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Striking Heat
Finally! I’ve been called up to play professional soccer.
The Tampa Bay Blaze is a newly created National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) team. And in a bold move the new owner not only drafted me, but also made me captain.
The trouble is the city of Tampa is not thrilled to have a second NWSL team in Florida. Especially one with a bunch of players that no one has ever heard of.
But I’m determined to make it work and wow the city.
My boldness catches the attention of Tampa Bay Times sports reporter, Danny Taylor, who challenges me from the start. Causing some sparks to fly in the Press Room.
Which leads to him covering me. The more time we spend together, the more heat that grows between us.
But a flame like ours has to be hidden. Doesn’t it?
The Tampa Bay Blaze is a newly created National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) team. And in a bold move the new owner not only drafted me, but also made me captain.
The trouble is the city of Tampa is not thrilled to have a second NWSL team in Florida. Especially one with a bunch of players that no one has ever heard of.
But I’m determined to make it work and wow the city.
My boldness catches the attention of Tampa Bay Times sports reporter, Danny Taylor, who challenges me from the start. Causing some sparks to fly in the Press Room.
Which leads to him covering me. The more time we spend together, the more heat that grows between us.
But a flame like ours has to be hidden. Doesn’t it?
330 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 13, 2025
5 people are currently reading
23 people want to read
About the author
J.L. Stray
16 books91 followersJL Stray has always enjoyed reading books and writing stories. Finally, she gathered up enough courage to publish one herself. A former Policy Specialist and current Consultant, she spends any extra moment she has writing, outlining and scheming her next book.
Raised in a small town in Pennsylvania, she graduated from Penn State University with a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice and Public Policy. Most days she uses one of those degrees in either her career or dealing with her children.
J.L. lives in that same small town, with her three very active children, who always have her at a diamond, field or court. She is a lover of books, shoes, beaches, and a strong drink.
Raised in a small town in Pennsylvania, she graduated from Penn State University with a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice and Public Policy. Most days she uses one of those degrees in either her career or dealing with her children.
J.L. lives in that same small town, with her three very active children, who always have her at a diamond, field or court. She is a lover of books, shoes, beaches, and a strong drink.
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
July 18, 2025
I grabbed this ARC copy from Hambright PR (thanks folks) for the point of difference here that this features a professional female soccer player. Usually books centre on the guys but this one flips the tropes to include a love interest who is a journalist, writing a story about the team - the Tampa Blaze.
I enjoyed the banter between the FMC Mac and the MMC Danny, who start off on the wrong foot when they meet. When their tension turned into something else I was there for it, and it was a relatively low angst feel-good story.
Danny is a supportive and encouraging MMC even though he initially gave the impression he was a bit of a tough guy, smart alec. There’s a dimension featuring his father that was a little underdeveloped and I thought more could have been made of it. At times Mac is a bit juvenile and a bit stand offish with her team mates. I’ll be interested to see if these relationships play out in any ways in future books, given this is the first in the series.
I enjoyed this one very much for the point of difference and liked some of the character backstories for some of the people on this couple’s periphery.
I enjoyed the banter between the FMC Mac and the MMC Danny, who start off on the wrong foot when they meet. When their tension turned into something else I was there for it, and it was a relatively low angst feel-good story.
Danny is a supportive and encouraging MMC even though he initially gave the impression he was a bit of a tough guy, smart alec. There’s a dimension featuring his father that was a little underdeveloped and I thought more could have been made of it. At times Mac is a bit juvenile and a bit stand offish with her team mates. I’ll be interested to see if these relationships play out in any ways in future books, given this is the first in the series.
I enjoyed this one very much for the point of difference and liked some of the character backstories for some of the people on this couple’s periphery.
September 17, 2025
DNF 50%
I think it's just not for me. I loved the concept of a female being a pro athlete and love sports romance. I enjoyed the very beginning, but then it was more insta than I enjoy and things went downhill pretty quickly. I tried setting it aside and coming back to it, but that didn't help.
The writing style didn't work great for me, but I think I could've gotten past that if the rest had worked for me. It was not written badly, just in a way that I didn't enjoy.
I wasn't able to connect with the characters, and as a character focused reader I struggled to get past this.
The 🌶️ didn't work for me. The FMC instantly coming, repeatedly, bugged me. I think it could set an unrealistic standard up for readers.
