Some good sassy banter between characters and a nice build of the romantic tension. There were a ton of side characters to sort through at the start but eventually got them figured out.

I think I would have liked this more had I read the previous 2 book as although each book is about a different couple, all the characters are linked. Being introduced to so many people at the start of the book was a bit confusing and off putting. I had to keep going back to remember who was who. It was a very slow start and at least the first quarter of the book centered around the wedding of people from a previous story and by the time it got going I had lost interest. Over all once it finally got going it was an OK story I personally would have prefered it to focus less on the wedding and more on the couple in question at the start.

A lovely warm hug of a romance best enjoyed if you've read the other books in this series. The pacing is slow, spending a lot of time at the wedding of two previous characters and in the internal thoughts of both Jake and Juliet, but ultimately pays off on heat build up with our love interests finally give in to their desire for each other.

Love Hard handles delicately and compassionately complications of grief, single-parenting, and the fear of having to live part of your life in the media because of your job and who you love(ed). Jake and Juliet's love is inevitable and very low-conflict, the slight drama of the story is all from external factors. Both Juliet and Jake act far wiser than their 24 years and I'm glad they found each other again. I also appreciated while they were "friends" in high school, they were not secretly pining for each other behind the back of the girl who brought them together.

Alas for me personally the inclusion of Jake's six-year-old daughter, while sweet and endearing, had a more of a shrivel my insides effect. Reading about them trying to sneak in sex while they could see her through a crack in their hotel room door was, while a reality a lot of people face, took me right out of the fun times. Perhaps when my children are grown I'll appreciate kids in romance more, but now is not that time.

All said, Singh fans will love this story, Jake is a stern, tall, grumpy tree who's rare smile lights up the room and Juliet is a badass.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC.

Love Hard might be my favorite book in Nalini Singh’s rugby series. It *almost*eclipses Gabriel and Charlotte’s story, which is one of my all time favorite books. High praise!!

This book is Jake and Juliet’s romance. Jake is part of the Bishop Esera rugby family, and one of New Zealand’s sports superstars. Jake’s life changed dramatically with the birth of his daughter at 18. It was followed by the sudden death of her mother, Jake’s high school sweetheart Callie. Callie was Juliet’s bestie growing up. While both Jake and Juliet adored Callie unconditionally, they were wary of each other and tended to just snipe and bicker.

As the book opens and both are members of the wedding party when Jake’s brother marries Juliet’s friend, they are forced to get along. Shortly after the wedding, they meet again when Juliet is the sponsor contact for Jake’s underwear endorsement deal. The sparks fly from there.

Throughout the book, Jake’s daughter Esme is his priority. The reason he even gives Juliet a chance to get close to him and his closed off heart is the fact that she immediately adores his daughter, who reminds her of her childhood friend. It could be weird and uncomfortable when the couple deals with their prior relationships with Callie. But, the author does a fantastic job of discussing it, and instead makes it a selling point of them becoming a couple.

It’s a nice change to read a book about good people who get what they want through hard work and determination. Not only that, but they maintain their supportive family relationships (biological and chosen) and sense of humor in the process. I would be remiss if I didn’t say how much I adored Gabriel and Charlotte’s wedding as the backdrop for the first quarter of the book. Not only was it a great way to get to know Jake and Juliet, but it was delightful to reunite with the entire Bishop Esera family. I can’t wait to read Danny’s story next!

I voluntarily offered to review this book with no obligations and my opinions are honest!
This was a great book !
Juliet thought that she was done with jokeys.
But why is she having heart palpitations every time she sees Jacob.
Jacob just wants a safe and stable life for him and his daughter.
But, he is having a hard time resisting Juliet.
What will Jacob do ?
Loved the characters + the storytelling !
It has all the ingredients that you need for a great book!
I can't wait for the next book in this series.

Although I love Nalini Singh’ writing, and have read several of her books, I have not read any of the other books in this series, and have to admit at first I was a bit lost as to the family dynamics. I also do not know much about Rugby so wondered if I was going to be able to “get into” this story. I am happy to say that once I kinda figured out the characters, the story of Jake and Juliet and Esma was a cute story. I enjoyed the pace of the relationship and how it came about. Not sure if I will go back and read the other books, but I did enjoy this one.

This contemporary novel by Nalini Singh follows the third brother in the Bishop-Esera family, of which two previous brother also have novels, from two different series. Rock Hard is book two from the Rock Kiss series, which follows four friends who met in high school and became rock superstars. The Hard Play series picks up the stories of friends and family from the Rock Hard series. Between these two we get Gabriel Bishop's romance in Rock Hard and Sailor Bishop's story in Cherish Hard. Now, it's Jacob Esera's turn.

