False Start

Red Zone Rivals

By: Kandi Steiner

Narrated by: Heather Schroeder, Wesley Mercer

Length: 10 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

Kyle Robbins: Seattle's rookie tight end and the first boy to break my heart.
Oh, did I mention he's also my new client... and fake boyfriend?

The commission from working with him is a key to my new life -- it's worth putting up with the cocky athlete. The problem is that my past is dark, and when Kyle sees the bruises, he thinks he can save me.

Fake-dating each other was supposed to be for my safety.
But I can't help thinking my heart is more at risk now than ever before.

TROPES:
Sports Romance
Fake Dating
Second Chance
Single Mom
He Falls First
"Who Hurt You"
One Bed

©2023 Kandi Steiner (P)2024 Kandi Steiner

Protect Kyle at all costs

Protect Kyle at all costs!!

False start is a second chance romance with Kyle Robbins, now a professional NFL player and Madelyn James (Hearst) a real estate agent, each other’s first love from High School and a past that suddenly tore them apart. After years of no communication, Madelyn Is now Kyle’s real estate agent. Reading about Kyle and Madelyn coming back into each other’s lives was so emotional, Madelyn was now a single mother going thru a divorce and when Kyle and Madelyn see each other again the tension is real. They are both hurt and yet care so deeply for one another and still appreciate the friendship they had in the past. I loved how all though major miss-communication tore them apart, communication brought them back together. They were able to be there for one another in so many ways, with her son, with his friends, they had real talks, real emotions and you could feel how much they cared for one another. As the book goes on the story gets sweeter. Kyle is seriously so caring and the strength Madelyn shows during her dark days is admirable. This book has so much going on and all of it was wrote so well, with a bit of
fake dating for a second chance at forever, a survivor single mom with a nightmare of an ex, an NFL player with amazing friends, a surprise pregnancy and that extra bit of spice that makes you feel all the things!

Purchased this audio

KYLE, MADS & SEB 🤭🖤

✨✨ALL HAIL QUEEN KANDI✨✨

I say this with every single kandi review and I’ll say it again…. KANDI DID THE DANG THING. This book right here is why Kandi Steiner is my favorite author OF ALL TIME. How did she go from making me so annoyed from season 1 Kyle aka fair catch to being my absolute favorite red zone rival man!?!?! Holy smokes. What a redemption arc for my man!!! Kyle was not hated by me by any means, he was just an annoying side character in the beginning and he grew in my heart as the books moved on. By Hail Mary I was so sad we weren’t getting a Kyle book because I had loved him at that point, then Kandi surprised us worth this gem.

This book holds such a special place in my heart. It was such a perfect ending. These narrators were absolutely amazing. I wouldn’t have pictured mads and Kyle any other way. Kandi had me so emotional throughout, and the narrators brought it to life perfectly, they had me crying both happy and sad tears. I did not want it to end!!! Thank you Kandi for giving us Kyle’s book, this is truly the perfect ending to this series. 🖤

Tropes:
- sports romance
-first love / second chance
- single mom
- he falls first
- who did this to you

5++⭐️
2.5🌶️

Second Chance

Kyle and Madelyn use to be teenage sweethearts till something ripped them about without closure…

Now Madelyn is a recent divorcée single mom and a Seattle Real Estate. When she has a new wealthy client, she is excited that this might be her ticket out of the city away from her toxin abusive ex. When the client shows up, she finds out it’s Kyle. Both completely shocked. Mad and I reared with one another but she needs the big sale and Kyle wants answers. When he sees bruises on Madelyn, he offers protection as fake dating one another. She will play his girlfriend at his friend’s wedding and will also leave her ex away from her.

The forced proximity with one another and the help of a one bed at the hotel away for the wedding made them both face the past. Hearing their stories come together was very emotional. My heart broke for both.

Can I just say how much I love being around the couples of the Red Zone Rivals!? (Especially Leo 🫠🫠)

Tropes:
Fake dating
Second Chance
Teenage Love to strangers to lovers
Football Romance
Single Mom
OM Drama
One Bed
Who Hurt You?
It’s Always Been You
No 3rd Act Breakup

all the feels

The way that I was a sobbing mess after finishing
this one. I am convinced that this is the best book
Kandi has ever written. 🥹😭🤍

single mom • second chance • "who hurt you"
forced proximity • fake dating • sports romance
ALL. THE. FEELS. LITERALLY. All of them. 😭🤍

This audible performance was perfection. It's a duet narration so the male speaks all the male roles and the female speaks all the female roles. The performance was incredible. Not only could you physically feel the emotions they were trying to convey, but it felt like you were watching and hearing it all take place right in front of you.

💭From the beginning, the tension was HIGH. I'm talking skyscrapers. Hating her while battling with the love he always has for her, Kyle goes to insane lengths to keep her and Sebastian safe.

I freaking loved how all in Kyle was. Kandi is a queen at writing men, but she did something so special with this one. It was beautiful and raw to it's very core. Giving us Madelyn and Kyles, highest of highs and lowest of lows. While also delivering us the spiciest of spice.

This storyline was so beautifully done but also so heartbreaking. I am positive that it is my mission to get every single person to read this book.

KYLE MF’in ROBBINS🥹😭

KYLE MF’IN ROBBINS🥹

This audio was so amazing! Love a duet style, & these narrators were fantastic! They bring Kyle & Mads to life beautifully!

