Thank you NetGalley and Random House for this ARC in exchange for my honest review

I stumbled across Sarah Adams this summer and it was love at first read. Sarah’s characters immediately pull me in. She has a way to make me feel as though I am just catching up with an old friend, instead of reading a book. The Rule Book is no exception.

Nora is unapologetically herself. She is fighting for her place in the male dominated world of sports agents. Derek is a famous NFL tight end looking to make his comeback after a sports injury. After a not so mutual college break up, they find themselves face-to-face in a new type of relationship. Nora is Derek‘s new agent, but he isn’t going to let her have the job without a little revenge first.

I enjoy a book that does dual POV well. Sarah has the best witty banter between her characters. Although I loved reading Nora and Derek‘s individual thoughts, my favorite part was relating to their relationship through their sarcastic comments back-and-forth. I was left smiling and laughing every time I read an interaction between the two of them.

There wasn’t a moment where I was bored reading this book. I looked forward to the interactions between Nora and her boss, Nicole, just as much as I did Nora and Derek. Nicole was such a vibe and I need a book focused around her immediately!

“The Rule Book” is no exception to my rule that I must read any book Sarah Adams puts out. I know it will definitely be a comfort read. This book includes some of my favorite tropes like forced proximity, a not so fake relationship, and second chance romance. If those are your thing too, definitely pre-order. If those are not your thing, pre-order anyway, because Sarah Adams will change your mind and suck you into her world.

I was so excited for this even though I wasn’t really expecting to LOVEEE it but guess what!! I DID. This is my favorite book the author for sureeee. The FMC could be annoying and cheesy with all her catch phrases but she was also badass and I loved how her own personal ending turned out. The MMC is giving golden retriever and I am obsessed. Ugh so cute 🥹

Anything Sarah Adams writes I DEVOUR! I loved this story just as much as I like the others. It was great to see her other characters join in this one but you don't need to read the others to enjoy this one! At first I found Nora somewhat annoying but ended up really liking her and her story. I felt like the dyslexia story line was a bit much but also ended up enjoying that bit too.

This was a lovely sporty second chance romance! The FMC had me from the beginning - she was so adorable and quirky. I normally don't love second chance romances, but this one was a pleasant surprise for me! I was intrigued by the sports and career angle for both the FMC and the MMC. The FMC was very driven and passionate about her job and I love how the author touched on feminist themes and some of the patriarchal and misogynist nonsense that women often experience in male dominated fields. I also loved the relationship that played out between the FMC and her mom. There was also learning disability representation which was the first time I have ever seen that in a romance novel which is unique and I loved it!

this book was SO cute and fun, the perfect beach read. I literally read it in a day and couldn’t stop smiling. v thankful for netgalley letting me read it early

I want to first thank Netgalley and Random House Publishing for allowing me to read the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This was the first book written by Sarah Adams that I have read and I can say that I have officially found a new favorite author! I will 100% be purchasing this book for my shelf as soon as it comes out on April 02, 2024.

This book follows Nora who is a girl-boss sports agent, working in a male dominated field. Throughout the whole book she stays true to herself and is an amazing FMC. In addition to Nora, we are also following Derek. Derek is a successful football player who is in the market for a new agent. When he finds himself in a meeting with his new agent "Mac" he does not know that Mac is actually Nora, his college ex-girlfriend. The Rule Book is dual POV and features many tropes that I love including the "one bed" forced proximity and the fake marriage agreement.

Do yourself a favor and add this to your TBR immediately!

I loved this book. Funny, sweet, steamy read. The chemistry between Nora & Derek was off the charts. Couldn’t put it down. Fire!

I absolutely loved this book!

I had already read The Cheat Sheet (also 5 ⭐️) so I had a feeling I was going to enjoy this book. I did!

I love Derek and Nora’s relationship, and how Nora is still a strong independent woman through all of it.

Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this! Quick note: I LOVE football and I adored "The Cheat Sheet", so this same-world second chance romance / marriage of convenience was bound to be right up my alley.
Derek and Nora are college sweethearts/exes in their past, agent/star tight end in their present, forced to work together and eventually have a 'fake' relationship to salvage both of their careers. The forced proximity drives them to really delve into their past relationship and current traumas in a way that's completely believable and also deeply emotional. As usual, Adams' story excels in writing about the nuances of career (and what we are without it), found family (the brotherhood of the LA Sharks is just brilliantly done), and women in the football industry. Complete perfection.
The one big note for this one: Sarah Adams has always been a closed door romance author and I've always loved that. I think sometimes spicy scenes can be gratuitous and completely plot adjacent. Her first foray? Brilliant. It's the perfect balance of steam and spice and just beautifully written and plot driven. I also loved, for anyone who might not be interested and want to stay closed, that she gave a content warning on exactly what chapter to skip (the steam is all contained). Honestly a perfect way to handle this, and I hope she continues. She's great at it.

