All Amber wants is to be the captain of her cheerleading squad, but everyone is lacking a little pep because their beloved QB tragically died. When they hear about his replacement, Jack, no one imagined Jack would be short for Jaclyn. And Jack is better than any QB the team has seen. When Amber catches feelings for Jack, she has to face the dilemma of squad and cheer captain versus her heart.

I really enjoyed this book, and it was such a quick read for me. It hurt my heart to see these kids react to Jack, who is ultimately so confident. I also really loved Amber and her development throughout the book. Obviously, I have no idea what it’s like to come out in high school, and I never will. But I can only imagine how hard and scary it is, especially if your community isn’t fully accepting. With that being said, I also truly LOVED Miguel. Talk about a great supporting character. We needed more of Cara’s story. All we really saw was her being the worst, except for her own story of grief which teenagers have no idea how to handle. I felt like she got off too easily.

Overall, this Home Field Advantage made me angry because kids are mean, but also it made me smile because kids can grow. Dahlia Adler captures teenagers so well, and I’ll continue to read anything she comes out with!

A really fun read! It's mostly a romance but has a little mystery, too. Loved the characters. I would definitely recommend this to teens!

Meet Amber: high school cheerleader who is also super queer (even if no one knows it), and has big plans for landing the cheer captain title. You know what's not part of the plan? Falling for Jack Walsh, the controversial new quarterback who's just transferred to Amber's school--and happens to be a girl. As sparks fly between the two, they must confront the misogyny Jack experiences as a girl on a boys' football team, while also navigating their own identities, coming out, complex friendship dynamics, and uncertain futures. ⁣
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Dahlia's books just fill me up with queer joy, and Home Field Advantage is a perfect read for Pride! I really appreciated that this book delivers a sweet sapphic romance without shying away from serious topics like homophobia & misogyny. Check out this YA contemporary if you're a fan of Like Other Girls or She Drives Me Crazy!

I went into this book only knowing how much I enjoy Adler's other books. I walked away thinking about how much I wanted my own female QB. This was an outstanding read with flawed, yet very relatable characters and a story that took a hold of my feelings and never let go. I want to read more stories like this.

I got an ARC of this book.

I wanted more from this book. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't enough. It was a super basic story. Two girls fall for each other, but one is closeted. That is really it. All of the real conflict in the story is about coming out. It felt like a story I would have read twenty years ago when I was first seeking out queer stories. The big difference here is one of them wasn't a lesbian. I love seeing more sexualities represented in books. I would however prefer if the stories evolved so it wasn't the same basic story that I read in the 90s.

It was a pretty basic YA romance as well. So nothing really stood out for me about this book. It wasn't bad, but it didn't stand out for any real reason.

There was one, exactly one football scene. Which seemed weird since cheerleader/QB situation. The football scene took forever too. It was a long scene. I understand why it was long, but it was also the only scene which felt odd. It was weird.

This was a super cute read! It's definitely a concept I've never read before, and all of the characters were so unique in their own ways. It's very emotional and covers a lot of bases for a young adult novel. It's books like these I'm glad the younger generations get to have on their shelves.

I will say, I think this one was a little too YA for my liking. Or maybe I wasn't in the right mindset to read a YA novel; I don’t know. There were some things that seemed repetitive, but also seemed a little juvenile for me.

But the representation in this book is amazing, and I definitely would recommend it. I also loved all the very specific Florida references as a Floridian myself. I think this is a fun YA novel that young readers will love.

CW: misogyny, homophobia, a past car accident death

This book was an automatic love for me! Right from the gate, i fell in love with the cover. I was totally excited for some sports rom-com, and even more so because it was Queer/Lesbian story.
This book not only was cute and quick, but it also covered some Heavy topics including Homophobia, Religious Trauma, and even unplanned pregnancy. But handled these topics with such grace and honesty. They were definitely your typical clichés high school students but it wasn't done in a bad way. The side characters were just as memorable as the main characters for me.

Home Field Advantage is the perfect sophomore book, taking the summery vibes of Cool For the Summer and pulling us further into fall and winter. It is a lovely story of finding peace with being yourself, and trying not to hurt others too hard during the process. I appreciate the conflict of not wanting to speak up, although the build-up of guilt felt a bit like a fast answer more than a totally earned conclusion.

