An excellent story of sisters, sports and the gifts of life. I enjoyed the characters of the sisters, their relationships. It was a great story about the drive to do professional sports and all that encompasses. I really enjoyed this one.

Sisters can be your biggest fan, or your most fierce foe. Mia was born to her soccer playing mom much too early. Elizabeth put all of her failed dreams into Mia in hopes that her daughter would soccer stardom. However, her second daughter, Cricket, proved to be the real phenom. Mia was forced to be a second mother, as well as a sister and just when success was on the horizon, crisis hits and challenges both of the girls to determine what was the most important thing. Looking into the future to imagine what women's soccer will be like, Dorey-Stein reflects the struggles of an elite athlete as they strive to reach the highest stratosphere.

Spectacular Things is simply a spectacular thing. This story expertly handles many timelines of a complicated family. The character development was unlike any other book. I felt genuinely connected to every single characters. The characters are the perfect combination of complex and likeable. As promised, the themes of family and sisterhood are strong.

This book was about two sisters and their pursuit of a dream. You see how sacrifice and devotion to each other helps them achieve their goal. The story is very heavy on soccer and although I’m not a soccer fan, I enjoyed the book.

I really loved this book! It was totally different than anything I've read before- in a good way! I'm not a huge soccer fan but I was still able to resonate with the characters and what they went through. I will say it got a bit slow for me in the back third, but overall I still really enjoyed it!

3.5 stars

Powerful story of friendship, family, loss, and forgiveness.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC Read.

The daughters of a young single mother, Mia and Cricket grow up knowing they can depend on each other. But when the stakes are impossibly high, is this still true?

I waited to read this because something in me told me I wasn’t in the right frame of mind when it came up next on my TBR. And I’m glad I waited, because this book was worth it. This is spectacular (yes I know what I did there) and I loved every page. This is a story of sisters, but also a story that examines the cost of following your dreams. Both Mia and Cricket were relatable and well-drawn characters that I really enjoyed getting to know and was sorry to leave behind.

PS You don’t have to know anything about soccer to love this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and The Dial Press for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Available July 1, 2025

As both a sister and a soccer mom, when I tell you this book grabbed me from page one…boyyy do I mean it. I loved the premise, the sisterhood (Mia and Cricket are just fantastic), and the peek into elite level sports. The extreme tension around Cricket’s impossible choice had me fully invested, and I felt for every character.

Unfortunately, for me, the middle and end didn’t quite match the electric setup - it felt repetitive, predictable, and a bit drawn out. I was teed up for a five-star read, but the momentum dipped.

Still, I’d give it a solid 3.5 stars. Despite the letdown after the opening, it’s enjoyable, heartfelt, and full of things to love. Definitely worth picking up!

It’s a powerful story about family, sisterhood, and perseverance. Thanks to NetGalley & Random House Publishing for the arc!

I loved the author's first book, which was nonfiction. I may not know much about soccer, but I do know I enjoyed every word of Spectacular Things. This is a heartwarming story about two sisters. The book is well written and has well-drawn, multidimensional characters. I look forward to reading more books by Beck Dorey-Stein.

Mia has given up everything for her sister Cricket, but when the tables are turned, will Cricket do the same?

I love family stories that really dive into the breadth of that family - what makes it pulse, the generational trauma that is passed down, what they have lived and breathed together, and Spectacular Things gives us all of that. There is such a beautiful and deep bond explored between these sisters and I love how Dorey-Stein really challenges their relationship in such an unfathomable way. The story is full of surprises but also leads exactly as it should.

A really beautiful story, although I did feel as though it leaned slightly too heavily into the soccer world and could have been pulled back a bit - but I liked it nonetheless.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dial Press.

⚽️ Spectactular Things (thank you @thedialpress )
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- This is definitely one of my top reads of the year and it totally took me by surprise! I loved the sister relationship and how it followed Mia and Cricket’s life and growth.

You know I love sister and family stories, so I was eager to read this novel. Author Beck Dorey-Stein isn’t someone I was familiar with, but the synopsis had me intrigued. Before I could get to it, I found out it had been chosen as a Reese’s Book Club selection for July. Within the first few pages, I knew that I was in for an excellent reading experience.

“They say that to accomodate all the love and loss and loneliness, your heart has to grow bigger.”

The book begins with Mia and her husband heading to the hospital to give birth to their baby. At the same time, Cricket, Mia’s sister, is playing for the US Women’s National Soccer Team at the 2028 Summer Olympics in LA. The US team is in the final Gold Medal match against the Netherlands. It’s “game day for both Lowe sisters.”

“There in Cricket’s hotel room, they cannot yet imagine how soccer will unequivocally fill, torment, mend, and mangle both of their hearts.”

After the heart-stopping events culminate for both Mia and Cricket, one sister has to make a life-changing decision while the other waits in the wings. The first seven chapters take the readers through these exhilarating days following the Olympics and the birth of Mia’s baby. Then the author leaves you gasping and hanging by a thread while taking you back in time to meet Liz, Mia and Cricket’s mom.

“Liz rolls down her window to see behind her, only to realize how rarely one must look back when forging ahead.”

