Playing the Rookie

A Men of Spring Novella

By: Rachelle Ayala

Narrated by: Charley Ongel, Tor Thom

Length: 2 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's summary

Jessica Song is tired of being a good girl, staying in a relationship well past closing time. Fresh from a breakup, she takes a walk on the wild side as a sports events intern.

Baseball rookie Jay Pak Ahn has been burned one too many times by good girls, especially his cheating ex-fiancée. When he meets wild Jessica, he throws away all caution to enjoy her to the fullest.

Jessica and Jay agree to a week of enchanting, starry-eyed dates and wild, unrestrained sex to get their exes out of their systems.

Their pasts collide, exposing the secrets in Jessica's heart and threatening Jay's position on the team. Jessica must leave her disappointment behind while Jay has to decide whether Jessica comes before baseball. What will they sacrifice to turn their fling into true love?

©2014 Rachelle Ayala (P)2017 Rachelle Ayala Publishing, LLC

Entertaining

This is a quick read from a baseball themed series. I have read two others in the series. I'm normally not into sports themed books but I have truly enjoyed this series. The players tend to make cameos in each others books which enhances my investment in the series.

This story involves Jessica, a spring training intern, and Jay. who has come to the US as a rookie to start spring training. There is a spark but will it ignite love or just passion?

I connected more with Jessica. I loved her inner goddess scenes.I liked Jay but just couldn't get into him as much. At first I thought it was because he is a male character. However I have read a few books by this author and this was the first time I had difficulty. Then it dawned on me it was the point of view. I think because each of them had their own narrator, Jay being written in third person was what threw me off. I don't believe I would have noticed as much if I were reading it on my Kindle.I enjoy the look into Asian culture. One of my favorite things about Ms Ayala's books is that I learn something while I am being entertained. She has a way of combining humor with respect in teaching us about different cultures and situations. It is a wonderful gift that helps bring harmony to a battered world.

This book is for mature readers. It is a heated romance that uses mild but somewhat explicit wording. I was listening and had the gardener hooked. I have a small Sitka Rose bush outside my window. He took over 2 hours to trim it, normally he is done in 15 minutes. I guess that is proof this book can be enjoyed by both women and men, Ha!

Playing The Rookie

What did you love best about Playing the Rookie?

The story is unique and I like how the author adds humor, interesting story line and info on Asian culture.

Have you listened to any of Charley Ongel and Tor Thom ’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

This is the first performance I've heard from these two narrators. They were great! I really enjoyed having both male and female reading their parts.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I found the parts when Jessica's channeled her inner goddess here very humorous.

Any additional comments?

Rachelle Ayala always brings us a good story. I found this one to have a perfect blend of humor, surprises, touching moments and enlightened us on some Asian culture and traditions.

Great Read

Playing the Rookie by Rachelle Ayala was a great read. Jessica has always been a good girl and is tired of that. She becomes a sports events intern to try something new. Jay Pak Ahn is a rookie baseball player. They both agree to a week of dates and such. Little did they know they would want more than a week. I loved reading this book and can't wait to read more by Rachelle Ayala.

Another book knocked out of the park

Yet another grand slam written by Rachelle Ayala. This is a wonderful novella. I loved listening to it. I haven't ever listened to a book that was narrated by 2 people, and it kind of threw me in the beginning, but I did enjoy it.

Breaking an asian stereotype!

A FUN read...with lots of laughs and heat. I couldn't get enough of the inner dialog / antics of Jessica's inner goddess...These two have an instant connection but have a few things to work out before they can come together.

Great Listen...worth the money...YES!

I was provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Sexy romance!

Loved this book!

It featured an Asian/Korean-born hero and a main character who was Filipina and Korean. I loved that she was darker than her love interest(and the issue of colorism was addressed in the book as well) because as a dark-skinned Afro-Latina, I wish more books highlighted the flights of colorism in PoC spaces.

Anyway, the book is short and sweet. It's full of sexy sex, love at first sight(it's a little instalovey but I feel for good reason) and sacrifice that proves the strength of their attraction.

If you like sports romances but don't see a lot with PoCs, especially ones reaffirming Asian men(the media isn't so good at that) this book is a gold star!

I love when Asian women appreciate and reaffirm Asian men in romance even though I like IR, for the same reason I love when Black romance reaffirms Black love =)

This is my first book by this author but it won't be my last!!!

This audiobook was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.

Sizzling home run

Jess is on a job as a sports event intern. tx She hopes to find a hot baseball player for a fling to prove to herself ( and her inner voices) she can have a relationship with no feelings and get over her ex, Todd. When she meets Jae she lets her wild side loose.
Jae has been burned too many times but when he meets wild Jessica he decides to enjoy her the short time she is here.

Whoa! I am used to Rachelle's sweeter stories and this one really surprised me.
I did like it though. I think my favorite part is Jess's inner voices. I laughed so much it hurt. Todd also made me laugh. There is a couple twist I never saw coming.

I loved Charley Ongel, Tor Thom Narration. I love having both male and female voices in M/F romances. They brought so much life to the story and The female voices of Jessica's inner Goddess were just perfect.

If you are looking for a short. sexy, funny sports romance this is for you.

HOT!

This book is a quickie for when you don't have a lot of time but still need to listen to a book. The sex scenes in this book are super hot, but not the only thing to the story. You will love seeing where it takes you.

Great book!

Sometimes things aren’t always as they seem. Jessica has been in one too many relationships that should have ended sooner rather than later. Jay has been scarred by the good girl. They both need something different. Starting spring training should take all of Jay's focus, but Jessica distracts him. They make an agreement for a week of flushing their past away and having some fun. But once the week starts, more than just passion is in the mix. This story shows the struggles of love after the pain. It has hotness, humor (Inner G is hilarious), and issues to be dealt with. The narrator was fun to listen to. I really enjoyed this book, and I highly recommend it!

Steamy

I got this book via audiobook boom and this is my voluntary review. The narration went with the story. Jessica's inner goddess was a hoot. there was a lot of sex and strong language which to me took away from the story. It was a nice uncomplicated story so the two plus hours it took to listen passed quickly.