Love. Set. Match.

it was a pretty cute book and really reminded me of a similar movie - will be recommending to young adult readers looking for acute romance

Thank you net galley for the advance reader copy of this novel. This was a quick easy read that is a modern romance. The characters are both tennis gurus that are enemies at first but become more thought the novel. This was a novel with the classic frenemies theme.

Emerson Grace is s star tennis player but always second. Her goal is to win a grand slam in tennis and in love. She and Ron Ashton are adversaries at best. He is now a repiryer after having to leave tennis due to an injury.
I wasn't crazy about this book. I felt it moved too slowly and I never really connected to the characters. A lot of their problems they created by their own poor decisions.
I received a copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

From the first page of this, I was in. The overall tone of this was the perfect mix of fun, sexy, romantic and a bit mysterious.

There were times I wanted to shake Emerson, but I also sympathied with the issues that threw her into chaos. She was a strong character, but not without insecurities and vulnerability to round her out and make her more real.

I'm not sure I could say enough about Rob. His growth mostly happened before we meet him in this, but it's displayed well throughout. He is also a very atrong character, which makes him a great match for Em. Their sparring was entertaining, and their chemistry undeniable.

The supporting characters were also really wonderful; Friends, siblings, parents and grandparents (fathers aside!). I was interested in their stories, as well, and hope that those happen! Especially Dera, Owen, and Maren.

The bit of suspense and mystery had me wondering Who Dun It, but I can't deny that I'm a little disappointed. I had my hopes set on it turning out a bit differently!

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this. The characters were fun, the chemistry was hot, and the bits of tennis rich enough for someone not super familiar to enjoy.

I quite enjoy a good sports book with a strong female protagonist. This book gave us that, and included a good heartfelt story as well.

I enjoyed getting to know Em and Rob, and their history together. They were quite a powerhouse couple and I enjoyed their wit together.

I struggled with a few things, however. Straight from the beginning there were quite a few characters which made following the story quite difficult. Many of those characters were from different countries than our main character. The author often put foreign phrases into the text without explaining what the phrases meant. As a reader, I was quite frustrated by that.

I would overall give this book three stars. I enjoyed the story. I was annoyed a few times with the writing.

Heat Factor: Lots of sexytimes
Character Chemistry: He’s so sweet on her and she wants it so badly
Plot: Tennis players with history struggle through some stuff
Overall: So sweet

Ah, sports romance. The romance above all others that involves the “I can’t be distracted so I can’t have a relationship” trope. Love. Set. Match. is no different, so the question becomes, is the reason for the skittishness compelling? Is the story compelling?

I really enjoyed this read. It had the right level of emotional angst plus the right level of drama. Which is to say, not too much of either.

Emerson Grace is a very, very good tennis player. Unfortunately, she’s coming off a minor knee injury, her beloved grandfather’s death, and a bad breakup in which she was cast as the villain. Her ex-boyfriend just happens to be the number one ranked player in tennis. Also, some sexy photos she took with her ex have been splashed all over the media. She really wants a Grand Slam. She does not need any distractions, especially not in the form of Rob Ashton, tennis golden boy who broke her heart seven years ago.

After a shoulder injury eighteen months ago, Rob can no longer play tennis, so he’s taken a job at a news network so he can stay close to the game. He also hopes he can improve the tone of the reporting to the benefit of the sport. AND he’s realized he was an absolute idiot seven years ago when he listened to his father and dumped Emerson. But she’s pretty much thrice burned, what with having so many men in her life flake out on her, so Rob has an uphill battle there.

There’s some family drama in here that’s not terribly unusual for literature, and if that were the only thing going on, the story wouldn’t be anything special. But it’s not. Emerson also has a stalker - due to the whole ex situation - and that story line wasn’t necessarily my favorite but undeniably contributed a good level of drama for the story. If you have a really hard time with suspension of disbelief you might have a hard time with it, but if you have a hard time with suspension of disbelief...what do you read?

No, no, the sexy pictures were what caught me, and it set the tone for the whole romance. I didn’t think I was going to be down with Lunsford’s handling of this situation, but she pulled it together in a way that made me feel a little “Heck, yes!”

You see, Emerson took some sexy pictures in some very expensive La Perla underwear with her ex boyfriend, and after they broke up those photos were leaked to the press. Emerson is excoriated in the media, and it all gets to her. Why did she take those pictures? Didn’t she know better? She’s so slutty. And she’s in the middle of it, and she’s regretting it, and wouldn’t all that nonsense beat anybody down? Even the most confident person?

But Lunsford doesn’t leave it at that. While Rob’s colleagues contribute to the mudslinging, Rob says what really any decent human being should say in these circumstances. Emerson’s not a slut, such a descriptor is sexist and inappropriate. She’s a woman who trusts her partner (because obviously she did not take these photos of herself), and it’s not ridiculous to share that intimacy when both partners in the relationship travel a lot for their jobs. That kind of thinking is not feminist and does not belong in the 21st century. Yeah she has to do some damage control with her sponsors after this hits the fan (which is so real life but feels like total bs because see above), but Emerson’s not ashamed, although it does add to her concerns about having a relationship with Rob.

And so the rest of the story flows from there, and it’s fun. And really sweet. Le sigh.

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. We disclose this in accordance with 16 CFR §255.

This review is also available at The Smut Report.

I liked the history set up between Emerson and Rob. It lent itself to the current storyline in the book and helped establish Emerson's motives for why she made some of her decisions. I initially chose this book because of my own love of tennis, so it was nice to see the author carry so much of that into the book itself.

There was good character development with both Emerson and Rob. As a reader, you understood where their weaknesses came from - - for both of them, it seemed that their fathers had created issues they couldn't move past very easily. Then when other things would happen to them, it was always those doubts that would surface and make them question things.

I liked the secondary characters that were added into the story. They added flavor to the story and gave it some pop. In addition to the romance between these two, there are some other storylines playing out as well. Overall, this is a well-done book that kept my attention,