The Foxhole Court

Pensé que sería 5 estrellas y no puedo estar más decepcionado, pero 1 estrella por neil jsjs

oh jeez

https://www.frowl.org/worstbestsellers/episode-165-foxhole-court/

Boring AF, too much of the plot was not believable/didn't even make sense, too much unnecessary filler. Also, I'm all for a slow burn, but nothing was even lit in this book. Apparently I have to slog through book 2 just for a kiss, and I'm not sure I can do it. Can someone please give me a hint of whether it's worth it to read the other 2 books? Does it get more interesting?

Ugh what the heck was that? Thank God it finished in a day. Anymore and I might have thrown it away.
This is supposed to get better from the next book so fingers crossed.

Full disclosure: I only read this book to fulfill a prompt of reading your best friend's favorite book. We have very different tastes when it comes to the books we enjoy and I had low expectations. Those were even too high. This book was a dumpster fire. I found it completely unrealistic and nothing happened. There were way too many characters who I couldn't keep track of and I all were described exactly the same. And for a group of misfits, the team was a bunch of jerks to everyone for no apparent reason. This book suffered a lot from lack of explanation and just telling me what was happening rather than giving any backstory to the characters. I will no be continuing with this series.

CAWPILE Breakdown:
Characters: 1
Atmosphere: 4
Writing: 4
Plot: 3
Intrigue: 2
Logic: 1
Enjoyment: 1

literally wtf did i just read

2nd read
This reread took forever! It was just as good the second time around, and this time I was really able to soak up so much more of the story, instead of rushing through it like I did the first time. I can't believe I had any doubts on who Neil was going to end up with. By the halfway point of this book Neil and Andrew do nothing but keep an eye on each other, though none of them will admit that they do it. They're so attentive to each other as well as pretending they can't stand the other person, and at the same time can't stop thinking about how interesting the other is. Andrew is always touching Neil and Neil is just like “Okay we're doing that” and he doesn't realize the importance! Gah, all the feels. My precious broken children. Y'all are so messed up, I fucking love you.

1st read 4 stars
This was... this was like... like sports anime on stereoids, that's what it was. 
The mostly male cast checks out (although it's not even close to how sports anime usually does it), the sport checks out(obviously), the training part, the first game, the main character who's good enough to be on the team but not actually good enough (yet), the hardcore upperclassmen who hate the MC, the upperclassmen who take care of the MC, the player who initally hated but eventually respects the MC, I feel like I could go on, honestly. 
HOWEVER,
Y'all, the criminality in this shit literally scares me. Like, I got way in over my head with this one, was not expecting the kind of murderous past everyone had, and the characters are so horribly mentally unstable that every little thing gets me nervous, the drugs (medical and otherwise) are almost part of some characters' identity. I mean, this is literally insane and an absolute fucking shitshow. It was also VERY entertaining, though. This book was such a starter, I can't wait to get onto the next one. At the end, we're finally getting enough of Andrew to see him as a real person. Neil is constantly in anxiety-mode (bc he's running from death, can't really blame him), but it really carries a paranoia over the entire novel, which sets the tone well. Most of the characters we've only just scratched the surface of who they are, so I can't really say how I feel about them yet, but overall I was simply addicted to this and really enjoyed it.

WELCOME HOME NEIL

It was all fun and games until you realise Seth, one of the the main characters actually died.

Anyway I loved this book despite not fully understanding the rules.
But I really like the story and the characters. Can't wait to read The Raven King

I really enjoyed the beginning of the book and I liked how descriptive the writing was...at first. This entire book is setting up the dynamics of the characters and the world behind the story. It was detailed and convoluted enough to be intriguing for the first third of the book, but I kept waiting for SOMETHING to happen. Nothing did and the ending was the most unsatisfying thing I've ever read. I didn't really connect to the characters at all because there was no explanation of their personal motivations or connections between them. Why were some alliances made? The bit of backstory we get about Neil and Kevin's past is a drop in the bucket of what all encompasses the story and characters of this book.

It's truly pitiful because I feel like I read something that could have been really great, if it had decided on what story it wanted to tell. Is the story about Neil and his passion for Exy (a fictional sport that he was recruited to play at university)? Is the story about his obsession with Kevin (a long lost boy from his devastating past)? Is the story about Andrew and his obsession with Kevin? It couldn't possibly be the latter because while Andrew (the psycho that he is) plays a prominent role in this “story”, there's absolutely no explanation whatsoever of who he is or why he's obsessed with the best player of a sport he doesn't seem to give a shit about. This entire book is ludicrous and disappointing.

(when you realize your review was thrown into the abyss

meh. the last quarter or so of this was the only part that was remotely interesting to me (and the only reason i'm rounding up to 2 stars). i'll probably read the next one bc i'm still curious & confused about the love for these books but i'm pretty sure it's just gonna be one of those Not For Me series. COME @ ME WITH THOSE PITCHFORKS.

