I craved to read this book after my friends hyped it up to me and now I have to finish the other two. At the point of me posting this, I’ve held on to these reviews for months debating on posting them. I decided to.
Customary warning: This is a reminder that these are my personal opinions. My thoughts and feelings are not your thoughts and feelings. I may not always be the target audience for a book; sometimes I am. If I do not like a book, that doesn’t mean you’ll dislike it. If I love a book or simply like a book, you may hate it. Take everything I say with this knowledge. If it sounds interesting to you despite what I’ve said, then go ahead and read it. You’ll only know you like something if you read it yourself.
That being said… Spoilers ahead.
Foxhole Court by Nora Sakavic
Synopsis From The Book
Neil Josten is the newest addition to the Palmetto State University Exy team. He’s short, he’s fast, he’s got a ton of potential — and he’s the runaway son of the murderous crime lord known as The Butcher. Signing a contract with the PSU Foxes is the last thing a guy like Neil should do. The team is high profile and he doesn’t need sports crews broadcasting pictures of his face around the nation. His lies will hold up only so long under this kind of scrutiny and the truth will get him killed. But Neil’s not the only one with secrets on the team. One of Neil’s new teammates is a friend from his old life, and Neil can’t walk away from him a second time. Neil has survived the last eight years by running. Maybe he’s finally found someone and something worth fighting for.
Initial Thoughts Before Reading:
Honestly I got this recommendation from online and I figured, why not. I really like books about sports for whatever reason. I have heard a lot about this and so here’s to hoping its good.
Initial Thoughts After Reading:
Wow. I never thought I’d become so invested in a fake sport. The fact that I have is testament to this series, I believe. It was fascinating to read, and interesting to deal with so many dysfunctional people. I honestly can not wait to learn more about all of them. For once I’m not in the mood to give an extremely detailed plot synopsis. So for anyone expecting it, its not coming.
As a note, I’m not going to be going too heavy into any of my likes, until the book series review.
Plot Overview:
Neil loves the sport Exy, loves it so much that when he got the chance to play it, he gave up every rule that was in place to keep him alive. This results in him getting scouted by the Foxes at Palmetto State University. Neil rejects at force, but eventually gets strong armed into signing. Part of this is out of jealousy, for the man who had everything Neil wished he had, part out of his obsession with the sport.
Neil’s relationship with the team starts as rocky as it begun, and in many ways that doesn’t change. He and Andrew, get into quite a few altercations. As do he and Kevin. Neil is so worried about his past catching up to him, that he does not want to make friends. However his love for the sport and realization that his idol, Kevin, is in a similar predicament to him, leaves him wanting to stay until he can stay no more.
That plan falls to shambles when Neil confronts the enemy of Kevin, and his own enemy who could expose him to the world. This results in a death of one of their teammates, and Neil becoming one of the family for real.
What I Liked:
Neil; For an asshole who is the son of a murdered, he’s pretty great. He’s very complicated, but passionate and I love him.
Andrew; Likewise for someone as aggressive and psychotic as he is, he’s great. He is heavily medicated and cares for nothing which makes for an interesting dynamic.
Kevin; I cherish him. I really do.
Others; I want to see more of them. Nicky makes me laugh a lot. Reminds me of my best friend in some ways.
Exy; as a sport, I was pulled in and I was not expecting to be.
Plot; Simple but with extremely high stakes. This isn’t “win the championships” stakes. This is “do not end up dead in a ditch because your father is hunting you” stakes.
What I Would Have Liked or Changed:
More of the rules on the sport.
Time Taken To Read
Honestly I wasn’t tracking, probably 2hrs.
Rating: 4/5
Notable Quotes: (Based on the online version)
“It’s not the world that’s cruel… It’s the people in it.” – Neil pg 21
Family means something different with us because it has to. It’s not about blood. It’s not even about who we like. It’s about who Andrew’s willing to protect. – Nicky pg 211
Marlena Marie 
I bought this when it was on a huge sale on Amazon, have been meaning to read it. Glad you liked it. The characters sound like they leave an impression.
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Yeah the characters really are what make this book, that’s for sure. At least for me.
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