First Down is the first book in Leslie North’s Sharks Football sports romance series. Mark is seeing is life long dream come true. He’s playing in front of adoring fans as a professional footballer on is favourite team. He’s settling in with the rest of the guys and getting the hang of how life on a professional team is going to be. That is until his ex sends him a message out of the blue. Tessa has been keeping a secret from Mark - his son.

This is true sports romance with locker room banter and drama and on the field action scenes. I would have liked the storyline of Mark meeting his son for the first time to have been more played out as it was quite insta-family for me. A lot of the story surrounds the burgeoning relationship between Mark and Tessa and there is a lot of negativity for them to work through out with trying to mend their relationship

This is a second chance, sports romance and a quick read that will help you pass an afternoon.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book for an honest review. I enjoyed the story, but I didn't feel it was at the top of this troupe for me. I was just a bit bored as I read this story and wished for more as I was reading. It was good enough that I would like to read another book by this author, but didn't wow me enough to want to look for another by her immediately. I guess I just had higher hopes for it because of the blurb. Not bad, but not great.

First Down by Leslie North

A well written easy read book by Leslie North about second chance romance.

Reasonably good story a few steamy moments and a little bit of drama for good measure all round read as you would expect from a Leslie North novel.

What a cute story!

I love a good sports romance and this one is no exception! A football player? Yes, please! I loved the characters, they had a lot of life in this book, and the story was entertaining throughout! Plus, it touched on what we don't usually read in romance novels so I was glad to see that too.

Thank you NetGalley and Victory Editing for the earc in return for an honest review.

** I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.**

I love a good second choice story. However, this one didn't work as well for me. I tend to have issue with surprise you have a kid storylines. I understand the I wanted to protect you thing but, for me, the dishonesty is overrides it.

This is a very good book. You don’t want to put it down. You are rooting for the two main characters to get back together.

Leslie North consistently brings great characters and passionate romance to life. As a big fan North's, her name provokes an automatic one-click from me. I am always entertained.

I really enjoyed this book, it was totally different than what I'm used to reading, so I read it in one sitting! I couldn't put it down!

This is my first book by author Leslie North and I really enjoyed her writing, plus I love sports books.

First Down is the first book in the new sports romance series, Sharks Football. This is a sweet and entertaining story which is an easy read. There is not a lot of drama between Mark and Tessa which I would have expected a bit more. But in the end they all get their sweet and smexy HEA.

"First Down" beinhaltet eine Geschichte, die man so oder so ähnlich häufiger in Liebesromanen findet. Was ich per se nicht als negativ bewerte, denn auch eine altbekannte Geschichte kann, wenn sie richtig gut geschrieben ist und besondere Charaktere enthält, wirklich tolle Unterhaltung bieten. Bei "First Down" war das leider nur bedingt der Fall.

Der Schreibstil ist recht einfach gehalten und man kann der Geschichte leicht folgen. Leider fehlt den Charakteren die notwendige Tiefe und der Geschichte insgesamt die Substanz, um mich als Leserin überzeugen zu können.

Alles wirkte ganz nett und harmlos, die Geschichte plätscherte so vor sich hin und nichts konnte meine Emotionen so richtig packen oder mich mitreißen. Beim Lesen vergaß ich aufgrund dessen nie, dass es sich "nur" um Charaktere handelt.

Ich würde "First Down" als Buch bewerten, das maximal als leichte Lektüre für zwischendurch geeignet ist.

First down was a fast paced, easy read that had a sexy rookie NFL star as the lead character with his old high school girlfriend coming back into his life. I liked the storyline but there was only one real twist in it and that difficulty was very easily resolved for the characters

It's easy to see how this book is the first in a series about the many characters on the Sharks team and if you like sports romances then I recommend that you give it a read.

I really enjoy sports romances so was really keen to read this story, but to be honest it left me a little flat and I felt that the issues were resolved with so very little drama and tension that it felt more like a teenage romance. . So I am afraid I found it a little too light for my taste, but thank you for allowing me to read a copy of this book.

I love sports romances so I was excited to see this football one come available. I felt like it actually had a lot of good life lessons in it. The parts about football players finances were woven seamlessly in but we're also very true. I also liked the lessons that Tessa learned both about her job and also her other incident.

I did feel like the surprise kid part went way to easily for everyone. Mark got over it pretty fast in my opinion. I ​also was hoping for a little more football in the story.

I actually felt like this was more about Tessa than Mark even though the title screens football.

I received an advanced copy of this book through NetGalley. This is my honest review.

This book certainly has nothing new to the story line, predictable and no angst, so If you are looking for a quick, sexy read with a HEA, this one is for you! I don’t know if I will continue reading this series, but thank you to netgalley for the ARC and all opinions are my own.

