"Double Dog Dare" by Tracy Solheim is a charming contemporary romance that explores the journey of two individuals who find themselves entangled in a friendly dare turned romance. The book delivers on light-hearted banter and chemistry between the main characters, creating an enjoyable read. However, the plot lacks depth and could benefit from further development, while the secondary characters feel somewhat underdeveloped. Despite these shortcomings, "Double Dog Dare" offers a sweet and entertaining romance for those seeking a light-hearted escape.

I loved these characters and the setting (yay for more books set in the Midwest!). A fun read for sure and I would read more of the author's books! The only negative about this book was the font was a liiiiiiitle small in the print format (I bought the book even though I got the galley through NG).

Solheim gives readers a wonderful set of secondary characters, a satisfying romance, and a couple that you can truly root for. And while Luke’s view on relationships may seem a bit misogynistic, he actually is very upfront about it, only getting involved with like-minded people. Everyone is aware of the situation and is in agreement of what it is and what it isn’t. Then he meets summer ,,, and realizes maybe he wants something else after all.

(I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about the fact that Luke was dating Summer’s cousin first, cheating in any shape or form is definitely a firm no for me, but it actually resolved itself in a satisfying way.)

Summer is struggling with her confidence after a disastrous viral performance, unsure if she can ever play again and what that means for her future. Meeting Luke quickly upends her life and has her rethinking things. And while he may feel that he’s not relationship material, he quickly proves that wrong, showing himself to be so amazingly supportive as she works through her issues with performing again.

The assorted friends and family bring additional moments of humor and emotion throughout the story, adding depth and feels to an already delightful story. I’m very much hoping to see more in this series going forward.

Luke and Summer;s romance. Fun book with hunky football players. Good story, hard to put down. Love the dogs too.

This book was fabulous. I enjoyed the character and relationship
development, I loved that it was more than just two people falling in love. That it included multi-generations of characters and family relationship development. Also, I loved the inclusion of the dogs!

This was a nice sweet novel, I thought the animal rescue aspect was going to play a larger role given the name but that's obviously not a big deal. It some ways I feel like it just scratched the surface of its potential but I liked the characters and team aspect.

A solid 3.5 sports romance. This book had a lot of things that worked for it and a few things that weren’t so great.

To start, I absolutely love that the cover of this book was not just a shirtless man. The addition of the dog in the photo makes it super appealing plus he actually looks like he’s having fun?

I also liked that the FMC had an unusual hobby/career path. You don’t see a lot of books with a cellist as the main character. She was on the hot mess express for most of the book, which was endearing most of the time but obnoxious at others.

The MMC was great. He seemed mature and well adjusted, which is sometimes a rare find in this genre. I loved his love for Monty. His dares at the beginning of the book were also a big highlight for me. I wish that there had been more dares throughout the book ….seeing that the title has the word dare in it. Plus the word dog….we only ever met two dogs and on some level they weren’t really that big of a part of the plot.

My favorite part of this whole book though was the social life of the senior citizens. They were the stars of this book. I loved meddling Mrs. H.

The things that didn’t work so well for me were things like the poorly translated French. I promise you there’s a world of people who would love to help you translate things instead of going it on your own if you’ve never taken French or don’t speak it. I also don’t really know how it helped the plot…so there’s that.

The chemistry between Luke and Summer was there but it was like a warm pot rather than a scorching read. In the beginning, I kinda thought she was going to end up with Antonio because they seemed to have more in common and better chemistry.

Another thing I struggled with was that while it was a sports romance….the sport didn’t seem to play that big of a part.

I also struggled because every once in a while, someone would call the dog Lillie when her name is Milli and I don’t know if that was intentional…I’m assuming not because I doubt that Summer would forget her own grandmothers dogs name.

Lastly, the characters, while somewhat developed, still fell a little flat. What was Luke’s favorite meal, what pet peeves does he have? We know he likes dogs and dares and football and dislikes his dad but beyond that? No idea.

I enjoyed this romantic comedy by Tracy Solheim. Double Dog Dare combines humor, angst, romance, friendships and family dynamics for a heartwarming, sexy story. The characters have depth and as the story evolves we see that all is not what it may seem on the surface. I look forward to reading more in this series!

