4.5 stars — Well that was everything and a bowl of ice cream. Honestly? There were parts of this book that were like 10 stars, and then a few parts that were less, so I averaged and got to 4.5 rounded up…feel free to figure that one out.

But seriously. I can’t tell you how much some parts of this book freaking delighted me. I laughed and laughed, and I didn’t even care if anything was over the top, because it didn’t feel over the top in a shameless looking for laughs way, it just honestly did make me laugh. I’m not sure if that makes sense, but I have a very specific tolerance for these things, and this one did not trip that switch. I was just having so much fun, I wanted more and more and more. The cast of characters was delightful. They were quirky and crazy and endearing and PERFECT. I never talk about the secondary characters first, but honestly? They played such an integral role in Marley and Jake’s lives that you can’t NOT talk about them. I even appreciated Amie Jo in a weird way! I mean, wait what?

Marley was someone I simultaneously adored and wanted to smack on a frequent basis. I understood her to a degree, and I loved that through her we could see someone who internalized high school awfulness to the nth degree…and I guess I’m relieved that I didn’t do that. She focused so much on the negatives, that she completely glossed over everything good. She took FOREVER to figure things out, and I’m not sure I quite understand the depths of the kind of complex she must have had. That would be the part that was less for me, and prevented a full 5 stars. She just took slightly too long, and I felt for all the people who got hurt while she was focusing on the wrong things.

But on the other side of it, we have this story with all these amazing wins! We got to see how one person could make such a difference without even realizing it, and I loved every single step forward she had with both her team and the students (and even old nemesises). It was a super feel good story in that way. I loved how at the same time all of those people were teaching *her* things about herself, and helping her grow as a person…especially her girls.

And then there’s Jake. I loved that he was this seemingly god-like guy, but he was wholeheartedly not perfect…and not perfect in not great ways (especially the slobbiness). I love when characters get flaws to bring them down to earth and make them not too good to be true. Normally I like a 50-50 split with dual POV, but the off-balance worked really well in this story because it was mostly a growth story for Marley, but we still got to enjoy things from Jake’s side too. I couldn’t imagine this story without those occasional chapters from him. I adored him, and particularly adored the way he loved Marley. He was fun, caring, unapologetically overconfident…I don’t even know how to quantify him.

And they were fire together. They made me laugh, they gave me amazing chemistry, they just had me swooning over the way they fit with one another.

There were so many amazingly fun moments in this book that I’m never going to forget, and I can wholeheartedly see this book being added to my reread pile whenever I need a pick me up. I love it when a highly recommended book ends up actually being a match — it’s so freaking satisfying.

Brand	N/A
Rating	4.6 (26717 ratings)
Price	$17.09
Category	Sports

Rock Bottom Girl