The Game

Shellenberg Brothers #2

by A.B. Wilson

He’s everything she hates, but exactly what she needs. What will it take to turn two rival players into teammates?

Recover. That’s Abby’s entire plan when she suffers a potentially career-ending injury. But she needs financial support for her rehab now that she’s been dropped by her pro soccer team.

Enter Matti, her unlikely, tatted-up savior with a man bun. The guy with everything she wants, a stellar career and the ability to get away with anything. When Matti’s dropped by his team after yet another off-pitch scandal, he needs someone to help rehab his reputation.

After a gossip column goes viral with a piece about their supposed engagement, the plan falls into place. A fake engagement to save Matti’s career, and access to the best rehab center for her. A new city, no friends, the only person they have to rely on is each other, and Abby’s grumpy cat, of course.

As they play pretend day in and day out, their feelings start to shift from those of uncomfortable teammates to something a lot like love as the two find out each other’s deepest secrets. But when a new opportunity for Matti comes knocking, ready to pull them apart, will they take the risk of admitting the truth behind their feelings?

Kindle Edition

Published March 1, 2022

About the author

A.B. Wilson is the pen name of a heat-seeking librarian trapped in the upper Midwest. She writes steamy kissing books where the journey is always more romantic than the destination.

Reviews

[Pratibha Pandey · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

This was a quick , fun read. I enjoyed the character growth for Abby and the way she did not let her bias stand in the way for a new life and mending her relations. But Mattie fell a little short to match her. Also , i needed a little more grovelling from him. He was not given the space to show his true self and truly be appreciated for his good intentions. The whole story is a little fast paced in the sequence of plot so if that's not to your liking , you can skip this book.

[Heather Fleet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this one. Full review to come.

[Myblogisgreat · Rating 4 out of 5]

*** e-Arc Received for an Honest Review***

3.5 ⭐️ rounded up to 4

The Game , is book 2 in the Shellenberg Brothers series, and follows professional soccer players Matthias “Matti” Shellenberg and Abigail “Abby” McKinnon. Told in dual PoV, this one hits on a lot of the tropes I’ve come to love: enemies to friends to lovers, fake dating, forced proximity, boy falls first, pining, secrets!!, meddling sports agents, a CAT!

Full disclosure I did not read book 1, so I went in with little to no context about any of the extended characters. But this can easily be read as a standalone, with all the enjoyment factor remaining.

Okay, spoilers ahead, be warned!

Oof, right off the top of the book there is a lot that our gal Abby goes through, she’s just won a cup game, finds out she’s been cut, kisses her enemy, and gets hit by a car. Matti having been a catalyst for Abby’s abrupt jaunt into traffic, follows her to the hospital, frantically declaring himself her fiancé.

Upon waking, Abby and Matti both find out the depth of her injuries mean she’s in for a significant road ahead, full of intense rehab, with very unclear odds of her returning to her first and only love, soccer.

These two pretty quickly determine that they need each other, Abby because women’s professional soccer pays essentially nothing, and Matti because he’s a walking liability for any team that chooses to employ him. The I’ll-pay-for-your-physical-rehab-so-you-can-rehab-my-image trade is easily made and these two are essentially off to the races.

I liked a lot of the domesticity, A.B adds to this story. Seeing moments between Matti and Abby at home were really soft and sweet. These two work as teammates really well. They understand what it takes to be professional athletes and what it means to really support your partner, even when they don’t want to do the thing or are just being difficult.

Seeing Matti push Abby to work through her rehab, including wanting her to rest, was really sweet. And our gal Abby, standing up for Matti among is (arguably crappy) family was something else. And the intimacy between the two in and out of the bedroom, my goodness, bust out your fainting couches.

Butt stuff abounds, what a treat.

Regardless of the things I liked there were definitely some things that I struggled with. Matti has a legitimate learning disability, and I wish there was a little more time spent expanding on it. And Abby, her family stuff felt a little one dimensional, but served (I suppose) as a mirror to Matti’s high-functioning toxic family dynamic. Like, attracts like as they say.

And that third act breakup, woof. Look, are third act break ups part of the deal? Yes. Was this one especially cruel? I kinda think so. So when they inevitably got back together, I was expecting (and wanting) WAY more grovel. Sorry dude, imho you needed to do a whole lot more to help Abby see what she means to you. Am I glad these two worked it out, OF COURSE (I was invested) but I just wanted to see him sweat a little more.

Overall, this was a light, fun, surprisingly steamy, sports romance that folks will most likely get a kick out of. Pick up The Game by A.B. Wilson, March 1st 2022 wherever you get your books.

[Emily Browning · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an E-ARC copy of The Game - it was a quick and easy read, great for any romance lover! A strong female lead paired with a strong male in a fake engagement turned real relationship can be overdone, but was instead very well done here.

Mattie, the male lead, brings light to a very real problem of men struggling with learning disabilities (or mental illness) and shoving the problem to the side and not dealing with it. A.B. Wilson does a great job in both this book and the first one by having the men eventually deal with their problems by seeking professional help and having a loving partner there at the finish line. I know this isn't a genre where many men will find themselves picking these books up and finding this message - but damn - it should help us all be better, more supportive partners.

