstory chapters with present day chapters to really understand where Roman and June are coming from. This story happens to involve lots of baseball players, and all those who support them, but even a non-baseball fan would enjoy this!
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