There may be a payoff in the end, but I didn't get there.
Thank you to Hambright PR and JL Stray for the opportunity to read this eARC. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own and freely given.
I think it's just not for me. I loved the concept of a female being a pro athlete and love sports romance. I enjoyed the very beginning, but then it was more insta than I enjoy and things went downhill pretty quickly. I tried setting it aside and coming back to it, but that didn't help.
The writing style didn't work great for me, but I think I could've gotten past that if the rest had worked for me. It was not written badly, just in a way that I didn't enjoy.
I wasn't able to connect with the characters, and as a character focused reader I struggled to get past this.
The 🌶️ didn't work for me. The FMC instantly coming, repeatedly, bugged me. I think it could set an unrealistic standard up for readers.
There may be a payoff in the end, but I didn't get there.
Thank you to Hambright PR and JL Stray for the opportunity to read this eARC. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own and freely given.
July 20, 2025
Mackenzie Dixon, captain of a brand new NWSL team in Tampa Bay, meets journalist Danny Taylor in the pressroom, and the verbal sparring immediately starts. When Danny's less-than-supportive article is released on Mac, her sass comes out in full force. But then she's asked to allow Danny to follow her closely to write another piece on her. Que the suspense music, this is when the fun begins! The banter was so much to read, and I was giggling so hard at these two. If you're looking for a spicy sports romance where the FMC is the athlete, add this to your TBR now!
𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁:
💛 Soccer Player/Journalist
🩵 Enemies to Lovers
💛 Slow Burn
🩵 Forced Proximity
💛 He Falls First
🩵 Playful Banter
𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁:
💛 Soccer Player/Journalist
🩵 Enemies to Lovers
💛 Slow Burn
🩵 Forced Proximity
💛 He Falls First
🩵 Playful Banter
July 21, 2025
What started as Enemies from day one in the press room, turned into much more. Right from the beginning I already love the verbal sparring between Danny and Mac! In between their banter tension forms and Mac is very hyper aware of Danny when he is in the same room as her. They have a strong connection.
I also loved the strong female Maine character, Mac and how this story focused on women in sports! This book followed the Tampa Bay Blaze a newly formed (NWSL) Nation Woman's Soccer League in Florida. This story was a breath of fresh air and I couldn't put it down!
The Strawberry 🍓 Ice cream 🍦 scene was my favorite. Holy Hotness. 🥵
Read if you Love:
-⚽Sports Romance
-🔥Female Athlete
-⚽ Forbidden Romance
-🔥English Alpha
-⚽Age Gap
-🔥Friends to Lovers
-⚽Open Door Spice
I also loved the strong female Maine character, Mac and how this story focused on women in sports! This book followed the Tampa Bay Blaze a newly formed (NWSL) Nation Woman's Soccer League in Florida. This story was a breath of fresh air and I couldn't put it down!
The Strawberry 🍓 Ice cream 🍦 scene was my favorite. Holy Hotness. 🥵
Read if you Love:
-⚽Sports Romance
-🔥Female Athlete
-⚽ Forbidden Romance
-🔥English Alpha
-⚽Age Gap
-🔥Friends to Lovers
-⚽Open Door Spice
July 25, 2025
I loved this book because it has to do with soccer and I used to love it when I was younger. The fact that the captain is a Female in NWSL. I loved the FMC Mac and MMC Danny so much. This was a good book, I’m excited for what is next to come.
Stars:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice:🌶️🌶️🌶️
Stars:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice:🌶️🌶️🌶️
July 15, 2025
2.5⭐️
I really liked the role reversal with our FMC being the professional athlete and our MMC being the reporter. But, overall, I found it difficult to connect with these characters, and their relationship was mostly just physical. There were some sweet moments that I hoped were going to lead to some more depth, but this just fell a little flat for me.
If you are looking for a quick read with some spice, this might be for you.
I really liked the role reversal with our FMC being the professional athlete and our MMC being the reporter. But, overall, I found it difficult to connect with these characters, and their relationship was mostly just physical. There were some sweet moments that I hoped were going to lead to some more depth, but this just fell a little flat for me.
If you are looking for a quick read with some spice, this might be for you.
