So I have to say I enjoyed this book more than I expected to! It started out quick and I didn’t feel like I knew the characters enough to care about what was happening, and then it got very spicy and I almost quit reading, but then it kicked into the last gear and I really enjoyed how things developed! So, slow start, very spicy and good ending. I definitely felt the Ted Lasso (Jamie Tartt) vibes!
Thank you Berkeley Publishing Group and Netgalley for the digital ARC!

✨️ Ｂｏｏｋ Ｒｅｖｉｅｗ ✨️

Thank you to @BerkleyRomance & @netgalley for the free #gifted copy of this book! All opinions are my own.

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: Relationship Goals
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: Brittany Kelley
𝐏𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬: 352

𝐌𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬:
𝘼𝙗𝙞𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙡 is an actress trying to reinvent herself after some bad press. She is invited to learn about the team/game for researching the part of her next movie.
𝙇𝙪𝙠𝙚 is a grumpy pro soccer player who is coerced into a fake dating situation by his bosses in order to move to a soccer team closer to his sick mother.

𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐡𝐚𝐬:
Sports Romance - Soccer
Grumpy/Sunshine
Insta-Lust
Soccer Player MMC/Hollywood Actress FMC
Mental Health Rep
Miscommunication

𝐀𝐝𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬: This is a difficult review for me because I really wanted to love this book. I have read some of Brittany's previous books and enjoyed them! And I did start out enjoying this one too…until I didn't. Overall the writing is good but the story itself needed some work.

I absolutely adore a Grumpy MC so Luke was fantastic! His grunts and attitude problems are so swoony! I enjoyed Abigail's quirkiness but couldn't connect with her after the secret was exposed. There was a switch that made her seem extremely unhinged & immature. I liked both of these characters - just not together.

I get that this has 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘓𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘢 𝘎𝘶𝘺 𝘪𝘯 10 𝘋𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 vibe but I thought the revenge plan was so immature. It felt so awkward to me. I didn’t find any part of it enjoyable. Miscommunication is a tough trope to write and for me, it didn't work. Was Luke in the wrong, Sure. But they are both adults, with past drama, it would have been so much better if they had talked it out.

I did, however, love the redemption this book brought. The way she worked with Michelle to wrap this up into an HEA while getting revenge. It’s just what was needed! I hope that this becomes a series because I really did enjoy the side characters…I want a story of Michelle & Tristan!

Soccer
Grumpy x sunshine
Actress
Player
Drama
Fake relationship
Kitten 🐈‍⬛
He’s a softie around her

I had just started watching Ted Lasso so this book reminded me of Roy Kent with the grumpiness and I loved it.

My first soccer book and it was so good! Rescuing a kitten together was perfect.

thank you so much to Berkley & NetGalley for this e-arc.

For summer, "Relationship Goals" is a short and simple RomCom to enjoy. In preparation for her future film role, Abigail Hunt is required to become well-versed in all aspects of the professional soccer industry. She meets Luke Wolfe, the grumpiest professional soccer player in the world, who has hidden reasons for wanting to be a free agent. He only needs to go out with Abby. The connection was fantastic, and the buildup was wonderful. It was so much fun to watch these two spend time together and fall in love. I was drawn into their story because they were open and truthful with one another. This was my first romantic novel by this author, but it will not be my last.

What a fun romp with a soccer adonis and a perky movie star.

The story, their relationship, the sexiness, make this book the perfect beach read. Oh boy do things heat-up on and off the soccer field. The reader will delight in the laugh out loud moments - picture a lobster tank where you dive to pick your meal or showing up for movie night to find Gollum cosplay greeting you.

Relationship Goals is a quick, easy RomCom to enjoy for the summer.

Thank you Berkley Publishing Group | Berkley

Such a fun debut! This was a blast to read, easy and quick to read. I had a slight hard time with Luke because he could have said something about one million times, but didn’t? The vibes were off but I was still rooting for them!

If you loved Roy Kent from Ted Lasso, you're going to adore MMC! This delightful story combines the charm of Ted Lasso with the humor of How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days. I couldn't help but laugh out loud while reading it! It’s the perfect lighthearted summer read, featuring sharp and entertaining banter between the female and male leads. Don’t miss out on this enjoyable journey!

A book with Ted Lasso and How to lose a Guy in 10 Days vibe, I'm in!

Relationship Goals by Brittany Kelley was a very fun and adorable read! The MMC being a star soccer player and the FMC being an actress was a great foundation for setting up this funny and wonderful banter of a rom com book! Abigail Hunt is doing a deep-dive into a role for a movie about a scandal in the soccer world when she meets Luke Wolfe, the grumpy soccer player, who gives her a tour of the stadium and asks her out. What Abby doesn't know is that Luke is faking it while she thinks it is all real. But when Abby finds out, she plans to get even, but what happens when he goes along with it?

