yes yes yess!! i loved this book so much. i finished it in a day and laughed a lot. i would definitely recommend it if you’re looking for a queer sports romance book!

Honestly, not too many thoughts on this one! It was, in my opinion, leagues better than Mistakes Were Made. Lots of fun, some actual plot, good characters.

I usually avoid sports at all costs, but sports romances are the exception. And this one is just as excellent as I wanted it to be! If you're looking for childhood crush, friends with benefits, and grumpy/sunshine with some sports mixed in, this is for you!

We also have multiple other sapphic side characters and couples and a nonbinary side character.

I really appreciated that all of the angst and drama came from different versions of communication/miscommunication than I expected. It was refreshing!

Also, I was in a bit of a Zolita mood as I was reading, and Somebody I F*cked Once came on and now I can't stop relating it to Grace and Phoebe, so I definitely recommend listening to that/Zolita's recent discography while reading. 10/10 experience.

Phoebe, an up-and-coming soccer star from middle-of-nowhere America is star-struck when she meets her long-time idol Grace Henderson. Grace, however, can’t be bothered to get close to anyone, let alone another rookie…not after what happened last time. But when they end up on the same Women’s National Team they realize they’re going to have to get along or risk screwing their chances at the World Cup before it even begins.

As the pair grow closer despite their obvious differences, they find their chemistry is undeniable, both on and off the field. But after an injury sidelines Grace and Phoebe is poised to take her place their already rocky friends-with-benefits situation finds itself in a tricky spot. Can Grace see past her own insecurities and actually let Phoebe in? And can Phoebe listen well enough to support Grace in the ways she needs? All while learning how to work together instead of against each other on the field?

Meryl Wilsner does it again! I knew going into this it was going to be a steamy one and this read did not disappoint. But as I’ve come to appreciate with Wilsner’s writing the spicy scenes serve a purpose in the plot and aren’t just forced in. The story and characters would have different outcomes without those scenes and they push the narrative compared to hindering it.

Often in romance, it feels like there’s a trade-off between plot or character development. But Cleat Cute left me with both a high-stakes plot and characters I deeply cared about. And I learned a ton about professional soccer. I did truly believe too that these characters were real because of how well the backstory was woven in. After reading it I wanted to google “Phenom Soccer” or look up Grace Henderson’s many interviews. And it was a bit of a disappointment when I realized I couldn’t but that’s a testament to the quality of writing Meryl gives us.

One of my favorite things about the book is its treatment of lesbianism. I rarely ever see the word “lesbian” even in WLW romance novels so to see two lesbian-identifying characters was so exciting. Not only did we get lesbian-on-lesbian action but we got two vastly different approaches to lesbianism. Phoebe, an out and proud lesbian who weaves being queer into every part of her identity is far more like me. However, Grace is much more reserved in her sexuality. And although she isn’t closeted, her identity does not crop up in her life much more than who she chooses to be with romantically. I know it’s a small aspect of the overall book but having characters that truly feel queer really does elevate the story.

This book is also what I call a queer WLW book. And what I mean by that is the only thing gay about Cleat Cute isn’t just that the lead characters are AFAB and into each other. But there are a variety of queer characters and multiple queer topics are discussed. It is a queer book for queer people and doesn’t try to make its content more “digestible” or heternormative. Which is a huge plus.

All in all, I would definitely recommend Cleat Cute if you like complex opposites attract romance and hot sex scenes. You’ll find yourself relating to both Phoebe and Grace at different times and rooting for them throughout the whole story. Plus there’s a World Cup to win! Happy reading!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for sending this eARC for review consideration. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

**Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review**

I really wanted to like this one but, unfortunately, it just wasn’t for me.

There were parts that I enjoyed! The spice was good and there were a few key scenes I enjoyed where the characters really got to shine on their own. There were also some good conversations about being queer and what it means for different people which I did enjoy.

The beginning seemed like a lot of set up that felt a little repetitive and it wasn’t until about 40ish% of the way through the book that a major plot point happened.

The miscommunication felt repetitive in a lot of ways too. It felt as though each time we switched point of views, the miscommunication had to be reestablished through an internal monologue. When they did fight about their miscommunications, it seemed to be resolved way too quickly.