September 9, 2025
This book had great concepts but I didn’t love actually reading it. The characters were not the most likeable to me and I just didn’t connect with the writing. Definitely worth a try if you like sports romance, lots of others seem to enjoy it a bunch!!
July 22, 2025
Format: 📱eBook 📱 (ARC - review tour copy)
This was a tough one for me to rate. Don't think that the star rating I've allocated to it is bad - to me, 3 stars still shows it was a good story. I just feel there are areas that didn't quite capture or thrill me where there could have been, but the overall story was fun to read, and afforded me the escape I look for when I turn to reading. I took some time between finishing this book and writing the review to try and get my thoughts in line, and write a review that I am happy with. Also, I']m sick as all hell, so putting together coherent sentences is tricky 😅
What makes this story a standout is that we're focusing on the female sport league. It's hard to find a sport romance where she's the star athlete, but I'm already giving huge points to Stray for making the focus on a women's soccer team in the US. I'm a soccer fan, too. Blame it on my English roots 😂
I loved the plot. The enemies to lovers aspect was great, and I always love a good secret romance relationship - especially if you throw in the forbidden element. I also really enjoyed the found family with Mac's team, and even with Danny's co-workers, to a certain extent (can't say more, spoilers).
My only real comment I think is that I don't think this author's writing style is particularly right for me. The plot was there, just something about getting through to the plot points wasn't quite there for me. I also found it hard to connect to the characters in some places, but could this be due to the writing style?
One thing is for sure, Stray knows how to write a forbidden relationship between a soccer player and a reporter well, and I love how she wrote the characters dealing with the eventual fallout. There's a bit of spice, a bit of romance, and a lot of sport in this one, so it's a very well rounded book overall.
I'm curious about the other books in the series, especially with the teasing of the next book's MCs.
Thank you to the author and Hambright PR for the eARC opportunity. These are my honest thoughts that I have provided voluntarily.
This was a tough one for me to rate. Don't think that the star rating I've allocated to it is bad - to me, 3 stars still shows it was a good story. I just feel there are areas that didn't quite capture or thrill me where there could have been, but the overall story was fun to read, and afforded me the escape I look for when I turn to reading. I took some time between finishing this book and writing the review to try and get my thoughts in line, and write a review that I am happy with. Also, I']m sick as all hell, so putting together coherent sentences is tricky 😅
What makes this story a standout is that we're focusing on the female sport league. It's hard to find a sport romance where she's the star athlete, but I'm already giving huge points to Stray for making the focus on a women's soccer team in the US. I'm a soccer fan, too. Blame it on my English roots 😂
I loved the plot. The enemies to lovers aspect was great, and I always love a good secret romance relationship - especially if you throw in the forbidden element. I also really enjoyed the found family with Mac's team, and even with Danny's co-workers, to a certain extent (can't say more, spoilers).
My only real comment I think is that I don't think this author's writing style is particularly right for me. The plot was there, just something about getting through to the plot points wasn't quite there for me. I also found it hard to connect to the characters in some places, but could this be due to the writing style?
One thing is for sure, Stray knows how to write a forbidden relationship between a soccer player and a reporter well, and I love how she wrote the characters dealing with the eventual fallout. There's a bit of spice, a bit of romance, and a lot of sport in this one, so it's a very well rounded book overall.
I'm curious about the other books in the series, especially with the teasing of the next book's MCs.
Thank you to the author and Hambright PR for the eARC opportunity. These are my honest thoughts that I have provided voluntarily.
July 23, 2025
Striking Heat was such a fun surprise. I love a typical sports romance, but this one stood out by flipping the usual script and having the female lead as the pro athlete. Mac is determined, stubborn, and passionate- exactly the kind of professional athlete that makes you want to buy their jersey.
Her chemistry with Danny, the no-nonsense reporter, is fantastic. They clash hard in the beginning, and the tension between them makes their slow-burn into something more feel so lovely. The enemies-to-lovers dynamic is well done, with snappy banter and just enough bite to keep things interesting. The secret romance element is basically catnip for anyone who loves a little forbidden tension.
I really appreciated how the story focused on a women’s sports team without turning it into a side note. The team dynamics, the media pressure, and Mac’s internal battle to prove herself all felt authentic. There were a few areas where I wished the character development went a little deeper, especially around the side characters and Danny’s backstory, but nothing that pulled me out of the story.
