Avery Abrams was once an elite gymnast who's Olympic dreams were shattered after an injury at a qualifying meet forced her into early retirement. In the almost decade since the incident, Avery has had to watch her ex-best friend Jasmine reach all the goals she trained her whole life for. Now, with no motivation or prospects on the horizon and a recent break-up, Avery has no choice left but to move back in with her parents in her Massachusetts hometown. When she gets a call from Ryan, another athlete she used to compete with, with a position helping coach a young gymnast with Olympic aspirations, she hesitantly agrees.

Despite her worries and bad memories of her own abusive coach, Avery finds a renewed energy the moment she walks back into Summit gym. She's also surprised to find that the more she helps Ryan train Hallie, the more her confidence seems to flourish and her self-esteem grows. The old emotional wounds she had from the sport she once loved begin to heal, and being around Ryan isn't so bad either. But when a shocking scandal wracks the gymnastics world, the ripples not only affect the sport itself, but Avery and her old friend Jasmine as well.

I enjoyed this, but I didn't fully love it. All I really knew of the gymnastics world, I learned from watching the movie Stick It, so reading all about the tricks and intense training/conditioning that these athletes go through was really fascinating. It was interesting seeing this world through Avery's perspective, and seeing the differences in her training versus how Ryan was brought up in the sport. The story itself I thought was okay. I did expect the actual scandal to be a bigger part than it turned out to be, but overall I appreciated how it turned out. As for the relationship between Avery and Ryan, I found it a bit meh. I did also find this a bit clunky and the pacing to be off a bit in places. With that in mind, I'd still recommend if you're a fan of sports centered rom-coms.

Head Over Heels
by: Hannah Orenstein
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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I was lucky enough to receive an ARC for Head Over Heels from @NetGalley and @atriabooks. *Head Over Heels comes out on June 23rd.*
I’ve read all three of Hannah Orenstein’s books, and this was my favorite! I think Avery was the most like-able and fleshed our of the main characters in her books. (I have no idea how to spell like-able, and I have no desire at this time to look it up.) Avery had a career-ending injury at the Olympic Trials in 2012 and has floundered every since - flunking out of college and more recently getting dumped. Moving back home, she’s asked to coach a young Olympic hopeful on her floor routine at her old gym alongside Ryan. Ryan and Avery competed at the same time growing up - Ryan making it to the Olympics in 2012 and 2016 - and Avery may or may not have had a crush on “Cute Ryan.” Coming home also causes Avery to confront her demons - both figuratively and literally (her old coach). I fell Head Over Heels for this and finished it in a few hours. If you like gymnastics, this is an interesting look at what happens when you don’t make the Olympics. The love story was cute but not the whole story. Read it when it comes out!

I read my first Hannah Orenstein novel last fall and immediately fell in love with her fun and easygoing writing. I devoured Love at First like, so when I saw she had a new novel coming out, I had to get my hands on it. 

Head over Heels is about Avery, a once Olympic gymnastics hopeful who is trying to find her way after a bad breakup. Avery moves home and begins working as a couch in her old gym. I loved Avery from the first chapter- she is so real; her dreams have been crushed, her boyfriend has left her, and she's fighting to find something to believe in. The story is charming, the writing is sweet and funny, and the characters will have your heart invested in this story. I really enjoyed the love story that developed in this story, but that was more of a secondary story line to Avery's journey.

You will love this one if you loved Love at First Like and Well Met you will enjoy this one.

This was a light, fun, enjoyable read for fans of rom-coms. I enjoyed the characters and the relationship development. The plot wasn't overly complex but kept me engaged. Not my usual genre, but I did enjoy the read.

**SQUEALS** What a story! Seriously, you need to read this book. It truly has made it to a special place in my heart. Everything about Avery and Ryan has made my heart swoon and melt!

While I have zero interest in team sports, I love those that combine music and grace, such as gymnastics and ballet, and also fencing. I'll gladly read fiction about these three.

In this novel that focuses on women's gymnastics, Avery is an ex-Olympic contender--that is, she didn't make it past Olympic trials. I thought Orenstein did an excellent job with the psychological damage of knowing that your professional life (which is going to be very short anyway) is over at age nineteen. After spending every waking moment training.

She is dumped by her pro football boyfriend, who feels she isn't going anywhere, and she moves home to mom and dad, a washed-up has-been in her twenties. But then she gets a call from a high school crush, Ryan, who was training in men's gymnastics, to help coach a rising star of sixteen years.

Once we get to that part of the story, I was in it hard. I loved how Orenstein balanced the characters: Hallie is a very convincing girl, driven, determined, with ambitious but wary parents behind her. (Not the insane parents who live through forcing their kid into being a prodigy, which is a different sort of story). Avery recognizes herself in Hallie's absolute commitment, and though she is not a trained coach, she is reaching into her own experience of abuse from a trainer lauded as the best, and trying to find a way to bring Hallie to excellence without the toxic psychological fallout.

Running parallel to that, a secondary thread of sexual abuse of these teenage athletes runs alongside the story, weaving in deftly. So much rides on these girls, and their time in the sun is so brief, but so exhilarating if they make it to the top.

