I’m delighted to be one of today’s stops on the blog tour for ‘Team Spirit.’
Team Spirit: a humorous take on tennis club turmoil
Everything seems straightforward enough with agreement reached for the tennis club to hold social events at the nearby Dream Café while the clubhouse is being rebuilt.
When Oliver Kilroy is forced to resign as club chairman after taking a bribe from the builder, Laurie, his young and inexperienced deputy, is left in charge of running the club. He accepts the post on condition that the attractive Helen is prepared to support him as the new deputy.
The pair are faced with an unprecedented run of challenges. The builder is failing to deliver on time. A player’s dubious line calls are infuriating opponents. The WhatsApp group has become a hotbed of slanderous gossip. A middle-aged flirt is antagonising the female members. And poor behaviour at the Dream Café is threatening the agreement.
Helen and Laurie are struggling to cope, though tennis club problems are a distant second for Helen as she attempts to start a relationship with Laurie. She’s sure he also wants that but something major is going on in his life to prevent progress. What is that something and can it be overcome?
Purchase Links
https://www.amazon.com/Team-Spirit-humorous-tennis-turmoil-ebook/dp/B0CY7HRQB1
Author Bio –
R J Gould writes contemporary fiction about relationships using a mix of wry humour and pathos to describe the tragi-comic life journeys of his protagonists. Team Spirit is his tenth novel and the fourth in the stand-alone ‘at the Dream Café’ series. He has been published by Headline Accent and Lume Books and also self-publishes. Before becoming a full-time author he worked in the education and charity sectors. In addition to his addiction to telling stories, he has somewhat milder addictions to playing tennis, watching film noir cinema, completing Wordle and eating dried mango slices. He is a member of Cambridge Writers, Society of Authors and the Romantic Novelists’ Association UK. He lives in Cambridge, England.
Social Media Links –
Website: http://www.rjgould.info
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RJGould_author
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RJGouldauthor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rjgould_author
Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6432126.R_J_Gould
Review-
This is a fun packed tale, with plenty of humour and a sprinkle of romance.
Although the fourth book in the Dream Cafes series, this can easily be read as a stand-alone (although I do recommend the earlier books too!)
Who would have thought there would be so many shenanigans going on in a trendy tennis club in Muswell Hill?
There’s a delightfully eclectic mix of characters; some from previous books in the series and others newcomers. Laurie is particularly endearing as he tries to juggle his busy life while embarking on a sweet new romance with Helen.
The Dream Cafe is actually in the background for most of this storyline as it’s the tennis club members who take centre stage; the cafe being a meeting place after the C Team’s Sunday matches.
I particularly liked the inclusion of the messages from the WhatsApp group at different intervals which were very entertaining.
The only thing I struggled with was the inclusion of the ages of Helen and Laurie as I had already built up an image in my head of them being older and couldn’t get to grips with them being in their 30s!
A great, easy read, perfect for a lazy Sunday in the garden!
With thanks to the author and Rachel at Random Resources for the opportunity to participate in the tour.
Further stops can be found here:
Pickled Thoughts and Pinot 
A huge thank you for taking the time to read and review Team Spirit – much appreciated. I’m glad you enjoyed the novel (and note your comment about ages).
You’re welcome! 😊