Luke and Abby were so adorable and had some of the best banter! The story was a quick read and highly recommend adding to your TBR!

Thank you for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Sorry to report this is a DNF. I could forgive the lack of soccer knowledge and how it works in the US vs the show this is clearly based on (note that I’m European and specifically from a country that takes soccer VERY seriously so this was a hard thing to ignores!). I could even overlook Luke’s rudeness but I can’t with the lack of nuance and repetitive writing. The dialogues aren’t natural and are cringy in a way that makes me question this author knows how people speak irl. The characters don’t feel real because they’re super underdeveloped and kept superficial on purpose. The romance? I don’t feel any chemistry so not even that saves it.
Overall, not the book for me.

Rating: 4⭐️ | Spice: 2.5🌶️ | Audio: 4🎙️
What to Expect:
Sports Romance
Pro-Soccer Player x Actress
Grumpy x Sunshine
Fake Dating to Revenge Dating
How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days meets Ted Lasso
Anxiety Rep
Spicyyyy

Thank you so much Brittany @berkleyromance for the free paperbacks! @prhaudio for this gifted audiobook!

“You’re not people. You’re my person.”

Review Title & Vibes:
{WINNING ON THE PITCH} When I found out that Brittany was writing a How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days meets Ted Lasso romcom - I immediately added this to my must read list.

Abigail Hunt is tasked with learning the ins and outs of the professional soccer world for her upcoming movie role. She meets Luke Wolfe - the world’s best grumpiest professional soccer player with secret motivations to become a free agent. All he has to do is date Abby.

This book was hilarious and spicy. Starting out with a bit of subterfuge, meeting the adorably awkward fallen starlet, diving deep into a grump’s motivations, - you’re going to laugh, melt, and experience all the emotions.

Crossing my fingers for this to be made into a series (there are some serious whispers)

Things I Loved:
-LOTR references - freaking hilarious
-JUSTICE - don’t worry - the ending is worth the wait!
-Michelle - gah this side character is a total boss.

Audio Notes:
{dual} I definitely enjoyed this audiobook! Sean made for a great grumpy soccer player. Justis brought the funny girl humor into every chapter. There were a few moments during character voices changes when I was pulled from the story, but I would still recommend this audiobook.

Recommended to...  
Romcom readers obsessed with Ted Lasso (and everyone who hasn’t had the pleasure of becoming obsessed YET)

Narrated by @justisbolding @seanpatrickhopkins
Produced by @prhaudio
Published by @berkleyromance

Relationship Goals by Brittany Kelley was hilarious, over-the-top, ridiculous, romantic, swoony fun. Also the ADHD rep was fantastic. Like Abigail, my brain is always racing 100 mph, and I'm always speaking without thinking. So #relatable.

Abigail Hunt, a former teen drama star, wants to be taken seriously as an actress, and she's finally landed the role she hopes will earn the industry's respect--a whistleblower in a movie about a real-life soccer scandal. She has the opportunity to spend some time with a professional soccer team in order to study up for her role--and she meets Luke Wolfe, a gruff, standoffish, but all too handsome soccer star. He asks her out on a date, and their connection is surprising and immediate. Too bad he was told to date her by the team's owners as part of a PR stunt...but now he's in too deep to admit how and why it all started because his feelings are starting to feel, well, real.

When Abigail finds out it was all for PR, she's hurt, and she's angry--so she plans terrible, over-the-top, AWFUL dates, hoping he'll publicly break up with her and ruin his (and the team's) reputation. Only he's kinder, more understanding, and way more emotionally invested than she realized.

(This was the section of the book that was the hardest to read because her immaturity was on full display. An honest conversation would have solved all of this, but it wouldn't have been nearly so funny.)

So if this book has a vibe, it's Ted Lasso meets How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days--with some neurodivergence sprinkled on top. It was a quick, fun sports-adjacent romance (I say adjacent because there wasn't a whole lot of sport on page). Abigail showing up at his games, though, gave So High School and definitely had me picturing Taylor Swift at the Chiefs games.

Very cute. Second-hand-embarrassment inducing. But cute.

Her: *acts insane to get him to break up with her*
Him: *is totally into it*

This was sooo cute & fun!!! I love a growly, broody man so from the first two chapters in this book - I was hooked.

I loved how he met her and was immediately frustrated with himself for wanting her. THAT is what I love to see in romances!!!! He’s down bad & miserable until he can be with her!!!!!!

This book perfectly fits the promise of the premise and is sexy, funny, and a really lovely time! I've been on the hunt for a Roy/Keeley dynamic since watching Ted Lasso a few years ago, and we get that with this grouchy/sunshine romance full of antics and quick beats.

I just finished Relationship Goals by Brittany Kelley and here are my thoughts.

