This is my first introduction to Ilsa Madden-Mills and what a fantastic introduction it was. As this story had me enthralled from the moment Elena sat down uninvited at Jack's table and started talking non-stop about everything from her c-l-i-t to her pet pig Romeo. And honestly, I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. As not only was it utterly delightful and entertaining. But OMG these characters just stole my heart as they were fun, and very real. And in Jack's case sexy as hell, but he was also vulnerable, shy, guarded, and sweet and I adored watching him interact with Elena, her wonderful family, and the people of Daisy.

And with plenty of small town charm, laughs and little drama Not My Romeo was just perfect and exactly what I was looking for.

Would highly recommend.

Fun, flirty, and filled with small town charm -- <i>Not My Romeo</i> was filled with so many things I love about reading romance.

And so, it was a little surprising that it was also a little bit of a mixed bag for me.  

When it was on – it was ~so on~.  Like the banter and the chemistry and the whole dynamic between superstar quarterback and small town librarian really worked for me.  In fact, it’s one of my favorite tropes – so I was primed to love it.  And I did – in moments and scenes and chapters.  

Unfortunately it wasn’t always ~.on~. for me.  There were several times where I felt pulled out of the story as the author manipulated it in a way that didn’t feel organic or real.  I felt like the connection between Elena and Shane should have stood alone, so when dialogue or situations were taken over-the-top in order to force the storyline – it was frustrating for me.  I skimmed a fair amount looking for those bits that grabbed hold of my heart and kept my mind sparking.  

In the end, I was won over by Shane and Elena and their sweet, adorable happily ever after.  It was a sweet, sexy escape and I’m glad to have taken it – and there was plenty of delight to be found in the secondary characters – to the extent that I’m so curious and anxious to see where the series goes from here!

When her friend sets her up on a blind date for Valentine's Day Elena knows it's surely going to end in disaster, seriously how could it not. She is having trouble having faith in the opposite sex right now, after her ex left her for her own sister. So she goes into this date with the hope of a good meal and maybe some decent conversation... but finds so much more than that when she sits down across from her uber sexy date. The man waiting for her was nothing like she expected, and the night ends better than expected too. The next morning however.... not so much!

Not My Romeo is an enthralling little literary romp that will have you swooning, smiling like a fool, and laughing the whole way through. This unlikely pairing are united by a little mistake, but it's their undeniable chemistry and mutual attraction to one another that keeps them coming back for more. Jack is a one night stand kind of guy, he doesn't do love, relationships, one night is really all he is comfortable offering. And Elena is anything but that, she wants date nights, cozy nights at home, love, a relationship to build upon. She knows Jack is not up for that, but for some dumb reason she can't seem to shake her attraction to him. She tries her best to walk away, but he keeps finding reasons to pull her back in, and she knows it's just a matter of time before things become dangerous for her heart. Watching these two fall for one another was rough on the ticker at times, with both of them constantly wavering, not willing to go all in for fear of getting hurt, and pushing each other away. But there were those moments when they let their minds take a back seat to their hearts, and that is where the good stuff was lying... the stuff you knew was bound to lead to a happily ever after, and those moments would have you swimming in happy feels. I loved this one, it was a perfectly blended tale that was impossible to put down! Highly recommend!

I requested an advanced copy of this title from the publisher, and I am voluntarily leaving my honest and unbiased opinion.

I've been such a fan of Ilsa for years. Every book she writes gets better and better. I loved this book. Elena is such a great character and I love her relationship with Jack. It was a beautiful story with a lot of emotions. Aunt Clara needs her own book. Another great one for my collection. 

Thank you Netgalley, the author and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

We have an opposites attract/mistaken identity. So we meet elena a cute quirky shy librarian or so we thought, Elena is going on blind date. And then fun began. Jack ends up being her blind date but not the one that she was supposed to me but honestly friend this is going to be a better option, now Elena seemed to flip a switch and her fighty/sassy side come out.  This was cute fun book. Enjoy!

This is a cute story. I have always enjoyed books by this author. Thank you for letting me be a part of this advanced read. this Romeo and Juliet story is really sweet. I can't wait to read more in this series.

