First, thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Jodie Slaughter for the opportunity to review the eBook ARC.

I haven't read Slaughter's previous books in this world she created, but the side characters were the main characters in the first two books. This didn't interfere with my enjoyment of this one, but I am sure if you read them before this book, it'd be more fun.

I liked the overall character dynamic between Jade and Francesca, although sometimes their interactions as enemies were a bit immature for my taste. Their chemistry was hit or miss for me, and the very spicy sex scenes were quite eye-opening. I did like the theme of women of color fighting and succeeding in a male-dominated profession of high school football coaching though!

Fast-paced rivals to lovers sapphic romance. Jade and Francesca have never liked each other--well, that's not quite true. Jade has never liked Francesca, who is more wrapped up in her own ambition than grudges around the high school. Sparks fly when they are forced to compete for the coveted position of head football coach.

At first, I struggled with Francesca. She seemed to want to annoy Jade for no particular reason, and it felt like she was swooping in to take something Jade had been working so hard towards just because she could. But as the book goes on and more of her backstory is revealed, it becomes clear how much the position, coaching, and football in general means to Francesca. The banter between the two was just as hot and heavy as the romance.

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(ARC)

This book was a really cute and fun read. I liked the dynamic between Franny and Jade as well as their banter. The whole "rivals-to-lovers" bit fell a bit flat for due to the simple fact that we knew that there was never really a rivalry, at least not on franny's side, which made some of the actions of jade come off as just a bit mean at times, but once they did get together i liked them together and i felt that their relationship was pretty wholesome and cute. I will say one thing, though, and that's if you are actually into football, this book might be the one for you because there are quite a few actually on field football/coaching moments for you to enjoy.

"Ready to Score " by Jodie Slaughter is a fun and spicy romance which I enjoyed, in spite of not being a football fan. Good small-town and Southern local color. Loved Francesca and Jade's characters along with the diversity of characters. Fun read

This is an enemies to lovers trope which isn't my favorite trope to begin with. Then it was very football heavy, as in the majority of the book is dedicated to just football which to me wasn't entertaining.

The chemistry between the main couple is kind of lacking, not sure if it's the enemies to lovers thing. But the banter for me was just not there.

What I did love was the way it highlighted women football coaches, the found family between the football player and coaches and how they mention the financial challenges for the town and the kids.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review as always, all words are my own.

This was a fun Sapphic small town dual POV enemies to lovers romance between two queer BIPOC teachers both vying for the same football coaching position. Jade and Franny both love football and want to prove that women have what it takes to do the job. This was full of steamy sex, lots of diverse characters and emotional depth. I enjoyed it a lot especially on audio and would recommend for fans of books like Love and sportsball by Meka James. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital, audio and finished copy in exchange for my honest review!

Ready to Score by Jodie Slaughter (publication day June 3, 2025) immersed me in southern high school football like I never expected in a sapphic romance!

Jade Dunn, math teacher and first black woman assistant football coach in their small South Carolina town, has the feeling that the head coach is going to retire, and she's been working for years to be in the right place to replace him. But on her periphery is Francesca (Franny) Lim, 2-year newcomer to town, and art teacher. Jade doesn't understand how she can be so nice, all of the time, and when she finds out Franny has real coaching experience from back in Houston, she knows that Franny is going to try to take that coaching spot that Jade has been working for. Jade thinks that their town will only tolerate one female coach, and it needs to be her.

Of course, there's attraction on both sides, but more than a few misunderstandings and sometimes outright unkindness. But they both have the student-players best interests in mind and eventually get out of their own ways to come together. The spicy scenes were hot, and I did like Jade's evolution to not being so single-minded with the head coaching job as her only goal.

Although the cover shows two straight-sized women, some of the descriptions could be seen as fat-positive! My only criticism is that Frannie didn't quite read as an art teacher to me--there was no discussion of what kind of art she did outside of school for herself, nor did art seem to be as important to her as football. I thought it might have been better for her to be a health teacher or something else--she wasn't as quirky and bohemian as most art teachers that I've known.

Nevertheless, I did enjoy it, and think the representation of a multicultural black and Korean lesbian relationship, between teacher-coaches, was great.

Overall a this was a fun, fiery sapphic sports romance with plenty of tension and full of humour and heart that made it a perfect read.

There is enemies to lovers with character growth and there is bullying with no growth or remorse. I was not a fan of this book. My main dislike came from the “romance”. Jade is MEAN. The things she says and thinks about Franny are cruel. The expectation to cheer for these two as a couple was never going to happen with me. A lot of times that goes unaddressed. The main storyline didn’t do much to keep my interest and the pacing was extremely slow. Another thing I was disappointed with was the u-haul trope. Having them move in with each other in such a short period of time when the majority of the sapphic community has been screaming about educating the dangers of this. Especially when one of the partners is okay saying so many hurtful things to and about the other partner. Overall, I didn’t like this book and I don’t think I’ll be returning to this author. Best of luck.

dnf halfway…this was truly not an enemies to lovers situation this was straight up BULLYING. like how do we fall in love after that i simply wouldn’t believe it, which is an absolute bummer because i was highly anticipating this book!

Thank you so much to Jodie Slaughter and St. Martin’s Griffin for this E-ARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own! 🥰

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Oh I am sooooo here for this!!!! From the cover alone I was so excited to read!
I love Rivals to Lovers and this one was amazing. Definitely recommend!