Avery has to come to terms with a new life, which brings us to the romantic thread. She has a lot of baggage, not helped by Ryan's obliviousness to how very different the training is for girls, and the emotional scars it causes.

The romance, though overall convincing, can feel a bit scanted--it lurches a bit between Problem/Resolution, and the present tense does not help. In fact, the present tense, which seems to be The Thing now in YA fiction, really hurts the start of the novel when so much is backstory. Present tense flashbacks, unless actual scene rather than summary, draw too much attention to narrative "tell." And there is a lot of it--all necessary for understanding Avery's own emotional register. (I wish the author had begun with that devastating failure, then present tense would have unleashed its full strength.)

But once Avery started her new job, I was with this story all the way to the gracefully achieved end. I really like the note the book ended on, in fact. Overall, a solid look at the cost of talent plus drive, and how those don't always equal agency.

2 stars
I felt this oak was not really a romance novel. It was a gymnastic novel that felt like they forced a side story of romance. I am not into gymnastics, so I was bored and struggle to even finish it.

Head over Heels is a contemporary chick-lit talk on the hazards that many athletes (young gymnasts in this case) face in the world of competitive sports training.
You follow Avery fresh from a breakup moving back to her hometown to start over. Once an Olympic level gymnast herself she knows just what it takes to make it to the big leagues. Even if a career ending injury cut her dream short, she still has the opportunity to help at her old gym teach a new generation. Add that the main coach was her girlhood crush and its an even sweeter deal.

Avery is a great example of a flawed but lovable character. She’s not shy about the things she experienced in her past and learned how they made her stronger instead of making her a prisoner. The overall story is a look into mental health, abuse on several levels, getting help, #metoo and the problems many people have experienced when training for anything competitive.
There is a romance in here but it played second string to the athletics. Ryan is a well rounded character and his personality works well with Avery. I liked their relationship when it came to coaching and just general team work but I didn’t have much feeling over them as a romantic couple.
Pleasant read, there’s some good points made but I personally don’t find it to be a particularly stand out book. However if you are into sports or character driven titles you may really like it.

*E-Arc provided by Atria Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I was super excited to read this one, but sadly it fell flat for me. I did enjoy the setting as well as the character's passion for their sport. But the relationship felt like a lot of telling, not showing and instant lovey.

I was really hoping to get more into depth about gymnastics and the abuse that can occur, but it felt like it was very surface level.

I stopped caring about the romance once the main character did not believe his girlfriend about her emotional and verbal abuse, and then tried to buy her forgiveness. It just didn't sit well with me and I feel like there was no reason for them to like each other except the fact that they knew each other before, and were physically attracted to one another.

I think the organization they created was a start, but I would've liked the book to dig deeper into those issues.

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

This was a fast and fun read. I'd recently read another book about an Olympic Gymnast, so this felt familiar to me, but in the end, it was so much better.

I liked these characters, I liked that they weren't perfect, even though they're Olympians. They felt more genuine to me that I thought they would.

We're all fighting for something in our daily lives, some for a spot on the Olympics team, some to get out of bed in the morning. It's relative, and I think that's important for us to realize, especially these days.

I will definitely read more from this author.

I received an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Avery Abrams has hit rock bottom before. Seven years ago, an injury cost Avery her Olympic dreams as a gymnast. Since then, she’s failed out of college and now her boyfriend of four years has dumped her. Heading back to live with her parents, she’s offered a job to help coach a rising star. Avery will have to cope with her past if she’s ever going to create a new future with a new love.

Avery’s character development shines as she makes positive relationships with other women who encourage her to except her body. The author grapples with the heavy topics of emotional and sexual abuse in women’s gymnastics, and encourages women to speak out. Still, the overall tone of the book is hopeful and transformative.

The romance is a lovely side plot and despite some hurdles, you can’t help but cheer for Avery to find her own happily ever after.

2020 didn’t quite turn out as the author planned; but since you can’t watch the Tokyo Olympics this year, read HEAD OVER HEELS. It has all the drama, heart, and surprises of a world-class competition with a finish that will have you springing to your feet.

Because I usually enjoy reading novels about women in sports like ballet and gymnastics, I was sure I would love this book. And while the concept is there, I felt like the execution left something to be desired. There was so much telling rather than showing in the writing, and it was repetitive to the point that I found myself bored. There was very little plot, which could have been propped up by either compelling characters or a page-turning romance, but neither of those really exist here. And while I did think it was necessary that Orenstein explore abuse in gymnastics, I wish she would have chosen to focus either fully on that or really develop the romance, as she didn't do either effectively when trying to handle both.

Adorable. A wonderful romping romance that feels playful and sexy at the same time. I loved the gymnastics element and think that it will appeal to a lot of readers.

