[Kame's Review]: "Tempting the Player"

Tempting the Player by Kat Latham
Publisher: Carina Press (November 10th, 2014)
Series: London Legends, 3
Genre: Contemporary Romance -- Sports

Best friends make the best lovers.

Libby Hart and Matt Ogden are perfect for each other—as friends. They’ve known each other for ages. They act as each other’s plus-ones. They even share custody of a dog. And if there’s always been a little spark between them, so what? It’s never been worth jeopardizing their friendship.

Professional rugby player Matt is fighting for a starter position with the London Legends—and that’s not the only thing he’s fighting. A crippling fear of flying means he’s struggling to get his career off the ground. He has no time for a relationship, even if Libby does make him ache. As an airline pilot, Libby’s looking for a stay-at-home husband so she can have a family without sacrificing her high-flying career. Matt’s certainly not that man.

But just because they don’t have a future together doesn’t mean they can’t have a right now. When Matt asks Libby for help overcoming his fear, they agree to take a vacation from their platonic relationship—whenever they fly together, they can have sex. It’s the perfect way to resolve all that built-up tension. As long as they can avoid getting a little too comfortable…

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Reviews of Latham's Previous Books:

Knowing the Score (#1) -- Kame
Playing it Close (#2) -- Kame


Kame's Review:

After losing a rugby match the last thing Matt wants to do is get on a plane. Actually it doesn’t matter if they won or lost, the last thing Matt would want to do is get on a plane. However it is the only way he can get home to Princess, the dog he shares with is best friend Libby.  Princess has been a bright spot in his life since the minute they adopted her and Matt can’t imagine life without her. Lately Matt has realized that he can’t imagine his life without Libby either.

I myself have had a male best friend. Matt and Libby’s relationship at the beginning of the book is spot on. Their relationship was based on friendship and I applaud Kat Latham for taking the time to ensure the reader understood how close these two characters were emotionally, and how intertwined their lives were. Libby is a great character; she has an incredible job that few women can dream of. She is loyal and caring to a fault, there is one point where she without thinking of how this will affect her life does what she can to help Matt in his career.  What really made me fall for Matt’s character was the thought of someone as big as Matt with a dog as small as Princess; and of course he has to have some great dialog talking to Princess too. Yes he has many women in his past, his reason once revealed is one many can understand. He is caring and thoughtful, and has no problem letting people see his soft side, however he seemed like someone who was one panic attack away from just completely breaking down. Matt is just huggable.

Before she could react, he bent and kissed her so softly, so gently, that something shifted behind her ribs. Something fundamental and catastrophic. Her pulse picked up pace, and all she could do to stay on her feet was grab a fistful of his tracksuit and hang on tight. 

When he pulled away, her body swayed toward his like the hand of a compass finding true north.

You know when you watch a great movie or television show and you can just feel the pull of the two characters towards each other, it is a sign of a great script and great director. Well a sign of a great author is when you feel the pull the characters have towards each other.  Kat Latham had me cheering for Libby and Matt during their first kiss - I was so happy for them.  Then she had me fanning myself during their steamy scenes. This romance was perfect, a little yearning and some steam!  They also had some great dialog too, a few interchanges made me laugh out loud.

“All right,” he said. “But if things do change for you, we need to talk. Don’t assume I don’t want to talk about feelings and shit just because I’ve got a penis.”

Her cheeks pinkened, and she battled unsuccessfully to bite back a grin. “Penis has feelings. Got it”

“Lots of feelings. All of them positive – about you, anyway.”

The plot was very believable and there were times I wanted to slap either Matt or Libby upside their head. The ending was heartwarming. I liked seeing glimpses of characters from the previous books. No major plot points from those books were carried over so someone reading this as a standalone will not be lost. This was another perfectly crafted book by Kat Latham. My only disappointment – I am done and now I have to impatiently wait for book 4!

5 STARS! 

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Kame received an e-ARC of this book from the author in exchange for her honest opinion.

*Note: The quotes used belong to Kat Latham; Kame and TBQ's Book Palace do not claim them.

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Thanks for the review, Kame! :) I really must read this series; I have book 1 on my  Kindle already. And that last quote? *snort* LOVE! 

Have you read Kat Latham? Do you have a favorite?

Enjoy!


Until Next Time,




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