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Racing Hearts
Ellie Finch has a plan for her senior year of college. She's going to lead her track and field team to an indoor and outdoor conference championship and qualify for nationals with her 4x400 meter relay team. That way, she and her best friend, Juniper, can have a free trip to California.
It’s the perfect plan until Sierra What’s-Her-Face, a freshman sprinter, takes Juniper’s spot on the relay and also threatens Ellie’s rank as the best 400 meter runner on their team.
To make matters worse, Sierra is standoffish, rude, and possibly homophobic - a fact that doesn’t fly with Ellie, who has two moms and is also gay herself. But if Sierra is so terrible, why can’t Ellie stop thinking about her? Should she believe the voice in her head telling her there’s more to this girl than meets the eye?
Racing Hearts features the daughter of Brinley and Annalise Finch (A Lesbian’s Guide to Women), as well as a few other characters that Erica Lee fans will recognize.
It’s the perfect plan until Sierra What’s-Her-Face, a freshman sprinter, takes Juniper’s spot on the relay and also threatens Ellie’s rank as the best 400 meter runner on their team.
To make matters worse, Sierra is standoffish, rude, and possibly homophobic - a fact that doesn’t fly with Ellie, who has two moms and is also gay herself. But if Sierra is so terrible, why can’t Ellie stop thinking about her? Should she believe the voice in her head telling her there’s more to this girl than meets the eye?
Racing Hearts features the daughter of Brinley and Annalise Finch (A Lesbian’s Guide to Women), as well as a few other characters that Erica Lee fans will recognize.
293 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 16, 2025
82 people are currently reading
206 people want to read
About the author
Erica Lee
49 books942 followersErica Lee finished writing her first book, Dear Santa: I’m Gay, in December 2016. Erica currently lives in Pennsylvania with her wife, dog, chinchilla, and bunny. She spends her days working as an optometrist and her nights snuggled up on the couch with her furry family, binging on netflix or youtube.
Librarian note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Librarian note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
June 3, 2025
(rounded down from 4.25)
This was cute and light and sweet. A low angst rivals-to-lovers story about being competitive, making bad first impressions, and dealing with trauma from being gaslit. It took my dumb ass far too long to realise that one of the main characters' (Ellie Finch) moms are Brinley and Annalise from A Lesbian's Guide to Women! I do love authors who have little authorverse connections in their books, so a fun little connection!
I do appreciate that despite this being YA/New Adult because the characters are college students, they are very emotionally mature and despite struggling with some trauma from past bad relationships, there is no over the top drama for conflict and they're generally quite mature and openly communicative about what they're thinking/feeling. Love to see it!
This was cute and light and sweet. A low angst rivals-to-lovers story about being competitive, making bad first impressions, and dealing with trauma from being gaslit. It took my dumb ass far too long to realise that one of the main characters' (Ellie Finch) moms are Brinley and Annalise from A Lesbian's Guide to Women! I do love authors who have little authorverse connections in their books, so a fun little connection!
I do appreciate that despite this being YA/New Adult because the characters are college students, they are very emotionally mature and despite struggling with some trauma from past bad relationships, there is no over the top drama for conflict and they're generally quite mature and openly communicative about what they're thinking/feeling. Love to see it!
July 2, 2025
“They say you shouldn't meet your heroes. I always thought that was because they would disappoint you. It turns out, you shouldn't meet your heroes, because you just might end up falling in love with them.”
June 19, 2025
Another winner!!
