3.25/5 ⭐️
This book was exactly as advertised: A cozy fake dating baseball book. One of the best parts of this book was, while it was a romance and both of the characters were tying to grow, they were not dependent on the growth on the other main character. The main characters had the depth to have their own stories outside of just the romance. The grief plot point was powerful, and truly showed the mental growth for both of the characters; from being young adults to being a full-fledged adult.

I absolutely adored the way the friends/side characters were introduced and how they played out in the book. They had such strong character and were easily definable. This book could definitely be one in a series with different side characters becoming the main character.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

This was such a sweet fake dating/sports romance story. I am not a big instalove fan though which is why my rating is a tad bit lower. I did really enjoy Tommy and Maggie's banter and the theme of finding love after loss. Hoping for Olivia's story next ;)

Ally Wiegand’s debut novel takes us to the Chicago ball fields for a fake dating romance. Maggie is the Chicago Cougars photographer and Tommy is a hotshot ball player drafted to the cougars who has a bad boy reputation. After being photographed leaving a club together, the Cougars PR manager drafts a fake dating contract to use Maggie’s clean reputation to redeem Tommy’s bad boy reputation. This book is short but sweet. Both Maggie and Tommy have past traumas in which they navigate in such an endearing way. This book talk about guilt, grief, and feeling inferior from our parents, but both characters navigate these issues with such grace and support that you forget it’s a fake dating trope. The setting is Chicago but it reads as more of a small town romance which I love as a reader. This is an overall positive book especially for baseball lovers!

4🌟🌟🌟🌟

⚾️baseball romance
🩵fake dating
⚾️ baseball player x team photographer
🩵love after loss
⚾️dual pov

This is a debut book from this author and overall I found the book to be a good first book and was a cute read.

Tommy was recently traded to
Chicago. Tommy has had a bit of a wild streak played out in the media and coming to Chicago was a chance to revive his baseball career.

Maggie works as the team’s photographer. She hasn’t been in a relationship in a few years after the loss of her fiancé Luke.

When Maggie and Tommy are caught in an innocent yet compromising picture in the media the team asks them to “ fake date” to boost Tommy moral and public image.

When Maggie n Tommy really start falling for each other the sparks between them flew. They were so dang adorable with just a look or touch , or a wink across the room. Such a hallmark type sports romance with a little bit of fun as well.

Solid book from the author. Thank you to publishers and net galley for the advance copy.

I absolutely adored this book. It was so cozy and cute and left me with a smile on my face.
I am a sports romance fan, not a baseball fan. But let me tell you, the way Ally describes Maggie’s love of baseball in the first chapter made me want to love it. I could picture being at the game and creating those core memories. What a great way to start the book!
Tommy was recently traded to Chicago, where Maggie is the team’s photographer. They end up in a compromising photo and the team’s PR decides they need to fake date in order to save Tommy’s reputation. What ensues is a lot of chaos, a little spice, and two people who have found strength in the other to heal their brokenness.
I loved that Tommy already had the mindset that he needed to change before he’d even come to Chicago. Maggie wasn’t the catalyst, but she became a driving force in his being a better man. Maggie was stuck in a rut, and this gave her a way to move out of her comfort zone, confront the past, and finally try to move on.
This book made me giggle, it made me tear up, and had me rooting for a win between Maggie & Tommy. Highly recommend this one and I can’t wait to read the next book!