I’ll be the first to admit I wasn’t sure about Kyle, especially after the way he acted in Fair Catch, although he had grown on me in Hail Mary, but I don’t know that I’ve ever been this happy to be proven wrong!!! I ADORE HIM & MADS OKAY?! ADORE!!!!! I bawled so many different times throughout, but I loved every second of it!

Kyle & Madelyn are a second chance romance that broke me & then put me back together. Their past is so heartbreaking, but their now is so beautiful with how they come back together after so much hurt in the past. Their love may be a new favorite!

Kyle is a reformed playboy for Mads, & I love a man while falls fast, first, & HARD! Add in Mads is a single mom with the most precious little man (who he adores!!), & I’m a goner! Kyle Robbins has solidified his spot in my heart forever!

Mads is so so strong & brave, I LOVE how she protected herself & her son. She & Kyle had to fight for their future, but how they are together is incredible!! Maybe it’s because I’m a mama too, but she is one of my favorite FMCs in this series!

One of my top reads of 2024 for sure!!!

KYLE ROBBINS I AM IN LOVE

We met Kyle in earlier books and he was not my favorite but he is now! There is so much more to him than I would have ever expected. You truly never know what people have gone through. And sweet and strong Madelyn. I just adore her. I wanted to reach into the book and give her a hug.

Kyle & Madelyn's story is so special. Tears were shed and this story will stay with me for a while.

P.S. I love that we got to see where the rest of the Red Zone Rival characters and see where they are now. I just love the whole crew.

Read if you love:
- fake dating (my all time fav trope!)
- sports romance
- single mom
- one bed
- second chance

The audiobook is duet style (the best!) and narrated by Heather Schroeder and Wesley Mercer. They were the perfect fit for Madelyn and Kyle.

Thank you so much Kandi for the ARC and ALC! False Start is out NOW

a romance with emotion and fun

Oh I how I love a good redemption arc! Kyle Robbins was that character I loved to hate from the first time I met him. With each book in the ‘Red Zone Rivals’ series, I liked him more and more. And finally, we got his book… I couldn't have loved this one more. False Start is my new favorite of the series.

Kyle and Madelyn dated in high school and haven’t seen each other since. Things ended in a complicated way with them, and now Kyle is a rookie for Seattle’s NFL team and Madelyn is the real estate agent showing him a house.

Kyle needs a date to a wedding and Madelyn is having issues with her ex-husband so what’s better than fake dating?! I had so much fun watching these two fall in love again. And Mad’s son, Sebastian. Oh my goodness. He and Kyle together- it had me smiling so big. I adored them.

I’m obsessed with this series as a whole and this book in particular. Sigh. I loved it so much. It has so many of my favorite troupes- sports romance, second chance, single parent, fake dating, he falls first… It’s seriously so good! If you’re looking for a romance with emotion and fun this is a must-read!

Oh my, Kyle has my heart

Oh his voice is so perfect!

Oh my gosh!!! I didn’t think I was going to LOVE Kyle so much!!!!! Kandi made me cry a couple of times, but they were good cries.

Kyle is looking for a house after getting drafted to the NFL and happens to run into his first love Madelyn.

Madelyn is a single mom who is trying to make a great life for her son and get away from her ex husband.

Kyle asks her if he would be his fake girlfriend for a wedding date and then it just gets better from there!!!!!

Man this was such a good book! Can’t wait for the next one!!!

My new favorite Kandi book!

It took me so long to write this review because I couldn’t adequately put into words how much I love Kyle and Madelyn. I listened and read along to this book. I love doing this when audiobooks are in duet, because it’s like watching a movie in my head with subtitles. Heather Schroeder and Wesley Mercer brought all of the emotions to this incredible book. I felt every single heartache, every single twinge of love, every bit of hope. These two were the perfect pairing to bring Kyle and Madelyn to life.

Even though Kyle was a bit of a tool in the rest of the series, I’ve always kinda loved him. He was a big butthead and kind of a himbo, but always silly and sweet. Seeing how his past shaped him made everything make so much more sense. He has such a depth of character, and it all seemingly stems back to Madelyn. Ah, Madelyn. I just love her. She’s so protective and strong for Sebastian, and she’s what every parent wants to be in that sense. I love her love for her son, and I love Kyle’s love for him too. The way the three of them immediately become a family was so perfect.

I loved how the fake dating was never actually fake in either of their eyes because they’re both still helplessly in love with the other. When the big secret is revealed, it only makes them stronger, and that’s my favorite part of this. It shows that conflict doesn’t have to break people apart, but can bring them even more together. This is such a beautiful and real story, and it’s my new favorite Kandi book!

Kyle FREAKIN Robbins 😍

Kandi wasn’t lying when she said this one would be a banger. I have so many emotions, most of them warm and fuzzy after finishing this book! Also, huge shoutout to Heather and Wesley for an AMAZING narration of this. They really brought the characters and the emotions to life.

Kyle Freakin Robbins. We first met him in the first book of the series. He was a jerk…and I didn’t like him. But shit if Kandi didnt turn that RIGHT around and make me fall for this man.

There were so many moments that my heart just melted in the way he spoke to Mads. When he played with Sebastian?! 🫠

There is nothing sweeter than a man who is good with kids.

But more than that…the WHO DID THIS TO YOU vibe was ALL OVER THIS BOOK. I loved it so much. I have nothing negative to say and wouldn’t change a thing.

And like her other Red Rival books, you get all the found family vibes. I love these books, these men, and their girlfriends/wives. If you need a feel good, spicy series to start, please let it be this one!