I did not know how lame pickleball was and unfortunately, I couldn't get past the idea that someone would be attracted to someone who played pickleball. This is 1000% a me issue.

Meg is looking for a new passion in her life. Creating custom cat collars for Etsy just isn’t cutting it anymore and, to be honest, she just can’t afford it anymore following her divorce. Her best friend Annie knows just what she needs - pickleball! Annie’s instincts prove to be right as Meg delves deeper and deeper into the pickleball world. It also gives her a bit more confidence after a rather embarrassing encounter with a handsome stranger on the ferry from Bainbridge Island. Only this isn’t the last she’s seen of Ethan Fine, who happens to be a pickleballer himself and the man who threatens to tear down her team’s beloved pickleball courts.

There was A LOT of pickleball here. Which is great, as I have only ever played in gym class and needed a bit of a refresher. However, it took away from the romance a bit. I definitely got that Meg and Ethan were attracted to eachother, but in a way I feel the author sacrificed some of the romance for the pickleballing. I did really like Meg’s growth as a person over the course of the book. She’s completely blindsided by her ex-husband’s betrayal and rather listless in the beginning of the novel. By the end, she’s found a new passion and community with her love of Pickleball. I loved all of the side characters, and since we got such a thorough look into this pickleball community I hope we will get to see another book set in this world. 3.5 Stars

Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for a review copy.

Meg Bloomberg is dumped by her husband who turns out to be a cheater. Maybe it will be for the best since he was always making fun of her art and certainly not supportive. Her friend Annie talks her into trying pickle ball which is all the rage in their area of Washington State. Meg is determined to get better at the game so she can participate in an upcoming tournament. The pickle ball courts in their neighborhood are rather run down, but there is no budget to repair or replace them. To make matters worse, environmentalist Ethan Fine locks up the courts to make sure they are used for animals, birds and plants to thrive.
Meg and Annie decide to take some time off and go to Bainbridge that was the birthplace of pickle ball. Meg ends up getting a commission to paint a mural like project on the gate of the inn where she's staying. She runs into Ethan there practicing with the Bainbridge team. They good many games and Ethan suggests Meg play with the Bainbridge team since her getting a beginner spot on her local team is not set,
At first, Meg has a low opinion of Ethan and thinks he trying to make life difficult for her and her pickle ball buddies. As she gets to know him her opinion changes dramatically.
The rom-com part of this book was cute. Unfortunately, there was a heavy emphasis on pickle ball as you would expect from the title. As one who has never played that didn't engage me. I was never good at sports. Always the last one picked last for school team sports. I was the bookish one who also loved sing or dance. There was lot of suspense in a section of the book as a few of the characters were on a hike.
I enjoyed the secondary characters a lot, especially Annie. She was a skilled doctor who was looking for love that lead her on a surprising journey. The settings were great. The author's vivid descriptions brought them to life.
Overall, this book was a good effort for. debut. If you enjoy pickle ball, this novel will be a fun, entertaining read for you. I wish Ilana Long success in her future endeavors.
@berkleyromance #Berkleybesties

Thank you @NetGalley and @BerkleyPublishingGroup for the ARC. I have not played Pickleball before and did not know much about it, but this book was a fun manual for the game. Meg is newly divorced and her best friend signs her up to play Pickleball. Meg is hooked on the game as well as the other addicted players she meets. Unfortunately the courts may be closing and a Pickleball competition is the only way to keep them open.
Meg has to find the perfect beginner partner and avoid falling for the man who wants to close her courts for conservation. A fun read.

4 Entertaining Stars!

This is my first book by Ms. Long and I was so intrigued by the blurb thanks to the popularity of Pickelball. I for one am not coordinated enough to play but I have several friends who play and they love it.

This story focuses on Meg and Ethan. She’s recently had her heart broken and has also found out that her local court may be demolished so what’s a girl to do, but take a holiday with her bestie! Little did she know that her life might change while on this getaway. I loved that I learned more about Pickelball. It seems like it would be so much fun, if a person has any type of coordination. And Meg fully embraces being part of a beginners team which could carry over to a new court in her hometown.

