Alexa Martin is a master of voice. This is first person narration that just doesn't sound like anyone else, and Marlee is a completely realized character. I love that Martin created a character that is so real, both full of tenderness and love, but also insecurity and fear. However, the main romance is resolved by the 50% mark, leaving most of the book to feel really off in terms of pacing. Rather than a full description of what makes Gavin and Marlee a great couple, it's instead a series of hurdles that get solved, but never all that convincingly. Gavin remains cryptic throughout the book, with the strength of Marlee as an individual taking center stage. A great book about a strong woman trying to figure out what she's capable of, but a less than satisfying romance.

Right now I’m in football mode so when I saw this debut by Alexa Martin had football in the storyline I knew I had to see what this was all about. Intercepted focuses on Marlee who has been dating Chris since high school and now is his biggest cheerleader since he made the NFL. However, when she finds out he has been cheating for who knows how long this was the last straw and decides to move on. Just as she declares she is done with athletes here comes Gavin Pope someone from her past she never thought she would see again.

During one of her breaks from Chris, Marlee spends one night with a mysterious stranger who blows her mind like no other. He was sexy and treated her so well but the next day he was gone and she never knew who he was and where to find him. So Marlee gets the biggest surprise of her life when she sees the newest quarterback on her ex’s team is no other than her one night stand…Gavin. When she and Chris break up Gavin is there like a knight in shining armor to help her pick up the pieces of her life but she is cautious she can't let some smooth talking hot guy make her weak in the knees. However no matter how hard she tries Gavin is someone she can't resist and soon everyone will be talking about her and how she is just jumping from athlete to athlete.

I loved the chemistry between Marlee and Gavin, talk about HOT! And yes while all that was so steamy I also loved how they balanced each other out. Marlee can be a hot head at times but Gavin was always there to tell and show her that he didn’t care what others thought or said, that he just truly loved her for her. He was so romantic and she needed someone like that in her life to show her she was appreciated. So towards the end of this read when Marlee must make a decision I was kind of upset but I also knew where she was coming from. She had to do what was right for her and she felt like she had to do what was right for herself for the first time in her life. I really enjoyed how this ended and I can't wait for the second book in the series, and as a super fan of football, I really loved how it was a character of sorts in the book. All in all, this was fun, sexy and a romantic read with lots of laughs in between, so if you want something with a lot of sass and sexiness look no further than Intercepted.

Marlee Harper has spent a good chunk of her life being the perfect football girlfriend. From lasagna meals for his teammates to always being there to cheer him on, she’s been her NFL-star’s number one fan. She’s confident that after over a decade of being together – aside from a few breaks – they are finally ready to make it official. Then he shows up: star quarterback Gavin Pope. The hot one-night stand from four years ago during one of the breaks. He’s been hired by the team Marlee’s man plays for. Marlee’s never been able to forget him but she’s sure hoping he’s forgotten her.

Gavin never forgot the woman who disappeared after one perfect night. He can’t believe she’s the longtime girlfriend of his new teammate, a guy known for being one of the biggest philanderers in the game. He tries to keep his distance but when Marlee finally learns her man has been cheating big time and leaves him, Gavin makes sure to be there for her. His plan? Show her he’s nothing like her ex. But it’s going to take a lot to convince Marlee to re-enter the world of big egos, nasty player wives, gossipy fans and endless groupies out to steal your guy.

A tale of second chances, adulting in the twenty-first Century, good friends and the importance of always keeping wine on hand, Intercepted is an intriguing look at life as an NFL girlfriend from an author with firsthand knowledge of the experience.

AAR staffers Maggie Boyd and Lisa Fernandes share their thoughts Alexa Martin's Intercepted, a funny, poignant tale about life in the limelight.

Maggie: One of the things that most excited me about this story was the chance to read about being an NFL girlfriend/wife from someone who is married to a former NFL player, and I felt that authenticity really came through in this tale.  From the family room for between/after games to the hierarchy among the players’ wives I sensed readers I was getting a genuine look at what it’s like to be dating/married to a football player.

