⭐️ rating: 4
📖 genre: romantic comedy
🍾 pub date: August 17, 2021
📖 Read this if you like: Sophie Sullivan, Alexa Martin, friends-to-lovers, mutual pining, fake dating
⛔️ trigger warning: anxiety, panic attacks

THE STORY:
Bree has been in love with her best friend Nate since high school, but Nate’s the star quarterback of the Sharks and the crush of the country, and Bree knows Nate will never see her as more than a friend. One day, one too many tequilas make Bree spill the tea about how she really feels about Nate, and then next thing Bree knows, they need to fake a relationship for a publicity stunt… but it feels a bit too real.

WHAT I LOVED:
This was a great surprise! I requested this book for two main reasons: first, it’s a trope I don’t usually do well with - I just don’t understand the idea of being best friends with someone, harboring deeper feelings for them, and never saying anything about that. Why would you that to yourself? Second reason, and most important: Sarah Adams is a new (indie) author for me - I didn’t know what to expect, but consider me impressed!
Though the protagonist clearly is Bree, we get 2 POVs. Without revealing too much about the plot, let’s say there’s pining on both sides, and that was both heartwarming and unnerving to watch, but reading Nate’s side of the story was DELICIOUS. Nate’s such a big teddy bear and his care and concern towards Bree will melt your heart. One of the MCs also experiences anxiety and panic attacks and you know that’s always a trigger for me, but it was handled so well here (since, sadly, the author has anxiety herself).

IN A NUTSHELL:
A fast, easy read with lovable characters and a fun supporting cast. For me it fell a bit short on steam (closed door romance), but it was still very enjoyable! Definitely recommended if you’re into sports romances and friends-to-lovers is your jam!

I can not say enough good things about Sarah Adams books! Her writing is absolutely fantastic and completely hooks you from the start of the book until you finish the last page and leaves you wanting more of her writing so you never have to stop!

I was unreasonably excited and simultaneously nervous to start 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝘾𝙃𝙀𝘼𝙏 𝙎𝙃𝙀𝙀𝙏 by Sarah Adams

You see I fell deep into the Sarah Adams RomCom rabbit hole sometime after Covid hit, yup totally smitten by her work but especially her writing style. When I heard her new book would be available as an eARC I immediately signed up not thinking I would have even the slightest chance of being selected as I wouldn’t exactly call myself a bookstagrammer though I shamelessly recommend her books to just about everyone. So imagine my surprise when a copy of 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝘾𝙃𝙀𝘼𝙏 𝙎𝙃𝙀𝙀𝙏 dropped on my shelf.

You may be wondering why I’d be nervous to start this book. Have you ever discovered an author who writes such amazing and well-rounded characters you do not want the book to come to an end because you need to follow their story past the last page? That for me is Sarah Adams and even before I laid eyes on the first page I knew I it would be break me to let these characters go.

𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝘾𝙃𝙀𝘼𝙏 𝙎𝙃𝙀𝙀𝙏 is a perfectly balanced tightrope between the friends-to-lovers and fake-dating tropes. It is obvious from the very first page that Bree Camden has is bad for her best friend since HS Nathan Donelson ... only one slight problem, so does just about every other woman in the country. You see Nathan is the starting QB for the LA Sharks who are in the run for the Super Bowl. It doesn't help that he is sculpted like a Greek god either. Oh and she's pretty sure he views their relationship as completely platonic in a brother/sister kind of way. Yeah so no chance of that happening.

"𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘺 𝘨𝘢𝘻𝘦 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘳𝘦, 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦, 𝘶𝘮𝘮 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘰, 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘰𝘨𝘭𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴' 𝘣𝘶𝘵𝘵𝘴" - Bree Camden

Just as Sarah's other RomComs 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝘾𝙃𝙀𝘼𝙏 𝙎𝙃𝙀𝙀𝙏 is a dual perspective book and it doesn't take long before it is revealed Nathan would move heaven and earth for Bree. She is the rock he can always count on while his career has taken on a life of its own and requires him to stretch himself to the limit if not further. He grew up in a home where success wasn't an option it was a requirement so he tends to overwork himself and carry more than his fair share of the load. Bree however sees Nathan for who is really is - generous, kind, reliable and drop-dead-gorgeous. Yet somehow they are stuck in the dreaded 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥-𝘻𝘰𝘯𝘦, Nathan enlists his team mates to come up with a plan to show Bree he is ready to risk it all for a chance to be with her.

