Stacy Alesi's BookBitch.com™

Big Shots, Book 5

From the publisher:

New York Times bestselling author Tessa Bailey is back with an all-new marriage of convenience, friends-to-lovers sports romance about a baseball catcher and the burlesque club owner he can’t get out of his head.

Madden Donahue, the newest catcher for the Yankees, has been in love with Eve Mitchell since high school, but for some mysterious reason, the burlesque club owner always turns him down. That never stopped him from being her self-appointed protector. Case in point, now that Eve’s sister has left Eve with her two children indefinitely, Madden steps in with a proposition—marry him for the much needed health benefits.

Eve has secretly harbored feelings for Madden all along, but there’s one problem—her best friend Skylar called dibs on him when they were fourteen. Eve has always put their friendship above all else, and she’s not willing to risk losing Skylar over a man. Raised by the local strip club owner, Eve is woefully short on friends and treasures the ones she has. But with Skylar happily paired off, Eve finds herself accepting Madden’s proposal—on the condition that their marriage remains strictly private. She’s not about to let her unique profession and maligned reputation destroy Madden’s shiny new career.

Madden won’t let Eve get away that easily, though. What starts as a marriage of convenience soon ignites into something much hotter, and now it’s up to Madden to convince Eve that their connection is far more than a business arrangement. As the passion builds, can their fake marriage become the real deal?

https://amzn.to/4jSAgTE

Madden Donahue is the newest catcher for the New York Yankees—and he’s been hopelessly in love with Eve Mitchell since high school. Back then, Eve kept her distance, partly because her best friend had a crush on him and partly because she’d spent her entire life trying to avoid unwanted attention. As the daughter of a strip club owner in a small town, she’s been judged and tormented for as long as she can remember.

When her father decides to retire, Eve takes over the business and rebrands it as a burlesque club, convinced she can make an honest, successful living on her own terms. It quickly becomes clear that the reality is far more complicated than she expected.

Eve has always cherished the small circle of people who stand by her—including Madden. When her best friend falls for a hockey player, Eve’s guilt over her own long‑standing crush on Madden finally begins to ease. She feels free to acknowledge the truth she’s been hiding for years: she’s been in love with Madden, too. At the same time, her life takes another unexpected turn when her sister checks into rehab for a drug addiction and asks Eve to care for her two young children. Eve doesn’t hesitate—she’s relieved her sister is getting the help she needs and happy to step up for her niece and nephew.

But things spiral when her nephew is diagnosed with asthma. Without health insurance, Eve is overwhelmed by the cost of treatments she can’t afford. When Madden learns what she’s facing, he immediately offers a solution: marriage. By marrying him, the kids would be covered under his excellent health insurance.

Eve is torn. She worries that her reputation as a burlesque club owner could reflect poorly on the Yankees—and on their newest star player. Madden doesn’t care. He refuses to back down, and eventually, Eve agrees, but only under strict conditions: the marriage must remain secret, and they’ll divorce after six months.

Madden hates the terms but accepts them anyway, determined to use those six months to prove that what they share is real—and that their chemistry can’t be ignored. As with the best marriages-of-convenience romances, feelings deepen, secrets unravel, and in this case, they have the added pressure of the relentless paparazzi, bringing plenty of drama before the couple earns their happily ever after.

This was another terrific installment in a series I adore. While Amazon lists it as book five of five, I’m holding out hope for more. This is one of my favorite series by one of my favorite authors—and it ends on a high note.

2/2026 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

CATCH HER IF YOU CAN by Tessa Bailey. Avon. (January 20, 2026). ISBN: 978-0063380882. 336p.

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From the publisher:

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Tracy Wolff comes a fierce, emotional romance about two people surviving the spotlight and choosing love when everything says they shouldn’t.

They call her the Black Widow. A pop star. A tabloid tragedy. A girl who set the world on fire—and got burned in return.

But Sloane Walker doesn’t care what they say. Not anymore. The headlines, the hashtags, the rumors that never die? Let them come. She’s survived worse—like the betrayal that nearly destroyed her and the fans who blamed her for surviving. These days, she’s armor and eyeliner, singing songs that hurt and pretending they don’t.