3.5 stars. Another enjoyable romance from Adams. I found Nora to be too extra for my taste but I loved the empowerment vibe at the end. Her silly sayings weren’t awful but her office attire was childish, not quirky. Derek was such a hottie and so vulnerable—swoon. Good humor throughout and loved reading more about Nathan and Bree. Love these sports romances. Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC

📖 ARC REVIEW 📖

Thank you @randomhouse for an early copy of The Rule Book by @authorsarahadams. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. 🤍

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐.5/5
Release date: April 2nd, 2024

Blurb: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/182484354-the-rule-book?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=Lr1aIMtEKE&rank=1

🛑Read on with caution; review may contain spoilers🛑

The Rule Book is the perfect second-chance love story. I loved almost everything about this book, especially the main characters’ Nora and Derek’s character growth. From being college sweethearts to exes to agent/client to a fake-married couple to being a real married couple, they have gone through a lot together and apart from each other. Nora has always been struggling with equality in a male-dominated profession and her issues with her father not being the father he needed to be even when she entered adulthood. In contrast, Derek has been struggling with his learning difficulties, which turned out to be a late diagnosis of dyslexia, and dealing with his anxiety about what’s going to happen next with his football career after his injury. These are a lot to take in, and I was so glad that despite their initial reluctance to work together for Derek’s return to football and furthering Nora’s career, I enjoyed how they reconciled. Adams has written their love story so beautifully and naturally and brought each character’s highlights even brighter when both were inspired by each other.

The only part that bothered me was how much Nora was trying to say certain catchphrases but failed to tell them correctly even though she knows it’s not correct or how much Derek says it isn’t correct. It was charming at first, but it became old and annoying very quickly with how often she tries, and she tries really hard. I also wished we got to see Derek be upfront and have a one-on-one conversation with his parents about his dyslexia and how its late diagnosis has affected him growing up, I was also looking forward to Nora’s confrontation with her father but sadly it wasn’t in the book.

Pick up Sarah Adam’s newest companion to The Cheat Sheet! You’ll enjoy Derek and Nora’s cheesy and romantic love story, and meet all the other characters again!

This book was a delight!!! I have read all of Sarah Adams' books and this one is one of my favorites. I love the idea of a woman in the sports agent industry, so when that woman dated her new client, it's going to be good. I fell in love with the characters (Niclole needs her own story) and the swoon in this book was PERFECTION!! The chemistry between Mac and Derek was off the charts even when they didn't like each other. This book is realistic and I could not put it down.

Sarah Adams has out done herself with this one. A quirky, Girl Boss FMC sports agent who refuses to be cast aside because she's in a male dominated workplace and a grumpy, protective MMC tight end 😉 who is trying to recover after an injury. Combined with a brutal college break up, forced proximity, a wild night in Las Vegas, laugh out loud banter, and It Was Always You vibes. The longing and protectiveness Adams wrote into Derek and Nora's story absolutely melted my heart and put it back together again.

Dual POV, Closed Door Romance, Sports Romance, Workplace Romance, Forced Proximity, It Was Always You, Found Family, Fake Marriage

I loved this second chance love story! THe characters were so fun and I really enjoyed getting to know then and see the deep love they had for each other. I loved Derek! Obsessed with him and his love for Nora. Such a good story for anyone (sports lover or not),

What is better than sports and a love story? A sweet story about rekindling real love. Nora and Derek fell in love in college, but ended it before graduation. Fast forward several years and stages of adult life, they end up in the same agency office. Sparks fly, both hate and love, and they find a way to navigate the hurt they are both feeling from the past.
I love that they also dealt with real life issues because it made their love story even more believable!

This book was amazing! It was my first Sarah Adams book and I loved it! I love a good football romance. It’s my favorite sport to watch on tv. I loved Nora’s character and all her silly sayings. She’s so funny! Nora and Derek’s love story was the best! I enjoyed the book and can’t wait to read more! Thank you so much for the ARC!

The Rule Book was a DELIGHT. What a wonderful follow-up to The Cheat Sheet. I absolutely loved the plot and the connection between Nora and Derek. This will 100% be a hit for any reader!
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc ebook in exchange to an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Sarah Adams is the queen of the slow burn. I haven’t read The Cheat Sheet which is technically the first book in this series, however I didn’t need to. The characters from the prior book appeared in the novel, but the story was completely separate. I LOVED Practice Makes Perfect and read it fairly recently so I was really looking forward to The Rule Book… and it didn’t disappoint! It definitely has a different, more manufactured vibe from Practice Makes Perfect… but I think sometimes fake dating does that for me. However the smoldering looks, pining, and second chance romance took this book up a notch for me. Nora’s character is beyond lovable- I need to know her. I loved how unique and genuine she seemed without giving “manic pixie dream girl” vibes. Definitely recommend this one! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-arc.

Rating: 4-4.5 star

Thoughts: I ADORE Sarah’s books so I have been impatiently waiting to read The Rule Book and it did not disappoint! If you like second chance romance or a sports romance, you definitely want to pick this one up! This will be a romance you hear a lot of buzz around this Spring!!

Synopsis:
This is the follow-up to the Cheat Sheet but can be read as a standalone. I liked the Cheat Sheet (3/5) but really enjoyed The When in Rome Series (4/5) by the same author, so was pumped to get this advanced copy from NetGalley/Random House Publishing, due out April 2.
In this installment the tight end has a new agent, his ex girlfriend…
Pros and cons: I will say I like the When In Rome series better, but this was still enjoyable. I had a smile on my face most of the book. The only downfall was that it was really cheesy. The female lead, the romance, the plot- all very cheesy. But still very cute! Just not anything unique.
If you’re looking for light and cute, check these books out!