Lisa:  Alexa Martin’s writing voice was absolutely terrific, wasn’t it?  The novel has a great balance of realistic, emotionally grounded stuff (Marlee’s life as a football girlfriend, how the Lady Mustangs know and interact with one another, the entire social structure of the Lady Mustangs, and the way Marlee had to start over from scratch as a businesswoman and human being) was FABULOUS, and told in a really great, really fun, unique voice, to boot. Martin has a great eye for both the lifestyle and a point of view that she wanted to project through Marlee’s eyes.

Maggie: Another thing I felt was really authentic about this tale was the way “adulting” is handled. Marlee has to essentially start over after the breakup with her ex. For young people in the twenty-first century, where low salaries, poorly paid starting positions and high rents/food/transportation are the norm, stepping into adult life isn’t as easy as it was historically. I was glad that Marlee had to at least start at a very basic job when she went looking for one and didn’t just land into her dream position as so many romance heroines do. She also had to live in a small apartment in a less than stellar neighborhood and use public transportation, two other realities of modern new adult life. What did you think of that aspect of the tale?

Lisa:  I loved the honesty about her riches to rags tale; the crummy apartment in a bad neighborhood, the job tending bar, the struggle to put something, anything, into savings.

Maggie: Another thing I really enjoyed about this one was the humor, especially the hashtags (#funny).  Did you find humor in the story and the hashtags or was that aspect a bit of a fumble for you?

Lisa: Oh my God, I loved that part.  The general sense of humor, the biting sarcasm of Marlee’s voice, and her observational voice; everything about that part of the novel was perfect.  I SOMETIMES found the hashtags distracting/gimmicky, but very, very rarely.  That may be a YMMV thing for the reader, though, if they don’t like that sort of narrative quirk.  Speaking of social media, I loved the way that Ms. Martin has Marlee doing things like hate searching herself – and the trolls were all angry football fans blaming her for Gavin’s injury!  Somewhere, Jessica Simpson is nodding her head in sympathy.

Maggie: This story is told in first person PoV by Marlee and we experience Gavin only through her eyes. This bothered me a little bit as I felt I never really got to know him beyond the kind of information you find out about someone during the first weeks of a relationship. I liked most of what I saw of him, but I sure did want more. What did you think of Gavin?

Lisa:  I liked him more than you did, I think! Gavin felt very much like a nice, stand-up guy, but also a little bland in a way because of the first person narrative choice you mentioned  –  but that also made him the perfect foil for Marlee’s outré nature.  I did like some of the things he did, and I really liked how much he approved of her choices and loved what she did even when she’d gone from riches to rags -  Gavin is, at least, the kind of guy who saves an important necklace when it falls from the body of his one night stand for several years, which tells me a lot about his character.  That’s the kind of hopeless romantic you wanna fall in love with.

Maggie: I liked Marlee but her life drove me a bit crazy. It seemed as though she landed in one crisis after another, whether it was a problem with her ex, a problem with the other wives/girlfriends of the team members, problems in the media or on social media, befriending the wrong person – she seemed to endlessly be running from trouble or into it. I was glad that she took some time to herself at the end of the novel, to see if she could stand on her own, although I’m not sure if it was long enough. What are your thoughts on Marlee?

Lisa: I’ve known lots of women like Marlee in my life; living life loudly to the point of sometimes annoying others around them (and yes, occasionally Marlee was a TINY bit irritating in that respect, but I was willing to ignore that part of her personality).  She’s a pretty bad judge of character but gets lucky landing Gavin.  I think the novel sufficiently calls her out on that trait.  Her sense of humor really kept me reading and enjoying the piece.

How did you feel about the supporting characters?  Martin made each of the Lady Mustangs pop out to me in 3D, which is an accomplishment and a half, because there are a half-dozen of them.  I found Courtney - particularly her Sally Albright-like way of ordering food - extremely amusing, and I loved Marlee’s dad and trash talking Donny, Gavin’s agent.  My only caveat is that I really, really didn’t like Madison and found her to be yet another stereotypical Nasty Villainess.

Maggie: I thought they were pretty typical supporting characters for a romance novel. I liked or hated them as the author intended me to but once I finished the book they faded from my mind.

