The cheerleader and the high school quarterback, could you get any more cliché? Oh, except that they are both girls. New-in-town Jack, who was totally NOT recruited and transferred to play for the Atherton Alligators, is finally getting her chance at her dream: to play football on a school team. If only she wasn't completely ostracized at school and on the team for that very reason: being a female football player. It seems the only person on her side is the peppy cheerleader, Amber, who totally isn't queer. Right?

Home Field Advantage was a sweet, queer romance that turned some typical high school topes onto their head. It was an enjoyable read, though at times I just wanted to reach my hands through the pages and shake some sense into our MC's, but hey, they're teenagers, and teenagers are notoriously bad at communication. Let's just hope they get it together in time for the big Homecoming game, and maybe make some new friends along the way.

Home Field Advantage
By: @missdahlelama
Pub Date: June 7th!

I really enjoyed Cool for the Summer, so was excited to read Home Field Advantage! This is a classic Cheerleader gets the Quarterback love story…only this year, the starting quarterback, Jack, is actually Jaclyn, and people are none too happy about it.

Amber wants nothing more than to be the captain of the cheer squad next year, so she has a lot to prove to the team and coach this year. Jack wants nothing more than to just play football, so she and her mom relocated to a town where Jack could play. Both have insecurities that they need to work through as well as roadblocks that are preventing them from being leaders on their respective teams.

I love the representation of queer kids in the popular group. I feel that their internal conflicts are portrayed in a genuine and accurate manner. So many people need to hide their true self “until this happens” or “until this is achieved”. It must be exhausting. I feel Adler does a good job of having the characters balance what they want with what others think of them.

Home Field Advantage by Dahila Adler was a story about the typical romance between a quarterback and a cheerleader told in a unique way. In this story, both the quarterback and the cheerleader were a girl. This set up some insecurities for them about being open with their relationship. The cheerleader, Amber, was already fake dating another football player named Miguel, who was also gay. Amber is so fearful about being open with her relationship with the quarterback, Jack, because of one of her best friends on the cheer team, Cara. Cara is very religious and comes from a homophobic family. However, Cara has her own plot twisting secrets that are learned later in this story. This story was composed of 13 chapters and each chapter included half of the point of view of Amber and half of the point of view of Jack, which I found to be a unique format, but worked great for this story. I’m this story, I absolutely adored Amber’s relationship that she had with her mom. I also loved the strength and confidence that Jack had despite feeling rejected by her teammates. Though some parts of this story did feel rushed and repetitive, I greatly enjoyed the plot of this story, the plot twists, and the characters connections with one another. I also enjoyed how the fake dating trope and quarterback and cheerleader romance trope was told in a much different way in this story. I would definitely recommend this one to others!

As a queer girl who grew up a fan of sports, especially football, I was excited to read this. Adler captures the difficulties of being out in high school, of living up to unrealistic expectations, and of the deep misogyny and homophobia in sports, particularly in high school. That isn’t to say this romcom is a bummer; it’s sharply funny at times and plays a bit with stereotypes (quarterback/cheerleader) in refreshing ways. But it doesn’t shy away from honest portrayals of misogyny and homophobia which were difficult to read in places. So know it isn’t light and fluffy going in.

This is a clever book with lots of queer representation and characters you want to root for and some against. I didn’t love the redemptive-ish arc that some of the characters get after being such villains and I wish there were more actual sports scenes, but the ones that are present are well done.

Some of Amber’s choices and her approach to relationships felt a bit messy but I also understand she is trying to work it out for herself and is a teenager who feels like there is a lot on the line.

The pacing felt unfocused at times, particularly with so much internal commentary that is sometimes repetitive and doesn’t always move the action. Near the end of the book, the action is tighter and cleaner and near perfect, though. And I really got into the story at 45%.

Overall, this is an important and readable YA sapphic romance. I would recommend this to sports fans, especially queer ones and to readers looking for bi and polysexual and queer representation especially. 4 stars

“Home Field Advantage” by Dahlia Adler was not exactly what I was expecting when I opened my kindle. Going by the blurb and cover I thought this was going to be a cute and lighthearted sports rom-com. I was wrong. While there are definitely some cute and lighthearted scenes, this is a lot heavier for the most part.

