I was a little nervous to read this book, I won't lie but it ended up being an overall satisfying read so I am going to count this as another win for me with a Meryl Wislner book!

I really enjoyed Grace's character and learning about her life as a child soccer star who had to sacrifice a lot in order to get to where she was today. There was something about her that I just found so easy to root for, maybe my love for characters that are have hard exteriors to hide the soft that is beneath the surface. Though in her case, she's literally just so bad at reading people and social cues that she just keeps most of herself hidden so she doesn't embarrass herself.

Phoebe on the other hand, I really struggled with. She really rubbed me the wrong way through most of the book and even though she does win me over in the end, I do sadly think that she took away from my enjoyment of the book. I think my inability to like her for most of the book has to do with my own personal preference in stories but there were some things she did that just really irked me (probably more than they were ever intended to do). I do really like how kind she is and how she always wants to help others though! I wish that we explored more of her ADHD diagnosis, but I also understand the reality of these things and how things aren't always so black and white.

The spice in this was pretty immaculate and I loved the diversity that was in every inch of this book. I can't wait to read whatever comes next from this author!

What happens when a rookie from the middle of nowhere gets drafted to a professional team? Not to mention that her childhood idol just happens to be the team’s captain.

Phoebe wants to prove herself on her new team. She loves soccer and dreams of making the national team. Grace is drowning. Hiding an injury she thinks is pointing to the end of her soccer career, she wants to do everything she can to prevent it from impacting her team. As the captain, she is shouldering a world of responsibility and trying to keep her team at arm’s length. However, everything changes when Phoebe tries to befriend Grace and knock down the walls carefully put into place over years of developing a professional career.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book, even though there were a few individual items I struggled with a bit. To start, I loved the diverse cast of characters this book is populated with. It seems that there are so many characters for people to identify with throughout the story aside from just Grace and Phoebe. I also really like the subtle and positive changes seen in the main characters as their friendship and relationship shift and develop. I also appreciated that the variety of problems, disagreements, and misunderstandings that occurred between the main characters were very practical and not unlikely to occur. I had a little bit of a problem with the pacing at the start of the book. I had some trouble picking up on the transitions signaling time jumps – which there were a lot of. This slowed as the main plot of the book settled in but threw me off a bit at first. I also had a bit of trouble connecting with Grace’s character and understanding her actions early in the book. As her character developed they started to make more sense, especially in light of some comments towards the end of the book, but it was still a little cringy early on. Both good and bad, I had trouble with the discussion of mental health in the later part of the book, but it really redeemed itself as the characters realized where they made mistakes in approaching the discussion and how they can do and be better in the future. My only other complaint, which is primarily on me, is that I had a hard time keeping Kelsey and Kayla straight – which is an important distinction.

I would still absolutely recommend this book still, just keeping in mind that it may be one that grows on you rather than immediately sucking in your attention. It is an incredibly sweet book that will hit you with some intensely spicy heat. If you need a good sapphic rom-com or if you love sports romances, then this book should be a hit!

Content Warnings: sexual content, mental health discussions, injury/injury detail

I loved this! Very sweet and very cute. Love the exploration of how different being out can be for different people. Great sapphic read! Loved the characters and the side characters.

“Cleat Cute” was the heartwarming romance I needed in my life right now! I feel like I have been a Grace most of my life and resonated with being the responsible one, more introverted and rigid. There were times in the book that Grace’s friends and loved ones talked to her and it felt like they were talking to me too. Grace and Phoebe’s romance isn’t perfect- it is two people who have faults and obstacles which all of us do. I loved the representation of different gender identities and will definitely be recommending this book to my friends!

