Sports reporter Kate Green is back and this time she is covering the Women's US Olympic soccer team. She's no stranger to this team because she once was a member of it along with the team's current head coach Savannah Baker. Kate is certain this is just the thing she needs to get her career back on track. Except things wouldn't be that easy. Alexa Kane, another former teammate, turns up dead in the lockerroom. Why was Alexa there to begin with? Kate is forced to confront her past and dig up old secrets as she tries to figure out what happened to her friend.

Dangerous Play is a quick, fast-paced read that will keep you turning pages as you alternate between past and present timelines learning of Kate's past and piecing together the pieces of this murder mystery. There's twists, turns, and secrets that will keep you hooked. I did not read Lights Out and had no issues following along with what was happening in this book. I will be going back to read the first book and continuing on with this series because I loved this book so much!

For the second time, Elise Hart Kipness blew me away. After falling in love with her smart, savvy main character in her debut novel, Lights Out, I was even more bowled over by both Kate and Kipness thanks to what I found inside of Dangerous Play. A bingeable, addictive crime thriller, the dual timelines and even pacing meant for one altogether rollicking good time. The former, in fact, was quite the ingenious method at bringing the victim to life. And through her, Kate’s character grew deeper and delightfully well-developed.

While I was wholly won over by the unguessable twists and perfectly timed plot, the characters were easily my favorite piece to this marvelous whodunnit. Running the gamut from thoroughly unlikeable to one of my most-loved protagonists, the finely layered personas hit just the right chord. Through the past and present timelines and some realistic diary entries, Kate was revealed to be even more dogged, clever, and brave than she was in book one. Supported by some other truly top-notch individuals, the entire cast was an utter home run.

Now that I’ve finished bingeing the second book in what is turning out to be one humdinger of a series, I’m not surprised in the least about how my friends and colleagues at Thriller Book Lovers: The Pulse have been raving about it ever since we got the galleys. With an intriguing subplot, deliciously short chapters, and a heaping dose of suspense, it just couldn’t have been better. Now for my impatient wait for book three so that I can learn what is coming next in Kate’s saga with Liam. So order your copy today. Just be sure to start with book one. After all, you don’t want to miss a minute with Kate. Rating of 5 stars.

Thank you to Elise Hart Kipness, Thomas & Mercer, and NetGalley for my complimentary digital and physical copies. All opinions are my own.

Crime comes to the Olympics in this pulse-pounding thriller as TV sports reporter Kate Green investigates the murder of an old friend and one-time soccer team-mate. The dual timeline of present day investigation and flashbacks to the past works well to build suspense with timely reveals as well as allowing the reader to get to know the cast of characters well. Green as a main character is warm, humorous and intrepid and someone you can’t help rooting for. The author’s own expertise in the world of sports reporting shines through and the plot delivers on twists that will keep you turning the pages. Highly recommended!

The timing of reading this arc was impeccable. I mean, a thriller set during The Olympics WHILE the actual Olympics are happening? Heck yes!

This book is the second in a series and my biggest concern - since I didn’t read the first - was missing key points from Book 1. I think Elise Hart Kipness did a masterful job in summing up those events and including them into the story without me feeling lost. (I still did have FOMO and will read Lights Out, the first in the series 👀)

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this sports thriller because it kept me guessing. Always appreciate a great mystery that keeps me on my toes, and this totally delivered 🤌🏼

I really enjoyed this. There were many twists and turns I didn’t see coming. This is the second book, and must be read in order

It was an ok read for me. It wasn’t great but it wasn’t bad either, just not really a thriller for me

I read this during the Olympics, which made this book even more exciting! It is the second in a series, but I read it as a standalone. Kate Green is a sports reporter covering the women’s Olympic soccer team, somehow, she ends up finding a famous jewelry designer, Alexa Kane, dead in the locker room. Alexa used to play with Kate, and Savannah (the team’s head coach). There was an incident that happened to Alexa long ago when the girls were at camp. The timeline goes from then to now. There are quite a few trigger warnings that you may want to check. Overall, a lot of twists and turns, and extremlet well written.

The perfect slump book for me. Just what I needed. The perfect mix of suspense and keep you on the edge with page turning and engaging.

