Three out of Five Stars
First Thought: Cute, formulaic, and an easy read. There's no OMG factor, but other than that- no complaints. I Bet You does it's job as a NA Sports Romance.
Why I read it: This book is advertised as my one of my all time favorite tropes: fake relationship. I love sports romance and this book kept popping up in my 'because you liked...' lists.
POV: Alternating M|F, Present Tense
Setting: Mississippi, Waylon College
Tropes: Hate to Love, Fake Relationship, Sports Romance, Virgin Heroine, College Romance
Our Heroine: Penelope. Right off the bat, I love her because she loves romance books the same why I do. Reading them and attempting to write them on her own! She's a smartass with sass and has quirks that are thankfully developed! She's easy to root for.
Our Hero: Ryker. A jerk with a softer side, who's getting fed up with "jersey chasers." I like him, almost instantly. It took me until we get his POV, then I was here for him. Maybe if I'd read I Dare You, I would have liked him from the start. He's sweet, unsure, and believable.
Overall thoughts: Let me say this first, there is nothing wrong with formulaic. It's what gives comfort to the romance genera. I enjoyed Penelope and Ryker's story, cringed some and laughed some too. But there wasn't really anything I wasn't expecting. I felt like a lot of side characters really fell hard into their stereotypes. This makes sense for shorter works, so I wasn't mad about it.
Part of the reason I chose this book is that it's advertised as my fav. trope: Fake Relationship. This is not the case! Don't get your hopes up fans of FRs. Overall, the book didn't overwhelm me, and I probably won't be thinking about these characters for days afterward. However, I Bet You was a nice way to spend a Saturday.
The sexy scenes: A+ for build up and A on delivery. Our main characters are sweet together, and I'll always get down with buttons being ripped off. Also, Ilsa gives us little sneaks into other genres through Penelope's own love of romance writing.
The best part of the book: Vampire Bill!
Worst part of the book: Connor, and his GD last name. I couldn't take it seriously and it pulled me from the story every time. And when the guys call Archer's unwanted advances "just messing around."
TLDR: A sweet yet predictable story, not a bad way to spend a Saturday.
How I read it: Free with my Kindle Prime subscription
Links: Amazon, I Bet You & Goodreads, I Bet You