Scan barcode
dododenise's review
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
This was a lot of fun! The perfect lighthearted read for the summer.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fatphobia, Alcohol, Body shaming, Bullying, and Homophobia
Minor: Sexual content, Abandonment, and Mental illness
nitzanschwarz's review
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
C- 70% | Somewhat Satisfactory
To be completely honest, this book was a big disappointment for me. I probably expected too much, because keywords like sports and LGBTQ representation immediately get me thinking of The Foxhole Court and that’s one comparison that will likely almost always lead to disappointment, as The Foxhole Court is one of my all-time favorite series.
But either way, I didn’t get what I wanted to get from this book. Instead, I got a whole lot of “meh” for the first half of the book, then some satisfying cute, and then a little bit more of “hmm” towards the end.
Plot – 16/20
So, there were a lot of things I liked the idea of in this novel. I super like the setting of a soccer team where the coach makes it a point that everyone is welcomed, regardless of their sexual, religious, or gender identity. I even really liked how that wasn’t taken for granted because unfortunately, as a society, we’re not there yet. And the characters did feel like one messy team, so that worked. But honestly, for a book that is set in a summer soccer camp, there wasn’t enough soccer. I would’ve liked a few more scenes on the court, or surrounding the court, but maybe that’s just me.
I liked that the story focused on Sebastian’s uncertainty and unease at the prospect of what happens after graduation. Like, that shit is scary, especially for a kid who lives and breathes soccer but is filled with insecurities about himself and his position, and his capabilities. Up until graduation, everything is set for you. But after graduation, you have to start making choices for yourself and by yourself. A lot of YA books kind of gloss over that prospect. I was not, however, a huge fan of how his issues were solved. Mostly because it felt like it just… it became a nonissue, and a lot happened off page.
My favorite part of the plot was neither the sports, the team, nor the romance. It was Sebastian’s body dysmorphia, which was an unexpected element of the novel that I would’ve wanted to see more of. Sebastian is this hotshot goalie, right? Up for being captain, popular, talented… from the outside, you’d expect this guy to be full of confidence. But he is not—he’s super self-conscious, unhappy with his body, and has echoes of mean taunts from his childhood ringing in his ears whenever he looks in the mirror. His body-image issues really resonated with me. I just wishit didn’t become kind of a nonissue after Emir spoke words of encouragement to Sebastian. To Winters’ credit, he did mention Sebastian had to go to counseling after, but that happened off-page and was more of a throwaway comment in my opinion. Before Emir spoke to him, Sebastian’s body issues would pop up every few chapters, and after, they weren’t there. That felt like a missed opportunity to me, since I’m sure a lot of people in the same situation would’ve benefited more from being told they shouldn’t expect to get better with just a few kind words.
Overall, I admit I could’ve done less with the focus on the relationship. I wanted more Sebastian and his friends being themselves; more of the sport and the game and their love for it; more of dealing with his insecurities and anxiety. And less waxing on how beautiful Emir is and how enticing his lips are. I’m sure they’re great, fantastic lips. But still. Maybe if I had connected with the relationship more, I would’ve felt differently.
I think a good way to describe my feelings about the plot is that it’s an amalgamation of things I liked that didn’t quite stick the landing.
Characters –16/20
Honestly, I am super torn about this section. For the first half of the story, I didn’t really like anyone. They were all kinda assholes, and the way they ran hot and cold gave me whiplash. I know constant mood swings are sort of the trademarks of teenagers, but this felt very exaggerated. Maybe it’s because my friends and I were never this type of teens, so I find it harder to relate to and understand it.
In addition, they were just… so many names?? I had a very hard time keeping track of who was who, and it didn’t help that it felt like every second person introduced had some kind of messed up family background that helped to “explain” their douchery. Around the third “tragic” backstory I started wondering if I may be mistaking multiple tragic backstories for one tragic backstory mentioned several times, and I am still unsure of the answer (although to be fair, I am certain there are at least two distinct ones). It was just so hard to keep track of these kids! Especially when the characters would alternate between surnames, nicknames, and good old-fashioned names. Like, not only does it feel like there are a bazillion kids walking around this camp, but I also had to keep remembering that Mason, Mace, Riley, and O’Riley are the same character. I think.
