By day, Emilia is a field hockey star with a popular boyfriend and a mother obsessed with her academic future. But by night, she’s kicking virtual ass as the only female member of a highly competitive eSports team. Emilia has mastered the art of keeping her two worlds thriving, which hinges on them staying completely separate.
When a major eSports tournament comes to her city, Emilia is determined to prove herself to the male-dominated gaming community. But her perfectly balanced life is thrown for a loop when a member of a rival team—Jake—recognizes her . . .
Title: Don’t Hate the Player
Author: Alexis Nedd
Publication Date: June 1, 2021
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Genres: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary
This was one of the best-written books I’ve ever read. It was witty, hilarious, and nerdy. I couldn’t have asked for more from this book!
Something I absolutely adored about this book was its ability to have dual pov without having dual pov. This book is told from the pov of Emilia, but we get glimpses into the mind of our leading man’s, head and life. Jake starts off the book with a strong introduction into how he and Emilia met and their relationship thus far. His personality is so clearly laid out without it being a dump of information or quirks that I was in awe. We get a few more glimpses into his head throughout the book with chapters like the initial one, but also through video game chats between him and his team. Again, very cleverly written and clear to get a grip of all the characters’ personalities.
Sorta piggy-backing off that paragraph, I have to point out how great Jake was. He’s different than a lot of leading men we read about in books. He’s awkward and nervous most of the time and isn’t rocking a six-pack. He’s also sweet, funny, and so stinking adorable that I wish he was my nerd boyfriend.
Okay. Moving on…As perfect and amazing as this book was, I have one slightly negative thing to say about it. I wish, SO BADLY, the romance would have been more descriptive. Like, it’s cute and sweet, but we don’t get to live through the kisses with the characters. It’s pointed out that it’s happening and that’s that. That’s my only complaint. Back to the good stuff.
Here is a little list of things that I have to point out and will probably not make sense out of context:
– Language bot was awesome and hilarious
– Team Unity was so cool!
– Mrs. Weasley’s quote coming in for the kill!!
– That Marvel reference tho
Overall, I can’t recommend this book enough if you love nerd romances and references, are searching for a really well-written novel, and have a bit of a competitive streak. I will love this book forever and ever.
Rating
To check out my other reviews, click here. Or to check out more books by Alexis Nedd, go to her Goodreads profile.
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