4.5 stars!
I am so incredibly happy to be back in this Rixon world, now a couple of decades later with the
next generation of Rixon Raiders. Rixon High is the spin off series from LA Cotton about the children from the original series, and I have been ready to dive back into this world since the previous series ended. Off Limits is the story of Lily Ford, Jason’s daughter, and Kaiden Thatcher, Jason’s high school arch-rival’s son, and it’s a tale of forbidden love, almost like Romeo and Juliet.
When Kaiden’s high school burns down his senior year, all the students are sent to neighbouring high schools, and the football team is sent to their rivals Rixon High. Kaiden is a quarterback and needs to impress the scouts this year to gain a scholarship, as he desperately wants to escape his hometown, but now he has to prove he should be the starting player for Rixon High, as well as impress their coach, Jason Ford. Lily has always been happy to blend into the background, living her life in the shadows of her siblings and friends, living with bad anxiety after a traumatic event in middle school. But when she meets Kaiden at a party, they have this instant bond, and she begins to feel things she never has before. Except Kaiden doesn’t know who her dad is, and when he finds out, will their relationship be over before it starts? But are there others who also don’t want these two to become a couple?
Kaiden and Lily clicked so well, I loved their relationship, how Lily calmed everything down in Kaiden’s life, allowing him to shed the pressure and stress of his football life and potential future to just be with her, and in exchange he pushed her out of her comfort zone, showing her it was okay to live, and he’d always be there to catch her if she fell. Lily’s anxiety was so well written by Lianne, I thought it was realistic and emotional. I thought Lianne showed how living with a mental health disorder incredibly sensitively and how at time, you are your own worst enemy, but with love and support from those closest to you, some days will be better than others.
Kaiden was being pulled in so many directions, his desire to leave Rixon and his abusive home life behind and never look back, proving his teammates at Rixon High wrong, but then Lily came into his life and made him reassess everything he wanted. I felt for him hard, he was trying to keep it all together when it would’ve been easier to just let it all fall apart, but everything he did in the end was to protect Lily. Lily wanted to break out of her comfort zone, but there were too many factors telling her no, until Kaiden came a long and held her hand through it, proving to herself she could do whatever she set her mind to. I thought her growth in this book was beautiful, going from a shy introverted girl to a young woman with a growing confidence.
The relationships between the three original family’s, the Ford’s, the Bennet’s and the Chase's were such integral parts of this plot and I loved seeing the dynamic between all of the offspring, guessing about any future couples that were hinted at. Daddy Jason was everything I wanted him to be, he was protective and grumpy, but when it came down to it, he’d do anything to make sure his little girl was happy, even accepting her boyfriend. Kaiden’s friendships with his teammates, new and old, were great, but it was Lily’s with her sister, her cousins and close friends that were one of my favourite things, those girls were there for her whenever she needed them, such an unbreakable bond.
Lianne has set up this next generation world so perfectly, all of the hints and implications as to who the rest of the books could be about have been carefully placed, and after the bombshell ending, I am going to need Peyton’s book as soon as possible. A welcome return to Rixon in Off Limits, can’t wait to come back soon!
*I received a copy of this book and voluntarily left a review.*