I DNF this one. I can't read a book that's in 3rd person point of view. It's just not possible for me to get into the story that way.

I loved everything about this book except that we don’t find out one key thing in the end. The development of the characters and their development together And how they both have to dig deep it step outside comfort zone with the other is incredible.

In the middle of my flight from Boston to Seattle yesterday I happened to see an email come through with this widget, and I literally dropped what I had been trying to read to enjoy this book. I finished it on my second flight, while also watching How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, and this book was exactly what I was looking to lose myself in. Thanks to Harper Perennial and NetGalley for the free copy - and for sending it at the perfect time! And thanks to Delta for the free Wi-Fi onboard!
Heavy Hitter depicts a celebrity-athlete romance, a la Taylor and Travis, but this time the male is a baseball player about to retire. The first few chapters are so fun - I was sucked in immediately! There is an instant attraction between the two stars, and while I'm not always a fan of insta-love, I thought it worked in this case. The fast pace with some spice made it really fun to read, and there was just enough behind the scenes for the pop singer and baseball player characters to feel rooted in reality. I'm excited to tackle Hemlock House, a YA mystery also by the same author that came out last week - I'm a big fan of her writing!

Heavy Hitter was exactly what I hoped it would be and I loved it!! It was romantic and swoony and just dang near perfect. If you read anything this month, let it be this!!

A quick, fun, steamy romance. Perfect for Swifties who are dying for more Taylor and Travis content. I am kinda mad about that ending tho…3.5⭐️

I really enjoyed Heavy Hitter by Katie Cotugno. This book follows the insta love story of Lacey Logan, who is obviously a Taylor Swift inspired h, and Jimmy Hodges, more loosely inspired by Travis Kelsey. I enjoyed the story and both characters, but I really feel this book didn't give us enough to make be believe in their love, only their lust. I was also extremely disappointed in the lack of an epilogue, which might have helped me by in long term to the insta-love. I'm really disappointed because I wanted to love this book and it fell short. Sorry, but only 3 stars from me. Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy.

3.25 stars.

Is it just me, or is "Heavy Hitter" by Katie Cotugno heavily inspired by Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce?? Because it's more than just the cover of the book - it's also several details within the context of the story. Are fanfics just getting published left and right now? Who knows. Either way, this book is fine. It's not going to win any awards, and it is not going to be my favorite book at the end of the year, but it's decent. I didn't hate it or myself while reading it. It's not my favorite celebrity romance by any stretch of the imagination, but that doesn't mean it is bad. I do prefer my celebrity romances to have one normal person and one celebrity, so two large celebrity personalities were a bit much to handle. Again, that's my personal preference. I think my biggest gripe with this story is that I don't feel like there is a happily ever after between Lacey and Jimmy. It's very much a "happy-for-now" type of story, and I would not be surprised if these two characters ended up breaking up six months down the line. Cotugno doesn't really do much to distinguish this book and this story from the myriad others just life it. Still, you could honestly do worse than this book. It is a quick, fluffy read with a little spice to hold you over. The TikTok crowd will likely gobble this one up.

Thank you to NetGalley, Katie Cotugno, and Harper Perennial and Paperbacks for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book!
I have read all of Katie Cotugno's books so far, so I was excited to get to this one. I'm not usually a huge fan of romances involving famous people, but this one was very easy to read. Unfortunately, I was a little underwhelmed by the romance in this story.
I think that others will really enjoy this book, especially those that are fans of a certain pop star!

3.5*

2.75 Stars! The concept of this book intrigued me for obvious reasons, but sadly, it didn’t live up to my expectations.

Lacey, a huge pop star who loves her privacy, finds her life spiraling out of control after a big secret is revealed. Then there's Jimmy, a professional baseball player and the complete opposite of Lacey. The inspiration for this story had me excited, but the execution fell flat. The plot and characters weren't fully developed; one minute they meet at a bar, and the next they're dating and flying to see each other. It was all up in the air, with key character details never fully fleshed out, making them seem shallow. Even though this was an "opposites attract" story, I never really got the vibe that either of them actually liked each other.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Perennial!

I liked the premise of this story. I generally enjoy sports romances though I am not as fond of Hollywood romances. This book may resonate more with Swifties as Lacey was definitely loosely based on her.

My biggest criticism of this book is that Lacey and Jimmy don’t really seem to like each other very much. There was physical chemistry between them but I don’t think they have any emotional connection AT ALL. I finished this feeling like they’ll probably break up in a few weeks and that’s not the way you generally want to feel when finishing a romance.

There were a few topics that were brought up and then essentially ignored; Jimmy’s brother’s overdose and Lacey’s mother’s alcoholism were briefly touched on but we didn’t get any closure there. I also thought mentions of Jimmy’s ex-wife and their meeting didn’t add much to the story. It actually only highlighted how much better suited he seemed to be for his “regular girl” ex than superstar Lacey.

