Ella Davies is trading rainy Oxford for Southern sunshine, determined to prove herself on Whitland University’s elite cheer squad—and definitely not looking for a rebound. But fate (and a few well-timed stumbles) keep throwing her in the path of Hudson Fox, campus legend and quarterback with a jawline you could cut diamonds on.

Hudson’s focus is locked on one goal: winning the championship. No drama. No distractions. And absolutely no dating—not even if the distraction in question has a killer roundoff-back-handspring and an accent that could melt steel.

So they make a pact: a no-strings, no-feelings, just-for-now kind of deal. But with every touchdown and tumbling pass, the game gets riskier. Because the only thing harder than sticking the landing… is not falling for each other.

Perfect for fans of high heat, late-night study sessions, and that one scene where they pretend it’s casual—until it’s definitely not.

3.5 stars – Game On by Ki Stephens is a college sports romance between Ella Davies and Hudson Fox. MMC is a quarterback on the football team and FMC is a cheer student on an exchange program from Oxford. This is a cute, fun read. A bit instalove and low on the drama aspect. Interesting characters overall. Several side characters that deserve their own stories. Overall, a good read!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and St. Martin’s Press for an advance reader copy. The thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.

I really enjoyed the dynamic between Hudson and Ella. It wasn’t your typical quarterback/cheerleader romance, even if it was unrealistic at times. Their connection felt believable, and I really liked that their relationship developed alongside the personal growth for both characters. I thought their relationship development was cute.

The ex-boyfriend was also just a tool. He was barely in the book, but he had no redeeming qualities.

There were a couple of things that pulled me out of the story. Some of the cheerleading content was pretty technical—I occasionally felt like I needed a crash course in competitive cheer to fully follow what was happening. Some of the plots happened off-page, and I wish I had seen more of it, and finally, the emotional climax, where they admitted their feelings, felt a bit rushed. I was expecting a bigger “OMG” moment or emotional payoff before everything was resolved.

Overall, this was a fun and enjoyable romance book! If you like sports romances, I recommend!

This was just super cute. I love a good college sports romance, and this had all the makings of an entertaining read and it delivered!
It was lighthearted and I absolutely loved the chemistry between the mc's!

I binged this in almost setting. So if you are looking for a fun sports romance, fast paced, and character driven, I would 100% recommend this!

This was my first Ki Stephens book and I’m kind of neutral about it. It didn’t bore me, but it didn’t excite me to pick it up either. I thought the plot was kind of bland, even though I’ve never read a story like this. The book follows Hudson, a quarterback at this college and Ella, who is a foreign exchange student from England. She does cheerleading, and obviously gets into a “situationship” with the quarterback. 

This plot fell short for me. It was definitely an original thought, but something about Hudson just having a cheer background was funny to me. I feel like this book could have been more cohesive? For example, there were many things about Hudson that were just thrown together so this story would work. However, I did feel that the characters had great chemistry! Their scenes were great and I could definitely feel the tension between them. 

If you want a quick, easy read, and a sports romance, this one is for you! 

Thank you Netgalley and St. Martins Press for the eArc!

Game On is a stand alone sports romance with the MCs of Ella and Hudson. It's starts with a ONS then a fling with no strings. The blurb sounded great but unfortunately this was just to cute for me. It's medium paced, easy to read, has believable chemistry with funny moments and a HEA.

Thank You to Netgalley & St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

I have previously loved Ki's books but unfortunately this one didn't hit. I loved the whole premise of the book but it felt a bit rushed and I didn't feel attached to the characters. I think there were some storylines that I wished were gone into depth more. But I can always rely on Ki's books to be quick and easy pallet cleansers! Will always read whatever she puts out!

This book just wasn’t for me, the story felt super rushed, the main characters weren’t very memorable and had no real connection. I feel like with all the issues that came up not all were solved. It did have good representation of sports though, and I did like some of the side characters.


Thank you NetGalley, Ki Stephens and St. Martin's Press I St. Martin's Griffin for the eARC.

*Thank you so much to St. Martin’s Press and Ki Stephens for this ARC, I greatly appreciate it.

Ki Stephens has quickly become an author whose stories bring me joy and I adore her characters. This story had a little bit of everything from the sports element of our main characters of football to cheerleading. In addition, the sense of a close knit group of friends, independence, an endearing MMC who was also HOT! Of course, we can’t forget the star of this book…,SOURDOUGH, Hudson’s cat haha. Ki wrote this book in a way that allowed me to feel the lighthearted feeling of seeing Hudson and Ella together, but also embedding some depth into their backstories too. If you’re looking for a good lighthearted romance, I would recommend this one.