I felt hot sex was probably the primary positive component of Marlee and Gavin’s relationship. That’s a nice place to start but I’m not sure their personalities were very compatible beyond the bedroom. I had a feeling that Gavin would always want to take charge of Marlee’s messes and she would always get bent out of shape when he did. I saw some growth towards the end of the story, but I didn’t see enough to convince me these two would have an HEA. More like a happy for a while, rather than a happily ever after. What are your thoughts on the relationship?

Lisa: The biggest problem with the Gavin/Marlee relationship was that it was clearly predestined; it was so obvious Marlee/Chris wasn’t a viable option because Chris was an abusive jerk and Gavin was very much a gentleman.  Chris is such a child throughout the early part of the novel and the break-up, that when Gavin and Marlee finally hooked back up you knew that most of the conflict between them was going to have to come from one of them doing some pretty foolish things – and Marlee does at least one of them, something that made me facepalm hard when I read it.  The mistakes tend to land on Marlee’s side of the fence more than Gavin’s; he’s almost too perfect as to be beyond reproach.

But he was so good and nice to her, and protective and understanding without overwhelming her light, which was a refreshing thing to read.  I don’t know if I agree that Marlee and Gavin’s romance was pretty HFN, since he was very committed to her, and very much there for her during all of her operatic mistakes and she was super appreciative of that.

My biggest problem with the two of them is their third act disagreement. Which was ridiculous, could have been solved with communication, and made Gavin look unreasonable (who the hell surprises someone with life-changing news like that?).

Maggie: My overall grade for this one is a B. I really wanted to know Gavin better and I would have liked to have seen more relationship building but I liked the story enough that I will be reading the next book in the series. What about you?

Lisa: I’m going a bit higher than you on this one!  The humor, the sharp character voices and the heat of the romance made me give this an A-.  I agree that Gavin needed more of a defined PoV and some of the narrative choices grated, which is what keeps it from wholehearted A territory for me.

Buy it at: Amazon/Barnes & Noble/iBooks/Kobo

This was a light, easy read. I enjoyed seeing Marlee come into her own and realize what she needed to do to be her own person. Gavin felt just a little too perfect at times, but it was nice to see her in a relationship with a good man! I would have liked a little more nuance with the characters--either people were horrible human beings who said terrible things to her or her best friends who always told her she was right. It felt a little unrealistic that so many people ranted in such specific detail to her over and over about how horrible she was. And while it would be hard not to respond to people like that, it did feel like she was always giving long, kind of nasty speeches to people who'd treated her badly, too. In real life, I think it would have been more likely that she wasn't always 100% right and those she didn't get along with were 100% wrong, but this story just more extremes than I'm used to.

Marlee Harper is the long-time girlfriend of an NFL star until she gets proof that he has been cheating on her. She'd been overlooking things in her relationship with Chris for a long time. She doesn't mind having an excuse to avoid the NFL wives especially Courtney, the star quarterback's botoxed wife, who manages the meetings with swings of her glittered gavel. While she favors the good works that the team wives do, she doesn't like the catty gossip sessions at the weekly meetings. Her only friend is Naomi whose husband is another NFL star.

The team has a new quarterback and it just so happens that Marlee had a one-night stand with him during one of the times she and Chris were taking a break in their relationship. Gavin has been her dream man when things were going wrong with Chris but she never actually wanted to meet him again.

But Gavin is there to pick her up when the mean things Chris does get her down. It seems that he has not been able to get their one-night stand out of his mind. They quickly fall in love but the course of true love isn't running smoothly. Between jealous team wives, a jealous publicist who has a not-so-hidden crush on Gavin, and the people of Denver who are sure that Gavin's relationship with Marlee will make him less effective on the field, Marlee and Gavin have problems.

The biggest problem that the two of them have is that Marlee has never really had to figure out who she was as a person. She went from her parents's home to being Chris's girlfriend to being Gavin's girlfriend. She's never had a chance to be just Marlee.

This was a fun story to read. Marlee has a great way of looking at things which we can appreciate since this story is told by her in the first person. I like her relationship with her women friends. I also like her relationship with Gavin who is much different than Chris and also a really nice guy if, perhaps, a little too quick at trying to manage Marlee's life.