What a great start to this new series by this author. From the moment I picked up this book and began reading I had this giant smile on my face that never went away. There was so much chemistry between the main characters. What starts out as mistaken identity turns into so much more. If you are looking for a book that will have you laughing out loud and a book that will steal hours away from you life then look no further this book is for you. I can't wait to see where this series goes next. Thanks NetGalley. I voluntarily reviewed this book in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars

So Elena was hilarious, quirky and super adorable whereas Jack was super broody, closed off and super alpha and they were so perfect together. My heart hurt for Jack and the struggles he went through, but I just loved how Elena really brought him out of his shell. This book loses a half a point because I think Jack needed to grovel a bit more at the end but this is a funny, engaging and super swoony read!

I really enjoyed this book.  Elena has had some bad luck with men.  Her gay BFF, Topher, has set her up with Greg, a local TV weather guy on Valentines Day.  Elena doesn’t watch TV, so she doesn’t know what her date looks like, other than that he is wearing a blue shirt.  When she enters the restaurant, she sees only one single guy in a blue shirt, so she assumes it is her date.  Jack Hawke is a star quarterback who is having a bad couple of weeks, when Elena sits down at his table, his isn’t sure if she is a crazed fan or a reporter.  This is the meet cute that start a delightful romance.  I loved both Elena and Jack and all of the other side characters who I assume will be in future books.  This is a nice easy summer read.  I received an arc of this book from NetGalley for my honest review.

4,5 stars

“I received a free, advance copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for my unbiased review”

‘Not my Romeo’ is sweet, fun, light but still emotional read. It’s the second story that I read of the writer Ilsa Madden-Mills and I’m very happy that I got the chance to read it. I have a few more stories of this writer on my TBR pile. After enjoying this story I will put them a bit higher on my pile. 

This story is about Jack Hawke, a professional football player (quarterback) for Nashville and Elena Riley, a librarian who lives in the small-town Daisy. There are both in their twenties.  When they first met, Elena didn’t know that the handsome man before her, wasn’t her blind date. Jack is used to strange women coming on to him but this time there was something strange happening because he’s almost certain that the woman before him didn’t know who he was. Could that be true? Or was she just playing him? From their first meeting Elena and Jack were attracted to each other but both had their doubts and fears. Elena lost her ex-boyfriend to her younger sister and Jack’s ex-girlfriend published a book full of lies about their relationship. So it’s totally normal that both are careful with their feelings but there always comes a time where you just have to trust your heart. Can Elena and Jack do that? Or is that too hard to do?

You got both POV’s in the story. The two main characters (Jack and Elena) were wonderful. I love it when a male character is alpha and dominant but I equally love it when the male character is sweet and shy. It all depends on my mood and the story. Here, I would describe Jack as shy, more specific, socially shy (and awkward) . He doesn’t like meeting new people (of course, if you are as famous as he is, a lot of people want to meet you!) and he isn’t good with expressing his feelings. But there is one place where he isn’t shy or awkward and that is in the bedroom! There he totally knows what he is doing. I liked both side of him very much. I can totally understand why Elena felt for him. 

Elena has a warm personality. I loved her friendliness, soft heart and her quirks. Where Jack had the eyes of the world on him, Elena had the eyes of her mother and the inhabitants of the small-town on her. Both characters hide parts of themselves for the outside world. The chemistry between Elena and Jack was insta and wonderful. The secondary characters in this story were very entertaining, Jack’s friends and teammates Devon, Aiden and Quinn and Elena’s friends and family brought fun and emotions to the story. And I adored the epilogue! 

‘Not my Romeo’ may be about a quarterback but it isn’t really a ‘sports’ book. The focus of the story is mostly on the couple and the positive and negative sides of being famous. 

I’m already looking forward to the next story in this new series.

I totally loved this book. A hot, but shy and insecure, football player, Jack Hawke. And sweet librarian, Elena, with her no nonsense attitude and a bit of a wild side.

A blind date on Valentine's Day. What could go wrong? Nothing actually. Everything goes soooooo right! Lol!

Jack.has major trust issues and Elena's been recently hurt. But they have this intense connection that just leaves you wanting more!

Elena's small town charm of Daisy is loved by her and her crazy family! Loved all the characters! And Jack can't help but be taken in with it all. He even agrees to partake in the small town play, Romeo and Juliet. And yep, you guessed it, he's playing Romeo and Elena's playing Juliet.

But he is very guarded and finds it so difficult to express himself and let go. Trust is a major issue for him. And of course there's some drama and miscommunication.

Loved how the whole play went down in the end, and the Epilogue was perfect!

Love this author......Fake Fiance being one of my favorites!

Thank you to Amazon Publishing and NetGalley for a gifted copy of this ARC. All opinions are my own.

