Player's Game Series by Rachel Van Dyken

***SPOILER ALERT!! YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!!***

Okay. I've been a fan of RVD since The Bet Series. I read her books religiously. (Though I'm stucked with ebooks cause the physical ones are not available in my country). I'm also a sucker for sports romance. Mostly the novels that revolves American Football, Romance and Comedy. So, after getting a copy of Fraternize, I immediately dive straight into it. Here, imagine a sexy independent women plus hot as freshly made waffles athletes, I think you'll totally scream for more! FRATERNIZE (Player's Game Series Book 1): A SHIP THAT DID NOT SAIL

Let me give a little background about the first book Fraternize. There was a girl called Emerson who's very insecure with her body that wants to get into professional cheerleading. Said girl has so many in her plate; dad has agressive Alzheimer, bills to pay, anything that's required to do when you are an adult plus an ex- bestfriend/ ex- boyfriend/ first love (Miller) that she met after so many years. Not to mention that said ex- bestfriend/ ex- boyfriend/ first love hates her so much cause he thought he abandoned her, vice versa. Then threw an over- confident, hot af, and womanizer athlete (Grant Sanchez) in the mix and you'll end up establishing your own 'ship' that you wanted to sail no matter what happened. I gave Fraternize (Players Book 1) 4/5🌟 because I can. Just kidding. But seriously, 4🌟 because my ship did not sail! I repeat. DID. NOT. SAIL. Ugh. You know the feeling when you ship this character to another then one of them ended up to another person? Well, that's just made you want to throw your book, right? Or e-reader, in my case. RVD put a giant hole in my ship and it sank deep to Nowhere Ocean! She is cruel like that! Yeah, yeah. I'm biased. I know. But I'm super sucker for Football and Second Chance Love so yeah. Hang that in front of my nose and I'll let you take all my money. I mean, why did you even give my man have his own pages if he will not get the lady?? C'mon. So cruel. It's not even Emerson and Miller's fault they got separated, anyway. Then came this huge ass Grant Sanchez that pestered and made my girl fall inlove with him. What. What. WHAT? WHAT?! UGH. I'M SHIPPING EMERSON AND MILLER SO GET OUT OF THE WAY! My babies... my poor babies... I like the whole story together but I hate that my ship did not sail. INFRACTION (Player's Game Series Book 2): A TORTURED HEART and SECOND CHANCES

So here's what happened after Grant Sanchez pissed me by snagging my girl: Miller, my baby boy, got his heart broken again, for the second time, by the same girl. (I mean, RVD didn't even give him time to recover from the first one, d***.) The team went to Las Vegas to celebrate them winning the Championship (Superbowl?) and woke up naked as a baby with Kinsey, Emerson's girl bestfriend, captain cheerleader and baby sister of his team captain and friend, Jax Romonov, in Miller's bed. And that's where the realization hit me hard in the face. No chance for my #emiller ship. Nada. Ship totally sunken. It was really hinted in book one but I turned a blind eye on it. But when they did another round of acrobat in bed, I put down my e-reader, stood up and paced around my room. Still want to deny the fact that, oh f***, RVD drop a nuclear to my already sinking ship. I shook my head. No. No. No. NO. NOO. NOOO! NOOOOOOO!!!!! I literally screamed at my ebook reader, hoping RVD will pop out of it so I can shake her so hard she'll realize that Miller and Emerson should be the end game. But no, of course, it's not possible. And if you are reading this, RVD, please know that you brought life to my violent side. Yes, you did. But now worries, I still love you so you are safe. JK.  So, going back. After that night, Jax, best friend of Miller and Ass- Sanchez, ask Miller to do help him convince Kinsey to go to Europe for a vacation 'cause apparently, Kinsey's abusive ex, Anderson, was now their team mate. Jax knew that he can talk to Kinsey into going for a vacation 'cause they are 'friends'. Well, friends who did acrobat together. That kind of friends. My poor baby Miller, didn't want to send Kinsey away, because he's now totally into her. But decided it was for the best. Fast forward to a few months, Kinsey's back. Jax asked Miller to pretend to be Kinsey's boyfriend so Anderson would stay away. Both parties did not jump into this idea right away, but after knowing that Jax and Kinsey's dad has an agressive cancer, Miller agreed. Everything's well except that Kinsey and Jax's dad asked all to come for dinner. Well, not their dad but their mom. 'Cause Jax been texting this girl called Harley, Kinsey's friend, whom Miller and Kinsey set up wih Jax. And Jax's mom is kinda hopeful that Jax's would get married soon enough. Jax told Kinsey that he was aware of their dad's cancer long before and the family decided not to tell Kinsey because they want to protect them from hurt and be always happy. 

Kinsey got mad to Jax and her family and went to stay with Miller.  When Kinsey and Miller found out that her dad will not stay long, Miller run away. Jax got mad at him for leaving Kinsey when she needed him the most. I cried after Miller told Kinsey that the hurt will get worst. It will not be okay. That it will break her. But eventually, time will come that the hurt will lessen. And she will smile again. Miller mom's died of cancer too, you know. He was traumatized! For pete's sake. He lost her mom. He lost Emerson. And he definitely doesn't want to loose Kinsey too so they made up. But then, plot twist! Still angry Jax told Miller that Kinsey has Lupus. Oh, s***. Here I thought her dizziness is because she might be pregnant. Sighed. Again, Miller, is devastated again. My Miller.. my poor baby. (I don't know if RVD hated Miller so much that has to suffer like this.) Kinsey confessed to Miller that Jax is not her biological. Kinsey is adopted. Her biological parents abused and neglect her. So Jax made it his mission to be protective of Kinsey so noone could hurt him anymore. 

After a very long talk and confession, they made up, of course. When it's time to say goodbye to Jax's and Kinsey's dad, Miller was told to mourn for his mother because he didnt. Made me cry so much! 

This book totally broke me in two in the middle of a Sunday night when eveybody's sleeping. I hate it when people die of cancer. I hate cancer. Even if I did not like Kinsey and Miller together, I love the whole concept of family and second chances in this book.  Again, I didn't like the pairings, but I love love love how this book made me feel so many emotions. I'm giving the second book 6/5🌟. I love how RVD, made me feel that when someone passed away, it's okay to be sad, hurt. But its not okay to dwell to that hurt. To not let yourself to move on. Instead on living the life of misery, we should celebrate the life of that person. The lives that person had touched. The beauty of the experiences you had with that person. Second chances. Miller was allowed to be hurt so much. So he could learn. So he could stand up again after stumbling. He was given another chance so he could properly mourn for his mother, his unborn baby with Emerson, his childhood. A second chance to be happy, again. Whole again. I'm happy that Miller Quinton ended up with someone who will love him. Content. Happy. He deserved everything he has at the end of the book because of so many things that had happened to him. That even his heart had been battered and tortured, he deserves another chance. A second chance to happy.