Patrick: Can you imagine a World Series champion not having a date to his high school reunion? Pathetic, huh?
Insert weekend trip and fake date with a single mom.
I didn’t become a professional athlete by chance. I took command of every aspect of my life. But now I can’t control my feelings about my gorgeous fake girlfriend—especially when she’s standing there wearing nothing but my college t-shirt, telling off my ex, or being mom of the year to the coolest kid I know.
I’m a man that needs control and right now—I have none.
Avery: Engagement—Off. Dating—On.
So now, I’m making good on the date I bought and paid for with a major league baseball player and quasi-friend. All is well until I feel the need to save him from his ex and jump at the chance to be his fake-girlfriend for a weekend getaway.
It’s there, sparks turn into a full-blown fire as we blur the lines between fantasy and reality.
But when he's playing baseball with my son, pesky little butterflies flutter inside my soul. I need a reminder that he may love my son, but we are just friends—pretending to be more.
Reality sucks—the lingering ghosts that shattered our hearts threaten to keep us apart. Will we hit a home run or strike out—looking?
If you love friends to lovers and the fake dating trope, Sliding Headfirst is full of heat, humor and heartbreak that will keep you reading to the HEA.
If gorgeous, strong men taking on the role of father with no questions asked, kickstart your heart, then you'll love Sliding Headfirst.
Avery & Patrick They have both been hurt in the past, which makes them hesitant with their feelings towards each other, making it a slow burn in that aspect, but then boom it was super quick and you'll know what I mean if you read it. I really liked Patrick. He was so down to earth, sweet and showed his emotions at times. I could just tell how much he cared for Avery's son, Jackson. It was cuteness overload when the Mashed Potato Eater and Little Man were together.
For being a super smart therapist, Avery came across very insecure at times. I was not feeling her not thinking she was good enough or looked good enough. Also, I know she must have been really hurt losing Jack when they were 16, but it's been 8 years so I was ready for her to move it on along and see what was right in front of her ~ a super sweet guy who wants nothing more than to be a family man, with smooth abs as an added bonus.
All of the side character were great, except Melissa. I still liked Wils and Kennie and how they adored Jackson.
Overall, I didn't love this one as much as I did Stealing a Second Chance, but still enjoyed it well enough.
Side note ~ I prefer my cover model to resemble the character info I was given and this guy does not look like he has blond hair.
*Thanks to the author and BookSirens for my ARC. I am voluntarily leaving my honest review*
After meeting Avery in ‘Stealing a Second Chance’ the first book in the Saratoga Sharks series, I need to know her story. She is a successful single mom on the other side of multiple challenges in her late teens.
As we catch up with Avery, she realizes her current relationship is going nowhere, and changes need to happen. Her son, Jackson, points out his flaws and questions whether he even likes him. Patrick is best friends with Wilson from 'Stealing a Second Chance', and follows him back to Sarasota, Florida as his ex is trying to get back in the picture.
With the exes making waves, Patrick and Avery need plus ones to events and agree to the “fake relationship”. But, we all know that fake never stays that way; will kisses lead to more?
This book was hard to put down, and I am waiting for more books to come.
Thank you to the Booksprout and the Author for the advanced copy; this is my voluntary review.
Once again I’m blow away. The charters were fabric and as well written to the story. Patrick didn’t have any sparks with his fake relationship with Avery. Avery is still dealing the death of her first love and father of her child. Patrick is the best friend that Wilson and Kenni could ask for. He's a true gentleman and just wants to be loved for who he is, not his money or fame. Patrick began to fall for Avery the first day he met her and Jackson. So when Kenni gets him to take Avery out on the date she owes him who would have thought it would turn into an entire fake relationship? I’m still so blow away how well this story fall from ever charters. I recommend this book and give 5/5
I love how Kristin Lee tells the story through both Avery and Patricks POV. Avery has a very strong, and confident personality. She is also independent, without too much pride to ask for help. She is a single Mom with a great job, a fiancee, and amazing family, so why does she feel so lonely. Then she meets Patrick! Insert, swoon here!! "If you like a man that will kickstart your heart, Patrick is the guy for you!" Kristin Lee
I loved how caring Patrick is. I wrote down so many quotes from that man! Patrick is a World Series champion, who has taken command of every aspect of his life. Yet, now he can't control his feelings for his gorgeous fake girlfriend. "I’m a man that needs control and right now—I have none."
