Alexa Martin's romances have all started to blend together for me and I think at this point it's time to call it - after reading 3 books she's not an author meant for me! I appreciated how Snapped took on race in a way that Martin's previous books really hadn't explicitly done, but I think her style just isn't for me. This wasn't as heavy on the romance as her previous books, but I'm not sure if that' s a pro or a con. I do think she has a huge audience that will continue to read and love her books!

I definitely enjoyed this book just as much as the previous series. Extra bonus for adding in today’s social issues of grief and racism..kudos to the author for stepping out on that despite of opinion. It made the book that more realistic. Of course with all of Martin’s series, I hate that the characters waste so much time based off assumption but it always work out in the end. Shoutout to good friends though! Each book shows how important bonds and friendships are and gives the book and overall good feeling!

This was a fun, romantic read with some nice social commentary on issues with race and player treatment in professional football. I enjoyed the relationship between the two main characters and found them both charming. I didn’t necessarily believe that they were falling in LOVE, but it was still cute. I know this is part of a series and includes scenes with other members of the series, but I found those scenes somewhat distracting from the main plot. I’m sure people who read the whole series may feel differently. Very cute book and I’m glad I read it.

Elliot (Elle) is still new at her dream job doing PR for the Denver Mustangs when she's called into the owner's office and given her first major assignment: work with their newest Mustang, Quinton Howard Jr who's created a a PR nightmare for his team by covering up the NFL logo on his uniform and kneeling during the anthem. It's subtly implied that her job is on the line therefore she has to minimize whatever damage has been done and keep him from creating any more distractions. Elliot and Quinton don't quite hit it off upon their first meeting but come to some sort of weird truce to get the job done. In the meantime, the Mustangs owner recruits her to help him with a secret event. This is a potentially big career move so she agrees to it despite any reservation she might have about the owner's agenda.

It's a daunting task to address the issues of racism, Black Lives Matter, and unfair treatment of retired NFL players suffering from CTE in one book. It comes with heavy expectations. I think Snapped struggled here in three parts.

Firstly, it seemed to only graze the surface of the topic of race. For example, Elliot never specifically asks Quinton why he knelt during the anthem. Instead of trying to understand the motive behind his very public action, she views him as just an assignment, and his protest as a threat to her dream job. He's simply another one of those spoiled rich athletes that must be dealt with swiftly to please her boss. Her solution is to give Quinton an image makeover and steer the conversation away from his kneeling to his philanthropy work. That's a decent gesture but I didn't get the point of introducing his peaceful protest only to not really discuss its intent and ramifications.

There is plenty of emphasis on Elliot being biracial and how she's learned to internalize things or see past them. Having been raised by her white father, whom she loved and adored, she grew up looking past color. While she looks black, she's never ever wanted to be categorized as either black or white. She wants to be judged as a person. She comes to a startling realization about herself by the end of the book which majorly shifts her worldview. This is Elliot's experience and upbringing specific to her, and even though I'm not biracial I felt a certain kinship with her because of my own upbringing and experiences.

Secondly, there were too many subplots at the expense of a focused plotline. Aside from social justice issues, there's Quinton's fight for adequate compensation and care for older retired players who have been diagnosed with CTE. Then there's Elliot's immediate acceptance and friendships with the Lady Mustangs, and in particular, her involvement with one of the characters whose has marital problems. With several things happening simultaneously it became pure overload. I think removing some of those subplots would've streamlined the story and allowed for better exploration of the other topics. The marital problems and/or the instant friendships with the Lady Mustangs, for example could've been a separate book or novella.

The romance was fine, though I couldn't quite understand their emotional connection when Elliot never truly understands what currently matters to Quinton. I also felt she was keeping herself at a bit of a distance, too. It didn't help that he was being kind of cagey as well.

I was thrown off by the ending because it felt like suddenly everyone, including Quinton's teammates were on board with the kneeling, and that in turn inspires the entire stadium to do so. It's sudden and resolves everything with a neat little bow leading me to my third point: the story would've benefited from including Quinton's POV throughout and not just in the prologue. I think it would've enhanced his message exponentially to know his thoughts, see first-hand how his kneeling was impacting the team and his relationships with the other players. Whether those hard but frank conversations took place between Elliot and Quinton or Quinton and his teammates, it would've been insightful to have his perspective as a black man with a massive platform who wants to facilitate reform. I also think it would've given more meaning to the ending. Anyway, I understand the author has since revised it. (I can't speak to any changes since I have the original advance copy but I'll update my review in the future if I get the chance to revisit it again.)

I loved the previous books in the series so naturally I looked forward to Snapped. I struggled with this review because I wanted to be able to clearly identify what was off for me - the plot layout which didn't provide a wide enough space for the major topics while it gave away space to distracting subplots. It's because the main issues were either unexplored or underdeveloped that Snapped left me wanting.

It should be noted that this is the fourth book in the Playbook series and it may be beneficial to read the previous books in the series - even though Snapped is a standalone. ( I started with this one and that definitely could affect my rating.)
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What I really enjoyed:
- The writing! Alexa Martin is a talented writer and I'd read more by her any day!
- The banter! I loved the dialogue in this book and the relationships.
- Relevance. This book covers a lot of current, important issues. I felt like the author did a nice job navigating these issues and I felt like this was an educational rom-com.