"𝘐 [...] 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘵 𝘮𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘮𝘴 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘪𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘺 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘣𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘩 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘭𝘦. 𝘊𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘮𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘪𝘭 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘤𝘬? 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵." - Nathan Donelson

I love that Sarah isn't afraid to be quirky, goofy and downright embarrass her characters. you can always count on a few laugh-out-loud moments from Sarah's books and 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝘾𝙃𝙀𝘼𝙏 𝙎𝙃𝙀𝙀𝙏 is no exception. Another layer to this book was addressing mental health. I loved seeing that representation in this book and felt Sarah dealt with it beautifully. It can be messy, it can be scary and it was wonderful to see our MCs setting an example of how to care for one another.

This was such a fun, easy read. I loved the tug and pull between our characters as they tested their feelings under the guise of a fake relationship. This is definitely one of my favourite Summer 2021 reads and I cannot wait to add the paperback to my collection when it release August 17, 2021. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you Sarah Adams, Netgalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for the opportunity to read this book.

Thank you to Sarah Adams for the complimentary early copy of THE CHEAT SHEET—for Fans of Ted Lasso and feel-good RomComs, this is right up your alley. Slapstick funny, both sizzling and sweet, this best-friends-to-lovers sports romance brings its RomCom A-game!

With tropes like best-friends-to-lovers, mutual unrequited love, hardcore pining, topped off with plenty of humor, Bree and Nathan's story made me smile and laugh and wish I could knock their noggins together so they'd get that happily ever after! Thankfully, Sarah took good care of these two and gave them a super-swoony HEA.

I also really admire the sensitivity given anxiety and panic attacks. It's so important to destigmatize mental health struggles, anxiety, and the conversations we all deserve to have with our friends, family, and intimate partners. It's particularly poignant to address this within the realms of toxic masculinity and competitive athletics to always try harder, to be "okay," when in reality the massive pressure of professional sports wears on many athletes' minds and bodies.

This story is the perfect summertime read, full of sports, swoony love, stand-up guy-friends, plenty of playfulness, and tender sweetness.

This book is really adorable, great for someone who wants a cute, clean romance. This book started out really strong, but overall I do think it is more of an average read for me.

Pros:
-Loved the combination of the friends to lovers trope and fake dating trope, those are two of my favorites.
-Really enjoyed the dual perspective, when reading romance I'll almost always choose the book that more than one point of view.
-This was a lot more funny than I thought it would be, Nathan's friend group is what brought on the most laughs, it was very reminiscent of the Male friend group in The Bromance Book Club series.

Cons:
-It lacked that extra *umph* I'm usually looking for when it comes to Adult Romance when it comes to steaminess.
- I also felt that like there wasn't enough conflict, I had a harder time caring for the characters because I didn't feel like there was enough risk in the storyline.

I think this would be a great read for someone looking for a clean romance that are fans of the friends to lovers trope. Also great if you are looking for a laugh with some of your romance.

Simply put: I LOVED THIS. All I did was smile, laugh, and swoon through the entirety of this amazing book. It has everything you hope for in a good romcom: lots of laughs, tender and sweet moments, playful banter, and A LOT of tension and chemistry. I mean the MUTUAL PINING in this book killed me... I FREAKING LOVED IT. Oh, and there is a Fake Dating trope in here too... so honestly, HAVE I CONVINCED YOU YET TO READ THIS??!!

I loved everything about Bree and Nathan and honestly... I'm just in love with Nathan. Oh... and I am also obsessed with his TEAMMATES!!! I mean, come on Sarah... GIVE ME A BOOK FOR EACH OF THESE AMAZING GENTLEMEN, OK?!?! Also, without spoiling, the scene in Nathan's kitchen with the white board (IYKYK)... literally had me laughing out loud (my husband had to keep me asking me what was so funny!! LOLz).