Did I love this so much because I'm a soccer mom, or because this author continues to win me over with this fantastic series?

I loved learning more about Kate, and this particular crime she finds herself entangled in is especially delicious! This is a storyline I have never explored in a thriller, and I loved it. Kate's past and present felt like reading two books in one. I highly recommend this!

Dangerous Play is an amateur sleuth mystery set against the backdrop of the summer Olympics.

Kate Green is a former Olympic athlete turned sports reporter tapped to cover the Women’s National Soccer Team for these Olympic games. She is a former teammate and frenemy of the head coach, Savannah (Savy) Baker, and their positions collide when a woman from their teen competitive soccer days, Alexa Kane, is found dead in the locker room after a big win for the current team.

Alexa was one of Kate’s only real friends on the team in those days, until an incident involving Savy drove them apart. Her once estranged father, Liam, is with the NYPD and is the lead investigator into Alexa’s murder. Kate gives him inside information he otherwise wouldn’t have, and together they expose the real reason Alexa left the national team all those years ago and the person who murdered her to keep it quiet.

In the background is a second mystery having to do with Liam, an ongoing investigation arc for Kate that takes place over the course of a number of books.

The book is told through a dual timeline, going back to Kate’s early days making and playing for the junior national soccer team, then making the Olympics and winning the gold, and alternating with present day, where Kate has had to recreate herself as a sports reporter after suffering a career-ending injury.

Dangerous Play is book two in the Kate Green mystery series. It can be read as a stand-alone novel, but I think it would also be helpful to read book one to get a better sense of Kate and her full story as she moves forward in her career, life, and relationships. Having said that, it is an edgy and well-done mystery that made for an engaging and entertaining read.

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for this advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Sadly, this book didn't please me much. I'm not a sports fan, so usually I would never pick up such a book. However, because I truly enjoyed Beartown (by Fredrik Backman), I thought "well..who knows?".
It wasn't the case here. The sports discussions pulled me out of the story pretty much every time; the murder mystery didn't end up being so appealing to me; the writing was decent enough, as well as the characters, but neither was amusing enough for my taste.
What I most liked about this book was the Olympics representation.
I'm sure other readers will enjoy this more than I did.

Kate Green is back! Former soccer star turned sport’s reporter, Kate has been assigned to cover the US Olympic Soccer Team, a team that she formerly played for. The current head coach, Savannah Baker and Kate played together when they won gold
Kate is trying to reestablish her place in the sports world reporter scene by covering the Olympics, but after the game a women’s dead body is found in an ice bath. Kate will get to the bottom of this investigation and the truth will come out, but at what cost?
Things I love:
• Bill and Kate just work so well together. I love it.
• Kate doesn’t lose sight of her family and children.
• Kate pushes the envelope. Being an investigative reporter is in her DNA and she knows and understands that the more questions she asks, the closer to the dangerous truth she comes.
• This book comes out in an Olympic year!
• Being from a huge sports fanatic family, there is just so much to relate to.
• Fast paced and twisted with secrets coming out at every turn.
Thank you Elise Hart Kipness, Thriller Book Lovers The Pulse, NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer Publishing for the opportunity to read and review this book!

I just finished Lights Out which I absolutely loved. I was so happy that this was going to be a series.

This story opens up with Kate Green covering a women's Olympic soccer game for her station. After the game while she was in the girl’s locker room interviewing the players, a women’s body was found dead in the ice bath. So, we are off with new characters and a new murder mystery, first twist the dead women was a past team mate. We see Kate as a reporter, a mom, a daughter, and a friend. I love the relationship she has with her kids, and Liam her dad. This story with all of its twists and turns captivated me from start to finish.

With Summer Olympics in Paris only a few weeks away, it was the perfect time to read DANGEROUS PLAY by Elise Hart Kipness. DANGEROUS PLAY is the second book in the Kate Green Series but can be read as a standalone. This book will be published on September 17, 2024 and is getting a lot of buzz by @thrillerbookloversthepulse

Kate Green is a former Olympic Soccer player and is now a sports reporter covering the US Women's Soccer Team playing in Yankee Stadium. Kate gets the story of a lifetime when Alexa, a jewelry designer and former teammate of Kate and Olympic Coach Savannah, is found dead in the locker room. Kate starts investigating who killed her former teammate and friend with the help of her estranged detective father. Will Kate figure out who did it?