3.5/5, rounded up to 4

thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

okay so this is the first Meryl Wilsner book I’ve ever read and I actually had a fun time reading it! the story is a lesbian sports (soccer!!!!) romance centering Phoebe, who’s starting her first season as a professional soccer player, and Grace, a seasoned professional on the U.S Women’s National Team. this entire story was really captivating and i found myself finishing it within a few days! the romance was really solid and I loved seeing the way grace slowly opened up to phoebe and became closer to her, it made everything feel realer.

also so much praise for Meryl Wilsner for not being afraid of the word lesbian!!! LESBIAN LESBIAN LESBIAN !!! <3

anyways onto some of my issues with the book! I did love that there was neurodivergent representation, but I wish grace’s autism storyline had been developed more throughout the story. phoebe’s adhd storyline also felt like it came out of nowhere …? not that it wasn’t an important storyline, just that I also feel it should’ve been a little more developed throughout the story. I did enjoy the fact that it was acknowledged that a diagnosis is harder to get for women, and also the differences in healthcare.

this is a me-thing, but the miscommunication trope felt so unbelievable at times that it was a little cringey to read two characters be on totally different sides of the story i just wanted to peek into the book and set the record straight for them!!!! it wasn’t bad enough to detract from the story, though, and Wilsner did a good job of keeping it all lighthearted.

overall, a solid read for anyone looking for a sports romance/lesbian sports romance (even better if u ask me..) !!!!!!!!! <3

First I want to say thank you to NetGalley for providing me with this ARC! I am truly grateful to have the chance to read and review books before their publishing date :)

I wanted to like this more than I did. I haven't read any of this author's other novels before but I had heard good things about Mistakes Were Made, so I decided to request this one. A sapphic, sports-based romcom is right up my alley, especially after finishing some pretty dense books. Unfortunately, my expectations were only slightly met. This story is marketed as an "enemies to lovers" romance, but there was little to no enemy part. The characters had one tense interaction and then turned around and made out in what felt like two minutes. That's kind of how a lot of the aspects of this book felt: trying to fit every aspect of every romance novel into one story.

There were mentions here and there of gender-affirming care, financial struggles, anxiety, and ADHD, both of which felt like they came out of nowhere. I admire the idea of writing a story where the characters are multi-faceted people (as real humans are) but I felt like I was being thrown all this new information with no warning. I also didn't really enjoy the miscommunication trope thing that Grace and Phoebe had going on. I know part of Grace's character dynamic is to be reserved and introverted, but it felt a little over-the-top at times, even coming from an extrovert.

There were many positive points about this book, though. I loved the supporting characters and their dynamic with Grace and Phoebe. They felt very real to me and their dialogue felt incredibly natural. As did the spicy scenes between Grace and Phoebe. Those might have been the most detailed part of the book, so if you're looking for that, I'd say this story has it!!

I am sad I didn't like this as much as I thought I would, but I am going to try another one of this author's books to see how they compare. I don't like writing whole authors off based on one book so we shall see...

I looooooved "Mistakes Were Made" and so I was really excited about this new one from Meryl Wilsner--but I think I have to DNF it at around 35%. I'm just not finding the plot very intriguing, the characters fall a bit flat, the conflict of interest that keeps the couple apart just is not compelling to me---pretty much the opposite of what I thought about "Mistakes Were Made." Maybe my expectations were too high going in? But I found myself putting it down and forgetting about it, so it's really not holding my interest. It moves pretty slowly, but without the usual tension that slow burn romances have. It's hard to remember how exactly each character feels about the other in any given moment, and why they're feeling that way. Also, the soccer team setting means there's endless side characters who all have multiple nicknames and are confusing to keep track of while not really contributing much to the plot.

I was curious how this would go, since it is the third book she's written with a power imbalance in the couple. [book:Something to Talk About|52915426] is set in MeToo Hollywood and handles the issues very sensitively, but [book:Mistakes Were Made|59808269] botched it so badly that I couldn't buy the happy ending, not to mention how it hurt other people. See this review (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4337367056) for more details.

But...this book gets it right. The power dynamics, the team dynamics, New Orleans, everything feels real.