This book ended up being a surprise treat! I had a copy sitting on my TBR for months, but wasn't super excited to pick it up because I kind of hated the cover. But someone pointed out this was the same author as celebrated Cool for the Summer, and it spurred me to finally give this one a go! And am I glad I did.

Cheer captain hopeful Amber is thrown for a loop when her school's new quarterback is a girl. While the rest of the school is livid that their beloved, recently deceased quarterback Robbie had been replaced by a girl, Amber is pining for the newcomer. But between balancing her fake relationship with a closeted football player, and maintaining her position on the cheer squad, it's hard to hide her feelings.

I really enjoyed this book! It's entertaining and evocative for a young adult romance! It teaches lessons about acceptance without being preachy. It's a great summer read all around, and, imo, a step up from the fun Cool for the Summer!

Thanks to Wednesday Books for my eARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

5 stars - 9/10

If you’re a fan of She Drives Me Crazy, then you absolutely need to pick up Home Field Advantage.

This book is not only a cute queer/lesbian story about a cheerleader falling for the new QB. It also tackles heavier topics like homophobia, religious trauma, and unplanned pregnancy with a lot of care and honesty. The characters in this book also talk and act like teenagers, which is the whole point of YA. I feel like this will be a wonderful book for teens to read, and I hope youth and school librarians add it to their collections.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced copy to review.

I got this book though Netgalley for a honest review, but I did buy the audiobook though Libro FM and this book just melted my heart. If you want a lgbtq+ romcom type book this is it for sure I love this book and yes some people got me pissed off I will say there Some homophobia in this book so if that a trigger for you maybe say away, but this book I have no words for it. Five stars just five stars.

I adored this! The two main characters had such good chemistry together, and the story overall kept me intrigued the whole time. Such a cute and lighthearted sapphic sporty romance, throughly enjoyed reading about Ambers journey coming to terms with her own feelings compared to her friends.

I hardly ever read sports books, but this sapphic romance with all the usual sportsy romance tropes is the exception to that rule. I really enjoyed it and I know a bunch of teens who will too

another review, of another queer ya romcom, this time about the head cheerleader of a small-town high school and the new quarterback who happens to also be a girl, as much as the entire student body wishes she weren’t. the story follows amber & jack as the two become an unlikely pair, and have to keep their relationship a secret from the entire school for a multitude of reasons (especially because jack has replaced the golden boy qb robbie who recently died in a car crash). will amber be able to use her voice to stand up for jack and put her heart on the line?

despite my short summary, i did really enjoy this book! while at times it felt a bit young, i do appreciate the glimpse at being queer & in the spotlight in a small town, and the depth most characters had in the complexity of their feelings about jack & amber. it’s a shorter novel that read quickly, and would make a perfect read as we move into “back to school” season.

*Arc provided by Netgalley and St. Martin's Press in exchange for an honest review.*

Home Field Advantage is a modern sapphic take on the quarterback/cheerleader stereotype. Amber is desperate to become cheer captain but her feelings for new transfer Jack (Jaclyn) are putting that at risk. Jack struggles to mesh with the team after replacing their deceased friend and former quarterback. A story that puts social issues and stereotypes front and center to confront them.

This book is a lot deeper than a lot of YA I've read lately; it should be noted it does cover homophobia, teen drinking, death, and bullying. A good read and definitely recommended for anyone who enjoyed Adler's last book Cool For the Summer.

I have to admit, this took me a little while to read because I haven't had much luck with other Dahlia Adler titles. But still, the description of this book was too much for me to pass up. And of course, there's the freaking fact that Natalie Naudus was the narrator. By then I knew I didn't have to just read it, but I had to LISTEN to it.

This book was everything I wasn't expecting. It's a lot heavier than I was expecting. Especially since the cover is so sweet. But man, this book was filled with so much heavy convos. Homophobia, misogyny, mention of abortion & miscarriage, and more. And although these topics are super heavy, they are handled as best they could be in this story. It made me hate everyone in this book besides the two main characters. It stressed me out, but it showed growth for some characters as well.

Now for the good stuff. I LOVED Jack. I really wish I could have jumped into this book and been her number one fan. She was bad ass and I wish I could have seen her on the field. As a real football fan, I had so much fun imagining her out on the field during those times she was on the field. But I hated the way she was treated. After all the things she went through to even get there, she didn't deserve the things they threw at her. (No pun intended) Then there's Amber. I liked her, but she was just basic. She didn't spark anything in me and I don't think I would have cared about her if Jack didn't fall for her. (Especially when she had this friend who acted the way she did. There's no way I would have kept her around. And then on top of that she was the world's biggest hypocrite. So yeahhhh, she was not my favorite.)

