This is a cute and a little spicy second chance romance. I enjoyed it. I wish there was a little more of the backstory and maybe some of their time apart. I felt everything happened a little to easily after so much time had passed between them. I liked that the story featured POC and that they MCs had slightly differing approaches to sexuality. I would say this is a 3.5 stars for me but I'm going with four bcs the book held my interest and I cared about the couple.

I enjoyed this one! Miri takes a chance and buys a lottery ticket never expecting to win. But that is exactly what happens. She learns that her estranged husband may have a claim to her winnings so she needs to deal with that situation once and for all. I had a great time getting to know this cast of characters and couldn’t wait to see how things would work out in the end.

I liked Miri and Leo a lot and I could tell that the chemistry between them was still very much alive. I feel like eight years seems like a very long time for them to be apart to have any hope for a reconciliation but I was excited to see them give it a try. It takes a long time for the romance of the story to fully kick in but I was eager to see how things would develop.

I listened to the audiobook and thought that the narrator did a great job with the story. I think that this is the first time that I have listened to Lacy Laurel’s narration and I wouldn’t hesitate to listen to her work again in the future. I thought that she had a very pleasant voice and that the character voices that she used helped to bring the story to life. I do believe that her performance only added to my overall enjoyment.

I would recommend this book to others. I thought that the characters were very well done and I loved the overall premise. I would love to read more of this author’s work in the future.

I received a review copy of this book from St. Martin’s Griffin and Macmillan Audio.

Pub date: 7/11/23
Genre: romcom (second chance, spicy)
Quick summary: Miriam is down on her luck until a $220 million lottery win changes her life overnight. The trouble is - she's still married, so ex Leo is entitled to half. But he doesn't want the money - he just wants her back.

This book takes place in the same setting of Greenbelt, GA as Slaughter's first book BET ON IT, and I love this small town! Narrator Lacy Laurel did a good job capturing all the voices of Greenbelt - everyone knows everyone's business, and when Leo shows up to win Miri back, everyone has an opinion. I really liked Miri's support network of family and friends, including Aja from BET ON IT. Leo was a tougher sell for me - it was hard to understand why he wanted Miri back in the first place.

Normally I love second chance romance, but this book had the same issue as Emily Henry's HAPPY PLACE for me - I didn't feel like I cared enough about the central couple to really root for them. I also wanted more humor - that was what really made BET ON IT a fave for me.

However, if you love steamy small-town romance, you might like this one more than I did as there's plenty of spice!

Thank you to St. Martin's Griffin and Macmillan Audio for my e-ARC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Then: Mary and Leo were childhood playmates then girlfriend and boyfriend and then married by age 18. Everybody in their little South Carolina town said they were too young but they didn’t listen. A few years later Leo, under the strain on bills and low paying jobs, left Mary because he wasn’t a good husband…he felt that he couldn’t provide for her and wasn’t worthy of her love. Without an explanation why he left, Mary was 24 and devastated. Now: Eight years later, Mary has worked hard at getting over her sorrow and then anger at Leo and hasn’t heard from him at all. Then Mary wins at $220M lottery and her financial advisor tells her that Leo could claim half of her winnings because they were still married. Mary swallows her pride and reaches out to him to ask him to come home because they urgently need to have a serious conversation in person. Leo, who has never stopped loving Mary and has matured a great deal in 8 years, thinks that Mary wants to forgive him for abruptly leaving and resume their marriage. Obviously he’s shocked to be asked for a divorce that he doesn’t want plus he doesn’t want any conflict over the lottery money and only takes a small amount to help his sister’s family and to refurbish his family home which is in serious disrepair. He agrees to the divorce when the papers are ready but, in his heart, he plans to do everything he can to get back together with Mary. Mary never truly stopped loving Leo but she was seriously hurt by him and doesn’t know if she can trust him ever again. A steamy pursuit ensues…

Miriam, whose family struggled with money for her entire life, wins the lottery. She has to let her estranged husband know, and hopefully offer enough money for him to leave her alone….. but does she want him to divorce her after all these years?
Great writing, super funny…. And it was hot hot hot!!

Fun read! Very quick and easy to listen to. Enjoyable audiobook reader and a delightful story. I finished the book in one day it was so fun to read.

This book was meh for me. It was very very slow going. I had a hard time rooting for Miriam and Leo. Normally I love second chance romance books but this one just wasn’t for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a chance to read and review.

