When Miri wins the lottery jackpot she must face her estranged husband after eight years of no contact to seek a divorce so her winnings are protected. But once they reconnect it’s hard for them to end things and Leo fights for a second chance at their marriage

This premise was fun and I loved the dialogue, world building, and every side character popped right off the page! The vibe of the book was a lot quieter than I expected so it took me a second to settle into the story but once I did I felt like I was part of a small town

Overrated Book:
Play to Win
By: Jodie Slaughter

WHAT DO PEOPLE SAY?
An emotional book about second chance romance.

HOW I FELT ABOUT IT:
The premise of this book sounded amazing. However, I still struggled with the overall idea of the book. Miri and Leo seem like they have amazing chemistry, sure, but thats not all you need to make a romance last, and I didn’t see anything that made me feel like they could go the distance. I also felt like, as a lottery winner, there is more Miri could have done if she wanted too.

DO I STILL RECOMMEND IT? Maybe

——

Play to Win was kindly provided as an ARC by Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press. Thank you for allowing me to read this wonderful book!

Release Date: 7/11/23

I went into this book very excited. I thought it would be so fun to see Miri’s life change, and how Leo would fit into that story. While that did happen, yes, I still found this story to be just ok. It had its moments, but in general, I wasn’t in love with the overall story.


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The initial storyline with the main character Miri winning the lottery intrigued me. The book slightly declined in excitement as the storyline progressed, but I still thoroughly enjoyed this second chance love between Miri and Leo. I was rooting for Leo to be given a second chance the entire time. Leo's determination, love, and lack of wanting anything but to be with Miri made his character so admirable.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Matin's Press for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this story as I did the previous one in the series.
Miri's life is forever changed as she has won the lottery, and a significant amount at that. With this life changing event, she finds herself having to contact her estranged husband, Leo, and dealing with all the unresolved issues and emotions that led to the breakdown of their marriage.
I liked how the story explored the uncertainty around having a windfall of money having grown up in poverty, and they almost feeling of anxiety that it can cause, even though it's supposed to be a good thing.
The story also interrogates gender roles and expectations, especially the narrative around men being providers for their families, and how that affected Miri and Leo's relationship.

Oh my goodness, this novel was perfection from start to finish. The dialogue and relationship dynamics felt very authentic. I felt Miri and Leo’s love, desire, and devotion to one another. And the love scenes reflected that as well. Their chemistry was absolutely out of this world. I felt their confusion at the familiarity and yet disconnect that comes with being around someone you’ve known on the inside and out for years and suddenly you’ve grown distant. I loved everyone’s honesty towards one another. I really felt the love and care all of these characters had for one another and I’d like to read separate novels centered around all of these characters. No one felt like a filler character, they all felt like a puzzle piece important to the novel. Loved it!

Play to Win was such a cute second chance romance! The female MC ends up winning the lottery, changing her life and the lives of those around her but there’s one little problem… She’s technically still legally married even though he left eight years ago. When her husband comes back into town, to say the relationship is tumultuous is the least of it but man is their chemistry! A great rom com that also touches what really matter in life from family to friends to love.

After loving Bet On It, I was hoping to enjoy this one as much. Unfortunately it did not live up to the sophomore hype. The beginning hooked me but then the storyline dragged. I mean really dragged. The steamy sex scenes are what saved this novel and there should have been more. The indecisiveness of the main character became old after a while and the no income of the estranged husband seemed strange since that was the primary reason he left eight years ago.

Great book I loved it so much. Book cover is lovely. Characters was amazing. I can’t wait for release date so I can purchase this book.

2.25/5 stars! This is a contemporary romance and my first read by author Jodie Slaughter. I was excited by the premise and the promise of a second-chance romance. The concept of twists and turns that come with winning the lottery were clever and fun. My issue was that for a romance novel, the romance was severely lacking. It felt like two strangers that wanted to bone rather than an intricate relationship between estranged spouses. I really couldn't get into the story.

I received an advance review copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Now. I don't really read second chance romances. Jodie Slaughter, however made me want to give it a go. This was not me as I struggled to connect with characters.

Miri is struggling to make ends meet while living with her mother in the house she grew up in. One day she randomly decides to buy a lottery ticket and ends up winning over 200 million dollars. This seems like a miracle until she realizes that although she and her ex have been estranged for almost a decade, he still may be able to fight for half of her earnings...because they are still legally married. Miri and her ex, Leo, set up an agreement that she will give him money to fix up his aunt's house. But the other problem is, the house is in the same small town where Miri lives. This is the closest proximity the two have had in years, and they both begin to reevaluate if they are better apart or together.

This is the second installment in Jodie Slaughter's series which follows friends in a small southern town. I enjoyed the first book, "Bet on It" that came out a year or two ago. So I went into this book with positive expectations. There was a lot that met them. Just as Slaughter included in the previous book, mental health and childhood circumstances played a significant part in this story. I appreciate that because all adults have to work through that to have a healthy relationship. It really added to the story to show Miri working through the emotional and mental ramifications of going from a low-income lifestyle to being a multi-millionaire. She went through so many phases of confusion, guilt, excitement, and much more. These factors do change the tone from a typical sunshine rom-com to a story that is closer to women's fiction, I don't mind that at all. But it is something to know before going into this one.

