Publisher's Weekly Review
In this kicky sapphic soccer romance from Wilsner (Mistakes Were Made), rookie Phoebe Matthews joins the U.S. women's national team in New Orleans to fill in for injured veteran Grace Henderson, and sparks fly as the women challenge each other both on and off the pitch. As the team prepares for the World Cup, brash Phoebe and laconic Grace enter into a teammates with benefits affair. But with the game of their lives approaching, the differences in Phoebe's and Grace's personalities become impossible to ignore. They must work through a series of misunderstandings if they want to get to the World Cup with their team--and their hearts--intact. For the high heat level, the romance is surprisingly wholesome, and the grumpy/sunshine dynamic between the leads is good fun. The characters' wordy internal monologues occasionally get in the way of narratively satisfying developments, but the undeniable chemistry between the heroines does an enormous amount of heavy lifting once the story gets moving. Wilsner makes this sports romance a winner. Agent: Patrice Caldwell, New Leaf Literary. (Sept.)
Kirkus Review
Attraction sizzles between lesbian soccer players with vastly different personalities. Twenty-two-year-old Phoebe Matthews is leaving Indiana for Louisiana because she's been drafted into the American Women's Soccer Association to play for the New Orleans Krewe. Not only is this a dream come true, but it also means she gets to play alongside her idol, Grace Henderson, four years her senior and captain of the team. Grace has been playing professionally since she was a teenager and has worked to keep her personal life, including her sexuality, private. She's initially irked by the habitually late, constantly peppy newcomer, but Phoebe's charm and flirtation soon win prickly Grace over, even as Grace sullenly deals with an injury. A friends-with-benefits situation emerges since they both want to focus more on soccer than on a relationship, but they come to realize they want to be together both on and off the field. Wilsner follows up Mistakes Were Made (2022) with another stand-alone, delightfully steamy Sapphic romance, this time with an enticing sports angle. The opposite temperaments of the captivating couple make for amusing interactions and banter, although sometimes the narrative favors repetition over added depth. Exploration of neurodivergent identities adds more specificity to the leads, but this doesn't come until near the end of the story, leaving it underbaked. Class differences are deftly handled throughout, the city setting is vibrant, and there are several secondary characters who shine; most importantly, the romantic journey at the center is fun and entertaining. An enjoyably sporty queer romance. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Author of several popular LGBTQI+ romances, Wilsner breaks new ground with a sporty twist on the meet-cute trope. Vibrant redhead Phoebe Matthews is thrilled to be playing soccer at the professional level with her idol (and secret crush) Grace Henderson. Recruited straight out of a small-town college in Indiana, Phoebe is ready to make new friends, but some find her gregariousness a bit much. Taciturn Grace has been famous in the sport since she was a teenager but detests being in the spotlight, so when Phoebe, with her boundless new-kid energy, insists on training with her, Grace is on guard, ready to defend herself from betrayal and another broken heart. Phoebe is phenomenal on the field, and she's quite adept at flirting, too, which loosens Grace up as she shows Phoebe around her new adopted city, New Orleans. Fans of the popular Apple TV show Ted Lasso and the classic sporty romance film Bend It like Beckham will cheer for this sexy sapphic rom-com that fills a gap in the heretofore male-dominated sportsromance genre.
Library Journal Review
The New Orleans Krewe's star player, Grace Henderson, is the soccer team's veteran at just 26-years-old. She's beginning to feel her age too, but she's ignoring the twinge in her hip because she's afraid of being sidelined and replaced. At 22, Phoebe Matthews is a team newbie. It's her first season, and she couldn't be more excited to play alongside her hero, Grace. When solitary, taciturn, serious Grace meets lively, gregarious, spirited Phoebe, the sparks fly on the field and off. Neither wants a relationship--or so they think--but "friends with benefits" sounds just fine. Until they start developing feelings, and the stakes are higher than ever as they are called up to the U.S. Women's National Team and have to prepare for the World Cup. Both Phoebe and Grace are undiagnosed, untreated neurodivergent characters, and the strengths and weaknesses of their ADHD (Phoebe) and Autistic (Grace) brains are treated as matter-of-factly as their queerness. The sex scenes are fan-your-face hot, and the emotional confusion and wariness ring true. VERDICT This steamy opposites-attract romance from Wilsner (Mistakes Were Made) is recommended for all collections.--Heather Miller Cover