I have no complaints about this book, and I had a good time reading it. Ella and Hudson’s attraction started off as a one night stand, and thinking they’d go their separate ways haha oh how ironic things worked out for them. Ella was a cheerleader who arrived at Whitland as part of her study abroad program, while Hudson was a football player already attending Whitland. The two instantly shared a moment of mutual interest in each other, and boy was it great to see it all unfold over the course of this story. Hudson was use to maintaining control over every aspect in his life, but with the addition of Ella, she turned his world in a new yet exciting direction. For Ella, she thought her year abroad would just be about school and cheerleading, but with a handsome southern man like Hudson, she was putty in his hands.

Something about this story was just exactly what I needed at the moment, and I really did adore both Ella and Hudson. I don’t want to give away too much, but there were specific scenes that really stood out to me that showed the deep care and respect Ella and Hudson had for each other. When it came to Ella showing her respect and love for Hudson, the things she did (again a specific scene comes to mind) it emphasized her wanting Hudson to feel safe and comfortable when he was with her. Even the way Hudson offered to comfort her through the things she liked, or wanted to be her safe space was really sweet, and I just appreciated how Ella and Hudson’s romance was depicted in those moments that I’m thinking of.

Overall, Ki did a good job bringing Ella and Hudson’s story together. Hudson and Ella were from different worlds, and namely different schools, but with Ella attending Whitland for the year, it was a year that changed both her and Hudson. Hudson was the southern gentleman with a dirty mouth haha but also very intelligent with his focus on continuing his education for his Masters. I love a man who’s not just strong, but has an intelligent mind to go along with it. Ella was equally motivated and highly competitive when it came to cheer. I also loved Hudson’s cat, Sourdough, aww that little cutie was so adorable and precious, and ugh I loved him! By the end of this book, I just happy and happy for Ella and Hudson in the way their story ended. Not sure if this will remain a stand alone or the start of a new series, but nonetheless it was great.

In this book we follow Hudson, a football player and college student, and Ella, a British cheerleader and college student who's spending a year in the US and who just got dumped by her boyfriend.

The main tropes are strangers to friends, one night stand and a college romance.

For the characters, I liked Ella's determination but there were a few things that I didn't like about her, the first one is that she just stopped talking with her "best friends" back in England, they just reappeared at the end. The second one is that Ella doesn't have any other hobbies apart from cheer and there were some moments where she would just be so indecisive that she became annoying.

Now for Hudson's character, I liked his character development but that's it, he seemed sweet and he had a cute cat but other than that he was just the typical football player who used to sleep around and one day decided that he's ready for a relationship. I liked his friendship with Levi.

For their relationship, the build-up was a little too fast in my opinion, they had sweet moments but most of them were spent in a bed which was a little disappointing. It sometimes felt like Hudson was more into Ella than she was into him.

The story was at times kind of hard to keep up with, the temporality of some scenes was not the greatest, a lot of things were thrown in the story which got confusing at some times. Like in the first chapter, everything happened too fast with a lot of informations, it felt rushed. A lot of the time, it seems like the author forgot that Ella was British.

I gave this book 2.5⭐️

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately, I did find myself struggling to engage with this book. I was unable to relate to the characters but I’ll be giving it a shot again in the future

This is the second book I’ve read by Ki Stephens, and once again, I’m blown away. Her stories have a way of drawing me in. You laugh, you ache, and you can feel the characters growing right alongside you. Game On was no exception.

Ella and Hudson’s instant connection pulled me in from the very beginning. They were both so guarded, so hesitant to let the other in, but that made their journey even sweeter. As the story unfolded, I loved how Hudson stepped up for Ella when she needed him the most. Slowly but surely, those emotional walls began to crumble. What started as a one-night connection turned into friends-with-benefits, and eventually something so much deeper. Watching them navigate their own vulnerabilities while building something real was incredibly satisfying and heartfelt.

What I loved even more was how this wasn’t your typical football-player-meets-cheerleader romance. Ki Stephens took a familiar backdrop and completely flipped it into something that felt fresh and unexpected. It was such a refreshing twist!

Reading Game On as my first ARC was such a special experience, and I’m so grateful to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for giving me the chance to read it early. If you love stories that make you laugh, swoon, and root for the characters every step of the way, this one needs to be on your list!

I’ve been following Ki Stephens since her Wattpad days, so it’s been amazing to watch her journey from self-published to traditionally published author.