It’s 1989, and Liz, at the age of 8, finds soccer at a summer camp, and her life is never the same. Liz quickly becomes a rising soccer star, wanted by several colleges with hopes of making the National Team. Then something happens to change all of that and send Liz on a road trip to Maine. Maine is where she raises Mia and Cricket as a single mom while also hoping that the girls will love soccer as much as she does. From 1989 to 2028, readers are part of the lives of these three characters, watching Liz rise to spectacular fame in soccer, her special relationship with her two daughters, and then eventually learn why Cricket became the super soccer star and not Mia.

“…when you’re young, it’s impossible to understand the permanence of your decisions or their ripple effects.”

Liz, Mia, and Cricket felt like family to me. I cried with their heartbreaks, sympathized with their sacrifices, hoped their dreams would come true, and cheered when they did. The three women lived by the Steve Prefontaine quote, “To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift.” This theme radiates throughout the novel as the girls make many sacrifices, especially Mia, to support Cricket’s soccer career.

“At birth, each person unwittingly signs a contract to say goodbye to everyone they’re about to meet. Life is merciless in that way, in its promise to end.”

Even though this is a character-driven story, there are plenty of twists and turns in the lives of these characters to keep you invested. Just when you think, Oh, I see how this is going to play out, the author takes you in a different direction. You don’t have to be a soccer fan or really know anything about soccer to enjoy this story, although soccer is at the heart of everything the characters do. It reminded me of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s book, CARRIE SOTO IS BACK. I didn’t know or care much about tennis before I read that story, yet I still became immersed in the character’s drive to win and how that passion affected her and her relationships. Don’t miss this one as it is easily making my Top Books of 2025 list.

I absolutely adored this book! I’ve been a fan of the author since From the Corner of the Oval, and this might just be my new favorite from her. It’s a tender, heartfelt story about family, sisterhood, and the unshakable bond between two sisters, Mia and Cricket. When tragedy strikes, both sisters are forced to make life-altering decisions that take them in different directions—but their love for each other remains constant.

The characters are so beautifully drawn and endearing—you can’t help but root for both of them. Despite their differences and the unique paths they follow, it’s their unwavering support for one another that gives the story its emotional depth. Reading this felt like being wrapped in a warm hug, and I know it’s a book I’ll return to again and again.

Thank you to The Dial Press and NetGalley for a copy of the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this - having lived in Maine for years, I appreciated the little notes to places and things that I love while also not depending on those to build out the story. I appreciated this character-driven narrative; while I neither have a sister nor do I know much about soccer, I did still feel like I could see myself in both of the Lowe girls at various points in the story.

A deeply moving book, I knew before I finished I would love it.

For fans of The Light We Lost. And anyone who loves women’s soccer.

This book lives up to its title—a beautifully written story about two sisters chasing big dreams, facing even bigger sacrifices, and trying to hold on to each other in the process.

You don’t have to love sports to love this story—just love great characters and stories that stick with you.

This was a very good book--it made me think. A family of three, all great soccer players. The mother, Liz, along with the sisters, Mia and Cricket, start playing soccer as children. Each one becomes invested in the game with the dreams of going professional and playing in the Women's World Cup and the Olympics. Liz doesn't make it when she gets pregnant out of high school after an incident that she will not talk about. Mia is born and Liz starts soccer drills with her as soon as she can walk. She has great promise but then, Cricket is born absit 8 years later.. She shows even greater promise. As the girls get older, it becomes apparent to Liz that only one child will be able to train for their dream. Mia and Liz do all they can to promote Cricket as a star player. Mia's dreams have been pushed aside. As they get older the pattern continues--Cricket comes first in all things. When you are given everything, what happens when your family or friends need something from you?
Thank you to NetGalley and Dial Press for the complementary ARC. This review is my own.

Okay, I am not a sports person. (Except for gold medal hockey games, then I have to cheer Canada on.) Beck Dorey-Stein made me care deeply about soccer.

This novel is absolutely engrossing and I could not put it down. My heart broke for Mia, parentified and yet supportive of Cricket. It asks the questions “how far should we go for those we love” and “how much do we owe the ones who raised us”. There are no easy answers to those questions and Dorey-Stein writes a realistic scenario around them.

Definitely recommended!

I received an ARC copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Spectacular Things is the story of the Lowe Girls (if this makes you think of Gilmore Girls, you're not terribly far off). Teen mom, Liz, ended her promising soccer future when she became pregnant before she made it to her college scholarship and left everything she knew behind to settle in a small, friendly, coastal Maine town. Mia, the product of that pregnancy, a tenacious academic star, whose own future is derailed when she has to assume responsibility as caregiver far too young. And Mia's younger sister Cricket, an up and coming soccer star who just might have what it takes to go all the way.

This is a family drama, a sister story, about family, legacy, dream chasing, sacrifice, and the give and take of loving. The writing style is breezy and engaging. The Maine setting is excellent. There's a lot of soccer, but fictional sports are the only sports I care about. This book is about soccer the same way Beartown is about hockey, or Carrie Soto is Back is about tennis, which is to say: it's really about so much more.