That being said, despite my confusion and how I initially found many of them unlikeable, they did feel like three-dimensional characters, with their flaws and advantages showcased throughout. For example, Sebastian is compassionate and always looks out for everyone, but he also spends way too much time in his own head, second-guessing and berating himself. Mason is kind of an asshole to so many people in this story—Grey, especially—but his one redeeming feature is that he is a great friend to Sebastian, and once he sees how important Emir is to Sebastian, he eases off. Emir is… gosh, I don’t know what Emir is. Angry? Sullen? Extremely sensitive? Half the time I didn’t get what has just set him off and made him raise his walls all over again. I get it’s the crippling shyness, but I was a cripplingly shy teenager, and I didn’t talk to anyone either. I didn’t need to glower at them to stay away, most kids… if you don’t respond, they go away. But I was also impressed with Emir’s tenacity and perseverance and how he was at ease with who he was. At his age, I let my discomfort with conversations stop me from doing so many things, but he pushes through despite it. Zach can be an asshole, but he’s also super supportive of his bros and to be honest, gives some fair advice!
I started warming up to these characters around the halfway mark. I guess they grew on me at a certain point, probably around when they started being more consistent with their mood swings... The only two characters I loved from the get-go were Willie and Hunter. Those two were fabulous, and definitely the least ass-holey of the bunch.
Relationships –16/20
I’m going to talk first about the major romantic relationship of this story, Emir and Sebastian, and then discuss the relationship I wish the story was about, as well as the friendships in this book, which really saved it for me.
You know, while I don’t have Tik Tok, I heard a post floating around about literary couples you think would break up. I think Emir and Sebastian would. These two don’t really communicate. They’re either high off each other, or they’re glaring at each other for no reason. It never felt like they discussed their issues, their triggers, or anything. They’re all hormones and adrenaline and I just—I don’t know if that’s enough?
Like, the book does one of my most hated shortcuts – it tells you Sebastian and Emir have this shared past and apparently their attraction and feelings are a result of that past. But we, the audience, are barely privy to any of it. What we see is a teen who keeps glaring at others and pushes them away, and a teen who constantly tries to push through. Sebastian, himself, keeps wondering when “asshole” Emir will pop up… and so did I. I don’t understand why Bastian and Emi love each other, except they’re a ball of hormones that rages out of control whenever they’re together. Their scenes had a lot of lip-staring, “embarrassing” physical reactions, and feeling like a hero for making the other one smile. And yeah, it was cute, and on occasions, I felt butterflies. But… where’s the deeper element of it? How about you discuss Emir’s strength in the face of oppression and ridicule? His tenacity? His overwhelming love for his father? Etc. I wanted more substance. I wanted the attraction to feel more than physical. I wouldn’t mind entire flashback scenes of their childhood if it would help me understand better why these two are magnetized to one another. Physical attraction is important, and it’s great, but I just… I wanted more
Do you know which couple I would’ve wanted a lot more of? WILLIE AND HUNTER. Y’all, these two grabbed my heart from the first description of Hunter leaning into Willie. There were so many small movements of how these two orbited around each other and gravitated toward each other and I would have loved to read more about their relationship. It felt like they were a safe space for each other and I just—that’s my favorite dynamic.
A couple I don’t support is Grey and Mason. If Winters wants to convince me these two should be together, he got to do some serious work. Mason should chase her for a couple of years till she finally puts him out of his misery because he was so mean to her for no reason, and then the admission helikes her just came out of nowhere.
I think it’s the friendships in this novel that really shined and saved it. It’s definitely heartwarming to watch a bunch of testosterone-fueled teenagers be there for each other, through thick and thin, and support each other through confusion and anxiety, even if their form of “being there” is tackling you to the ground. Winters set out to build a family of these guys, and I think he succeeded.
writing –12/20
For me, the writing felt chopped, stiff, and a bit awkward at times. Especially for the first couple of chapters, I had to re-read certain sentences a few times because something about it felt off. Winters’ writing will likely improve as he writes more books, and smoothen up naturally.
Aside from that, the writing is not terribly unique. That’s not a bad thing; it does its job to bring forth Sebastian’s feelings and confusion, and that’s really all I ask for at the end of the day. But if you’re looking for something poetic or lyrical (which, why would you, with a YA story about sports and antsy teens dealing with developing feelings and growing up?), pick another book.
Reading Experience –10/20
It was a rollercoaster from start to finish. Not because of the story, but because I kept going from enjoyment to meh to enjoyment to MEH. The first half of the book was downright tedious to read and took up most of my reading time. And then the characters kind of settled down and I could enjoy it more, and then I flew through a chunk. But then we reached another hitch, and I kept looking at the page number being like “how was that just five pages” and “good lord I have 40 more pages of this. I got to push through”
So, yeah. Relationship status: #It’sComplicated
Final Score:70
To be completely honest, this book was a big disappointment for me. I probably expected too much, because keywords like sports and LGBTQ representation immediately get me thinking of The Foxhole Court and that’s one comparison that will likely almost always lead to disappointment, as The Foxhole Court is one of my all-time favorite series.
