What can I say about this book?

I loved it.

This was my first Becka Mack book ( I know, I know.. i need to read the rest of the series) I couldn't pass up the chance to read this!
Jaxon, what a golden retriever of a man. Who doesn't love a guy whose love language is acts of service?
The way he fawns over Lennon is so swoon-worthy.
Their connection and attraction to one another are off the charts.
This book made me laugh, swoon, cry, and fall in love with these characters.

This will not be the last I read of Becka Mack.

Thank you for this arc. All thoughts are my own.

A slow burn and slow book to get into. Super sweet romance. I enjoyed Mittens and his role in the book. I enjoyed learning about Lennon's background and all the friendships. I was pleasantly surprised liking Jaxon and Sarah's icecream relationship. When she told him her news, it made me really emotional and brought tears to my eyes.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Content warning: discussion of the past death of a child from an allergic reaction

Dear Becka Mack,

I loved Consider Me when it came out and have read and enjoyed the other books in the Playing For Keeps series to one degree or another, so I was happy to pick up Fall With Me.

Jaxon Riley is a player (in all senses of the word) traded to the Vancouver Vipers and “adopted” by teammates Carter, Emmett, Garrett and Adam. He’s been traded by various teams over the years and, based on his experience, he expects he will be traded again one day. He does not try to make a home in Vancouver. What would be the point? When he tried to get in touch with previous teammates they ghosted him. There are other reasons in his past too, but the upshot is that Jaxon believes he is not worth hanging around for, not worthy of love.

Lennon Hayes is a biracial woman originally from Canada but who has most recently lived in Georgia, After finally breaking up with her horrible fiance shortly before their wedding, she decides to go on the honeymoon alone in Cabo San Lucas. In the bungalow next door is Jaxon and Brielle. Jaxon decided to take off because there was a bye week and he didn’t want to be the fifth (or ninth) wheel with the gang and he picked up a girl at the gym and took her with him. Jaxon was hoping for a lot of sex and not much else on the break. Brielle sees a happy ever after apparently. Jaxon cannot be bothered to remember her name. (In fact, Jaxon is a bit of an asshole when it comes to women. He never remembers their names. Until Lennon that is. That’s a sign.) Consequently, Lennon has the joy of listening to a lot of loud sex and a lot of loud arguing, mostly from Brielle – until Brielle has enough and leaves. The next day Jaxon and Lennon have a very hot and very drunk hook up. Then Lennon leaves as her honeymoon is over.

Lennon has taken a job in another country to start fresh after the break up of her long term relationship. Guess what? She’s the new photographer/social media manager for the Vancouver Vipers. Oops.

Lennon’s romantic history with Ryne (yes, that’s his name and he’s as ridiculous as his name is) was such that she bent herself into a pretzel to make him happy and put herself last for everything. Why she was with him at all is beyond me. The Lennon of the book is not one who would put up with that nonsense for a hot second. Because of the emotional abuse Ryne subjected her to, Lennon does not have many friends (she’s close with her brother and her cousin though) and feels a bit on the unlovable side too – so she has that in common with Jaxon.

However, after Lennon is immediately adopted by the “Coochie Gang” (some of the other group names were much worse) consisting of Olivia, Cara, Jennie and Rosie, and also by their guys, Lennon quickly comes into her own.

Jaxon has been wholly adopted by the gang. They make no secret of their feelings about him (“I love you buddy” is common – do guys really talk like that? Well, I guess these guys do) but Jaxon does not believe them really. Much of the conflict in the book is regarding Jaxon realising he is enough and he is worthy of love. That is the heavier side of the story – there were parts here which were a little overwrought. Some conversations didn’t feel like things people would actually say and felt a bit like wish fulfillment – “what would this character/the reader want to have said to him?” – rather than “what would this character actually say?”

