Overall rating 4.5/5

A spicy tennis romance book - YES PLEASE.

This was a nice surprise for me because I finally got the sports references within a romance novel. I really enjoyed the storyline, the amount of sport played, and the mixture of off the court activities.

In terms of narration, I loved both narrators however sometimes the male voice became so quiet that it was difficult to hear the words. I don't know if that was a production thing, or if that was intentional.

The reason that I did not give this a full five stars is the lack of resolution of the conflict with the father. With how important it was to the plot, it was kind of a quick comment about it.

I picked Clean Point by Meg Jones and I was hoping for a lighthearted rom-com, but this turned out to be a much more serious read than I expected. The story delves into heavy topics, from abuse to doping scandals in sports, which gave it depth but wasn’t what I was in the mood for. While the writing was compelling, I felt like a stronger understanding of tennis would have helped me connect more with the story. If you’re looking for a serious romantic drama, this might be for you—but it wasn’t quite what I anticipated.

The book itself is ok, but I would have preferred the book over the audio. I found the male narrator very difficult to listen to. His volume fluctuates within each sentence. He starts out at normal volume and then seems to end in a whisper. Even with my headphone volume on high, I had difficulty understanding him. This was a multi cast narration and I didn’t find any trouble with the female narrator.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperAudio for the audio version ARC.

3.25⭐
Genre ~ sports romance
Setting ~ England
Publication date ~ book ~ August 6, 2024, audio ~ December 31, 2024
Publisher ~ Avon & Harper Audio
Est Page Count ~ 410 (p+ 48 chapters +e)
Audio length ~ 11 hours 34 minutes
Narrators ~ Mary Jane Wells, Patrick Zeller
POV ~ dual 1st
Featuring ~ UK English writing, tennis, forced proximity, age gap, slow burn, secret relationship, enemies to lovers, some steamage

Author content warning:
explicit content throughout with open door scenes, abusive father/coach, mentions of intentional and secret drugging/medical misuse, mentions of disordered eating due to training, alcohol consumption, sexual harassment, verbal abuse/slut shaming

Scottie (25) & Nico (33) are both trying to come back in the tennis world. She due to being named a cheat 2 years ago, and he due to a knee injury. They don’t hit it off right from the bat, but can these two work together to bring home a title they both dream of?

If enemies to lovers is your thing then you'll probably like this one since the tension and chemistry was great. Not really sure why they are enemies, but whatever. About the age gap, he's only 33 so her calling him old quite often got quite old for me with its repetitiveness. There are a good mix of side likable and unlikable characters. The father is awful, which we knew would be the case based on the author content warning.

Overall, I can't say I was fully invested and could hardly wait to put my earbuds in, but it was a solid first experience with this author so I would try her again.

Narration notes:
They both did a pretty good job of doing opposite sex voices and in a different accent. I think duet narration really would have brought the narration home though. He did a lot of whispering, so I had to up the volume for his chapters.

Clean Point by Meg Jones was the tennis romance I didn't know I needed! Ugh, it was so good! It is one the absolute best "enemies" to friends to lovers I've read, on or off the court.

Scottie Sinclair is a cheat--but she didn't know it. Her dad had been secretly dosing her after an injury was taking too long to heal, and when she found out, she obviously confessed. And during her two year ban, she went WILD. She did all the things she'd always wanted to do but couldn't. She never planned on coming back to the sport, but her old coach convinced her to give doubles a try--and he paired her with Nico Kotas, an older player trying to make a comeback after a knee injury. Oh, and he's her dad's old archnemesis. Which makes playing again worth it--if only for the revenge.

I don't know much about tennis, but it didn't matter. My rudimentary knowledge from Mario Tennis was enough to get me by, and while tennis is important, Scottie and Nico's connection is the real heart of the story. The narrators, Mary Jane Wells and Patrick Zeller, were FABULOUS. This was possibly the first contemporary romance I've listened to narrated by Mary Jane Wells (she's usually historical romance!), but she did a great job, even if I did occasionally find myself picturing Scottie in Georgian gowns instead of tennis skirts.

Thank you to Harper Audio for the advance listening copy. I thoroughly enjoyed it!!!

Brilliant from start to finish! I was immediately drawn into this world and didn’t want to leave.

There is nothing more exhilarating than being a spectator when watching sports and getting caught up in a comeback or underdog story, but we only see the tip of the iceberg, the result of how far these these push their bodies to be part of an elite group. It was fascinating, but also a sobering reminder of how much these athletes sacrifice and the demands that are made of them as public figures. I raged with Scottie every time some sexist reporter felt entitled to her time and that broaching her boundaries was acceptable. Ugh!!

