The Good Race is the first book in the sweeping Grayson Falls contemporary romance series. If you like compelling characters, shocking twists, and passions that endure, then you’ll adore A.M. Mahler’s moving story.

4.5/5 stars!
- absolutely loved this book. I thought it was going to be a sappy romance & I got a good mixture between return of a past lover and a potential murder.
- Im off to buy all the books so that I can have the whole series on my shelf!!

“…I realized that I wanted to have something to lose.” -From The Good Race

2.5 stars

Oh, I tried to like this book. I loved the opening, and was drawn in. Then we got a flashback. I thought, if I can just get through this section of them being teenagers, I will be fine. I was wrong. There, the story goes from unbelievable characters, to POV’s that switch faster than you can blink an eye. Then enter multiple storylines. It was like a train going further off the tracks. The writing was inconsistent along with that.

I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.

This had great promise, and I was really engaged in the first part of the book when the main couple were teenagers. My problem came later, when they were adults, and things began to make less and less sense. A couple of points to call out as to why this didn't work for me...

Switching POVs - the POV switched constantly, without warning, and, at times, mid-paragraph. One minute we would be reading from Jackie's POV, the next Daniel's, and then as the story progressed, more people jumped in as well. It became very tiring as a reader to keep up. If multiple POVs are in one book, they need to be clearly defined.

Too Many Storylines - I was fine with two storylines, if we wanted Jackie's brother to get his own romance alongside hers. I wasn't crazy about it, but I was willing to accept it. However, when other couples started jumping in, I had enough. The book really needed to focus on Jackie and Daniel, but once they became adults, it was all over the place. Each couple needed their own book, and I kept feeling like the author was trying to shove multiple storylines into one book.

If this book has focused on Jackie and Danny, with only two POVs, I would have absolutely loved it. Sadly, the multiple POVs and storylines caused the overall book to lose focus, and I wasn't able to fully enjoy it.

The Good Race is the first book in the Grayson Falls series by A.M. Mahler. In this book we are introduced to the main characters Jackie and Danny. They meet at an exclusive boarding school where Jackie is the shy girl and Danny is kind of a rebel - that is until he meets Jackie. Due to circumstances beyond their control, they are separated and don't meet again until Danny shows up in Jackie's emergency room suffering from a gunshot. I don't want to give too much away, but I really loved this book. It has just enough romance, just enough conflict, and even a touch of mystery. This book also sets up the rest of the series by either introducing us to the characters in future books or telling us about them just a little. Jackie and Danny's romance is complete in this book, but there are still some unanswered sub-plots that will be handled in future books. So, while this book is a stand-alone, I think the rest of the series will be best read in order. I plan to go right on with this series because it was that good, and all six books are available to binge immediately!

My sincere thanks to the author, Fox Chase Books LLC, and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book and give my unbiased opinion of it.

I loved this book. Such a simple story line is complicated and added to beautifully as a shy teen and a bolshie one fall for each other. What could have been a simple romance turns into a mystery that is only have solved in the book. A few well crafted flash backs and differing points of view help build the story and you fall for each of the characters that are at the heart of the novel.
My only complaint is that there were quite a few threads still to tie up as the book ended and it felt that a couple could have been sorted rather than having to read on for quite so many.

I really enjoyed this book. The characters were really interesting and well written. The small town of Grayson Falls feels real enough that you don’t have difficulties imagining it. The romance between Jackie and Danny is lovely and very heartwarming.

All of that being said, I did struggle through the first half of this book. I so wanted to spend some more time with Jackie and Danny during their time at boarding school. BUT, once everything started rolling I was speeding through the second half. I then was thoroughly invested in all the characters and all the plot lines.

I look forward to reading about some of the other new residents of Grayson Falls.