First, animosity. Then, a begrudging attraction. Finally, love.

Such is the trajectory of Jade and Francesca’s relationship in this book. The author builds upon each of these stages quite well by giving examples of each of these stages. She adds a further dimension to the characters beyond their roles as love interests. You see Francesca and Jade through their interaction with their respective parents, siblings, and friends.( bowling league- Francesca and friends -Jade’s close knit group of female friends)


This ARC was provided by the publisher, St. Martin’s Press St. Martin’s Griffin via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

✨ Sapphic Adult Romance
✨ Third Person, Dual POV
✨ 3.5/5 Spice Level
✨ Workplace Romance
✨ Rivals to Lovers
✨ Standalone
✨ Rep: Black bisexual MC, Asian lesbian MC

> micro-tropes and content warnings after review

I wanted to love this book so much. I loved the idea (the plot, the adult MCs, rivals to lovers trope, rep), but unfortunately I was disappointed.

My main issue was with how immature one of the main characters, Jade, was. I really struggled to believe that she was a teacher with how immature she came off. And the other main character, Francesca, really got the brunt of it… for no real reason! I didn’t find Jade insufferable all of the time, but I struggled to root for her and understand her because of her behavior.

On top of that… Francesca was all hot and bothered for Jade, but like… why??? I didn’t see how she could be into Jade after everything. Yeah it ended nicely, but I just struggled to believe the romance and I definitely wasn’t rooting for them…

The writing itself was fine. I had no problems with that and was hooked into the book pretty early on. I just couldn’t get behind their romance, which is kind of necessary for a romance book… Bummer.

I did appreciate the discussion/commentary around how the characters race, gender, and sexual orientation affect them in their community (particularly surrounding the high school and sports).

I would giving the author another shot with the hope I like the characters and their chemistry a lot more than I did this time around.

(beware potential spoilers below)

Micro-tropes
✨ fantasy
✨ self-loving
✨ in the bathroom
✨ all the fingers
✨ while driving
✨ having a seat
✨ strapping

Content Warnings
(may not be all inclusive)
sexism, racism, homophobia

Jade and Franny are rivals at work. Both of them want the prestigious job title of head coach of the school’s football team. Soon the hatred turns into passion for these two, but the fight over the job has just begun.
The book was well done, it was fun to revisit the other characters from the Jodie Slaughter universe and to see what everyone is up to. If you are into sapphic romance with a sports element, I’m sure this book would be for you!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (5/5 stars)

Jodie Slaughter delivers a bold, brilliant, and deeply satisfying rivals-to-lovers romance in Ready to Score, where ambition collides with desire, and two women fight for the same job—and maybe, unknowingly, for each other's hearts.

Jade Dunn is the kind of heroine you root for instantly: sharp, driven, and laser-focused on becoming the first Black woman head coach in a southern high school football program that reeks of good ol’ boy politics. Her world is built on discipline, strategy, and surviving in a system built to shut her out. So when she steps into a high-stakes poker game for networking and finds herself face to face with Francesca Lim—the gorgeous, maddening art teacher with a coaching past of her own—sparks fly, and the stakes instantly get personal.

Francesca is equally compelling: passionate, bruised by a past that cut deep, but ready to reclaim a piece of her old life. She and Jade are on a collision course that’s charged with tension, not just because they want the same role, but because the chemistry between them is off-the-charts. Every interaction is laced with heat, challenge, and an undercurrent of vulnerability that makes their journey feel emotionally real and incredibly sexy.

Slaughter excels at writing complex women with ambition and agency, and Ready to Score is no exception. She also doesn't shy away from the realities of being queer, Black, or Asian in spaces dominated by tradition and exclusion. The romance is deeply satisfying, but the themes—career sacrifices, systemic bias, second chances—give this story real teeth and staying power.

And let’s talk steam: this book burns. The tension simmers deliciously until it explodes, and Slaughter writes intimacy that’s as emotionally charged as it is physically hot.

Bottom line: Ready to Score is a sexy, powerful, character-driven romance full of heart, heat, and unapologetic ambition. If you're craving a sapphic love story where the rivals are smart, complex, and so clearly meant to be, this one scores big time.

I liked the concept of this book — sapphic romance between two jocks, BIPOC as well. Chemistry between the two was great. I found myself wanting less plot about the high school football team, but that’s okay! Having not read Slaughter’s other books set in the same universe, I would have appreciated additional background on those minor characters!

I think this book had a good premise, good representation, and good spice. However. I am used to rivals to lovers being full of witty banter and maybe some pranks. These two characters were outright mean to each other and just overly aggressive in my opinion. They eventually softened, but it was too late for me to enjoy fully.