And I will say, what I appreciated a lot, is that there was no real 3rd act conflict... the story steadily built and built until the end, where I was almost in tears because I was just SO DAMN HAPPY.

Ok... thank you for coming to my TED Talk... READ THIS BOOK! :)

Rating: 5 stars!!

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for an e-ARC of this book!

The Cheat Sheet was just the romance book I was looking for. With great loveable characters and a laugh-out-loud story, what more could you want. Bree is so adorable you'll be rooting for her to get her man till the very end. I can't wait to read another book by Sarah Adams. This is a great Sports/Romance that you won't be able to put down!!!

Thank you to the author Sarah Adams for a gifted copy of this ARC. All opinions are my own.

SWOOOOOOOOOOOOON! This book knocked me off my feet with its sweetness, sexual tension and humor. If I didn't have a newborn I would have stayed up til the wee hours of the morning reading it and I would have been reading with a smile on my face the entire time. I want to be best friends with Bree and Nathan. I want to divorce my husband and marry Nathan. Seriously, he's definitely top 3 book boyfriend material. I love the dual perspectives of this story. I generally don't like miscommunication tropes BUT Sarah Adams somehow made this one work with the dual perspectives and I didn't mind it. There's no giant conflict to make it dramatic and ugh it's just an overall feel good, light fluffy, funny romance and I seriously need more. GIMME MORE!!!

If you love a good sports romance or you are a fan of Lyssa Kay Adams' bromance series, you are going to LOVE this book!

The Cheat Sheet was honestly such an enjoyable and cute read!! The characters were really interesting and I loved the interactions they had with each other and also the people around them.

I’ve been wanting to read this book since it was first announced and it did not disappoint! The Cheat Sheet is a best friends to lovers romance and Bree and Nathan are just another reason why I love and enjoy that trope so much. Their friendship was written so well and I loved the way their feelings developed throughout the story.

Sarah Adams never lets me down when it comes to these sweet books. I laughed and smiled so much reading this book! It’s exactly what I needed. Bree and Nathan are everything and more.

As soon as I saw the Cheat Sheet was posted, I couldn’t click request quick enough. I absolutely fell in love with Bree and Nathan. This was a super quick, light read. I will be recommending it to any and everyone.

Do you have a favorite romance trope? Friends to lovers is definitely one of mine! There's just something extra special about two people coming together that know one another so well. In her latest book Sarah Adams pulls this off to perfection with a super sweet, closed door, dual perspective romance between NFL player Nathan, and his best friend and dance studio owner, Bree. Both friends have been in love with the other since high school but too afraid to risk their friendship to take a chance on love. When Bree makes a drunken confession that goes viral they end up taking advantage of the publicity to enter a fake dating scenario that ultimately forces them to face their true feelings.

I loved so much about this book! Nathan has a great gang of football player friends who help him craft a 'cheat sheet' to woo Bree (think the Bromance book club). Nathan also suffers from some pretty severe anxiety which the book addresses in a great way, with Bree encouraging him to seek help and letting him know it's okay to not always be okay. There were sooo many great secondary characters helping drive the plot and keep the story interesting (from Dylan, the gay make-up artist to Bree's sister Lily and all Bree's spunky dance students).

Highly recommend this one! I usually love my romance with a lot more heat but the chemistry and sparks between Bree and Nathan were just so heartwarming and swoony I didn't mind one bit. For fans of other friends to lovers books like Isn't it Bromantic?, People we meet on vacation and When sparks fly. MUCH thanks to NetGalley and the author for my advance review copy! I binged this in one day and couldn't put it down.

I could not have loved this book more if I tried! Sarah Adams made absolute magic with this book. Every once in a while, you read a book that makes you fall in love again- with reading, love itself, and the world the author created for you. Bree and Nathan are the characters that readers wish for with every book. They were relatable, lovable, and had me rooting for them from the first page. The development of their relationship together and as individuals was incredibly well done and made their story feel so real. It’s rare that a book has me laughing and crying at the same time, but this one definitely did. I loved the addition of sports topics, anxiety, and dealing with broken dreams which added yet another dimension to the book. I don’t know how Sarah Adam’s managed to tackle these tough topics while keeping the book feeling light and fun, but the combination is incredible and left me wanting more.