However, the actual story, for me, dragged. I didn't find the plot super compelling and thus, it took em a while to get through the read.

Its rare that a contemporary romance meets such a high bar for providing education on timely issues regarding race. I found this book to be poignant and relevant to the matters at hand and would absolutely recommend for purchase. Instead of the take of many reads today, it focuses on the fictional, yet emotional, aspect of these challenges and gives the reader an insight that could be unfamiliar. Bravo.

Another great addition to the playbook series. I like how each books delves into more serious and more deep relationships and issues. I like that Quinton took a knee and blocked out his teams logo a la COlin Kapernick. I appreciate how in the book they end up resolving some of the racial injustices that are happening on the team unlike in real life. I really liked Elliot and Quinton's relationship and the will they won't they and lovers-to-friends tropes that were happening.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing

I've enjoyed this series and purchased the audiobooks for my library. I hope there will be more in this series. This book took me a little bit to get into, but once I got hooked, I flew through it.

Alexa Martin delivers again.

Due to the subject matter of this book, I knew it was going to be powerful. This book takes about much-needed topics such as racial injustice and CTE which affects football players everyday. It is rare that you find a book that speaks about social injustices and it is still a romance novel. For me that was put this book over the top for me.

Martin, speaks from experience as both a bi-racial woman and a ex-football wife, and that message really came across in this book.

Elliot is a bi-racial woman who was raised by her White father to be color-blind. Elliot turns her back from racism and tries to see the good in everyone. She is frankly uncomfortable with addressing racism when it happens and that's what makes Elliot such a good character. Because she has such a growth throughout this story. When Elliot is tasked to cover Quinton, someone who is not affaird to address racism and what he believes for head on, she is challenged beyond her wildest thoughts. Quinton makes her see the world in a different way and for her to face the way she is treated at her "dream job".

Quinton is the definition of an Alpha Male, he is strong and determined to make a change no matter if no one supports him. He is willing to stand for what he believes for, that why he is not affaird to cover the Leagues logo on his jerseys and for him to kneel during the nation anthem.

This book will make you think about what side you stand on and your views on social injustice, while at the same time allow you to fall in love with both Quinton and Elliot.

This book is a 5 star book for me, and I happy to have the chance to read the ARC of it.

Thank you both to NetGalley and Berkley for the pleasure.

Alexa Martin always gives us the book we want with a precise dose of what we need. I have said it before, and I am repeating it... Martin nails the challenging topics with grace throughout her novels, and Snapped is no exception.

Elliot has my heart. Her passion exudes off of the page as we get to know her. Quinton was hard to read for a while, but it worked for him. I loved their back-and-forth and appreciated their frank conversations about racism and the NFL. Their light-hearted and “fun” dialogue brought a smile to my face as well.

I was ecstatic to get this unplanned fourth book in the series. I am sad to say goodbye, but I know I will be back to read again.

I wasn't expecting this book. I am not sure how to review it because this book. I have been recommending Alexa Martin books to sports romance fans for an escape. This book hits headline issues head-on and while relevant and well-written, it is not what I expected to read.

4.5 stars - Loved this! Would re-read.

This may be my favorite book of the series (I still haven't read book 3, though). I loved the sharp, smart writing and the banter between characters like always. This is the sort of book that begs to be read out loud. But the subject matter - taking a knee, racism in football, racial identity for a biracial character, etc. - was superbly handled. My favorite part of the book was the relationship between Elle, her friends, and the "Lady Mustangs." The romance was fine, but for me it was the relationships among the female characters where this book shines. There are no miracle solutions offered for the problems explored here, which is realistic, but I enjoyed watching the characters wrestle with issues, and bring new pieces of the discussion into the spotlight.

Fans of the series should not miss this final book. Newcomers should be fine diving into this one first, but you will want to go back and pick up the other stories. (Language, sex)

I took a break from thrillers last weekend and read this one. This was a fun romcom to change up my reading. While this is a romcom it also highlights some serious issues in the NFL. CTE, kneeling, and BLM are all dealt with in the story. I am so happy the author brought all of these important elements forward. These are issues that I am frustrated with the NFL about. Their lack of empathy and interest in dealing with the issues their Black players deal with within the league and ongoing medical problems associated with CTE is frustrating. The NFL has been woefully negligent in dealing with these problems and I hope they are going to have to put in concrete measures and supports going forward.

This book is the same that it is a sports romance in the football world but different in the fact that it talks about a sensitive topic that we have seen in real life. The heroine is biracial and works for the Denver Mustangs. The love interest is the star Quarterback who kneels during the national anthem. He was truly trying to make a statement to show light on a lot of issues that he sees and deals with. One cause is the health of his father who used to play football. Elliots job as PR manager is to work with Quinton to find a solution but working together feelings come out to the forefront. Elliot faces a challenge given to her by upper management that will cause a rift and place those feelings in Jeopardy. This story had more heavier feelings and not as funny romance material as the past books in the series. To me Elliot was not my favorite heroine but I did enjoy Quentin. I think the author did this book justice and seeing as she is a actual football wife she knows a lot of the material she is writing about.