I love reading Erica’s books. Every story is perfectly written with characters that you want to root for. This book is no different! If you need a feel good love story pick this book and every other book by Erica! 5 🌟
I love reading Erica’s books. Every story is perfectly written with characters that you want to root for. This book is no different! If you need a feel good love story pick this book and every other book by Erica! 5 🌟
June 26, 2025
Runners, Racing and Hearts Involved💕
A sweet story of a senior and freshman in college. Ellie is starting her last year in college. She is the fastest 400m athlete in college competition but a freshman, Sierra was recruited to the team. At the first practice Ellie notices Sierra but her best friend hates her. So she pretends she is staring at someone else, it seems when they are together, the blond beauty is giving them dirty looks. Homophobe maybe. Ellie likes what she sees so tries to make a couple of attempts at conversation but gets shot down. As only Erica can, the story takes on a little dark side with Sierra’s supposed best friend, two families meet with all in common.if only Ellie could figure her out. Another must read!
A sweet story of a senior and freshman in college. Ellie is starting her last year in college. She is the fastest 400m athlete in college competition but a freshman, Sierra was recruited to the team. At the first practice Ellie notices Sierra but her best friend hates her. So she pretends she is staring at someone else, it seems when they are together, the blond beauty is giving them dirty looks. Homophobe maybe. Ellie likes what she sees so tries to make a couple of attempts at conversation but gets shot down. As only Erica can, the story takes on a little dark side with Sierra’s supposed best friend, two families meet with all in common.if only Ellie could figure her out. Another must read!
July 14, 2025
ERICA LEE!
After having already read 2 Erica Lee books, i found out about this book being released earlier this month. After i read that it features the daughter of Annalise and Brinley from "Lesbians guide to women" and "Lesbian couple's guide to spark" i just had to get it right away and read it right away.
I was so hyped for it, so it did leave up to the hype?
* Story, slight spoilers *
Racing Hearts is a Enemies to lover Story featuring Ellie, daughter of previous released books by Erica Lee Annalise and Brinley, and Sierra.
In classic enemies to lover fashion, when they both meet each other for the first time, Ellie tried to apporach Sierra after checking her out and being interested in her. Sierra, for no apparent reason, is really cold and distant towards Ellie which leads to Ellie and her best friend Juniper to assume, that Sierra might be a "homophobic bitch" given that she reacted really unhinged when Ellie tried to playfully hit on Sierra's best friend Teresa on the street and upon Ellie mentioning that she has 2 mom's.
At the beginning of the book, we are left in the dark as to why Sierra reacted the way she did towards Ellie, given she never met Ellie before and she did nothing to annoy her in any way, as she just tried to strike up a conversation, however, a little further into the book the chapters are told from the perspective of Ellie and then also Sierra.
Ellie and Sierra get a bit closer together after Ellie finds out through Chris, a member of the male track team, that Sierra also happens to have 2 mothers, which leaves her assumption of Sierra being homophobic off the table. Later down the line, Sierra and her family try to make their way home for christmas when an (announced) snowstorm hits the town and her sister breaks her leg. Turns out, Ellie's mom's have a clinic and are considered the best in town. Ellie and Sierra had sort of becoming closer the day before, so they had a chance to have a more detailed talk to clear the air between them. Ellie wanted to get more closer before christmas break, however, Sierra ran away from that conversation then. Well here's another chance as it turns out that that they got caught in a blizzard and driving for 3 1/5 hours with a girl that has a broken leg doesn't sound like a great idea, so Ellie's mom's (after Ellie's suggestion) agreed that they can spend christmas time at their house, given that they have 2 spare rooms where they can stay at.
This is where Sierra, after her sister Sienna constantly pushed her, spends multiple nights with Ellie watching christmas movies in Ellie's room together. They get clsoer to each other when they are alone together, they talk, watch movies, the way Erica Lee gave us more of Ellie and Sierra's backstory by having them play "2 truths and 1 lie" was really clever. After multiple nights of watching movies and talking they end up cuddled up in bed, sharing their first kiss and ultimately sharing the entire night together.
There is another problem though: Sierra's room mate Teresa. Not gonna spoiler anything here, but the main trope of "Enemies to lovers" seems to stem for a lack of communication, but it is really well explained as to why Sierra can't fully open up and talk about everything in her past.