This was a sweet story revolving around soccer, relationships, and undiagnosed disorders. Grace was a 26 year old veteran of the soccer world. She was her team’s captain, popular, and a role model for future players. It seemed like she had it all, but that was not true, Phoebe was a 22 year old newcomer. She idolized Grace since childhood and was overjoyed that she was now Grace’s teammate. Phoebe was a great player, a bundle of energy, constantly talking and very disorganized. She also seemed to have it together but didn’t. When these two women met, there was an instant connection. However, their connection meant different things to each woman, and that was a problem.

I enjoyed the soccer storyline and the interaction with the other players. The two central characters were likable to a certain degree and each had their own problems. As the story evolved, these problems became more evident and so did their likability since we were able to understand their actions. The last third of the book was the most enjoyable because we were shown the emotional struggles both women were dealing with through their dialogue and active interactions with each other and the secondary characters. It was total engagement.

Overall, similar to her other books, this was another entertaining read.

The spice was spot on and really good! The inner monologue stuff kinda dragged on a lot and was difficult for me to stay on board with sometimes.

I like the fact that they’re neurodivergent and I really appreciate that kind of diversity being shown in books more.

The characters are cute, I just didn’t connect with them much I guess. Not a bad read, just not a favorite!

Cleat Cute is indeed very cute! It has a great dual perspective which I always love in a romance. And the vibe it enemies to lovers which is always a fav trope for me. Meryl Wisner is just getting better and better with every book!

Sapphic romance 🏳️‍🌈
Women’s pro soccer FMCs ⚽️
Neurodivergent representation 🧠
Spicy asf 🌶️

Not going to lie, this was an insta-request on NetGalley for me. A sapphic rom-com between two USW soccer players? SIGN ME UP.
I had only read one Wisner novel prior to this (Mistakes Were Made), and I will admit it was NOT for me. Cleat Cute, on the other hand, was absolutely for me! Women’s soccer is exclusively the only sport I can tolerate, and I ATE this story up. The characters, the spice, and the rivals-to-friends-to-lovers pipeline in this book is absolutely golden and inherently queer.
Phoebe and Grace’s POVs were so different. This book is a solid example of how opposites attract! I loved how Phoebe brought Grace out of her shell and made her think about her personal life and career in different ways. The growth that Grace experienced in this story was honestly so beautiful. I just would have liked to see a little more personal growth from Phoebe. Regardless, Phoebe is on my list of ultimate book girlfriends. Phoebe had me sweating.🥵
This story also addressed how grossly underpaid and overworked women in professional soccer are in compared to their male counterparts. I am so glad that Wisner integrated this fact into Phoebe’s story.
Finally, I really liked how mental health was represented in this story. For a moment, I wondered if the author was going to wrap this story up without acknowledging the neurodiverse qualities of the FMCs. The psych nurse in me was practically screaming for one of the characters to get on some meds for 85% of this book. I was seriously so relieved when these topics were addressed and different perspectives were contributed, as this topic is so important and close to my heart.

Whether you’re a soccer fan, part of the LGBTQIA+ community, romance lover-or none of these things!- this is such a fun read! Cleat Cute releases September 19th, 2023! 💘⚽️

Meryl Wilsner has solidified themselves as one of my favorite sapphic writing authors! Cleat Cute joins the trend of soccer gays this year and I'm so happy to have gotten a copy of the E-arc. This book follows a rookie who was drafted in the Women's soccer league to play for the New Orleans team. Phoebe is incredibly excited to be playing soccer for a living but also her crush and inspiration is her new captain. Grace has been playing professionally for a decade. She doesn't want a relationship, but Phoebe who is loud and proud of who she is may just wear her down. Autism and ADHD rep for both main characters!

Cute story about a rookie crushing on a vet player and subsequently falking into the friends with benefits to lovers trope. Some of the sex scene dialogue was cheesy but I guess it made sense for the characters. I wish there was bit more drama for their relationship but overall it was a fast fun read.

I was absolutely obsessed with this one. Such a cute story, a high priority purchase for all collections looking for sapphic representation.