ARC Complimentary copy provided by NetGalley for an honest opinion. Luke and Summer's love is full of stage fright and family complications. It is a fun and spunky read for any romance fan.

I really loved this story. This couple was so sweet and caring. There were more layers to this story than expected from the blurb. Our main characters backstories was great and I it was great seeing them evolve. Our glimpses into her grandparents relationship was sweet and heartbreaking. As someone that worked in dementia care for years, I was so happy to see the book modelling "live in their reality" responses to confusion and incorrect names. Side characters added depth and humour to our story. Overall, an excellent romance. *I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and this is my voluntary and honest review.

This book was ok. I actually liked the hero a lot better than the heroine. He seemed to handle himselfs in a much more mature way. I liked the family and friends dynamic in this book.

Hey folks, daddy Steve again with some more doggiebook talk. Just last week I reviewed a fun romance one that had football and puppies, well this one is in the same vein although from a different author and slightly different in vibes. I’m talking about Double Dog Dare from author Tracy Solheim. This is the second book in the Milwaukee Growlers series. The Milwaukee Growlers is the fictional football team in the book. This book is presented as a standalone without a cliffhanger and I would agree that it read very well without having read the first book.

I found the characters in this book interesting, with deep, if at time convoluted, personal stories. There’s a little to deal with Alzheimer’s as well as a lot of peronal issues. I liked the interaction between the football players of the team, it felt natural and a bit of what I would expect in real life.

The doggie action felt natural and fun, they are indeed part of the story, with main football player character being a wide receiver who’s really involved with rescuing dogs. His dog is a pit bull…

Some moments got me misty eyed to be honest. Again, not because any dog hurt or died. 😉

This is another recommended read for dog lovers!

Huge thanks to NetGalley who provided a free eBook advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review. This is as honest as it gets... The book is currently availble for you to buy.

PS: I didn’t originally plan on reading the other Milwaukee Growlers books cause they center on the relationships of other players, them without dogs, but I might change my mind someday. The author made me care about them…

#Malcolmstories #doggiebooks
#NetGalley #DoubleDogDare

If you like sports romances or football, you will like this book a lot.

I did enjoy the banter between the characters and the spunky seniors in the book. The seniors definitely made the book for me.

I was disappointed that this book was less about dogs than the cover would imply. They were peppered into the book but didn't have a big role in the story.

If you like sports romance where the hunky jock falls for a quirky, not-at-all-a-supermodel woman, then you'll love this book. Oh, and dogs! It's a really cute story that I polished off in a few hours.

Summer is a music teacher slash YouTube-famous cellist who pretty much gave up her dreams after she froze on stage. She slowly starts to come out of her self-inflicted musical isolation after temporarily moving to Milwaukee to spend time with her grandparents. Her and Luke's meet-cute (minus most of the cute) occurs at her grandparents' senior community, where Luke's grandmother also lives. A few things stand in their way but eventually things get hot and heavy. But both have fears that could prevent them from attaining their HEA.

Summer and Luke are adorable both individually and together. I do feel, however, that a little too much happens in the plot, which makes it hard to really immerse yourself in their journey from sniping to snogging. Summer has her stage fright, her grandmother's illness, a new job teaching music at a school with almost zero funding, impending LSATs, various last-minute cello performances, and tension between her and her mom. Luke has his career, a new dog, a contentious relationship with his father, moms who live half a world away, and fears of people he loves leaving him behind. These bits are interesting, but I think all of these things happening detract from Summer and Luke's growing relationship. So much is packed in that I feel like I missed the moment when their flirtatious antagonism turned into something more positive. One minute he's dating her cousin and the next they're in a relationship.

All that aside, it's a really fun book that made me laugh more than once. I would definitely read more in this series and from this author.

I received an ARC of this book for free from the publisher and Netgalley. I'm leaving this honest review voluntarily. Thanks!