I also thought, judging it's an Erica Lee book and it's mostly lighthearted, that i might have a fun little read, but it get's surprisingly dark. We get to feel the brute force of oppression, manipulation and mind games and how it weighs on Sierra and why she has trouble trusting Ellie.
I don't want to spoiler too much, but i gotta say, the ending is an Erica Lee-esque expected feel good moment. If you've read "Falling for who" it is pretty similar to that one.
* Personal Opinion *
Erica Lee is my spirit animal absolutely xD
I adore her writing style and i want to say this real quick: "FUCK TERESA!"
This god damn girl was such an evil, conniving piece of sh**. The moment i talked about, when everything is well between Ellie and Sierra, enter Teresa putting doubts into Sierra's head. Sierra knows she is doing it, to get inside her head and make her miserable, yet, she is such a caring and kind person that she can't simply ignore everything Teresa throws at her.
The moment Sierra is happy and Ellie is there to protect her, Teresa is bitchy and upset and can't handle it, as soon as she has control over Sierra and makes her feel worthless and doubts herself, you, as a reader, can feel that oppression and feel of helplessness. It's so well written and it just makes u want to grab into the book and punch Teresa straight in her smug face.
Let alone Teresa brings Sierra to a double date with a guy, when Teresa, justifingly so, shouts at her "I'M A FUCKING LESBIAN?" to which Teresa just replies with a smug shrug and her complaining that her date left her. Honestly. Fucking miserable bitch. I don't think i ever hated anyone more than her. So hey, fantastic writing right there.
As far as the characters go, i love the inserts of characters we know and love from previous Erica Lee books. They even mentioned the sex syllabus from lesbians guide to women that Ellie found while rummaging through her parent's room.
Ellie is an absolute peach. I love everything about her, she is easily likeable. Same for her love interest Sierra. At first, with the cold attitude towards Ellie, it is hard to like her, but once u find out about her, her past with Teresa, u feel sorry for her and can understand why she's acting the way she does. Needless to say their moments together are too damn cute. From the moments in Ellie's house, where they share their first kiss, to falling asleep in each others arms to their romance later on, these 2 are absolutely gorgeous together.
Also we have the side-character, Juniper, Ellie's room mate who just has the worst timing to have a bad time in this book. Other than that, she loves Ellie and wants nothing more for Ellie than to be happy, so convincing Juniper that Sierra is not only a good person but also Ellie's love of her life is another issue when Ellie is still in the closet. And with Ellie being respectful about everyone's feelings, u guessed it, communication is a problem there.
However, i love the fact that, at the beginning, Sierra is pictured as the "bad person" with Juniper and Ellie being set on making Sierra's life a living hell, but after we get to see where Sierra's life is, the role of who is the monster swaps drastically, which i also absolutely love.
There are some spice scenes, but it is a lot more tamer than in some of Erica Lee's books, so they are not the focus, so they are rather short and feature on the more tame aspects. It's all about the characters and their interaction, obviously.
My only gripe with this book is that Teresa never really got dealt with. There was one interaction between Ellie/Sierra and Teresa that was awesome, where they both told Teresa to deal with it and get over it, but other than that, i wanted more satisfaction.
We also never get to know how the last year went for Sierra, because after all we know, she was still room mates with Teresa? Or wasn't she, because she spend the nights at Ellie's apartment when they were sneakingly dating? I would've loved a bit of more clarification on that end.
But all in all, another solid Erica Lee book. I loved it, i read through this one in one week, the fastest i've ever read a book, i think, so that should give u an idea on how much of a blast i had with this one. People might disagree potentially, but i'd say this is a must read. I only read 2 enemies to lovers books, this and "Cleat Cute" and as much as i loved "Cleat Cute" i think this one is miles ahead of "Cleat Cute", pun intended.