Best friends romance + Sarah Adams = Read Immediately!!!

I had no idea what kind of story I was getting into, I read enough of the synopsis to know it was a best friends romance by Sarah Adams and knew I needed to drop everything and read it immediately. At first glance of the cover I thought maybe a high school romance, because I know nothing about football terms… hint hint, ‘cheat sheet’ is a football term. And it so much fun diving into a new book that way, especially when it’s by a must read author. You just know it’ll be incredible.

Bree and Nathan have been best friends since high school. They’re absolutely adorable together, and shocker! they’re both head over heels in love with each other. They just haven’t told each other. Its the classic lack of communication out of fear of ruining a good friendship sort of thing.
It was so much fun reading the story from both Bree and Nathan’s perspectives. Seeing what is holding each of them back and how each of them feels. And Bree’s random thoughts were hilarious, she is such a down to earth, easy to love person. As is Nathan! He’s a famous football player, but he’s just as kind and generous and easy to love as Bree is. They are absolutely perfect for each other.

It was really refreshing to read the real life problems both Bree and Nathan have to deal with. They’re not at this all time peak in their lives where everything is perfect, because that’s not real life. Bree is so kind and generous that she is constantly giving of her time for her ballet students and charging far less for classes than she can manage. And Nathan works crazy hard and has some serious anxiety issues that he’s embarrassed about and not really ready to confront.
Both of them have problems that a lot of us face all the time. How many of us have a tiny bank account balance, or feel the stresses of life weighing down on us?! I sure do! And it made Bree and Nathan so easy to relate to and root for! These two really did steal my heart.

I also really loved the side characters in this story. Nathan’s team mates- I want to read every one of their stories (if thats in the plans or not I’m not sure but fingers crossed). The camaraderie between them all and even Bree is so much fun, and I want more of it!!

Thank you NetGalley, Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op and the author, Sarah Adams for the complimentary arc in exchange for my honest opinion.


Content: clean.
Romance: kissing, closed door intimacy.
Violence: none.
Language: a few S words.

Have you ever gone into a book knowing full well that you’re going to love it?? That’s exactly what happens to me each time I start a book by the queen of romcoms: @authorsarahadams

I was lucky enough to get an eARC of The Cheat Sheet and I just loved everything about it, but let me name a few of my favorites!

✨The humor: as always, it was on point!! I love how Adams writes hilarious dialogues that feel so natural and believable.
✨The characters: they were so well developed and relatable, from the beginning of the story you’ll be rooting for Nathan & Bree. All the side characters were all fantastic too, from the ballet teenage girls to Nathan’s teammates, I loved them all! (On a side note: you cannot have a heartbeat and not fall for Nathan Donelson, you’ll love him from page 1)
✨Mental health awareness: it was handled with such care and normalcy – the message that regardless of your success in life you can suffer from a form of anxiety and the importance of seeking professional help especially when your most afraid of showing vulnerability.
✨The chemistry: Nathan & Bree are best friends and you can totally feel that while reading, their love for each other is selfless and beautiful and even though this is a closed door romance, you can feel the tension and anticipation growing.

Anyways, I can’t recommend this one enough, my only complaint is that your cheeks will hurt from smiling so much!!
The Cheat Sheet is out on August 17th, go preorder it ASAP!!

✨Thank you Sarah Adams, @netgalley and Victory Editing for an eARC of this book in exchange of an honest review. All opinions are my own.✨

This review will be posted closer to pub date on my Instagram account: @bm.bookish.girl

This book, just wow! I love the romance. I love them. They are just perfect for each other. I think this is th one of best book written by Sarah Adams. I love how, we readers, are exepcting Bree and Nathen to comr together. I am sorry to say that the ending was a little bit hasted. But all in all lovely read. For me a 4 stars read.