Becoming a father in high school, surviving his wife's sudden death, and on to be a rugby superstar has turned Jacob Esera into a serious, straight-laced man determined to provide a decent life for his daughter. Unexpectedly, he is reunited with the best friend of his daughter's mother at Gabriel's wedding and since their high school interactions were so tumultuously he is thrown by his attraction to this cantankerous female.

Juliet thrived on her bad-girl teenage reputation. Lonely, living with an Aunt that had no time for her, she used her behavior to seek attention. Now, she's using her kick-ass skills to be a successful corporate Vice-President with a wonderful group of friends that are willing to help her fight back against the unwanted media attention being thrown her way by her cheating, lying ex-husband. Can wild-at-heart Juliet and straight-laced Jacob navigate their hang-ups to find a way to happiness?

I was excited to get back into the Hard Play world! Juliet and Jacob have been around each other for years. They've been more frenemies than anything else. But, they're thrust back into each other's world due to friendships and weddings. Juliet is more than Jacob ever realized her being. He saw what she wanted the world to see, but soon he's seeing beyond the facade. I enjoyed seeing adult Juliet and Jacob learn who the other person is, I fell in love with their families (even more than I already was) and adored sweet little Esme. Life is totally different for single dads and Juliet isn't messing that up. She adds to their world. She's an independent, responsible woman and Jacob starts to see that. While they have a past, they have a place beyond that as well. This book was a super swoony, sweet, delicious read! I do recommend starting this series at the beginning with Cherish Hard.

I loved every minute of Love Hard’s slow burn romance. It highlighted the beauty in respecting the person you love and allowing them to be the best version of themselves. Their history and determined personalities lifted this story above the challenges they faced and made me smile. Humour riddled the chapter titles, cracking me up with their witty introductions to what was ahead. Definitely a book to add to your TBR list!

This is the third book in the Hard Play series. It is a contemporary sports romance. I loved the characters, they were developed. The pace was great also, it had me so enthralled, that I had a hard time putting the book down. Though it is the third in the series, I feel it can be read as a stand alone.

Je suis fan de Nalini Singh et avec ma copine Mylène du blog Les Lectures de Mylène , nous nous envoyons régulièrement les liens pour des blogs tours VO. Quand elle m’a parlé de Hard Play, j’ai postulé directement sans même lire le résumé car je savais que je passerai un excellent moment de lecture. Quelle ne fut pas ma surprise en retrouvant des personnages que j’avais adorés dans une autre saga de Nalini Singh , à savoir Charlotte et Gabriel Bishop. Je me suis régalée avec cette comédie romantique.


Juliet Nelisi est une des demoiselles d’honneur de Charlotte et oui nous allons assister au jour J pour notre couple préféré. J’avais adoré son histoire avec celui qu’on surnommait T Rex et les revoir ainsi que Molly et Fox fut indéniablement un plus. La saga Rock Kiss avait été un coup de coeur et Love Play est le 3ème tome de la saga Hard Play qui nous permet de découvrir les frères Esera qui sont joueurs de rugby. Juliet a été une jeune femme assez perturbatrice au lycée et elle a marqué les esprits. Ses relations avec Jake Esera ont toujours été tendues mais pourtant elle se liera d’amitié avec Callie. Quand elle disparaîtra du jour au lendemain , on imaginera la pire. Juliet est une jeune femme que j’ai adoré découvrir car elle n’a pas sa langue dans sa poche et quand elle aura envie d’émettre une opinion , elle le fera sans passer par quatre chemins. Quand elle va revoir Jacob, les joutes verbales vont vite revenir mais elle apprendra aussi à passer outre ses à priori.


Ils seront donc amenés à se revoir dans divers contextes et donc à cohabiter le temps de quelques soirées. Il sera aussi peut être temps de mettre à plat les rancoeurs pour aller de l’avant. Il est évident que Juliet sera épaulée par cette famille de coeur qui saura l’émouvoir comme jamais dans des moments difficiles. Il est vrai qu’elle n’a pas eu une enfance facile et ses actions au lycée étaient des appels au secours. Elle a épousé Reid Mescall mais on ne peut pas dire qu’il a été le mari parfait. Plus on va le découvrir , plus on va le détester. Il est l’archétype de l’homme qui est prêt à tout pour réussir même à avoir recours aux pires moyens. Juliet va se retrouver dans une spirale infernale et elle sera surprise de l’aide qu’elle va recevoir ( ce qui nous permettra de revoir Thea également) et elle va découvrir des gens aux grands coeurs. Elle pourrait aussi se rapprocher de Jake et je pense qu’ils seront les premiers surpris.


