DNF @ 30%

Oh wow……this was….you know….!

Listen I was gonna try and push through this but I’ve decided to choose peace today!

The characters are all INSUFFERABLE!!! Adalyn is so ridiculous and self-centered I cannot take her seriously. Maybe she has some sort of character development or growth later on but I don’t care to find out. Cameron has the personality of a wet 1 ply paper towel. The side characters are lame and one dimensional.

The interactions between Cameron and Adalyn make no sense, on one hand this is a long book and therefore there should be plenty of time to build up a genuine bond and relationship. However, the author tries so force this strong bond and connection from day one but also wants us to believe they hate each other oh but also deep down they somehow really understand and seem to know each other already ???

For example, pray tell, why did Cameron say “Right now, Adalyn was a shadow of the woman that had been busting my balls since her arrival in town.” AFTER KNOWING ADALYN FOR 24 HOURS LMAOOOO what do you mean shadow of the woman you knew you don’t even know her dude bffr.

Then we have Adalyn LITERALLY firing Cameron on sight, and then she blackmails him into coming back to the position SHE fired him from and I’m supposed to…think this is cute and quirky? No thank you!

I also just don’t feel the chemistry between the two. My final straw was when they’re in the middle of GOAT YOGA at a COMMUNITY EVENT and Adalyn is losing her mind because he’s helping her with yoga poses and she’s deadass fantasizing about him and thinks to herself “Because nothing, not one touch or brush or caress or moment of intimacy, had felt like this.” That is so ridiculously embarrassing. I couldn’t recover from the second hand embarrassment so I’m calling it quits.

Additionally, the dialogue is stilted and awkward, the scene transitions aren’t smooth, the amount of pop culture references was absurd, and the repetition of dialogue was insane.

Anyway, I know some people enjoyed this but it really just wasn’t for me. I hope this book ended with the town rallying together and chasing Adalyn and Cameron out of town.

Thank you to Atria and NetGalley for this eARC!

“The Long Game” by Elena Armas follows Adalyn Reyes, MLS exec and daughter of the Miami Flames owner, as she is exiled to North Carolina following a PR issue- one involving her violently ripping the head off of the team mascot. There she meets famous goalkeeper Cameron Caldani who is hiding out from his famous life, looking for something more simple. As the two team up to help a struggling soccer team (of nine year old girls), they find they might have more in common than they thought- they might even be in love?

This book was a spicy love story with a dash of soccer. Cam was definitely giving Roy Kent vibes at the beginning, but that quickly dropped off when it was apparent that he was in it for the long haul and this wouldn’t be an enemies to lovers situation. Think less grumpy sunshine romance and more miscommunication romance trope.

While certainly entertaining and an easy read, this book was just okay. I wanted to absolutely love it, but it all felt pretty easy and straightforward. There was also a chapter I *might* have skipped because I definitely didn’t need THAT much detail…

All in all, I gave this book 3 stars. It was fun and I would probably have loved it as a made for tv movie, but as a book I wanted something a little more.

Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review! This book is part of a big ARC backlist, so it’s out now! I’ll be picking up the second book in the series soon!

DNF @ 37%
eh the characters were kind of annoying and acted very illogical and i found the plot a bit boring. Nothing really engaged me n this book.

“Adalyn Reyes was beautiful. And she was also a hot mess. She was a beautiful hot mess of an inconvenience I wanted out of my hair.” —Cameron Caldani
There is so much to love about this release from Elena Armas. The Long Game combines a sports romance trope within a small town, with hints of Ted Lasso, and it hits just like my favorite grumpy sunshine romances.

The Long Game is my first by Elena Armas. When I was told that Elena Armas writes slowburn romances, I was immediately intrigued. Sports romance combined with a slowburn romance immediately had my attention. Someo of my favorite romances are sports based and written by an author who writes exclusively slowburn romances (if you know you know).