Intercepted is a fun and fluffy beach read. Ms. Martin does a wonderful job telling the story of a woman trying to navigate the joys and problems of dating famous athletes and all the shenanigans that accompanies being a WAG to NFL players. The dialogue is believable, while still managing to be witty and funny (and the hashtag kickers are always on point). There is angst, but it is manageable and understandable and the ending is earned. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

I wasn't sure what I was getting myself into when I first started this book, but I am so happy I did!

This was unlike any of the other NFL/Football books I've read in the past, in that it revolved heavily around the group of "wives" of the NFL stars and their little society of drama and stiff-necks.

And although I didn't-at first-think I'd want to read anything to do with such pretentious characters, Marlee proved to stand out amongst them all (with the exception of her best-friend Naomi).

Marlee had a certain whit and snarky attitude about her that had me positively smitten or howling. If it wasn't her clever use of hashtagging every and all scenarios possible (because hashtagging/quoting anything from the movie <i>Mean Girls</i> is an automatic win in my book. #StopTryingToMakeJaviHappen) it was the admirable head on her shoulders that lead her down a path that didn't <i>have</i> to revolve around a man. It was refreshing and fierce and I found myself constantly rooting for her.

But of course, I wouldn't have read this book if we didn't have our male-lead and the love that ensued from it.

I knew I was going to fall just as hard for Gavin as Marlee had when instead of throwing a certain night in Marlee's face, he took the cool route and they talked it out. Yes! Two freaking characters actually talked through a little hiccup. And he only got better from there. From the way, he refused to hold a grudge, to the way he looked out for Marlee and only wanted the best for him. The only issue I had with the integrity of his character was towards the end of the book when he did something so questionable to me I thought for a second, "Is this still the same Gavin?" In the end? He was totally redeemable for not only me but Marlee too and I was so thrilled with the ending of their happily ever after.

Aside for the characters, I thought the story had just enough drama and intrigue to keep it interesting and even though I thought Courtney ought to have someone remove the stick up her butt, if it weren't for her we'd never get to learn and appreciate Marlee's character or every hiccup thereafter.

If this is going to be a series than count me in for the next one!

I've been dying to read Intercepted ever since I heard about it from a good friend. With its biracial heroine and its enticing plot surrounding the NFL, I knew that it would be just the perfect read for me. When a copy that I begged for (thank you, Berkley!!) showed up on my doorstep (and fought UPS for!), I immediately abandoned real life and started reading. What a ride it was! There's so much I want to discuss in my review for Intercepted, but I don't want to ruin the experience for potential new readers, so I'm going to give you four reasons why you should consider giving the book a try!

Reason #1: Marlee, Marlee, Marlee!
What a refreshing heroine this girl was! From the first scene, I knew that she and I would get along splendidly and I was right. Marlee has been with Chris, her famous NFL-star boyfriend, since high school. She soon finds out that the ass has been cheating on her for a while. Marlee had no patience whatsoever for the douchenozzle, so she immediately proceeded to dump his butt and didn't give him a chance to make up any excuses for his nonsense. I loved that even though she had been with the guy for so long, she didn't wallow. Instead, she picked up the pieces of her life and went ahead to continue on. She had a lot of self-respect and self-worth which was really awesome to read about because it makes you want to be the same. I just adored everything about her and for me, her independence, her sass, and her wiles were what made this book a success for me.

Reason #2: The Humor
I wasn't expecting this book to make me laugh as much as it did, but man, I was snorting left and right at Marlee's comments. This was a girl with absolutely no filter and I was here for her sass! I love a good book that can have me cracking up.

Reason #3: A Look At A Different Side of Football
Intercepted is unique from other sports romances in that it focused more on the wives and girlfriends of the football players as opposed to the football players themselves. I'm not a fan of football but I always love reading about it in romance books and I feel like I learned a lot here. I low-key loved all the cattiness, the drama, and the jealousy that existed between some of these women. Some of them were drama queens who were out to get Marlee. I grew to hate them all, but I was also very entertained by their methods of "torture". Thankfully, Marlee dished out exactly what they deserved. She wasn't a doormat and wasn't afraid to call the petty women out. Again, I'm not sure if this is, in fact, the reality for many WAGs, but Alexa Martin should know as she was a WAG herself!

