ENTRADA BOOK REVIEWS

The Real Ones

By J Rose Black

Pages: 212 ASIN:‎ B0GGZCJSYB Publisher: Black Label Press Date Reviewed: February 20, 2026 Release Date: February 12, 2026     Available at:

The Real Ones by J Rose Black is a fun and flirty new adult, second-chance romance following the relationship of Brielle and Maddox. Brielle and Maddox are both athletes for the Texas State Tech University Strikers, who were once close friends, but have since stopped speaking to each other. Now, on Valentine’s Day, they come face to face at a charity flag football game, and things are explosive.

Black has a unique way of writing in the present and past, and with internal dialogue that reveals how Brielle and Maddox are feeling and what sparked their demise. What is clear is that there are still some big, unresolved feelings between them, and once they finally allow themselves to be heard by each other, they are once again drawn together with a magnetic pull.

Maddox is a complex person, a former Marine who is now playing college football and due to his friendship with Brielle, faces retaliation and hazing at the hands of some of his teammates and worst of all, his coach. Maddox is forced to make choices to protect Brielle, but he doesn’t explain things, and she assumes the worst.

Brielle is an All-American Softball star and recently got out of a very toxic relationship with Drakes, a teammate of Maddox. She struggles with her feelings for Maddox, but luckily, she has some great friends who give her the push she needs to hear him out.

“I want to know what it’s like to kiss you.” I don’t know what came over me but there was just something about him, his quiet confidence. The proud way his shoulders squared when he spoke of his time in the Marines—not that he said much. Heat hovered in the air, and I was positive I was as red as his potted sweetshrubs. Those grey-blue eyes turned to look at me, and I became aware of every muscle in my body—as I fought to keep still. His brow pinched into a small frown. “Depends.”… “On what?” His eyes narrowed and he moved closer. The heat from my chest hit my veins. It sparked and popped like it could catch fire. Like I could. “Do I get to kiss you back?”

Black writes the emotional and physical components of Maddox and Brielle’s story well and keeps things spicy and full of banter. With a large cast of characters, this series will have plenty to follow.

“I want to know what it’s like to kiss you.”