The pacing was good and the spice was well-placed. It’s a story about ambition, vulnerability, and two people figuring out how to be on the same team in more ways than one. Definitely worth picking up if you're craving a romance that brings heat both on and off the field.
Her chemistry with Danny, the no-nonsense reporter, is fantastic. They clash hard in the beginning, and the tension between them makes their slow-burn into something more feel so lovely. The enemies-to-lovers dynamic is well done, with snappy banter and just enough bite to keep things interesting. The secret romance element is basically catnip for anyone who loves a little forbidden tension.
I really appreciated how the story focused on a women’s sports team without turning it into a side note. The team dynamics, the media pressure, and Mac’s internal battle to prove herself all felt authentic. There were a few areas where I wished the character development went a little deeper, especially around the side characters and Danny’s backstory, but nothing that pulled me out of the story.
The pacing was good and the spice was well-placed. It’s a story about ambition, vulnerability, and two people figuring out how to be on the same team in more ways than one. Definitely worth picking up if you're craving a romance that brings heat both on and off the field.
August 10, 2025
Striking Heat is the kind of sports romance that makes you want to grab your jersey, lace up your cleats, and fall headfirst into the drama both on and off the field. From the very first whistle, Mac is the kind of heroine you root for — bold, unapologetic, and unwilling to let anyone, especially a sharp-tongued reporter, undermine her fire. Danny? Let’s just say if journalistic integrity came with a smirk and a heart of gold, he’d be the poster boy.
The chemistry here isn’t just sparks — it’s a full-on stadium light show. Every moment of banter feels like a volley you never want to end, and the build from playful antagonists to undeniable partners is pure catnip for romance readers. The stakes feel real, the soccer scenes are vivid, and the emotional beats hit just as hard as the goals.
J.L. Stray doesn’t just write romance — she writes momentum. Striking Heat isn’t a story you read at a leisurely pace; it’s one you inhale, racing toward the final page, heart pounding, grinning like you just witnessed the perfect overtime win. And when you’re done? You’ll already be counting down to the next match in this series.
The chemistry here isn’t just sparks — it’s a full-on stadium light show. Every moment of banter feels like a volley you never want to end, and the build from playful antagonists to undeniable partners is pure catnip for romance readers. The stakes feel real, the soccer scenes are vivid, and the emotional beats hit just as hard as the goals.
J.L. Stray doesn’t just write romance — she writes momentum. Striking Heat isn’t a story you read at a leisurely pace; it’s one you inhale, racing toward the final page, heart pounding, grinning like you just witnessed the perfect overtime win. And when you’re done? You’ll already be counting down to the next match in this series.
July 22, 2025
This is my first soccer romance, and I loved it!
Mac is a sassy, strong, and doesn't take sh*t from anyone captain. I love her attitude and that she's also not afraid to cry. When a sexy reporter makes a dig at her name and game, she has no issues firing back at him.
Danny is a sexy reporter living in his father's shadows, trying to do something for himself. Winning a lawsuit from a botched surgery, he doesn't need money but still wants to do something that he enjoys, and I respect that.
Danny writes an article about Mac, and it's not great. Mac hates him, but as fate would have it, they have to work together for a second article paid for by the teams owner.
This puts them in forced proximity, and enemies turn to lovers real fast 🔥🔥 This forbidden romance has these two sneaking around, and the tension and spice are amazing!
thank you hambright and jl stray for this gifted copy.
Mac is a sassy, strong, and doesn't take sh*t from anyone captain. I love her attitude and that she's also not afraid to cry. When a sexy reporter makes a dig at her name and game, she has no issues firing back at him.
Danny is a sexy reporter living in his father's shadows, trying to do something for himself. Winning a lawsuit from a botched surgery, he doesn't need money but still wants to do something that he enjoys, and I respect that.
Danny writes an article about Mac, and it's not great. Mac hates him, but as fate would have it, they have to work together for a second article paid for by the teams owner.
This puts them in forced proximity, and enemies turn to lovers real fast 🔥🔥 This forbidden romance has these two sneaking around, and the tension and spice are amazing!
thank you hambright and jl stray for this gifted copy.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 13, 2025
Striking Heat is such a well written and cute sports romance. Not only does it hit all the things you’d expect with it being a romance, but it also gives you a look into how hard being on a NWSL (National Woman’s Soccer League) truly is.