“I wonder who made you believe you don’t deserve to be fussed over,” he said so simply and honestly that I could only blink.
Adalyn is the daughter of the well-known Miami Football (Soccer, for Americans) Club owner. Adalyn has found herself in the center of the blowback from a viral clip of her attacking the team’s mascot. This is where a bit of mystery within the story takes the forefront of Adalyn’s journey throughout The Long Game. Adalyn is tight-lipped about the surrounding circumstances that leads up to the viral video disaster. Ultimately, Adalyn is sent on a redemption mission to a small town in North Carolina. Her goal is to make the local girls soccer club into a winning team.

The roadblock she encounters comes in the form of one former soccer superstar, Cameron Caldani. Not only is Cameron (Cam) a surly coach (Coach Roy Kent—is that you?), he’s also the man who owns the cat who won’t leave her alone, and also happens to live on the same property she’s renting for the summer. Through a series of what can only be described as comedically unfortunate events, Adalyn and Cam are continually put into situations together that ultimately thrust their bonds forged in animosity into the fires of desire and end up hopelessly gone for each other. All of this while having to work together to get these girls a winning season.

“I’ll always give you more than what you ask for, love. Even when you don’t know what you want.”
Don’t forget this is a slowburn. The glances, tentative touches, and the fact that Cameron shows affection through acts of service, whereas Adalyn ultimately needs words of affirmation create such delicious tension and angst. The Long Game plays out until the very last pages and I wouldn’t be doing my due diligence if I didn’t warn readers about the twist at the end that I did not see coming. This twist also sets up the next (standalone) book in the series, which I will be happily adding to my own reading list.

I truly adored The Long Game. Elena Armas writes such strong women, men who are so gentle with their actions but grumpy in their words, and scenes that are so funny that I found myself giggling more often than not, so basically, you need to read this book.

This was tough. I'm a huge sports romance fan and I love enemies to lovers, but this one fell flat. The reason they were enemies was flat, and they just magically became "not enemies." It was weird, and could use some more editing.

In Elena Armas's heartwarming romance "The Long Game," disgraced soccer executive Adalyn Reyes finds herself on an unexpected journey of redemption alongside retired soccer star, Cameron Caldani.

Accustomed to her routine at Miami Flames FC, Adalyn is abruptly sent to rural North Carolina by her father, the team's owner, after a viral altercation with the mascot. Tasked with reviving the struggling local children's soccer team, the Green Warriors, she faces challenges ranging from unconventional practices to pet goats and a team of wary nine-year-olds. Enter Cameron Caldani, a mysterious goalkeeping prodigy, whose initial clash with Adalyn sets the stage for a rocky relationship. Despite their differences, Adalyn is determined to stay and rebuild her reputation, viewing the Green Warriors as her path to redemption. Alongside the humorous antics and unlikely alliances, the story unfolds with a delightful cast of characters, including Maria, a spirited young team member, and Cameron, whose gruff exterior belies his soft spot for cats.

Armas skillfully avoids delving too deeply into soccer technicalities, ensuring accessibility for all readers, regardless of their interest in the sport. Adalyn's quirky and awkward demeanor adds charm and humor to the narrative, while Maria emerges as a standout character with her witty nicknames for Coach Cam. As the story concludes with hints of a budding romance between Adalyn's best friend Matthew and Josie, readers are left eager for potential sequels.

Overall, this engaging novel captivates with its blend of humor, heart, and lovable characters, making it a delightful read for fans of sports-themed fiction and small-town love stories alike.

I'm a sucker for soccer and Ted Lasso! It's so amazing to watch Elena's writing improve with each book!

Elena Armas can do no wrong! I loved this book so much. Just like her other two it is a fun rom com that you just want to keep reading! Highly recommend!

The Long Game is a fun read with its dual POV and grumpy & grumpy theme, but I think the story fell short and I couldn't wait to finish it. This was a bit disappointing as I have liked Elena Armas's other books.

Thank you for the advance copy.

Did not finish, I don't think Elena's books are my vibe, but I know so many others love her work! It was too long for the payoff of the relationship for me.