But either way, I didn’t get what I wanted to get from this book. Instead, I got a whole lot of “meh” for the first half of the book, then some satisfying cute, and then a little bit more of “hmm” towards the end.
Plot – 16/20
So, there were a lot of things I liked the idea of in this novel. I super like the setting of a soccer team where the coach makes it a point that everyone is welcomed, regardless of their sexual, religious, or gender identity. I even really liked how that wasn’t taken for granted because unfortunately, as a society, we’re not there yet. And the characters did feel like one messy team, so that worked. But honestly, for a book that is set in a summer soccer camp, there wasn’t enough soccer. I would’ve liked a few more scenes on the court, or surrounding the court, but maybe that’s just me.
I liked that the story focused on Sebastian’s uncertainty and unease at the prospect of what happens after graduation. Like, that shit is scary, especially for a kid who lives and breathes soccer but is filled with insecurities about himself and his position, and his capabilities. Up until graduation, everything is set for you. But after graduation, you have to start making choices for yourself and by yourself. A lot of YA books kind of gloss over that prospect. I was not, however, a huge fan of how his issues were solved.
My favorite part of the plot was neither the sports, the team, nor the romance. It was Sebastian’s body dysmorphia, which was an unexpected element of the novel that I would’ve wanted to see more of. Sebastian is this hotshot goalie, right? Up for being captain, popular, talented… from the outside, you’d expect this guy to be full of confidence. But he is not—he’s super self-conscious, unhappy with his body, and has echoes of mean taunts from his childhood ringing in his ears whenever he looks in the mirror. His body-image issues really resonated with me. I just wish
Overall, I admit I could’ve done less with the focus on the relationship. I wanted more Sebastian and his friends being themselves; more of the sport and the game and their love for it; more of dealing with his insecurities and anxiety. And less waxing on how beautiful Emir is and how enticing his lips are. I’m sure they’re great, fantastic lips. But still. Maybe if I had connected with the relationship more, I would’ve felt differently.
I think a good way to describe my feelings about the plot is that it’s an amalgamation of things I liked that didn’t quite stick the landing.
Characters –16/20
Honestly, I am super torn about this section. For the first half of the story, I didn’t really like anyone. They were all kinda assholes, and the way they ran hot and cold gave me whiplash. I know constant mood swings are sort of the trademarks of teenagers, but this felt very exaggerated. Maybe it’s because my friends and I were never this type of teens, so I find it harder to relate to and understand it.
In addition, they were just… so many names?? I had a very hard time keeping track of who was who, and it didn’t help that it felt like every second person introduced had some kind of messed up family background that helped to “explain” their douchery. Around the third “tragic” backstory I started wondering if I may be mistaking multiple tragic backstories for one tragic backstory mentioned several times, and I am still unsure of the answer (although to be fair, I am certain there are at least two distinct ones). It was just so hard to keep track of these kids! Especially when the characters would alternate between surnames, nicknames, and good old-fashioned names. Like, not only does it feel like there are a bazillion kids walking around this camp, but I also had to keep remembering that Mason, Mace, Riley, and O’Riley are the same character. I think.
That being said, despite my confusion and how I initially found many of them unlikeable, they did feel like three-dimensional characters, with their flaws and advantages showcased throughout. For example, Sebastian is compassionate and always looks out for everyone, but he also spends way too much time in his own head, second-guessing and berating himself. Mason is kind of an asshole to so many people in this story—Grey, especially—but his one redeeming feature is that he is a great friend to Sebastian, and once he sees how important Emir is to Sebastian, he eases off. Emir is… gosh, I don’t know what Emir is. Angry? Sullen? Extremely sensitive? Half the time I didn’t get what has just set him off and made him raise his walls all over again. I get it’s the crippling shyness, but I was a cripplingly shy teenager, and I didn’t talk to anyone either. I didn’t need to glower at them to stay away, most kids… if you don’t respond, they go away. But I was also impressed with Emir’s tenacity and perseverance and how he was at ease with who he was. At his age, I let my discomfort with conversations stop me from doing so many things, but he pushes through despite it. Zach can be an asshole, but he’s also super supportive of his bros and to be honest, gives some fair advice!
I started warming up to these characters around the halfway mark. I guess they grew on me at a certain point, probably around when they started being more consistent with their mood swings... The only two characters I loved from the get-go were Willie and Hunter. Those two were fabulous, and definitely the least ass-holey of the bunch.