Alexa Martin is one of the most quick-witted and snappy, sassy authors that I adore! I have become such a huge fan of this series and jumped at the opportunity to be able to read this next installment! I loved every minute of it and appreciate having had the opportunity to read this before it is released! The characters are divine, the action and romance is complemented with just the right amount of intriguing drama and enticement. Well done, Ms. Martin! My thoughts on this are mirrored to what I feel about the rest of the series....read it, without delay!!

You would think from just the synopsis this one would be my favorite book of the series. But this one had some issues so it wasn’t my favorite, but I did like it. Quite different than her lasts and it’s about a more difficult subject matter. I was glad to see she took it on.

Elliot has the perfect job, the most perfect friends, and basically the life she’s always wanted. But then things get tough when the new quarterback for the Mustangs takes a knee during the anthem. Quinton is the son of a former player, who’s experiencing some really bad side effects. Now that Q has made a name for himself, he’s trying his hardest to make sure he can bring some change to the League. Elliot is signed to keep him in line. It’s not the best meeting at first, but as time goes on, things get much more interesting between them.

Ok so first things first. I liked the writing style as per usual with Martin’s books. It was such an easy listen and definitely kept me hanging on and wanting more. The narrators also did an awesome job as well.

Unfortunately, that was the only things that really stood out as “great” to me. Normally the characters in Martin’s stories are some of my favorites, but not this one. I was not a fan of Elliot and the way she kept excusing all the things that were happening. It is explained in the book and her author’s note so I didn’t hate her for it, but it’s not explained until the end of the book. I just thought it should have been addressed before then. As for Quinton, I thought he was fine, but I wished he was more prevalent to the story.

Then there was the synopsis. It literally mentions Quinton taking a knee and being the first to do so. But his campaign takes the backburner to Elliot’s internal struggles. It just seemed weird to me that this was big enough to note in the synopsis but not big enough to keep relevant? I just wanted more. After discussing this with Amber @ Du Livre, we both said it would have benefitted from having dual POV’s between her and Q. We could have gotten more of what was in his head and understood the way it was written more.

The Own Voices aspect was a saving grace for me. As stated, I was not a fan of Elliot, but I did forgive her. If it wasn’t for the author’s note with her explanation, I would’ve given up on her long ago. But that simple explanation made me ok with it. Not ok enough to where I liked it, but I was more accepting of it for sure. That’s the power behind Own Voices if you’re on the fence like I was, maybe seeing that can help you decide.

This was an interesting book, but it just wasn’t my cup of tea. I think I went into this thinking it would be about something else and it just wasn’t. It was good, but to me there were just too many things missing. Hopefully there’s more and this isn’t how the story ends.

I won this ebook from Berkeley Romance. Thank you! This book was okay, nothing spectacular. It took me way too long to finish it. Too many ups and downs for my liking. But with that being said, I would still like to read Alexa Martins other books.

I featured Snapped by Alexa Martin as Book of the Day across all my social media platforms. I found it to be a great addition to the series.

Special thanks to Berkley Romance and Netgalley for the e-Advanced Reader's Copy. Receiving this e-ARC did not affect my rating or review.

The Great: Alexa Martin did a fantastic job addressing the realities of grief and the loss of a parent. I related so well to Elliot's story, her emotions and some of her decisions. I cried at least three times in just the first half. Also, I enjoyed the friendship/found family trope written throughout the series but especially in this book. It's always great to see/interact with known and beloved characters. But to create characters that seamlessly blend into an already established friend group is priceless.

The Good: Most of the side characters and their development are enjoyable and engaging. Two side characters who stood out the most to me were; Vonnie and Donny. We meet Donny in Intercepted and underneath his loud foul mouth antics, he has a lot of love and care for his clients. We meet mom of three, lawyer, and wife to Denver Mustangs player Vonnie Lamar in Fumbled and her storyline progressed through Blitzed into Snapped. However in Snapped, we get to see a different side of Vonnie. Not just the badass mom, lawyer, and wife. And I enjoyed every minute of it.

I also enjoyed the slow burn aspect of the romance. It made for a steadier pace for the book.

The Bad: I didn't love the enemies-to-lovers aspect of the romance. To be quite frank, I didn't enjoy Quinton's character in the beginning of the book which made the tension fall flat for me.

You know I love a book when I really wish I could be BFF's with the author! Something about Alexa Martin's writing style-snappy and real-appeals to me so very much. This book is so important right now-dealing with issues that many readers might not know about. I appreciate her forward for the insight it gives, and I appreciate how frank this book is when showing how easy it is to turn a blind eye towards racism and sexism, especially when it's happening inside something you love or have really wanted to be part of. Q's character took me awhile to get into-but I loved Elliot from the very first page. I really hope there are more in the series-but I look forward to whatever world Alexa Martin chooses to write about next!