Fine Leg: A sapphic sports romance novella

by Renée Dahlia

Love and Yorkers? Will lust between two fast bowlers derail an Ashes campaign?
ESTEFANIA (FANNY) RIVAS didn’t expect her fling with English captain Minette Kingsley-Brown to be splashed all over the sport pages ahead of the Ashes. It was old news, but the part that hurt was how they made her sound like a bully. Her. She’d been bullied at school for her name, and she would never do that to someone else. The most cutting thing… this sport had saved her. It wasn’t allowed to hurt her. And now she had to deal with Nadia, the team’s new pace bowler who was all smiles and innocent teasing…
NADIA LAWLOR was determined to enjoy every moment of her first Ashes tour. Her twin brother, Aidan, had done this with the men’s team several times and now it was her time to shine. And part of enjoying every moment was taking Fanny’s offer of a one-night-stand. It was worth it, until Fanny’s lack of trust turned the whole thing into a confusing mess. Or was that her own mess creating Fanny’s distance from her?
A grumpy/sunshine bi-awakening sapphic sports romance.

Kindle Edition

Published January 26, 2026

About the author

Renée Dahlia is an unabashed romance reader who loves feisty women and strong, clever men. Her books reflect this, with a side-note of awkward humour. Renée has a science degree in physics. When not distracted by the characters fighting for attention in her brain, she works in the horse racing industry doing data analysis. When she isn’t reading or writing, Renée spends time with her partner, four children, and volunteers on the local cricket club committee.

Reviews

[Henriette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sports romance and cricket
I very much enjoyed this series of novellas although I don‘t know much about cricket. It was fun to delve into this world with peculiar terminology and traditions … and hot Australian sports women.
Fine Leg is centered around the ultimate test: England against Australia in the „Ashes“, a tournament which apparently carries a lot of prestige. There is a one-night stand of grumpy Fanny and sunshine Nadia. They keep gravitating towards each other until they catch a bug, the love bug. A lovely, low angst romance. I enjoyed to learn about the Ashes, the challenges of young and seasoned athletes. Well done.

I received an ARC. The review is left voluntarily

[Dulaine Roode · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nice end to the series.

Fanny and Nadia gad chemistry before they even touched the first time. Something drew Fanny to Nadia, even while she thought Nadia was straight. But when she found out that Nadia was bi... Well, that pushed things along between them. Only past experiences kept Fanny from grabbing a relationship with Nadia with both hands.

In the end it worked out for them. Loved it.

[Melinda Greathouse · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this fast-paced sapphic novella about cricket teammates by Renee Dahlia. Fanny and Nadia made a great couple, and I was rooting for them. It was a bit instalove, but that’s often the case with a novella. If you like grumpy/sunshine, bi awakening, and sports romance, give this a try!

I received an ARC from the author. This is my honest review.

[Frank · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book to finish the series.

Nadia & Fanny are both excellent main characters (and don't we all know someone like Nadia?!).

I have enjoyed all of the books in the "Cricket Slam" series and this keeps up the standard right to the end.


(I was fortunate to receive an ARC however the above is, as ever, my own opinion.)

[Christine Reid · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow what a fantastic storyline I loved the main characters their chemistry was hot but their individual struggles were described with so much depth. I couldn't put it down definitely must read congratulations