Story: 5/5
Characters: 5/5
Spice: 2/5
Re-readability: 4/5
End Rating: 5/5
To end it off, here are some of my favorite quotes form the book:
"First, she needed to be there for her best friend. This was the girl who held her hair back the first time got drunk"
""When i was in middle school, I thought it would be funto snoop through my mom's room. I was wrong. I found these lists... The first one was a sex syllabus, all about having sex with women. My mom's name was listed as the professor" Ellie made a gagging mtion. "As if that wasn't bad enough, the other one was a fucket list.""
"Okay, I was, but not because i don't actually want to spend time with you. The problem is, I want to spend all my time with you."
"What's wrong? Is Ellie okay?" "That depends on your definition of okay. She's alive. She's breathing. Still has all of her limbs.""
After having already read 2 Erica Lee books, i found out about this book being released earlier this month. After i read that it features the daughter of Annalise and Brinley from "Lesbians guide to women" and "Lesbian couple's guide to spark" i just had to get it right away and read it right away.
I was so hyped for it, so it did leave up to the hype?
* Story, slight spoilers *
Racing Hearts is a Enemies to lover Story featuring Ellie, daughter of previous released books by Erica Lee Annalise and Brinley, and Sierra.
In classic enemies to lover fashion, when they both meet each other for the first time, Ellie tried to apporach Sierra after checking her out and being interested in her. Sierra, for no apparent reason, is really cold and distant towards Ellie which leads to Ellie and her best friend Juniper to assume, that Sierra might be a "homophobic bitch" given that she reacted really unhinged when Ellie tried to playfully hit on Sierra's best friend Teresa on the street and upon Ellie mentioning that she has 2 mom's.
At the beginning of the book, we are left in the dark as to why Sierra reacted the way she did towards Ellie, given she never met Ellie before and she did nothing to annoy her in any way, as she just tried to strike up a conversation, however, a little further into the book the chapters are told from the perspective of Ellie and then also Sierra.
Ellie and Sierra get a bit closer together after Ellie finds out through Chris, a member of the male track team, that Sierra also happens to have 2 mothers, which leaves her assumption of Sierra being homophobic off the table. Later down the line, Sierra and her family try to make their way home for christmas when an (announced) snowstorm hits the town and her sister breaks her leg. Turns out, Ellie's mom's have a clinic and are considered the best in town. Ellie and Sierra had sort of becoming closer the day before, so they had a chance to have a more detailed talk to clear the air between them. Ellie wanted to get more closer before christmas break, however, Sierra ran away from that conversation then. Well here's another chance as it turns out that that they got caught in a blizzard and driving for 3 1/5 hours with a girl that has a broken leg doesn't sound like a great idea, so Ellie's mom's (after Ellie's suggestion) agreed that they can spend christmas time at their house, given that they have 2 spare rooms where they can stay at.
This is where Sierra, after her sister Sienna constantly pushed her, spends multiple nights with Ellie watching christmas movies in Ellie's room together. They get clsoer to each other when they are alone together, they talk, watch movies, the way Erica Lee gave us more of Ellie and Sierra's backstory by having them play "2 truths and 1 lie" was really clever. After multiple nights of watching movies and talking they end up cuddled up in bed, sharing their first kiss and ultimately sharing the entire night together.
There is another problem though: Sierra's room mate Teresa. Not gonna spoiler anything here, but the main trope of "Enemies to lovers" seems to stem for a lack of communication, but it is really well explained as to why Sierra can't fully open up and talk about everything in her past.
I also thought, judging it's an Erica Lee book and it's mostly lighthearted, that i might have a fun little read, but it get's surprisingly dark. We get to feel the brute force of oppression, manipulation and mind games and how it weighs on Sierra and why she has trouble trusting Ellie.
I don't want to spoiler too much, but i gotta say, the ending is an Erica Lee-esque expected feel good moment. If you've read "Falling for who" it is pretty similar to that one.
* Personal Opinion *
Erica Lee is my spirit animal absolutely xD
I adore her writing style and i want to say this real quick: "FUCK TERESA!"