The banter and general dialogue in this book seemed very realistic to me. I liked that the characters' dialogue was accurate for their age, upbringing, and humor. I felt like I was listening in on conversations between friends.

Another aspect of this book that I enjoyed was the side characters. It was cool to see a cameo of the couple from the first book. While I would have liked to see more scenes with the friend group, I did think they added a lot by giving Miri sound advice, even when she didn't want to hear it. Miri's mom was my favorite character though. She did a wonderful job of being a protective mom but also a loving one. She didn't let her pride take over when Miri wanted to spoil her and she told Leo exactly how she felt about his behavior.

That brings me to who I struggled with in this book, which is mostly just one person: LEO. I wanted so badly to root for a second chance, childhood best friends romance, But Leo's behavior did not allow that. I can't say much about what irked me, as it would be a spoiler. But I will say that his reasoning for his part in their fallout did not seem like a good enough reason. Granted, I can not relate to him as I am not a man or husband. However, for the amount of time that he spent away from her and how passionate he was when he returned, the logic was not there for me. It was really hard for me to move past that, even with his attempts to earn back her trust and love.

With that being said, I would still recommend this book to people who enjoy small-town romances and friends-to-lovers (to=enemies-to-lovers) books. I will be reading the next installment in this series and look forward to other work from this author too!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book via NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rating: 3/5 Stars
Publishing: July 11, 2023
Series: NA
Pages: 320

I loved “Bet on You” by Jodie Slaughter and didn’t think any different when requesting to read “Play to Win”. This was an enjoyable contemporary romance story with likeable characters, Miriam and Leo. It was good reading a story that takes place right in your own backyard…Greenbelt. My only drawback with the story was the lack of including more backstory on the couple and a little less intimate dialogue to strengthen their enemies to lover trope. I also would liked to have known the reasons their marriage did not work the first time around i.e, why Leo left. In this area it felt a bit lacking for me. I like steamy in my romance reads and their intimacy had the right amount of spice with the drama to make it worthwhile in their second chance relationship. Leo did not gravel enough in my opinion, instead there was too many lame excuses he gave that had me rooting for Miriam to just walk away from him and never looking back. Did I like it? Yes, and thought it was good, but it was slow going. Still an author that I like and looking forward to other reads.

I enjoyed Miri! The story opens with learning about what is important to her, and that theme sticks throughout the book. You get to see her develop through interactions with her mom, friends, and Leo. The interactions add more to the story and they really paint a picture of Miri and Leo’s past relationship. I appreciated learning about the characters through these interactions and it added a great depth to the story. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

A great sequel that can also be read as a standalone, Play to Win was charming, complex, sexy, and fun all at the same time. I recently read the first book, Bet on It, and applied to read this early on Net Galley. I'm so grateful to the publisher for approving me for this because it was so cute! I loved the Southern small town vibe, the character dynamics that made you want to befriend everyone, and the way this book feels like a warm hug. If you haven't read Bet on It, I highly recommend reading it before this comes out in July!

Miri and Leo were young and in love. Times were tough leaving Leo feeling as if he was a poor provider for his wife. The sadness and shame of it caused him to run far away from his only love, Miri.
Eight years later she wins the lotto and the law said he could sue her for half the money. Calling Leo back home causes turmoil for both Miri and Leo.
A wonderful story of identifying personal truths and unsure desires.
I voluntarily read an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Oh, I really enjoyed this one. I was excited to start this after the great time I had reading her first one. This one didn’t disappoint. It had a great pot and wonderful romance.

I read her book Bet On It earlier this year and loved it so when I was approved for this arc I was so EXCITED. Play it to Win follows our two main characters miri and Leo. This is a second chance romance after their relationship ended 8 years ago, I loved getting to read them reconnecting.

I love second chance romance and the description sounded interesting. I hadn’t read a book with a lottery winner so I was excited to start Play to Win. I really enjoyed the beginning of the book and was rooting for Miri when she won the lottery. It was entertaining to see how she told everyone and what their reactions were. It did slow down quite a bit though when Leo came back to town. I think I would’ve enjoyed this more if I felt more chemistry between Leo and Miri and their relationship was a little more fleshed out.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC!

I really enjoyed the concept of this book, where Miri wins the lottery and has to decide how to spend the winnings. There's a second chance romance that comes to light when she has to call her estranged husband back to town. There were a few parts that were slow, particularly in Miri and Leo's second chance, but all in all I thought the story was compelling and filled with great characters.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy!

Miriam Bulter always stops to buy her mom a lottery ticket, but today she decides to get one for herself. When the numbers are announced, Miriam is shocked and elated to find out that she's won a substantial jackpot! The only problem: keeping her estranged husband from getting his mitt's on her money. Leo's been gone for almost a decade so hopefully she can talk him into taking a payout and granting her a divorce, but what if he's not ready to let her go? Will Leo be able to win Miriam back or will Miriam be able to finally wash that boy right out of her hair?

The premise of this book had so much promise. There was so much that I thought could have happened but didn't. It felt like the same things were being said over and over. This could have been shortened into a novella and still been the same story. It was okay, but sad to say, I don't think it will be one that I reread or recommend to others.