MAC is a spitfire with a heart of gold. She knows how to put people in their place but also tries to maintain a certain image. After her first game she sits face to face with Tampa Bay Times sports reporter. The fire within her came to a full blaze. But can she handle the heat?
Danny who is the sports reporter used to be known with swimming. After an injury that wasn’t taken care of properly he resorted to writing. He’s known as the rough reporter who has no sense of warmth. Face to face with a woman whose boldness caught him off guard, he just can’t get enough.
The banter was spot on, the spice was spicing, and the romance/swoon was there! Striking Heat was a super fast read, its writing style was very easy to follow along with, and the character development was great! I can’t wait to see what’s next from J.L. Stray💕
MAC is a spitfire with a heart of gold. She knows how to put people in their place but also tries to maintain a certain image. After her first game she sits face to face with Tampa Bay Times sports reporter. The fire within her came to a full blaze. But can she handle the heat?
Danny who is the sports reporter used to be known with swimming. After an injury that wasn’t taken care of properly he resorted to writing. He’s known as the rough reporter who has no sense of warmth. Face to face with a woman whose boldness caught him off guard, he just can’t get enough.
The banter was spot on, the spice was spicing, and the romance/swoon was there! Striking Heat was a super fast read, its writing style was very easy to follow along with, and the character development was great! I can’t wait to see what’s next from J.L. Stray💕
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 21, 2025
I had to sit on this review for a bit after I finished the book. I have to admit, I wasn't in love when I first started it. I wasn't too sure about the characters or the way they treated each other. Being a big fan of the sport genre in my romance reads, Striking Heat put the FML as the athlete which is a bit of a different approach. I liked this dynamic and the change up in the sport from my usual. I honestly just struggled a bit with the author's writing style. The bones of the story are good with a solid plot, lots of sexy scenes and a relatively true HEA. There are more books coming in this series and I am curious about some of the other characters in the book.
If you're looking for something a bit non-traditional, with the female as the professional athlete, give this one a try. 3 stars. Thanks Hambright PR for the ARC.
If you're looking for something a bit non-traditional, with the female as the professional athlete, give this one a try. 3 stars. Thanks Hambright PR for the ARC.
February 16, 2025
ARC review ⚽️
Striking Heat by J.L. Stray
Tropes:
*Female athlete
*Sports romance
*Enemies-to-lovers
*Possessive alpha
*Verbal sparring (banter)
*Forbidden romance
*Open door spice
After spending the last 15 years surrounded by soccer with my son playing I was excited to read Striking Heat!
I absolutely loved that this was focused on a female athlete! Mackenzie Dixon, captain of a brand new NWSL team in Tampa Bay, meets new journalist Danny Taylor and man do they bump heads! Right off the bat, with his hard hitting question, he sees something instantly in Mac.
I love a good banter. The chemistry is perfect!
What happens when these sparks fly outside of the Pressroom. Will sneaking around work? Or will they come clean and face the media?
4/5 ⭐️
3/5 🌶️
Striking Heat by J.L. Stray
Tropes:
*Female athlete
*Sports romance
*Enemies-to-lovers
*Possessive alpha
*Verbal sparring (banter)
*Forbidden romance
*Open door spice
After spending the last 15 years surrounded by soccer with my son playing I was excited to read Striking Heat!
I absolutely loved that this was focused on a female athlete! Mackenzie Dixon, captain of a brand new NWSL team in Tampa Bay, meets new journalist Danny Taylor and man do they bump heads! Right off the bat, with his hard hitting question, he sees something instantly in Mac.
I love a good banter. The chemistry is perfect!
What happens when these sparks fly outside of the Pressroom. Will sneaking around work? Or will they come clean and face the media?
4/5 ⭐️
3/5 🌶️
July 24, 2025
Another Tampa-based story? Yes, please! As a local, I loved seeing my city on the page. Striking Heat was such a fun surprise and brought something fresh to the sports romance genre.
Mac is the newly named captain of Tampa Bay's new NWSL team, and she is every bit the passionate, determined leader you’d root for. Her tension-filled dynamic with reporter Danny Taylor pulls you in right away. Their chemistry is undeniable, and the slow build between them made every interaction feel charged with energy.