Double Dog Dare, the second book in the Milwaukee Growlers series by Tracy Solheim, takes you once again into the realm of professional football…providing a spirited backdrop to the dynamics of its players and their families. The different narratives seamlessly threaded together make for an alluring romance not only involving Luke and Summer…who are incendiary together and melt the heartstrings…but other family members as well. Less not forget the very spirited septuagenarians whose machinations bring a whole other entertaining aspect to the story.

With this author’s trademark dynamic characters, wry banter and an engaging witty dialog, the story moves at a rapid pace as the emotions of the characters evolve thus creating different aspects of romance at different stages in life.

Ms Solheim has penned another wonderful sports romance to immerse yourself in that stays with you long after the last pages has been turned.

This ARC book was complimentary, provided by the Publisher and NetGalley. I am voluntarily providing my honest review.

4.5 stars. As an undersized wideout with a football legend for a father, Luke is no stranger to needing to prove himself. He has a system for doing that, and it doesn't involve messy entanglements with prissy, disaster-prone women who aren't impressed with him. For her part, Summer just wants to finish her temporary substitute teaching assignment in peace while reviving her grandmother's beloved music program and grappling with the abrupt, painful end of her performing career.. She doesn't need a too-handsome-and-cocky-for-his-own-good man, or his galumphing dog, underfoot. Fate, however, seems determined to put them in each other's paths.

This was an enjoyable romance, but even more enjoyable as a broader story. I liked Luke and Summer's friends and families. I liked the motley crew at Sunset Glen retirement home. I loved the vivid sense of place the author created when including so much Wisconsin flavor. There was a heartfelt, and important, message about what loving someone "'til death we do part" really means.

That said, the romance was very nice. It built realistically and was delightfully spicy. Luke and Summer both had things to work out and growing to do, and it was nice to see how they managed it. I was definitely cheering them on.

Pick this up for a wonderfully layered, fun story with some great chemistry and lots of heart!

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

I was totally drawn to the cover of this book. After reading a number of romances it was nice to see a guy on the cover who actually seemed to be having fun. The books was enjoyable enough though not anything particularly unique.the characters fell kind of flat in the long run though I did enjoy the entanglement of the grandparents and dogs into the story.

ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for honest and fair review.

This book was a solid romance, with my favorite enemies to lovers trope, but isn't outstanding. The book handled many different tougher topics and I think does it well. I liked their relationship and their relationship and inevitiable troubles and resolutions felt realistic. I do think that Summer, the female main character, is supposed to be grumpy to the males sunshine, but often she just reads as unlikable/self absorbed/overdramatic. It's a fine line to walk, so this is a more personal opinion that character-development note.

My main complaint is the description implied there would be outright dares and lots of dogs, and there really isn't either, both a very very small subplots.

Double Dog Dare is an enemies to lovers starring a rescue dog loving NFL player and a disgraced cellist turned music teacher. I think y'all can see why I wanted to pick this one up.

Things I loved:

🐾 The musical content is actually pretty accurate! This may not sound like much, but if you've been around here you know this is a pet peeve of mine.
🐾 Luke is a such sweet MC and is so unbelievably patient with Summer throughout this story.
🐾 I'm obsessed with Luke's teammate Anthony. I hope he gets his own book! Honestly I found him to be the star of the show.
🐾 The conversations regarding the elitism of string players and the disregarding of Summer's talents because she is not classically trained were spot on.

Things I didn't love:

🐾 Summer is whiny and annoying for almost the entirety of her interactions with Luke. If her character behaved the way she did with Anthony the whole time, I think I would have enjoyed this story much more.
🐾 This book was sold to me with the promise of a dog loving NFL player, but yet the dogs are a teeny tiny part of the plot. I wanted more.
🐾 The conflict / miscommunication made me so mad at the end. Summer is honestly such a bratty child in that moment and I think Luke had nothing to apologize for in that moment.

This book is part of a series but was able to be read as a stand-alone. I hadn’t read the other books in the series and still enjoyed the book. I expected this book to be a light read - I was not expecting some of the tough topics it covered. The author handles the topics very well and you can really feel the pain of the characters. Speaking of characters, I LOVED Luke, Summer and their gangs. I do tend to prefer more spice in my books.

I was given an Advances Reader Copy by NetGalley for an honest review.