Jenna and Geordie story is based on the chance that Geordie would never have an opportunity to date Jenna because she is the coaches daughter. Okay, sign me up! Well, I can report back and state that I did finish this book, however, the pacing and flow felt like it dragged on a bit.

Honestly, the large background information could have been tightened up a bit and gotten straight to the point. I do love a long winded narration when it serves purpose. This felt like it was words filling a page and did not add depth to the story or character development.

I do love the fact that Geordie has a learning disability that was showcased and spoken about because invisible differences are often overlooked and can put a damper on a characters evolution. This did not. It added depth to his character and I loved that he didn't allow it to stop him from being successful.

Jenna's character could use some work. I understand that she is going through a lot but her character felt like there was something missing. Or maybe it was her acting like a child when she was triggered. I personally don't know of people who run when triggered but hey, I guess that's a thing?

Overall, I enjoyed the story and the diverse representation of characters, the ending (even if it could have been a bit sooner), and the friends around both of these characters. Rounded up from 3.75 to 4 Stars.

This book had me hooked from the start — Jenna and Geordie’s romance is the pure, slow-burn sweetness we all crave. Childhood ties run deep since Jenna’s been best friends with Geordie’s older sister for years. But now? They’re grown, they’re back in town, and Geordie is suddenly playing amateur rugby for Jenna’s dad’s team

🏉 Geordie is the ultimate book boyfriend — protective, charming and so soft when it comes to Jenna. Their chemistry builds in the most delicious way, full of quiet glances, playful banter, and emotional depth.

🌿 I loved how both Jenna and Geordie had their own pasts to untangle, but instead of drama pulling them apart, it brought them closer. Their relationship feels real and earned, like watching two people find their way home to each other.

💖 If you love:
✔️ Best friend’s brother trope
✔️ Small-town return
✔️ Sweet but swoony romance
✔️ Coaches daughter

…then Blindsided By You needs to be on your radar! 📚✨

Rounded up from 3.75 stars

I requested this ARC because the tropes sounded right up my alley: sports romance, best friend’s brother, and an age gap where he’s younger? Instantly intrigued. Add in the small-town setting and the fact that her dad is also the coach of the amateur rugby team he plays for, and you’ve got a setup with plenty of tension. You can feel the sparks from the moment Jenna and Geordie reconnect. The fact that they’ve known each other their whole lives adds an extra layer of intimacy; the childhood-friends-to-lovers angle here feels genuinely sweet.

That said, I struggled with the pacing. It felt oddly slow, even when things were happening. The internal monologues (especially from both MCs) dragged in parts and started to feel repetitive. There was a lot of back-and-forth about how they felt about each other, and a fair bit of self-deprecation, which is understandable given their insecurities, but I found myself wishing the plot would move forward more. The emotional groundwork was laid early, so some of the continued introspection started to feel like filler. At times, I even got a bit confused about the timeline.

Still, I understand where both characters are coming from, and their individual insecurities made sense. I just think a tighter structure and slightly faster pacing would’ve made the story hit harder. There were a lot of tender moments, and I found myself rooting for Geordie—the Scottish lad with a soft heart and blonde curls—who really just wants to show Jenna what love can look like.

The premise for this book was brilliant. It’s a dual POV small town story of Jenna, a 34 year old who’s recently lost her mum to cancer and was jilted by her fiancé just 2 weeks before the wedding. She returned home to support her dad at home and with rugby-related PR nightmares. She crosses paths with Geordie, a guy who’s 6 years younger and her best friend’s younger brother she grew up with. He’s now back in town and playing on her dad’s rugby team.

It was good and one I’d recommend to anyone who enjoyed the sports romance element of The Boys of Tommen series, but it’s probably not one I’d rush to pick up again.

This felt a lot like The Boys of Tommen meets The Flight & Glory series, just with slightly less umph.

It was refreshing to read a rugby romance with mature MCs, and especially one at local league level rather than professional. The author did put a breakdown of rugby and the key terms at the start of the book for anyone who hasn’t any idea about the game, but there was only maybe 2 brief scenes where you needed to know anything about rugby to have a scooby what was going on. For the most part it’s very vague.

