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blovesbooks80's review
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Death, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
jazzyjbox's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This is the Sapphic baseball YA romance I absolutely needed!
Ivy's loves sports, but her dream is to officiate a pro game. For now, she'll have to settle as a ref/umpire for her local teams. June is a start baseball pitcher with a temper and an increasingly painful shoulder. Even though the two girls don't see eye-to-eye on June's pitching, they bond over their shared loss of loved ones (June's mom and Ivy's brother) and soon find themselves falling for more than sports.
I've really enjoyed everything I've read from Jennifer Dugan, and this is no exception. As a girl who played baseball until I was no longer allowed, I loved that June got to keep playing in high school. I loved all the side stories to this romance like the pressure of living up to expectations and taking care of yourself. The best friends were fantastic, and everything wrapped up really nicely.
Rep: bi (MC), lesbian (MC)
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Death of parent and Death
jennireadsmaybe's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Graphic: Grief and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexism and Misogyny
Minor: Medical content, Death of parent, Drug use, Death, and Alcohol
livruther's review
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
i thought this was a pretty good book. i liked the start of their romance, and i was especially invested in the second half. i just did not like june as much as i wanted to. i found her to be really selfish, and while she did grow, i just didnt feel like she adequately apologized for or acknowledged the pain she caused. some of the references and phrases that were very modern weren’t my favorite either, because i think they will put too much of a timestamp on the book and make less accessible to readers years in the future.
cw: medical content, cancer, death of a parent, child death, injury/injury detail, grief
Graphic: Medical content, Death of parent, Grief, Child death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cancer
fanboyriot's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Spice Level: n/a
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Misogyny, Cursing, and Sexism
Minor: Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Child death, Death of parent, Drug use, Death, and Cancer
laketwentytwo's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
3.75 ★
Playing for Keeps follows two ambitious and strong-willed MCs, Ivy & June, who are on paths to their own dreams that inevitably cross. Ivy is focused on becoming one of the few female umpires to officiate the major leagues & June is the star pitcher of her varsity baseball team, on track to become the first woman to play in the MLB. When Ivy officiates one of June’s games, tensions rise and love begins to blossom.
Dugan is a talented author with a plethora of YA and one adult novel under her belt; Playing for Keeps is the first time I’ve read her work and I am interested in exploring the rest of her catalogue.
With the characters being in high school and this book being YA, I had a bit of a difficult time dealing with their immaturity and commitment to miscommunication. I did have to keep reminding myself that they are kids and would eventually figure it out. The story is still enjoyable and I liked seeing their storylines play out; although I wish there was more of an enemies-to-lovers arc that Playing for Keeps appeared to start heading towards near the beginning of the novel.
A free copy of Playing for Keeps was received in exchange for my honest review.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death of parent, Cancer, and Death