And, finally, Lacey came off as a very, very selfish person who is really quite strange. I think this is all on me but she did not work for me at all as a main character to root for.

I think Swifties may like this but it didn’t work for me.

When the biggest pop star in the world and a top baseball player start dating, nothing is easy. This is clearly Taylor and Travis, but the dialog is fun and clever, and the problems are realistic. I wish this was longer and more in-depth, but for a "lay on the couch and read it in one sitting" book, it's pretty great.

I love a good sports romance and Katie Cotugno did not disappoint. I completely adored both Lacey and Jimmy. Lacey is in her prime, finishing her North American concert series when she happens upon Jimmy, a close to retirement baseball catcher, in a club. They have a delightful encounter before she realizes the PR danger she put herself in and she quickly escapes. Lacey and Jimmy reconnect and start calling each other almost every night. I loved these conversations. They felt real and genuine. They decide they should be a thing, only things don't work out as planned and the paparazzi is involed and things go downhill but it's a romance so you know it's going to be fine in the end.

I am in a major romance slump but i keep trying to get back into them. Heavy Hitter wasn’t it for me but this could very much be a case of wrong reader, wrong time. Thank you to the publisher for the free ebook to review.

3⭐, 2.5🌶️
So…I was not a fan of this book, and its probably my own fault because if I had read the blurb, I would have picked up on this being light T-Swift/ T-Kelce fan-fac (if he was a baseball player instead of football) because I am NOT a fan of that couple or honestly either celebrity. So, I started the book on a negative note for me. And then I just don’t feel like this book had a great relationship – Those books where you feel like they would break up a few months after the book/ plot ends? Yea…

THEN For how many spicy scenes this book had, they all felt very PG. I know I shouldn’t be salty over that, but they had like the cleanest open-door phone scene ever. The number of times they said “Are you…” “Yea I am…” and no actual talking was just…not my vibe.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Perennial and Paperbacks for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Heavy Hitter is a blast! I love a celebrity romance. Lacey is a brat, but it's brat girl summer. Jimmy is a cinnamon roll. I really felt for him and his struggles. I loved reading their romance until it ended. The ending was abrupt. There are lots of untied loose ends. I hope the author writes an epilogue.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Perennial for this eARC!

I read a lot of sports romance, so I think that is why I was not a huge fan of this one. It may be a good fit for someone who isn't quite as familiar with the genre.

Overall, it was an average story line with kind of choppy dialogue.

Heavy Hitter by Katie Cotugno was an enjoyable and entertaining read. I think this will be a hit with people who are very much into Taylor Swift. I, personally, wasn't very invested in the storyline and found it to be just okay, which is not usually the case with Katie Cotugno's writing. I'm a fan of her writing but I just couldn't bring myself to care about these characters.

Thank you to Harper Perenial & NetGalley for an ARC of this book, in exchange for my honest opinion.

What the heck was that ending???? Like after all this reading you aren’t even going to let us know if Jimmy won the World Series??? Not even an epilogue to share this info? Or share what their life looks like post baseball retirement for him, and her new European tour. The ending was just super abrupt!

This was a 2 ⭐️ star read for me, it kept me reading, but the story felt choppy, and chaotic. One minute Lacey & Jimmy are together in a bar but keeping it secret. Next they’re dating, but have only talked on the phone. Then they’re going public, then they’re breaking up, but were they even together? It felt like at its best a toxic relationship we all experience in our college years lol

I also feel like the chemistry between Jimmy & Lacey was just not there, the spicy scenes felt awkward because there was no real build up to them getting together. (Not to mention the cringey phone sex scenes throughout the beginning of the book).

This book was definitely heavily influenced by Taylor Swift which can be done really well, but this one just felt weird. And in my opinion there are better Tayvis inspired stories out there to read!

If you are a fan of Taylor and Travis’ romance then this book is for you. He is a retiring baseball player she’s a popstar and together they are a hot couple. I wasn’t as invested in the storyline as it reminded me too much of T&T and was a bit of a turn off.

This was a cute read about a popstar and an athlete entering a romance. Unfortunately this book felt a bit too ripped from the headlines especially in regards to our female lead, to the point that at times it did feel a bit like real person fanfiction. The relationship between Lacey and Jimmy was additionally more insta-love and less room to actually develop which would make sense since they had not gotten much time together where they were not just hooking up. I felt that there was a lot of room to further develop their relationships with each other, the characters that we as readers are told are their closest friends are not very developed, and there is a smaller subplot discussing substance abuse. It felt a bit unfinished in that regard and that the ending was very abrupt.

2.75/5