Playing Her Secret Crush by Casey Griffin @cgriffinauthor @EntangledTeen #bookreview #YA #contemporary #romance

Title: Playing Her Secret Crush

Author:  Casey Griffin

Publisher: Entangled: Crush

Publication Date: July 2, 2018

Page Count: 250

My rating: 4 stars

About the book:

All her life, Katie has been chosen last for everything: the last picked on the playground, the last picked by her absent father, and definitely the last picked by boys—even her secret crush, Alex, friend-zoned her. This senior year, Katie is determined to come first.

But then Alex asks her to help him find a date?!

Alex has been living life in the fast lane, but he’s ready to slow down—with a girlfriend. The last person on earth he’d consider? The girl his brother developed serious feelings for before he died: Katie. The only way Alex is going to get over Katie is by falling for someone new. And who better to help him find his new crush than the girl he can’t stop thinking about?

What can possibly go wrong?

Playing Her Secret Crush by Casey Griffin is a cute contemporary romance in which best friends have hidden feelings for one another. The one thing it seems the book blurb has left out is the setting being based around professional gaming.

Now that it’s their senior year Katie thinks she needs to break out of her shell and quit being the shy, quiet girl that others don’t notice. Katie and Alex have been best friends for the last few years but crushing on Alex has gotten her no where so she vowed to make some changes.

Alex has always had his own secret crush for Katie but Alex believed his older brother had feelings for her before he passed from cancer so Katie is the one girl Alex can’t bring himself to date. As Alex and Katie set their sights on other dates the pair also need to work together to get their gaming team into a big competition.

While this one isn’t an overly original story of best friends becoming more it was a fun, quick read. Both Alex and Katie have valid reasons for holding back in the friend zone for so long so it’s nice to see that type of relationship progress to more as they obviously already care. Plus the gaming setting with their group entering a tournament was also fun to follow and root them on. Definitely a cute story I’d recommend to the young adult fans.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Find this book online: 

Goodreads  /   Amazon

About the author:

Casey Griffin can often be found at comic conventions on her days off from her day job, driving 400 ton dump trucks in Northern Alberta, Canada. As a jack of all trades with a resume boasting registered nurse, English teacher, and photographer, books are her true passion. Casey is a 2012 Amazon Breakthrough Novel finalist, and is currently busy writing every moment she can.