Thank you to NetGalley, DreamScape Media, St. Martin's Press & Jodie Slaughter for the chance to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

If sapphic sports romance is your jam- this is for you! Female identifying coaches making their place on the field and the community. This novel takes us back to Greenbelt, South Carolina- where both Bet on It (Aja) and Play To Win (Miriam) took place. In this book we get to the third bestie's love story, Jade. You can absolutely read these as standalone but it is fun to be back in Greenbelt and all that is familiar there! Like the previous stories, you can expect some bingo and a lot of Minnie's cobbler.

Narration added to the reading experience. I would definitely seek this narrator out again!

It was a very cute story it just wasn't for me. I had a hard time connecting with the story and characters, but that's probably more on me than the story itself.

This is not listed as a sequel so I will call it a stand alone novel that is in the same world as Play to Win (July 2023) and Bet on It (July 2022). I have read those contemporary romances and enjoyed the representation and diversity in race, sexuality and body shape and size. The books all take place in the small town of Greenbelt, South Carolina and this is the first one to feature a f/f romance.

Jade Dunn and Francesca Lim are both teachers at the local high school. Jade has been there for years and has worked very hard to be part of the assistant coaches for the football team. When the current head coach announces this will be his last year, Jade is all in to prove that she is worthy of being made head coach. Francesca helped coach junior teams in Texas before she moved to Greenbelt two years and asked to join the coaching staff.

I never bought into Franny being a contender for the head coach spot so the perceived rivalry by Jade didn’t make a lot of sense. Jade’s antics only made her come off as juvenile and petty. I honestly didn’t understand why Franny was interested in Jade. But of course they are attracted to each other. I enjoyed the cameos from the previous books. Jade’s bowling group friends are there to add some extra humor but I find crass to be cringe. There is a good portion of the book that focuses on football (American). I am a college level football fan and understand the rules and positions discussed. But others could find those parts of the story less interesting.

Ready to Score by Jodie Slaughter was a fun, smart, heartfelt romcom.
I thought her writing was engaging and she kept me completely invested the entire time I had my nose stuck in this book.
Her writing is fun, and fresh, and I fell in love with this story and its characters right away.
A charming romantic novel that will leave readers feeling happy and giddy.
A fun and beautiful add to the romance genre.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

I liked this story for the most part, it has one of my favourite tropes (rivals to lovers). Jade and Franchesca are both throwing their hat into the fing to fill the head coach position for their high school. In actuality, Francesca knows she won't be head coach, but she wants to be a part of the coaching staff. Jade sees her as a threat to her chances of getting the job, while also being wildly attracted to Frannie.
They do this will they/won't they dance that has some steamy encounters along the way, while learning more about each other (although I felt that Frannie was more emotionally available than Jade).
If you like a slow burn Sapphic, then check this one out.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the e-ARC of this title to read and review. I have read other works from Jodie Slaughter, and really like the author's writing style (which holds up here too!) and I especially like that this is an interconnected standalone for some of the author's other works I enjoyed, like Bet On It. I really enjoyed revisiting this lovely town and cast of characters that I've grown to love, like Aja and Walker, and Miriam and Leo. I was also excited that this was a sapphic romance with an interracial couple, but I ultimately didn't love this story as much as the others.

For one, I didn't pick up on the enemies-to-lovers tension that makes the trope so good. Possibly if Jade and Francesca were coaches for rival teams, the built-in rivalry would have been fun. But I just felt they were mean to each other for the sake of it, none of the lighthearted sports ribbing, or school pride type rivalry. I also would have understood if they were *really* competing for advancements at work, but it more felt like women not lifting other women up, then proving which woman had the best skills for the gig. So the romance fell a bit flat, because we didn't get a lot to root for from their history together.

Also, I liked the premise of high school sports and Francesca and Jade as teachers/coaches within the space, but the story felt *SO* high school sports in a way that adults wouldn't be this concerned. Like if this was a YA and the characters *themselves* were competing, it would feel very immediate and important and the driving force of the story. Adults wanting a coaching position based off of kids' actions felt a bit distant- and I couldn't get a sense of if this was an AMAZING team that was a ticket to glorious sports futures for everyone involved, or if they were a struggling and underfunded underdog team with potential. I got both senses at different points throughout my reading.

I really wanted to love this one but I struggled from the very beginning. I liked the sports aspect of the story because it was well written and pulled me into the story. Even though I liked the side characters they weren’t fully fleshed out and only popped up to talk about the relationship. The main issue was the romance. I’m always going with no means no. Not maybe, just no. Even if the actions don’t match. When books sort of try to redefine that I’m just not into it. So yes to the sports but no to the romance.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc

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.

⭐️⭐️⭐️.25
🌶️🌶️
(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.