3.5 / 3.75 🌟

This was definitely a slooooowww burn. I like a slow burn, but this really didn’t speed up until around 60%. I think it was right around 3 stars for me until the end, and that last 40% was definitely 4 stars! Josie is quirky and I love her character and her many talents 😂 I can’t wait to read a book about her story! I personally would have loved a little more build up and tension throughout the first part of the book, but I’m not mad about it. Cam’s character is so lovable and I love his mean streak 😉 I thought the author did a great job with the atmosphere and woodsy location (loved the vibes). Maria’s character is precious and I just adored her, she’s sweet and sassy and added so much to the book! I really enjoyed the quirky touches to the book that made for some good chuckles. I appreciated that this book didn’t have the classic big third act breakup, what was there made sense to the story and the characters and quickly resolved. And looooved the surprise twist at the end - was so fun!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this one!

The beginning was a bit slow, but once I got into it I couldn't stop reading.

Read if you like: small town, soccer, banter, a grumpy mmc, enemies to lovers

This was a sweet romance with a little spice at the end. The characters’ problems both felt a little disconnected from reality and there were some time jumps that felt incongruous but that didn’t keep me from quickly turning the pages on this fun read.

This has so many qualities I thought would make me love it but I just didn’t. Something about the writing felt off and I never really believed the main characters. Ugh.

This was such a cute book. I liked it almost as much as her others! It was great. I really liked the main character of this book. and I thought their relationship was so adorable.

My favorite of her books so far! A small town love story and soccer talk?! Count me in every time! Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for the opportunity to read in exchange for a review!

I’m not sure how I feel about this one still. I liked it while I was reading it but I found it very forgettable. I did really like the characters and the story line.

There's a lot of discourse right now about just jumping on the sports romance train whether or not you actually feel passionate about writing within this subgenre, and just following where the trend is. I think this one is just for the trend, just because I could barely remember what was happening while I was reading nor did I really care much about what was happening during this book.

What do you get when you mix a not so cute-meet, a surly teenager, two stubborn adults and a cow? Apparently a lot of chaos, a lot of love and a lot of laughs!
.
When I was sent this arc I instantly knew I’d be in for a good time. If there’s one thing you can count on from Pippa Grant, it’s a book packed with the perfect blend of fast flowing writing, tongue in cheek humor, swoony sweet moments and a splash of spice. She’s the perfect palate cleanser, the kind of author who knows how to balance light, flirty and fun with the heavy and emotional in a way that always feels fresh and is always a joy to read!
.
The two main characters were complete opposites who started on the wrong foot in an incident involving a bear, a cow and a horse... It sounds like the start of a bad joke, but instead it was the start to their love story. They definitely struggled to stop assuming things about each other and having an angsty teen on top just added another level! But of course, that line between hate and love is so thin, and really, they never stood a chance.


If You’re a fan of:
Small Town Romance
Single Parent Trope
Opposites Attract
Hot math teachers
Laugh out loud comedy
Sweet steam
Found Family Trope
And honestly so much more, this one's for you!

This arc was kindly given to me by Netgalley and the publisher for review. All opinions are my own.

Elena Armas has joined the ranks as one of my favorite authors. I freaking loved this book. It probably doesn't help that I am a huge Ted Lasso fan and the MMC had serious Roy vibes (add squealing, lol). I devoured this book so fast

The Long Game is the perfect small town romance if you love Roy Kent from the Apple TV show Ted Lasso and a slow-burn rom-com. Adalyn has been exiled after an altercation with the team’s mascot goes viral. Rather than fire her, she’s sent to middle-of-nowhere North Carolina, where she’s tasked with turning around the struggling local soccer team as a way to redeem herself. Her plans crumble upon discovering that the players wear tutus to practice, and are terrified of her... and are nine-year-old kids. Add their famous, but in hiding, ex-pro soccer player coach and let the games begin! I loved the quirky rural NC town, the characters, of course the romance and come on, there’s goat yoga too!