Reason #4: Naomi, The BFF & Gavin, The Boo
The one person who was awesome and also a part of the WAGs was Naomi. Her friendship with Marlee was one of the best fictional female friendship I've ever come across. These two ladies were there for each other and they were so comfortable around each other. It warmed my cold heart that Marlee had an awesome and supportive friend in Naomi. I also have to mention the text messages between these two that had me smiling like a goof!

Then there was Gavin. I don't want to talk too much about him because you all have to meet him yourself, but wow! Talk about a swoony gentleman. He was exactly the kind of boyfriend Marlee deserved after Chris. He was a complete sweetheart!

I hope these four reasons were enough to convince you to give Intercepted a try. I'm so happy that this book was a hit for me! I'm excited to read more from Alexa Martin who no doubt will easily become a favorite rom-com author of mine!

An OK read to me! I wanted something light and fun and this definitely fit the bill. A few things niggled at me but most romance readers will love this sports infused story. I've added Alexa's second release to my TBR, hoping to enjoy it!

What a refreshing read!! I never (ever) read debut authors because I'm so picky but saw a friend's review and I was curious.
Firstly, football is my religion. So when I saw that it was a football book and was written by a real life football wife, I settled in and was ready to enjoy the scoop!

The author did a great job at mixing in romance and sports. As a sports lover that is always important to me. I hate when I read a sports book and the author knows nothing about the sport. I need some facts! The sport however didn't overshadow the romance, which I loved. Obvi I'm here for the couple's story ;)

I loved the couple. The h was real, honest, and empowered. The H was super swoony.

There were a few holes that I would have loved being filled in and the ending was a bit too rushed for my taste but overall what a great debut.

I'll be here for the next one! Hurry up ;)

Alexa Martin's debut novel, Intercepted, is a scrumptious, addictive sports romance that follows Marlee, the former girlfriend of an NFL receiver, and her steamy second chance at love with the team's new QB, Gavin Pope... and let me just tell you, I WAS HERE FOR ALL OF OF IT. This unputdownable story is sexy and steamy and so damn good, I can't even believe this was a debut. Intercepted is lush with romance and rich with humor, but it's also a juicy little glimpse into the competitive hierarchy of the NFL WAGS, a drama ridden group of wives and girlfriends that proves to be both fascinating and hilariously entertaining. From the very first snap to the final whistle, Intercepted had me RIVETED. With its steamy romance, sharp humor and captivating characters, Intercepted is a game changer for romance readers everywhere and Alexa Martin is the MVP.

Alexa Martin, who even are you and where the hell have you been all my damn life? Your words are my jam and your storytelling is my  kryptonite. My cheese face looks ridiculous and I know this because I got called out on it by my husband and kids about eighty seven thousand times while I was reading Intercepted. I couldn't stop smiling. The writing in this book is SO ON POINT. It's so smart. So quick. So fresh. I couldn't stop smiling because even when things were legit terrible for Marlee, they were setting up to be all too good for the reader. This story is packed with drama both on and off the football field and all the antics Marlee got herself up to in the her wild world as an NFL girlfriend had me laughing out loud and had my chin on the floor. I just KNEW this was going to be fantastic by, like, page two and I am not even exaggerating. I can't get over how delicious it really was.

I loved this book. This is an addictive sports romance, sure. Gavin Pope is the real deal. He's a gentleman, a family guy, a stellar athlete and a loyal teammate. I lost my mind over this guy every time he opened his mouth. But Marlee's own comeback, her story of finding herself after losing herself is what had me really cheering from the sidelines. She broke the rule book repeatedly on these pages, going rogue, doing and saying the last thing I expected. And it paid off. It made for an unputdownable, feel good, MUST READ romance and I couldn't get enough. I'm ready for more where this came from, Alexa Martin. I'm ready to feel more of the giddy joy I felt while reading this book. I'm ready for more of that yummy heartache and the fury and the sweet romance. I'm here for all of it and I can't wait for more.

This novel is either going to work for you or not. It’s an easy read and I appreciated getting some insider knowledge on life as a professional athlete’s girlfriend. I liked getting to see a racially diverse NFL team (just like real life!) and that the story centers on a biracial heroine. However, my mileage varied greatly when it came to the plot and the humor. Case in point: too many hashtags.

