Play to Win
⭐️⭐️⭐️
Author: Jodie Slaughter

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Miriam Butler’s life is going nowhere in the slowest, most excruciating way possible. Stuck in the same barely-paying job she’s had since she was sixteen and spending every night sleeping in the spare twin bed in her mother’s house, her existence might be hilarious if it wasn’t so bleak. One trip to her favorite Quickie Mart upends everything when she finds herself the winner of a Mega Millions Lottery Jackpot. Unfortunately, not even life-altering roses come without their painful thorns. Hers just so happen to be in the form of an estranged husband who has the right to claim his share of her money.

It’s been eight years since Leo Vaughn has had a conversation with his wife. When she calls out of the blue, practically begging him to come back to Greenbelt, the last thing he expects her to tell him when he gets there is that she’s come into a whole heap of money. She offers him a life-changing proposition of his own. Take a lump sum, finally sign the divorce papers, and be done with her for good. Only, a forever without her is the last thing Leo wants. So he gives a proposition of his own. One that won’t cost her nearly as many millions, but will buy him the time to do the one thing he’s been hungry to do since he left -- win her back.

My Thoughts: To win the lottery is EVERY person’s dream and to play it on your first try, a rare event, although it does happen. I was lucky enough to have the digital and audiobook formats. I preferred the audiobook. In order for Miriam to claim her entire fortune, she has to officially divorce Leo and offer a settlement. One of his conditions is rehabbing the house that she has to be involved in, as they spend more time together, will they realize they are destined to be together or will they move forward with the divorce? Any other surprises along the way? This follows the tropes of second chance romance and small town romance.

I struggled with parts of this and then other parts I really loved. The premise of a lottery win reuniting a couple was not a terrible idea and as the plot was revealed, I was more okay with it. However, in the beginning, and really throughout, I was hoping to have more of their backstory and it was just lacking somewhat. The story is narrated in a dual narration by both Miriam and Leo, from their respective POVs. The story definitely had some steamy and spicy moments. 🌶️ 🌶️ 🌶️. Miriam (Miri) is independent, a tad insecure, and struggled with her separation from Leo. Leo is strong, loyal to a fault, and could have owned more of the separation. The characters were not lacking, they were developed well, had witty banter, mad chemistry, and were creative. I especially loved the relationship Miri had with her mother, it was heartwarming and endearing. The author’s writing style is humorous, swoony, spicy, and for the most part, kept me engaged.

The narrators for the audiobook do a great job at voice variation and brings the characters to life. The narrator has a nice, soothing voice, and I would listen to her other work. Overall, this was a cute listen and I would recommend to other readers.

Play to Win by Jodie Slaughter is my first novel by this author, but now I am eager to read her others! A huge thank you to St. Martin's Press and MacMillan Audio for granting me access to the ebook and audiobook!

Miri is not superstitious, but her mom is. Her mom always plays the lottery with exactly the same numbers. On a whim, Miri decides to buy herself a ticket and her entire life changes when her numbers hit. Miri not only tries to keep. her newly inherited fortune quiet, but she also tries to use the money to assist her loved ones. As far as characters go, Miri was instantly lovable.

One hiccup? Miri is technically still married to her estranged husband, Leo. So Miri has to swallow her pride and beg him to return to Greenbelt to grant her a divorce. It's clear from the moment Leo enters the tory that these two have unfinished business. The sizzle between these two jumps off the page.

I really really enjoyed this book! If you are listening, I do recommend ensuring your headphones are in! It gets steamy! Slaughter incorporated the sizzling romance in a way that feels authentic to Miri and Leo. I enjoyed watching their story unfold, reignite, and catch fire!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the copy of this audiobook!

This is an author I have been wanting to read for a while now. I've heard enough good things that I was excited to get my hands on this book!

The small town was a great setting and there were great supporting characters as well. There were a few pieces of the story that I struggled with, Leo being the main one. He leaves his wife because he felt like he wasn't a good enough provider and then returns 8 years later? And because his wife is interested in protecting the money she won from the lottery?? If she hadn't won, I get the impression that he would have never come back... what does that say about money and love?

