A teenage boy, who is a positive leader with a conscience, and strong ethics . . . ah, science fiction . . . maybe fantasy? No . . . Fresh Start is spine-tingling sports action, battles against powerful rivals, a few tugs at the heartstrings, some tears and laughter, teenage angst, and a surprise finish. In Fresh Start , you follow high school freshman Rob Mathews as he sorts through moving to a new town, losing his father to cancer, a dramatic football season, an abusive coach, and teenage society at school. Watch him as he dazzles and splats on the field, faces new foes, and fumbles with the girls. Impressed by another newcomer who becomes his role model, Rob exudes leadership, learns about friendship and relationships, and receives help from the dorky girl next door. Rob is a newcomer to Hillsdale, the hometown of his mother, Emily, and the first order of business is adjusting to his father's death and being "the new kid in town.” He is helped by many new friends on his football team and Allison Pierce, the dorky girl next door. Another newcomer, head football coach Dave Wilson arrives on the scene, and they both battle to fit in and gain respect from their peers while gaining confidence and stature both on and off the field. Rob is tested on different fronts; a surly freshman football coach bent on breaking him down, the powerful Danielson brothers, who play for Hillsdale's arch-rival, and the intricacies of teenage society. Pine Bluff is Hillsdale’s fierce rival and the big football game to close the season consumes the towns, the teams, and the players. While the bitter rivalry dates back nearly 100 years, the “Pick,” a gold-plated miners’ pick on a granite base, has existed for over 50 years. The “Pick” resides in the victor’s trophy case for a year . . . but with Pine Bluff set to merge with another school, there are two years left to decide who will keep it forever. Hillsdale needs to win one of two to clinch the trophy . . . but have lost to Pine Bluff 13 consecutive years. Will this be the year they break the streak? ABOUT THE SERIES . . . Fresh Start is the first in a completed series of twelve books by Mac McGowan. Written with a light narrative hand, riveting sports action, and a sprinkling of humor, the stories flow along briskly. The series follows Rob chronologically through his high school career, in either a football, basketball, or baseball season. Rob will face bitter rivals in all three sports and questions of morals, ethics, integrity, and social interaction, on and off the field of play. Through Rob, his mother, the girl-next-door, his best friend, a special girlfriend, and his two mentor coaches, the reader will learn life lessons along with Rob. The series matures as Rob does, slowly working his way toward adulthood as the conflicts go from bullies to bad coaches to girl problems and work their way up to relationships, where to go to college, and how to look at long-term life goals. It takes a while, but we watch as Rob goes from caring only about what a girl looks like to a guy who understands what’s inside that matters. But make no mistake . . . action-packed sports are at the heart of all 12 books. The series offers an excellent opportunity for readers to enjoy thrilling wins and losses against bitter rivals on the field or court . . . and experience the joy and heartbreak of teenage romance, learn life lessons, make better choices, learn a little coaching philosophy, and become better people. More importantly, it offers an enjoyable, easy, fun, thrilling, and satisfying read. "The story is near perfect in its development and dialogue." The Book Review Directory "The books were really good, no criticisms at all! It has lots of good sports action and is well-written. Liked the way he built the characters, felt like real people. Each part introduced new characters and new ideas - long but not boring. The scenes that involved the games were very suspenseful." 12-Year-OLD ARC reader "Fresh Start is a book possessing a lot of heart. Rob Mathews is a character with depth, who the reader will find common ground with and root for on and off the field. This is an enjoyable read from start to finish." The Book Review Directory