I struggled with Marlee’s character at times. A big part of this is just me: I have a hard time with characters that date douchecanoes or lackluster men for YEARS and have just gotten out of the relationship at the start of the novel. My impulse is to put them in therapy so they can figure out why they stayed in what was clearly not a healthy relationship before they even think about start dating again. Now Marlee did get bonus points in that she broke off her relationship but it only happened because she learned Chris was cheating. And everything we learn about Chris had me scratching my head in confusion. Why did she stay with this tool for ten years?? It reflected poorly on her.

So I was pretty skeptical when Gavin came around. Marlee needed time to figure stuff out, not figure him out! But Gavin was the star of this novel. He was so persistent and kind and I loved how he pursued Marlee and took care of her.

That is, up until the end when he did something that was so out of character, I found it completely unbelievable. It didn’t match what we knew of his personality up to that point and it was rather predictable plot choice. While I appreciated Marlee’s eventual decision, I also thought it should have happened at the beginning of the novel, not the end. But like I said, that’s my own personal preference.

Lastly, I would have found this much more enjoyable if it didn’t have the Mean Girls subplot. I'm tired of stories which involve women tearing each other down instead of lifting each other up. I couldn’t understand why Marlee and Naomi spent any time with the other WAGs, much less participated in the committee. They were vicious! Why do that to yourselves? I’m sure such cattiness exists among real-life WAGs but I sincerely hope it’s not as widespread as portrayed in this novel.

A three star rating isn’t a bad rating from me. It means I liked the book and I did. I just wanted more from it as well.

WOWWW…. This book was sooo much fun to read !!!! I went in expecting a sexy romance with some gossip on the side but this was full on chick lit drama and I was thoroughly entertained. Also, the author mentions in the note that she is an NFL wife, so I was really surprised to see some of the WAGs in the story and I really hope the author didn’t have to deal with so much bitchiness and drama during her time.

Marlee is an awesome protagonist to read about. She may have been an NFL girlfriend for a long while and just found out she was being cheated on all this time, but she is no pushover. She is confident, sassy, doesn’t take any shit from anyone and gives back as good as she gets. I loved her comebacks, how she deals with anyone trying to behave badly towards her. She can be a tad bit dramatic and lets go of her temper when it comes to football, but she is an amazing woman who loves her family, friends and her job. I loved her growth through the book, especially the decisions she makes towards the end, deciding to find herself before she makes one of the most important decisions of her life.

Gavin is too good to be true and the kind of guy who only exists in fiction and our imaginations😍😍😍 He is an excellent quarterback, is extremely hot, very charming and chivalrous and swoon worthy. But he can also be protective and overbearing sometimes. I liked that Gavin and Marlee could just be themselves with each other and not put up a front due to his celebrity status. They were like a normal couple, enjoying their dates, having fun without any care until the outside world comes knocking in. The slander that Marlee is put through just for being his girlfriend is very painful to watch but I was very impressed that he never wavered in his feelings and always had her back. I hated the conflict at around 85% of the book where Gavin messes everything up, because it felt so out of character for me. But I liked the way it was resolved, in a mature and reasonable way and it wasn’t what I expected.

I also enjoyed Marlee’s friendship with Naomi and Brynn. Because of the extreme bitchiness, girl on girl hate and slut shaming in this book, I was glad to see she had atleast a couple of female friends who understood her and always backed her up. Their banter and interactions are so much fun to read about and reminded me of my own girl gang. We only get glimpses of both the families and it was nice to see such supportive parents, but I particularly loved Marlee’s dad. His protective nature was just too cute. The less I talk about the other WAGs in the team and Marlee’s ex, the better – they are bitter, nasty and extremely offensive and I’m glad Marlee always takes a stand, but they really put her through hell.

The writing is very easy flowing and it’s very hard to put this book down. I finished it in a single sitting and laughed out loud many times. There is some sports talk but not a lot, so even a football noob like me could follow along comfortably. My only complaint is that Marlee thinks in terms of hashtags a lot and it got repetitive very soon… and I definitely didn’t want a hashtag in the middle of a lovemaking scene. However, the book is very easy to read and lots of fun and I’m definitely very excited to read more by this author.

