Tag: sports romance

Book Review: Only When It’s Us (Bergman Brothers #1) by Chloe Liese

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Audience: Contemporary Sports Romance
Length: 382 pages
Author: Chloe Liese
Publisher: Self-published
Release Date: April 1st, 2020
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Prepare for an emotional rollercoaster brimming with laughter, tears, and slow-burn sexiness in this new adult romance that tackles the vulnerability of love with humor and heart.

Ryder

Ever since she sat next to me in class and gave me death eyes, Willa Sutter’s been on my shit list. Why she hates me, I don’t know. What I do know is that Willa is the kind of chaos I don’t need in my tidy life. She’s the next generation of women’s soccer. Wild hair, wilder eyes. Bee-stung lips that should be illegal. And a temper that makes the devil seem friendly.

She’s a thorn in my side, a menacing, cantankerous, pain-in-the-ass who’s turned our Business Mathematics course into a goddamn gladiator arena. I’ll leave this war zone unscathed, coming out on top…And if I have my way with that crazy-haired, ball-busting hellion, that will be in more than one sense of the word. 

Willa

Rather than give me the lecture notes I missed like every other instructor I’ve had, my asshole professor tells me to get them from the silent, surly flannel-wearing mountain man sitting next to me in class. Well, I tried. And what did I get from Ryder Bergman? Ignored. What a complete lumbersexual neanderthal. Mangy beard and mangier hair. Frayed ball cap that hides his eyes. And a stubborn refusal to acknowledge my existence.

I’ve battled men before, but with Ryder, it’s war. I’ll get those notes and crack that Sasquatch nut if it’s the last thing I do, then I’ll have him at my mercy. Victory will have never tasted so sweet.

Only When It’s Us is a frenemies-to-lovers, college sports romance about a women’s soccer star and her surly lumberjack lookalike classmate, complete with a matchmaking professor, juvenile pranks, and a smoking slow burn. This standalone is the first in a series of new novels about a Swedish-American family of five brothers, two sisters, and their wild adventures as they each find happily ever after.

FOUND A NEW SERIES.

I have sat on this series since the first book came out last year. I was worried the spice was going to be too much for me. And it was at the end (and I’m talking 90%) where I could easily skip past. But it was also less than I was thinking, So if that’s a possible hang up for you, I’ll mention as well that this story was FANTASTIC and definitely worth the read.

Ryder and Willa were the definition of frenemies. Forced to work together in a college class where the game became teasing/pranking each other until they couldn’t keep their hands off of each other. I loved it. The banter and chemistry. The heated glances and moments caught under a waterfall. All amazing stuff.

There were a lot of deeper conversations about disability, coping with loss, grief, depression and more. It’s heavily character driven plot (my fav) and brought about many heart-filled moments where I wanted to yell at the characters, and also hug them fiercely. This will bring out plenty of emotions.

And I loved that Willa was the soccer star! It was different from the majority of sports romances and I am here for it. I really enjoyed this writing style and how involved I became in Willa and Ryder’s lives. I’m happy I picked this one up and have already grabbed book two.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary sports romance
  • Language: some strong
  • Romance: kisses to very open door scenes
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of a parent, cancer, depictions of grief and severe depression

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Book Review: In the Penalty Box by Lynn Rush and Kelly Anne Blount

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Rating: ☆☆☆
Audience: YA Contemporary romance
Length: 364 pages
Author: Lynn Rush & Kelly Anne Blount
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Release Date: January 5th, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

The Cutting Edge meets Friday Night Lights in a sizzling new hockey romance from bestselling authors Kelly Anne Blount and Lynn Rush.

Willow
Figure skating was supposed to be my whole world. But one unlucky injury and now I’m down…but I’m definitely not out. I just need to rehab—a boatload of rehab—and who’d have thought I could do it on the boys’ hockey team?

Of course, the infuriatingly hot captain of the team seems to think I’m nothing but sequins and twirls. What’s a girl to do but put him in his place? Game on.

Brodie
Hockey is my whole world. I’ve worked my tail off getting my team in a position to win the championships—hopefully in front of major college scouts, too—so what’s a guy to do when a figure skater ends up as our new goalie?

Of course, the distractingly sexy skater thinks I’m nothing but a testosterone-laced competitive streak. And surely she’s only biding her time to heal, then she’s gone. Game over.

ALERT: RAGING TEEN HORMONES

That’s about the only major thought that kept going through my head. This was a book that couldn’t decide what age group it actually wanted to be apart of. The dialogue, conversations, and inner monologues swayed from young YA and towards NA (new adult). It was weird. Really weird.

What I did like was the hockey story. I love a good sports novel and I LOVE that Willow got be the goalie for the boy’s team. That was awesome and really neat to see. I liked reading about the games and wondering who was going to win.

I also did enjoy Willow’s character progression. Ridiculous thoughts about Brodie aside, she made some great strides in figuring out what was best for her. I think she made the best decisions with the information she could and picked what she truly felt was going to make her happy in the long run.

