The Only Game in Town was a cute, fun read.

Beloved resident of Redford, Georgia Jasper Wilhelm has died. Rather than bequeathing his fortune in a typical way, he put together one last hurrah in his will and engages the entire town in a game with $10 million at stake for the winners.

I have enjoyed books from author Lacie Waldon in the past, and look forward to more books from her in the future.

i YELPED when I got approved for this arc. I have adored Lacie Waldons previous stories and this was no exception. I loved the small town vibes and "strangers" to lovers. I loved being able to get POV's from more than just the love interests. I felt it added additional depth to the story. It was just a feel good rom com and I adored it!

After reading the book blurb, I really hoped I’d be given the opportunity to read this book now, and the publishers were kind enough to extend one to me.

“The Only Game In Town” was exactly what I was hoping to read, and more. I’ve read many books where the POV switches between the male and female protagonists, but Waldon surprised me by including a small handful of chapters told from the perceived antagonist’s and Jess’s father’s POV! It was quite the clever way to add some extra depth to the story.

I could easily see this turned into a movie. (Hey Hallmark, please option this!) The story provides the perfect amount of quirk with the town’s recently-deceased philanthropist and benefactor bequeathing his fortune to one lucky duo who succeeds in winning a series of challenges. As other readers before me have mentioned, the toy Barbie Jeep race was hilarious. Lacie writes in such a way that I could easily picture the entire silly scenario.

If you’re looking for a book that will keep you both entertained, and satisfied with good writing, look no further than “The Only Game In Town.”

And, to those of you reading this review: this is the first ARC I’ve read that I’ve given a five-star rating. I haven’t been reviewing for long, but I promise, that’s saying something.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

To say I am in love with this book is an understatement! I was immediately captured by this small town and the people in it. Jess was such a bubbly character. You couldn’t help but love her and feel warm and welcomed by her existence. Her relationship with her dad, Ross, was to die for! I felt like I was a part of their little family. I do wish there would have been more father daughter scenes because it was such an important part of Jess’s character, but I savored every second of them together. Carter was the sweetest. I loved his energy and banter with Jess. Their relationship felt more ‘friends to lovers’ rather than ‘strangers to lovers’ even though they’d just met, and I wish I would have felt a little more tension leading up to their inevitable love. Nikki was such a complex character and I loved her spunk. She is such a down to earth, relatable character once you get to know her and she deserves the world! I do wish the author would have went more in depth with her. We learned small pieces of her life that was never really explained or resolved and I would have loved to see more of her. There were a few characters I felt we didn’t get enough of or that was underdeveloped that was important to the story. But overall, I loved the plot and the atmosphere that was set. I loved how competitive everyone was and how everyone fought for each other even when they were fighting against each other. It really built a sense of family and community. We do explore loss, grief, failure, self worth, and self discovery but in a lighthearted way that wasn’t too heavy. I laughed so many times while reading this and I couldn’t put it down. I would 100% read this one again!

The Only Game in Town is a fun and dynamic story brimming with charm.

Beloved resident of Redford, Georgia Jasper Wilhelm has died. Rather than bequeathing his fortune in a typical way, he put together one last hurrah in his will and engages the entire town in a game with $10 million at stake for the winners.

There is a lot happening here - we get romance, adventure, baking rivalries, friendship drama, and more as the people of Redford (plus Jasper’s grandson who lives in Atlanta) compete in pairs for the life-changing prize!

We are treated to several points of view including Jasper’s grandson, Carter, and ray of sunshine/romance book editor, Jess.

The romance is cute and is one of several enticing plots. Pick this up is you want a cheerful read about a small town and many of its whimsical inhabitants. Think Bluebell, Alabama from the TV show Hart of Dixie.

Thank you very much to Putnam Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy.

(Also, am I the only one who detected some chemistry between Nikki and Bryce?!)

Thank you to Penguin Group Putnam and Netgalley for an ARC of this book! I’ve willingly read and reviewed it. All opinions are my own.

Fans of quirky small towns and their even quirkier residents will love Lacie Waldon’s THE ONLY GAME IN TOWN.