This was a fun read. I like my romance with a dash of humor and Marlee had the sass down. And I liked that her story broke the mold a little in my opinion. This wasn't the classic will they/won't they drama for the entirety of the book. They will, they do, they have a real relationship with problems and THAT's what almost kills our HEA, not a silly miscommunication or someone being too stubborn to admit their feelings. And that's what made this story feel real to me.

Marlee and Gavin were great together. Yeah, I was pretty pissed at him by the end, but I'm sure this is the reality of the football world. And the reality of relationships in general. We get mad at each other - it's how we handle it that's telling. I love that Alexa Martin drew from her own experience and I hope there are some catty football wives out there who realize that Court and Madison are based on them and it makes their blood boil.

The hashtags were a little much for me, but that's one of my only complaints about the writing style. Other than more sex...but that's a constant for me. I'm excited to see what's to come from Alexa Martin!

I really enjoyed this book. The characters were a lot of fun. Marlee may be little (5'2") but she was big in mouth. She didn't like confrontation but when someone went after her best friend or her man, she did not back down, even if it caused a fight to break out in the stands. There are always bitchy women who instead of supporting other women, they are jealous and try to knock those women down. That is how I saw the Mustangs wives. I'm sure there are wives like them and there are wives like Naomi. I enjoyed Marlee and Gavin's relationship. They seemed to have a fun relationship that was filled with a mutual respect. I thought the storyline flowed smoothly, the characters were engaging and I was entertained. This is a typical chick lit story. I'm just glad that Marlee wasn't kidnapped like what usually happens with couples in chick lit books. I found this a fun book that would make a great summer read. Although it doesn't come out until September so it will be a perfect read for football season. Curl up with a blanket and a hot chocolate and enjoy

Intercepted is a solid sports romance debut from an author I’ll be keeping an eye out for moving forward.

Seriously. The writing, for the most part, was smart and snappy. The characters were multi-dimensional and likable. And the story hooked me immediately and kept me on the line with it for pretty much the entire thing. Marlee is my favorite type of heroine: smart, strong, and sassy. She took a few blows throughout the course of the book, but she gave as good as she got and she stayed true to herself. I loved her indomitable spirit, and the chemistry she shared with Gavin, who was a pretty irresistible character in his own right – the sort of sensitive, protective alpha hero that gets me every time.

I loved the way their relationship started and that Ms. Martin didn’t shove me right into it. Some of the time transitions were a little clunky for me, but that was balanced out by the witty banter, and clever exchanges these two gave – not only to each other – but to the secondary characters they were surrounded by (friend and foe). There’s a fair amount of drama here, but most of it played off as fun, sometimes almost campy, and – of course – it is always gratifying to see the good guys win in the end.

I also loved that Ms. Martin didn’t shy away from the sports aspect of this sports romance. I loved that Marlee was a sort of intense fan (actually, I loved that quite a bit). As a fan of all things football (and maybe most especially football romance), the fact that Gavin’s career wasn’t glossed over added an extra layer of fun for me.

All that said, it wasn’t quite a perfect read. As I mentioned, some of the transitions were a little awkward for me, and I felt like some of the “quirks” in the writing could have been dialed back a bit. It was a little inconsistent sometimes, but not in a way that ruined the book for me. Not at all. I enjoyed it quite a bit and feel like this is one of the strongest debut books I’ve read in quite some time. I’m excited to see where Ms. Martin goes from here and I will absolutely be back for more. ~ 3.5 Stars

OMG, Gavin. Just yes, please. He wasn't perfect because who wants that anyway, but he was pretty close. I LOVED Marlee although she got in her own way sometimes. Together, they WERE perfection. Just an absolute joy to read. And no, I didn't buy into the reviews saying there was slut shaming, because she had strong female friendships so not all the female relationships were portrayed in a bad way.

Loved the clever banter in this book. It felt like there was a lot of action moments in between the comedy, the sweet, the sexy and the serious.

An absolutely fun read. Lead character sassy as hell and fun. The romance and chemistry was also off the page, in the best way possible.

An eye-opening view of the interaction between wives and girlfriends of professional football players. Marlee who finds herself ridiculed and mocked by the media and players' jealous girlfriends and wives tells her story in an entertaining and amusing way.