Well written books will give me the quotes I desire, and Sliding Headfirst did just that. Here are a few of my favs.
"And for the first time in my life, I feel like I belong somewhere and to someone."
"You make me happy, I meant that."
I'm learning that true love is being out of control, all the time. I can't control how much I love you. I dig deeper into my soul every day." Patrick
I thought I had loved the first book, but this one is the winner for me.
I fell like a broken record, but it needs to be said again: I'm a sucker for the good guy. Yeah, we all like the possessive, alpha hero, but bring me the guy with the heart of gold everyday of the week, I'm a goner. If he talks dirty, even better.
And that's Patrick. Caring, approachable, and dreamy Patrick. He was in equal parts vulnerable and in charge of things. He was sweet, but strong; respectful, yet intense. He was the good guy that opened the door for you while grabbing your butt.
He and Avery made quite the pair. They were both hurt in the past, so they understood pain, grief, and betrayal. Their connection might have been unexpected for them, but once you got to know them (apart and together), there was no denying they belonged together.
I loved Avery. Even with all her painful past, she was still loving, nurturing, and a calming presence to anyone around her. She was mature and sensible in her actions, no matter who she was interacting with. She was inherently a good person. So she deserved a good man.
And add to all that Jackson's relationship to both of them, my heart couldn't handle so much love and care. Actually, not only among the three of them, but their friends and families as well.
I loved how fundamental they all were to the story and to Patrick's and Avery's emotional growth.
It was wonderful seeing them overcoming their demons and it was heartwarming watching Patrick be deeply and truly loved like the first and only choice that he is. That selfless, loving man could never be a second choice.
Sparks were already flying for Patrick at the end of Stealing a Second Chance, and he didn’t even know what life would have in store for him. He and Wils finally became best friends after both being called up to the Kodiaks and winning the World Championship. Kenni finally got a second chance at having someone look out for her as a brother would. Patrick though? He fell head over heels without realizing it in an instant.
Avery is engaged, but even she saw it wasn’t right once Wils and Kenni were back in her life - especially with them bringing Patrick into it. Her son Jackson is her biggest reminder of the past, and why she doesn’t know how to move on to the future. She holds onto the thoughts of Jackson’s dad, Jack…who just so happened to be Kenni’s brother and Wils’ best friend. When they go on a date thanks to a winning bid from the fundraiser for the Trauma center though, will it change everything?
There is so much of Patrick’s past that he needs to figure out. He’s never felt good enough for anyone else. Avery hasn’t either since Jack’s death. Are they right for each other though? Fake dating might be the true spark that ignites it all, and makes both of them realize they need to come to grips with their past selves to move forward. Can Avery learn to truly love again and let that into her life? Into Jackson’s life? Can Patrick get beyond his belief that he isn’t good enough for someone? Find all of that out and more in Sliding Headfirst!
Avery takes off her engagement ring...again. She tells her seven year old son Jackson that its so it can be cleaned, but in truth they have been broke up more than together for the last year. Andrew travels for a venture capitalist firm and Avery has started writing down the timing of Andrew picking a fight and his time out of town, sometimes two weeks at a time.
But she has finally had enough after Jackson asks her why Andrew doesn't like him. Never hugging or playing with him. She wants more than that for her son. She wants more than that for herself.
Avery got pregnant as a teenager, but decided to keep the baby and until a few months ago kept the father a secret. Jack had been sixteen and was hit by a line drive to the head. He died three days later. She had held the guilt all these years that maybe he had been distracted at bat because he just found out he was going to be a father.
But that all changed when Jack's sister Kenni and his best friend Wilson started a foundation in his honor and she realized they too felt responsible for his death as they had been secretly dating and Jack had just found out. Kenni had been avoiding Wilson for the past eight years until he took a major salary decrease in order to be traded to the Chicago Kodiaks making it known he wanted Kenni back in his life.
Patrick was celebrating winning the NL Championship when he notices that Avery isn't wearing her engagement ring. He had met and fell in love with her son at Kenni and Wilson's announcement for the 23 Trauma Center they were opening. She had been with her fiance but he hadn't been able to get her out of his mind.