As a fan of forced proximity, the set up of Scottie and Nico pairing up in mixed doubles was *chef’s kiss* and the tension between the two… delectable.

The ending was incredibly satisfying for many reasons and the epilogue had me giggling in absolute delight!

I couldn’t wait to start this and was even more excited when I saw that my favorite narrator, THE Mary Jane Wells would be performing for Scottie. MJW never misses and her performance was, like always, spectacular, and the dual narrator was so much fun.

Spicy enemies to lovers with the sports theme - loved the change focusing on tennis which you don't see a lot. Scottie has found an end in her career due to performance drugs that she claims were given to her without her knowledge. Nico had his career ended over an injury. Scottie is his old rival's daughter . Themes of revenge, betrayal, cheating, etc. I enjoyed this, but it was just okay . Glad I read it and would recommend to the right crowd, but something was missing for me.

A cute, quick to read tennis romance with dislike to lovers trope. I flew through the audio book for this and enjoyed the narration.

I found it really similar to Carrie Soto, and I would have loved to see a bit more backstory for the boy. The attraction between them was intriguing, but I felt like the boy's background could have added some depth. I also wished for a little more exploration of the relationship between the father and daughter. Overall, it was still good, but those extra details would have made it even better!

Thank you so much NetGalley, Meg Jones & Harper Audio for allowing me access to this ALC.
Clean Point is a contemporary romance which has been released on Aug 6th, 2024. Scottie Sinclair, disgraced tennis prodigy, gets a shot at redemption and revenge after being framed for doping by her own father. Nico Kotas, a former tennis champion, needs Scottie to help rebuild his image as he eyes a comeback. Together, they face scandals, old rivalries, and the ultimate challenge—trusting each other on and off the court!
I enjoyed A LOT the narration in this audiobook. British accent = so delightful! Very well done job done by Mary Jane Wells & Patrick Zeller!
As for the story, it was okay, not a fave but okay!

I absolutely ADORED this audio! Patrick Zeller has always been a favorite narrator of mine because of his tone and voice inflections. I really enjoy how he performs his characters; he always keeps me thoroughly entertained. This was my first audio from Mary Jane Wells, and it was fantastic! She performed this audio fabulously.

Nico and Scottie had such delicious hate and tension between them, and it was amazing to watch them fall head over heels for the other. I loved seeing them come together against a common enemy and form a united front. This book was fabulous!

3.5/4
It was cute. Nothing earth shattering. I’m not a tennis fan. But that didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the book as a whole.

I was absolutely not expecting to love a tennis romance this much but here we are! Considering it’s got all of the amazing tropes I love I shouldn’t be that surprised. Slow burn, forced proximity, second chances, small age gape (8 year) plus some good banter just to top it all off! If you want all the drama mixed in with your spicy sports romance, this one is definitely for you!

I knew very little coming into this book. Very little about what it was about, about the author, and about tennis in general.

The hook in the begining had me wanting to sit down an read the whole book in one go. To the point that I skipped a meeting at work to continue to listen to the audiobook I was that invested.

It was an interesting fresh take on a sports romance, one that I don't think I have read before, and I have read a lot of sports romance books. I felt like I understood where Scottie was coming from and I empathized with Nico in the same breath because he wanted to suport her and burn the whole thing down in the same breath.

The tennis was also accessable for someone who knows next to nothing about tennis. In our house tennis balls are dog toys, and I haven't even thought about the sport really since I was a sophmore in highschool and we had a rennis unit. When the game was being talked about I could follow what was going on, and didn't need even a fans knowledge of the game.

I appreciated that we got both point of views but it wasn't always just a hand off one after the other each chapter.

I struggled a little bit with the audio, I think the narrators were wonderful, but sometimes it was like the male narrator was whispering and other times he was yelling. I would have a hard time hearing some of the things he was saying with the radio in my car cranked all the way up. Occasionally the female narrator would have the same issue, but not nearly as often. With my headphones, both in ear and over ear I could hear everything just fine.

I want to thank NetGally and HarperAudio Adult for an audio ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley and HarperAudio Adult | HarperAudio for the free ALC. My opinions are being left voluntarily. I have had this on my radar for a bit.i love sports romance and find tennis to be a fresh sport to feature.this was spicier then expected but done so well. I am excited to annotate my physical copy.