This god damn girl was such an evil, conniving piece of sh**. The moment i talked about, when everything is well between Ellie and Sierra, enter Teresa putting doubts into Sierra's head. Sierra knows she is doing it, to get inside her head and make her miserable, yet, she is such a caring and kind person that she can't simply ignore everything Teresa throws at her.
The moment Sierra is happy and Ellie is there to protect her, Teresa is bitchy and upset and can't handle it, as soon as she has control over Sierra and makes her feel worthless and doubts herself, you, as a reader, can feel that oppression and feel of helplessness. It's so well written and it just makes u want to grab into the book and punch Teresa straight in her smug face.
Let alone Teresa brings Sierra to a double date with a guy, when Teresa, justifingly so, shouts at her "I'M A FUCKING LESBIAN?" to which Teresa just replies with a smug shrug and her complaining that her date left her. Honestly. Fucking miserable bitch. I don't think i ever hated anyone more than her. So hey, fantastic writing right there.
As far as the characters go, i love the inserts of characters we know and love from previous Erica Lee books. They even mentioned the sex syllabus from lesbians guide to women that Ellie found while rummaging through her parent's room.
Ellie is an absolute peach. I love everything about her, she is easily likeable. Same for her love interest Sierra. At first, with the cold attitude towards Ellie, it is hard to like her, but once u find out about her, her past with Teresa, u feel sorry for her and can understand why she's acting the way she does. Needless to say their moments together are too damn cute. From the moments in Ellie's house, where they share their first kiss, to falling asleep in each others arms to their romance later on, these 2 are absolutely gorgeous together.
Also we have the side-character, Juniper, Ellie's room mate who just has the worst timing to have a bad time in this book. Other than that, she loves Ellie and wants nothing more for Ellie than to be happy, so convincing Juniper that Sierra is not only a good person but also Ellie's love of her life is another issue when Ellie is still in the closet. And with Ellie being respectful about everyone's feelings, u guessed it, communication is a problem there.
However, i love the fact that, at the beginning, Sierra is pictured as the "bad person" with Juniper and Ellie being set on making Sierra's life a living hell, but after we get to see where Sierra's life is, the role of who is the monster swaps drastically, which i also absolutely love.
There are some spice scenes, but it is a lot more tamer than in some of Erica Lee's books, so they are not the focus, so they are rather short and feature on the more tame aspects. It's all about the characters and their interaction, obviously.
My only gripe with this book is that Teresa never really got dealt with. There was one interaction between Ellie/Sierra and Teresa that was awesome, where they both told Teresa to deal with it and get over it, but other than that, i wanted more satisfaction.
We also never get to know how the last year went for Sierra, because after all we know, she was still room mates with Teresa? Or wasn't she, because she spend the nights at Ellie's apartment when they were sneakingly dating? I would've loved a bit of more clarification on that end.
But all in all, another solid Erica Lee book. I loved it, i read through this one in one week, the fastest i've ever read a book, i think, so that should give u an idea on how much of a blast i had with this one. People might disagree potentially, but i'd say this is a must read. I only read 2 enemies to lovers books, this and "Cleat Cute" and as much as i loved "Cleat Cute" i think this one is miles ahead of "Cleat Cute", pun intended.
Story: 5/5
Characters: 5/5
Spice: 2/5
Re-readability: 4/5
End Rating: 5/5
To end it off, here are some of my favorite quotes form the book:
"First, she needed to be there for her best friend. This was the girl who held her hair back the first time got drunk"
""When i was in middle school, I thought it would be funto snoop through my mom's room. I was wrong. I found these lists... The first one was a sex syllabus, all about having sex with women. My mom's name was listed as the professor" Ellie made a gagging mtion. "As if that wasn't bad enough, the other one was a fucket list.""
"Okay, I was, but not because i don't actually want to spend time with you. The problem is, I want to spend all my time with you."
