Fair Catch: An Enemies-to-Lovers Roommate Sports Romance (Red Zone Rivals)

If there’s a sports romance, ALWAYS COUNT ME IN! This book had it all from, enemies to lovers, brother’s best friend, forced proximity, roommates, teammates on the same college football team, spice, romance, and lovable characters!!! SAY NO MORE! I WAS HOOKED!This story followed, Riley and Zeke. Both had known each other since they were kids since Zeke was best friends with Riley’s brother, Gavin. Having grown up together, you would think that Riley and Zeke got along, but one moment in their lives changed everything, and from then on Riley couldn’t stand Zeke. Fast forward to two years later when the story starts, both Riley and Zeke were now in college, and what do you know?… both were trying out for the same football team at school. Oh yeah, did I forget to mention how awesome Riley was at sports as well? Going from playing soccer when she was younger to then changing to football, she had always been a beast on the field (and off as well). Riley was use to being against the odds, but she didn’t let anything get in her way of achieving what she set her mind to. Zeke was always determined to play college football and hopefully lead to him playing in the big leagues a.k.a. The NFL.The enemies to lovers trope was in full force right from the start with Riley’s strong dislike of Zeke, and Zeke pushing Riley’s buttons to get under her skin. Riley was feisty and strong and let Zeke just how much she didn’t like him. Meanwhile, Zeke fully understood where Riley’s wrath came from, but even with her not liking him, he made sure to protect her, help her out whenever he could. Sometimes I felt tugged in either Riley or Zeke’s perspective in that each had their own reasons for feeling the way that they felt, and with Riley in particular I could see from her point of view why she felt the way that she did towards Zeke for so many years. Despite the rocky start that had always been since they’ve known each other, I liked seeing when Riley started to loosen up and become nicer to Zeke.The romance and spice in this book didn’t disappoint. Slowly but surely the tension between Riley and Zeke reached its limit, and BAM! Off went the fireworks! Kandi really knows how to write those spicy scenes to please us all! I was also taken aback when Riley and Zeke had their steamy moment at the club like, “OMG!” Those two couldn’t get enough of each other, and it just showed how much their chemistry was burning with passion. Before reading this book, I had seen people mention on BookTok that certain scene in particular, and I just blushed at having read it myself, but more than that I absolutely loved the part when Zeke told Riley that HE ACHED FOR HER! That just went straight to my heart and my heart rate escalating! Phew Zeke had me swooning and screaming with delight at that line!The story got better and better with each chapter. The way this story was written was relaxing, fun, and had me intrigued with Zeke and Riley’s relationship. I also can’t get enough of sports romances so seeing the way Riley and Zeke were both on the field and off was exciting. I especially loved seeing Riley being a total queen in a predominantly male sport and owning her spot like she rightly deserved it. Riley was a unique character because, it was the first time (at least) for me to see a female character in a sport that I wouldn’t have imagined. Riley had her fair share of people pushing against her and having to deal with the lack of respect most people gave her because of her gender. Although it was nice to see Clay, Zeke, and Holden have Riley’s back as support, Riley stood her ground and made sure everyone on the field knew she was capable of playing football.Overall, this was a great book. I loved seeing Riley and Zeke’s story, as well as seeing other characters like Giana, Clay, and Holden. The brother’s best friend trope was good, and I’m an absolute sucker for sports romance stories. Kandi Steiner’s writing style is comforting to me, and I love reading the characters that she’s created. I still gotta say that Giana and Clay remain my favorites, but I also enjoyed Riley and Zeke. The romance and spice in this book was amazing, and again Kandi always does a phenomenal job with her stories.

Seriously, Kandi can’t write bad books. Kandi and sports romance? Top. Notch! I absolutely loved Fair Catch. It has all the good tropes - enemies to lovers, football romance, second chance romance, forced proximity. All the ingredients for a fantastic read. I love the history between Zeke and Riley. Yeah there’s a lot of bad emotional baggage, but at the heart of it is two people who have known each other for most of their lives. That intense connection makes for an explosive relationship. These two seem like complete opposites except for football, but they really complement each other. The chemistry is freaking hot and the banter is really good. I loved the support from Gavin and most of their teammates. It made it really easy to fall for Clay and Holden and even Leo. Not a big fan of Kyle, but we will see if he can redeem himself. Gavin, ugh that man has my heart, I hope we get his story one day. Zeke really pulled on my protective instincts, thinking football is the only thing he has was heartbreaking. Riley and her doubts and feeling like she had to live up to her pinky promise was an emotional one as well. I couldn’t put this one down. I loved watching Zeke and Riley figure each other out as well as learning about themselves. Fair Catch has all the feels, all the steam, fantastic characters, a plot that leaves you glued to the pages, and a hard earned HEA. Great start to what will be an amazing series! Highly recommend!

Love love love the slow burn. Brother's best friend is always a favorite trope and this was no exception. The unique setup was that Riley's brother is her twin and his best friend was also hers. The conflict already exists at the start of the story... Riley holding a grudge against Zeke for a very unfortunate tragedy. However, she didn't know the entire truth of what led up to that tragedy, which may have softened her animosity towards her former friend. With the conflict upfront, the first 50% of the book is pure angst buildup. So prepare yourself for that. I often found myself checking how far along I was in the book and wondering when it would come to a breaking point lol. Kandi never disappoints.

I've read the other books in this series and I think this is my least favorite. The characters are good and the main storyline and plot are good as well but I really hated the reasoning behind the final fight between the main characters. It just seemed forced, like they didn't need to have it and the author was just looking for something to add more drama. Overall still good though and 🌶️ level did not disappoint.

