The Play-by-Play series of books are the first books I ever read by Jaci Burton so the series has an extra special place in my heart. When you give me a book with both the Riley clan and the Cassidy clan, which are my 2 favorite families from the series, and I know I'm getting a book I won't be able to put down.
Seriously, Mia Cassidy and Nathan Riley together has been the story I've wanted since I realized they were at the same college. I absolutely loved that Mia and Nathan were best friends and always went to each other about everything. I even loved they had been together once in college when they had both had a little too much to drink and still remained best friends. I thought it was super sweet that Nathan really was the one that wanted to pursue them being more than just friends first, but was willing to only stay friends if that is all Mia wanted. I loved them as friends every bit as much as I loved them as a couple.
I love that while Mia and Nathan had decided to be friends only, once they were in the same city and allowed themselves more time together, they couldn't keep their hands off each other. Seriously super hot times between Mia and Nathan! I have to say that while I loved their smoking hot love scenes, the times the took things slowly and were more gentle with each other, made me sigh just a little and completely fall for them as a couple.
Mia Cassidy is such a strong and intelligent female character. She has been working towards her dream of her own company and has had her dream come to fruition. She is an amazing businesswoman who sees the big picture when it comes to media perception and knows how to take care of her clients and friends. She is a bit shortsighted when it comes to matters of the heart though and messes up big time when handling a delicate situation with Nathan. I honestly believe she could only mess up this badly because of how much she loved Nathan, but it didn't change the fact that she was the one to make the mistake.
I loved that we got to spend time with so many of both the Rileys and the Cassidys in The Final Score. While I've loved the various other friends that have gotten their books in this series, my love for these 2 families is strong. It was great to see so many of my favorite characters again as we watched Mia and Nathan each figure out their next steps in their careers and their relationship.
The Final Score is another winner in the Play-by-Play series from Jaci Burton. I loved ever moment of this story and didn't want to put the book down even to sleep at night. In fact, I kinda wanted to start reading it all over again once I finished reading it the first time. The Final Score is absolutely one of my favorite books in the series and has me chomping at the bit to know where Ms. Burton will take the series next.
Rating: 5 stars (A+)
Review copy provided by publisher
4