There’s not a whole lot of dialogue in this one, just internal monologues worrying about their past and how their futures will be affected. I feel like it could have maybe been more engaging had there been more dialogue so we could feel the relationships between the characters a bit more. It does also have an element of suspense to it, but only maybe a 2/5. It’s enough to make you ponder what’s happening next but not enough to make you gasp.

There are some triggers in this book which I’ll list below. It handles some difficult topics which possibly could have been explored further to elicit more of an emotional connection with the reader, but it was still a welcome change having depth to a plot rather than keeping it light and fluffy.

• death (off page)
• parental death (off page)
• parental illness
• cancer
• bereavement

I was hooked from the first chapter.
Jenna is strong and independent, and recently moved home to the small town that holds fond memories and a lot of grief.
Geordie recently moved home, after wanting to escape the town he grew up in, but wanted to be closer to his mother.
This reverse age gap romance will make your heart melt. I loved watching the characters figure out their future looked like, both of them not having planned to stay long before moving away again. Jenna was Geordie's sister's best friend growing up, which added to the conflict.
Geordie is also being coached by Jenna's dad in the local rugby team and had been sworn off by the coach's daughter.
I loved the details about how the social side of the rugby fuelled their budding romance. The details about the game itself also made me giddy as a rugby girl.
I loved this book, Geordie had me melting at points and kicking my legs and screaming. At other points, I wanted to strangle Jenna, but I could see where she was coming from.

I’m a sucker for a good sports romance! I haven’t read a Rugby book until this one, and I love the Scottish feel! I enjoyed the romance relationship, and how the characters developed the relationship with their sizzling chemistry. There was also such good tropes in this one:
Friends to lovers
Reverse age gap
Small town romance
Forbidden romance
What I didn’t love was the miscommunication, that’s just a personal issue though! Also it felt very slow paced, especially in the first third of the book. I had a hard time getting into it, and some of the inner dialogue or side conversations confused me quite a bit at first! But still a fun cute read!

Thank you net galley, Greneyvern Publishing, and Caroline Corvin for the ARC read!

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC. This was such a cute story. Geordie was just in love from the beginning but it was nice to see the journey of the 2 of them together.

If you like best friends brother, sports romance, forbidden romance and age gap this book is for you!

I was not expecting what happened towards the end of the book and it left me heartbroken.

I also loved in the end how Geordie honored what she wanted and did something so touching for her. They deserve happily ever after.

Her best friend brother and a coaches daughter
Geordie is has just returned to town after his mum is in hospital. Jenna is back in town after her mum dies. I loved the dyslexic representation in this book. If you enjoy sports romances you will enjoy this books.
Thank you to the publisher for allowing me to read this book

Such a cute read, loved the cover for this book!
Haven't read a book with the sport being rugby. I will definitely be reading the other books in the series when they come out. Love the characters and the fact she was older than him.
Thanks Netgalley for letting me read this book for an honest review

I really liked how at the start of the book there was a playlist, cute dedication, and info explaining the basics of rugby as well as the jersey numbers, positions, and names of the players. I thought it was a cute touch and helped me at least because I know nothing about rugby other than that they don’t really wear any protective gear. I found it so cute that they were both secretly so into each other but scared to say something. I don’t know why but they’re like grown adults that are just scared of getting hurt and losing the other. The spice scenes are so good. I don’t think they’re super spicy personally but they are still really good. I thought the sneaking around was so funny because they are literally both full grown adults like she is 34 and he’s 28 why are you all sneaking around like teenagers? Also the whole book was them liking each other and being too scared to tell the other person. Which was frustrating because I hate miscommunication so much but I loved the Geordie and Jenna so I could deal with it for this book. Overall I really enjoyed Geordie and Jenna's story and the ending was super cute as well.