When I saw a sports romance from Leslie North, I knew I had to request it. Usually I read about Sheikh's or billionaires from Leslie, so I was curious what she could do with hot sport guys. Well, she certainly knows how to portrait the hot football pro mark.

And Mark is living the football pro life. Making big bucks and enjoying the single life. Until at a meet-and-greet of a children's party, he looks into the eyes of a five-year-old carbon copy of himself. And the mother of said boy is no one else than Mark's high school sweetheart Tessa, who ghosted him six years ago.. Now, Mark is suddenly a dad and although he is angry that Tessa kept his son away from him, he is determined to be an actual father figure from now on. Tessa has felt guilty ever since she decided to keep her pregnancy a secret from mark. But she couldn't let Mark throw away a promising NFL career. And of course she is happy that mark is now stepping up for their son. And maybe, just maybe, he can forgive her for her choice. Because it was also hard on Tessa to leave the love of her life. In totally Leslie North-style, the story was cute, hot and heartwarming. Although I found that Mark was very easily over his anger and back into lovey-dovey with Tessa. I don't know if it is easy to overcome the fact that you haven't seen your son in his first five years.

So, a little unbelievable, but other than that, totally great. Four out of five stars from me and a special thank you to Netgalley for providing the are.

A rookie year for this newest series by Leslie North and a nice change of pace. This is a second chance romance between two teens, who happen to run into each other six years down the road. Surprises, drama, angst, steam and romance abound. Great beach or vacation read.

This was an ok read for me. This is why, it seemed like this story has been told before. Maybe not the same was as this book, but it has been done a million times and it was predictable. Like I said, it was just ok.

First Down, Sharks Football #1 by Leslie North
Rating: 4-stars
Summary:
Mark is an NFL rookie running back. He’s young, hot, and talented. He also happens to have a 5-year-old son he does not know about, but it about to meet. Tessa is Mark’s high school sweetheart and the mother of his son (you know the one he does not know about, yet…). She got pregnant senior year and before she could work up the courage to tell Mark she was pregnant, he laid out his plans to play college ball and make it to the NFL. She fled and hid her secret so that Mark would be able to pursue his dream.
Now, Tessa is in Savannah, where Mark is playing for the Sharks. During the game Tessa’s son, Angus, is on the jumbotron and Mark happens to see both Angus and Tessa. Tessa had also reached out to Mark to ask to meet up with him in several days. They meet up much sooner, that night in fact.
In short, Mark figures out Angus is his son and Tessa fills in the blanks. Mark is hurt at first that she did not tell him, although he does understand her reasoning. They fall into old habits and start their relationship back up. All goes well until the paparazzi get involved with a stolen photo of Tessa from Mark’s phone. Tessa’s job as a religious private school is in jeopardy and Mark’s answer is that he will take care of her with his football money. Tessa is frustrated because while has the money now, that is not a long-term plan and after growing up in poverty, she does not want that for their son. They take a break where Mark figures out a back up plan and Tessa realizes she cares more about Angus, Mark and their family than a job that clearly does not want her. They end up moving in together and trying for another baby.
I enjoyed this book overall, hence the 4-star rating. That said, I do wish there was more substance to this story. I’ve read several of Leslie North’s books and I know they tend to be on the shorter side for what I typically read, but this is the first one where I felt like there was really substance missing that would have given more to the story. For instance, when they take a break, Mark figures out a backup plan and Tessa discovers she really does not want her job since they treat her horribly. Also, the ending ties up so quickly and yet leaves you with Mark and Tessa moving in together the following Spring, but that’s all it is, just moving in together. Call me old fashioned but there is no talk of a more permanent relationship or marriage, just let’s move in and have another baby.
If you want a fun, quick, and steamy contemporary read, then enjoy this book.
I received a free advance reader copy via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

I generally enjoy sports romances in general, but I found myself wishing there was a little more substance to this one! First Down by Leslie North is a second chance romance (with a secret baby!) where the hero, Mark, is a professional football player and the heroine is Tessa, his highschool sweetheart who hid their child Angus from Mark for years. When the two reunite and Mark finds out about Angus, I do wish more time could have been spent on addressing that Tessa hid an ENTIRE CHILD from him and how that's a gross breach of trust. The reason Tessa gave was, in my opinion, flimsy at best, and then it's just glossed over as the book progresses. Overall, it was a fun and easy read, but I'd like this sports romance to delve a little more into deeply emotional territory!

Thanks to NetGalley and Victory Editing for this ARC.

I've read a lot of sports romances, it's one of my favorites, and this was solidly good. I wasn't blown away by it, but it was nice to read a second chance romance that's different from most.

The characters could have been developed better, but they had good chemistry, and it was nice to find myself mad at what was happening to them in the story, as opposed to what they were doing to each other during the course of the story.

Overall, it was a quick read, and definitely something that I'd recommend if you like light romance.