I wish we would've seen more of the good times. I felt like there wasn't enough of them in the "now" and what WAS them in the "now" mostly consisted of Leo trying to get her back... whether she was right for him or wanted him.

It has great representation and I would certainly read this author again, but this storyline was unfortunately not memorable or enjoyable enough for me.

Unfortunately I just wasn't really into Play to Win. Nothing specific I just wasn't feeling it. I may come back to it another time. The writing was well done.

When I saw there was a new Jodie Slaughter I knew I needed to get my hands on it. But AGAIN, this proves that I really need to read the synopsis before I request anything. Because if I had read it, I would have known this was going to give me the ick lol

The plot of this was interesting. She won the lotto and then we find out she has an estranged husband. One who also won the lotto because of her lol You see, because they were still married, once she won the lotto, whether he was around or not, if they were to get a divorce, it would be counted as community property. And let me just tell y’all the way I was plotting on this fictional dude who hadn’t even been introduced in the story yet lol I was mad at them for not just saying it was her mom’s. Like BFFR. You already buy them for your mom. Why not just say this was her ticket? Thankfully he SEEMED to be ok, but even still. I felt hella weird the whole time I was reading it because it just felt gross to me.

The romance would have been hella cute and hella spicy….. If it had been with someone else. Like I said, I just couldn’t get past him trying to get her to stay with him. Idk how to explain it. The scenes were hot enough for me to use the book to fan myself, and one of them still lives rent free in my head. But I still keep thinking about the weirdo behavior of the husband. I just really think she should have divorced him and let them find themselves back to each other organically if they were meant to be.

The writing style was still authentic to Slaughter, so I think that’s why I was able to overlook the weird stuff. I was hella mad at Miriam for a lot of reasons, but I just couldn’t stop reading. I just KNEW she was going to come to her senses. But alas. I just wanted her to be safe. And, I was really interested in the research she was doing to write this. Do all the states have different rules? Does she play the lotto? All the things lol

This was weird, but in a good way. The characters were weird, but it still had the signature charm that all Slaughter’s books do. It wasn’t exactly my cup of tea, but I also liked the journey it took me on. I can’t wait for more of my people to read this so we can talk about what we might have done had the places been traded.

In PLAY TO WIN, our FMC Miri wins the lottery suddenly and has to contact her estranged husband whom she hasn’t spoken to in 8 years to inform him of her newfound wealth. One things leads to another and…. You’ll h just have to read it to find out ;)

The premise of this was so fun! I loved all of the side characters but all of the time spent with them felt like a lot at times. Overall, I enjoyed! This is my second Jodie Slaughter book and definitely won’t be my last!

Play to Win is a standalone novel set in the same world as Jodie Slaughter's Bet on It. Did I read that one? No, unfortunately, I just learned about it as I was getting ready to jot down my thoughts on this book. I bet it is worth the read though. This book follows Miriam Butler who has not had the easiest life. She goes to the corner store to buy her mother's usual lottery ticket and decides to purchase one on a whim. Which is great or her because she wins 220 million dollars! Downfall she has an estranged husband, Leo Vaughn, that could sue her to get half those earnings. So, what do you do when you win the lottery?

Love this freaking book 😍😍😍😍📚📚

Thank you soooooo much netgalley, the author and the publisher for the advanced review copy if this book💗
"I voluntarily listened and reviewed the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

We've all dreamed about winning the mega-millions lottery. What would you do if you actually did?

That's what happened to Mary when she won over $220 million in the lottery, using dates of her sordid marriage as the numbers. But as soon as she began to decide what to do with that money, she realized her separated husband might have the right to half unless she convinced him to agree to a divorce. Her husband, Leo, has been thinking about Mary since he walked out on her 7 years ago and has always dreamed of getting another shot at their marriage. As she comes calling for a divorce, he gets his second shot.

This is a very southern Black story and many of the cultural aspects might seem strange if you aren't as familiar with that background. The close knit extended family makes sense within that context. This book also has a lot of spice so just know that going into this book. In my opinion, Leo didn't do enough to be given a second chance but it is a cute romance.

