Read if you like: enemies to lovers, small town romance
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Adalyn loves working for the Miami Flames but after an unfortunate PR scandal, she is sent to the middle of nowhere to help out a struggling soccer team. There she meets Cameron, the coach and a former soccer star. The two butt heads, but the more they get to know each other, the more like spending time in each other's company.
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This book was really fun. I loved the tension between Adalyn and Cameron and I thought the enemies to lovers was done well! I kept wanting to scream at Adalyn that her father sucks and she needs to get away from him, and Cameron was the perfect supporter!

A cute & wholesome read, filled with the best tension, super slow burn, & banter that will keep you coming back for more!!

Like Elena’s other books, I enjoyed these characters! They were realistic, relatable, & I felt like I genuinely got to know them throughout 🥰 Adalyn was one smart, determined, & independent woman! I loved the energy she gave off, & I also enjoyed seeing her face her vulnerabilities 🤍 And Cameron was everything you would expect in a cinnamon roll character 🥰 he was quick witted, incredibly kind, & spent his time helping coach a children’s soccer team! What’s not to love?!?

I mixed between the audio & the ebook, enjoying both of them equally! I liked the narrators & felt they did a good job bringing these characters personalities through.

Other things to expect:
✨dual POV
✨forced proximity
✨grumpy/grumpy
✨slow burn
✨bickering & banter
✨enemies to lovers
✨small town setting
✨a children’s soccer team & all the fun that entails!
✨AND SO MUCH MORE!!!

Thank you so much @simonschusterca for sending me an early copy 💕💕💕

Definitely check this one out! And if you have, what did you think?

This was my first book that I've read by Elena Armas, but it won't be my last. If you love Roy Kent from Ted Lasso and Gilmore Girls (the Fall festivals! the kooky townspeople) then this might be the book for you. Cameron had STRONG Roy Kent vibes and i loved it. While the premise of a disgraced soccer exec being sent to a random small town to help out with a random girls soccer team is slightly ridiculous .I loved getting to know Adalyn and cheered for her when she was finally able to see/understand that she was worthy of love. I really enjoyed it.

Thank you to NetGalley, Elena Armas and Simon and Schuster Canada for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review.

This was so sweet. I loved the characters and how they end up in the same place. I love the small town vibes and cozy atmosphere. The tensions were high and this was spicy towards the end. I just loved it.

i loved Armas’s last book, but this time i couldn’t relate or like any of the characters. i had to dnf @ 50% because truly nothing had happened and it was starting to feel agonizing to pick up

I’m sorry for this one was not for me. I didn’t connect with either of the characters and it just dragged on and on with nothing happening. I didn’t find myself wanting to pick this up, in fact, it actually felt like a chore.


2 ⭐️

3.75⭐️
Now this book had all of the things I could ask for in book:
-Hot British Man✅
-Cats✅
-FMC who’s kinda uptight✅
-Good Spice✅
-Banter✅

But…there was something about the flow of the story that I wasn’t vibing with. Like I loved all of the themes and tropes, and the love interest and FMC were good characters, but the plot wasn’t flowing for me. This unfortunately made what should’ve been a quick fluffy read, something that was drawn out for almost a week because I just could t get into it. The last 30% of the book was definitely better and I felt myself being more involved in the story, but the beginning was slowwww.

I will say that I think a lot of people could love this book, and I still think it is worth reading if you like Fluffy romance books or are a fan of Elena Armas (like I am!). Overall maybe this wasn’t my favourite of her books, but also maybe I just wasn’t in the mood 🤷‍♀️

Thanks to Simon & Schuster Canada for sending me an ARC!

This was a just not the right book for me. It took me a long time to finish it. If you liked The Spanish Love Deception then you like this one too.

The premise of this book had a lot of promise! I loved the idea of a high end executive helping out a kids team. My favourite parts were Adalyn and Cameron's interactions with the players! The kids and the other townspeople were fun to read about and had funny moments that made me smile. Unfortunately, I would have liked to see more development from our main characters. So I didn't connect with them as much as I would have liked. However, the side characters really captured my attention with their backstories and personalities! Overall, the writing style was easy to follow and made this a quick read.

