Meryl Wilsner writes such complex storylines with real characters and I loved both of them.
This book was so cute and Phoebe and Grace's chemistry was intense. The book was pretty spicy with so much emotional depth to it. Highly recommend. Grace was so relatable for me and Phoebe was a joy to follow along.
I love queer sports romances and this one was so good. Grumpy and sunshine vibes for the win.
I loved the setting of New Orleans and it sounds amazing and makes me want to visit so much.

*Thank you St Martin's Press and netgalley for a free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Meryl Wilsner is quickly becoming well-known in the world of sapphic romance. Highly recommended for collections where romance, particularly queer romance, circulates.

thank you to netgalley for the ARC! took me a little longer than i meant to to get to it, but hey. can't win 'em all <3

in this adorable sapphic soccer romance, "Phenomenal" Phoebe Matthews, a killer midfielder, has just been drafted straight out of college to play soccer with the New Orleans Krewe. which is kind of amazing, considering she'll be playing next to her childhood idol, Grace Henderson. but don't get it twisted — Phoebe isn't there to be some crazy fangirl over Grace. she's there to play soccer — and maybe, hopefully, to gain the attention US Women’s National Team coach for this year's World Cup. that being said... Grace <i>is</i> pretty cute.

at only 26 years old, Grace Henderson is practically a veteran of US women's soccer. and she knows all about the dark sides of being a soccer celebrity — like how the media wants to know every last detail about her personal life, and what a threat to her career it would be to tell her trainers about the twinge she's been feeling in her hip lately. as she gears up for the World Cup, she has enough to focus on without getting distracted by the (cute) (loud) (confident) new rookie on her team, who's wildly competitive and (unfortunately) has the skill to back it up. but after losing a bet against Matthews, she is forced to reckon with her growing attraction for the newbie.

when Grace is inevitably benched for the foreseeable future (seriously girl, tell your coach when you're injured??), Phoebe takes her place on the national team for the time being. at the same time, they've struck up a FWB situation that can only end up one of two ways... in romance, or in a trainwreck, and with their clashing personalities, it's honestly a toss-up which way it could go.

I really went back and forth on what to rate this, and I think I'm just bad at rating books that are by all means good, but not 100% for me. I feel so bad giving it 4 stars when I still had a good time and I think the writing is really good!! so I'm giving it five stars, especially because the parts that weren't "for me" are like, staples of the genre, lmao. (I just didn't realize from the description there would be really explicit sex scenes! that's on me!) so my personal enjoyment was more like four stars whereas my "objective" rating is five (although who the hell knows what objective even means).

so! reasons for five stars!

- very sweet love story! I was honestly really struck by how much respect they had for each other, even when they spend half the book fighting over one thing or another

- playing with each other's hair. braiding it. staring at it. basically, #women. - the adhd x autism rep we all want, need, and deserve

- grumpy x sunshine AND experienced player x rookie (respectively), which is a delight

- all characters were definitely well-developed, engaging, and most importantly: both the protagonists were interesting! that is NOT a guarantee although you'd think it would be!! but Wilsner deliversss

- I don't know anything about professional soccer, and you definitely don't have to to understand the book. it's pretty much laid out for you, but the author also doesn't beat you over the head with explanations. (I am currently seeing one review where someone says they're confused, and I am a) wildly surprised, since Phoebe's chapters pretty much spell it out for you, and b) begging people to realize they do not have to understand every last thing going on... make your peace with uncertainty. xoxo.)

- the sex scenes (though incredibly jarring to me as an unprepared asexual, lmao) were believable. despite being my own personal jumpscare, they revealed so much about the two women — they weren't gratuitous or just there to be sexy (not that there's anything wrong with that) (also, not that they WEREN'T sexy. they were.)

- I'm kind of glad I didn't read the Goodreads description too quickly, because it kind of gives everything away?? and I'd hardly call them rivals... they're teammates!! of course, I assume if you're reading this, you've already read the description — but if not, don't! just go read the book instead! godspeed!

Thank you to the publishing company for the ark! Unfortunately, this book was not for me at all. I thought the characters were under developed, the plot was rushed, and the romance was subpar. There was literally no chemistry between the main love interest, and it was really disappointing.

Cleat Cute by Meryl Wilsner

Published: September 19, 2023
St. Martin’s Griffin
Genre: Sports Romance
Pages: 332
KKECReads Rating: 4/5
I received a copy of this book for free, and I leave my review voluntarily.

