Play for Me - Review

Play for Me

By: Libby Hubscher

Expected Publication: June 20, 2023

368 pages

Genre: Adult, Contemporary

Source: Publisher via NetGalley

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Goodreads description--When her new job takes her to a New England boarding school, she's surprised to find her roommates are all men - including a very handsome one who plays by his own rules.

Sophie Doyle has her dream job as the head athletic trainer for her favorite baseball team (go Red Sox!), a handsome boyfriend, and easy access to the finest cannoli in Boston. When she loses all three and the World Series to boot, she's forced to apply for the open trainer position at an arts-focused boarding school in New Hampshire. The only available room is a glorified closet in an apartment with three guys: Jonas Voss, the aloof and attractive orchestra teacher, and his two rambunctious roommates.

Sophie knows that training a bunch of privileged high school kids whose idea of a play is A Chorus Line instead of a walk-off homer is going to be a big change from the pro athletes she's used to. She wasn't expecting that these students would have big-time talent and even bigger-time problems. Sophie has troubles of her own--Jonas is a full-fledged grump who clearly doesn't want her near him or the precious piano he never plays.

With sunny optimism, Sophie sets out to win over Jonas and help the kids she's growing attached to. But when her relationship with Jonas moves to the major leagues and plans change at the end of the season, they have to choose whether they are playing for keeps.

I don't love the cover of Play for Me, and I don't usually read many sports books. But coming off of baseball/softball season for my kids, I was in the mood to read about someone who loves the sport. I finished this book three weeks and four books ago, and I'm kicking myself for waiting so long to write my review of it. This has become my new blogging-normal since I don't have time or access to sit down at my computer every day like I did when I worked or even when my kids were tiny and my computer was in our dining room.

I felt for Sophie. She worked extremely hard to get her dream job. She worked with a professional, major league team and athletes for the exact team she loved the most. She had memories of her dad taking her to the Red Sox games. Her literal dream job. And because she pulled a player to prevent further injury and the team lost she got fired. And not just that but an entire city blamed her for the loss. Her boyfriend at the time also broke up with her, and since she was living with him, she is now homeless. That's a lot to lose at one time. Thankfully, her friend gets her a job at a boarding school as an athletic trainer.

Jonas has similarly lost his dream job. He was once a professional pianist. But he's quit playing. Now he teaches music at the same school as Sophie and they are suitemates along with another two teachers at the school. Jonas seems annoyed with Sophie from the very beginning. He apparently doesn't open up easily even though everyone seems to like and get along with him. Sophie riles him up more than normal. These two have one of those enemies-to-lovers arcs even if you can't really claim them to be full-fledged enemies.

Sophie and Jonas work together to get Jonas to play the piano again. He's terrified of hope. And Sophie is determined. The side characters and stories were just as important to the overall story. I liked Tyson, but my favorite side character was Sophie's dad. I love seeing well-written parental characters as they are often missing from stories. It's a contrast to Jonas's father and family. Not everyone has a loving support system built into their nuclear family.

There were many questions driving me forward in my reading. And that helped me not want to put this book down. Well, that along with this wonderful romance. Would Tyson choose music or baseball? Would his choice damage Sophie and Jonas's relationship? Can Sophie and Jonas survive long-term if they end up going back to their old dream jobs? Is there a happy medium or place of compromise to be found? What would that compromise be? And would one or both of them feel regret for making their choices? While it's hard to make career choices based on a relationship, what's the point of life without those we love to share it with?

Favorite quotes:

-"A girl can only be spit on so many times before she needs a change of scene..."

-"I find it challenging to breathe around you."

-"You are like a song that my heart has been waiting for. I recognized your melody the moment we met."

Ultimately, I give Play for Me 4 Stars. I loved the relationship. I didn't want to put this book down when I had to. I read it as quickly as possible, and if I remember correctly, I even stayed up late one night to finish it. The questions about the outcome pushed me forward just as much as the relationship did, in the best way possible. I did have a few questions about the logistics of Sophie's athletic trainer job, but those were probably best to chalk up to something I shouldn't think too deeply about. Have you read Play for Me? What did you think? Let me know!