And this new neighbor kinda asks her to be his fake girlfriend - because the whole town is trying to find him a wife to make him stay!

Let’s just say that Ronan and Nova’s meet-cute was more than a little awkward especially when the night comes to an end. Read more about the condition New: A new, unread, unused book in perfect condition with no missing or damaged pages. But I loved everything about him especially how he cared for Nova everytime and her family and how he loves star wars. There’s playful banter and some heat, but not a lot of intimate moments – the plot gets distracted by so many other characters.

This was probably one of the only instances in which I didn’t mind the “deceased wife” trope because while she was portrayed as someone that was nice and whom he loved, we were really showed and told that his relationship with the heroine was on another level, some soulmate type thing (if you believe in that). Ronan is this hot, shredded, athletic nerd (so kind of like Henry Cavill) who constantly makes Star Wars references and really geeks over them, it is, as Nova would say, adorable. Nova’s younger sister Sabine, one of Ronan’s football players, Toby, Ronan’s best friend and fellow NFL player, Tuck. Why I really loved this book though, is the combination of small town charm, the beautiful sibling relationship between the heroine and her sister, the nosy neighbours who are overbearing but mean well, the small nuggets of parental wisdom which the heroine inherited and she kept passing forward, the epilogue, there’s probably a few other reasons.

I adore all the characters too which is why I am so excited that Madden-Mills wrote more books in this world. Finance is provided by PayPal Credit (a trading name of PayPal UK Ltd, Whittaker House, Whittaker Avenue, Richmond-Upon-Thames, Surrey, United Kingdom, TW9 1EH). Overall, this was enjoyable at times but disappointing at others…so I’m going with a middle of the road 3 star rating.Ronan is now the star football coach in their small town, Nova is his neighbor, and they just keep running into each other. Heroine was cheated on by her HS boyfriend (who causes some OM drama in this book), she then dated slews of other athletes.

What will happen when things get even more complicated and they decide the solution is to fake a relationship? Three years later, Nova moves back to her small town of Blue Belle where she encounters the football coach who turns out to be Ronan. Three-ish years later, Nova moves back home to Texas and learns that Ronan is her obnoxious new neighbor. I loved their connection, both that first night, as well as the bit of animosity between them when they met once again in the small town of Blue Belle, Texas. Ronan Smith is a superstar NFL quarterback who had it all until his dreams were shattered by and accident that took away his fiancée and his career.

This one has witty characters, great banter, strong FMC, fake dating, football coach and a PA relationship, a little angst when they met each other again, lovely side characters except some nosy neighbourhood lady, healing, and grief and a heartwarming and sweet couple and some fluff and hilarious moments and they both were neighbours. Unbeknownst to her, the high school football coach lives next-door, and he has parties- the current one has ruined her mom‘s planted yellow flowers. Ronan is grieving his NFL career and his fiancé after an accident took them both away from his and is spiraling. I liked that the plotline of the side characters was developed as well, I loved what was going on with Skeeter and Sonia. When a mysterious girl shows up to his party, he feels drawn to her and makes her his…for one night.

This small town love story had the perfect combination of a delicious and sexy one-night stand with a pining-filled fake-dating arrangement! And the spice in this was just Chef's kiss and THE PANTRY SCENE, THEIR LITTLE GAMES AND THE POOL GAME TABLE SCENE WAS HOT 🤌🔥 and Ronan being an alpha male and Nova being a confident girl. I will admit that if you go into the book purely for some great love story, you’re maybe gonna be disappointed.By joining TV Guide, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. This book captured me from the first moment with the perfect meet-cute between our two main characters! In this un-put-downable romance, Madden-Mills skillfully balances the emotional with the physical to produce a love story that's equal parts scorching and sweet. Beauty and the Baller, an all-new moving and smoking hot fake relationship standalone romance from Wall Street Journal bestselling author Ilsa Madden-Mills is available now! I think what I loved more than anything was the author's honest portrayal of Ronan and his complicated emotions as he navigated his own feelings for Nova after coming to terms with his loss.