Playing by the Rules cover art

Playing by the Rules

Miami Piranhas, Book 3

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Playing by the Rules

By: Beth Bolden
Narrated by: Darcy Stark
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About this listen

Ex-quarterback Davis Abernathy knows he’s on his last chance.

If he strikes out as Paxton Kelly’s coach, nobody else is going to call him. Not to get back on the field, and not to stand on the sidelines.

He’s got a lot to teach Pax, and as a second-year quarterback, Pax has a lot to learn. But Davis doesn’t anticipate the irresistible way they’ll be drawn together from their first meeting. He never could have predicted such a fierce and uncontrollable yearning—or that Pax would feel the same.

It should be easy to remember rules aren’t meant to be broken, and certain lines aren’t meant to be crossed, but the only thing that’s easy is falling totally, completely in love with Pax.

As Davis falls harder, Pax succeeding becomes just as important—and maybe more so—than resurrecting his own career. If he messes this up, his last chance isn’t all he’ll be sacrificing.

What he should be is focused on being the perfect mentor. But what he wants is Pax in his bed, Pax in his life, and more impossibly, to win Pax’s heart forever.

©2022 Beth Bolden (P)2023 Beth Bolden Literature & Fiction Romance Heartfelt Sports

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Most relevant  

Listener received this title free

I love this team and finally getting the story that's been hinted at so far in this series. Pax and Davis work so well together, as QB and coach but also as friends and each others person. I like that we go back to the first moment they meet, before the start of the season and follow the full evolution of their relationship, rather than just following on from the end of the previous book.
From the moment they first shake hands and experience that zing of, something, there's no denying that they want each other. Praise for them for trying to stand strong and be professional but there's only so long someone can deny themselves and when that switch finally flips, it's like everything clicks into place for them both. It's hot, adorably sweet and they are perfect for each other. Pax is so supportive of what's happened in Davis's past and helping to ensure he feels settled with where he's at now, whilst Davis works hard to make Pax the best QB he can possibly be. The Piranhas team are so great. A lot of fun to be around but also so supportive of each other, watch out for a certain scene around 40% in. It's great having them all slot into each others friend groups and catching moments of couples we've met in the series already. Also, I cannot wait for Winning the Season! That's going to be a lot of fun and I'm hoping for Kenyon to get a story of his own soon. He seems like a man in need of support and a HEA.
A brilliant addition to the series! Very character driven with a well balanced amount of sport and romance. A favourite moment is also getting to meet Pops, Davis's grandfather who are both clearly very important to each other.
Darcy has again provided fantastic narration for this book, giving all of the characters a strong voice and perfectly conveying the mix of emotions they experience throughout the story,

More love on the Piranhas team!

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Listener received this title free

Two built quarterbacks pinning for days…Hell yes. Instant attraction and being off limits. Delicious.

Paxton Kelly is the new superstar quarterback, but he’s struggling at this level. Their head coach has an idea on how to fix it. Bring in disgraced ex-quarterback Davis Abernathy to coach him.

Davis’s previous team treated him horribly, making him question himself and the one thing he loves the most. He had no prospects in Football until coach Asa gave him a lifeline. It’s not playing but at least he feels useful.

The biggest complication is their feelings for one another. They know they can’t, coach and player, but damn, their feelings are overpowering.

They are both struggling to find their place in their careers and in each other's hearts, but thankfully they are surrounded by an amazing team of men who support and care about them.

Their love for each other is pure and beautiful. Both grand (see Pax’s gesture when playing Davis’ old team) and small (think Davis cooking his grandmother’s recipes).

Beth’s wonderful writing is brought to life by the super-talented Darcy Stark. You’ll get it all with this pairing.

So much pinning

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Listener received this title free

Playing by the Rules is the third book in the Miami Piranhas series and can be listened to as a standalone.

I don’t really remember the first time I read this book which was a year ago now so I was excited to listen to it.

Pax and Davis … where do I start? Even though they are not supposed to fall in love with each other, there is no other couple that is more perfect than them. Both are struggling with a lack of self esteem but together they build each other up.
Not to mention they are smoking hot. Their chemistry is kindle melting and I could not listen to this book fast enough.
Super hot, definitely forbidden, but still with the heart that I love about Beth Bolden’s books.

I love this wonderful group, the intervention in Chapter 9 just showed how supportive and caring the Piranhas team are. Instead of giving Pax and Davis a hard time, they rally around them and lovingly act as the best family you could possibly have.

And THAT moment in Chapter 17 was amazing and timeless. Addicting … I didn't want this book to end.

Playing by the Rules is narrated by Darcy Stark. Before this I just listened to Playing the Player and didn’t enjoy the audiobook so I was very pleased this one was so much better! Darcy Stark does a great job at creating a different voice for each character, I enjoyed listening to how he interpreted each character. There was a softness and emotion you could hear when it was needed. I was engrossed listening to this audiobook, if I stopped I immediately started it again saying “just one more chapter”.

Playing by the Rules is sugary sweet yet still had plenty of angst. This book has so many steamy, swoon worthy, heart warming, fun moments that will make you so happy!

🎁 The return of the dating boxes
❤️‍🔥 Forbidden (coach/ player)
✨ Forced proximity
🏈 MM Sports romance (Football)
🌷 Age gap
🥰 Friends to lovers
🎉 Dancing lessons
🧡 A team that is a family

This book contains sensitive content such as panic attacks and a heart attack.