"What's wrong? Is Ellie okay?" "That depends on your definition of okay. She's alive. She's breathing. Still has all of her limbs.""
July 5, 2025
I'm a huge fan of Erica Lee's books! She never disappoints me! Ellie and Sierra's relationship starts off rocky! They start out as enemies. Ellie is the star of the women's track team, and in the first practice trial, Sierra, a freshman beats her. Knowing she'll take the spot on the relay team from her best friend Juniper. With Juniper angry, and the way Sierra acts towards her, Ellie starts to act mean towards Sierra. But, that's not Ellie. Plus, Sierra has a good reason why she's acting this way. Her girlfriend/bestfriend Teresa, has broken up with her and is hostile, plus she's her roommate. The goodness in both Ellie and Sierra comes out after being forced together with their families during a blizzard. Love starts to bloom!
THIS IS A FAVORITE!! Deserves more than 5 stars!
THIS IS A FAVORITE!! Deserves more than 5 stars!
March 24, 2026
3.5 stars. Very predictable. Like if hallmark had lesbians and D3 college track.
June 22, 2025
Loved it!
I love everything by this author. It's laugh out loud funny, heartfelt, and relatable. The characters are amazing. Can't wait to read all of her books.
I love everything by this author. It's laugh out loud funny, heartfelt, and relatable. The characters are amazing. Can't wait to read all of her books.
June 13, 2025
I got to read this one early and it was such an amazing journey. You can feel the growth between Ellie and Sierra as they move from rivals with tension to lovers.
Erica Lee does a great job showing each characters doubts and building on them. It was an amazing journey and one I will take over and over again.
Fun fact: Sierra’s dorm shares the same name as the dorm I lived in for 2 years when I went to University
Erica Lee does a great job showing each characters doubts and building on them. It was an amazing journey and one I will take over and over again.
Fun fact: Sierra’s dorm shares the same name as the dorm I lived in for 2 years when I went to University
May 27, 2025
When you like me have read a bunch of Erica Lee’s books it is not unusual to see that some of your old favourite characters appear in later books. That gives you chance to see how they have evolved since the book featuring them ended, how it all is connected. That is something I love extra much when reading a book written by this author. In this book we have the daughters of some previous MC’s that fall for each other and thanks to that we also get some bonus time with their moms. As an extra sweet bonus on top of that Mrs. Stone, Willow’s mom, is having a cameo and we find out that Brinley and Annelise got married at Tori’s barn all topped by the realization who Ellie’s and Sierra’s moms are. It is more than amazing!
One of the daughters, Ellie Finch, is the daughter of our old friends Brinley and Annelise. Ellie is a senior in college and a bit of a track star. She is a bit concerned about a freshman, that may be a threat this year, so her name from the start is Sierra What’s-Her-Fuck, named by her BFF Juniper. Ellie tries to be open minded and nice, but Sierra has a horrible attitude, so the nickname may fit after all. She starts to suspect Sierra is a homophobic and they are not getting along at all.
Ellie finally realizes that Sierra has two moms just like her and may even be gay like her so why is she acting like that? We soon find out the backstory to that and that unravelling is leading to a great love story with a lot of complications, misunderstandings and fun moments. We also get to meet Sierra’s moms that we know from a previous book.
One remaining thing we need that must be disclosed in another book is what really happened when their respective moms met, that extremely awkward moment when they realize how they know each other. I am sure Erica Lee already has that planned out.
One of the daughters, Ellie Finch, is the daughter of our old friends Brinley and Annelise. Ellie is a senior in college and a bit of a track star. She is a bit concerned about a freshman, that may be a threat this year, so her name from the start is Sierra What’s-Her-Fuck, named by her BFF Juniper. Ellie tries to be open minded and nice, but Sierra has a horrible attitude, so the nickname may fit after all. She starts to suspect Sierra is a homophobic and they are not getting along at all.