3-4 ⭐️

God damn cliffhangers…If I didn’t listen to the last literally 2 minutes I would be a lot happier right now 😂🫠

Honestly I didn’t have high expectations going into this as I don’t love Armas’ previous books all that much but I kept hearing this was her best yet and I’d have to agree with that! This was a fun and cute read and I will definitely be reading the next book in this series!

The Long Game follows a disgraced soccer exec and a retired soccer player as they navigate the trials and tribulations of bringing a children's soccer team to stardom.

This is my new favourite from Elena Armas! The chemistry between Adalyn and Cam jumps off the page, and seeing them learn to collaborate and adjust to the small town life was adorable.

I'd recommend this book to fans of Mariana Zapata, Hannah Grace, or Sarina Bowen and for anyone looking for a fun, different sports romance!

Unpopular opinion about a popular book...

Elena Armas is one of my go-to authors for romantic comedies. I've enjoyed her previous books, The Spanish Love Deception and The American Roommate Experiment. They are funny, light, spicy, and have attaching, likeable characters. I was therefore really looking forward to reading The Long Game.

Unfortunately, The Long Game was a major disappointment for me. The quality of the writing was missing: the banter and comedy were difficult to take seriously and there was an awkwardness present simply from reading the interactions between the characters. Some of the dialogue was unrealistic as well as the behaviour of the children, who are are important supporting characters in the story. Some of the adult characters in this novel are portrayed as very immature, something I doubt was intended by the author. The male main character was also not particularly likeable, and the enemies-to-lovers transition with the female main character is quite abrupt.

This story had potential: it had the sports romance and small-town setting which are quite sought after in the rom-com reading community. However, this one unfortunately did not live up to my expectations.

Read if you like:
⚽️ Sports romances
🐐 Quirky farm animals
💕 Romantic comedies
🌲 Remote, small-town settings

⚠️ Potential trigger warnings: previous relationship trauma, strained family relationships (may not be an exhaustive list)

🙏 Thank you NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Canada for the gifted electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A sports romance with a side of family drama? Yes, please!

This book was a bit hard for me to settle into at first. I just couldn't picture our two main characters as enemies and it felt a bit forced. HOWEVER, at the 40% mark, this book became everything I wanted it to be. I love how strong Adalyn was and I loved how Cameron was always there to support her in any way she needs.

The small town vibes in this book are top tier and I can't wait to find out where we go in the sequel. The ending set it up perfectly and I will be waiting to get a copy of it asap!

**Read an ARC from Netgalley Rating : 4 Stars

This was my first Elena Armas book and it was okay. I’ve heard so many mixed reviews about her other books that I was truly not expecting much. First of all I love the Green Warriors, they were so adorable, I would be their coach or team manager anyday. And Cameron was very swoon worthy. I have a weak spot when it comes to grumpy fictional men, and Cam was no exception. When he got rid of her bed frame because it was infested with bugs, or built her an office so that she wouldn’t be sitting on the bleachers for hours, or when he taught her pottery… I was a goner, I had fallen for Cameron Caldani. He was so attentive and spoiled Adalyn, Gahh!!

That being said, I found the book to be repetitive. I was getting bored at the 60% mark and found it hard to find the motivation to finish reading. What made it worse for me is that while I don’t love slow-burn, I don’t mind it once and a while but this was the type of slow burn where you’re close to the 80% mark and still nothing has happened. Which was frustrating because they were practically acting like a couple but it was just being dragged on. I also didn’t really love the ending, it kind of felt random??!! And in opinion Adalyn didn’t get any justice after practically being screwed over.

Overall, even though I didn’t completely love the book, I would still be open to checking out Elena Armas’ other books.

Thank you @simonschusterca and @netgalley for the advance digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

. . . ⭑ ⭑ ⭑ ⭑ ⋆
It’s been a long time since I’ve read a spiced romance that I could really sink my teeth into. I was verrrry into this book - I felt like it had a really good pace; the right amount of wind up, not too slow burn, not too hot-and-heavy too quickly.

In terms of trope, I don’t feel like it was a true enemies-to-lovers, just in that they were more annoyed with each other than disliked one another, but I do like that that little bit of attitude and sarcastic banter., and feel like it was more related to peaked interest vs dislike.

It gave proper credit to that flash fire of attraction, that little ignited spark, the burn in your belly feeling you get when you cross paths with someone like that.

The only thing I didn’t particularly care for was the couple times that Cam gave bedroom instructions to Adalyn that felt a bit patronizing, like he knew her body better than she did - and while I’m sure it was partly to feed into a little bit of those into some bedroom bossiness, it didn’t jive with me a couple times.

This is only my second sports-themed romance, but I was surprised at how into I got, so I know it won’t be my last.

‘The Long Game’ just came out earlier this month, and I definitely think it’s worth a read.

~ 👩🏻‍🦰

⧞ A sincere thanks to @atria for a digital advanced copy of this one, it was exactly what I needed.

I’m a fan of Ted Lasso and The Long Game by Elena Armas gives off familiar vibes. With the central theme of soccer/football, following a PR nightmare Adalyn is sent away from her beloved Miami soccer team until things blow over. This lands her in North Carolina and literally straight into Cameron, a professional player who recently left the game suddenly. Both characters end up teaming up to help a local underdog soccer team and the young players as they try to make it to the championships. What starts off as a contentious relationship, Adalyn and Cameron find that they have more in common than meets the eye with Adalyn and Cameron giving off major Keeley and Roy vibes. Well-named; this slow burn, enemies-to-lovers story offers just a bit of spice and focuses more on the development of the relationship. The characters reveal vulnerabilities and their attempt at punishment by “volunteering” each other to attend community events leads to plenty of amusing storyline (enter troublemaking goats and chickens). A dash of found family (literal in one instance) and ultimately retribution provide a cozy read. This is my first Elena Armas read and definitely not my last.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon Schuster Canada for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is my first Elena Armas book and I really enjoyed it! I had hear mixed things about her previous books, but I enjoyed this one enough to pick up The Spanish Love Deception.

The Long Game is a well paced romance. The characters are relatable, though sometimes misguided. It was a bit predictable by times, but overall I really enjoyed the story.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this novel.

Fans of Elena Armas rejoice! This new romcom is it. You’ve got banter, you’ve got a sports romance, you’ve got a grumpy mmc and so much more. It was fun, light and entertaining!

REVIEW✨
The Long Game
By Elena Armas
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I was pulled in from the first chapter, it’s a perfectly done slow burn romance. I didn’t see the twist and turns coming, the chemistry was off the page, the character development was perfection, the settling was small town and Autumn, the little goats and cats made my heart so happy. Adalyn and Cameron are everything! I love, love, love this book! Cameron totally gives off some Roy Kent vibes from Ted Lasso. This was a wonderfully done enemies to lovers romance. I highly recommend this novel to anyone that loves slow burn, enemies to lovers romance with some sports and baby animals on the side.

Adalyn has spent years perfecting her life and working for her father for the Miami Flames, until the day that she had an altercation with the team’s mascot and it goes viral. She is sent away to the middle of no where to help a struggling soccer team, and to redeem her reputation. When she shows up, not only is the team the last thing she was expecting (it happens to be a team of nine year old girls) but Cameron Caldani is the team’s captain. Cameron Caldani is a goalkeeper all star, who left his life in the city for a small town. But after Adalyn hits him with her car, he wants to run this lady out of town.

Romance: ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Spice level: 🌶🌶️🌶️
Plot points: 💥💥💥💥💥
Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book was so good. It is definitely my favourite Elena Armas. I loved how it gave Ted Lasso vibes. The relationship between the two main characters was flawlessly executed and I really liked how there was an arc to the relationship and they didn't immediately go from disliking each other to being in a relationship. The plot was perfectly paced and wasn't too slow burn but also wasn't insta-love. If you want to get into romance novels and want a book that has a sitcom vibe to it, this one is perfect for you.