25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Nice Football Romance (B+ Grade), September 25, 2008
This review is from: Line of Scrimmage (Mass Market Paperback)
This sexy book is about a married couple of ten years who are ten days away from getting their divorce finalized. They have been separated for almost a year and Susannah Sanderson is about to breathe a sigh of relief because in less than two week she will be a free woman and able to marry her former high school boyfriend, Henry. Susannah is getting a divorce from Ryan, the start quarterback of the Denver Mavericks and overall MVP of the NFL. Ryan doesn't want to go through the divorce since he is very much still in love with his wife. But the past year has been hard on them both because Susannah feels Ryan is selfish, especially since they lost their first child together when Susannah miscarried. That was the last straw and Susannah filed for divorce soon after Ryan went back to work.
Because the judge decided to wait six months to make their divorce legal, Ryan has a plan up his sleeve where he will move back into his home where Susanna still lives. He wants this remaining time with his wife and if she doesn't agree, he will stop the divorce proceedings. Ryan basically blackmails Susannah into spending the time with him. Ryan feels he has changed and wants to show Susannah the new Ryan Sanderson. Susannah has no choice to go along with Ryan's sneaky tactics. She thinks she is strong enough to be around Ryan and not fall for his charm, just like she did when she was in college.
Both Ryan and Susannah are hurting because of a lot of misunderstandings on their part. Susannah is not the typical trophy wife for a larger than life star like Ryan. That is what Ryan loves so much about Susannah, that she keeps his head on straight and brings him down to Earth. Ryan's goal is to stay married to Susannah and through communication and some seduction on his end, he will show the love of his life how perfect things can be between them once again.
Line of Scrimmage is a nice romance, especially between a married couple. The love and passion between these two are still there, but there are some major issues they both have to work through. Ryan was never really accepted by Susannah's family and Susannah's friends, and her fiancé always tried to put seeds of doubt in her mind about Ryan because Henry always wanted Susannah back. Marie Force sure does know how to write a great hero with Ryan, who I fell for quickly, even though I did find Susannah to be a bit of a shrew at times. But when Ryan shut her up with his kisses, that was when things really go good between them. I am not a big fan of sports related romances, but this book was a treat and reminded me so much of Susan Elizabeth Philip's writing and her own football series. Overall, a great romance with steamy sex scenes, and a lovely story between a married couple who still love each other dearly.
Katiebabs
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Sporty Romance with a Kick, August 29, 2008
This review is from: Line of Scrimmage (Mass Market Paperback)
Line of Scrimmage by Marie Force is not only a fantastic read for the romance fan but also for the female sports fan. I found this story ripe with emotion, steadfast with passion and downright endearing. Ladies hold onto your hats cause this Line of Scrimmage is full of secret game plays.
Susannah Sanderson is a stunning blond who's had her fill of a one sided relationship. Marriage to a football superstar is marriage to the team and for Susannah it seems to be taking more than she can give.
Ryan Sanderson is superstar quarterback with three Superbowl wins under his belt but his ten years of marriage aren't quite getting him the awards that he needs. More money than he could possibly ever spend, good looks enough to snag any woman he wants, leaves this jock with happiness in his fantasy world and trouble in his real world.
Henry Merrill is an overly possessed, back stabbing creep who is so in love with Susannah that he sits on the sidelines waiting for his chance to pick up the pieces of her life as it shatters with her separation and upcoming divorce from her husband. Like a leach he sucks his way into her life and into a promise of marriage as soon as the divorce is final.
The story starts us out with Susannah and Henry having a dinner party with his parents to discuss their upcoming wedding. They have a short four weeks before they will be husband and wife and the only thing that can possibly go wrong is Susannah's court date in ten days. All is going well until her estranged husband decides to throw a money wrench into all of Susannah's carefully laid plans by showing up and saying, "Honey I'm home".
Ryan, Susannah and Henry immediately are in conflict over Ryan's presence and there is not a thing that can be done about it as the house still legally belongs to both Susannah and Ryan. Henry is put on the back burner so to speak for the immediate future and sparks of tension, anger and passion fly around our divorcing couple like flies around a rotten banana.
As the story plays out Ryan and Susannah go on a roller coaster ride of blackmail, love and anger, tears and laughter, trust and distrust, pain and sorrow, danger, unbelievable patience and devotion to bring them into a state of questioning possibilities.
Our author has given us an insightful look into true love, passion and undying devotion. She has given us a wonderful back story of team playing with football as it basis. I truly found it uncanny that the story back line is so close to my own beloved New England Patriots and the accomplishments that come with hard work and even harder struggles.
Our characters are totally believable in every situation thrown to them and the intensity of the story grabs us on page one and carries us to the very last page without a blink of the eye. A must read that will not disappoint even the most finicky romance reader.
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11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
TOUCHDOWN!!!, August 24, 2008
This review is from: Line of Scrimmage (Mass Market Paperback)
A real treat by a new author. Don't let the cover fool you. This book is much more than a football romance. Characters are wonderfully developed and their story will keep you entertained from the first page through the last. Terrific read -- one I highly recommend. I'm looking forward to the next book by Marie Force.
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