A sexy librarian and a hot shot football player together made this steamy sports romance an absolute delight! I loved how sassy Elena is - she stands her ground and goes after what she wants, never caring about Jack's fame or money. Jack sounds like my cup of tea - singing and dancing to pop songs, watching k-dramas and even loves to read. It's also set in a small town and those are always cute and fun. The Romeo and Juliet play is hysterical and it will make you laugh out loud just picturing that train wreck in your head. I especially loved all the side characters and I can't wait for the next book!

TW -  abuse, death

What can I say? I freaking loved this book. It was just what the doctor prescribed and I needed. 
It was so much fun to read Elena and Jack’s story.

From a  blind date, trust and commitment issues, to falling in love with a portion of Shakespearean theatre mixed with juicy dirty words, lots of hilarious talks and sizzling rounds in the sack, this story was simply brilliant. And let's not forget his ex, the lies that complicate things enough to have you all excited for the outcome.

I loved every second of their journey and let me tell you....the end....OM Gosh....le sigh.

Jack Hawke is my new book boyfriend.  I had heard great things from fellow book friends, but was SO happy to find that their reviews were spot on.  Elena and Jack meet accidentally on a blind date mistake.  She doesn't know who he is and he loves that about her.  Their chemistry is on fire and the side characters and small town charm in this story make me hope that we get more of Daisy, TN really soon.  If you love steamy, fun, sports romances - This is your book.

3.5☆
Cute

What I liked:
The writing style 
The characters 
Dual POVs 
Part of a series: The Game Changers
Standalone 
HEA 
Epilogue 

I look forward to reading the next book in this series.

I loved it from the hilarious beginning to the sweet end. I definitely recommend this book and I can't wait for the next one in this series.

4 stars
Characters were quirky and different. Elena Riley shows up on a blind date, thinking it was someone her friend set her up with, ends up on a "day" with hot and famous quarterback, Jack Hawke, Jack plays along, thinking she might be a reporter and he is trying to fix his damaged image. 

They have a crazy rollercoaster of a relationship, but you are pulling for them the whole time!

I had so much fun reading this book!! I love  how Elena and Jack met and how they kept  running it to each other.  The banter between the two is great and the town of Daisy sounds so quaint. 

I read this book in a day and look forward to the next one in the series. 

Thank you @netgalley for a copy of the books.

Elena doesn't have the best of luck with men. They usually love her and leave her and she's had enough. But when her best friend sets her up on a blind date - she agrees. Turns out her date is a hottie and they end up having a one night stand. Turns out the hottie wasn't who said he was and is football quarterback Jack Hawke.

I absolutely LOVED Not My Romeo. I read it over the course of one day and could not put this book down. Elena and Jack had so much great chemistry together and I loved the way they let their guard down with one another. Their little inside jokes and hanging out (watching K-dramas) were my favorite.

I really enjoyed the secondary characters in Not My Romeo as well and that is really hard to do. A lot of times secondary characters are added in, but don't really help with the plot of the book. Definitely not the case with this book and I loved everyone from Elena's mom to Timmy - the little boy who idolizes Jack.

Not My Romeo was my first book my Ilsa Madden-Mills, but will most definitely NOT be my last! I can not wait for the next book in the series (maybe Devon or Aiden?).

If you can suspend disbelief as the plot combines a sports romance with the tropes of a small-town love story, this was a very enjoyable read.  The heroine is a sexy librarian who goes on a blind date to help get over with her former boyfriend becoming engaged to her younger sister.  After a mix-up, she ends up spending a night with football bad-boy quarterback, Jack Hawke.  But neither character fits the stereotypical depictions.  She is not some shy librarian, but a ballsy woman who isn’t afraid to say what she thinks even if she has a tendency to babble on when she’s nervous.  Jack doesn’t deserve his bad boy reputation.  He had a terrible childhood and then his ex wrote a dishonest, supposed tell-all memoir making up stuff about him.  However, he’s immediately attracted to the heroine and keeps going to visit her in her small town.  He even volunteers to play Romeo in the local production in which she’s playing Juliet.  Hence the title.  

There is a real culture clash between his world of intrusive media and sports and hers in a small town where everyone knows and gets into everyone else’s business.  Being a southern town, there a lot of “bless her hearts’ thrown around on the way to a HEA.

I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book that I received from Netgalley; however, the opinions are my own and I did not receive any compensation for my review.