Jacob Esera est un personnage auquel nous allons rapidement nous attacher. C’est un homme bienveillant qui adore sa famille mais surtout qui est un adorable papa pour Esme qui a 6 ans. J’ai adoré leur scène car elle est trop mignonne et apporte un réel plus à l’intrigue. Elle nous permettra à nous lecteur mais surtout à Juliet de découvrir une nouvelle facette chez lui. Il a fait d’Esme sa priorité malgré une carrière de joueur professionnel de rugby des plus prenantes. Avec elle , il sera un papa poule et les événements ont fait que leur lien est indéfectible. Il a aussi porté un amour sans failles à Callie et c’est vraiment beau à voir. Il a assumé toute leur relation et les conséquences qui en ont découlé. Comme Gabriel , il maîtrise son sport mais attention à ne pas laisser des blessures mettre fin avant l’heure à sa carrière. Il a su aussi protéger ses proches des feux des lumières mais surtout des paparazzis et des histoires à dormir debout mais il ne doit pas oublier qu’ils ne sont jamais loin. Sur le terrain, il va tout donner mais nous verrons aussi qu’il est prêt à tout pour protéger ceux qu’il aime. S'il acceptait de voir que Juliet n'est plus celle qu'il croit, une relation intense pourrait naître mais osera t-il faire le grand saut?



Bref, si vous lisez en VO, je ne peux que vous recommander de lire cette romance qui est géniale. J'ai adoré retrouver des personnages que j'avais grandement appréciés dans la saga Rock Kiss et Nalini Singh nous offre une fois de plus une comédie romantique comme on les aime. Si la rancoeur pouvait laisser place à la passion, les étincelles seraient intenses. Nos deux héros vont ils oser franchir le pas?

This is the first non-paranormal book I read by Nalini Singh. I just really got excited after reading the blurb. I absolutely love single parent romances, and I looked forward to this book. I will just get straight to the point and say that I enjoyed Love Hard. Jake is a great dad to his six-year-old daughter Esme. Juliet (Jules) is a strong and independent woman that has a lot of spunk. I loved her banter with Jake and I thought they made a great couple. I enjoyed seeing their friendship grow and eventually seeing it turn into love. The scenes between Esme and the main characters were also very cute and my favorites. And the sex scenes were pretty hot as well.

However, I couldn't completely connect to the characters. I also didn't like that the first quarter of the book was set during a wedding. It was just too long and didn't interest me that much. The story picked up after that, and I thought that this was an okay contemporary sports romance. I just wanted more depth into the pasts of the characters, maybe a couple of flashbacks would've been helpful with that. Maybe I would've connected better if I had read the previous books in the series. However, I want a stand-alone novel, even if it is part of a series, to be strong on its own. I do have to say that I was glad that there was no unnecessary drama just for the sake of it. Both Jake and Jules are adults and thankfully acted like one. If you like what you read in the blurb then I recommend you to give it a try.

FINAL DECISION: Oh, I loved this one. Jake is sweet and adorable and such a good man trying to raise his daughter until Jules comes and knocks his well ordered life for a loop. These are adults dealing with things in a mature and reasoned fashion and I loved their story.

THE STORY: A wedding brings high school classmates Jacob Esera and Juliet Nelisi together again. As students, the two were uneasily connected by Jacob's girlfriend who happened to be Juliet's best friend. After his girlfriend's death, Jacob has spent the last six years raising his daughter as a single parent and working on his career as a rugby player. There is definite heat between them but Jacob wants a quiet private life and Juliet seems to bring scandal and attention wherever she goes.

OPINION: This book is a joy to read primarily because these are adults who deal with their relationship in an adult way. Less unnecessary drama and more smart people who talk things out make this book a wonderful read.

Jake is a really decent man. Raising his daughter alone after the death of her mother, she is clearly the center of his life. Definite gooey heart stuff seeing this strong man completely wrapped around the little finger of his girl. What is particularly good in is that the kids feel like real people and not convenient plot points. As a parent, I also really felt for Jake who has conflicting emotions regarding this daughter that he loves greatly and yet wants her protected and yet independent.

Juliet is a woman who is smart and clever and has made mistakes. She owns her mistakes which felt mature and realistic. I appreciated having a heroine that was imperfect and dealt with her past with humor and aplomb.

I just love the serious guy with the naughty girl, but even better, these characters are complex and are ultimately they have more in common than at first it seems. This is a lovely story with intricacy of character. There is angst and some drama, but such likable people.

The story is also very sexy as well as being sweet and romantic.

This book just made me feel good and happy.