He fell further in love when the prankster with the help of Wilson substituted his ice cream with mashed potatoes. It was covered in so much syrup and candies it took some time before he realized why it didn't taste quite as it should. He couldn't wait to return the favor.
I loved this story! It is very well written and the characters are fully developed and relatable. Although Sliding Head First can be read as a standalone, I suggest you begin at the beginning of this series as you will miss some important backstory details otherwise.
Avery is a therapist and although she helps others through their issues, she is having a hard time letting go and Patrick who already has issues of not feeling "good enough" feels like he is losing the battle against a ghost.
This story is action-packed from page one and will keep you turning the pages as you are brought further into the lives of these amazing characters. This book is highly emotional and smoking hot. I can't recommend this series enough! Definitely a must read!
It must be hard to fill the shoes of best friend, boyfriend, and brother simultaneously of the golden boy your teammate, love of your life, and honorary sister are still openly mourning eight years after his untimely death. Patrick is trying to people please, but it is pulling him in all different directions and he is about to snap. Can you blame him?
Avery had to grow up too fast and was never given the proper space to work through her feelings and hurt. Patrick was hurt as a young boy and though he is good at playing everything is hunky-dory, he desperately needs someone to choose him. For two people who want to be loved and who make extreme goggly eyes at each other, did they really think that fake dating was gonna be easy?
Their journey was something that pulled all my heartstrings. Being a mom to a little boy just older than Jackson, my understanding of Avery making him her top priority was something real. Goodness, though, that girl needed someone to love her. It is such a good thing that Patrick is good people and let her have her space when she needed. If only she can work her way though everything without pushing him away as she does it. He is hurting too and can only take so much.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
So much love to give! What an apt description of the big heart of Patrick Callaghan! After his mother leaving when he was ten, all he’s ever wanted was a big, close family to share his life with. So, even though he’s a MLB star on the newly crowned World Series Champions The Chicago Kodiaks, he’s lonely. Even if he could have nearly any woman he wants with the crook of a finger, he’s lonely. Avery Davis is in much the same boat. She’s the mother of eight year old Jackson Davis, the beloved daughter of two wonderful by parents, and has lots of friends, but she’s lonely. Jackson’s Dad was killed in a fluke accident on the baseball field just after she found out she was carrying his baby. When these two meet the draw was spontaneous and instant. But there is so much to consider besides their white hot attraction. Can these two young people with so severely damaged hearts make a family together? Do they dare try? A grippingly beautiful love story with highs, lows and everything in between. If you love a second chance, instant attraction story then this is for you! As for myself, I Loved It! A ONE CLICK BOOK! I received an ARC from BookSirens for a honest review.
This series is the best! I think that I've found the man that I love the most and then bam... next book and I love this man even more!
Patrick is everything. He's an amazing best friend, he's a wonderful role model to his friend's nephew and while he's a professional baseball player, he knows that he wants more out of life than just to play the game.
Avery has had a tough hand dealt to her. Losing her high school sweetheart Jack and then raising their son on her own has not been easy but she has the love and support of Jack's sister and her man to help her.
Put Patrick and Avery together, even as a 'pretend we're dating' scenario and magic happens, but life happens too and they have to navigate their way through for each to to find their happily ever afters.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Both Patrick and Avery have so much healing to do from the past. So much so that it almost destroys them before they get started. Jackson is adorable and I wanna squeeze him. Patrick is amazing with him and it makes me love him more.. Avery has so much trauma that she thought she had healed from but she definitely hasn’t and it almost costs her one of the best most patient loving men ever. I can’t imagine living in someone’s shadow and that is what Patrick has to do constantly with the most important people in his life. But they overcome it all and get their HEA after tears and more tears…
Sliding Headfirst by Kristin Lee is an enjoyable read. Kristin Lee writes with such emotion that the reader feels what the characters are experiencing. The relationship between the main characters of Avery and Patrick is fascinating. Patrick's love for Avery is what every woman wants to experience in their lifetime. "Don't settle for anything less than pure love" is a poignant theme that runs throughout the book. The characters don't settle, and you won't either by reading this book.
Beautiful romance, disappointed in the lead character.
Author does a fabulous job in describing the development of a relationship between two people who have been hurt in very different ways. I like the fact that they continue working at it in a mostly healthy way, and I love the trust and passion between them.