She’s halfway through a sold-out tour and dangerously close to unraveling when a meet-and-greet throws her into the path of Mateo Sylvester—a media darling with a magnetic smile, a thriving career of his own, and a grandmother who happens to be Sloane’s biggest fan. He knows exactly how brutal the spotlight can be. He’s lived it. He’s got the press eating from his hand. She’s got a flask full of sweet tea, a voice full of ghosts, and no patience for golden boys with good intentions.

She tells herself it’s just a photo op. Just another handshake. Just another public face with private secrets and no idea what it means to bleed for your art.

But Mateo sees more than the stage persona. He sees the cracks in her smile. The songs she’s too scared to write. The girl underneath the glitter, still fighting to stay.

They weren’t supposed to fall. Not in the spotlight. Not when the world is watching. And definitely not when the people closest to them would do anything to keep them apart.

“Over the course of Wolff’s novel, both Sloane and Sly are revealed to be well-developed characters, and the plot moves briskly….An emotionally grounded romantic thriller with enough steam to satisfy genre fans.”―Kirkus Reviews

https://amzn.to/3NJ0QCO

This is a Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce inspired romance that pairs a chart-topping pop star with an NFL star.

Twenty-seven-year-old Matteo “Sly” Sylvester is the quarterback for the Austin Twisters. Raised by his grandmother, Abuela Ximena, alongside his three sisters, Sly’s life revolves around family. To surprise his grandmother, he splurges on concert tickets—and a meet-and-greet—for her favorite artist: pop superstar Sloane Walker, better known as Black Widow. That brief encounter changes everything. A photo Sloane takes with Abuela Ximena accidentally captures Sly in the background, igniting an instant media frenzy. The attraction between Sly and Sloane is undeniable, but Sloane is convinced a relationship would be a mistake. Sly is too kind, too genuine, and far too good to be dragged into her chaotic, hyper-scrutinized world. Sly, however, is all in—and determined to prove they are worth the risk.

Sloane, though, is no stranger to scandal. Both of her former serious partners died tragically—one in a drunk driving accident, the other in a drowning—fueling obsessive fandom, conspiracy theories, and relentless online hate. Deeply traumatized and emotionally guarded, she hides behind a carefully constructed persona, pretending that her flask of sweet tea is bourbon while keeping the world firmly at arm’s length. That armor begins to crack when she meets Sly and his warm, loving grandmother.

Sly is immediately drawn to Sloane’s magnetic yet closed-off nature. Haunted by the trauma of discovering that a teammate assaulted his sister, he carries a fierce protective instinct. When Sloane begins receiving disturbing threats—complete with eerie dolls and escalating danger—his determination to keep her safe only intensifies. As their relationship grows under constant media scrutiny, Sloane must decide whether she is willing to let him in, even as a stalker shadows her tour. With the press tracking their every move and the stalker growing bolder, Sly and Sloane must decide if their connection can survive the pressure.

I wanted to feel more emotionally connected to the characters, but the insta-love element lost me early on, and it took me a while to fully invest in their story. Their backstories unfold slowly, making the first half feel sluggish. That said, both Sly and Sloane are engaging characters, and once the story gains momentum, the tension, drama, and emotional depth come through.

As the plot progresses, it becomes increasingly crowded with crime-thriller elements—including FBI involvement—which distracts from the central romance. Still, one of the novel’s strengths lies in its pop culture nods, especially the clever use of Taylor Swift song titles like “Getaway Car,” “Willow,” “August,” and “Wildest Dreams.”

This is very much a he-falls-first romance, blending a slow-burn romance with some steam. There is plenty of playful banter and a handful of delightfully cheesy, swoon-worthy moments. Ultimately, this is a story about more than romance. It is about healing, standing back up after life knocks you down, piecing yourself together, and learning to accept the joy you deserve.

2/2026 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

IT HAPPENED ON A SUNDAY by Tracy Wolff. Entangled: Amara. (September 2, 2025). ISBN: 978-1649379184. 465p.

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