“Have you ever stopped to ask if we think you’re worth it?” Garrett looks me over, his gaze swimming with my pain. “Because for the last year and half we’ve been looking at a teammate and friend we call family, someone we can’t imagine our lives without, and you’ve had one foot out the door the entire time, waiting for things to end.”
“We’re all scared of things,” Carter murmurs. “It’s what you do with that fear that matters. You can spend your life pushing away the people who want to love you because you’re afraid one day you’ll lose them. Or you can cling to it. The love, the happiness, that full feeling that makes you realize how truly empty you were before them. Life is hard enough as it is. There’s no reason for any of us to do it alone.”
Adam meets my gaze, the emotion he holds there so palpable I feel the way it crawls over me, a hand at my back. “At the end of the day, the only person you need to be enough for is you. But for what it’s worth, you’ve always been enough for us too.”

Then again, Carter does wear his heart on his sleeve so there’s that.

Jaxon was amusing in the previous book, Unravel Me; he went to an animal shelter with Garrett, both wearing a fake moustache in a ludicrous attempt at a disguise while scoping out Adam’s love interest who volunteered there. Jaxon ended up falling in love with a chonky orange polydactyl cat – Mittens – and adopting him. Mittens features strongly in Fall With Me. He is spoiled rotten by Jaxon, who sings a made-up song to him to the tune of “Soft Kitty” (which I know from The Big Bang Theory). Mittens regularly attacks Jaxon’s balls because Jaxon insists on sleeping naked (and Mittens generally sleeps around Jaxon’s head) and Mitts likes to batt dangly things. This is a source of constant hilarity to his friends. Mostly I was amused and charmed by Jaxon and Mittens’ love story. At times it was a little too over the top for me – but that is also largely my reaction to the book as a whole.

Lennon has a peanut and tree nut allergy and because of Jaxon’s history, he is extremely sensitive to her needs. His best childhood friend died as a result of anaphylaxis and he holds himself responsible. Lennon will be safe on his watch, no matter what.

Lennon and Jaxon circle around each other for a while but when Lennon’s apartment is rendered unlivable by a water leak, he offers her his spare room and, after that, it’s not long before they give into their chemistry and are boning nonstop. (I think I said in my review of Consider Me that there is a kind of Kristen Ashley-esque vibe to Becka Mack’s writing. It’s not identical of course, but there are similarities with the feel – particularly with the Rock Chick stories. One love interest moving in with the other at the beginning and basically never leaving is one of those similarities.)

Jaxon ping pongs from being an arrogant cocky asshole to being super sweet and thoughtful.

He rambles on while he cooks, talking more than I’ve ever heard him speak, but I can’t focus on a thing other than the fact that this man who everything in my entire body tells me to hate
remembered what I’m allergic to even though I’ve never actually told him. That he recognized the signs of anaphylactic shock and rushed to my side. That he stayed there for four hours while I slept in the hospital. That he brought me home, gave me a bed, threw out all his nut products, and fucking sanitized his kitchen. That in a single day he’s done more for me, cared more for me, than my fiancé ever did.

and

He turned the heating up two degrees to 72 without me asking, because I was walking around wrapped in a blanket. I made an offhand remark about the single shelf in the shower not being big enough for all my products, and even though he said maybe that’s a sign to use fewer products, when I came home from lunch with the girls, there were brand-new floor-to-ceiling shelves in one corner of the shower. A step stool magically appeared in the pantry a day after he walked into the kitchen to see me scaling the counters so I could reach the mugs on the top shelf, and even though he explicitly said Mittens wasn’t allowed to sleep with me, when my emotions got the best of me one night, the door creaked open, Mittens was tossed inside, and then the door was promptly shut again.

While Jaxon was definitely a complete jerk to every woman he’s ever been involved with before Lennon, his devotion to her and to her the girls in his found family more than made up for it to me.

Fall With Me is also the hottest book of the series so far. Jaxon and Lennon have a lot of sex and the scenes are plentiful throughout the book. This would not be a book to listen to in the car on the school run is what I’m saying.

Carter continues to be his completely over the top self – his daughter celebrates her first birthday during this book and the party is ridonkulous.

May I just say that I do not believe these guys actually are professional athletes? They eat far too much sugar for it to be possible. And Carter is barely ever serious – it’s hard to see him as the captain of a successful hockey team, motivating his teammates. I can’t help but love him but realism is definitely not what’s being served here.