WORTH MENTIONING: While it is certainly not necessary to read the other books in the series, I highly recommend reading ROCK HARD. A highlight of this book for me is the community of characters that Nalini Singh brings into the story (especially in the beginning). One of my favorite aspects of Nalini Singh's books is the supportive cast of characters in her books.

CONNECTED BOOKS: This whole series is a spin-off from ROCK HARD in the Rock Kiss series. This book, however, is especially connected as it has the wedding of Gabriel and Charlotte (the couple in ROCK HARD). This book can certainly be read as a standalone as the romance is completely self-contained.

STAR RATING: I give this book 5 stars.

NOTE: I received an eARC of this book via Netgalley. I was not required to write a review or to write a positive review. All opinions contained herein are my own. I purchased a paperback copy of this book after its release.

I am a fan of all of Nalini Singh's books. My preference is the PsyChangling series, but I will happily read whatever she writes. She's got a gift of shifting her writing style to align with the genre. Love Hard is pure romance. It reminds me of my grandmother's Harlequin romance novels that I would read as a teenager. Part of the romance genre joy for me is that from page one, you know how it's going to end and are just happy to be along for the emotional ride.

Jacob (Jake) is a famous New Zealand rugby player who is also a single dad to an adorable daughter. Juliet (Jules) was his high school girlfriend's best friend. There's a bit more history there that you can discover in the book (no spoilers here!). Jake and Jules meet up after several years at Jake's brothers' wedding; Jules is friends with the bride. Sparks fly and it's an enjoyable journey of love and romance.

This is part of a series. Jake's older brothers have already had their love stories and are both characters in this book. It was nice to see how the family is doing. I look forward to the next one.

Thanks to NetGalley and TKA Distribution for an advance digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this story. It was so emotional and everything I wanted. The connection both characters have goes way back, but not in a romantic way, which adds so much to the story. I love seeing their friendship and feelings grow. Juliet's family life and first marriage were not the best and it has a big impact on how she interacts Jacob--who comes from an amazing family, but with a tragic first love story. I will definitely be reading all of the Nalini Singh books the involving Jacob Esera's family (the Hard Play series and the Rock Kiss series).

Love Hard is book 3 in the Hard Play Series but it can certainly be read and enjoyed as a stand-alone, I know this because this is the first book I have read by this author and it certainly won’t be the last. This is a single dad romance with all the feels, it captivated me from the first chapter to the last line and I was left wondering why I hadn’t come across this series or Nalini Singh before now.
This is Jacob Esera and Juliet Nelisi’s story but you can’t write a review without mentioning the adorable Esme who has some classic one liners that only a child could deliver. It’s a romance that relies heavily on family friends and loyalty and it’s soon very apparent this love hate friendship Jake and Juliet share goes a lot deeper. It’s a sweet, emotional story that will leave you wanting more and it certainly left me needing to go back and read the previous books. A strong hero and a heroine who needs a sense of family to belong make this couple easy to love but it’s the story that will really draw you in as you learn about friendships and betrayal, second chances and love, family and loyalty and I really can’t wait to meet the other Esera family members and their partners.

You might have noticed that we love Nalini Singh here. But somehow, I've gotten behind on her contemporaries. I did, however, love Rock Hard, which features Charlie and Gabriel. Love Hard starts out at their wedding so it seemed like a perfect place to pick the series back up.

At the end of Rock Hard I kept thinking that I wanted to meet the rest of Gabriel's rugby playing brothers. Jake, the second youngest of the four, is a professional rugby player. (Yay!) There's just enough rugby on the page to make me realize that I know absolutely nothing about rugby, but I don't think it detracted too much from my enjoyment of the story. The universal elements of sports romance - the connection to Jake's teammates, his work ethic, the trappings of fame and fortune - kept me in the story.

Other than obviously being a sports romance, I'm sort of at a loss to describe the tropes in Love Hard. It's not a second chance romance, though there are elements of it. It's not really enemies to lovers or best friend's ex either. It's kind of a mash up of all of those things that subverts the reader's expectations. I kept waiting for some big conflict to break up Jake and Juliet because that's what happens in romance novels. In fact, Juliet kept waiting for it too. The twist is that Jake refuses to let those external factors, ex-husbands for example, affect them. The result is a low drama story that still managed to have me in tears at times because as much as it has fluffy feel good elements, it also brings up loss and betrayal in both of their pasts.

I try to focus on the warm fuzzy parts though, especially the fabulous Bishop-Esara family. I wonder if they'd adopt me? I'm definitely looking forward to seeing more of them when the final brother gets his HEA, as well as catching up on the book I missed. (It's on my Romanceoploy TBR this year.)