What a perfect rom com! I was smitten with this book from the first chapter! The friends to lovers trope is so fun to read but add in a fake relationship and it takes it to a whole new level! The funny banter back and forth between Nathan and his friends had me laughing out loud the entire time! I love the way this author portrayed the best friends relationship between Nathan and Bree. There was so much detail that I saw this book playing in my mind like I was watching a rom com in the movie theater! And the idea of a football player, specifically a quarterback, using a cheat sheet outside of the game is genius! Hands down one of my top reads of 2021! I can’t wait for everyone to experience this epic love story between two amazing characters! Hats off to the author, this book is everything funny, sweet, and romantic!

I don’t even have words you guys. I’m completely speechless. There’s a reason why Sarah Adams is one of my all time favorite authors, and this book just reinforced it a million times over. Her writing is magic people. Pure magic!

I won’t hesitate for a second to say that this was the absolute best “best friends to lovers” book I’ve ever read. It was just so well done.. The chemistry and attraction is off the freaking charts. Somebody get me a fan please because it is that hot. Sarah is an absolute master at the kind of closed-door romance that has enough steam to make your toes curl, but still leaves plenty to the imagination.

I promise you’ll fall in love with Bree and Nathan and all of their sweet, goofy, vulnerable, adorable, romantic moments together. Do yourself a favor and read this book!

CW: anxiety and panic attacks, adult language, swearing

The Cheat Sheet (and really anything by Sarah Adams) is such a delight to read and will have you smiling. This story follows Bree and Nathan, friends who have secretly pined for one another for years. I always love a friends-to-lover story, but this one was especially fun with a bit of fake dating and navigating Nathan’s celebrity as an NFL football player.

I loved the characters as Bree and Nathan both don’t want to ruin their friendship by confessing feelings, and couldn’t help but laugh as we got each of their perspectives as they blurred the friendship line. I appreciated the inclusion of Nathan’s anxiety and panic attacks and how the characters addressed their struggles with mental health. I also especially loved Nathan’s friendship with his teammates – the guys all had his back to help him get out of the friend zone and they reminded me a bit of The Bromance Book Club crew.

If you want a sweet story full of humor and loveable characters, then pick up The Cheat Sheet when it publishes August 17. Sarah Adams continues to be an auto-read author for me, so check out her books for closed-door romance.

The Cheat Sheet is such a fun, delightful read. I love friends to lovers tropes. Throw in fake dating and I’m sold. Sarah has such a fun writing style which makes for an enjoyable light read 😍

I’ve been eagerly awaiting the arrival of The Cheat Sheet for almost as long as I’ve been reading Sarah Adams’ books (seriously, two of my three reviews of her books mention it by name 🤣) so I jumped at the chance to read and review this ahead of it’s pub date!

I’ve read a ton of romance this year - both open and closed door - and The Cheat Sheet (closed door) is one of my favorites of the year. I fell head over heels for Bree and Nathan, longtime athletes and best friends who’re struggling to keep their feelings for each other under wraps. Some friends to lovers romances can get icky - they don’t really seem like friends or they get toxic - but Bree and Nathan are a delight together; while their reservations about changing the dynamic of their relationship made total sense, I was also squealing JUSTKISSOKAY! I was rooting for them to be together because they just *work.*

Bree’s sister and Nathan’s teammates really added to the story - they gave me Ted Lasso vibes with their determination to support Bree and Nathan and it was so sweet and funny. Dylan, the makeup artist/stylist stole the show in the best way. It’s a testament to Adams’ skill as a writer that these characters gelled and felt so real. I don’t want to say too much - but the little details really shine in this book!

The representation of a male MC - a pro athlete - with anxiety and panic attacks is super awesome to see, although I wish there had been more time to see Nathan address it on page. The only other book with that rep that comes to mind is Take a Hint, Dani Brown (🔥) which is, coincidentally, also in my top romance reads of the year!

I don’t know if @authorsarahadams has any plans to spin this book into a series, but I would kill for more books in this world - stories about Jamal, Derek, Price, and Lawrence, perhaps? 🤞🏻

TW: panic attacks