As much as this friend group scares me with their out-there antics, I can see the attraction of being so completely accepted by a friend circle that never lets you down and is always ready to ride or die for you. (Again, there are similarities to the Rock Chick books – although the guys in those stories are lot more circumspect in their regular behaviour. Imagine Indy and Ally rolled together in one and you kind of have Carter – except there’s no kidnapping or tasers in the Playing For Keeps series).

There’s a certain headspace I needed to get myself into for Fall With Me. I had to accept the over-the-top-ness and just go with it. Having decided to do that, I found a lot to like in the story. It kept me engaged (even if I did roll my eyes from time to time), it made me laugh out loud from time to time –

I march over to them, disgusted by the sight. “Are you kidding me right now?” I gesture at Mittens when Lennon startles, rolling over to look at me. “He needs a hat, Lennon. It’s a summer photoshoot, the sun is shining, and he’s in a bikini! He’s fair-furred! Make it make sense!”

– and I did believe in Jaxon and Lennon’s love story. They really are perfect for one another.

Fall With Me is a feels book and it delivers.

Grade: B

Regards,
Kaetrin

Such a fantastic story following a story of Jaxon and Lennon. A page turner I could not put down. It made me laugh and cry and will be recommending this series to everyone. Thank you for the opportunity ☺️

Fall with Me is the book every reader needs if you love:

A guy who "doesn't date" + Cat Dad + "Who isn't in love" with the MFC even though he will do anything for her + one-night stand + hate to friends to lovers + workplace and hockey romance with lots of smut.

It is a great read with many mentions of other books in the series and found family. I truly loved this book and the feelings it invoked in me. I love Jaxon and Lennon so much that it physically hurts.

This was such a wholesome and emotional story as we got to witness Jaxon’s journey of slowly realising his self worth. Getting his heartbreaking back story and learning more about him just added so much depth to this book.

The friendship group in this series always manages to crack me up with their silly antics but above all, I love that once you’re welcomed into the their inner circle, that you’re not going anywhere and Jaxon and Lennon were perfect examples of that.

It just seemed like Lennon was meant to find Jaxon. She was so understanding and patient with him while he also helped her find her voice and remember her passions and dreams again. There was so much chemistry, banter and spice overflowing from these two and they were just so perfect for each other.

I also can’t not mention the real MVP of this book, Mittens who made Jaxon the gooiest and most dedicated cat Daddy and it was so adorable!

I love this series so much, everything about this is so cute and the dynamic between Jaxon and Lennon is divine.

Jaxons pain felt so real, which is a testament to Beccas writing, and Lennon is a powerhouse badass that gives as good as she gets.

This is perfect for every hockey romance lover, but also so there for every romance girlie.

okay, I have to admit it.. this story was so damn cute!!

Jaxon and Lennon were made for each other, I loved their instant chemistry! They had such funny, witty, extremely sassy back and forth banter. Watching them both flourish as individuals and as a couple was truly so beautiful.

Becka Mack has a knack for writing such fun, strong, found family dynamics! I couldn’t get enough of this crew, they are definitely a goofy bunch! each character always stands out on their own but they also all complement each other so well!

Some of my favourite moments in fall with me, just to hype you all up;

- the tulips (so damn cute!!)
- silk sheets
- jaxon doing lennon’s hair (you heard me right!!)
- birthday things
- the stars ✨
- living situation

just to top it off, I’m not really a cat person but mittens really shined in this one and had me thinking otherwise!!🤭

*3.5 stars*

massive thank you Simon & Schuster Australia and NetGalley for this ARC 🫶🏻

Without a doubt 5 stars! I loved the entire Playing for Keeps series so I really had no doubts I wouldn’t love Fall with Me.
Jax was the underrated f*ckboy that wasn’t open to receiving the love he deserved.
I love the friendships that grow within this book, the banter and jokes had me laughing out loud late at night. The ‘found family’ troupe made me wish I was apart of it. It’s your goals in life to have friends become family.
I loved this whole story and was hooked the moment I opened the first page.
Thank you to Becka Mack, the literal queen of hockey romance, and NetGalley for allowing me to read this in advance.

I loved the first 3 in this series and this book did not disappoint. I couldn’t not put this book down.