Love Hard is book three (but the fourth book in the series) in the Hard Play series featuring sexy single dad Jacob Esera, and former bad girl Juliet Nelisi. This book can be read as a stand alone but be warned, you'll get a lot of characters from previous books and while the book lightly explains who they are, the prior books are so good and I'd highly recommend them. I love books with big families and interconnected stories and these characters have resonated with me since the first book, so I loved reconnecting with them all over again.

"Bad-girl Juliet Nelisi had grown into her bones, no more hard edges to her. Ah hell, who was he trying to fool? The woman was a hammer-to-the-head, bottle-of-whiskey knockout, full of dangerous curves that made him want to explore her inch by inch… then do it all over again."

Big brother Gabriel, who we meet in Rock Hard, is finally getting married to the lovely Charlotte and the whole family has gathered to celebrate, including the Rock Kiss gang *que giant squeee*. I loved Rock Hard so I was excited that the whole gang was here and we get a nice reunion with everyone.While Juliet and Jacob were pseudo mortal enemies in high school, they shared something very special; Calypso, who was Juliet's best friend and Jacob's high school sweetheart. After Callie passes away, Jacob devotes himself to be a dad to his little girl, Esme. At the same time, Juliet has cleaned up her act and has kicked aside a cheating ex sports star to the curb. But both of them are beyond surprised when they see each other at their friend's wedding after so many years and sparks fly, as well as the barbs and banter. As the two begin to spend more time with one another and open up about their pasts, Jacob realizes how much Juliet hid behind the facade of being the bad girl and how she used it to try and gain the attention and love of a family who had no space in their hearts for her. I love how much Jacob goes out of his way to show Juliet is loved. And little Esme gets in on the fun too.

“Want to know a secret?”
“What?”
“Juliet and I didn’t like each other then.”
“Really?” Eyes rounded, Esme looked from one to the other.“But you like each other now?” A serious question.
“Yes,” Jake said, his eyes meeting Juliet’s. “I really like her now.”
The knots in Juliet’s stomach grew hotter, tighter. Especially when Esme took one of their hands each and beamed.
“Good! I told her she can kiss you!”

Ack, the cuteness! Esme never knew her mom and while Jacob loved Callie, he's wise enough to have mourned her and know that he needs to move on for his and is daughter's sake. Finding Juliet and having her in their lives just makes them whole again and it's such a sweet thing to see her interaction with Esme and how it heals a big part of her. The feels! I have to say, I'm not a huge fan of enemies to lovers but there's no drama or fighting with how they connect and it works so well. Juliet is in need of a big, loving family and the Esera clan is happy to deliver.

4.5 "gets you in the feels" stars.

Love Hard is part of Nalini Singh’s Hard Play Series. It reads much more like some of her Rock Music romances then it does her PSY-Changeling Series. No real politics or need to change the society of the world in this series. However, it does have characters that life has dealt some serious blows who finds that a new change now may not be all bad.

The past does not have to be the defining characteristic in one’s life as Juliet learns. She has overcome so much but falling for a sport star is one she does not plan to repeat. Well, some of life’s best laid plans are shot down completely as hers is in this story. Jacob Esera’s life doesn’t go as planned either. Sometimes there is a silver lining and it is his young daughter in his case. Enjoyable story of misconceptions, misunderstanding and miscommunication while strong attraction overrides them all.

An ARC of the book was given to me by the publisher through Net Galley which I voluntarily chose to read and reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Jacob Esera comes from a large loving family. Juliet Nelisi did not. Jacob was a straight arrow in school, Juliet was a troublemaker. Jacob was not happy that his girlfriend Callie was besties with Juliet. Callie was Juliet’s touchstone in her troubled life. One day Juliet just left school and Jacob went on to have a child with Callie. When she died shortly after, Jacob became a single father who had support from his family as he went on to become a rugby star.
When Jacob’s brother Gabriel marries the love of his life Charlotte, Juliet turns up as a bridesmaid. All of a sudden two people who sort of hated each other find themselves strongly attracted to each other and determined not to do anything about it. Oh well, the best laid plans…
I loved everything about this book. It had at all, opposites attract, single dad, misunderstood girl, and burn up the pages lovemaking between the two characters. Every book in this series has been a page turner and this was no different. The contrast between Juliet’s lonely childhood and lack of love and support is contrasted with Jacobs strong family life. He judges her based on his life and she does the same. Watching them discover the things they come to love about each other makes for enjoyable reading.
Of course, the dilemma always is that you can’t wait to get to the end of the book but you really don’t want to get to the end of the book. There’s some pretty good hints about Danny possibly having something going on so I guess that’s what we need to hold onto until Ms Singh releases the next book.