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Review : this is a mini review, this book wasn’t my favorite. It fell short for me, I kind of went into this book judging by its cover. I thought it was going to be a lighter read....parts of it were cute, but I felt that this book was more about bringing awareness to readers about different mental, emotional, and physical abuse gymnastics go through. I felt that the author kind of creates a romantic story to attract readers, and that was probably the only entertaining part of the story. I think if you like sports in general and women’s fiction novels you could enjoy this story. But for me it was just okay. ⁣
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2.5 /5 ⭐️⭐️💫⁣
Steam : 🔥 ⁣

When elite gymnast, Avery, suffers a career ending injury, depression consumes her and she wastes her life partying and maintaining an unhealthy relationship. She moves back home and is contacted by former Olympic gymnast and crush, Ryan, to assistant coach an Olympic hopeful. Avery struggles to tamp down her attraction to Ryan, the bad memories of her failed career, and awkwardness reuniting with her former best friend who took her spot in the Olympics and is living the life in the spotlight Avery always wanted. This book addresses current events and systemic issues within the gymnastics community with sensitivity and delivers a love story wrapped in the intensity and sparkle of competitive gymnastics. It never goes super deep emotionally, so I consider it a lighter read. On a personal note, as a former competitive and professional dancer, I immediately identified with the headspace of all the characters in the book and it brought up a lot of memories for me, both good and bad. Overall, I really appreciated the bigger message of the book that self care and mental health should be as much a part of an athlete’s life as the physical training. Available June 2020. #netgalley and #atriabooks kindly provided an advanced copy for my honest review. Trigger warning: emotional abuse, depression, sexual assault

Between 2.5/3 stars. Really great concept, mediocre execution.

Things I enjoyed: Gymnastics! Discussion about systemic issues in the gymnastics world. I am also a fan of stories where someone starts at a really low point and gradually learns how to get better through self care and acknowledging that mistakes made in the past weren't really their fault.

Things that could have worked better: I wanted more depth about the gymnastics scandal that was obviously inspired by Larry Nassar, and the last half of the book felt rushed and could have been tighter (the book in general has a lot of telling v. showing, especially in the last half). I also did enjoy Avery as a protagonist, but I felt like many of the side characters (with the exception of Avery's roommate) were flat and wasn't particularly excited about them. Also Ryan really didn't do much for me as a romantic lead. I'm a fan of romantic stories that build up relationships and gradually tease out details, and there was nothing really in his character that made him feel exceptional.

I kept thinking about the book Evvie Drake Starts over, and how it has similar themes--a woman acknowledging her hard and abusive past, and learning to care for herself again, while also falling for someone--and how it was filled with tiny little details and moments that meant something. I wish Head Over Heels had more of that

Having loved Playing with Matches and Love at First Like, Hannah Orenstein is a "must read" author for me. 100%. With her latest book, Head Over Heels, she takes readers into the deeply competitive world of elite gymnastics.

Avery Abrams is at a crossroads when she and her star quarterback boyfriend break up. With nothing left to keep her in LA, she moves back to her hometown and in with her parents. Adrift, when an opportunity comes from her teenage crush Ryan to coach a talented, but unrefined, Olympic hopeful on her floor routine, it might just be what Avery needs to find her own path forward.

This is the book you will want to be reading this summer. When we are missing the 2020 Olympic Games, Orenstein is going to help fill the void with a tale that has romance and a deep emotional core that also explores themes of mental health, finding oneself and recovering from emotional abuse. Highly recommended!

For some reason, I've always flocked toward books about gymnastics. Even more so - books about gymnastics and the Olympics. Throw in a love story, and I'm hooked!

This book had quite a unique plot. While there was a love story, that wasn't all there was. There was also a scandal. I was very much interested in the outcome of both the scandal and the love story.

I thought this book was a true pageturner. It held my attention from page one until the very last page. Orenstein is an excellent author who I will read again and again!

Head Over Heels was a delightful romp from beginning to end. I thought the way they handled sexual and emotional abuse in the sport was super well done and incredibly thoughtful. Overall, it was a great read!

Thanks Atria and Netgalley for my gifted copy of Head Over Heels!

Are you sad or disappointed that the Olympics got pushed to 2021? Look no further for a little relief!

Head over Heels is about a retired gymnast named Avery Abrams who has had a hard time since she had a career-ending injury at the Olympic trials seven years prior to the present day. She moves home to Massachusetts, and receives a phone call from Ryan, a new gymnastics coach. He wants her to help coach a young Olympic hopeful. What follows is a beautiful story of hope, hard work, and determination.

I absolutely adored this book. It was an easy, relaxing read. All of the characters except for one were extremely likeable, and you found yourself rooting for all of them! I loved how supporting characters, like Avery’s roommate Sara, had significant roles in the main plot.

What I truly love and admire about this book is that Orenstein brought in an additional storyline similar to what several gymnasts recently dealt with in the Larry Nassar scandal, but gave it the full attention it deserved. It wasn’t glossed over - you saw how it affected Avery and Hallie, along with their thoughts and actions because of it. As I have discovered since I began reviewing books, doing something like this isn’t easy.

Plan to grab this book when it comes out in June! I know I’ll be checking out Orenstein’s other books soon. Do you have a favorite Olympic sport? Mine are gymnastics, skiing, ice skating, swimming, and all of the equestrian events.