Find more on my IG @kayreads_romance

⚠️ !! Please be sure to check any TWs before diving in !! ⚠️

What to expect:
* Sapphic romance
* Small town
* Rivals to lovers
* Interracial relationship
* Found family
* Forced proximity
* Workplace Romance

Ready to Score is a slow burn lesbian romance novel focused on Jade, an assistant football coach with a dream, and Francesca, another teacher at the school who is allegedly looking to take her title. Overall I rate this book a 2.75 out of 5 stars. There are elements that give this story life like the poker nights or Jade and Francesca's connection with the kids on the football team. But there are also areas where this story falls flat. The enemies to lover bit feels abrupt and sometimes the characters feel one dimensional because we don't get to see much of who they are and why they are the way they are. We aren't given much background on the main characters themselves or their support teams. This book could have benefited from focusing on some of the details we end up glossing over and removing some of the details that aren't so important to the storybuilding. That being said, there are a moments where you think "Wow, that's interesting" and the spice is decent.

I was so excited for a sapphic romance from Jodie Slaughter but the lack of maturity on the part of the two FMCs was something I was just never able to move past.

This book had a slow start. Maybe from working in schools it just didn't grab my attention the way I wanted. Overall it was a cute, lesbian, enemies to lovers type romance. The spice was good but just nothing to keep me in the story.

Jade has dedicate years of time and effort coaching her high school football team and she may finally get her chance at the head coach role after this year and is able to start smoozing at the monthly poker game. When she gets their she spots her nemesis, Francesca, who's apparently also interested in being a coach for the team.

Both Jade and Francesca are grappling with pasts that have made them work hard and be wary of romantic connections. But when they soon realize they can't pretend their isn't an attraction between them, how can they balance each other and the team their both fighting to lead?

Thank you to #netgalley and #stmartinspress for providing me access to an ebook copy of this upcoming book!

I have really enjoyed this series and this was a great addition to the small town friend group's love stories.

First off I think that the football aspect was done very well, this author knows her stuff and showcased it well. I think the romance and the sports of it melded well together and I enjoyed that we got to see and learn more about each main character through their love of the sport.

I think that there was alot of growth from Jade's end but I felt like I wanted more from Franny's side of everything. I do think that their tension was palpable and that it was explored well however, it felt more sexual than romantic. When they did get together, though ,I thought they were so sweet as a couple! Jade's grumpy exterior was so soft and smooshy lol. I am a sucker for the angel nickname lol.

The friend group is so fun and the cameos we had of Miri & Leo and Aja & Walker were so fun!

This was a fun and sweet sapphic romance about two women in a South Carolina town, who have a bit of a rivals to lovers relationship. Overall I enjoyed this aspect, even though Jade was a bit hard to relate to. I connected more with Francesca.

What wasn’t really for me, and this is not a critique on the book but a personal preference, was the football aspect. I don’t care much for football, and there was a lot of football. I know I should pay more attention to the books I request and accept, but I’m pretty sure I thought this was about playing soccer and not coaching football. And that’s on me for not reading the synopsis.

So, this is a cute romance book where two women of color are vying for a football coaching position, a field dominated by men. If you like football, this is a good one to read!

3.5 stars

I really enjoyed “Ready to Score” by Jodie Slaughter. This was like a queer “Friday Night Lights” and I was here for it! I haven't read Slaughter's previous books in this world she created, but I the side characters were the main characters in the first two books. This didn't interfere with my enjoyment of this one, but I am sure if you read them before this book, it'd be more fun. The enemies to lovers trope was so well executed and I really loved every second of it. At first it just seems like Jade and Franny really just don't get along for a variety of reasons but as the story and their relationship progresses, it all makes sense. The chemistry between Jade and Francesca is undeniable, with a perfect mix of slow-burn tension and spicy, high-stakes moments. It is told in a dual POV which is my favorite way to read romance stories. I appreciated how they showed both MCs bonding with student athletes and focused on their love of coaching. This book doesn’t just include representation, it embraces it. There are LGBTQIA+ characters, BIPOC characters, and women in sports. Thanks to Jodie Slaughter, St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for an e-arc in exchange for my thoughts. I look forward to reading Jodie’s next book.

This was a not for me book. It was well written. There's nothing wrong with the pacing. No errors. But I found one of the FMCs, Jade, to be a rather unlikable character. Therefore, I had a hard time with this. You might read all the things I didn't like and think "that's for me!" In fact, I hope you do!

At its heart, it's a small town sapphic romance with two BIPOC FMCs. Those are amazing things. I appreciated that Jodie didn't shy away from what it feels like to be a queer person of color in small town southern USA. It's not easy. Not fun. Add in the passion these two women have for coaching football, and it's a ripe field for overcoming systemic obstacles. I wanted them to succeed.

Jade is the more experienced coach. She's being working at the high school, and on the team, for years. She's queer. She's black. She's worked her butt off to earn the respect of her peers and the kids. She's gunning for the head coaching position at the school. She's got a one track mind and won't let anything get in her way. Not even a crush.

Franny is the newcomer. She moved to town for a now ex and is finding her feet. She's ready to get back into coaching, and starts to make overtures to the coach for a spot on the staff. Too bad Jade starts giving her attitude.

Jade treats Franny like a threat from the moment this story starts. While she can acknowledge that Franny is hot, she feels threatened by her feelings, by how likable Franny is, and by her own insecurities. Franny shows up around the football team and she turns into a territorial bitch. She's petty. She's rude. She makes stupid decisions. Honestly, I know some people love this kind of messy MC, but I am not one of them.

I got into this at the 70% mark. Once Jade gets over herself. But I struggled until then. There's plenty of things to like about this book. There's great found family. There's small town charm. There's personal growth. Someone will love this book. That someone just wasn't me.

Though...once the spice starts spicing...it gives good spice.

A fun read about two women competing for the job of head football coach at a small town high school. Oh and they fall for each other. Jade thought the job would be hers but she didn't count on Francesca, the new art teacher who, as it turns out has coaching experience as well. This weaves the sport story and the competition nicely through the developing relationship. It's got good banter and atmospherics but most of all, relatable engaging characters. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A very good read.