Can a review just say “read this, it is phenomenal”? Because it’s incredibly hard to put into words how much I loved this book! Only Becka Mack can have me laughing out loud AND sobbing within the same chapter. Jaxon, Lennon and Mittens exceeded expectations!

Jaxon, an adorable King underneath that arrogant and blasé exterior. My heart truly hurt for him and what he had endured in his life. His feelings of self-doubt honestly just made me want to reach through the pages and give him a big hug. Lennon was everything he needed to see that he was worth sticking around for. He loved so quietly but so fiercely.
Lennon, an absolute QUEEN. I loved her SO much. She was sassy and sarcastic, knew what she wanted and deserved but also struggling in some aspects of her life. Jaxon treated her like the absolute queen she is, his acts of service were perfect room. I absolutely loved how both Jaxon and Lennon were struggling to find their place but ultimately found it with each other. The way the Coochie Gang and Britney’s Bitches cemented their place in their family was beautiful. In the words of Cara, “it’s everyone or nothing.” No one writes found family like Becka. The amount of highlights I have is absolutely criminal and there is so much more to say about this incredible story.

Special mention MUST go to the thoughtful and cute as shit things Jaxon does for Lennon. And of course Mittens. And the Coochie Gang. And Britney’s Bitches. And Ireland’s birthday party. And Jaxon singing karaoke. And learning TikTok dances for Carter.

I loved this story so much, and I cannot wait for everyone to fall in love with Jaxon and Lennon like I did!

“I’m looking at her… I’m looking at her like she’s the sunset, and I’m seeing it in colour for the very first time”

Jaxon Riley.. I have been waiting for your story and the emotional impact it had on me and wsso unexpected but so perfect!
I know underneath his tough exterior there would be reason for his ways, and those reasons had me in tears, this beautiful insecure man 🫶

“Fuck I’ve been so afraid. To let go, to let someone in, give them that kind of power over me. The kind of power where you walk knowingly to the edge of the cliff, stare down at all the possibilities waiting below you take a deep breath, let go & fall. But I don’t want to fall alone. I want her to fall with me”

Lennon is one of my favourite FMcs in the Becka Mack universe, the love for astrology, photography & herself was so refreshing and really cool.. honestly, she’s a whole vibe. Her patience, and self confidence was inspiring, I think she’ll leave a permanent mark on my own character.

“Kissing Lennon is like that first duo of coffee on a cold winter morning. She’s everything warm and rich, this cozy feeling that sinks into your bones, settles all your racing thoughts”

Following the Vancouver team throughout their journey has been incredible, I love when books continue to follow the main cheaters from previous stories and you really get to dive so deep into their world. Becka once again, has proved she is an incredible writer who can write pain so beautifully, I think I have cried in all 4 books now!?

I cannot wait for the next book, I just know that the storyline will have me in shambles once again - but Becka knows how to do it right, you don’t expect these hockey romances to have so much depth but I’m so glad they do 💗💗

“Thank you for falling with me. I don’t think I could’ve survived falling alone”

Thank you Becka and Simon & Schuster for this arc!!

Well I definitely need to go to therapy after this❤️‍🩹 This book is so painfully beautiful, raw, emotional, heart touching, & soul crushing yet absolutely hilarious. Becka somehow took my thoughts, feelings & anxieties & put them on paper, & the result absolutely annihilated me💔 I sobbed, laughed, & experienced a rollercoaster of emotions whilst reading this book, & that, coupled with the fact that it heavily resonated w/ me, made it my fave read of the year💜

Lennon is a total badass who knows how to dish it back! Her humbling Jaxon had me chuckling, & her patience with, & gentleness towards him had my heart bursting🥹 Watching her grow & find a place amongst this beautifully chaotic family was so heartwarming❤️‍🩹

Jaxon Riley… I don’t think I’ve EVER resonated this deeply with an mmc before. His internal dialogue hurt because it was relatable, so I sobbed relentlessly. He’s Carter 2.0 but less ostentatious so he immediately became my fave🫣he lowkey gives Schmidt from new girl vibes lol. He’s weird but also hot & endearing, chaotic, caring, selfless, empathic, loves quietly yet fiercely but doesn’t believe he could ever be loved the same way, is obsessed with his cat, flirty, cheeky, an f-boy, charming, emotional, wholesome & delusional (my type🤭🫦). I love him more than words can describe❤️‍🩹

The immediate fireworks between Jaxon & Lennon, their banter, chemistry, back & forth, & tension had me kicking my feet & feeling so giddy. Their gentle/quiet yet deep love, & their understanding of, and patience towards one another was so special. They were the missing piece in each others lives & their love felt like a warm hug🫂 I LOVED this book.

