Review: In Review: Imaginary Lines (New York Leopards #3) by Allison Parr
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 14, 2014
I have been in literary love with Abraham Krasner since he and Rachael became friends in Rush Me. He always seemed like a good guy who didn't fall into any of the pro-football player stereotypes. I was so excited to learn he was getting his own book. I wanted/needed to know his full story immediately. I could have done cartwheels when I had the opportunity to read and review it before release. I finished the book with a big, goofy grin on my face and and all the warm fuzzies you can imagine. It wouldn't be a stretch to say this is my favorite book in the New York Leopards series so far.Tamar was fantastic. Anyone who has ever had a crush on a close guy friend will relate to her immediately. Ah, unrequited love. Or, is it? Tamar is the kind of girl I'd be friends with in real life. She was sweet, strong and smart. She didn't have the best luck in love, but she had been pining away for her best friend for most of her life. A journalist and sports fan, she's thrilled to get an offer to work for one of the biggest sports blogs/magazines in the country. The job will take her from her home in California all the way to New York City. It's the perfect time to start over. There's just one little problem: Abraham Kraser, her childhood best friend and object of her unrequited love, is a professional football player for a team in New York. The same one she'll be covering. It's going to be difficult to move on while she's near him, but she's determined to try.I've already said how much I love Abe. I'm not exaggerating. Each of the guys in Parr's New York Leopards series has been fantastic and swoony (especially to a lady like me who loves football - both the sport and the players), but there's just something special about Abe. It was wonderful to learn some of his backstory. My only complaint about this book is that I wish part of it had been told from his POV. I would *love* to get inside Abe's head.Despite Tamar's best efforts to get over Abe, as they spend more time together and he begins to open up about his feelings, she's fighting a losing battle. These two are so obviously meant to be together. I love-love-love friends to lovers stories. They're risky. There's the fear of losing the friendship if the relationship doesn't work out, but the understanding that the feelings are real and can't be easily dismissed. The author did a fantastic job of making this story come to life. It felt so real. Tamar and Abe were fantastic together. Their second chance at love wasn't all hearts and flowers, though. There's some drama that threatens to hurt both of their careers, and possibly their relationship. Thankfully it wasn't all that scandalous and it didn't make me want to throw my iPad at the wall.I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish. The characters were easy to love and completely relatable. I love a good, driven female lead character. Tamar blossomed in this book. The friendships between the other players and their significant others is one of the things I love most about this series. I enjoy getting a peek into the lives of favorite pairs from previous novels with each new one that's released. It hasn't taken me long to become a huge fan of this fictional football team or Allison Parr's work. If you like romance (with a hint of steam), sports and strong characters, I can't recommend this book – or the others in the series – highly enough.I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.