This brings me to the best part of this book. The romance. I think it was because of Jack, but I liked seeing the two of them grow together. I hated that they had to hide, but I did understand it. But watching them flirt and grow together was absolutely adorable. But what I loved the most was seeing them do all the high school football-esque things they got to do together, like Amber decorating Jack's locker, the Lacoste shirt thing, the alligator clips thing. Ughhhh it was very cute lol I wish they could have loved each other out loud tho. Which makes me very happy when I got to the end of the book. It was too short, but I loved to see it.

Again I had another book narrated by Natalie Naudus. I don't know what to say about her that I haven't already said. She's amazing at what she does and she kept me hooked to the book even when I was upset with mostly everyone. Even when I got super scared and didn't know what was going to happen to them. She didn't have to work as hard with this one tho, she was accompanied by Lori Prince. I've only listened to one other thing by them, but they did an awesome job then too. And they definitely worked well together.


This book is about so much more than what I thought it was going to be about. It stressed me out, it put my emotions through the ringer, and I still loved it. I definitely recommended this one for the thing we're doing for work. It will give us so much to talk about.

When I tell you that I love Dahlia Adler and the three books that I’ve read by her I mean it. Good grief this book was everything I wanted it to be and more.

Home Field Advantage by Dahlia Adler is cheerleader and QB with a twist.

Jack and Amber. My god. Phenomenal. Would defend them with my life.

Thank you St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books, and NetGalley for giving me access to an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Amber is a cheerleader who is on her way to being cheer captain next year. Jack is the school's new quarterback who is replacing their previous one who was killed in a car accident. The big problem? Jack is a girl and no one wants a girl on their football team.

Oh my gosh I loved this book! I didn’t expect to love this as much as I did but Amber and Jack are an adorable couple and seeing how they fall for each other in the cliche cheerleader dates the quarterback way is the cutest! I also enjoyed (most) of their friends and adored Amber’s relationship with her mom.

This is such a cute YA book about finding yourself and standing up for what you want.

Thank you to BooksForwardFriends and Wednesday Books for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Such a cute romance between a cheerleader and the quarterback -- except not what you think! The cheerleader is not out to the school about her identity and the quarterback is a girl brought into save the football team. They both face a lot of challenges along the way (and a few surprising twists). A sweet read with a satisfying ending. Highly recommended for grades 8 & up.

3.75 Stars. This is a funny and sweet romance between a cheerleader with all the expectations shoved on her and a girl who is breaking all the rules by being good at throwing a football and being unapologetic about her goals. It is a lot heavier than what I thought it was going to be, but the heavier subjects were added in a way that didn't make it feel like the tone was off.

I thought the book had some good pacing and the characters were engaging enough to make me want to keep moving forward in the book. I thought Jack fell a little too heavily into the angry, broody butch stereotype, but she is not a conflict adverse person and is bombarded from all sides for just doing something she likes. Amber, on the other hand does come off as understanding, because while she does want to be cheer captain, she is finding out that it might come at the cost of her own personal beliefs and her relationships. I actually found Amber to be the more interesting character of the two, and I think its because her conflicts are more internalized than Jack. Jack's storyline is more straightforward but Amber's conflicts are more subtle. That doesn't mean Jack isn't interesting - I just thought Amber's storyline was more to my tastes.

This is a YA book and it shows - the kids sound like people, and their conflicts are present in all teen groups. I also like that the small town atmosphere feels like a small town, where most things should fall into their places, and if people don't fit neatly into them, they are singled out. This is the second 'sports' type coming of age story that I read in a month, and I liked them both. This one does a much better job talking about the issues it wants to talk about though.

This is a really well done romantic sports story. It has well thought out characters with dynamic conflicts and interesting resolutions. Amber and Jake's storyline don't necessarily revolve around their growing relationship, and it makes the book feel more than a straightforward rom-com. The heavier topics are interesting and personal to the characters, while also fairly universal. This is sports book where the sport in question is important, but it is framed a part of the themes of the book. Good stuff here.

*I received this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.