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞: room(h)ates to lovers, forced proximity, hockey player x team photographer, found family, ONS

Thank you to Simon & Schuster Australia for this arc💜

WOW! I’m speechless. This book was PERFECTION! Fall With Me is a beautifully written story about self-worth, courage, love and vulnerability. This book is spicy but also has an engaging plot with emotional depth and hilarious humour. Becca’s writing strikes this balance so well!
 
Jaxon and Lennon’s story was so heartwarming. It was also so much fun with all their witty and flirty banter! This book made me feel so many emotions. It had me laughing one minute and crying the next! The emotions in this book were so raw and real making it incredibly relatable! Fall With Me is the fourth book in Becca Mack’s Playing for Keeps series and is an absolute MUST READ!  
 
What to expect:
✨ hockey romance
✨ one-night stand
✨ frenemies to lovers
✨ room(h)ates with benefits
✨ runaway bride
✨ broody NHL defenseman
✨ team photographer
✨ reformed playboy
✨ cat daddy
✨ found family

This is delightful. Jaxon is a complete man toddler, he’s a hockey playing himbo - immature, needy, shallow as a puddle and a total golden retriever. I’m so impressed with the way that author Becka managed to make him relatable and sympathetic. Lennon is more appealing from the start, she’s smart and sassy, reeling from a pretty dramatic relationship breakdown. These two have a torrid weekend (on Lennon’s would-be honeymoon!) and then find themselves working and rooming together.

Jaxon's had the itinerant life of a professional hockey player. He’s loved around, been traded too often, fought too much and failed to settle in anywhere. Lennon is coming off that messy breakup and has moved to be the photographer for the Vancouver Vipers. There’s kindness between them and Jaxon especially pays attention. He's observant and once he’s in, he’s delicious with Lennon. There’s some familiar tropes, with workplace romance, forced proximity and banter for days. I’m not sure what they have in common other than physical compatibility - and there’s so much of that 🌶️🌶️. He’s a talker and a doer and they are both young, energetic and adventurous. The friendship group is lovely and all the cameos from the other players and partners in this series are so fun. Shoutout to Mittens - best fiction cat ever 🐱

It’s funny and tender and a light steamy read, and also really silly, but in a good way. There's momentum as they navigate work demands, health, their insecurities and backgrounds, etc etc. After reading a lot of angsty romances, this shaggy piece of fluff is a tonic!

Thank you NetGalley, Becka Mack and Simon & Schuster Australia for the ARC. Opinions are my own.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 stars
🌶️🌶️🌶️ spice

New favourite micro tropes: Cat dads & revenge sex (and I’m not even a cat person)

What to Expect:
Hockey romance
Reformed playboy
One night stand to friends to lovers
Forced proximity
Found family
Cinnamon roll MMC
Cat parents....no really

Fav Quotes:
"Listen, if Mitts is gonna be Mr.Worldwide, we’ll have to make sure the fame doesn’t go to his head. You know what can happen to a cat with unsupervised access to fame. I won’t let him be a statistic."

"I hate you, but I love your cock. Thanks for letting me ride it. Bye, Jason."

"Your mom told me to tell you she can’t make it to your place for breakfast tomorrow morning. She’s busy, and also, she’s my breakfast."

Another excellent installment in this series - words cannot express how good the banter is in these books. I can't get enough of how Becka Mack writes dialogue and the group chats. I just about pass away every time they come up, like let me go get my popcorn, ok?! Her humour is just my kind of silly.

Jaxon and Lennon's chemistry was just *chef's kiss*, sexual tension off the charts and every goddamn time he called her "honey" my legs just gave out from under me. Absolute melt.
I loved that he was a sort of secret cinnamon roll boi..pretending like he wasn't completely obsessed with her form the start, but doing all these tiny acts of service that showed how he really felt. eeeek (this is me smiling like a crazy person and swooning over him doing her hair).