This is one of the few sports I'd willingly sit and watch. That being said, I'm sad my joints aren't up to field hockey anymore because I really loved playing that! Even just hitting a ball around the backyard would be fun. And also, if I had a bunch of friends who were also either into The Foxhole Court or just very into hockey-like sports, I would've tried creating a team. Would we have played often? I very much doubt it, but just imagine! For those of you wondering, I would go for a defensive position (in hockey I played Left Back – it was great because a friend was another Back and our other friend was the goalie so we'd just chill in the goalie box until the ball came our side. Oh the wonders of being on a lower team so we could get away with things).

This is another book that I'd say reads like fanfiction. Which is a very good compliment. I guess some might say that that's not so much of a compliment but that's fine! Everyone has their opinions and are allowed to express them.

Neil Abram Josten has my entire heart. Like if he were real and Exy were a real sport I would make posters (as in tape A4 pages together and write with my awful writing) and sit on the couch and watch every match. Because you know, he would see my posters. I just love him so much. ‘“I'm fine”, Neill lied,' is the funniest and saddest thing ever because you get to know what type of character he is quite early on (or at least I know) – so I'm always just about shrieking at the book that he's not.

Andrew is also another character whom I love so very much. I know some people might say ‘but he does drugs and is not really a great person' and like a) basically all the characters make bad decisions and aren't entirely good (except for Renee, she's an angel) and b) there are valid reasons for him doing drugs. Andrew goes through a lot of character development and we love to see it! And he's in therapy and does make an effort to better himself!

Coach Wymack is actually a character I recently started to come to love (thanks to Tumblr, lol). I saw a lot of discussion on Tumblr and then for myself when I re-read the series. He needs a lot more credit than what (I think) we originally give him. There would be a lot of others who would try to manage the team and not last the first month. And for that I think Wymack should get a huge raise.

I felt Wymack's frustration when he specifically told the team to act nice on tv and Neil basically throws everything to the wind by majorly insulting one of the top Exy players. Iconic lines, though. Just some more truly iconic Neil quotes.

Another reason why I like to say this reads like fanfiction – the plot. It's a bit wild, but then again, so are a lot of popular movies. Like any royal rom-com – does no one recognize the royal person? Does the town not have newspapers? But I love the plot of the series – where it starts, where it ends up, the journey the series takes the reader on.

And also, sometimes the more ‘outlandish plots' are super fun. Like not all book series you read have to be serious and thought-provoking (but also nothing's wrong with you if you do just like serious books). I, for one, love to read ‘cringey' books.

This is the story about a scared boy on the run from his fearsome and terrible past. This is a story about doing everything you can to be able to hold onto your dream. Of stopping to run and starting to fight. Of devotion and endurance. This is a story about broken things that aren't broken. This is a story about slowly building, fragile friendships in places where you least expected to find them. About raising above your circumstances and risking everything for a little bit of happiness.

This is the story about Neil Josten and at the same time it's not.

We never learn his real name in the first book of an amazin trilogy. Neil is a very private person, guarding every little detail that could give away his true identity. Coloured hair, contact lenses. He is doing everything he can to let his past life remain as far away as possible.

Until one night.

The one thing he couldn't keep away from is the stone that sets everything in motion. Exy - a cross between Hockey and Lacrosse - is the one love Neil can't leave and the only reason why he goes against his better judgement. The coach of the Palmetto State University Foxe, a team of teenagers with more than enough problems to lasst two lifetimes, shows up one evening and asks Neil to join his Exy team. The coach didn't come alone though and the person he brought with him almost stopps Neil's heart and ends the story before it really started, because it's someone Neil didn't ever want to see again. But, as luck goes combined with many past years and a changed appearance Neil's faked persona isn't exposed. Torn between all consuming fear and a small shimmer of hope and the wish the play more Exy Neil makes a decision that'll turn his life upside down.

This book was breathtakingly amazing and I devoured it in one go. I have to add that I'm not a person for storys that have a strong focus on sports, but even so I enjoyed it in this one and I always love it when an author manages to make me like something I normally don't.

The Foxhole Court was available as a free read on Amazon and I'm eternally grateful for that because I probably wouldn't have read it otherwise and missed out on one of the best books I've ever read. I'd pretty much give anything to be able to have a hard copy of this awesomeness. Alas, as it often goes with things you want badly this story only exists as an ebook.

The characters all have their fair share of scares and only add to the dark theme of the story. That shouldn't keep you from reading this story though. The character development you can witness throughout the three books as well as the slowly blossoming and growing friendships between the characters, their strive and struggles for getting and keeping what they desire is worth every minute where you're not sure if there is a light waiting at the end of the tunnel.