Following the death of multimillionaire/philanthropist Jasper Wilhelm, Carter, his grandson, arrives in the small town of Redford, Georgia where he made his home, thinking that he has inherited Jasper’s fortune in order to continue their shared passion of giving it to those who need it or deserve it most. One of whom was Jess, a color-loving woman who Carter meets in the local bar and immediately likes, despite their differences. However, the town—and Jess and Carter—soon learn that his jokester grandfather has devised a series of team challenges with the victors winning $10 million to share. But the predetermined teams are made up of pairs who, for whatever reason, have become enemies over the years.

I loved reading about the challenges Jess and Carter, along with their partners Nikki, Jess’s high school (and current) bully, and Bryce have to conquer (children’s rideable Barbie Jeeps play a huge role in the most hilarious!), but each character’s reasons for competing in the game were what made this book relatable and truly gives the reader an insight into who these characters are.

Though I do feel as if the quirkiness of the town could have been amplified a bit, and the story could have gone deeper and explored certain characters and their relationships more fully (I would have loved more from Jess’s dad Ross who seemed like the kind of dad every kid needs), THE ONLY GAME IN TOWN was a fun read.

This was a fun read with cute banter. It had multiple POVs and good character building. I will be looking out for more books by this author!

Awwww! This is one of the sweetest, captivating small town stories the highly enjoy and I absolutely fell in with townies, their feuds, their solidarity, their genuine relationships!

Unique narration choice of this book was quite refreshing and creative! We don’t only read the POVs of hero and heroine, we also read heroine’s father and her arch nemesis’ POVs ! I have to say: I loved all those characters! The friendship, the people’s complex relationships, small town’s genuine and honest unity made me love the book a little more! This is more than romance, it’s about the tight knitted community, their devotion, their feuds, their daily life struggles!

The story telling style was alluring. You easily get into the story, involving into lives of the characters, engaging with their problems!

Jess and Carter are so lovely and great example of opposites attract! Jess is good with words as Carter is great with numbers.

Jess; left her editing job in New York to take care of her father Ross, getting stuck in Redford, feeling safe in her cocooned life! Her relationship with her father is so adorable!

Carter, a financial adviser, leaving his corrupted family empire and getting estranged with her parents for nearly one decade. His grandfather Jasper is only family he has. He was Redford’s eccentric, joyful benefactor, secretly helping people. Carter helped him to conduct his plan like Robin who serves for his Batman.

Now Jasper is dead and in his will he left 10 million dollars to townies. But there’s a catch: there will be a competition including series of challenges : scavenger hunt, hiking, racing in literally Barbie cars, pie eating contest etc. The winner duo will win and share the money!

Unfortunately the duos are already chosen by Jasper! If you want to object your teammate, you’ll be disqualified! And each of team members find themselves paired with her/ his own archenemy! Poor Jess also has to team up with Nikki: a mean girl/ bully who likes to humiliate her in front of the crowd!

And Carter teams up with Bryce: entertaining, carefree bartender.

At first Jess doesn’t care to win as much as her competitive partner Nikki, but when a secret comes out, she becomes more determined, focusing her eyes on the price. She is so adamant not to be distracted by the charms of Carter who slowly becomes her confidante.

He plans to go back to Atlanta as soon as the competition is over. There is no possible future relationship for them. They are so different!

But what if they can both win in love and get the big prize!

Interestingly I also enjoy mean girl Nikki’s POV, too. I didn’t expect to connect with her after her first appearance at the bar: bullying Jess with her mean girls group. But she surprised me a lot!

Overall: I’m rounding up 4.5 stars to 5 heartwarming, small town, entertaining stars!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin GROUP PUTNAM/ G. P. Putnam’s Sons for sharing this amazing digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest thoughts.

Told from multiple POVs, this story follows several people from Redford, GA, as they compete in pairs for $10 million. I liked watching the relationship build between Jess and Carter. Having just met, you’d think competing against each other would make things tense. But their banter was cute and it was fun seeing how they worked together, even on different teams.

I could have done without the “mean girls” element, but I know some people like that kind of drama in their stories.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. Watch for The Only Game In Town to come out March 21, 2023.