Meryl Wilsner writes happily ever afters for queer folks who love women. They are the author of SOMETHING TO TALK ABOUT and MISTAKES WERE MADE. Born in Michigan, Meryl lived in Portland, Oregon and Jackson, Mississippi before returning to settle in the Mitten State. Some of Meryl’s favorite things include: all four seasons, button down shirts, the way giraffes run, and their wife.

“Different people have different experiences.”

This was such a sweet story. I enjoyed the characters, their development, and the build-up. The relationship building felt authentic and had a genuine quality that’s often hard to bring to life. Meryl nailed it.

I loved how different Phoebe and Grace were, yet how well they meshed. I saw a lot of myself in Grace, minus being athletic, and that was a fun experience.

The emotions throughout this book were handled beautifully, and I appreciated that heavy topics were discussed respectfully and openly.

I had never read a book by Meryl before this one, but I am putting her on the approved list moving forward.

Thank you to NetGalley and SMP Romance for both the ALC and eARC of this book.

Let me start by saying: I WANTED TO LOVE THIS BOOK.

I did not.

It's pitched as a Sapphic rom-com along the lines of A League of Their Own and Ted Lasso.

A League of Their Own - lady sports. That's the only similarity.

Ted Lasso - soccer. That's it.

In my heart, I was about to read a witty, banter-filled lady love version of Bend It Like Beckham - except teammates fall in love while winning the big game and over coming all odds.

Instead I sat inside the heads of two ladies that over-think and under-communicate. I read the words dental dam no less than four times. The best dialogue scene was with a cook about DB Cooper.

Conflict popped out of nowhere and was resolved in a cloud of chaos.

I just - could not.

I had to stop listening to the audiobook at about 40% because the narrator for Phoebe sounded a bit like my midwestern mom friends. Listening to that voice narrate a steamy scene was -- not good.

I really, really wanted to love this book. I love most books SMP Romance puts out. I've read several f/f romance lately that I loved. This one just didn't do it for me.

I switched between audio and ebook and enjoyed both.

This was a fun sapphic romance. I loved the enemies to lovers and forced proximity aspects.

We meet Pheobe, a rookie soccer player to the New Orleans Krewe, and Grace, a veteran and captain of the team. Grace struck me as a bit grumpy and standoffish at first. But when Phoebes asks if Grace can show her around NOLA, I feel like we get a better feel for Grace.

They become friends-ish, which eventually develops into more.

I also loved the soccer aspect!

Many thanks to NetGalley, MacMillan Audio and St. Martin's Press for an ALC and ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you St, Martin’s Press (St. Martin’s Griffith) for my advanced copy! All thoughts are my own!

Meryl Wilsner’s books have always been favorites of the book-ternet when they come out so I was so excited to read Cleat Cute. I also am a sports lover and I am particularly fascinated when it comes to things like national teams, so I was pumped for this premise. And on a vain note, I rarely see my name in books! So that was a cool element for sure.

In a shocking twist, I loved everything about this book except the romance. Something felt off for me in the chemistry, which is usually what shines for me in a WIlsner novel. I still really enjoyed it, but it’s not a new favorite.

Synopsis:

“Grace Henderson has been a star of the US Women’s National Team for ten years, even though she’s only 26. But when she’s sidelined with an injury, a bold new upstart, Phoebe Matthews, takes her spot. 22-year-old Phoebe is everything Grace isn’t—a gregarious jokester who plays with a joy that Grace lost somewhere along the way. The last thing Grace expects is to become teammates with benefits with this class clown she sees as her rival.Phoebe Matthews is too focused on her first season as a professional soccer player to think about seducing her longtime idol. But when Grace ends up making the first move, they can’t keep their hands off of each other.As the World Cup approaches and Grace works her way back from injury, a miscommunication leaves the women with hilariously different perspectives on their relationship. But they’re on the same page on the field, realizing they can play together instead of vying for the same position. With every tackle the tension between them grows, and both players soon have to decide what's more important—being together or making the roster.” —StoryGraph

What I Liked:

The Soccer Premise—I am a huge fan of sports and have always had a fascination with the World Cup/Olympic process so I was really into the soccer parts of the book! I loved the team dynamics and the stakes of the relationship.

The ADHD Representation—I’m always happy to see mental health discussed in such a raw, healthy way. I thought the reactions all made sense and were something I could relate to.