Jack Walsh has just been recruited as the starting quarterback for a new high school. Unluckily for her, the former quarterback was killed in a drunk driving accident and was well loved so she’s not exactly welcomed with open arms. The team and student body is even more upset when Jack turns out to be short for Jaclyn and is in fact female.

Amber McCloud is a cheerleader that is hoping to be voted captain for her senior year. She knows she needs to show her leadership skills to the squad but finds it difficult when the squad comes together to try and get rid of Jack. Amber has also been hiding the fact that she’s bisexual and finds it harder to do what’s expected of her when she meets Jack.

I liked both Jack and Amber and how flawed they were. They made for interesting characters and I thought a lot of their romance was really sweet and cute. They’re both dealing with homophobia and misogyny and it was realistic how they each reacted in such different ways to those things. I was also a big fan of the sports side because there’s not a whole lot of the actual sport. Hah! I can be a bit leery of reading sport romances because I’m not a big fan of sports but it wasn’t a problem for me at all this time.

Speaking of homophobia and misogyny, this book is filled with it. And it is the reason I said this book is lot heavier than I was expecting. Almost every page has some form of one or the other or both if you’re lucky. It becomes a lot and I actually had to take a break from it while reading. It’s still a good read but it does become overwhelming (at least for me) in some parts.

While I mostly enjoyed this and do recommend it, beware that there’s a lot of misogyny and homophobia you’ll be dealing with.

I received an ARC from St. Martin’s Press/Wednesday Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, Dahlia Adler & Wednesday Books for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I got home from Pride, sunburnt and fully expecting to pass out when I decided to pick up this book to read before bed. Cue me reading the entire book in one sitting, not even moving, and staying up way too late before work!

Despite that, I probably would have rated this book lower if it wasn’t about being queer. There were some parts that hit me really hard as a queer person who has struggled with religious trauma and that relatability definitely brought the score up.

I highly suggest that readers view the trigger warnings before reading this book because it definitely wasn’t a bundle of queer joy.
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Home Field Advantage follows Amber, a high school cheerleader from a small-town vying to become captain, but she’s also got a secret – she’s polysexual. She’s been fine not having crushes on any of the Atherton High School kids, waiting until college until she can be out and free. That is, until the new quarterback, Jack, shows up.

After the fatal car crash involving Robbie, Atherton’s former quarterback, Jack Walsh becomes the high school’s first female football player – which already would make waves but on top of that, Jack is very obviously a lesbian, and the team feels like she is “taking” the quarterback position away from the guys on the team while trampling over Robbie’s legacy.

Amber and Jack navigate their attraction, social relationships, at times conflicting motivations, and small-town bigotry.

All in all, I did enjoy this book, but I do think there were a lot of issues that would have led me to rate this lower if it wasn’t queer and tugging at parts of my heart.

SPOILERS
PROS:
-I think the details on other queer characters not wanting to out other queer characters were perfect. A lot of times the media will portray a queer person as being upset that another queer person doesn’t want to come out. To me, this is completely the opposite because we all know that coming out can be hard and dangerous. Many of us wouldn’t hold it against someone, even if we decide that’s not a life we can personally choose for ourselves.

Adler does a great job of using Amber not wanting to come out as a great plot point, while also making it clear that her friends would have been okay with that if she had just been honest about it instead of lying to both of them.

-The queer representation wasn’t limited to the two main characters. Obviously Amber and Jack are sapphic, but Amber has an openly bisexual mom, and a best guy friend, Miguel, who is gay and has a boyfriend. Miguel gets A LOT of page time for a side character. On top of that, Jack has a friend who is asexual (and aromantic maybe?) and another who uses they/them pronouns.

-The conversation on not making someone out to be a saint just because they died was decently done. I think this is a hard topic to talk about and not one that everyone agrees with, but I still commend the author for addressing it. I don’t think it was perfect, but this is something that a lot of queer (and other marginalized) people can understand. There are people who have hurt us or continued to support our oppression and we don’t always feel like commemorating their deaths. In fact, some might celebrate.

There are also times that someone is being praised or glorified, dead or alive, who have hurt us, and we can’t say anything about it. This was something that especially rang true to me. We are not always safe to speak up about who caused us pain and it’s always a slap in the face to see people praising them.

CONS:
-Atherton felt like a movie version of a small town. You know the kind, where the person hasn’t actually lived in a small town and this is what they expect the high school and bigotry to be like. I grew up in a homophobic small town riddled with religious bigotry and misogyny. Two actually. There were several times I had to force myself to suspend belief because the characterization just wasn’t fully realistic. A lot of the words and language from the bigots felt more like shock value than what would actually be said.

It can be bad and dangerous; it just presents itself differently.

-There were more points that just weren’t believable. A lot of times I just had to force myself to go “it’s a story, it’s already fake so what’s a little more.” I don’t want to have to argue with myself to continue reading the book. One specific example was the football coach not realizing the boys were throwing the game. I mean, come on, if they aren’t good at keeping it a secret from Jack, I doubt they’re good at being sneaky. Especially if they aren’t good at football, they’re not going to be good at faking losing subtly. That does take skill – to know how to fail subtly.

And yeah, adults aren’t always great, but you’re seriously telling me that Amber never went to her mom? Who would absolutely advocate for her especially because she’s bi and would have fought for Jack to be respected as a queer person? No one tried talking to the cheer coach or football coach…At all? Not even give the coach a heads up that they wanted to throw the game BEFORE the game so he could keep an eye on it?

-For all the author’s commentary on misogyny, I think she unintentionally writes misogynistic characterizations of women. Every girl in this book except Amber and Jack are written to be completely misogynistic stereotypes of the mean girl airheaded cheerleaders. I think there were better ways to use them as bullies without writing them as completely one-dimensional and almost putting down the fact that they decided to participate in traditional femininity.

The way Jack talks about the cheerleaders, even Amber, is misogynistic too. I don’t think this was fully resolved on Jack’s end just because she ended up with Amber.

-This book is heavy. Not physically – no, it’s actually a short read. But I was not prepared for how many topics were going to be touched on this. I honestly thought from the description that this was going to be way more lighthearted than it was. I fully expected misogyny and fear of homophobia to be a theme but this was... a lot. I think if I hadn’t just come back from my own local Pride and celebrated myself, this would have put me in a rut for a couple of days.

This is just as much a romance as it is a political commentary and a story on queer trauma, misogyny, and religious bigotry. I don’t think addressing these things are bad, but there was just one thing after another, and I really felt unprepared for the level of bigotry when I thought it would be romance-focused.

Really EVERYONE at Atherton but Amber, Jack, and Miguel were assholes? This book was lonely. I really wish the author had written a little bit more about some of the characters who started warming up towards the end, like Nia.

-Some of the writing felt juvenile to me. I read Cool for the Summer by Dahlia Adler a week or so ago and while the topics in that book weren’t as heavy, the writing felt more advanced and those characters had more depth. I think an attempt was made to give Jack, Amber, and even Miguel depth, but I think this book was too short to do that properly. I knew their motivations, but mostly because it was written in plain print. It was stated not shown.

And the amount of verbiage used to describe Amber and Jack’s physical attributes and… nothing else was a bit much. With a book this short, these sentences are valuable and could have been used in more productive ways, like expanding on Jack and Amber’s relationship instead of it going from 0, to 10, to 100? There also were a lot of repeated phrases.

oh my god, i loved this from begging to end. this was very cute!! I actually need everyone to read it. I love both of our protagonist, my favorite thing about them is that they aren't perfect, they mess up a lot, like any teenager. Their circumstances, the friendships they chose to keep, etc, ALL MAKE SENSE and it makes them more real for it. I especially loved jack, she went through so much shit but never gave up, she always knew her worth even if those other fuckers didn't or weren't willing to recognize it. she's so special to me.

What a charming book. It was funny, realistic, and just a joy to read. I would absolutely recommend this to anyone for Pride month, or any time of year. This book is going to be really meaningful to a lot of teenagers, i think.

I've loved Dahlia Adler since reading Cool For the Summer last year. Home Field advantage did not disappoint! In the book, a closeted queer cheerleader falls for the new female quarterback in town, all while exploring her sexuality and fending off the team and cheer squad's ill intentions toward the QB. The inclusivity and spectrum of LBGTQIA+ was wonderful in this heartwarming YA romance.

I absolutely loved Jack's character. She was tough, had grit and wouldn't back down from her dreams. Jack has given up a lot for her dreams, especially with her family, so even after everything she's been through, Jack still was loyal to the school, even though they weren't exactly loyal to her. I loved the banter between Jack and Amber. The pair were so snarky and quick witted with each other.

Another bright spot was Miguel's character, who would do anything for Amber. Their fake relationship offered a solace for both teens, who are struggling with the timing of when they want to come out. The twist at the 75% mark completely threw me for a loop and redeemed one character that I hated for most of the book.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Dahlia Adler & Wednesday Books for an advance copy of this book in exchanged for a honest review!

This will be published on June 7th.

Amber wants to be head cheerleader and will do whatever it takes to get that spot next year. One thing that she hasn't shared thinking it would jeopardize her chances at getting the position is that she is queer and into girls. A way that she covers this is by dating a football player Miguel Santiago who also has a secret of his own. He is a closeted player so they help each other out. Amber was never a fan of the decease student as he was black mailing Miguel and threatening to out him and was a homophobe.

Jack short for Jaclyn was recruited to be the quarterback after the school's former quarterback Robbie died. And because of this did not make things easy for her to make friends or even to get through the school day. Jack has a hard exterior and comes off as not so nice even to those like Amber who is nice to her. She is having a hard enough time with teammates who cannot accept that 1) a girl is on the team let alone quarterback and 2) that Robbie is gone.

Amber doesn't like how the football team and the cheerleaders are treating Jack. She knows that she doesn't deserve it especially because of how she knew Robbie was. She doesn't just want to help Jack fit in but also finds her insanely attractive. Jack also starts to develop feelings for Amber in return which makes things completed since she is not out at school.

I haven't read too many YA sapphic books but I thought this one was enjoyable! It had lots of football talk, high school culture, enemies to friends to lovers trope.

I love when books are told from two POVs so that was such a bonus. I really love the relationship that Amber and Jack built throughout the course of the book. It started off rocky between the two characters for good reason. Jack was an outsider and didn't know who they could trust.

One thing that I didn't like but it's just a personal preference are long chapters. I wish the POVs were broken into separate chappers. I think what is what initially turned me off when I started reading this because my kindle would show that I had 34 minutes to the next chapter. BUT once I started to get into the storyline, the chapters didn't feel as long.

Content Warnings from Storygraph:
Graphic: Homophobia, Misogyny, Bullying
Moderate: Car accident, Alcohol, Lesbophobia
Minor: Miscarriage , Abortion, Death

HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE is one of those books that every time I heard people talk about it, I couldn’t wait to read it. I’m not usually a big reader of football player/cheerleader romances, but I loved the concept of this one and its celebration of girls playing football.

The first chapter was a little bit rough for me because it’s really setting up how much Amber feels like she needs to become cheer captain the next year and why she’s so obsessed with that goal. As the story went forward, those early pages made a lot more sense, but I didn’t feel connected with her at the time I read that opening chapter. Once I got to know her and to see that even though she had very scripted goals and wants, she also had a lot of empathy and determination. Those things definitely made me fall in love with her.

As for Jack– I was a fan from minute one. Her passion, her fierceness, and even her guilt over the sacrifices her family made so she could have this one dream were so real and raw. Honestly, I couldn’t help rooting for her from the first minute to the last. I loved her so much.

My favorite part of the book was actually the part where Jack is on the field, the stakes are high, and she’s not at all sure she can get anyone on her team to come through for her. I feel like I read those pages on the literal edge of my seat, back straight, barely breathing as each play began. So, so good. I absolutely loved that scene (and the cheer immediately after the game, too…).

On the whole, I would say HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE is a total win for me. I feel like if you read LGBTQ+ fiction, you’ve probably already heard of Dahlia Adler from her blog, but if you haven’t– you’ll definitely want to check out both the blog and the book!

I love it so much! The classic football quarterback is dating a cheerleader cliche with a queer twist! I really enjoyed the distinct dual perspective and seeing the passion that fuels the two sports. The characters were dynamic and lively, and I was rooting for Jack and Amber the whole time as they had to face misogyny, homophobia, and bullying. Home Field Advantage was a sweet, romantic read that was full of school spirit.

A cute YA romance in a book that was a little heavier than expected. This was my second read by Adler, and I’m happy to say that I liked it much more than her other, Cool for the Summer. While I enjoyed the feel of Alder’s previous writing, I just didn’t enjoy many of her story choices and I ran into some personal pet peeves. Luckily, this book didn’t have any of those issues so it was a much better match for me. It was a tad heavier, maybe sadder, at times than I expected but the cute romance, good main characters, and an enjoyable ending pushed the book into 4 stars territory for me.

While this is technically a “sports” romance it’s the high school cheerleaders and football feel. There are only a few football scenes and all of them are either exciting or add something important to the story. You don’t have to have any football knowledge to enjoy this one and you won’t get lost because Alder crafts very clear word pictures to follow along with.

I used words like heavier than expected and sad to describe this book. While it might not have one or two huge triggers, it has a whole bunch of little ones in the way of being homophobic and extremely misogynistic. It is almost like death by a thousand paper cuts and I was surprised how much it started to wear me down. You have two main characters, two or three secondary teenage characters, and a cool mom (with some rare bisexual mom rep), and this was about it for nice characters. Everyone else was pretty horrible and it was hard watching the main characters totally alone at times. I think it ended up being a little too much and the book has this downer feeling that stopped me from liking it enough to call it a 5 star read. I think you can make your points about misogyny and homophobia without making every character an asshole.

Alder did a really nice job on the two main characters, and a main secondary character. Sometimes when you read YA, you know it was written by an adult trying to imitate a teenager’s voice. With Alder it doesn’t feel like that. It feels like you are put into the mind of these young adults, dealing with these issues and just trying to make it through high school. The main characters were relatable and while flawed, they still showed growth and you could not help but totally ship them as an adorable couple. Parts of this book were clearly a downer, but the romance was sweet and just what you hope for in a good YA book. And while I will not give anything away, I enjoyed the whole last quarter of the book. It made me feel like I was watching the ending of a teenage rom-com and it put a smile on my face.

TLDR: This was a well done YA romance with a sports twist. If you like the whole setting of high school football and cheerleaders, and like the idea of a young queer woman breaking boundaries, I would recommend this book. It does have homophobia and a lot of misogyny, so it may be triggering to some. I think the book was a little heavier than I expected, but the romance between likeable characters helped to balance some of those parts out and I did end the book with a smile on my face. I look forward to reading Alder again.

Amber McCloud has been dreaming of becoming cheer captain for as long as she can remember. But, it's hard to cheer when the quarterback of your team was killed in a car accident. Watching him get replaced has been hard for everyone. However, when they realize that the new quarterback is Jaclyn aka Jack, everything descends into chaos.

For Jack, starting at a new school is hard enough without being scruntinized as the only girl on the football team. It's even harder when everyone resents you. As Amber works to try to bring everyone together, it's quickly clear that the two girls might be falling for each other. Which means, Amber might have to pick a side: love or her dreams of cheer captain.

Thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for an advanced copy of this to review! When you pick up a Dahlia Adler book, you know it's going to be an adorable romance, and this is no different! Honestly, it's the perfect book to start off your summer with.

What I enjoyed about this book from the start is that it's a twist on the classic high school romance. We all know the story where the cheerleader and the quarterback fall for each other. Adler just made it gay. And oh my goodness, does it work so well. Amber and Jack have great chemistry from the beginning, and I loved seeing them evolve throughout the book.

Also, the core characters were just a treaet. I specificaly loved the dynamic between Jack, Amber, and Malcolm. They all support each other when they don't feel it's safe to be out. Yes, they all make mistakes, but they're teenagers! Everything they did felt realistic and teenagery. I was 100% here for it.

However, if you're looking for a book that's focused specifically on the sports, you might be dissapointed in the amount of sports actually inlcuded in the book. A lot of the football is just glossed over. I didn't mind, but it might throw you off if it's something you're looking for.

All in all, I loved this as a start of Pride Month read and can't wait for other people to read it!

This is a touching and insightful story. Amber is a rising star on her high school cheerleading squad. She hopes to become the captain her senior year and use that to get a college scholarship. The football team at her high school may be hopeless, but that does not stop the school or their small town from exhibiting strong team spirit. But when the team's quarterback is killed in a car accident and is replaced by a girl, Jack, it throws the school, the town, and Amber's life into chaos as the football team, and the broader community, question the new quarterback even as Jack shows she is a far better football player than who she replaced. Amber, who finds herself developing a deeper and deeper connection with Jack, tries to hold the squad together and get them, and the school, to support Jack. But as she faces increasing resistance from her teammates, she must confront how far she is willing to go to support Jack and do what she knows is right.

This is a great story, with compelling characters, a strong story, and surprising turns. The one pulls you in from the start.

Highly recommended!

This was such a sweet, quick read! I've been on a YA kick and I've had this on on my to be read list for a while and thought this would be a great pick for Pride month! I really enjoyed Amber and Jack's progression throughout the story. It was a nice breath of fresh air to see that Amber was pretty instantly smitten with Jack, that there was an attraction between them, and how she stood up for Jack when no one else did.
I think where I wanted more was actually with the conflict. Yes, there was conflict, obviously no one wanted a female quarterback to boss them around, but I wanted more tension between the two sometimes. I thought that it just kind of moved along as a straight line versus a rollercoaster which I may have preferred, but still loved the story regardless.

I feel so pumped and empowered after reading this book, and I’m not anywhere close to its target audience. But that doesn’t matter because Dahlia Adler’s story is filled with hope and strength and pride, and that can resonate with anyone. This is a fantastic read, and I feel privileged to read it in advance of publication.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

4.5 stars

This one was so good; it was a delightful comfort read. I love YA, I love queer YA, I love YA with strong female characters, and, not coincidentally, I love almost everything about this book. (I’m also loving the mix of YA books I keep reading lately that have queer parent figures; it’s great to see!) It hit that satisfying mix of fluffy/soft and real/relevant, I liked the major characters and their growth, and I appreciated how, even with a happy ending, not everything magically worked out flawlessly; it was still real. I didn’t even lose too much interest in all the football talk, and let me tell you, that’s a big accomplishment on the writer’s end. The writer is very skilled in her own right, of course; her work reminds me of Casey McQuiston, Becky Albertalli, Andrea Mosqueda, and a few others. All in all, this was a great book, and it’s definitely one I’ll be adding to my list of novels to acquire for my classroom library in the near future.

Amber is a cheerleader just hoping to make captain next year when the new quarterback, Jack, comes in. To the surprise Amber, the rest of the cheerleaders and the football team, Jack is a girl. The team and cheerleaders are resistant to Jack leading the team, but I'm sure it ends with the team or the cheerleaders coming around and people coming out.

But this is my first book from NetGalley to DNF.

I really tried to keep going with this one, but I just couldn't do it.

What really put any interest I had in pushing forward was the line when Amber and Miguel are talking about "what cock-blocking is when you don't have a cock". But that section aside, I personally found Amber and Jack unlikable, both from their own POVs and then hearing about them from each other. Amber's cheerleader friends were unbearable and the stereotype of cheerleaders and football players was just a bit obnoxious (I know that was part of the point, but I couldn't stand to read and see if the cheerleaders ever overcame their internalized misogyny or any of them overcame their homophobia). I could also tell based off the blackmail discussion that there was some backstory to both Amber and Miguel that I personally did not want to get to and read the full account of, which is a personal preference, but a reason I'll dnf any book.

There were also writing bits that stood out to me, like the way the author continued to describe hair and eye color (Amber scooping her chestnut hair into a ponytail) that comes across as fairly immature/inexperienced writing or maybe something an editor should have caught.

The story had some promising parts and this might be a good book for some people, but it was not for me and I had no interest in finishing it.

Thank you to Net Galley for making this book available in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoyed this book however the writing style came across for a younger audience than I was expecting. I thought the story and plot were good. I liked the characters just wished they were fleshed out a bit more. It was a fun sweet romance and I thought it discusses sexism and homophobia well. Overall I thought it was good and I would recommend it to friends.