An interesting and complex plot lead these two very different women towards love and happily ever after. When I read the book description I had no idea how it was going to work for them, but wow I’m so glad the author figured it out. A fun read indeed.

Really great story. The main characters were well written and the romance was truly wonderful and the love between them was well written and believable. I could feel the emotion and angst coming of the page's as I read this story. This author always keeps me wanting to read more. I would definitely recommend this story and author to my friends and family, and I look forward to what's next from this author.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. I was unable to download and read Rivals for Love before it was archived. Congrats on publishing, and I look forward to finding it out in the world!

Thanks to Netgalley and Bold Strokes Books for this copy in exchange for my review.

I've loved Vali's stories for a long time, ever since reading the first in their Devil series and Rivals for Love continues my appreciation. It focuses on Brooks Boseman and Fallon Goodwin, college sweethearts that had their entire lives planned together, until Brooks up and left due to an ultimatum given by Brooks' father. Many years later they reunite when Brooks's mother calls her home to help care for her ailing father and business. The two reunite but past hurt and the current predicament of Fallon set to marry Brooks's brother makes this reunion anything but ideal.

I loved reading this, watching these two women who have so much pain and resentment in their history find one another again. They both have been hurt by the people they love (Brooks with her father and Fallon with Brooks) and now have to find a way to deal with that and move on, or be stuck in their resentment. There were a few times when I grew frustrated, because a lot of the drama I felt came down to communication issues and I just wanted to reach into the story and shake them, but everyone has a reason for their secrets and everyone learns that keeping them comes back to bite them in the ass.

Vali's story telling is always vivid and pulls you into the story, making you root for some characters and cheer when others get their comeuppance. The cast was rich and supported the story well and I hope we get to see more of them in the future.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Both POV characters were very compelling. I identified with Brooks so much it hurt. Not only is she smart and matches my style of clothes and takes no shit but she is fiercely protective of those she cares about to the point of self-sacrifice. I have been there so many times myself I wanted to hug her and cry with her. Her reconciliation with her father just rang so true to me. Although I knew it was just a matter of time before she straightened out the family business, the twist caught me by surprise. Curtis really was an a$$hole. My only gripes are that I thought Curtis was a bit too over-the-top and the situation dragged out longer than I thought it should since Brooks was a no-nonsense, in-your-face person. The various family members on both sides were entertaining but the two sisters of Brooks didn’t get much page time so you never got a sense of their character. Brooks business partner was entertaining and such a support for Brooks

Highly recommend. 4.5 stars.

Do you love a second-chance romance brimming with nostalgia and family drama? If so, "Rivals for Love" by Ali Vali is definitely for you! From page one, this book brings all the drama and feels.

MCs Fallon and Brooks were childhood best friends and college sweethearts devasted by a breakup that's affected them for nearly a decade. Now they're thrown back together in the midst of Fallon's apparent engagement to Brooks's brother Curtis and a whole slew of family drama.

"Rivals for Love" is a good fit for those seeking a heartwarming and engaging sapphic story about family, love, and self-discovery, set against the vibrant backdrop of New Orleans.

Rivals For Love is a story that once again delivers to the readers a thoughtful exploration of relationships within the context of a dynamic and engaging storyline. Ms. Vali pulls us into the lives of Brooks and Fallon, giving us both a romance and a bit of intrigue. With boats blowing up and secrets of the past being kept, the reader can't help but to cheer for Fallon and Brooks to come together and defeat what is in front of them now and what needs to be overcome from the past.

I read this in one sitting and happily gave up some shut eye to finish it, I just could not put it down. There are some great supporting characters, some you will like some you will not, that add to the understanding of why Brooks is the way she is-her backstory was well developed and I actually can see her knowing Cain from Ms. Vali's Devil series <smile> (now that would have been a fun connection).

If you a looking for a good romance, some tears and some laughter I recommend this latest story from Ms. Vali.
I received an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review, but would have written the same opinion if I had come across this author on my own.

You pretty much know what to expect with this author - New Orleans, a butch/femme couple who messed up their relationship when they were young, but are soulmates and still love each other. But, given that this storyline works and is written well, it’s always a nice read. In this book, the sibling rival was interesting and the health issue was sensitively done. I wasn’t wholly convinced about agreeing to marry the brother, but I guess anything is possible. I would like to read more about this clan, especially the two sisters.

Brooks Boseman escaped her life in New Orleans years ago; now she's heading back for her brother, Curtis' engagement party. The Problem? Curtis' fiancée is none other than Fallon Goodwin, Brooks' secret love from her youth.

As they reunite can they deny the old feelings that resurface? Brooks has to deal with that on top of her father's Alzheimer’s diagnoses and the family business' troubles.

This sounded like a great concept; however I just couldn't find myself caring about the characters, so couldn't really enjoy it. I was disappointed as I have previously enjoyed Vali's work.

This book is in the classic Ali Vali style. The two main characters have depth and are both share deep care and concern for family. This book has plenty of drama and twist with strong lead characters who both have their own back stories outside of each other. The twist in the book will keep you turning the pages and a surprise character arc will pull at your heart strings.

This book follows the story of what happens when young love grows up and life interferes. When they find each other intertwined as adults due to family ties and jealousy, they figure out how to be in each other’s lives again as the call of family will keep them in each others orbit one way or another. As a fan of Vali’s book I appreciate how the story loosely connects and develops more of, what I call, the Vali’s world, while beautifully representing New Orleans.

I loved the dynamics in this story..
The Secrets and dynamics are what kept me glued to the novel.
But I didn't much care for Curtis at all!
In many interesting ways he is what made this story. I think Curtis is a selfish person and in other ways a big ol bully.
Fallon kind of got on my nerves because lol in some ways she represents me. I care too much especially for other people. I wear my heart on my sleeve in other words.
This new to me author has a wonderful writing style that I like.
I love her charismatic characters all except Curtis of course.
I'm giving this a solid stars for making me feel like a part of this story. I really enjoyed it.
I highly recommend it
My thanks for a copy of this book. I was NOT required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Brooks, a financial whiz and out lesbian, is called home to deal with her Father's business going into a death spiral.

Worse, her old flame Fallon is getting married... to Brooks idiot brother.

And Even worse, it's beginning to look like her brother is cooking the books at the family company. So Brooks is stuck digging into the mess, her ex Fallon hates her and she still has feelings for Fallon...

This one felt oddly rambly and unfocused. There was a lot of moments it felt like the characters were being dumb for the sake of drawing out the story. It's not BAD, and the author's writing is entertaining, but it maybe could have used more editorial feedback.

When Brooks and Fallon were young they couldn’t imagine living without the other. All they had to do was keep their, at least until they got a little older, relationship underwraps. Everything was going well until Brooks' father found out about their relationship. Always a chauvinist he stayed true to form when he informed Brooks to make a break with Fallon or he’d do everything he could to destroy them. Then to top it off he told Brooks she’d be spending another season on the water because no matter how smart she was she wasn’t going to become the boss. He’d already given that job. Feeling like she had no choice she left not only her home but she was leaving Fallon behind.
Fallon didn’t know what had happened, all she knew was that Brooks left without saying a word to Fallon. Brokenhearted Fallon put her head down and continued working with her family. As the years passed she never stopped loving Brooks. Now she’s met up with Brooks' brother, Curtis, who was good enough to ask Fallon for her hand in front of everyone they both knew so she felt she was unable to say no. Now she’s stuck with Curtis and a wedding she didn’t want.
It’s not until Brooks gets a call from her mother pleading for her to come home. Their business was struggling and hoping Curtis would be able to handle the problems just wasn’t going to work. Curtis was too selfish, stupid and spoiled to work any more than he had to.
Ms Vali has given us a really good story with a plot that simply worked. The only problem was Fallon, who kept saying and doing nothing about Curtis. She cared too much. Give me a break. All in all a very nice story.
ARC via NetGalley/Bold Stroke Books

Fallon and Brooks were in so much love in college. Then Brooks left with no word to her girlfriend, for years. So, it's gonna be super awkward, if not worse. And then, there's whatever is going on in both their families.

This book was tense. Actually tense is underselling it a bit. And between the romantic tension and the business tension, whew, made me tired reading it on occasion. But, it was also a fun read, and I totally loved Bria, her character and her family was amazing.

There's a lot going on in this book. It's an intimate look at New Orleans through the eyes of two well-written characters. Brooks and Fallon have so much drama to dig though before they belong together.

Brooks: "She'd already burned so many bridges when it came to her family - what were a few more?"

Fallon: "She hadn't plans since Brooks, choosing simply to exist."

And it's about Found Family: "Family is a great many things. I learned that, and it helped me face plenty."

Overall I liked the idea and the plot
However there were some holes throughout the book, that made me feel like I skipped a page here and then. There were a lot of different directions both MCs were thinking the next moment it was completely different than before so it was quite confusing. Also as a reader I didn't really understood Fallon's reasons to pretend to be engaged as long as she did, there were no real reasons that made sense in my opinion.
Nevertheless, I really enjoyed the whole family drama and the feelings of Brooke and Fallon, as I enjoy second-chance novels.

All in all a very solid 4 star read.

I received a ARC via NetGalley in exchange for leaving a honest review.

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this book

Fallon Goodwin is over brookes boseman... they havent seen each other in years and now shes engaged to curtis her brother but its going to be ok...

brookes disappeared on fallon years ago totally snubbed her and she never knew the reasons why but brookes is back....

brookes was summoned by her mother, something is very wrong with the business but its her father, they need to settle things before its to late

it was an entertaining read did lose sight of who was talking at times but on the whole really enjoyed the dynamics of this book

Drama! Drama!! Ali doesn't disappoint as usual. I thought the story was well written. The characters are strong and well developed. Sit down and enjoy the ride! You won't be disappointed. Well Done, I recommend. 4.5 stars


Thank you NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for this ARC.

Brooks Boseman, estranged from her family because of her father who could not accept her for who she is. Her mother asks her to come home. There, she finds her father not doing well and the the family business is failing. After speaking with her father, Brooks wants to figure out what is going on and get out as soon as possible She also wants to get out without seeing or talking to Fallon.

Fallon Goodwin, works with her siblings in the family boat-building business. She has never really recovered from Brooks' ghosting her and their relationship years ago. Brooks' brother Curtis has recently befriended her, and in a moment of weakness, she agreed to marry him. Now she feels stuck with that decision.

This read lays the foundation for family drama to the max. Who did what, when questions galore.

I don’t really know what it is about Ali Vali’s books, but something about her writing doesn’t connect for me. I thought it was a fluke the first time I couldn’t get into one of her books because she is a well-loved and respected author in her genre but nope, couldn’t get into this one either.

I can’t really put my finger on what it is (besides some of the initial dialogue between the two mc’s made me cringe), but at least I’ve determined that I just don’t connect with her writing. In this case I think it may be personal preference more than anything.