Setting—I haven’t read a lot of books set in New Orleans! I really liked seeing it through Phoebe’s eyes as a fresh transplant to the area and Grace’s seasoned years there.

What Didn’t Work:

Audio Narrators Miscast—This is very specific, but I really thought the narrators for each character should have been switched. Sadly, the performances took away from the story for me!

Lack of Chemistry—I didn’t really feel like there was a lot of chemistry between the characters and there wasn’t enough build up in my opinion, so when they got together for the first time it didn’t feel like we were anticipating it enough.

Character Authenticity: 4/5 Spice Rating: 3/5 Overall Rating: 3.5/5

Content Warnings:

athletic injury, mental illness, ableism

Thank you to Meryl Wilsner and Netgalley for an ARC of Cleat Cute to provide an early, honest review.

Cleat Cute follows two Lesbian soccer players, Phoebe and Grace, first as they arrive to camp for the National Woman's Soccer Team and eventually as they both arrive to their team in New Orleans. Phoebe is new to the league, having just graduated from college, but is a shining star to watch. Sure, she's often late to practice, loses track of ideas and whatnot, and is undoubtedly loud, but she knows soccer; she's really really good at it. Grace is the captain of Phoebe's new team in New Orleans and is also a member of the National Woman's Team. Also, she's kind of Phoebe's idol (she had a poster of her over her bed). Despite her fame, Grace prefers to keep a quieter, low profile, appreciates structure and organization, and sometimes struggles with social cues. From Phoebe being an annoyance to Grace, to becoming Friends with Benefits, to realizing they have feelings for each other, I appreciated their early journey.

Things I liked about Cleat Cute:

* The Soccer Team(s)! - as a former soccer player, I appreciated the dynamics of the different teams. The characters we met on the Krewe, for example, brought some color to Phoebe and Grace's story, and I wouldn't have minded even more of them.

* Casual Queer Representation - Obviously, I know women's soccer is very queer, but I appreciated the inclusion of non-cis characters like Ash and Teddy. Especially Teddy-- his relationship with Phoebe brings a lot more dimension to her character.

* Grace's personal growth in choosing what parts of her life make her happy vs. don't. I like that her implied autism is left for post-book as it makes me believe that once she's feeling more regulated in her personal life she'll be able to chase down more answers for herself at her own pace (what I wish for Phoebe, see below)

* The book is quite spicy

Things I didn't like (as much) about Cleat Cute:

*Grace's approach to Phoebe's ADHD. Besides her disastrous first mentioning of Phoebe's ""disordered"" ways, she then immediately suggests that Phoebe get medicated, and ultimately makes an appointment on Phoebe's behalf (which for whatever reason isn't seen as overstepping, but as romantic?). I think more care should have been taken in the exploration of Phoebe's ADHD if it was going to be as large of a plot point as it was; otherwise, I expected some sort of consequential conversation between Grace and Phoebe on how pushy Grace was, but it became just ""oh, she cares"" and ""oh, how romantic"" and it didn't sit well with me personally.

* This is nitpicky, but the soccer terminology was sometimes European, despite the book taking place in New Orleans. A word choice that kept throwing me off: like ""pitch"" instead of ""field""

Despite these small issues with Cleat Cute, I'm very excited to read whatever Meryl Wilsner puts out next, as I loved their 2022 book.

So much fun banter in this one! I could not care less about sports, but I genuinely enjoyed the relationships between Grace, Phoebe, and their soccer teammates. This book has some great conversations about self care and asking for help when you need it. It does have some of THE WORST miscommunication I’ve ever read in a romance — but some of the communication is actually quite healthy.

It's Phoebe's world and we're all just living in it, but in the best way. She had such an infectious energy, the golden retriever to Grace's black cat. I loved that Phoebe didn't really change throughout the book because that's what Grace needed, someone consistent who just saw her the person and not just the soccer star. I didn't love some of the choices made post-conflict in the latter half of the book, but I enjoyed their relationship and banter so much that it didn't really deter me from the rest of the story.

It is now officially 3 for 3 with Meryl Wilsner writing absolutely five star books for me. While all three books are absolutely five star reads for me I think that they are getting better as they go.

Cleat Cute was a delightful romance where every thing is dramatic and gay but nothing hurts. I loved both of our MC's I loved the setting and the reality of life in underpaid professional sports. Additionally I loved how full and queer the setting of this book was and how fully flushed out all of the side characters are. Also the sex scenes are so spicy and wonderful. 10/10 would absolutely recommend.

