The Game drops you into the fast-paced world of international tennis, high-stakes business, and tangled relationships. The novel follows Anna Talanova, a fiercely competitive tennis player navigating personal betrayals and professional challenges, and Adam Miller, a struggling tech entrepreneur roped into an unexpected social spotlight. As their lives intertwine, the story explores ambition, loyalty, and the weight of public perception. It’s sharp, fast, and full of unexpected turns, keeping you hooked from start to finish.

Riley has a way of making characters feel real, flawed, relatable, and just the right amount of dramatic. Anna, for example, is refreshingly complex. She’s not just a tennis star she is someone constantly on guard, hardened by past betrayals and wary of attachment. Her frustration when she discovers her boyfriend, Arty, cheating on her is palpable, not just because of his betrayal, but because deep down, she expected it. Riley nails the emotions here, the cold anger, the exhaustion, the way betrayal can feel both surprising and inevitable. And then there’s Adam, the reluctant stand-in at a high-profile event who suddenly finds himself thrust into the media’s glare. His dry wit and self-deprecating humor make him instantly likable, especially when he’s subjected to a full celebrity makeover. His internal monologue as he’s prepped for the red carpet questioning the necessity of NDAs, makeup, and strategic haircuts is some of the funniest and most charming writing in the book.

One of my favorite aspects of The Game is its sharp dialogue and dynamic character interactions. Riley lets her characters breathe, argue, joke, and stumble through their situations in a way that feels natural. The banter between Anna and her stylist, Serge, is gold. Their conversation about Adam being a “cheetah” or a “dung beetle” had me laughing, and it’s these little moments that make the book shine. Similarly, the push-pull tension between Anna and Adam isn’t just about attraction it’s about two people with completely different worlds colliding. Anna, used to keeping people at arm’s length, doesn’t know what to make of Adam’s grounded, no-nonsense attitude. And Adam, despite being completely out of his depth, finds himself unexpectedly drawn into the whirlwind of Anna’s life.

What really stuck with me was the novel’s exploration of public image versus private reality. Anna isn’t just dealing with the pressures of being a top athlete she’s managing a persona. The media, her sponsors, her team. Everyone has an expectation of who she should be. Even Adam, thrust into the spotlight overnight, quickly realizes that public perception can be a beast of its own. His reaction to suddenly being labeled “Anna Talanova’s new man” is priceless, and the way he processes his unexpected fame adds an extra layer of depth to his character. Riley captures the absurdity of celebrity culture while making it feel deeply personal.

I’d recommend The Game to anyone who loves fast-paced contemporary fiction with humor, heart, and sharp writing. If you’re into sports romance but want something with more depth, or if you enjoy stories where opposites attract in the most chaotic and entertaining way possible, this book is for you. It’s smart, fresh, and unexpectedly funny.

Pages: 366 | ASIN: B0DNN475BJ