Princess and the Player

Princess and the Player is the second book in the Strangers in Love series, but it can be read as a standalone. I haven't read the first book yet, and I didn't feel like I had missed any piece of the story.

Francesca and Tuck meet in a unique, fun way. Francesca ended her engagement after catching her fiancée in a compromising situation, and Tuck isn't interested in a serious relationship. Their attraction is instant, hence the decision to share a one-night stand. Their chemistry is off the charts, so that night is much more than either of them hoped. However, they walk away from each other that same night just like they agreed. Fortunately, a few weeks later they bump into each other and realize they live in the same building, and their chemistry is even hotter after one night... 

I enjoyed the first half of Tuck and Fran's story a lot. Tuck's emotional struggle with his past, his parents, and even his genes was so well written. I loved how flawed and real that side of him was. Fran also had a complex past and it influenced how she handled what was happening in her life and her relationship with Tuck. Trust didn't come easy for these two. It made perfect sense considering what both of them went through. Regardless, that lack of trust went on for too long. Francesca keeping the pregnancy from Tuck for that long exasperated me. The story also had a lot going on at the same time. Fran had to deal with the surprise pregnancy, a new job, a friend's decision that had an emotional impact on her, and a huge discovery she ended up making about her family, Tuck was struggling with his career, his feelings for Fran, talking about creating a nonprofit, dealing with stuff about his mom... It was just too much going on. It came to a point when it was mostly “tell” than show, and things felt rushed in the end. Fortunately, I still liked how things wrapped up.

I wanted to love this book, but sadly that didn't happen. However, there were several things about this book I liked: 

- Found family;
- Strong backstories and flawed characters;
- Tuck and Fran's walks in the park;
- The chemistry between them;
- Tuck's sports career;
- The first fast-paced half of the story;
- Jasper (Tuck's teammate and friend).

I still want to read the first book in this series and I'll surely read Jasper's story if he gets one.

ARC was provided via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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