Relationships –16/20
I’m going to talk first about the major romantic relationship of this story, Emir and Sebastian, and then discuss the relationship I wish the story was about, as well as the friendships in this book, which really saved it for me.
You know, while I don’t have Tik Tok, I heard a post floating around about literary couples you think would break up. I think Emir and Sebastian would. These two don’t really communicate. They’re either high off each other, or they’re glaring at each other for no reason. It never felt like they discussed their issues, their triggers, or anything. They’re all hormones and adrenaline and I just—I don’t know if that’s enough?
Like, the book does one of my most hated shortcuts – it tells you Sebastian and Emir have this shared past and apparently their attraction and feelings are a result of that past. But we, the audience, are barely privy to any of it. What we see is a teen who keeps glaring at others and pushes them away, and a teen who constantly tries to push through. Sebastian, himself, keeps wondering when “asshole” Emir will pop up… and so did I. I don’t understand why Bastian and Emi love each other, except they’re a ball of hormones that rages out of control whenever they’re together. Their scenes had a lot of lip-staring, “embarrassing” physical reactions, and feeling like a hero for making the other one smile. And yeah, it was cute, and on occasions, I felt butterflies. But… where’s the deeper element of it? How about you discuss Emir’s strength in the face of oppression and ridicule? His tenacity? His overwhelming love for his father? Etc. I wanted more substance. I wanted the attraction to feel more than physical. I wouldn’t mind entire flashback scenes of their childhood if it would help me understand better why these two are magnetized to one another. Physical attraction is important, and it’s great, but I just… I wanted more
Do you know which couple I would’ve wanted a lot more of? WILLIE AND HUNTER. Y’all, these two grabbed my heart from the first description of Hunter leaning into Willie. There were so many small movements of how these two orbited around each other and gravitated toward each other and I would have loved to read more about their relationship. It felt like they were a safe space for each other and I just—that’s my favorite dynamic.
A couple I don’t support is Grey and Mason. If Winters wants to convince me these two should be together, he got to do some serious work. Mason should chase her for a couple of years till she finally puts him out of his misery because he was so mean to her for no reason, and then the admission he
I think it’s the friendships in this novel that really shined and saved it. It’s definitely heartwarming to watch a bunch of testosterone-fueled teenagers be there for each other, through thick and thin, and support each other through confusion and anxiety, even if their form of “being there” is tackling you to the ground. Winters set out to build a family of these guys, and I think he succeeded.
writing –12/20
For me, the writing felt chopped, stiff, and a bit awkward at times. Especially for the first couple of chapters, I had to re-read certain sentences a few times because something about it felt off. Winters’ writing will likely improve as he writes more books, and smoothen up naturally.
Aside from that, the writing is not terribly unique. That’s not a bad thing; it does its job to bring forth Sebastian’s feelings and confusion, and that’s really all I ask for at the end of the day. But if you’re looking for something poetic or lyrical (which, why would you, with a YA story about sports and antsy teens dealing with developing feelings and growing up?), pick another book.
Reading Experience –10/20
It was a rollercoaster from start to finish. Not because of the story, but because I kept going from enjoyment to meh to enjoyment to MEH. The first half of the book was downright tedious to read and took up most of my reading time. And then the characters kind of settled down and I could enjoy it more, and then I flew through a chunk. But then we reached another hitch, and I kept looking at the page number being like “how was that just five pages” and “good lord I have 40 more pages of this. I got to push through”
So, yeah. Relationship status: #It’sComplicated
Final Score:70
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
blupies's review
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I think this book is kind of average. I’d recommend it if you’re looking for uplifting themes about coming of age and some fun sports goofiness but I do have some criticisms.
There were so many characters (I assume to make it seem like there’s actually a full team) but the issue with having so many characters is that I couldn’t keep track of who is who. A lot of them could have been merged into one character or been cut completely. The ones that I could keep track of had one or two ‘signature’ traits and that’s it.
The way the only female character is portrayed is very ‘not like other girls’ and the way she is treat by the guys reeks of misogyny, especially considering her signature trait is chasing after Mason, who treats her like shit throughout the entire book and it’s kind of just played off as a “Oh he’s mean because he likes you” thing at the end (YIKES!). He’s mean to everyone and it’s kind of just “Oh that’s just how Mason is, he’s just an asshole to everyone” as if that’s not a huge red flag. I mean the guy sees his ex girlfriend and Sebastian talking and being happy after their breakup and almost implodes on the spot.
