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Thank you to Avon and Libro Fm for my review copies! 

Fangirl Down
By Tessa Bailey
🎧 Narrated by: Callie Dalton 
Book 29 of 2024

Do you like when an authors’ books have some similarities, or do you prefer them to feel very different?

I think this was my 10th Tessa Bailey book, and I find that I either find her books absolutely hysterical, adore the characters, and cannot put the book down, or I find it completely cringey and have a hard time finishing it. I honestly think it has to do more with the mood that I’m in when I read it than it has to do with Tessa’s writing being wildly different depending on the book. I think I was especially harsh in my reaction to Fangirl Down since I had just read Always Only You which is not extremely similar but it is a sports romance where the FMC has a chronic illness. If you remember, I absolutely adored Always Only You and think it’s one of my new favorite books, so I probably should have given that book and this one a little more space.  

🎧 Either Wells’ dialogue does not translate well to audiobook narration, or the narrator made some choices that made his dialogue really cringey. Read this one with your eyes!

What I did like about this one was how devoted Wells was to Josephine and how protective he was of her in the beginning. I could have used a little more character development for him – he seemed to change from a depressed alcoholic to a model husband and father through the power of Josephine’s sunshiney personality. 

I liked that Tessa included some chronic illness representation with Josephine having Type 1 Diabetes. I think that the book showed how difficult T1 can be without making it seem like a plot device or a character flaw. 

[ book synopsis ]

#1 New York Times bestselling author Tessa Bailey launches a super sexy sports romance series with a rom-com about a bad boy professional athlete who falls for his biggest fan…

Wells Whitaker was once golf’s hottest rising star, but lately, all he has to show for his “promising” career is a killer hangover, a collection of broken clubs, and one remaining supporter. No matter how bad he plays, the beautiful, sunny redhead is always on the sidelines. He curses, she cheers. He scowls, she smiles. But when Wells quits in a blaze of glory and his fangirl finally goes home, he knows he made the greatest mistake of his life.

Josephine Doyle believed in the gorgeous, grumpy golfer, even when he didn’t believe in himself. Yet after he throws in the towel, she begins to wonder if her faith was misplaced. Then a determined Wells shows up at her door with a wild proposal: be his new caddy, help him turn his game around, and split the prize money. And considering Josephine’s professional and personal life is in shambles, she could really use the cash…

As they travel together, spending days on the green and nights in neighboring hotel rooms, sparks fly. Before long, they’re inseparable, Wells starts winning again, and Josephine is surprised to find a sweet, thoughtful guy underneath his gruff, growly exterior. This hot man wants to brush her hair, feed her snacks, and take bubble baths together? Is this real life? But Wells is technically her boss and an athlete falling for his fangirl would be ridiculous… right?