Intercepted

June 18, 2018
The ups and downs of love in the NFL are well portrayed with a heavy dose of humor and snark in Martin’s sports romance. At age 27, Marlee’s been not-quite-engaged to Mustangs wide receiver Chris for 10 years. The catty football wives, aka the Lady Mustangs, do little to hide their distaste for her being a mere girlfriend. When she catches Chris cheating and dumps him, the last thing she wants is a rebound romance with Gavin, the Mustangs’ new quarterback, while she gets used to living on her own for the first time and settles into a new marketing job. Independence is hard to keep as Gavin continues to pursue her, and the more serious they become, the more unwanted attention she gets from the media, disapproving Lady Mustangs, and a jealous friend of Gavin’s. Marlee’s frequently self-deprecating first-person account, including catchy hashtags (“All aboard, ladies and gentlemen. #HotMessExpress”), will be perfect for readers looking for a fun contemporary. Agent: Jessica Watterson, Sandra Dijkstra Literary.

Starred review from August 1, 2018
The new superstar quarterback for the Colorado Mustangs is none other than Gavin Pope, the man of Marlee Harper's most intimate dreams ever since they shared a hot night together four years earlier in Chicago. His arrival in Denver has disrupted Marlee's normal routine of attending lunch meetings with the players' wives, who can barely keep their disdain for her in check, and catering to her spoiled NFL boyfriend, who she discovers has been playing her for a fool. Seeing his opening, Gavin relentlessly pursues Marlee by sending her flowers, making friends with her dad, and somehow always being there when she needs him most. As Gavin tries in vain to sweep her off her feet, Marlee calls for a time-out to prove that she can make it on her own before she commits once again to the life of a player's partner. Fresh voices and strong multicultural characters from every rung of the social ladder make Martin's debut novel a must-read for fans of contemporary romance with a sporty twist. This witty, sexy, and refreshingly realistic take on what it's like to date a professional athlete is a reflection of Martin's real-life experience as an NFL wife.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)