Plenty of spice and steam in this one - I truly loved Abby and Mattie. Their communication lacked and their ups and downs had my stomach in honest to god knots, but I enjoyed this ride and cannot wait to see what else this author puts out into the world!

[Judy & Marianne from Long and Short Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Soccer, an accident, love and issues. This book has it all.

I love AB Wilson’s work and this book was no different. It’s hot and there’s heart. I read this over the course of two evenings and I’m glad I did. I got invested in the characters and wanted to get back to them.

I liked that the author dealt with mental issues and learning disabilities with Matti. He’s got his heart in the right place, but he gets derailed. He was humanized and I loved him. Abby knows what she wants and when she gets hurt, it’s catastrophic. I liked how she and Matti worked together. That said, this book also brings to light the pay gap for women versus men’s soccer.

There is one quibble I have with the story, but I won’t get into it to keep from ruining the story. While it might have been a quibble for me, it might not be for everyone. The family dynamics are tough and that might annoy some readers, but it wasn’t a deterrent for me. It made the characters more relatable.

If you want a story that’s hot, sweet, has heart and will tug at your heart, then this might be the sports romance for you.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was so happy to get hands on an e-ARC of this book! First of all, this cover is... everything. The forearms. Just, wow.

Matti and Abby are a great team, and watching them grow stronger together is a joy. This book moves fast from the first page - and I was very pleased to see some pretty awesome kissing early on! I also loved that, even though he is covered in tattoos and has a bad boy reputation, Matti is is a sweet softy from the very start, and it's obvious that while he stands to gain by his association with Abby, he also genuinely wants to help her. That made me more likely to root for them right away, and I did!

In addition to all the awesome steamy content, there's some really thoughtful stuff in here about what our dreams are made of, and how we can let go of outdated visions and make new dreams for the future. I loved watching Abby's transition in particular as she copes with injury and recovery, and I think Wilson really handled those issues with grace.

[Angely]

DNF @ 50%

I was so exited to read this but sadly, I didn't enjoy it as much as I hoped. While I found the summary incredibly interesting (and of course the fact that both characters are soccer players!!), I found it hard to connect with the story and the characters. There's short time jumps that honestly threw me off at times, and I think that they didn't allow me to see the characters' relationship develop properly. I also found that there was a lot of telling and not enough showing (ie. if they went to dinner, there was an explanation of what happened at dinner, not the actual dinner), and I didn't particularly enjoy that aspect.

I'll try to pick it up again sometime and see if my opinion changes. This was my first book by this author and in this series, and there's also the fact that maybe my head wasn't completely into reading at the time.

ARC provided in exchange of an honest review

[Becca · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars — I may not be much of a sports fan in real life, but I know it makes for great narrative — and thanks to friends, I’ve discovered sports romances are a glorious part of that. Wilson’s latest takes on the world of soccer, as two players find themselves in a fake engagement. He needs serious image rehab, and she’s recovering from a bad accident, so she agrees to be his fiancée for a year, and in return, he’ll pay for her surgery and recovery. (Pay inequity may be terrible, but at least it can feed romance tropes? Yay?) The first half is mostly Abby and Mattie flirting, which is cute and fun, but it’s the second half where stakes and conflict finally kick in, and that’s when my feelings got involved. Both have relatable struggles and fears, but while they are both growing and changing, they’re not doing that at quite the same pace. So, where does that leave their relationship? It’s a very real problem many couples face, and I applaud Wilson’s willingness to take it seriously… even if I think Mattie needed to take a little more responsibility for his actions before getting his second chance. But that’s just me — I always want the full groveling-and-despair package! Overall, this is a fast-paced, sexy romance, with some sports and drama thrown in, and a fun way to while away a lazy afternoon. My thanks to A.B. Wilson for providing an eARC for review.

[Dee Mac · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great story about Abby and Matti, two star soccer players, who don’t get along, have been let from their club. A truce is made, an accident happens, a bond is formed and a deal or two is brokered. What started out as fake proves to be more as they learn more about each other and the chemistry reaches boiling point. But it’s not all smooth sailing and some really tough decisions need to be made and that opens the door to heartbreak. This story has it all - fun, steam, love, sports and heartbreak, luckily for us, it also has a sweet HEA.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Mulan Book Princess · Rating 4 out of 5]

I quite enjoyed the enemies to lovers sports romance. Matti turns out to be much sweeter and softer the longer I read about him, and Abby is such a sweetheart. They both had so much to go through, and some of it was fairly emotional. However, the story was so much fun to read, and was it ever entertaining!

I received a free advanced review copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving my fair and honest opinion.

[TELA666 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't read book 1 but understood the family dynamics well enough. I started frustrated at 'Soccer' but once I read Abby was from the US and most of the book was set there, I let it go! Lots of fears and hurdles needed to be faced by them both, I think Abby developed better overall though.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is a good, and enjoyable romance read. The story has a good story line. The characters are good, and they have good chemistry.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.