Sam and Valentina (Val). Bass and trumpet players. Sam's slimeball "friend" Ian bets Sam that he can't date Val for a month. Sam takes the bet, but only to protect Val from Ian.

During the month, Sam teaches Val how to date. She knows he is a player (EVERYONE tells her that he is a player), and that he is going to hurt her, but she sees more under the surface and falls in love. She finds out about the bet and is devastated.

Swing dancing.
Music.
Food.

HEA

DNF@15%

- h who sounds like she's 14 years old and can't stop making a fool of herself and can't even talk to the guy.
-manwhore VS virginal h, who ofcourse needs the H to teach her everything.
- a bet between H and his friend causing the H to date the h simply to keep her away from his friend.
- constant whining about her size and how she's never going to be good enough for the H.

I'm out.

There was lots I liked about this but also lots that was problematic. I loved their chemistry and banter, and I LOVED that so much of the relationship developed while swing dancing. And the sex scenes were quite lovely with lots of kissing and softness. I enjoyed the families too, although I suspect the lipstick coalition wouldn't actually pass the Bechdel test because they really only talked about men.

I don't love male main characters who are rich and used to getting everything they want, which Sam is. And I really don't love men making decisions for the wellbeing of women without consulting the woman involved, which happens. It does get challenged in the end, but I just don't love that trope.

Also, a lot of the fat rep was lovely but there was a bad exchange where the woman says she's fat and Sam says "Don't say that word!" UGH, fat is not a bad word. There was also another bit where he said, "You're not like other girls" as a compliment. Double UGH.

All in all, I will probably read this author again. And it got me out of a bad reading slump.

Player is one of those super fun and super sexy reads that will have you signing up for swing dance lessons and paying uber close attention to the band - searching for your very own heartthrob musician. But seriously, the second in Staci Harts "Red Lip Stick Coalition" features the vibrant Valerie and fellow musician sexy Sam, a man who she shares an unexpected and amazing connection with. The dialogue is built on some fabulous banter between these two that will make you giggle and blush, and being in Sam's head , for the most part, will make you swoon.

You'll know from the blurb that there will be some heartache, but the journey these two take is oh so sweet. As the story takes off we get to know a bit about Val and the issues with her body hold her back in the dating world. Regardless of size this alone makes Val totally relatable. Sam is that ultra handsome guy that everyone crushes on and we've all experienced being one of the numbers there. But what I love is that Val musters up the courage to approach Sam and is floored to find him giving her some attention:

"He’d touched my hand. He’d smiled at me. He knew my name. And in my book, that was a win regardless of how much drool it had taken me to get there."

Now Val is not entirely unconfident, in fact I think she's rather courageous. She receives Sam's attentions for what they are and even pushes her comfort levels and shines. For Sam's part, I loved how he reasons through his ever changing feelings and opinions of Val:

"I was an aficionado of women; I admired them, valued them, appreciated them always. And there was a lot to appreciate about Val."

I found that once things started rolling between these two I was so immersed and life outside of Player ceased to exist. I just got so caught up in them and what they were experiencing - all the good and bad. The story is perfectly paced and time with the Val and Sam captivated me.

I absolutely adore this series and the most I get to know the ladies, through the way Val reports back to them on Sam and their general input her life, I like them more and more. I really excited for next installment and can't recommend this enough!

*I was gifted a copy of this book on exchange for an honest review*

This is some classic contemporary romance. It's cute, the banter is fun, the characters are enjoyable. I think I liked this story a bit better than the first one because Sam wasn't such an alpha. (Seriously, I don't get the appeal.) But he still did dumb boy stuff, but it was under the guise of like I am going to be the white knight and save the lady.

I loved Val, her family, and again the relationships between her and her roommates. I can't wait to read the next two books in this series!

I liked the concept but this was boring.

I didn’t like the trope of the story but I loved the characters and loved their story apart from the bet issue. Whenever there’s a bet involving a conquest, someone ends up hurt and humiliated, so I wait anxiously for the moment of discovery, then hurt for the person/victim of the game. In spite of this, the writing was excellent and it kept me riveted through the book.

Val, Sam and Ian are musicians playing the score in the Broadway play Wicked. Val is an overweight woman with serious image problems, exacerbated by over-protective brothers who didn’t give her the opportunity to develop her sexuality. She’s repressed, timid, but very funny and creative once she gets close to someone.

Sam and Ian are players in the complete sense of the word. They play the bass and percussion, and they also play the field with women. They have noticed that Val has a crush on Sam, so Ian eggs Sam on to make a move on Val. Sam doesn’t want to, because he knows Val is a nice girl but Ian forces the issue when he threatens to make a move on Val himself. Ian further forces a bet on Sam that he will be dating Val by the end of one month. Sam starts a friendship with Val, trying to protect her from Ian. What he never expected is to be enchanted by Val. She’s fun, makes corny jokes, cheesy pick up lines, and makes him laugh a lot. He invites her to the swing club where he performs, teaches her to swing dance, and they have a great time. Once Val shares her image problems, he also starts helping her out, turns into a dating tutor, and ends up ensnared with Val.

Val is constantly doubting herself, she finds herself so unattractive that she never thought to be in Sam’s level. As she finds acceptance and encouragement with Sam and his friends, she evolves into a charming and sensual woman that now Sam is afraid to let loose. You could say that Sam started out teaching Val and ended up being taught a lesson.

I loved a lot of things about this book: the fact that they play the score of Wicked, the musical flavor of the book, the swing dance club, the fact that Val is from Spanish descent and Sam is from Lebanese descent. Ian is the douchey jerk we love to hate, a real bad infuence on Sam and hateful to Val. He’s the necessary evil to make the book a little suspenseful, not knowing when he will hit.

It was a greatly entertaining book and I loved the evolution of Val and Sam. Her roommates were a riot and I hope there are stories about them. There were funny moments and angsty moments and I had a great time reading it.

~3.5-3.75 cuz there were some things i was iffy about in the beginning

It started as a bet so his friend can stay away, then they were friends and then they fell in love. Val and Sam were the cutest that had a slow built but it got there. Val always had a crush on Sam but she didn’t think she was good enough. Her self esteem was low. But what she didn’t know was Sam also had a crush on her and has always noticed her. But he thought she was too good and too sweet for him.

How wrong were these two. It started out as a cute friendship and then feelings got involved and then heartache. When she found out in the reasoning why Sam approached her imagine what it did to her low self esteem. It was heartbreaking. But she wasn’t going to let that break her and Sam fought for her when he realized the real reason behind everything all along. You never do know someone completely.

They got their HEA which they clearly deserved. Her friends were awesome and were great secondary characters. Very cute read.