This book is fun and light-hearted with an original premise. It had quite a few sex scenes, which were all very explicit. I'm not the biggest fan of sex scenes and was expecting a clean romance, but everything else felt engaging and original.

The sex scenes were TOO MUCH! Other than that the book was just OK! 2 STARS. Thanks to netgalley and publishing for the listen and review

Play to Win is a second-chance love story between Miriam and Leo. I enjoyed most of this story but had some issues along the way. The biggest issue I had and it seems I am not alone is about Leo. Leo left Miriam and is now only back in her life because Miriam won the lottery and wanted a divorce. Leo walked out on her 8 years ago and has not seen or talked to her since. To me, that’s not someone who deserves a second chance.

This was also considered to be a romantic comedy. I did not find any of this to be funny. Not that it is a bad thing. It definitely nails the romance side, it doesn’t need to have comedy to go with it.

As a character I really did like Miriam. After winning the lottery she always stayed true to herself and was always a great person. She is one of the most genuine characters I have seen so far this year.

I enjoyed the writing in this book, and I’m thankful for that. I had problems with the story so if the writing was bad on top of that I would not be able to recommend this book. If you like second-chance love stories then definitely check this out. If you don’t, that’s ok, but maybe you don’t need this book.

Mari grew up poor, barely making ends meet, in a rundown part of town. She randomly wins a lottery, her first purchase ever, using special numbers from her firsts with her long-estranged boyfriend. Winning the big lottery changes her life, leaving her unsure how to move forward, or how to deal with all this.

She meets a financial advisor, who mentions in passing that if she had been married, her spouse could sue for half the winnings. She blanches, and this introduces her long-estranged husband, who ran off on her 8yrs prior. She contacts Leo and asks him to come, so they can get officially divorced, and she gives him part of the winnings as compensation.

Leo only asks for enough money to give his sister so she can fix her house up, and more for him to fix up his late aunt’s house. While he is in town restoring the house, with Mari in mind in all his choices along the way, he is determined to win her back. Not for her money, but because he had always been in love with her.

You can guess the ending!

I loved Bet on It by Jodie Slaughter so I was incredibly excited to get to pick this up and I was not disappointed! Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel; all opinions are my own.

Quick Synopsis: Miriam has never played the lottery a day in her life, despite her mother and auntie’s obsession with it, so she’s incredibly surprised when her first time, selecting numbers that mean something to her, she wins $220M. One problem however is that in the state of South Carolina, spouses are entitled to half the winnings and Miriam never took the time to divorce her long-time love, Leo, despite their estrangement. Now is the time, however, and Leo doesn’t want the money, but he does want his wife back.

Trigger warnings: marriage in trouble, men being stupid

What I liked:
-I love the whole premise. It isn’t high stakes, people aren’t terribly greedy about the whole thing, and it’s nice to see how Miriam chooses to spend the money intelligently.
-Leo doesn’t want the money except to help his family, pay off their mortgages and loans, set them up for college, etc.
-I love how much effort Leo puts in. He has to grovel and boy does he.
-There’s a great representation of how hard it is to be broke. To really have to pinch pennies constantly and then to have money and be able to afford things that were previously unfathomable.
-I loved Leo and I loved these two together. This is a fabulous second chance romance.
-We get to see Aja and Walter again and I LOVED that.
-The spicy scenes were spicy. Slaughter turned up the heat in comparison to Bet on It and I am here for it.

What I struggled with:
-This is idealistic to say the least. When it comes to money in that quantity, people get weird and greedy. So the fact that she didn’t really deal with that was odd to me.

I read this on both audio and physical and recommend both.

What would you do if you hit the jackpot? We’ve all had that thought but have you thought about it deeply? Like Biggie said,” Mo money Mo problems.”

What I liked about the story;
Incorporating bisexuality, gentrification, therapy, and all time gives.

The book just missed something. Without giving away too much Miriam just got on my nerves. Some of her choices just made no sense.

- Rags to riches
- Estranged lovers
- Small town
- Second chance romance

Miriam's life takes a shocking turn when she buys a lottery ticket on a whim and wins big. She realizes she needs to come to an agreement with her estranged husband, Leo, who could sue her for half her winnings. She proposes he accept a lump sum payment in return for signing divorce papers. But Leo doesn't want her money or a divorce—he wants her back. Can he prove he's no longer the naïve kid who broke her heart?