Ellie finally realizes that Sierra has two moms just like her and may even be gay like her so why is she acting like that? We soon find out the backstory to that and that unravelling is leading to a great love story with a lot of complications, misunderstandings and fun moments. We also get to meet Sierra’s moms that we know from a previous book.
One remaining thing we need that must be disclosed in another book is what really happened when their respective moms met, that extremely awkward moment when they realize how they know each other. I am sure Erica Lee already has that planned out.
July 16, 2025
Okay okay okay. Erica Lee. She writes a book and has you sucked in from the beginning and wanting more. This one felt a little more young adult since it's set in college but regardless, it's a must read.
Ellie, a track and field runner in college is set to beat her own records and make it to nationals her senior year of college. Ellie is a daughter of two moms and she is gay herself. She has never really had relationships because she is solely focused on track and what she wants to do for the rest of her life. But her world gets flipped upside down when Sierra starts as a freshman at the same college is on the same relay team as her.
Sierra, closeted homo living with her girlfriend in her freshman year of college suddenly gets dumped by said girlfriend because she wants to be able to date boys. Sierra, having to face her ex-girlfriend the rest of the school year due to lack of rooms available. AND GIRL, DO I EVER FEEL YOUR PAIN. Sierra was my spirt animal throughout the entire book and all her feelings because that is exactly the kind of experience I had in college and it destroyed me. So, seeing this written in a book resonated deeply with me.
Ellie and Sierra start becoming friends to help win more meets but Ellie's best friend doesn't like Sierra and Ellie must navigate the tension between both women.
Anything Erica Lee is a must read and this book does not disappoint!
Ellie, a track and field runner in college is set to beat her own records and make it to nationals her senior year of college. Ellie is a daughter of two moms and she is gay herself. She has never really had relationships because she is solely focused on track and what she wants to do for the rest of her life. But her world gets flipped upside down when Sierra starts as a freshman at the same college is on the same relay team as her.
Sierra, closeted homo living with her girlfriend in her freshman year of college suddenly gets dumped by said girlfriend because she wants to be able to date boys. Sierra, having to face her ex-girlfriend the rest of the school year due to lack of rooms available. AND GIRL, DO I EVER FEEL YOUR PAIN. Sierra was my spirt animal throughout the entire book and all her feelings because that is exactly the kind of experience I had in college and it destroyed me. So, seeing this written in a book resonated deeply with me.
Ellie and Sierra start becoming friends to help win more meets but Ellie's best friend doesn't like Sierra and Ellie must navigate the tension between both women.
Anything Erica Lee is a must read and this book does not disappoint!
June 22, 2025
The story is ok, except that the characters act more like 16 yr olds than 21 yr olds and the writing fed into that by being quite amateurish too. I had 3 issues with this book:
1. Ellie's moms are Brinley and Annalise from 2 previous Erica Lee novels, which would be fine, except both storylines are written as if set in the present, i.e. Ellie likes Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter and Renee Rapp as if they're the current popular artists of her time, but if she's 21 that would mean Brinley and Annalise’s initial story was set in the 90s (since the sequel novella covers the 10 yrs after) and the premise of that was that Annalise was using a lesbian dating app, which wasn't a thing til after 2007 at the earliest. I probably seem picky, given it's all fictional, but it felt badly written.
2. Sierra's ex is a total b1tch, but there doesn't appear to be any comeuppance for her by the end, which was frustrating.
3. I probably wouldn't have this gripe if not already irked by the 1st 2 things, but the cover artist wasn't given credit anywhere in the book (and if that was because it was AI then that's an even bigger issue), and I didn't like the "buy a shout out" thing at the end of the book. I understand authors need to make money but to essentially stick advertising space at the back of the book? It just didn't sit right with me.