This is a great pick for fans of enemies to lovers, secret romance, and strong female leads. The banter is sharp, the pacing is solid, and the spice was just enough to raise the temperature.
I really enjoyed the characters, the setting, and the emotional payoff. Definitely worth the read.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Mac is the newly named captain of Tampa Bay's new NWSL team, and she is every bit the passionate, determined leader you’d root for. Her tension-filled dynamic with reporter Danny Taylor pulls you in right away. Their chemistry is undeniable, and the slow build between them made every interaction feel charged with energy.
This is a great pick for fans of enemies to lovers, secret romance, and strong female leads. The banter is sharp, the pacing is solid, and the spice was just enough to raise the temperature.
I really enjoyed the characters, the setting, and the emotional payoff. Definitely worth the read.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
August 2, 2025
Thank you to Hambright PR and JL Stray for the ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.
If I can say anything, it feels so good to read a soccer romance where they actually know the game. Especially when I see the Carolina Courage come up. 🤭 I loved this! Mac and Danny’s banter was so fun. I think it made it that much spicier. I love the sex scenes as well. The chemistry was great and I’m so curious about some of the side characters. The pacing was good, and I thought the story progressed well! I loved all the twists and turns, and getting to know Mac and Danny. It had me kicking my feet and giggling so many times!
This was my first JL Stray, but certainly won’t be my last!
I need a book about August 👀
If I can say anything, it feels so good to read a soccer romance where they actually know the game. Especially when I see the Carolina Courage come up. 🤭 I loved this! Mac and Danny’s banter was so fun. I think it made it that much spicier. I love the sex scenes as well. The chemistry was great and I’m so curious about some of the side characters. The pacing was good, and I thought the story progressed well! I loved all the twists and turns, and getting to know Mac and Danny. It had me kicking my feet and giggling so many times!
This was my first JL Stray, but certainly won’t be my last!
I need a book about August 👀
February 13, 2025
Mackenzie Dixon has something to prove as the Captain of Tampa Bay's newest women's soccer team the Blaze. No one thinks Florida needs another professional soccer team and unfortunately, or fortunately for her she catches the eye of one person in agreement of this, sports reporter Danny Taylor. What starts out as a verbal sparing, leads to an intimate article about Mac and the team, and even more intimate moments between them. With the closeness their time together brings them the inevitable is going to happen, but can they weather the inevitable storm that is headed their way? This story was well written and I enjoyed the characters and their banter and ooo the spice!
July 15, 2025
💙 Soccer player/Sports journalist
⚽ Dislike to lovers /Forbidden romance
💙 Slow burn
⚽ Playful banter
💙 No third act breakup
⚽ HEA
✨ 𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗦
Perfect beach read. If you are in the mood for a romance filled with all the love/hate tension where everyone sees their attraction but them then this is for you! I loved the Tampa setting since I live in FL. I love the fact that the FMC is the professional soccer player in the story. And I love the banter between the MCs. I found this read to be fun, quick and entertaining. ⚽💙
✨ Huge thank you to @hambright_pr and @authorjlstray for the gifted copy!
⚽ Dislike to lovers /Forbidden romance
💙 Slow burn
⚽ Playful banter
💙 No third act breakup
⚽ HEA
✨ 𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗦
Perfect beach read. If you are in the mood for a romance filled with all the love/hate tension where everyone sees their attraction but them then this is for you! I loved the Tampa setting since I live in FL. I love the fact that the FMC is the professional soccer player in the story. And I love the banter between the MCs. I found this read to be fun, quick and entertaining. ⚽💙
✨ Huge thank you to @hambright_pr and @authorjlstray for the gifted copy!
July 25, 2025
I loved that this story was centered around a woman in sports and the mmc was on the sidelines or rather the media box.
Overall this was a fairly fast read. The story pace is nice and keeps things moving. The banter between characters was fun. Mac's focus and drive in the world of professional women's sports was definitely a plus for this story.
I struggled from the start with Danny and his tactics honestly felt he was a jerk. From that it was hard to connect to the story and the flip from irritation to each other to finding physical appeal. There was some "it doesnt matter that he is mean, he's hot" vibes going and that just wasnt for me.
Overall this was a fairly fast read. The story pace is nice and keeps things moving. The banter between characters was fun. Mac's focus and drive in the world of professional women's sports was definitely a plus for this story.