This story is cute and filled with witty banter and I found myself chuckling my way through the book. The minute Meg meets Ethan, there’s a definite attraction and they play the push and pull that comes with a new relationship. For obvious reasons, Meg is protecting her heart, but is Ethan worth risking it for love? Ethan may not be all that he appears to be and will it prevent them both from getting an HEA? I highly recommend you reading this book if you’re looking for a cute romance filled with a perfect amount of back and forth between our H/h that’s set in a world that is not a typical setting for a romance book.

Meg's life is whatever is left over from a wrecking ball pummeling everything. Her best friend convinces her to try Pickleball in order to gain perspective and shake the doldrums. A year later and she is less of a mess both on and off the court. The practice courts are threatened to be destroyed so she teams up with others to try their hands at winning a tournament that could allow them to keep playing.
There were parts of this book that were so fun and I got over halfway hoping that tone would balance out all. of. the. pickleball. I really liked how Ilana pulled at emotions regarding Meg's ex and loved her friendship with her bestie. The developing romance was delightful as well (love a good awkward trapped in a car kiss). But pickleball was beat to death. I really didn't want to read one more descriptive scene on a court. I would try Ilana again though with hopes that another book would focus more on the main character and less on the activity she is obsessed with.
Thank you to Berkley Besties and Netgalley for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

I tried to get into this book but I was finding it hard to believe in the character's relationship so I decided to put it down. I'm sure this book will be more of a hit for big Pickleball fans because that's a prominent part of the book.

I will admit I mistakenly downloaded this on a whim thinking it was another pickle ball themed rom com from a favorite author that I wanted to read. I still haven't read that other one, but I'm not sure I get the whole pickle ball thing - and it was A LOT. Like - it seemed a bit overkill how much they were obsessed with it. I did get a few chuckles out of some of the fun situations - the seatbelt scene was hilarious... but I kinda feel like way too much was going on with this one and I sort of lost interest after while. It took me a bit to get into it and I never really felt much for the characters.. particularly ones who want to kill an environment cause for a pickle ball court... like um, find somewhere else? There were cute moments, but it went on a bit long and I had trouble finding my footing - is it a cute rom com, is it a serious read about the interment camps? A sports romance? Environmental cause? Sometimes themes can blend well, but I just think way too much was happening - so in the end I had trouble following it.

I was pretty confused for most of this book. Whether it was the endless number of characters, or the seemingly overlapping settings, I rarely knew what was happening, and that made it difficult to focus on one of the multiple different plot points.

Ethan was a lackluster character who didn't have the charm or appeal a male main character needs to have in a romance novel. There was a lack of humour as well, making the story rather boring.

The relationship between the main couple wasn't anything I was interested in, and they didn't have much of an actual connection.

The lack of humour, charm, romance, and logical plot made this book dull and I struggled to get through it. I thought the premise of this story was interesting, but the book didn't hold any special place for me.

Oh, where do I even begin? First, a little background: This book is heavy on pickleball terminology, and if you're like me and don't play the game, you might find yourself looking up different terms, which is precisely what I was doing, and I felt that it took me out of the story. If you do play, you may not mind that there is constant talk about the game and different pointers, which I understand since the main character is learning the game, it only makes sense that someone would be teaching her and, therefore, us as well...but it was too much in my opinion. There were so many play-by-plays of pickleball matches that they became boring because I didn't understand them. After a while, when those scenes happened, I found myself skimming them.

Meg Bloomberg's husband left her, so to help her get out of her own head, her friend compelled her to learn how to play pickleball. She becomes mildly obsessed with it since she plays all the time and becomes the spokesperson for the group when the home courts are being demolished. The romance between Meg and Ethan, who is the environmental consultant on the demolition job, is interesting since she met and liked him (had a quicky just after meeting him) before she found out what he did for a living and then afterward was second-guessing everything about him.

I don't know; now that I think about it, I like the book less and less. If I were to recommend this book to anyone, it would be to pickleball fans. Honestly, I don't think nonplayers will enjoy it that much. But as always, this is my opinion, and I always advise readers to form their own opinions. So, if this book sounds interesting, read it and decide for yourself.

Happy Reading!!!

This book was all about the love of pickleball and the Seattle/Bainbridge Island area, but it was also about Meg finding herself again after an unexpected upheaval in life.

Overall I enjoyed this book quite a bit. The friendships and romance were nicely developed, and I was looking forward to learning a bit about pickleball. The two things I struggled with a bit were the constant back and forth between Meg and Ethan for much of the story and the depth of the pickleball scenes/discussions. As someone with very little knowledge of the sport it felt repetitive to have long scenes/chapters describing most games with a lot of specific lingo. I did like learning about the sport but those scenes made the story drag a bit for me

I would like to try another book from this author and look forward to seeing what she writes next.

This book was just incredibly boring - I'm DNFing at 10%. The main characters were annoying and the plot was not really going anywhere. Thanks anyway for the ARC.

I am struggling to review this because there are parts of this I really enjoyed & there were parts that frustrated me. I loved the passion for the sport of pickleball & the exuberant explanations of it. I’ve felt that love of sport before & it was beautifully showcased. I am not a fan of miscommunication & so those moments weren’t for me.

I think this might just not’ve been the read for me but I think others will really enjoy.

Massive thanks to NetGalley & Berkley Publishing for the gifted copy, which I voluntarily read & reviewed.

I did not finish this book. I personally did not connect with the characters as I had hoped and ended up deciding to put the book down. I do appreciate the chance to ARC read, this one just was not for me :(

I visited Bainbridge Island, home of pickleball, in 2023 so I was tickled pink to learn there was going to be a pickleball romance set there! I haven’t yet experienced the phenomenon that is pickleball, but I feel like this book was equal parts entertaining romance and beginners guide to the sport. I hate when a sports romance has almost no “sport” so I love that this was centered around a pickleball tournament!

Pickleballers has a great cast of characters, and I enjoyed their antics on and off the courts. I laughed out loud and “awww”d my way through this book, and it was a fresh and fun spin on the sports romance genre. Dare I hope for more niche sports romances in 2025?

Thank you to Berkley Romance for the eARC. All thoughts are my own.

A debut romance novel that includes the fastest growing sport in the USA, pickleball. Meg Bloomberg put her interests on hold while helping her husband establish his dental practice. And then he left her. In order to lift her spirits her friend Annie introduces her to the world of pickleball. It is a way to get out and meet people. The book is full of quirky and fun side characters that make up her community. She meets Ethan Fine who she finds handsome. Then she learns that he is an environmental consultant that wants to remove the pickleball courts she uses to restore wetlands.

There is a lot of little skirmishes in this story and I don’t want to spoil them. There are miscommunications and misunderstandings between the leads and others. Ethan and Meg are sweet together and I wish the book was open door. Along the way I learned a lot about pickleball and enjoyed the final match. (3.5 Stars)

Wow this fantastic romcom story made me understand pickleball more especially with all the terms they used within the storylines. It also warmed my heart at the chemistry between Meg and Ethan and of the close friendship with all the pickleball players. Highly recommend to all romance lovers and pickleball fans.

What a fun and entertaining read! Pickleball is a trending sport for sure and this book took that label and ran with it! And did a great job. It was funny and entertaining. The pickleball took center court of the story, with quite a bit drama. Set in the PNW I Loved this story as a fellow West Coaster!

I had to dnf this one. It wasn't for me and I didn't like the characters or the writing. I did like that it had to do with pickleball because its something that has really gained popularity.

Full of romance, sports, twists and turns, healing, and so much more, "Pickleballers" is a Contemporary Romance that will keep you reading into the chapter after chapter after chapter!

As soon as I heard about this book, it instantly became one of my most anticipated reads!

Ilana Long's writing is engaging, full of heart, and emotional. From the first page to the last, I was fully immersed in the stories on the page, and I also learned so much about Pickleball while reading this novel!

When Annie, Meg's best friend, introduces her to the sport of Pickleball after her (Meg's) divorce) to hopefully help her heal, Meg could never have imagined how it will change her life forever. When Meg crosses paths with Ethan, and they find one another continually in each others' paths, their relationship begins to develop and deepen. However, all is not smooth sailing. Will they be one another's happyily-ever-after? You will just have to read to find out!

(Possible Spoilers!):
Full of sports puns, beautiful locations, healing, some miscommunication, and a witty and gripping romance, this novel truly has so much in it. The characters grow throughout, and I absolutely love the strong and beautiful friendship between Annie and Meg. I so look forward to reading what the author writes next!

I highly recommend this book!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the e-ARC of this novel, and to Berkley Publishing Group for having me on the blog tour! All opinions expressed in this review are my own.