ohhhh, this was so cute and lovely, and just completely compulsively readable like any good YA contemporary should be.

Home Field Advantage follows the romantic shenanigans between Amber, a cheerleader, and Jack, a quarterback who has just joined the school after the death of their previous quarterback. Except, wait, Jack is a girl *squeals*. (There's much more complexity than that, but like, if you aren't on board already with this description, idk)

The characters in this book felt so real, and each had their own complex lives and stories that Adler somehow manage to flesh out in a mere 300-page novel. I felt so much for Jack, Amber, and Miguel, and were rooting for them both on their own and in their respective relationships. I love how this book took the classic cheerleader-football player trope and turned it on its head (and did a mighty job at it, might I add), and explored the experience of being queer in such a high school setting. I especially enjoyed the portrayal of queer joy while not being publicly out, as this is something I feel like I haven't seen much of. While YA contemporaries aren't traditionally known for their revolutionary plots, this book struck a perfect balance between wholesome romance and plot, and it was so satisfying to see how everything came together at the end.

TLDR; fricking cute and fricking gay, but also complex and very well done??? would recommend

Oh my gosh. OH MY GOSH!!! Dahlia Adler's characters wormed their way into my heart and completely captivated me. I read this book in less than 24 hours because I was so obsessed with it! The rivals to lovers romance books always get me in this way and I was so happy to find that this story of love, high school challenges, and overcoming them together was just as good as I was expecting. If you haven't added this book to your want to read list yet for 2022, add it now! Thank you to Dahlia Adler, her publishers, and NetGalley for giving me the advanced reader's copy in return for a review!

I read this in a single sitting and really loved it! It's built on the "cheerleader and QB of the football team" trope, except make it gay. It was delightful. The cast of characters is great, the romance was sweet, and even though we didn't spend as much time with the 4 queer characters together as I wanted, their dynamic felt real. Overall, highly recommend.

4.5 stars

***Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a complimentary copy of HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE by Dahlia Adler in exchange for my honest review.***

Following the death of the star quarterback, Jack (as in Jaclyn) is recruited to fill the role, causing backlash among nearly the entire school. One notable exception, head cheerleader wannabe Amber, who’s not only supportive, but also crushing on Jack.

HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE is a fairly predictable, yet important story that tackles homophobia and misogyny that will likely appear to younger YA readers. I would have loved this book as a middle-schooler too. Dahlia Adler hits on most LGBT hot button issues so that most are represented in some manner.

While reading I was reminded of the movie Quarterback Princess, from the 1980s and I could imagine HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE as a Netflix or Lifetime film, wanted multiple times over by teenagers.

At times heavy handed, HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE scores a touchdown but misses the extra point.