Just finished my ARC of Blindsided by You and I’m OBSESSED. As a Scottish girlie, I absolutely loved the Scottish nods—especially the GBX mention (iconic! Thank you so much to Caroline Corvin for the ARC, I ate this up in less than 24 hours!
This story follows rugby coaches daughter Jenna and best friends brother Geordie on their journey as they go from forbidden romance to deliciously obsessed 🩷
With a reverse age gap and plenty of banter this was such an easy read for me.
I also really appreciated the rugby explanations at the start of the book, this really helped understand the storyline better.
Oh and the spice was on point too 🌶👌

Follow me on TikTok for more 🫶 Laced in Lit...

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Blindsided by You by Caroline Corvin. Geordie and Jenna and just adorable together. Geordie is a rugby player, in a local rugby club. Jenna is his older sisters childhood best friend, and the coaches daughter. What starts with cute flirting and winks turns into a secret relationship that I loved!

3.5 ⭐️
I really enjoyed this book! It was such an easy, fun little read. I loved the characters and their stories and the story towards the end had me hooked! I wish it was slightly more indepth in certian parts but other than that it was great. I also enjoyed the reverse age gap as you don't always see that in books. Really fun read. Would definitley recomend 🙂

Ever since I read boys of Tommen I was looking for a good rugby romance. This one does a good job at fitting the bill, and I just adored the main characters! Not to mention the cover art is just sooooo cute!!!!

This will be cute with a little more editing! Absolutely loved the addition of the rugby guide for us newbies. I love the family vibes and the banter. Downsides: pacing was extremely slow in the beginning and there wasn’t a lot to really captivate the reader in the first 25-30%. Miscommunication is my least favorite trope as well.

“This could become the stuff of a different type of retelling—the day I hooked up with your mother; kids, that's where it started. Crazy thoughts.”

Adding Geordie to my list of golden retriever MMC’s.

Jenna (34), living in her hometown again after her mom’s passing six months ago. She’s taken leave from her PR job at a professional rugby team — the same one her rugby hero of a father was coaching and came back to her small hometown, Claunie Scotland.

Geordie (28), living in his parents house for the first time in eight years, but he needs to find a new place for meeting up with his older sisters best friend. He’s been travelling the world working at oil rigs both on land and off coast, but now he’s home, working as an electrician and playing rugby again.
This was a first of many for me! My first ARC, first rugby book and first time I actually listened to the playlist for the book. This was such a cute, easy read and prefect pallet cleanser. I cant wait to see which side characters will have their books next in the series.
Forbidden Romance ✅
Coaches Daughter ✅
Black Cat x Golden Retriever ✅
She’s Older ✅

This was a fun sports romance featuring rugby- the first I’ve read. I loved Jenna and Geordie- they had the most amazing chemistry and a forbidden romance always makes it a more fun. Both returned back to their small town Claunie, which is at the edge of highlands in Scotland. Geordie to play and Jenna to launch her own PR business. I enjoyed their banter, the Scottish setting and the side characters, especially Skylar and Andy the grumpy dog. A good mix of romance and some more serious topics. I enjoyed the extra touches such as the cute dedication, playlist and Rugby positions and numbers and team players. Perfect for those who enjoy sport romance, small town, forbidden romance, reverse age gap and a little bit of miscommunication.

📚Blindsided By Yo📚
Arc review
Rating 3.5/4🌟
Release date: 3rd June 2025
I was so happy to be accepted to read this book before it came out
I loved this book and loved their relationship, but kinda wish they would've gotten out of their FWB relationship earlier
Loved how only Geordie could go near Jenna, and none of the other guys on the team could🤣
The ending was so cute but sad aswell 😢 😍

Set against the breathtaking backdrop of Scotland, this story follows Jenna and Geordie—childhood acquaintances who find themselves drawn back to their hometown. Sparks fly quickly, but ghosts from the past and challenges in the present threaten to pull them apart. This is a forbidden romance, brimming with passion and genuine tenderness. What truly stood out to me was the thoughtful representation of dyslexia and chronic migraines. These aspects were not just surface details—they added authentic depth to the characters and made the story feel even more grounded and human. Thank you to NetGalley for providing this advanced copy—I was completely swept away.

This was a great book! It has so much depth to the story and I really felt for the Main characters in this story! Highly recommend!