This was a fast paced read that had twists and secrets that kept me turning the pages. I liked seeing the past when Kate, Savannah and Alexa were teammates and the pressures of being on a team that young. The past and present meld together expertly. I enjoyed all the characters, and I am looking forward to the next Kate Green book.

Thank you @elisehartkipness for the book swag and @netgalley the ebook.

📣 Calling all sports fans - this is a thriller just for you! The @thrillerbookloversthepulse squad has been talking about Dangerous Play so naturally I had to pick it up too ⚽️

Dangerous Play is book two in the Kate Green series. While it can be read as a standalone, I recommend reading the books in order for the optimal reading experience.

Reporter Kate Green finds herself in a tough spot when she discovers a dead body in the women’s locker room.

And it’s not just any body—it’s Alexa Kane, a former teammate from Kate’s junior soccer days. Kate’s past with Alexa is complicated and also involves the current national coach, Savannah Baker….

To uncover the truth, Kate must work with her estranged father, revisit old relationships, uncover surprising connections, and face threats to both her relationship and her life.

The characters are interesting and sports fans will like the story. The book comes out in September so readers can continue to ride that Summer Olympics energy into the fall!

Thank you to the publisher and @netgalley for the copy to read and review ⚽️

4.5 ⭐ Who doesn't love the Olympics? And murder? This one was a page turner. I loved how the story unfolded and I can't wait for the next one.

Dangerous Play is the second book in the Kate Green series and while you can definitely read it as a standalone, you’ll get a much better sense of who Kate is if you read Lights Out first. In this installment, sports reporter Kate Green is covering the US Women’s Olympic soccer game when a dead body is found in an ice bath in the locker room. It turns out the dead woman used to play soccer with the head coach and several players on the US team. Kate, a former Olympic soccer champion herself, also had deep ties to the dead woman. As past and present collide, old secrets and rivalries will be uncovered as Kate tries to find out who had it in for her old friend.

This fast-paced thriller is a quick read with plenty of mystery to keep you turning the pages! I loved the focus on female athletes, the intense pressures they are subjected to, and how they cope with the challenges they face. A dual timeline gives the reader a backstory of Kate’s youth athlete days and her rise to soccer stardom. Kate is a great character, strong and fearless, and the writing style is crisp and engaging. Looking forward to reading more about Kate Green in the future!

My friends at Thriller Books Lover The Pulse have been buzzing about this one! Many thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for providing me an advance copy of this book.

With Olympic qualifiers happening right now, this was the perfect time to read Dangerous Play! Set against the backdrop of USWNT soccer qualifiers, Hart Kipness offers up a multilayered murder-mystery involving former Us Junior’s soccer teammates. Do events from their teen years play into a murder within their friend/team group in their 40s, or is just a coincidence? This is the second book in the series but I had no trouble keeping up with past events and how they relate to the current story.

This one grabbed me immediately and I could not put it down!

Kate Green is a former soccer player turned sports reporter who is covering Women's Olympic Soccer. She has some history with the US Women's Team Coach, Savannah Baker. And she's hoping their history will give her an inside track to a great story.

When Alexa - jewelry designer and former teammate of Kate and Savannah - is found dead in the locker room after a game, Kate ends up with a story she never expected.

Kate's somewhat estranged dad is an NYPD detective and Kate is a bit of an amateur detective herself. Kate starts investigating and finds some secrets. She has a tough decision on what to reveal and what is best kept to herself.

We are along for the ride while Kate decides the best way to handle sharing what she knows, which could put her in danger.

This was such a great read!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an ARC in exchange for my honest review, and to Elise Hart Kipness and Thriller Book Lovers The Pulse for allowing me to be a part of this tour.

Dangerous Play is a bingeable thriller with a distinctive cast of characters, including my favorite, amateur sleuth Kate Green. I loved the plotting with dual timelines from Kate's time as a USA soccer star in her teens and her current occupation as a sports reporter at the Olympics. Using the past to introduce us to Alexa Kane before she became a murder victim was a brilliant way of bringing her character to life and getting the reader invested in unravelling the mystery of her death. Fans of murder mysteries and thrillers will definitely love this book.