Plot: 📚📚📚📚
Character rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Heat: 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Feels: 🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤
Writing style: 🖊🖊🖊🖊🖊
Narration by Darcy Stark: 🌕🌕🌕🌕

Sugary sweet, forbidden and kindle-melting hot

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Listener received this title free

I've yet to find a Beth Bolden football romance that I don't love, and she's delivered a spectacular, swoony story for Davis and Pax. There were so many elements that made this story great--the slow-burn romance, the themes of acceptance and redemption, and the exciting football growth of the Piranhas--but what really made this story a stand-out were the characters. I connected with Davis and Pax early on, and it was such a delight to watch their relationship unfold from the very beginning. They put up a valiant fight to resist the pull they had towards each other, but it became obvious over time that their attraction had grown into deep, unconditional love. I was blown away by how deep and emotionally moving their journey was, and their story certainly put me through the wringer at times as the two of them tried to figure out how to navigate their professional relationship when they craved something personal and intimate as well. I definitely had moments where I didn't see a romantic path forward for the two of them, and I felt their growing tension from having to hold back in every interaction they shared. The dating intervention and swoony love confession midway through the story were a big emotional turning point, and from then on I was much less worried about will-they-won't-they and simply enjoying the progression of Pax and Davis's romance. In addition to their love journey, both Pax and Davis had moving character arcs that intertwined with the other events of the story. Davis alone went through such a transformation, and I was very satisfied with how he healed and moved on from the awful situation with the Condors. Pax also matured a lot throughout the course of the story, and it was very uplifting to see him become a strong leader for the team. All in all, I can't think of a single thing I would change about this story, except for getting more and more and more of their happy lives together.

**I voluntarily listened to a free copy of this book. This review expresses my honest thoughts and opinions.

Spectacular and swoony

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Listener received this title free

Playing by the Rules is the third book in the Miami Piranhas series. As there have already been small glimpses of the characters in the previous books, I recommend reading the series in order.
This time it's about Paxton Kelly, a quarterback who looks back on a not-so-good year in the NFL, even though he was a star in college.
Asa Dawson realizes what Paxton is missing and hires Davis Abernathy to coach him. Davis was a respected quarterback until there were some bad decisions by his former team that he still suffers from.
When Pax and Davis meet for the first time, sparks fly and the chemistry is clear. But they both want to be professional and fight against it, even though they are on fire for each other.
But will they manage to play a good game and keep their emotions under control at the same time? And then there are their teammates, who notice some of their strange behavior.
I really like Beth Bolden's series and this volume is my favorite so far! The writing style is wonderful and once immersed in the story of Pax and Davis, it's hard to put the audiobook down. I also really liked the secondary characters. The story is emotional and touching and quickly captivated me.

Darcy Stark did a fantastic job narrating the audiobook with all the emotions. I always knew which character was speaking and he read the story at a comfortable pace.
I'm already looking forward to the next volume in the series, because I'm very excited about Asa's story!

My Favorite of the Series

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Listener received this title free

3,5 stars
I was very surprised and glad about the main characters keeping their feelings in check for the benefit of the other’s career. They care for each other so they don’t act on their feelings. Beautiful. Awesome. But then, the second part is full of bed action in a row. Fortunately it changed a bit later and then the story continued.
I love Asa, I’m really looking forward to his story.
The audiobook version has a very good narrator, I like him a lot, I’m not sure about Señora Floria’s accent though. By the way, it should have been written “señora” not “senora”, if your keyboard doesn’t have “ñ” copy and paste it from the internet.

«You keep lookin’ at me like that, I’m gonna have to do something about it».

Yearning

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Listener received this title free

Oh, dear, the UST and the longing in the first half of this book almost killed me! It was almost physically painful to see Pax and Devis long for each other and wanting what they were convincing they could never have. I loved everything about this book, the tension, the sweetness, the fierceness. Davis and Pax are both wonderful characters and just about perfect for each other.
Despite the initial tension and struggling, I have to admit that I expected (and feared) a much heavier and angstier book; instead the story also has a few funny and light-hearted moments (cue Senora Floria and “the intervention”).
Darcy Stark delivers a brilliant performance with the different characters immediately recognizable and well identified.

The longing!

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Listener received this title free

This is the yearniest book I think I've ever listened to! The tension and longing between Davis and Pax is so intense. I absolutely loved the pair of them. I could feel the chemistry oozing from the pages, and I was on edge waiting for them to give in. It’s a slow burn story, which is one of my favourite tropes, it's all about the build up, baby! Ms Bolden has once again woven together a lovely, sweet and angsty story, it was ouchingly emotional. So romantically perfect. I loved everything about the story, but I did feel that Darcy Starks sounded a little young when he was narrating Davis.

Yearning May/December Romance x

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Listener received this title free

The heart wants what the heart wants – you can't always pick who you fall in love with. This can certainly be applied to quarterback coach Davis Abernathy and quarterback Paxton Kelly. There's an instant connection between the two when they first meet but they truly do try to fight it.

I loved how Paxton's teammates rallied around these two and encouraged them to explore their relationship even though they all knew that it was against the rules for a coach and player to become involved. The feelings these two have for each other resonated through the wonderful audio performance given by Darcy Stark.

This story truly stirred my emotions and I loved listening to it. There was a bonus at the end: the prologue for the next book in the series which is about coach Asa and I can't wait to listen to it.

A complimentary copy of this audiobook was provided to me at my request; my review was voluntary and not influenced by the author and/or narrator.

Forbidden love.

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Listener received this title free

Ah, Davis and Pax - as coach/mentor and player/mentee they shouldn't be in a relationship and they fight it for longer than I expected. That build up of tension was perfect, just like a rubber band that stretched and stretched and I was just waiting to see when they'd reach the breaking point. Boy was it worth it! These two are perfect together and there is support from all kinds of places to help them along. The characters in this series are so strong and beautifully written that even if you don't care about sports you'll want to read these. I enjoyed the tension when I read the book, but it was even more fun to listen to Darcy Stark bring these two to life and hear them fight their attraction to each other.

Tension building

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