1. Ellie's moms are Brinley and Annalise from 2 previous Erica Lee novels, which would be fine, except both storylines are written as if set in the present, i.e. Ellie likes Taylor Swift, Sabrina Carpenter and Renee Rapp as if they're the current popular artists of her time, but if she's 21 that would mean Brinley and Annalise’s initial story was set in the 90s (since the sequel novella covers the 10 yrs after) and the premise of that was that Annalise was using a lesbian dating app, which wasn't a thing til after 2007 at the earliest. I probably seem picky, given it's all fictional, but it felt badly written.
2. Sierra's ex is a total b1tch, but there doesn't appear to be any comeuppance for her by the end, which was frustrating.
3. I probably wouldn't have this gripe if not already irked by the 1st 2 things, but the cover artist wasn't given credit anywhere in the book (and if that was because it was AI then that's an even bigger issue), and I didn't like the "buy a shout out" thing at the end of the book. I understand authors need to make money but to essentially stick advertising space at the back of the book? It just didn't sit right with me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 20, 2025
Ellie is determined to be a top runner, but her position is threatened by a new girl, Sierra. The girl ignores her attempts to reach out, and reacts badly to finding out Ellie is gay. Then she stumbles over Sierra in tears at a event they were at.
Sierra is dealing with her own issues, including a ex who's suddenly decided she's 100% straight. Worse, the breakup happened during the early training days, hence her freezing out Ellie.
When a injury strands Sierra's family in Ellie's home town, Ellie's family puts them up, leading to things thawing and the two girls realizing they like each other.
But back at school, things get complicated again.
YA novel, and there's a annoying level of teen stupidity.
3 out of 5 stars.
Sierra is dealing with her own issues, including a ex who's suddenly decided she's 100% straight. Worse, the breakup happened during the early training days, hence her freezing out Ellie.
When a injury strands Sierra's family in Ellie's home town, Ellie's family puts them up, leading to things thawing and the two girls realizing they like each other.
But back at school, things get complicated again.
YA novel, and there's a annoying level of teen stupidity.
3 out of 5 stars.
July 7, 2025
Racing Hearts is a college romance featuring two women from the track team. Mistaken assumptions and the subsequent drama provide Ellie and Sierra with a very slow start to their relationship. They are surrounded by a supporting cast that includes both encouraging and decidedly unhelpful individuals. The level of angst is consistent with events, at least as perceived by Ellie and Sierra, and avoids sliding into melodrama. This is a nice comfortable read with a satisfying conclusion. Long time readers of Erica Lee may appreciate cameo appearances from characters thery have seen before.
July 2, 2025
cute read
A simple but effective story, could have probably made it better by focusing more on the competition aspect
Didn’t understand the connections of the moms, so unsure what it added to the story unless another book is coming out?
Seemed like they were more high school age then college based on maturity but could just be me
A simple but effective story, could have probably made it better by focusing more on the competition aspect
Didn’t understand the connections of the moms, so unsure what it added to the story unless another book is coming out?
Seemed like they were more high school age then college based on maturity but could just be me
February 15, 2026
So disgustingly in love <3
This made my heart grow several sizes larger! <3 I love how reading Erica Lee gets better with every novel, and that she keeps each one as fresh as the next!
This made my heart grow several sizes larger! <3 I love how reading Erica Lee gets better with every novel, and that she keeps each one as fresh as the next!
July 14, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Another great read from Erica Lee. Loved all the Easter eggs about the books. Would I love a sequel to this yes! I also loved how it ended if there isn’t one!
Another great read from Erica Lee. Loved all the Easter eggs about the books. Would I love a sequel to this yes! I also loved how it ended if there isn’t one!
September 5, 2025
Loved It!
Erica Lee is one of my favorite authors and this is one of the best yet. If you like competition and sports romance, I highly recommend!
Erica Lee is one of my favorite authors and this is one of the best yet. If you like competition and sports romance, I highly recommend!
October 16, 2025
i need moreeee
November 21, 2025
the amount of times a woman has been called a bitch in this is…. certainly something
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