Oof, Kandi Steiner didn’t give me enough of a warning about how this book would make me feel. I always go into Kandi’s stories prepared to cry and/or soul’s been wrung dry. And with Fair Catch I definitely went through all of the feelings. While not as angsty as I expected it to be, I didn’t care. Because Riley and Zeke delivered a story that was part redemption, part falling in love for the first time and all of it tied together with what is becoming one of my favourite tropes—frenemies to lovers.Riley, Zeke and Gavin (Riley’s twin brother) have known each other for years having grown up together. But when a drunk driving incident leaves Gavin confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life and his football dreams go down the drain, he turns to Riley to live out the one thing he wanted to do—take his place on the football team in college. For Riley, art and soccer have been two things she’s loved. But having grown up loving and enjoying football, she knows that taking on the role as the kicker to fulfil one of her brother’s wishes isn’t the hardest thing to do. Her only problem is that she has to deal with Zeke. Zeke who she crushed on as a kid and till he slid behind the wheel of the car that almost ended her brother’s life. Zeke who she wants to ignore and punch every time he appears in her line of sight. Zeke who is also now her new roommate.I loved the idea and the story so much that I still went into Riley and Zeke’s book totally blind. I forgot the blurb almost as soon as I started reading and I’m glad. Because this book is best enjoyed if you know nothing about what is going on from the start. Riley and Zeke’s frenemies to lovers situation is both frustrating and amusing, but it’s mostly seeing how Zeke doesn’t hate Riley the way she hates him. I completely see why Riley wants to hurt and ignore Zeke, because he hurt her and I loved that it took her a long time to really come to terms with him as a person. But what I loved was their journey to get there. They go from being two people working their butts off to be part of the football team, to becoming starters on the team that end up living together on campus. I loved how Zeke was protective of her and even when she snapped and pushed at him, he stood his ground. Riley’s obviously not the only one who made a promise to Gavin and Zeke’s just following through with what he told his best friend.Riley was such a brilliant character. Not only is she dealing with all these frustrations towards Zeke, she also has to deal with teammates and the media who keep questioning her place in football. I love that even though she’s doing this because it was what Gavin asked of her, Riley loves her position with the team and she’s not going to let anything or anyone stop her or step in the way of her achieving her dreams. And yes, this is not just about Gavin’s dreams, it’s about her own dreams. For Riley, football isn’t the end goal and she has no intention of going pro because she wants a job in art—a museum or gallery—but she pours herself into this like her life depends on it. And that kind of determination really won me over.I didn’t instantly like Zeke, but I think that’s part of his charm. He takes a little time to get your interest from the start. He’s repentant, apologetic and at the same time, he’s a cocky football player with good looks and talent and he’s not going to hide that. Zeke’s also extremely protective and possessive of Riley and seeing her through his eyes really made me grow to appreciate him. I also appreciated the amount of work that went into him making up for his past mistakes, for his screw-ups and for the things that Riley hates about him. There’s so much more to Zeke than just what people see and I loved how we got to peel back each layer slowly and see him for who he is.They are fantastic together. It’s a mix of the classic enemies to lovers tossed up with a bunch of other things that really presents their relationship in a brilliantly unique way. I liked that while Riley is snapping and pushing, Zeke stands his ground because all he wants is to go back to the way things used to be. He wants Riley to look at him without hatred and disdain and she’s struggling to see anything but the guy who almost broke her heart and soul. But the way they slowly find each other in the darkness of their lives and not only manage to become friends but so much more is what made me love them together so much. There was nothing easy about their relationship because Riley is stubborn and Zeke is persistent. But thanks to all the history, those feelings have lingered for years, it’s just buried so deep down.And of course, in true Kandi fashion, we got some deliciously hot steam. Their emotional relationship—the breaking down of pain and trauma, the struggles, the frustrations—all builds into intense sexual tension and chemistry which then explodes in the best way possible. Kandi is the kind of author that can take all of that and turn it into something beautiful. AND HOT. Seriously, brace for the heat.I also loved this group of friends and my heart belongs to Holden (I hope he gets a book!), but I’m so excited to see more of the stories from his universe, because Kandi’s college/sports romances have always won me over. Her PSU series, anybody? *chef’s kiss*

This book.... OMG I didn't expect to like it so much. The only reason that this book is a 4.25 and not 5 star is because I didnt feel as connected to it as I did for clay and giana. But I devoured every bit of this book and OMG ZEKEEEEEEEEE. OH GOD,that guy legit has my heart. loved loved this book so much I can't even... Go and read this already and I can't wait to read Holden's story next

Kandi Steiner is one of my favorite writers. Even if I don’t understand anything football wise I just eat her books as if I’m starving. Each and everytime. So much fun, wisdom, words of encouragement, emotions all in one book.Can’t wait to read Holden’s story :)

This story is very much about acceptance, accepting the past and that you cant change it, accepting what you want to do and who you want to be with.Although I enjoy Zeke and Riley in this book and the journey they go on, I LOVE them in later books - how strong their relationship is, how much they've grown individually and together- brothers best friend- forced proximity (roommates and teammates)- hidden relationship- college football- duel pov

For me, this book was a game of two halves. The first being heavy on the football whilst the romance was non existent however, to my relief, the second half was heavy on sizzling romance and I loved every single page of that part of the story. I adored seeing Zeke & Riley together. Who knew that couple had so much chemistry? Not me, that’s for sure. The pair’s love was addictive as they went from enemies-to-lovers. I couldn’t get enough of seeing their relationship grow. Another thing that I enjoyed about this novel was that Riley was a female football player. I don’t think I’ve read that before and I loved the twist on what’s the norm in sports romance. I will definitely be continuing with the college football based series. Recommended.