The wild drama all over the place took me out of the story. I don’t mind a bit of drama, but sometimes it hits a line. This one rolled way past that point. Everything felt amped to try and create an emotional side, and I didn’t feel much of that. I wish I could have felt drawn to some of the inner story more, but it’s fine. This was a quick YA romance that had some good, some bad.

Overall audience notes:

  • Young adult sports romance
  • Language: some
  • Romance: kisses/make-outs
  • Violence: physical altercations
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: difficult sports injuries, sexism, misogyny, loss of a parent through car wreck, parent abandonment, parent incarceration, alcoholism

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Book Review: From Lukov With Love by Mariana Zapata

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Rating: ★★★★☆ (4.5)
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 538 pages
Author: Mariana Zapata
Publisher: Self published
Release Date: February 1st, 2018
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

If someone were to ask Jasmine Santos to describe the last few years of her life with a single word, it would definitely be a four-letter one.

After seventeen years—and countless broken bones and broken promises—she knows her window to compete in figure skating is coming to a close.

But when the offer of a lifetime comes in from an arrogant idiot she’s spent the last decade dreaming about pushing in the way of a moving bus, Jasmine might have to reconsider everything.

Including Ivan Lukov.

BRB SWOONING.

AHHH.

Every dang time Ivan Lukov started talking to Jasmine you bet I was SWOONING. Holy cow that man can give a loving speech. He can hype me up any day. I loved him. I loved his support and sweet and small ways he cared for Jasmine. Building up that friendship and partnership into something more. My heart can’t handle that many skips in one book!

In typical MZ fashion there’s a long wait for the pay-off with this one. Dare I say a bit too long? At least for me the first 100-200 pages were a bit slower than usual. There was a loooot of hatred and disgruntlement that were the crux of Jasmine’s life. And at last, once she started taking small steps back towards her ultimate goals things started to open up.

Wow do I love a sports romance and this was no different. I love that this was about figure skating!! I felt like I learned a lot about the sport and it was the perfect counter balance against the romance. One didn’t outshine the other. Another wonderful MZ read. I’m slowly working through her books and now that this has been my fifth, I’m still in awe at how addicting these stories are.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Romance
  • Language: very strong and often
  • Romance: one open door
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: fatmisia and body shaming, misogyny, sexual harassment, stalking, bullying

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Book Review: Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Audience: YA Contemporary + Romance
Length: 350 pages
Author: Yamile Saied Méndez
Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers
Release Date: September 15th, 2020
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

An #ownvoices contemporary YA set in Argentina, about a rising soccer star who must put everything on the line—even her blooming love story—to follow her dreams.

In Rosario, Argentina, Camila Hassan lives a double life.

At home, she is a careful daughter, living within her mother’s narrow expectations, in her rising-soccer-star brother’s shadow, and under the abusive rule of her short-tempered father.

On the field, she is La Furia, a powerhouse of skill and talent. When her team qualifies for the South American tournament, Camila gets the chance to see just how far those talents can take her. In her wildest dreams, she’d get an athletic scholarship to a North American university.

But the path ahead isn’t easy. Her parents don’t know about her passion. They wouldn’t allow a girl to play fútbol—and she needs their permission to go any farther. And the boy she once loved is back in town. Since he left, Diego has become an international star, playing in Italy for the renowned team Juventus. Camila doesn’t have time to be distracted by her feelings for him. Things aren’t the same as when he left: she has her own passions and ambitions now, and La Furia cannot be denied. As her life becomes more complicated, Camila is forced to face her secrets and make her way in a world with no place for the dreams and ambition of a girl like her. 

AMAZING.

Wow did this book hit me. It was amazing. I love a great sports book and this ranks up there.

Furia covered so many topics. Camila is immersed in a world where she isn’t as valued as she should be. Wanting to play soccer, fall in love, and escape from her situation. She was incredibly strong and I love her passionate nature. Camila had resiliency that brought me to tears and I felt like this book taught me a lot too.

Getting into a deep dive of Argentina and the way that soccer is tied to many lives and the issues that continually plague the country was intense. Reading about missing and murdered girls and domestic abuse were tough subjects to cross but I love how Méndez approached it all. And I love how Camila and her mother were able to lean on each other. When Camila brought up breaking the [domestic abuse] cycle it was powerful.

The little romance was so sweet. A bit of second chance + childhood friends. I wish the ending didn’t feel so rushed with the romance and everything else that had happened. I wanted a little more epilogue-ish rundown of how Camila’s family was doing, etc. I do love that Camila’s love of soccer and wanting to continue to play was clearly the forfront of the story. Besides the hurried ending I did love where Camila ended up.

A book that will easily resonate with many. I can’t recommend this enough. The audio was great too if you’re interested in reading it in that format!

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Contemporary + Romance
  • Language: some
  • Romance: kisses/make-outs
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: domestic abuse (physical, verbal & emotional), teen pregnancy, mentions of kidnappings and murder of young girls

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