Noah Falcon made his way from Cricket Creek to the major leagues playing baseball and from there found himself starring in a soap opera. When his character is killed off, he makes his way back to his hometown to star in the community theater play to help boost tourism. He is surprised to discover that Olivia Lawson, his former high school tutor, is playing the female lead and she isn’t too thrilled to see him.

Unlike his high school days, Noah is taking his role very seriously. He wants to help bring the tourism back to Cricket Creek so he enlists Olivia to help bring his acting skill up to scratch. What he isn’t counting on is the chemistry the have off the stage. And in a town so small that everyone knows your business, Noah and Olivia find it hard to hide their growing romance.

But things can never be easy, especially when Noah has no plans on staying and Olivia would never leave her students. Despite their instant attraction, they decide they are only “playing” at being a couple because it will be easier in the end. But even when Noah decides to stop playing and wants to make it a real relationship, Olivia works to keep her distance.

Olivia is constantly second guessing Noah and his word to help the town. She keeps waiting for him to up and leave, just like her mother did and refuses to let her guard down. The mother issue is a big part of who Olivia is and when things get rocky with Noah, she never really tells him why. I felt that it was such a big part of the story that never got settled with Noah.

I give Noah a lot of credit. I, like Olivia, kept waiting for him to be the jerk and screw up. But not only did he stick around, he got involved in Cricket Creek. He went back to the high school to help the baseball team. He signed the little kids baseballs and went to their games. Despite his stardom he is a genuinely nice person.

Cricket Creek is full of some crazy characters, but isn’t that where the charm is in small towns. If anything, Playing for Keeps is an ensemble book with the crazy background characters helping push the story along. I dare any of you who read it not to fall in love with them. For me, I’m in love with Pete, the Charlie Daniels look-a-like bartender who makes perfect martinis.

There is a secondary romance between Madison, the playwright, and Jason, the local carpenter who is building the sets. There is so much going on between them that I think they should’ve had their own story instead of being in the background in Playing for Keeps. There is so much passion and tension between them that at times I found myself more drawn to them and their story.

In the end, Playing for Keeps is a good read. I enjoyed spending time in Cricket Creek and would most likely find myself wanting to go back.

Reviewed by: Jamie