This book - out 7/11 - was the perfect fun and cute second chance romance to get me through another rainy day.
Miriam (or Miri) is a nailcare specialist in Greenbelt, SC, she is poor, struggling, living with her single mom, still emotionally stuck after her husband and Highschool sweetheart Leo, walked out 8 years ago never to be seen again. But things are turning quite quickly since after playing the lottery just once on a whim Miri wins big, 220 million big … The financial advisor tells her to reach out to her husband by whatever means possible and finally divorce him offering a lump sum so as not to share all her winnings. This wouldn’t be romance if sparks didn’t fly at their reencounter … this book was just the right kind of book, angsty, spicy, a diverse cast of characters, mental health representation, structural racism was addressed to make a great story of what could have been so simple … she is now rich and gets her man !?!

I combined the book with the audio and the narration by Lacy Laurel was very well done - my one complaint would be that in a dual POV romance with a female and male POV I prefer two narrators representing the two characters. Lacy Laurel did do a great job at capturing the vibe of the characters though!

I loved Bet on It and requested this without knowing anything about it other than a new book by the same author and I was excited to read it! Unfortunately it’s a second chance romance which just really really hasn’t been working for me lately. I usually find myself thinking they should move on with other people. I decided to DNF this one but still excited to see what the author writes next! Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the free ebook/audiobook.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audio arc! This is the first novel I’ve read by Jodie Slaughter and I very much enjoyed it! This kept me interested and I loved the facets of the main female character’s identity and how her identity as a bisexual woman wasn’t overlooked even though the main relationship was between her and a man. This second chance romance was highly enjoyable and I’ll be picking up Jodie Slaughter’s previous book, Bet On It, asap!
3.75 stars!

Play to Win by Jodie Slaughter focuses on Miriam, a woman who cannot seem to escape the same job and bed she's had since she was a teenager, who decides to buy a lottery ticket for the first time in her life. I loved this concept, especially from Miriam's perspective, who, upon winning MILLIONS of dollars, wants to be smart and appoint a financial advisor, then give back to her friends and family who have greatly supported her.
My biggest issue with this book was that the second chance romance between Miriam and the male main character, Leo, did not land for me. After being reconnected after 8 years, HUSBAND AND WIFE Leo and Miriam discuss getting their divorce fast-tracked so that Miriam can keep her lottery winnings. The pacing of their story and relationship just seemed off, like they never really figured out their problems.

I would recommend this book to anyone looking to read a book about a very family-orientated woman who wins the lottery with a little bit of romance.

I enjoyed Play to Win, but I'm still not sure I understand this couple.

Leo left Miri eight years ago because he didn't feel like he could financially support them, but it wasn't like he took another job outside town and sent money home to her - he just... left, presumably leaving her without a second income to help toward the rent and utilities they had already been struggling to pay. How could he possibly see that as an improvement? Now he's back, and suddenly their problems are solved because they don't have to worry about making ends meet? I needed more groveling and more explanation as to how he's come to understand that being a good partner isn't just about contributing financially - there was a bit of this, but not nearly enough for me to root for these two.

The spicy scenes were hot, and I really appreciated Jodie Slaughter's exploration of money/class, and how suddenly winning the lottery doesn't magically fix one's relationship with money.

Basically this is a (short!) book that left me wanting more - more detail on how/why their relationship will be better the second time around, more on how Miri's navigating being suddenly wealthy, and yup - more sex scenes.

I really liked Lacy Laurel's narration for Miri. Sometimes the voice for Leo didn't quite work for me, but I will say that it was usually easy to distinguish which character was speaking.

Ultimately, I didn't enjoy this one nearly as much as Bet On It, but I remain a fan of Jodie Slaughter and will check out her next book.

This is a book for grown folks because I understood this relationship on a personal level.
Miriam and her mother have a relationship that remind me of my relationship with my mom. And the whole culture of buying lottery tickets religiously is something I’m way too familiar with.

I knew winning the lottery would change Miram’s life and she handled it all quite nicely. Miriam wasn’t divorced from her husband Leo, so that lottery winnings was community property. When Miriam approached Leo to get a divorce and offered him a payoff, the reader was taken on a journey of unfinished business.

I likes both Leo and Miriam, there was just so much emotion still there but because of the mistakes of youth, they lost sight of each other. I was rooting for them to deal with their personal insecurities and also communicate better with each other, so this book felt like following close friends navigating a very rough patch in their marriage.