<i>Thank you St. Martin's Press & Netgalley for this eARC!</i>

Meryl Wilsner has knocked it out of the park...excuse me, kicked it in the net...yet again! Actually, between this, [book:Mistakes Were Made|59808269] & [book:Something to Talk About|52915426], I think Meryl officially has a Hat Trick of great sapphic fiction (<i>I may have googled 'soccer lingo' for that Hat Trick bit...</i>).

As always, Meryl features great representation in their work (<i>albeit with the caveat that the racial diversity is again in the supporting cast</i>). This story probably has their largest supporting cast so far, what with teammates, and family, and while I loved them, some of them do blend together a bit, as can happen with a book with a large cast, yet only 2 protagonists. Still, even though the characters got a little blurry at times, they still each seemed to have a little touchstone moment, so none were ever actually forgettable, definitely an impressive feat! This one also wasn't as packed to the brim with sex like <b>Mistakes</b> was, which is not a plus or a minus in my book, but for people who found the sheer amount of sex in Meryl's last book a bit much, this may be more your speed. But much like last time, when Meryl brings the heat, they <b>bring the heat!</b>

And with this book, Meryl really leans in to examining neurodiversity, without necessarily having to hit you over the head. They're a little more blatant with Phoebe's situation than Grace, but in doing so, gave a great examination on the misinformation that still is out there.

Speaking of our leads, I love this pair! Grace and Phoebe are just...so phenomenal, so fantastic, engaging and distinct. The way they play off one another is so fun. When arguments arise, they never feel tropey, or like they happen because 'it's time in this book to argue'. They feel organic and earned. <spoiler>And once again, Meryl avoids my most hated of tropes, the forced third act break-up! Plus, the misunderstanding the two DO get into near the end of the book had me cackling with laughter, as well as cringing with second hand embarrassment. I loved it.</spoiler>

No other notes, 5 enthusiastic stars!

This was tooooooo good!!!!! I love real character development and a fun topic to ride along the romance. I’ve always thought of soccer as super fascinating but at a hot celebrity player and a fan girl lover and I’m in! This was so thought out and I absolutely adored how these two grew into their relationship. It was so true to their own personal journeys. Great read!

3.5* rounded down. I didn’t love this book as much as I hoped I would, but I did like it! I relate to Grace so very much in so many ways. Phoebe is a delight from start to finish. The dynamic between the two is great and the spice is consistently enjoyable. There’s not much plot to speak of and two of the conflicts that do come up in the book being in relation to personal health decisions just didn’t sit well with me. Regardless it was a good read. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Thank you #NetGalley for an early copy of #CleatCute by #MerylWilsner to read and review (spoiler free)!

Do you love soccer? Do you love the United States Women’s National Soccer Team? Do you love very spicy sapphic romance? THIS IS THE BOOK FOR YOU!

This is the book I always knew I wanted to read, but never thought would exist in the real world! I’ve been a soccer player and a USWNT fan my whole life, and this book fulfills every fantasy and daydream I’ve ever had about that world.

In the book, Phoebe Matthews, our hotshot rookie, reaches a friends-with-benefit agreement with her childhood idol and veteran USWNT star, Grace Henderson. You can imagine the spicy scenes that result from this agreement (think locker rooms….)! Not only were their hook-up scenes very mouthwatering, but the actual soccer parts were fantastic! The fact that this is also a World Cup year for our own USWNT makes this the perfect time for this book to be released.

An aspect that bears mentioning, there is also a conversation around ADHD and Autism diagnoses in adult women that’s nice to see written into the work. It’s definitely not a major part of the story, but it does play a small role.

Overall, this book is everything I hoped it would be, and so much more! Go ahead and pre-order your copy to binge read when you’re going through World Cup withdrawals later this year!

I really love soccer romances, so I was very excited about this one. However, I struggled with the writing style and the pacing. I thought that the main character's relationship developed a little too quickly in the beginning - I would've preferred more tension/competition for a while longer. As for the writing, it was very tell, don't show and I found myself getting very frustrated as a result.

That said, I do still think this could be a fav of sapphic sports romance fans, so I absolutely recommend checking it out for yourself.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.