However...
When I read a sports romance, I expect at least one of the main characters love sports as much as I do. It's very jarring to read a story where the one who's supposed to love baseball is ready to give it up after a very short career unless they are injured or just aren't good enough. Athletes don't make Major League Baseball, or the NFL, or the NHL unless they are absolutely dedicated to the sport.
Patrick has just been called up to majors. The farm team in Florida will be replaced with a major league team in Chicago. Avery caught his eye while she was engaged. They both have exes to deal with, and Patrick’s becomes a factor when Avery agrees to be his fake girlfriend to his high school reunion.
The book takes place in the off season so there is not much baseball. Coming off a championship season, the team wants to sign Patrick a contract extension.
I liked the conflict with the exes that created jealousy and forced each at one time or another to acknowledge their feelings. I also liked that Patrick was set on becoming a family man. He took to Avery’s son right away (and vice versa). The question becomes, how will they navigate Patrick’s move to Chicago? Will Patrick and Wilson extend their contracts so they will stay on the same team? Will Avery be content as a baseball wife?
Okay someone give Kristin a crown… she is the queen at writing book boyfriends. I loved everything about this book. Patrick is most definitely going on my list of book boyfriends. Avery was an amazing FMC. I loved seeing her work through everything. I highly recommend this book if you love fake dating, one bed, steamy, single mom romances.
This delightful adult second chance baseball romance set mostly in Sarasota, Florida kept me up WAY past my bedtime, but I had to finish it on a second day. I had an ARC via ProlificWorks and this voluntary review is my own opinion.
Oh my I wasn't excepting that from Patrick & Avery's story. They are such an adorable couple. Patrick is such good guy to Avery & Jackson. I'm glad they both got a happy ending even if there was a few hiccups along the way.
Patrick a stud of a baseball player who is looking for love but has a ex that keeps wanting to show herself. Avery is a newly single mom who would do anything for her son Jackson.
I received the arc of this book and I don’t think there’s a single thing I didn’t love! I LOVED this book! Even more than the first one and I loved that one! I loved how fast paced it was and Avery and Patrick’s relationship is a relationship I would die for plus how Patrick is with Jackson melts my heart 🥹❤️
Wow, This is the sweetest book I have ever read , beautifully written.
Patrick is everything… he’s boyfriend material , he’s the kind of man every woman wants. He melted my heart so many times with everything… Avery is so brave and strong … being a single mom and taking care of the sweetest kid of the whole world… I cried for her … for everything she’s been through and everything she was trying to overcome… But they were made to each other, the chemistry was amazing … the hot scenes were well written and always beautiful… We can find a lot of very romantic scenes ❤️
Jackson … I can’t say much , he’s adorable and made me cry hard … The first time he says to Patrick that he wanted him to be his dad … goodness, I couldn’t stop crying … it was perfect…
I could keep talking and talking about all the scenes I loved it for hours ….
If you want a well written book that will make you smile , cry , cheer for them to be together and definitely, a book that will leave you with a warm smile on your face after the end, this is the book for you!!
After reading the first book in this series I was wondering if Kenni and Wils were ny favorite couple but I love Patrick's and Avery's love story. The both have past trauma to overcome but have such a connection and draws them together. It's like Kindling to a flame, sparks light up just when they are in the same room together. I loved the real life issues they had to face, the depth of there love for Jackson, and the friendship between all of them. The Ending was 🔥
Kristin Lee is a great storyteller. The characters are so relatable. Patrick is such a great guy who isn't afraid to express his emotions. Avery is a strong female character and a great mom. Jackson is a great kid who likes to keep all the adults on their toes. The one thought I had was that Jackson's dad sent Patrick to them. This story has humor, love, and a little sadness but happiness wins in the end.
I thought book one was my favorite (stealing A Second Chance) but this one has taken my heart. Y'all my words fail me right now. Just go read these please and thank Kristin lee later, cause she is absolutely amazing 👏
I enjoyed this romance. This is a standalone but I loved that I read the first book as it gave us so many glimpses into the characters’ lives. I am so happy to read about Patrick and Avery. Patrick is intrigued from the first moment he saw Avery and these two had such great chemistry together. Avery and Patrick agree to have a fake relationship so that he could deter his clingy ex, and feelings developed. I loved how much support they got from their friends and family, and loved knowing more about Kenny and Wilson’s lives. I cannot wait to read the next in series about Archer.
I received a free advanced reader copy of this book and ma voluntarily leaving my fair and honest review.
Thank you @KristinLeeWritesRomance for allowing me to read this advanced copy. I voluntarily read and reviewed this book and all opinions are my own.
Sliding Headfirst by Kristin Lee Book 2 of the Sarasota Sharks Series FACT: Fake dating can be harmful to your heart.
Romance - 320 pages
Oh gosh, what can I say about this book aside from it made me so happy. We met Patrick and Avery as side characters in book one, but you could tell that they just jumped off of the page and you wanted to know more about them. Well, here’s your chance! Also, if you loved Jackson he steals the show here as well.
This book was a lot about healing from your past in order to love your present and get the future you deserve, much like book one. The difference is, this book had more highs than lows, in my opinion. There were more laughs, more sex, and just more fun. Yes, there was sadness and heartbreak, but it didn’t take much away from the joy and happy ending.
All in all, I loved these characters. I sometimes forget that they aren’t real. I thought about them when I wasn’t reading the book. So, if that doesn’t tell you to read these books, then I’m not sure anything will.
In ‘Stealing a Second Chance’ the first book in the Saratoga Sharks series, we met Avery and her tragic story. Now we read her happily ever after. She is currently in a stagnant relationship and thankfully she realizes it without much harm done. Patrick is best friends with Wilson (from the same book as mentioned before) and he is trying to forget an ex, that just cant take no for an answer. He wants Avery to help him with a reunion, where unfortunately his ex will also be there and so their journey begins. I loved this couple and their struggles with several issues. There were enough obstacles by both exes but in the end Patrick and Avery had their happily ever after. There are triggers relating to death and types of mental illness. Dual POV, standalone with characters from the previous book. I enjoyed this book and will read more of this author.
Patrick Callaghan at 24 is a World Series Champion playing for the Chicago Kodiaks. He looks happy and has it all together or so it looks on the outside, but really he's not sure he wants to keep playing ball and his high school reunion is coming up. He broke up with his girlfriend after a toxic relationship but still needs a date for his reunion. Avery Jenkins got pregnant when she was 17 and the father Jack died playing baseball before he was born. So now 7 years later she is a licensed therapist, single mom of a little boy Jackson and just broke up with her fiancee. At their mutual friend's house Patrick, the guy she bought at a bachelor auction, mentions his reunion and feeling the need to save him she jumps at the chance to be his fake girlfriend. As the sparks fly, so many lines are blurred and it's hard not to think this is reality. But can they both move on from issues in their past?
I always love a good baseball romance and Sliding Headfirst was just that.
Great story, well crafted characters and baseball!
I would suggest reading the first book in the series first though - the only downside with this book is I felt like I was missing some of the story background.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
This is book number 2 in the Sarasota Sharks series and focuses on Patrick and Avery. Avery is a single mom to Jackson. She has never really let go of Jackson’s dad since he died before Jackson was born and that affects all of her relationships because she can’t fully let anyone in. Patrick has had a tough time with relationships, starting with his birth mom and then his ex. They both have a lot to overcome in order to reach their HEA and it was definitely a bumpy ride but they do the work needed to give each other what they truly want and need in life. They brought out the best in each other and genuinely just wanted to do what they could to bring each other happiness. This was a great addition to the series.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
A solid sports story of moving on from past losses. This is the second book in the series, whilst I could understand who was who, there were gaps that left me wondering.. I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This book was really engaging. Avery was a teen Mom. Her high school boyfriend was killed in a freak accident while playing baseball. Avery went on to earn a GED and is now a therapist while raising her adorable seven-year old son Jackson. Patrick is a baseball star, who is very close friends with the deceased boy’s sister and her boyfriend on his team. Patrick dreams of having a family of his own, while he figures out how of a commitment he wants to make to baseball. This book is about how Avery and Patrick come together, acknowledge their feelings and their personal obstacles, and get to a HEA. The characters are wonderful, including Avery’s son, their friends, and families. Both characters have exes that contribute to the plot. The characters’ growth and development was very believable, and the reader will be rooting for them all the way. I didn’t want to put this book down, and now I want to read more of the series! I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.