I had a sports fiction phase and so when I saw this one, I had to give it a try! Definitely an enjoyable read.

I love any and everything related to football! SO this book was everything and more! I was hooked from the very first page. Thanks Joseph for writing such a great sports book that gave me some Friday night lights vibes.

like a younger version of Friday night lights. the star quarterback is hurt and the unused backup suddenly is the starter though in this case, he only has the state championship to play in. the story is told over the course of the week leading up to the big game. it was a decent story and I found it to be a fast read. if you like an easy sports read, you'll probably like this

a boy book! Awesome! I'm always looking for titles that appeal to my reluctant boys readers. Cool!

Even though I am always on the look out for great sports novels my budget is limited enough that I have to pick and choose what to buy. This title is one I am happy to say is an easy choice. I will be purchasing and looking forward to not seeing on the shelves much because it will be a touch down with my sport loving teens!

I had a really hard time getting through this book, to be perfectly honest. It felt like it was trying too hard to be both Friday Night Lights and Varsity Blues. Zeb was an extremely likable character but everything else felt pretty flat. Was kind of put off by Stella being a caricature of the social climbing, slutty cheerleader.

A coming-of-age tale, which evoked the quiet spirit of Friday Night Lights.

Zeb was content. He was finishing high school, helping his uncle at the shop, hunting deer with his best friend, and being the back-up QB for his high school team. Then the team's star got injured in the second to last game of the season, Zeb was suddenly thrust into the spotlight.

The responsibility of leading his team in the state championship game made Zeb take a good hard look at his life and himself. His eyes were opened to so many things, and he began exploring his future. He realized that some of the things he thought he wanted were not right for him, and he opened his mind and heart to other possibilities. He also acknowledged some things he didn't recognize as positive things in his life, and all of this showed a ton of growth.

Monninger created a super likable MC with Zeb. I was rooting for him and cheering every time he made a good decision or took a step in the right direction. I kept reading because I cared about Zeb. The book was also filled with a bunch of other colorful characters. Zeb's uncle and best friend provided a lot of humor, as well as an interesting look into the way people live in rural settings. I grew up in Brooklyn, so I found those bits very interesting. Aside from Zeb, my favorite character was Ferron. The moments she shared with Zeb on page, were among my favorites of the books.

This book was a quiet read, and really captured that tone of Friday Night Lights. It does not hit you over the head, because Zeb is not that type of guy. I don't have a problem with that approach, however, I am known for being big on endings. I think I understand the point that Monninger was making with the ending, but I will not lie, I kept swiping on my Kindle, looking for more. I get that in a quiet way, which matches the tone of the whole book, Zeb was acknowledging his life and being totally honest with himself and those around him, but I personally needed a little bit more there.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It's a nice change of pace for me and I found it to be a very thoughtful coming of age story.

I loved how real the book felt. The characters, and how they find themselves - it was such a delightful read. Loved the book!

Sadly i this book was not for me for multiple reasons, and the only review i would be able to give it would be a negative one that i do not believe this book deserves since most if not all the "problems" i have with this book are personal to me and my reading tastes. Because of that, i prefer to not review this book.
Thank you for the opportunity.

I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

If you've wanted a main character that's a mix between Matt Saracen and Lucas Scott, here you go. Kind of. Zeb is the backup QB who needs to go into the game after the heavily recruited starter gets horribly injured during a game. Zeb also lives with his single mom and works with his uncle in an auto shop. Intentionally or not, the author made Zeb an amalgam of 2 main characters from 2 of the biggest sports shows of the aughts.

That being said, the book itself works. I've been trying to find a football book similar in feel to FNL for years and this is the closest I've come. Granted as a YA book, it doesn't quite capture the raw emotion and 3D characters of FNL. The speeches Coach K gave were reminiscent to the Coach Taylor speeches, but since he's not as developed a character, the impact doesn't resonate as much.

The love interest storylines happened quickly and a bit out of nowhere. This book spans a week but felt like it needed more time to really grab you and make you care. The same can be said about every relationship in the book.

The book itself is fine, but at 208 pages runs a bit short.

3.75 stars rounds to 4.

Not my normal read but enough to keep me reading. Monninger and suggest to my YA friends.

This is a highly enjoyable YA sports romance that reminded me of one of my favorite TV shows, Friday Night Lights. While it may be short, I felt the author got everything done in a reasonable way. Perhaps I would have connected a little more with the characters has the book been a little bit longer, but regardless of this I think the book got everything accomplished.

Fans of young adult, sports romances would be great pairs for this book. Even those who are looking for something a bit different than their average romances would enjoy this. I certainly recommend it to all!

**Review will be posted online closer to release date **