I hadn't read this author before, but missing "Ted Lasso" caused me to request it, LOL! Sadly, it was a mixed bag for me - a bit too spicy for my personal taste & I felt the female MC was a bit of a mess in this "enemies to lovers" sports trope.. But I really loved the young girls on the team & especially the cute ANIMALS! Cats & Goats - awesome!! My sincere thanks to the publisher & Net Galley for the complimentary DRC, and I am leaving this review in appreciation...

While I mostly enjoyed the novel, I didn’t love it. I struggled to care about the female main character for the first half of the novel.

The male MC, Cam, was enjoyable, but initially I wondered why he would fall for the female MC, Adalyn. Around 60% of the way through the book, it started to come together for romance reasons and I enjoyed the later half more than the first half of the book. This is a very slow burn of a romance as the title implies.

I enjoyed the setting and the other characters. I am grateful for the publisher for giving me an ARC to read/review.

This was enemies to lovers done SO well. I want my own Cameron. It had me kicking up my feet. I also loved how well the topics of anxiety and panic attacks were handled. Super cute read.

“The Long Game” is a small town enemies-to-lovers romantic comedy about two people who are both at a bit of a low point in their lives and careers, ultimately finding love as well as themselves - post fall from grace. Cameron is a rough around the edges sweetheart who makes a great book boyfriend and an even more adorable soccer coach for kids (ahh so cute!).

I have read other books by Elena Armas and I have to say Adalyn was not my favorite FMC. I know she has a bit of character development throughout the story but I found her personality to be a little tough to warm up to.

I do love a heartwarming small town romance. This one didn’t stand out as much for me, however there are cute elements that I enjoyed! The two main characters being soccer coaches for a young girls’ team is endearing and the girls themselves are hilarious at time. Overall, it’s a decent quick rom-com read.

4.25!
I loved this!!!!!!! for ted lesso fans: like if roy kent and keeley had to coach a kids team together and live on the same property in the woods. SO CUTE!!! AND SLOW BURN !!!!!! i would highly recommend this. its a healthy book for sure, no toxicity which was lowkey boring .... but cam is so hot i need him like water

I will read anything Elena Armas writes. This was a slow burn but then it was 😩🥵 It was a 5-star read that I wish didn’t end. LOVE. LOVE. LOVE.

If there is one thing Elena can do, it's write great tension between characters. But other than that, I was bored. It was a good plot, heart warming, and cute. But overall, didn't have the star power I loved from Spanish Love Deception.

Thanks to netgalley for the arc!

I went into this with high expectations, and unfortunately it fell short for me. I found the characters to be rather annoying (Cam's constant pet names weirded me out), and the plot put me to sleep from the start. Overall it was very cheesy and I was bored, just wanting it to end from the very first chapter.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Bookstagram review will be posted to my account (@acaffeinated_bookworm) closer to the September release date.

A grumpy hero and an ice queen bad ass of a heroine, bring together a fiery of a chemistry romance that will have you wanting for more...

THIS BOOK! THIS BOOOOOOOOOOOK! Elena, my dear Elena... my lovely friend from far away, your stroking fingers and brilliant mind know what they are doing. YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING! I knew from the moment that you texted me about Cameron, that he was going to be my ultimate daddy that I have been craving for a while now. The daddy of all daddy's. Not that this is a daddy trope... **cough cough** but my daddy issues make me feel like a little girl, twirling her hair when reading more about Cameron. He is just so suave and rough simultaneously and it makes me melt. And Adelyn? Being a bad ass of a super star is an understatement. Her character as a whole makes me love her and admire.

Enemies to lovers is yet another understatement of what an incredible trope this story is. Cameron and Adelyn's initial interaction makes you instantly fall in love with their power chemistry. Two individuals from different worlds, collide and meet to help out a team of little girls and their little league soccer team. With time, and more unintentional interactions in this small town, Cam and Adelyn cannot deny that their undeniable chemistry is there. And though Adelyn has some internal battles of her own that keep her at arms length, she knows that denying her attraction towards Cameron is not something she can live with for a long time;
"You were looking at me the way you are now. Just like that. I didn't want it to end." His words were soft, barely a whisper.
"Like what?"
"Like I'm something precious. Worth look at." His face fell.
"Why would you think otherwise?"
"Because no one ever looks at me that way."

Their road towards getting to know one another leads them to really open up in ways they would never thought they ever would with a partner. And once Cameron sees her. Truly, honorably sees Adelyn and her touch exterior breaks down, he knows that she is someone that he wants. Someone he craves and will be addicted to from that moment on;
"She's not a prize to be won." I took the elastic from her."She's... not a game. She's more than something you win. She's more than a loss. She's everything that's worth playing for. She's everything in between."

Not only do we get this magical of a story featuring Cameron and Adelyn, but Elena has introduced side characters that will make you fall for them all. Especially Maria, and her anxious filled and blind goat, Brandy. These two are goofballs in the making and made my stomach hurt with how much I kept laughing at their interactions with Cam and Adelyn. And of course, we cannot forget San Sebastián, because Elena's love for Sebastian Stan a.k.a. Bucky, comes in a form of hilarious rooster in this story. Oh, and Willow and Pierogi, oh gosh. These two feline friends make me crack up. Their possessive streak is on a run and I love everything about it.

This story is beyond anything that Elena has written thus far. And as her friend, it is truly a beauty and honor getting to see her go through this journey. I am beyond proud of her. And after all is said and done, readers will want more of Cameron just as much as I do!

Dear God. 😵‍💫🥵🔥🔥🔥

This is the slowest of slow burns but it hit every damned button I didn't know I had. Literally texted a book friend a play by play of my reaction which is both mortifying but absolutely worth it.

A bit of a Roy Kent fan fic, which I unexpectedly LOVED SO MUCH. Cam has replaced all the men from ACOTAR as my new book boyfriend. Hot damn.

I'd give this 10/5 stars if I could. 🤦‍♀️

This book was a lot of fun! I loved the goats and the romance was really well developed. Honestly, it was a classic Elena Armas book, and if you liked her other books, you’ll like this one too.

I read this book in less than a day because I was unable to put it down. I’ve read all of Elena Armas’ other books, but this is hands down my favorite. The slow burn and all it led up to were just exquisite. I highly recommend this!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC!

The Long Game was just....fine. It was fine. And I am truly crushed by this. The Spanish Love Deception is one of my favorite books ever, and Ted Lasso is my favorite show - so I was SO excited for this. But it just didn't do it for me, and that pains me so much to admit.

My biggest issue with this book was the pacing. It felt like the first half of this book was standalone scenes that did not weigh on each other in any way. A chapter would end with a character making some huge move, only for the next chapter to come in days later with no mention of what happened. A character would address feelings and then the next chapter it's like nothing happened. And I would just be confused - what happened? What was the response? Did the conversation just end with no further thought on it? I guess so.

I also just don't really buy that these characters hate each other. They FLY into their first interaction hating each other and it's just so confusing to me. Cameron makes a bit more sense once you get more of his story, but Adalyn? I don't get it. It felt so forced.

On some bright notes - the third act of this book is very good. The conflict was understandable, I could see the issue and both sides of it. I understood the resolution. That was when the book FULLY grabbed me, but it took 90% of the book to get this point. Do I wish some characters saw more consequences? Yes. Did I enjoy it though? Yeah, I did. Also, I adore María. Best character. I really wish we got to know her dad a bit more.

I genuinely hope I am the unpopular opinion here, I hope everyone loves this book and I'm wrong. Cause not loving this book and screaming about it from the mountain tops is crushing.

I am obsessed with this author. This book brings the best of soccer and romance together. My only complaint was that the slow burn was too slow and then too fast at the end. Otherwise this was a wonderful feel good story with a HEA.

Elena Armas did it again! I loved this book. Adalyn and Cameron are amazing together! This is not necessarily an enemies to lover is more like they are a big inconvenience to each other! I love how their relation grew organically and as the emisor y more time together.
I really like that even though Cameron is a bit grumpy he is always paying attention the the small details and that creates the base for their relationship.
Adalyn drove me crazy at times because she is this strong woman but due to the relationship with her dad he has some issues that affect her self-esteem.

If I’m guessing right I cannot wait for book two. Hoping it’s Matthew and Josie’s story!!!

This was a great read. I really enjoy Elena Armas writing style. She captivate me with her characters and I adore the romance in her books. If you’re a fan, definitely pick it up!

I cannot even tell you how much I love Elena Armas. I adored the main characters in this book, I completed related to Adalyn in so many ways, and I think I fell in love with her a little bit myself as she grew. As for Cameron...I think he may be my newest book boyfriend obsession! I absolutely cannot wait for the next Elena Armas book to come out!

this is my first, and definitely not last, elena armas book. this book was right up my alley and i'm immediately purchasing and reading her other works. because wow am i in awe. like you could predict by the title, it's a slow burn, and boy did i enjoy every second of it! between slowburn, forced proximity, and the grumpy playful banter, it was very well done and i loved adalyn and cameron endlessly.

i have always been such a huge enjoyer of small town based books, so seeing the community within this book put the biggest smile on my face. they all helped adalyn become the person she is now, and she really needed that after what had happened. and as someone who is a preschool camp counselor and watches little ones look absolutely ridiculous kicking a soccer ball, i loved this aspect of the book. kids can heal so many wounds. the bond between adalyn and maría was so detrimental and important to her character and really helped her grow.

the praise cameron gives adalyn alone throughout this novel... oh my lanta. i turned into adalyn and melted on the spot. she really needed someone to be there like that for her. cameron let her slay her own dragons but fought every step of the way to protect her, and i admired that a lot. he loved passionately and showed that through his actions.

overall there was just so many swoon worthy moments and times where i felt myself relating a lot to these characters. i think elena did an incredible job with this novel and i can't wait for everyone to read. i definitely feel myself going into a slump after this because it has been the only thing on my mind since i have finished....

thank you netgalley for providing me with this arc (:

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this early copy. I grabbed this one as a 'read now' copy from an email. I'm so glad that I did. I didn't love this author's first book so I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about this one. I'm happy to share that I absolutely loved it. I read it in one sitting because I just could not put it down. I caught myself grinning and laughing aloud more than once. I really liked the way that the relationship progressed. I especially liked that it was a dual point-of-view story. I enjoy getting to be inside both characters' heads. I will definitely be recommending this one.

This is like Schitt's Creek meets Ted Lasso and I loved it to pieces. A retired MLS goalie meets a disgraced workaholic in small town North Carolina - and god the way she fell from grace was hilarious. The kids, the cats, and the goats are precious, a nice foil to some of the unpleasantness between Adalyn and Cameron. My only complaint is that I wish we got to spend more time with the soccer team! I didn't feel as invested in them as I could've. I also reeeeally hope that we get a sequel with Matthew and Josie - or even 2 books focusing on each of them, I'm not picky.

*Thank you to Atria and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review and Simon Book Club Favorites for a gifted copy*