Book: The Quarterback
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Cover Artist: Natasha Snow
Publication date: September 11, 2017
Length: 339 pages
Reviewed by Meredith
Synopsis
In walks Trevor Kim, a gorgeous, pierced, tattooed fellow Bodine student who does massages—without happy endings—to pay for school after his family kicked him out for being gay. Trevor takes one look at Matt and breaks all his own rules about mixing business with pleasure.
Matt needs to keep his scholarship, win the National Championship, and survive his asshole father. Instead, he falls in love. Trevor needs to accept that the football god is meant to end up with him rather than a perky cheerleader. It’s time for a happy ending for both of them.
Buy Links
Hello, I’m Mackenzie Blair and I’ve been reading romance novels ever since my mom took me to used book sale after book sale as a teenager. I loved that every romance novel had a happy ending. (Those covers were also pretty scandalous to my small-town mind, so there was probably a good dose of rebellion in my reading as well.) A few years ago, I discovered MM romance, and although I’d considered writing a romance novel for years, it turns out it took an MM story to finally inspire me to finish one!
So I hope you enjoy reading THE QUARTERBACK as much as I loved writing it.
Review
I was so excited about this when it came up to review. Great cover and blurb. I had never read Mackenzie Blair before so that was also exciting and I was a little nervous. I took a deep breath and hoped it was as good as I thought it would be.
I will say, it was. Matt is the quarterback for a division 2 football team at Bodine College in Alabama. He’s in the closet for a million reasons that actually make sense. I read too often reasons that seem almost silly. But for Matt this was his life. He risked losing his scholarship due to a bigoted Dean. He risked losing his twin sisters to a homophobic thief of a father, and he risked angering the players in his team whose job it is to keep him safe on the field. All good reasons.
What would make a guy with all of this to lose risk coming out?
Trevor of course! The Asian, long haired, pierced, punky guy who came out to his family and was booted. He works to survive. He has zero family and his friends have become his life. These two have opposite lives that when mixed make a spectacular story.
I had so much love for this story and it shined a light on the fact that bigotry is alive and well. I live in a very democratic, diverse, blue state. It’s beyond rare that acceptance of all races and genders isn’t the norm. But in places like Texas and Alabama it’s a scary reality that who you love could get you killed.
The author had great flow with this story. I loved her characters, the dialog, and the situations. It progressed beautifully and I recommend this book.
About Mackenzie Blair
Mackenzie Blair is an award-winning screenwriter in Los Angeles who’s written for shows and films you’ve probably heard of. Mackenzie grew up in the South but fled the humidity for earthquakes, university, and a brief stint in finance. As a cynical idealist, she prefers to write happy endings whenever possible.
Giveaway
To celebrate the release of The Quarterback, one lucky winner will receive a $30 Riptide gift card! Leave a comment with your contact info to enter the contest. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on September 16, 2017. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries. Thanks for following the tour, and don’t forget to leave your contact info!