She has a way of writing sweet, swoony romances that are effortlessly readable, with characters who always feel relatable and real.

Game On was an enjoyable read, though it didn’t top her Coastal University series for me — I was just so attached to that world, and this one didn’t hit quite the same. That said, if you're a fan of enemies-to-lovers, sports romance, self-discovery, and found family, this one will definitely be up your alley.

3.5 stars!

This being my first Ki Stephens book, I'm thinking maybe her writing style just isn't for me. I felt like the first third of the book progressed so fast that I didn't have time to really grow attached to the main characters because their relationship happened so instantaneously. The plot dragged a bit for me, and since the main relationship wasn't one of romance necessarily (for the most part they agreed nothing romantic could happen between them), I felt like a lot of the scenes didn't have an emotional payoff.

As someone who cheered for many years, the terminology was used correctly, but it seems a bit far fetched to me that the star quarterback would just be able to join the cheer team midseason with no issue. Maybe that's me getting to critical about the logistics. The third act conflict really made me dissociate from the story because I hate miscommunication, especially when one of the characters won't let the other explain the confusion.

I also feel like the logistics of money was really unrealistic. Hudson can't afford to go to Oxford, so Ella's parents (who she doesn't talk to) will pay for them to live together? Doesn't seem right.

I'm sure sports romance fans will enjoy this, but for me it was a miss.

This was such a fun cute read. As an ex competitive high school cheerleader I love all the detail into the FMC Ella’s cheer training. As someone who knows how much work goes into competition training I hope this sheds a light to some people who may not realize how intense cheerleading really is.

This reminded me of Icebreaker in a way with the MMC having to fill in as a partner to the FMC in their sport. I don’t want to give away any spoilers but there is more than meets the eye with this football player.
Ella is a strong competitive woman who is just trying to protect her heart after a breakup with a long term boyfriend. Hudson is a confident guy in many ways but is also working through some issues from a trauma in his past he blames himself for. No one has understood his “quirks” until Ella and they carry each other’s baggage together.

This is a perfect no strings attached relationship to start with great spice. Of course this turns into real feelings that both characters are afraid to admit thanks to the fact that Ella is going back to Oxford. This ends with a very satisfying happily ever after.

4 stars ⭐️
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Marti’s Press for providing me with an ARC of “Game on“!!!
This was my first time reading a book by Ki Stephens and I am happy to say that she did not disappoint. It was a beautifully written story and the first one I have read featuring a romance between a football player and a cheerleader. I really enjoyed it! Ella and Hudson felt genuine and relatable, which made it easy to root for them. I especially loved seeing Ella’s growth as she navigated her new life in America. The banter between the two was incredible and their relationship felt natural (they alway seemed to find their way back to each other).
This book was a really fun and heartwarming read and perfect for summer. I will definitely be picking up more books from this author in the future!

This was a first for me from this author. I usually really love sports romances but I'm starting to feel like they all are so similar with very similar plots. Ella & Hudson's chemistry was entertaining and i enjoyed the spicier scenes. but altogether the plot was so far fetched for me. It's almost like the author was trying to check off too many trope boxes with this. It felt forced and at times i was irritated with the characters. It was just ok for me. I may try another by this author & see if this is the way they write or if this one was just off.

This book was not what I expected, in the best way possible. I love that this book breaks a lot of the football player stereotypes. The connection between the characters was almost as sweet as the connection between Hudson and his pet cat. My favorite part, though, was all of the friendships represented, new and old. All in all, this was a sweet, quick read for anyone who enjoys sports romances.

Friends with benefits almost always leads to something more but we still eat it up every time, just like in Game On. This fast-paced college sports romance features the classic trope of cheerleader x quarterback. Sizzling chemistry, spicy scenes, no third act breakup and fun banter makes this a bingeable summer read. And as a brit I appreciated the accurate British slang that Ella uses. Three stars for this read because of some of the unnecessary drama (unfortunately from the FMC), but it’s a college romance so some should be expected! Overall really enjoyable and I look forward to reading more from Ki Stephens.

I loved Ella and Hudson’s story! Ella is a transfer student from England, there for cheerleading. Hudson is the team quarterback. Ella was suppose to come to America for a year as a transfer student with her long time boyfriend who breaks up with her right before they transfer. Hudson and Ella have a one night stand that eventually turns into more. I loved how Hudson’s OCD rep was done and how Ella navigated it. Also, Hudson is a major cat daddy! The side characters are very lovable and I hope we get Levi’s story next!

Thank you NetGalley, St Martin’s Press, and Ki Stephens for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!