I enjoyed the author’s story telling style and how she humanized all the characters so that the readers could relate to them. The story had a great pace and I never felt bored with these too. One thing that really stood out to me is how the marital discord affected all, not just the couple, but family and friends. Most specifically, Leo’s little nephew and niece.
What an engaging story despite the marital tension. I really enjoyed this story.

I loved Bet On It by the same author so I was really excited to read this book, but sadly it didn’t hit the mark.
I never out books down and with this one I did it at least three times to read (and finish) something else before I could finally commit, and by 50% I wanted to DNF, and I wish I had.
The whole little try plot line seemed unnecessary, there was a lot of talk about it but it didn’t really move the story along at all. The second chance romance was not one I was rooting for. The reason why their relationship failed the first time was extremely ridiculous and I still don’t get why she forgave him. I didn’t see the chemistry or the pining and I just honestly didn’t care about what happened to them individually or together.
I struggled with this book, and it gets 2⭐️ simply because it has amazing black, queer and blue collar representation, but everything else wasn’t for me.

This is a story of a second chance romance of two characters that were once each others’ first loves. Everything about the description of this book drew me in, but as I read I continued to be somewhat let down by the actuality of the character’s story and the pacing of the storytelling.
A spur of the moment choice to buy a lottery ticket changes the trajectory of Mari’s life, and suddenly she needs to settle things with her long lost husband. As the two of them reconnect, there are a lot of up and down moments, but I was left with too many questions to really root for them. I couldn’t find myself believing what they were saying or understanding their dynamic without the whole backstory. It almost felt like I had jumped to book two in the series without reading the first. The closure of the story did leave me with some sense of completion, but I wish the relationship was a bit more developed throughout.

“ “Six.”
The age she was when she met Leo Vaughn.
“Thirty-one.”
Like the day in July she’d kissed him for the first time.
“Fourteen.”
The number of wildflowers he always brought her, two more than a dozen to make up for the fact that he couldn’t get her store-bought ones.
“Twenty-one.”
The most times he’s told her he loved her in one day.
“Fifty-eight.”
The number of days it had taken her to leave the house again after he’d left.”

Genre: Romance
Actual Rating: 4 stars
Spicy Meter: 3 fire emojis
Content Warnings: Revolves around abandonment. Touches on infidelity and death of parent. Contains explicit sexual content.

“Play to Win” follows Miriam Butler as she reunites with her estranged husband, Leo Vaughn, in hopes of getting a fast divorce after winning more than 200 million dollars in the lottery.

I was lucky enough to get ARCs for both the book and the audiobook, and I absolutely loved it. Lacy Laurel was the perfect voice for Miriam and for this novel, I can’t believe I hadn’t heard her narrate any other books before.

Jodie Slaughter’s “Bet on It” was amongst one of my favorite books last year. It was charming and spicy and so well-written. “Play to Win” brings exactly that to the table. I just couldn’t give it a 5-star rating because of the nature of this second chance romance—I’ll blame it on my abandonment issues, but leaving your spouse for 8 years just isn’t right under any circumstance and with no explanation, there is no redemption after that. And getting reunited after she won the lottery? I don’t know… was he aiming for her or the money? If I were Miriam, I wouldn’t know—and that’s all I could think about throughout.

Don’t hesitate to grab “Play to Win” if you’re looking for a fast-paced, spicy romance novel. The characters are likable and almost relatable if you can imagine yourself winning literally hundreds of millions of dollars in the lottery.

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ARC provided by NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: July 11, 2023

WHAT A FUN READ! I love this story. The characters were so easy to connect to and the romance felt easy and flowed well. Jodie Slaughter wins my heart again.

Jodie Slaughter has won my heart once again. Last summer I was privileged enough to listen to the ARC of Bet On It, and it instantly became one of my favorite reads of the whole year. I recommended that book to anyone I spoke to that read romance. I am happy to report that Play to Win falls into the exact same category for me. Slaughter's combination of witty characters with toe curling sexiness and overall sweetness just makes my romance loving heart happy. I am so grateful that I got to listen to this story. Can't wait for Slaughter's next book!