I was provided a free E-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

First: Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Meryl Wilsner for providing me with this eARC.

Personally I am not a big sports romance person, especially because I’m not a big sports person in general, however when I first saw the cover for this book I absolutely had to read it. The colours, the punny title, the overall vibe, and of course, it being clear it was about queer women made it so up my alley. I am so glad I ended up reading this and being right that I’d enjoy it based on the cover. I know, I know, they say don’t judge a book by its cover but sometimes it works out.

The characters were all loveable, down to the side characters. The romance scenes (and the spicy scenes) were so well done. The ending conflict was more funny than feeling like unnecessary drama and all of the other conflicts throughout the book made sense as to why that would cause strain. Also all the representation in this book was so great! Obviously it was going to have sapphic rep, that’s the reason I picked it up, but there was so much more queer rep as well as the main couple. There was even representation for neurodiversity which is very exciting!

As I type this I am adding the author’s backlist to my tbr.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

I loved this book! I know nothing about soccer, but thankfully Wilsner keeps the reader up to speed on what’s important, and not knowing soccer didn’t impede my enjoyment at all. This was a fun read and the spice was great 😮‍💨🥵 will definitely be looking to read more by Wilsner ASAP!

Thank you NetGalley, Meryl Wilsner, and St. Martin’s Press for a free copy of Cleat Cute (out just this week on September 19th!) in exchange for an honest review.


For 2023, I’ll be using this rating scale:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I mourned the ending of this journey 🥹
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ really enjoyed and would recommend
⭐️⭐️⭐️ it was fine
⭐️⭐️ I didn’t enjoy this journey
⭐️ I dnf’d or wish I’d dnf’d
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ this is smutty smutty erotica 🥵
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ medium burn
🌶️🌶️🌶️ slow burn
🌶️🌶️ romantic b plot / closed door / YA romance
🌶️ no romance / nonfiction

Meryl Wilsner does it again! But this time it's sports romance! We got to know these characters so deeply, I was so invested in their relationship. There was such great character development for both Grace and Phoebe. By the end, I couldn't stop smiling over these two!

I have mixed feelings about this one, and I think it might officially (tragically) be the end of my romance era. Sigh. Overall, the story was fun and lighthearted without lacking substance. I liked the representation in the story, and the characters were all pretty solid, though I do wish that we got a little more of the side characters. I also wish that the conversation about neurodivergency was introduced earlier in the story. It was all on the page the whole time, but it felt like a strange choice to wait until the end of the book to get to specifics. Finally, call me old fashioned, but I thought the sex scenes were all a little too long. I know it's a staple of the genre, and they were really well done otherwise, but I got to a point where I was so tempted to fast forward. Ultimately, this is worth the read for romance fans even though I liked Meryl Wilsner's last two books a little more. 3.5 rounded down.

Thanks @stmartinspress for this eARC

Y’all this one is sooo cute I can’t even! And right after the World Cup this is perfect for soccer fans!! I just loved these two together and their teammates where some fun added bonus! Loved all the New Orleans bits as well. It’s cute, funny, and steamy and that’s all you really need!

grumpy x sunshine sapphic love story about two players on the women's national soccer team (one veteran, one rookie). i so wanted to love this, like i did wilsner's other books, but i just didn't. i honestly just didn't buy the relationship, as neither character was ever on the same page. yes, the steamy scenes were good, and there was some good representation for adhd/asd, as well as some good discussions about what identity can mean to different people, but ultimately the book felt too long for what it was.

Cleat Cute is a playful, funny, spicy, sports romance. I alternated between an E-ARC and ALC because I couldn’t read this book fast enough. The narration on audio was great!

Things I loved:

⚽️ Phoebe and Grace jumped right in, and I wasn’t kept waiting.

⚽️ Grace’s injury and the range of feelings she went through were so relatable.

⚽️ Phoebe and Grace were the perfect opposites attract romance. I loved Phoebe’s honesty and open communication.

#Saphic #SportsRomance #CleatCute #EARC #ALC #NetGalley #SoccerRomance

CLEAT CUTE is a steamy sapphic rivals to lovers romance about two teammates falling in love as their team prepares for the World Cup.

Read if you like —
⚽️ soccer / sports romances
🌶️ spice
💜 opposites attract
🧠 neurodiversity rep

This was my second book by Meryl Wilsner and while I prefer MISTAKES WERE MADE, this one was fantastic as well! I love their writing style and character development, and I’m looking forward to reading more books by them!