I'm surprised that this is described as a rom com. The tone is really the opposite of that. It's angsty and intensely emotional, with a good bit of steam in the second half. The author does a great job of developing the characters. I feel like there was the potential to do more with the plot—for instance, to use the lottery money to create experiences for the couple to reconnect. Instead, they were mired in old ruts and struggling to break free. That's a valid choice, but it resulted in a slower pace than I like. If you prefer character-driven, steamy contemporary romance, this novel is for you. The audiobook narration was well-done and enjoyable.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Maybe second chance romances DO deserve rights… I loved this story. Thank you to Jodie Slaughter, St. Martin’s Griffin, Macmillan Audio, and Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of the audiobook for Play to Win.

I thoroughly enjoyed Jodie Slaughter’s release last year Bet On It, especially the audiobook. So I was unsurprisingly, very excited to get to listen to her latest before its release date. Play to Win did not disappoint! I went in with relatively low expectations, not because of Jodie Slaughter or any previous dissatisfaction with her writing. BUT I did not realize until marking this one down on my “currently reading” shelf that it was a second chance romance. Not only a second chance romance, but a lottery-winning second chance! I personally tend to avoid second chances, because I don’t usually enjoy missing out on all of the getting-to-know-each-other tension. I also never play the lottery myself because it feels like setting what little cash I have on fire.

But Jodie Slaughter masterfully elevates the trope into something that feels like you are getting to see two people get to know each other all over again, despite their rocky history. Whether you like second chances or not, I think this book will appeal to anyone who enjoys a well-written steamy romp. Miriam and Leo’s chemistry was off the charts in this story.

The narrator of the audiobook, Lacy Laurel, also did an excellent job of making the listening experience feel immersive. I would highly recommend picking this one up on audio!

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I really enjoyed this book. This is the second book I’ve read from this author. While I loved Bet on it, I absolutely loved this one so much more. It was a nice balanced between romance and more serious topics. Loved the LGBTQIA+ rep through out this book as well. Though I didn’t like Leo’s reason for walking out on his marriage.

Thank you NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

How CUTE was this book!! I'm not really one for second chance romances but I loved the plot for this so I requested an arc read.

I enjoyed Jodie Slaughter's honest representation of the trauma that comes with growing up under the poverty line, the very real presence of systemic racism and how it affects everything from housing to access to housing, food, and clothing. There are themes of the effects of toxic masculinity and unrealistic expectations of patriarchal thinking, LGBTQ elders who didn't have a chance to pursue their love, and community care over self-care. These extremely heavy topics were tackled with hilarious prose and I couldn't help but feel connected to all the characters because of it. I especially appreciated the vilification of landlords! I loved Miriam's mother's character so much and she reminded me of the elders I grew up with (who also faithfully played the lottery).

The romance and spicy aspects of the story were a little more difficult for me to connect with simply because I don't understand second-chance romances (I've yet to master the art of forgiveness!). Leo and Miriam's chemistry is undeniable but I still just couldn't find myself rooting for them and found myself hoping Miriam and her best friend Jade would fall in love or something! Alas, nothing of like happens but the epilogue does leave you smiling and content.

Listen if you like:
👩🏾‍❤️‍💋‍👨🏾 Black Love Stories
🥈Second Chance Romances
🪐 Fate
🥵 Spice

This one is one that if you read Bet on It you need to read this one too! This one is such a great follow up from the characters being side characters in Bet on It to getting their redemption story with their second chance romance.

I loved the play of past and present to understand their past relationship with each other and how we got to the point of them today married and estranged from each other but getting their second chance to see if things can work between these two.

I really loved this story and hope that others will love the second chance romance between Miri and Leo…. And the spice is top notch 😘 and the narrators did such a phenomenal job with this one!

Thank you so much Macmillan Audio for my ARC of this one!

The storylines about dealing with wealth and the repercussions were more interesting and engaging than the romance

I wish I liked this more than I did. I loved Jodie Slaughter's Bet On It, but this one I just could not get into. I tried to - I listened to it while in the car for 3 hours, I listened at work, I listened while at home cleaning.

I mostly had problems with the second-chance romance trope. It's a popular trope, and one that I don't mind (even if it isn't my favorite). Usually. But I was really put off by this one.