A sweet single dad, second chance, small town sports romance awaits readers in Coach, the first book in a brand new series by Devney Perry.
Title: Coach
Author(s): Devney Perry
Series: Treasure State Wildcats #1
Also in this series: Blitz
Narrator(s): Ava Erickson, Teddy Hamilton
Published by Devney Perry LLC on April 6, 2023
Pages: 341
Length: 7hrs 57mins
Genre(s): Contemporary Sports Romance
Source: Kindle Unlimited, Publicist, Purchase
Format: Audiobook, eArc, eBook 
Purchase: Amazon|Audible
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A single-dad sports romance from Wall Street Journal and USA Today best-selling author Devney Perry.
Football star. Single dad. And once, a long time ago, mine.
I’ve spent the better part of a decade forgetting Ford Ellis. If he had just stayed away from Montana, I might have erased the memory of his striking blue eyes and rugged smile forever. Avoiding him was easy when the only place I saw his face was on ESPN—and a remote control could fix that problem.
Except my boss just hired Ford as the new head coach for the Treasure State Wildcats. Not only will I be stuck watching him on the sidelines this season, but avoiding him will be impossible now that we’re working together.
Maybe I haven’t forgotten Ford. Maybe I still dream about what we might have been. Maybe he hasn’t forgotten me either.
Except those maybes won’t change the fact that we were never meant to be. Maybe he was mine once. But as of today, the only thing I’ll be calling Ford Ellis is Coach.
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In this the first book in the Treasure State Wildcat series, readers get the chance to connect with Millie and Ford. Best friends in college who secretly loved each other, but circumstances prevented them from being together. Ford was dating her nemesis and had plans to break it off and make Millie aware of his feelings. However, prospective fatherhood disrupted his plans. So, without any explanation, he severed ties with Millie. A decision which ended their friendship and broke her heart .
Fast forward ten years later. Ford has retired from the NFL, he is divorced, has sole custody of his daughter and has returned to Montana to be the head coach at his Alma Mater. However, unbeknownst to him, his college crush, Millie, works as an Assistant Sports Director at the college. One would have thought that after ten years, their feelings for each would have died a natural death. But all it took was one look, one touch for old feelings to re-ignite.
Millie feared having her heart broken once again and so was determined to keep her distance from Ford. However, he had other ideas. After spending years in a loveless marriage, it was time for him to be with someone he loves and who loved him in return. Millie was that someone, and he had no intention of letting her go this time.
Ford and Millie made a great couple, which made rooting for their happily ever after a delight. No one could breach the walls Millie built around her heart, well except for Ford of course. But it would not be an easy job. Ford will need to work hard to break through those solid walls.
The highlight of the story, though, lay not in the romance, but in the relationship Ford shared with his daughter. Readers get to see his parenting skills firsthand. This is not to say the romance was not good. It just never grabbed me, in the way I have come to expect from the author. The romance developed quickly for a couple who had not seen each other for ten years and whose relationship never went beyond friendship before now.
Overall, Coach proved a great start to the series. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.
The story alternates points of view between Ford and Millie. Narrator, Teddy Hamilton breathes life into Ford’s character. His tone and approach captured Ford’s personality, as well as his emotions. He also did a great job with the female voices. This was my first time experiencing his narration, and I would definitely listen to him again.
I loved Ava Erickson’s interpretation of Millie and I also liked her male voice for Ford. This is my second time listening to her narration. Overall, both narrators did a wonderful job of bringing each character’s emotions and personality to life; they complemented each other perfectly.
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About Devney Perry
Devney is a USA Today bestselling author. Born and raised in Montana, she loves writing books set in her treasured home state. After working in the technology industry for nearly a decade, she abandoned conference calls and project schedules to enjoy a slower pace at home with her husband and two sons. Writing one book, let alone many, was not something she ever expected to do. But now that she’s discovered her true passion for writing romance, she has no plans to ever stop. Devney loves hearing from readers! Connect with her on social media.
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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
This sounds like a cute little read and I do like Teddy Hamilton’s narration. Adding it to my TBR list! Great review!
Great review you have of this one. I have been hearing some fabulous things about this one. So I am definitely curious about it.
I’m a sucker for a father-daughter relationship in a romance, too.
Sports and a single dad…that’s a perfect combination for a romance. 😀
I love Teddy Hamilton! I also really want to give Devney Perry’s work a try. I think that I am going to have to add this one to my wish list.
I just recently added Devney Perry to my list of authors I want to try this year. I’ve seen so many great reviews for her books.
I also liked this book quite a lot and I’m looking forward to more in the series.
Second chance romances are my jam, and I have enjoyed other books by Perry. Sounds like a winner to me
I am sure you would enjoy this one too.