Abigail dreams of making it big and when she is offered a breakout role, it comes with homework.. Shadowing her real-life counterpart to be able to act the role with authenticity.

She doesn’t expect to meet Luke, soccer player and all around asshole.. Things begin to sizzle and Abigail cannot believe how happy she is. That is, until she discovers the truth, Luke was coerced into fake dating her for ticket sales so he could be traded. She isn’t just angry… She is going to make him pay in the funniest of ways.

I did not expect a sports romance to be so good. I am not a massive fan of all the sporty stuff usually but I was fully invested in both of the characters and the soccer stuff really added to the story in my humble opinion. It was a seriously entertaining book.

I love how extreme the grumpy sunshine was. Luke was such a bummer at first! I don’t find negative people attractive so he set my teeth on edge from the get go but the more you learn about him, the more you start to understand him.

Abigail had things to prove but she didn’t let it dull her shine and I felt honest to God… extreme anger that Luke didn’t just tell her he needed to fake-date and why. Having said that, had he said something, she may not have opened up the same so while I am glad they did break past it, it really rubbed me the wrong way. The chemistry was amazing and the build up was decedent. I loved how light and playful the whole thing was.

It was definitely one of my faves of the month.

4 sexy stars

Thank you to @berkleypub and @netgalley for my gifted copy.

Brittany Kelley never fails to make me bust a gut. Yo-Yo Ma, Smeagol, Pilates. I started and finished this book within 24 hours, which should tell you that this is gooooood. The banter is spectacular and the chemistry between the MCs is *chefs kiss*. Abigail is neurospicy in a way that speaks to my soul, and I so loved being able to relate to her in that way. Lucas was gruff and grumpy, but soft and squishy in the most delightful ways. I highly recommend for anyone who enjoys How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days, revenge-fueled hijinks and cute foster kittens.

Relationship Goals by Brittany Kelley is a Hollywood meets sports romance that has a little bit of How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days aspect too. I like the soccer aspect of the book so far and that Abigail is shadowing the team to prep for her role in a movie. Despite Luke not telling her the truth, I really like him and this book has me laughing at these dates!

Thanks to Berkley Romance for my free copy!

I DNF at 25% for to reason. One this book was to fast paced for me. And that is a me problem and not the author’s. I like the writing style and the characters. Two, I’m entering a reading slump. Again not the books fault. I would recommend this book and I will most likely read it again when I’m not in a slump.

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘴𝘰 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 @berkleyromance 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬!

I don’t think you could ever go wrong when it comes to reading a story that has 𝗧𝗲𝗱 𝗟𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗼 meets 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗟𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗮 𝗚𝘂𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝟭𝟬 𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀 vibes. I adored the grumpy/ sunshine AKA Roy and Keeley from 𝗧𝗲𝗱 𝗟𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗻 vibes this book had. The revenge ideas Abigail takes on when she finds out Luke is only dating her to help his career were unhinged and I couldn’t stop laughing. Could the miscommunication be avoided by Luke being upfront about the situation? I mean yes, but then we wouldn’t have had the whole 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗟𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗮 𝗚𝘂𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝟭𝟬 𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀 set up, which was quite entertaining. All in all, this was a fun and endearing romcom, with a strong neurodivergent representation (ADHD).

Relationship Goals - review
Genre - romance
Rating - 4⭐️ / loved

Thanks @berkleypub for the advanced digital copy and having me on tour - this releases today... happy book birthday🥳

Super quick synopsis: Abigail is a successful actress, looking to revitalize her career after some terrible press, by being cast as the lead in a movie exposing inequities in professional soccer. To learn more, she’s paired up with a professional team and its star, Luke, and sparks quickly fly. What both are about to find out though, is that the corruption of the league is still very much in the present...

My thoughts: I am super guilty of judging a book by its cover. When I saw this, I pictured a sweet romance. While plenty of sweet moments, this was SO laugh out loud funny (Abigail! Their banter!) and steeeeaamy in the best way. If you shipped Roy Kent and Keely in Ted Lasso, this has similar vibes. But if I’m being honest, I loved Abigail’s character more than Keely🤫 Abigail is honest with her struggles and speaks her mind - she was fun and refreshing to not read a character trying to play a part of what they think others want them to be.

The first half of this book was five star worthy; some crazy antics ensue in the last quarter of the book (think - How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days) that was fun to read but also unhinged and cringeworthy for the characters.

I’ve read a ton of great romances this year and this book is right up there. Running to add this author’s backlist to my tbr!

Overall I thought Relationship Goals was a cute read and I do think there is a good amount of people who will eat it up, but unfortunately that wasn’t me this time. I liked it, but didn’t necessarily love it. Abigail’s attempts at revenge were a bit over the top, but I found them hilarious so those dates in particular were the highlight of the book for me.

Thank you to Berkley Pub for the eARC, these are my own honest thoughts