This is marketed as ADHD/Autism, but that really didn’t become a major piece until 80% of the way in and it felt a little more like an add on than anything and a little bit forced. It didn’t really sit well with me how it was brought up either.

Overall, this book wasn’t really for me. I think I expected something very different when I picked this book up.

The writing is incredibly accessible for young adults and new adults. It feels like it’s speaking well to the target audience. I stopped after chapter 2 (5%), but solid three stars, four to five for the right readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC.

This book had me at sapphic, and Ted Lasso meets A League of Their Own. I had to read it, and so thank you for the chance to read the ARC.

This was my first time reading Meryl Wilsner, and I may not have been expecting all the spice that was in this book, nor did I really need it. But I loved both Phoebe and Grace. It was a cozy read. Romance isn't really my genre but Cleat Cute was a worthy exception.

Thank you to the Netgalley and the publisher, St. Martin’s Press, St. Martin’s Griffin, for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy. This honest review was based off my experience reading this eARC, which in no way biased me. All opinions are my own.

This is the second book I have read from this author. While I can appreciate what they were trying to do, unfortunately for me it did not give what I was hoping for. Perhaps that’s more on me than on the author.

Cleat Cute has a few elements that are right up my alley. It’s sapphic and they’re soccer players. I really did not need more to convince myself that I needed to read this book. But later I saw it was marketed as grumpy/sunshine and rivals to lovers, unfortunately I feel the start of the faults in the execution begin here.

Personally, two women who are literally on the same soccer team inherently cannot be rivals. Yet, this is what is happening. Grace is the 26 year old soccer superstar veteran player and captain to the New Orleans soccer team Phoebe, the 21- 22 year old rookie is joining. I could see the fact that they both want a spot on the Women’s National team but this is a team that Grace has played on for multiple years, (refer back to the soccer superstar, Bestie has been practically playing/training professionally since she was 11) there’s no way that Grace’s spot on the National team is even up for grabs.

Now, Grace has a hip injury that she’s kept secret from her teams and trainers for a whole season if not more. Obviously, Grace is a private person. What I don’t understand is why Grace who has successfully kept it a secret for months confesses to this woman has known for all of 2 seconds (maybe less than 2 months within the story). It does not make sense. Now you can argue that since Phoebe is practically in love and obsessed with Grace and has been for like most of her life, Phoebe might be more observant than others. But the fact is Grace still had to confirm Phoebe’s suspicions, and I don’t get why she would do that. Well there’s lots of things they both do that I don’t understand but anyway.

So if the whole “competing for the same spot on the National team” was more of a plot point and not some causally mentioned throwaway lines I would believe the whole “yeah they’re rivals”. But alas it is not and so it feels more like a marketing thing because you literally cannot be rivals with a fellow teammate that you have zero previous history with. It’s not like they were rivals on separate teams and now they’re playing for the same team. Or even if they had the same level of “celebrity/soccer superstar status” and they were actually competing for the starting position of whatever position they play. But again neither of those situations are a thing.

As for the grumpy/sunshine it honestly feels more of like an older sister/younger sister dynamic (when you’re not considering when they have sec of course). Phoebe is the “younger, irresponsible/flakey, more energetic, talker, considered to be like ALOT, loud, ‘an open book’, etc. ” while Grace is the “more responsible, grumpy, ‘team mom’, older, wiser, private, more reserved, etc.”.

I have to go back and expand on the bit I mentioned previously about the fact that Phoebe has already been practically in love with Grace for like half her life. So we know that Grace started training to play professional soccer since she was 11. There’s a 5 year age difference between Grace and Phoebe. So when Grace started her professional soccer career Phoebe was growing up watching her. So when Phoebe meets Grace and has the opportunity to play on the same team as her, Phoebe is naturally elated to say the least. But here’s the thing, because Grace has always been so private about her and her life Phoebe doesn’t actually know shit about her. But yet she’s still practically in love with her.

Once they meet they don’t really get to know each other much because while Phoebe doesn’t stop talking Grace tends to tune her out. Their relationship is almost purely physical chemistry and lust based. Which is fine but it does feel very out of pocket that Grace is literally scolding Phoebe for being late over and over again and then they’re fucking in the locker room. we are told they feel these strong emotions (to practical strangers) but we are not shown this.

How am I led to believe that Phoebe has actual real life feelings for Grace apart the fact that she’s been her celebrity crush for over a decade? And that Phoebe is going to be the reason Grace breaks the “don’t get involved with teammates” rule she established because another similar situation burned her.

Because of this as I was reading it all felt so surface level. There’s a fundamental miscommunication happening between Grace and Phoebe that them having only a physical relationship and not actually talking about things only exacerbates the differences of opinions/stances even further.

Now seeing that it was marketed as Autistic and ADHD I was hoping that they already knew their diagnoses. This is also not the case. Grace has a sister who has diagnosed ADHD so having that background and the help with trusty TikTok, she diagnoses Phoebe with ADHD and then realizes she is autistic. I’m not apposed to TikTok being the thing that sparks your own research on any topic. But there has to be other research done outside of TikTok.

Is there well written smut? Yes. But when I don’t feel connected or even interested in the characters I don’t care for the smut to be honest. So…

Anyway, I wish it gave what I wanted. Unfortunately it didn’t and it’s a big no for me.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Griffin for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was so excited for this one, but unfortunately, this was a big miss for me. There were a few things about this I really enjoyed, but overall I’m not sure I would recommend this book.

For the things about this I did enjoy: I thought the spice was so fun! I really liked the way Phoebe and Grace checked in with each other and the communication they had during sex. I also really liked how they mentioned that sometimes sexy is just about connection and intimacy, not just ensuring all parties finish. I also really appreciated the diversity of the cast of characters.

Now while Phoebe & Grace’s communication during sex was refreshing and positive, I think that was the only time in the book where they communicated well. I found it really frustrating that for about half the book Phoebe thought they were in a committed relationship whole Grace just thought they were FWB. Neither one of them spoke up about defining the relationship and it ultimately led to a lot of confusion and in my opinion, a very clunky and unbelievable conclusion to their happy ending.

I also really struggled with the writing style here. Third person is not usually a deterrent for me when reading a book, but for this one it was borderline distracting. It was choppy and hard to follow. The storytelling also relied HEAVILY on the reader already knowing a lot about the ins and outs of professional soccer. There were a lot of acronyms and terminology thrown out that got very little explanation and left me feeling a bit lost. The characters also had a lot of internal monologue if and did a lot of telling but not necessarily a lot of showing, and left me craving a bit more overall from the relationship.

And lastly, the thing that sits so terribly with my spirit: the ADHD/Autism representation. This book is marketed to have ADHD/Autism representation and while the characters are written with traits to exemplify this, these traits are pretty stereotypical indicators of both and are pretty one-dimensional. It isn’t until around the 75% mark that Phoebe *potentially* having ADHD is mentioned. And in my opinion, the way this whole situation arises sits so unwell with me. Grace assumes Phoebe has ADHD and is medicated for it, when in fact, Phoebe has never considered herself to have ADHD or need to be medicated, etc. This assumption and miscommunication then leads to an argument where it’s barely discussed and then they have sex to change the subject. I just really disliked how this assumption was the fuel for a conflict and then not resolved and just had them hook up when it felt so out of place to the plot. Phoebe & Grace having sex instead of communicating is a huge theme throughout the book and I think it really took away for the potential for character development. And then, a few chapters later, Grace determines that she has really big feelings for Grace and is going to research doctors & set up a doctors appointment for Phoebe to get tested and hopefully diagnosed with ADHD so she can become medicated, even though Phoebe has mentioned twice at this point that she doesn’t really want to talk about it/think about having ADHD because “ADHD is something middle school boys have.” While researching ADHD for Phoebe, Grace stumbles across Autism TikTok where she things for one sentence she may possibly have Autism. And then it’s never spoken about again. I just wish overall this representation was handled with a bit more care and nuance.

As much as I wanted to love this, it wasn’t for me.

The description of this book got me interested immediately. Mentioning Ted Lasso is a sure fire way to get a book added to my priority TBR.
Unfortunately, this book wasn’t for me. I had a hard time liking the two main characters and didn’t root for them until 80% through the book. The miscommunication between them was frustrating. The inner monologue was a tad painful. I don’t know how many times I read “Grace is my girlfriend!” when she clearly wasn’t but it was too much. I didn’t personally care for how much communication took place during the sex scenes but that’s a personal preference and I could see that being a plus for other readers.
I expected there to be more soccer play but most of the games were skimmed over and that was disappointing. I want more sports in my sport romances. Again this is just a personal preference.

A romcom involving two soccer stars on the US Women's National Team. Grace is a veteran on the team and a name in women's soccer when she gets injured. Phoebe is a young up and coming star in the soccer world. The two meet and soon spark a relationship.

I was just missing the chemistry here. I loved the whole premise but the characters just fell a little flat compared to the synopsis.

This was definitely very cute but the two main characters not being on the same page about the situation going on between them for almost the entire book drove me CRAZY.

I saw a lot of my own characteristics in mainly Grace but also Phoebe. Reading this also made me miss my soccer playing days. If only my body would allow me to run without feeling like I’m dying lol.

I like that the miscommunication was handled with humor rather than an argument, given that it’s cleared up so close to the end. I was very worried it was going to be a bigger deal than it ended up being.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an arc of this book.

3.5 stars.

I absolutely love Meryl Wilsner's last book "Mistakes Were Made," so I was very much looking forward to "Cleat Cute." This book is good, but not as great as her last effort. There are many things to love here. I adored the various different LGBTQIA2S+ representations. I liked the slow-evolving relationship between the main characters, Phoebe and Grace, though I did think some of their interactions felt a little contrived and/or unnatural despite their obvious growing feelings and attractions towards one another. Their grumpy/sunshine, rivals-to-lovers relationship is convincing and engaging. I loved the ADHD/neurodivergent representation, but I hated when Grace made a doctor's appointment for Phoebe without her permission. It felt like an overstep to me! I certainly loooooved the spice and dirty talk. Whoooooweeee, Meryl Wilsner knows how to write a spicy scene! *pantpantpant* And also, the consent element was sooo hot. I love when authors clearly and distinctly lay out consent on the page! That is SO important to me (and to many other reader, I'm sure). Wilsner's writing style includes a lot of fun via a typically fast-moving narrative, though this time around, I felt that the story dragged at times. I zoned out here and there while the soccer practices and games were going on, so I had to back up the audiobook to see if I missed anything critical. I think there could have been more individual character development for both Phoebe and Grace. "Mistakes Were Made" was just *so* scandalous that I couldn't stop reading it. That appears to be attempted here since Grace and Phoebe are soccer teammates who don't want to tell anyone they are hooking up, but it didn't have the same punch to the gut as Wilsner's last book. This is a solid book, one I think most people will really enjoy.

Thank you to NetGalley, Meryl Wilsner, St. Martin's Press, and St. Martin's Griffin for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

Cleat Cute is a fun sapphic, rivals-to-lovers, romcom full of tropes including friends with benefits, forced proximity, and opposites attract. The story follows Pheobe, a rookie to the New Orleans Krewe, and Grace, the captain and star veteran on the soccer team. When Phoebe asks Grace to show her around the city, the two forge a friendship that quickly evolves into more as they get to know each other.
While I enjoyed the plot and premise of this sapphic sports romance, the writing let me down. The whole story was told in third person and had a crazy amount of internal monologue that was often repetitive and left me wanting more. Because of the writing, I had a hard time connecting with the characters and struggled to immerse myself in their relationship. Despite that, I loved learning about soccer and the overall found family vibes from the team! While this book may not be for me, I definitely see the potential and think Cleat Cute would work very well for someone who likes third person and internal monologue.

~Many thanks to NetGalley and Meryl Wilsner for an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's press for an opportunity to read this book!

I am nervous to write this review, but here goes.

I was unfortunately not a fan of this one. I think the concepts were super exciting and I was all here for a fun sapphic rom-com sports novel, but I struggled with the way it was written.

The things I really enjoyed: I do love sapphic stories. I appreciated the neurodivergent characters. I think at times the banter between the two main characters was entertaining and made me chuckle. There were even parts that I just super enjoyed the conversation (i.e. When the term queer was defended as being trans inclusive, I was yelling YASS). Sapphic spice isn't always written well, but this definitely wasn't bad in this book.

The reason for my lower rating: I felt like the writing of this book was so much tell-not-show. The author told us a lot about things that happened but didn't show us what was happening. I felt like it disconnected me from the overall story because I like to read to experience things with the characters and that didn't feel like it happened much here. I think there were times where important conversations were deflected from. I also felt like the inner monologuing of the characters interrupted the flow of the story a lot for me. I think it was difficult for me to stay focused but that is a personal preference.

I know this book has been a huge hit with so many, so I'm absolutely confident it will continue to find its audience. I thought I was the target audience for this based on my interests and favorite genres, but this one just didn't do it for me. Writing anything is always still such an accomplishment and I will absolutely still be reading other books from this author to try them out.

This was a fast and fun read. Excellent ratio of humor and steaminess. Loved the representation and the backdrop of New Orleans.

Soccer, Spice & Swoony Romance! We follow Grace and Phoebe - both soccer superstars who have dreamed of playing professionally since they were little. Now that their dreams have come true things are heating up both on and off the field leading up to the World Cup! Cleat Cute is full of friendship, teamwork, sportsmanship, love, loss, laughter, heartbreak and everything in between! Fun read -though the third person narration took me a bit out of the story. Thank you to NetGalley & St. Martin's Griffin for the advanced copy!

I have a major crush on one of Meryl Wilsner's previous characters (hello Erin from Mistakes Were Made!), so I was really looking forward to finding out what the characters were like in Cleat Cute, their newest book.

Let's start here:
Overall, I found myself not fully connecting to this story. Somehow it felt like I was reading the book through a glass of water, and although it was fine, I just didn't love it how I was expecting to. There were some choices Wilsner made stylistically that removed me from the story - more telling than showing – keeping me from fully engaging with the steam and the characters. I also had some issues with the neurodivergent representation and this part of the story didn’t feel completely resolved by the ending.

And finish on a positive note:
Both Grace and Phoebe have such different tones, helping differentiate between both main characters. Dual points of view and audiobook narrators also helped. Grace is more the type-A, no nonsense, all business type; she's determined and strives for perfection and making others happy. Phoebe is the complete opposite. She's fun, bubbly and full of energy; always the class clown and loves making others laugh. Grace is the one to text in full sentences and only use periods where Phoebe is full on abbreviations and emojis. I enjoyed the fun grumpy/sunshine vibes!

Also:
It took me an embarrassing long time to realize just how much I connect and relate with Grace! But once I got to that point, I found myself nodding along with so much of her home-body, routine and structured runaway thoughts!

Finally:
This is a sporty steamy sapphic wrapped in a gorgeous cotton candy cover!

Thank you Netgalley, St. Martin's Press and Macmillan Audio for the complimentary copies to read, listen to and review.

Did not finish book. Stopped at 37%.

While I quite liked both protagonists, there was so, so much telling instead of showing - a lot of feels dumps - and that made it really difficult to invest in their relationship. The narrative is also very tightly focused on these two characters, specifically when they are together, like it's completely uninterested in exploring outside of those moments, but unfortunately that just makes those moments feel shallow and lacking context. Like I said, I liked the protagonists, and spending some time with them apart could've given more depth to the time they were together. I was also super interested in the soccer stuff, and the author clearly knows their ish, but I wanted even more, and their world felt more like a backdrop for their relationship rather than a character in its own right.

This was delightful queer read! Cleat Cute is a fun, tender, sexy romance between two professional soccer lesbians rediscovering their joy on and off the field (with some of the best adult neurodivergence rep we've ever seen!)

ADHD x Autisic pairing | soccer romance | lesbian love | steamy | rivals to lovers | teammate-with-benefits

A lighthearted story about two women who love soccer and maybe each other.

Phoebe is ready to make her professional soccer debut and meet some of her heroes, including Grace. Grace is a veteran player who still loves the game but not everything associated with the fame. Phoebe and Grace make a bet that sets off an entire friends with benefits situation, but both find it's not so easy to keep feelings at bay.

The neurodivergent rep in this story is so wonderful! Phoebe has undiagnosed ADHD, and Grace is probably autistic. The story itself made me laugh a few times, especially towards the end. There is no third-act breakup which is refreshing. It felt like the writing was a little repetitive and not in a way that showed anxiety. I loved how much soccer was actually integrated into the story since it meant so much to both women. This is the third book by this author I've read and definitely my fave of them.