Suggest giving it a try

I loved this book so much. I had a hard time going to bed last night because I didn't want to put it down. The characters were written so well. Scottie is a tennis player that appears a cheat. She's paired with Nico who has a bad knee. What could ever go wrong? 5 stars!

Many thanks to Net Galley and HarperAudio Adult for an audio ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A tennis romance you say!? Sign me up. Do I know anything about tennis? Nope, but I loved this anyway.

Nico is the definition of an overprotective hero, like swoon-worthy overprotectiveness. Scottie is unapologetically herself and I love her for it. They mesh together so well, whether it's on the court or in the bedroom 🤭

My heart ached for what had happened to Scottie in the past, and from someone she trusted so completely 💔 Nico was dealing with his knee injury and the way he wanted to persevere just for Scottie, again swoon. The revenge plot for her father and his old rival was the cherry on top.

The only downfall was the male narrator would often seem to be whispering, then suddenly speaking so loudly I'd have to turn him down. Other than that, the audio is fantastic.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the alc in exchange for an honest review.

📚 Clean Point by Meg Jones
🎧 Format: Audiobook
🎙️ Narrated by: Mary Jane Wells & Patrick Zeller
📕 Genre: Contemporary Romance
📖 Read: December 2024
✨ Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“𝘐 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳, 𝘚𝘤𝘰𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘦,” 𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘦𝘥, 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘦. “𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘐’𝘮 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴. 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘮𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘦.”

‧₊˚✧ 𝑹𝑬𝑨𝑫 𝑰𝑭 𝒀𝑶𝑼 𝑳𝑰𝑲𝑬 ✧˚₊‧
ꕥ No Third Act Breakup
ꕥ Enemies to Lovers
ꕥ Age Gap
ꕥ Dual POV
ꕥ Slow Burn
ꕥ Forced Proximity
ꕥ Reluctant Cat Dad

Wow! I really did not expect to love this as much as I did!

I loved Scottie and Nico. I was so pleased that secrets and miscommunication didn’t overshadow this story. There was a lot of open and honest communication which is sometimes hard to find in romance books. Love, love, love that there was no third act break up!!! The support Scottie and Nico showed towards each other was so refreshing.

I know nothing about tennis, but this book shone light on so many important topics, including pressure that female athletes feel and the way they are portrayed in the media. There was also good discussion about the hidden abuse that occurs towards players at the hands of their coaches.

The audio narration was excellent! Mary Jane Wells and Patrick Zeller, really brought the story to life.

The emotional depth that this book went into was so unexpected, but oh so good! I would highly recommend this book, especially the audio version for an extra touch of magic.

𝘊𝘩𝘦𝘤𝘬 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘮𝘺 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘮 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘴: 𝘩𝘵𝘵𝘱𝘴://𝘸𝘸𝘸.𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘮.𝘤𝘰𝘮/𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘥.𝘢𝘯𝘥.𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨/

Thank you NetGalley, HarperAudio Select and Meg Jones for giving me the opportunity to listen to this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This may be my new favorite sports romance book! I loved the enemies to lovers vibes of the relationship between Scottie and Nico! The banter between them was great and the spice was spicer than I expected!

The dual POVs for Nico and Scottie was great and I loved that their POVs overlapped several times so you could really get the full story of events happening.

What I really loved about this book was that the tennis world was the real focus of this book. There was lots of discussion about game play and the pressure that female athletes feel. There was also a really good discussion about the hidden abuse that occurs to players sometimes at the hands of their coaches. This book felt a lot like Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reed expect with more romance.

I listened to the audiobook and enjoyed the narrators performances.

First off, thank you to HarperAudio and NetGalley for the ALC! Now the good stuff right?!

Clean Point is the first tennis romance I’ve ever read and yeah… I get it now. Scottie had the whole tennis world at her fingertips when it’s all brought down by scandal. Nico had it all until he got injured. Both trying to get back into the game. Scottie and Nico are thrust into a partnership that neither wants but they need. Like if the one bed trope was a contractual agreement instead of said bed. He’s her father’s enemy and I guess in the end, the enemy of my enemy is really my friend right?! You get watch the slow burn between these two which is just freakin delicious. But most importantly, you get to read how they heal each other. How Nico shows Scottie that people can be trusted. Scottie’s trauma in this book was both heartbreaking and infuriating. The way she’s treated in comparison to her male counterpart was too realistic in today’s world. This book was beautifully written and definitely a good listen!

Mary Jane Wells, her voice is smooth as butter and the emotions come thru so strong. Patrick Zeller, amazing! Both narrators did an amazing job showing all of the emotions their characters were going thru. They absolutely sucked you in and delivered an amazing audio experience!