I struggled from the start with Danny and his tactics honestly felt he was a jerk. From that it was hard to connect to the story and the flip from irritation to each other to finding physical appeal. There was some "it doesnt matter that he is mean, he's hot" vibes going and that just wasnt for me.
August 7, 2025
DNF- 50%
I thought this was going to be an awesome book because I love a sports romance, especially since it focused on the woman as an athlete. I really liked the role reversal with our FMC being the professional athlete and our MMC being the reporter. But, overall, I found it difficult to connect with these characters. They felt very one dimensional and surface level. Their relationship was mostly just physical, and it felt very random that they decided to hook up because I did not feel their connection. The plot also felt boring, and I struggled to get through it for weeks, so why I had to DNF.
I thought this was going to be an awesome book because I love a sports romance, especially since it focused on the woman as an athlete. I really liked the role reversal with our FMC being the professional athlete and our MMC being the reporter. But, overall, I found it difficult to connect with these characters. They felt very one dimensional and surface level. Their relationship was mostly just physical, and it felt very random that they decided to hook up because I did not feel their connection. The plot also felt boring, and I struggled to get through it for weeks, so why I had to DNF.
July 25, 2025
I've been wanting to read a sports romance for a while and I'm glad that this is my first sports romance novel! I can see why this genre is so popular now. If you're anything like myself and never read a sport romance then this will be an amazing first sport romance for you.
it's fast paced, fun and easy to read.
the tropes for this novel are;
♡ Soccer Player/Journalist
♡ Enemies to Lovers
♡ Slow Burn
♡ Forced Proximity
♡He Falls First
♡ Playful Banter
♡ Rina
it's fast paced, fun and easy to read.
the tropes for this novel are;
♡ Soccer Player/Journalist
♡ Enemies to Lovers
♡ Slow Burn
♡ Forced Proximity
♡He Falls First
♡ Playful Banter
♡ Rina
July 31, 2025
This is a sports romance first in a series .I’m not normally a fan of soccer but this did not disappoint .I had also not read any by this author.I did like the FMC was the athlete.The banter from Mac and Danny had me giggling .I’m a huge fan of age gap as well.If you like soccer then try this sports romance out.
August 4, 2025
Strong FMC for the win! I always love when I pick up a book that is a little different from my normal read. Loved having the female athlete that was so strong. The banter between Danny and Mac was so good.
If you are looking for an enemies to lovers and a secret romance this is the book for you.
If you are looking for an enemies to lovers and a secret romance this is the book for you.
Read
July 14, 2025RTC
July 26, 2025
Thank you to Hambright PR for the ebook. These opinions are my own.
Mac is a soccer player. She gets recruited to a brand new team, the Tampa Bay Blaze, right out of college and starts as team captain. Danny is a former swimmer who is making a name for himself in sports journalism, largely through asking controversial or aggressive questions of players. So when the Blaze lose their first game, he goes after Mac.
Danny starts the book as the poster boy for toxic masculinity who drives a Tesla. I was quite impressed that his character arc was sufficient to make me like him by the end of the book.
I really liked Mac's character. She had such an interesting family backstory and motivation. And I especially appreciated her relationship with her friends and team.
The story blends steam, secrets, and lots of banter. And it leads to very genuine caring.
This was a true sports romance with a good description of soccer and the games. I was absolutely rooting for the Tampa Bay Blaze and hope that Mac's teammates will get their own stories in future.
Mac is a soccer player. She gets recruited to a brand new team, the Tampa Bay Blaze, right out of college and starts as team captain. Danny is a former swimmer who is making a name for himself in sports journalism, largely through asking controversial or aggressive questions of players. So when the Blaze lose their first game, he goes after Mac.
Danny starts the book as the poster boy for toxic masculinity who drives a Tesla. I was quite impressed that his character arc was sufficient to make me like him by the end of the book.
I really liked Mac's character. She had such an interesting family backstory and motivation. And I especially appreciated her relationship with her friends and team.
The story blends steam, secrets, and lots of banter. And it leads to very genuine caring.
This was a true sports romance with a good description of soccer and the games. I was absolutely rooting for the Tampa Bay Blaze and hope that Mac's teammates will get their own stories in future.
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