Carter is still the MVP of this series and I will accept no arguments about it. Especially karaoke Carter...oh, and daddy t-shirt Carter. Just all of him. Gimme (*grabby hands*). Jaxon gave him and Garrett a run for their money, that's for sure..well played Miss Mack.

You'll grow to love absolutely every character in these books, I'm hoping we get a 2nd gen spin off for Connor, Lily & Ireland (pretty, pretty please!)

Fall With Me is book four in Becka Mack's Playing for Keeps series. Lennon Hayes was looking forward to her wedding until the bridegroom was caught sleeping with one of the wedding party members during the wedding rehearsal. After cancelling the wedding, Lennon decided still to go on her honeymoon and spend the time deciding what to do with her life. During her stay at the resort, she had a one-night stand with ice hockey player Jaxon Riley and did not expect to see him again. However, what happened when she moved to Canada and became Vancouver Vipers' new photographer, which was Jaxon Riley's team. The readers of Fall With Me will continue to follow Jaxon and Lennon to discover what happens.

Fall With Me is the first book I have read by Becka Mack, and I enjoyed it. I engaged with the book from the first page, which continued until the end. I love Becka Mack's portrayal of her characters and their interactions throughout this book. Fall With Me is well-written and researched. I like Becka Mack's description of the settings of Fall With Me, which allowed me to imagine being part of the book's plot. The readers of Fall With Me will learn about the role of a sports team photographer and being an ice hockey player. I recommend this book

I fall more in love with the Playing for Keeps series, Becka Mack’s writing and her beautiful characters, who feel so real to me now that it’s heartbreaking to finish each book. Fall with Me was everything I had wanted for Jaxon and everything that I didn’t even know I needed it to be. I was swooning, giggling, crying and cheering with each moment between Jaxon and Lennon and lapping up all of the amazing banter and group texts between their found family group. I loved everything about Fall with Me and it even managed to bump the beautiful Unravel Me from my favourite book spot of the series. The cover is just gorgeous and I cannot wait to have it proudly displayed on my bookshelf to appreciate every day. Thank you Becka for pouring so much love, humour, compassion, spice, friendship and humanity into the pages you touch; our lives through your books are all the richer for it.

I’m ashamed to admit this is my first Becka Mack book. Ashamed because this book was so awesome and I’m wondering how and why I haven’t discovered this author sooner. Like where have I been? I also don’t usually start a book midway through a series because I’ve been disappointed in the past just jumping into a whole universe without all the background, but the cover and blurb of Fall With Me (Playing For Keeps #4) drew me in. I’m a big, big fan of hockey romances, I’m thinking Sarina Bowen, Helena Hunting, Elle Kennedy, Sawyer Bennet… Big fan might be a slight under exaggeration, it’s more like obsessed, and this book is up there alongside my favourite hockey authors!

This book was fun, fun, fun. I absolutely loved Jaxon & Lennon’s story. I love a grumpy hottie, a bad boy who reforms himself when he meets the “one”, especially when he’s the absolute last person to realise she’s the “one” for him. I love that both of them weren’t looking for a relationship, but they end up falling for each other. I love that the book was about starting over, about having a found family. I loved the level of spice the book had and the fact their chemistry was smoking hot. The humour was perfect, and I loved how they ended up with a HEA that they didn’t see coming. My favourite part though was Jaxon’s role as cat daddy to Mittens! This cat was unique and the absolute best (like every single cat anyone has ever had)!

So, in summary first time reader now devoted Becka Mack fan!

I devoured this in 24 hours. It is certainly my favourite in this whole series.

Jaxon Riley, I love you. I’d so be a cat mommy for that man.

My heart hurt for him 🥺 All those insecurities and self doubt hidden under that playboy persona we saw throughout the other books. But his sweet ‘honey’ Lennon was exactly what he needed, so patient and loving on him 💛 Plus we love a queen who knows her worth.

This book had me laughing with snippets of the gang throughout, such a good ‘found family’ dynamic. I also love how unhinged Carter is.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC!