This is perfect for fans of Wilsner's other book, Mistakes Were Made. Set in the sports soccer world, Cleat Cute is about professional soccer players, one just entering the professional arena and another who has already established herself as a star. Typical hijinks occur as they navigate attraction and competition while also falling in love with one another. The spice is there and this will be enjoyable to anyone who enjoys a wlw romance.

This book was an absolute delight to read. The story was fun and the characters were dynamic on the page.

This book was such a fun book to read! I've loved Meryl Wilsner's other books, and I knew that I would love this one as well! I loved getting to know Grace and Phoebe, these two pretty different soccer players, as they fell in love!

Grace is the captain of the team, she's serious, she likes things a certain way, and Phoebe, she's outgoing, she's social, and she's bubbly. But the attraction between them, yeah, it was pretty instantaneous, especially with the dare of a kiss.

They do have a thing going on, but they don't make it a big thing. It was great to see Phoebe bring Grace outside her shell, and for Grace to help Phoebe focus. It turns out that both of them probably have something, Phoebe ADHD, and Grace is somewhere on the spectrum, and it was great to have that representation, alongside their romance!

Both of them have something going on besides their relationship. Phoebe is new to the team, and she loves soccer, but this is the highest level she's played at, and that's a lot of stress. Grace loved soccer, but not everything that came with being coach and I loved the journey that she went on, to focus on what she loved!

I had a great time reading this book and I can't wait to read more by Meryl Wilsner!

I did like was the representation we get from Wilsner. There are also quite a few side characters with the soccer teams and just about every gender identity and sexuality it represented. I liked that we are getting more and more neuridivergent characters as well. Although the assumptions Grace makes about Phoebe and how the whole conversation happens really didn’t sit well with me.

I also enjoyed the mutual pining that happens. Even after they start their friends-with-benefits relationship, they both just really like one another and wish for more (if only they would’ve actually talked sooner.)

While this ended up being just an okay read for me, I know others will enjoy it a lot more. I’m looking forward to whatever Wilsner comes up with next.

Unfortunately, I was not able to complete this book. At around the 15% mark I had to DNF it for various reasons.

The first reason was that at the 15% mark the information that had been given was not enough to entice me and I felt that the plot was not going to be one I enjoyed.

The second reason was that the writing style felt choppy. There was too much dialogue back to back without enough descriptive fillers in between. Also, the conversations being had felt quite immature. The characters also felt quite immature and at 15% should already start having some sort of depth to them which I did not find was given at that time.

I do not like the fact that I have to rate this book since my rating feels unfair. Yes, it is a 1 star since I DNF'ed it, but it also feels unfair since I did not read the complete book to know. I will settle and give it a 3 star.

RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ SPICE: 🔥🔥💥 I really enjoyed this sapphic sports romance a ton! I love any kind of sports romance and seeing these two women professional athletes get a happy ever after just made my heart happy. The banter and dialogue was good, the story was well paced and o was invested from the beginning. TROPES ⬇️ ✨ Rivals to lovers ✨ Forced Proximity ✨ Opposites Attract ✨ Friends with Benefits ✨ Soccer Romance Phoebe and Grace were both great characters and I really loved seeing them be successful in their careers and find love. Phoebe is the league new comer, and Grace is the veteran showing her the ropes. Both are interesting characters in their own right, and I liked how their neurodivergency was handles and how it shaped their relationship and communication. The spice was really good too, and I don’t think I will look at hair braiding the same way after this book 🥵. The chemistry between Phoebe and Grace just really made this story interesting and kept me from putting the book down! Overall this has just enough sport to keep me happy, a great love story and a decent bit of spice. I will say this one didn’t have a bit of miscommunication but it felt like it was coming from internal sources and didn’t feel contrived as they worked out how to communicate! I definitely recommend this one! 🩷

I typically don't go into romance novels looking for well developed characters but it's always a major bonus when they're there. It can be challenging to balance the romance aspects with a compelling plot but Meryl Wilsner hasn't let me down yet, and I don't see them doing so in the future. I'm sure it didn't hurt that I already love soccer, but even to a total outsider, the book is accessible and compelling.

3⭐️3🌶️
This is a sapphic soccer romance with a good amount of spice. I have this 3 stars because it was just very “ok” to me. I didn’t love it, didn’t hate it, just meh.
So why only 3 stars? Honestly aside from the romance, nothing else happens in this book. There’s no plot. Nothing that kept me interested in reading or had me hooked. I considered DNFing a few times because I was just bored. I liked the couple and their romance but there was nothing else going on and so I found myself not caring about the book.
It’s cute but not great

This is such a delightful read! As someone who enjoys playing soccer, this was even more up my alley. The romance is fun and steamy, making this a great lighthearted read overall. There was more miscommunication and stream-of-consciousness dialogue than I would have liked, but I still definitely enjoyed this one. I would recommend this to readers that have enjoyed the likes of Behind the Scenes and Love at First Set.

Another fun (and spicy) romance from Meryl Wilsner! As a huge fan of women's soccer and Meryl's other books I couldn't wait to read this book and it absolutely lived up to my expectations.

Short, sporty and sweet rom com! As a soccer fan, I loved the soccer-world building and character development of both of our leading ladies.

After reading Everything For You by Chloe Liese there was a gay soccer romance shaped hole in my heart, which I was hoping this book would fix! In some ways, it did live up to that expectation. There are a lot of things to love about this book and its characters. Some great neurodivergent representation and I loved the communication. The slow burn from friends to lovers was nice and the story itself was really cozy. My biggest qualm minus the lack of soccer is that I felt like it dragged when it didn’t need to. It did take a long time to feel invested in the relationship for that reason.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book to review. I absolutely LOVED Mistakes Were Made by Meryl Wilsner and was so excited to learn about Cleat Cute. A sapphic and sporty romance by one of my favorite authors, SIGN ME UP!!

I loved this book. It is an incredibly hot romance between two professional soccer players. Phoebe is the new rookie to the team and looking to make a name for herself. Grace is the seasoned veteran and star of the U.S. National Soccer Team. Wilsner does a great job of exploring the changing dynamics between both women and their relationships to each other and to the sport that they both love. It also tackles the issue of aging out of sports and injuries and what to do when you can't do what you love in a really nuanced way. Think the book version of "Nothing New" by Taylor Swift and Phoebe Bridgers.

If you're a romance fan or a sports fan (or both like me!!), you'll enjoy this one!

Goodreads says this is rivals to lovers but they were never really rivals.
The steamy scenes were very good.
I give it 3.5 stars it kind of got annoying with the internal monologue instead of them just talking to each other.

Thank you Griffin Publishing for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own!

This is the story of two amazing soccer players. Grace Henderson has been a star on the US national soccer team for 10 years. However, when Grace gets injured new up and coming star Phoebe Mathews threatens to take her place. all the while they are secretly friends with benefits or just trying to be casual. Phoebe could not be more different than Grace, all the pep, bit crazy, and energy possible. As they become closer will they be able to keep it casual or will more develop? How will this work being on the same team?

I thought this one was a unique story idea that I had never seen a book about. However, it fell short mostly at the end. It kind of felt like it just ended with no real resolution. I personally felt like the sex kind of took over the plot which is not for me, so bare that in mind. I skipped those parts which were multiple scenes. I also felt like there were a few times that I was confused if the characters were forced together instead of having actual chemistry. I guess I just wish there were more cute scenes instead of spice.

Content: multiple explicit scenes, swearing

Read if you enjoy
LGBTQ+ rep
Dual POV
Professional soccer
Romance
Teammates to more
ADHD rep.

Do I think a lot of their problems could have been solved if they just talked to each other? Yes. But did I also enjoy this book, also yes. I think I liked that the things that would normally be third act breakups were exposed and discussed by the two main characters and not brought out in a public shaming way. This was very cute.

This book was exactly what I wanted it to be. Great queer rep in a supportive environment. Both FMCs were easy to root for and I loved their stories. Also, love a queer sports romance and there is no better sapphic setting than a soccer pitch. This book really made me happy, I am a Meryl Wilsner stan.

This is the third romance I’ve read now by Meryl Wilsner, and I feel their romances are always a fun time, even if they’re not necessarily ones that leave too much of a lasting impression overall. However, they’re perfect for when I just need an audiobook or a quick read to get me out of a slump, and Cleat Cute is no exception!

Now, I’m no stranger to sports romances, and honestly quite like them every once in a while. There’s just something about the competitive setting that seems to add an extra layer of tension to the romance, especially when utilized well. I feel like Cleat Cute does generally do this, and a lot of the romantic and plot tension does come from the intricacies of the sport and inter-team dynamics. However, there were moments where I wish it had been used a little more somehow, though the specifics of the plot do make it harder to do so. I think the timing of the romance within the season just meant that the tension from this setting wasn’t always entirely there, as while the performance of our characters was important to an extent, it was still pre-season or early on in the season, so the games themselves weren’t necessarily intense or specifically about winning. It did make for an interesting perspective though, how for individual players it isn’t just about winning, but about their individual performance within a game.

Overall though, I did like the general chemistry between Grace and Phoebe, even if I struggled with their relationship for parts near the end. However, I do like how Wilsner used their neurodivergencies throughout the story, in a way that felt real and would genuinely contribute to the misunderstandings they often had. As someone with ADHD myself, while I didn’t entirely feel seen by Phoebe’s character, I did enjoy her character and seeing someone with some of my same habits/thoughts in a romance book like this!

I’ll definitely be reading Wilsner’s next book whenever it comes out, as their books continue to bring me joy!

Review will go live on my blog and goodreads after the boycott!

The best romance i ever read. It was sexy and smart and epic and...it was majestic. The sex scenes were brilliant.

This was cute! It did feel a little YA to me because of the characters and dialogue, but the steam was def not YA 🥵 cause this author sure does know how to perfect the steammmmm honeyyyy.

Lots of black cat energy from Grace and golden retriever energy from Phoebe. Phoebe was annoying as hell, but needed Grace to shut her up 🤭

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC.