Book Review: Play by Kylie Scott

Play
Author: Kylie Scott
Series: A Stage Dive Novel (Book 2)
Publication: St. Martin's Griffin (August 26, 2014)

Description: Kylie Scott returns with the highly anticipated follow-up to international bestseller LICK

Mal Ericson, drummer for the world famous rock band Stage Dive, needs to clean up his image fast—at least for a little while. Having a good girl on his arm should do the job just fine. Mal doesn’t plan on this temporary fix becoming permanent, but he didn’t count on finding the one right girl.

Anne Rollins never thought she’d ever meet the rock god who plastered her teenage bedroom walls—especially not under these circumstances. Anne has money problems. Big ones. But being paid to play the pretend girlfriend to a wild life-of-the-party drummer couldn’t end well. No matter how hot he is. Or could it?

My Thoughts: Anne Rollins isn't having a very good day. She comes home to find out that the roommate who owed her money has packed up her stuff and moved out. Anne has a just a few more days before the rent is due and no money to cover it. When her next door neighbors Laura and her boyfriend Nate invite her to go to a party, she accepts as a way to get her mind off her problems. It helps that the party is being thrown by her friend Ev who has recently married the lead singer of Stage Dive. Anne has been a fan of the band for years and had a monster crush on drummer Mal Ericson when she was a teen.

The party was a little overwhelming so Anne sought some quiet on the patio where she met Mal who happened to hear her phone call with her boss and so knows about Anne's money problems. When she meets Mal, she is surprised that he seems a little sad and not the party-rocker that she thought he was. While he has moments when he is manic, Anne is mostly confused by him. When he inserts himself into her life, she is even more confused. Half the time she wants to kill him and the other half the time she wants to make love with him.

Anne hasn't had much good luck with love and doesn't even want to think that she might be falling in love with Mal. She watched her mother sink into a deep depression when her father left the family. Anne ended up both caring for her mother and for her younger sister while her mother hid in her room. She still has a bad relationship with her mother. And she has no faith in love being something that lasts.

Mal also has a secret that is tearing him apart. Having a girlfriend like Anne would please his mother but, despite his rock star life, he's never had a girlfriend that lasted more than a date or two. Mal is also determined to keep his problems to himself which makes Anne feel left out and used.

This was a great romance. I loved Mal's over-the-top manic personality and I loved Anne's steadiness. I loved watching the relationship between the two of them grow and deepen as they learned to know each other. 

Favorite Quote:

My eyes narrowed. If he started yelling about sexual healing again I'd throw him out, cool furniture, drum kit, and all. Or I'd lick him all over. With my current confusion and stress levels, chances were fifty/fifty.

I bought this book. You can buy your copy here.