The way mental health is treat in this book seems very shallow to me, as if it’s thrown in as an afterthought. Some ambiguity can be good but I don’t think it’s beneficial in this book. The hints are subtle and it ultimately builds up to Emir going “Don’t worry, everyone is imperfect” and suddenly Sebastian’s body image issues are cured because they’re never mentioned again after that.
We get a pretty sweet scene between Coach Patrick and Sebastian at the end (Why were there three coaches, very easily could have all been made into one character.) Overall I like it but we get some really random backstory that, had it been sprinkled in throughout the whole book, would have been fine but because it’s all half explained in a matter of pages I was left wondering if I’d missed something and questioning what had actually happened to Xander. It was also told as if whatever happened happened a few years ago, before Sebastian was on the team or before Coach Patrick was their coach but it seems like Xander is a similar age to Sebastian, if not younger. I don’t know it just felt weird and info dumpy
There were so many characters (I assume to make it seem like there’s actually a full team) but the issue with having so many characters is that I couldn’t keep track of who is who. A lot of them could have been merged into one character or been cut completely. The ones that I could keep track of had one or two ‘signature’ traits and that’s it.
The way the only female character is portrayed is very ‘not like other girls’ and the way she is treat by the guys reeks of misogyny, especially considering her signature trait is chasing after Mason, who treats her like shit throughout the entire book and it’s kind of just played off as a “Oh he’s mean because he likes you” thing at the end (YIKES!). He’s mean to everyone and it’s kind of just “Oh that’s just how Mason is, he’s just an asshole to everyone” as if that’s not a huge red flag. I mean the guy sees his ex girlfriend and Sebastian talking and being happy after their breakup and almost implodes on the spot.
The way mental health is treat in this book seems very shallow to me, as if it’s thrown in as an afterthought. Some ambiguity can be good but I don’t think it’s beneficial in this book. The hints are subtle and it ultimately builds up to Emir going “Don’t worry, everyone is imperfect” and suddenly Sebastian’s body image issues are cured because they’re never mentioned again after that.
We get a pretty sweet scene between Coach Patrick and Sebastian at the end (Why were there three coaches, very easily could have all been made into one character.) Overall I like it but we get some really random backstory that, had it been sprinkled in throughout the whole book, would have been fine but because it’s all half explained in a matter of pages I was left wondering if I’d missed something and questioning what had actually happened to Xander. It was also told as if whatever happened happened a few years ago, before Sebastian was on the team or before Coach Patrick was their coach but it seems like Xander is a similar age to Sebastian, if not younger. I don’t know it just felt weird and info dumpy
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying and Homophobia
Moderate: Islamophobia and Sexual content
Minor: Mental illness, Cursing, and Racism
freckled_frog_boi's review
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This book was - eh - alright.
It was a great book idea - with gay and bi rep, a Muslim Pakistani-British love interest, poc characters, and a few convos abt male body image - but overall, the writing reminds me of bad fanfic.
It was very character-driven, which was weird cuz the character development really sucked. The deep realizations were not new to the characters and were super basic.
Many side characters fit into stereotypes like poetic gay, mean asshole friend, meaner bully, rude teammates, The Hispanic Dude (literally 99% of his lines are just cursing in Spanish) - and the only girl is a pick-me. Please make the characters well-rounded if you were to write a book detailing the intricacies of a soccer team's inner relationships. It makes for a crappy story otherwise.
Many side characters fit into stereotypes like poetic gay, mean asshole friend, meaner bully, rude teammates, The Hispanic Dude (literally 99% of his lines are just cursing in Spanish) - and the only girl is a pick-me. Please make the characters well-rounded if you were to write a book detailing the intricacies of a soccer team's inner relationships. It makes for a crappy story otherwise.
A lot of the writing is disjointed (we never hear why he calls his mom by her first name, for one teeny tiny example - no spoilers). Nothing is truly explained - there's an argument at the end between two teams, and it's never explained why the fuck that happened, and nothing is impacted by that happening; it's just there. So I'll be honest, the humor feels like it’s slapped in and just isn’t funny. (~"someone should make a hashtag about how math sucks"~ ??)
The romance seems very sex-appeal-based, and the chemistry just doesn't seem to be there. Instead of being made to feel like they are definitely in love, we are just told that they are. I wasn’t rooting for them, really. I guess it felt more like a hook-up than a potential long-term relationship. I also think it's weird to have the MC focus on the fact that the love interest was so small and cute when he’s a grown dude. Felt a bit fetish-y to me, idk.
My best advice is if you want an amazing gay-sports book, read The Foxhole Court. (honestly this feels like a fanfic based off of it tbh, you won't miss anything) <3
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Sexual content, Islamophobia, Sexism, Misogyny, Fatphobia, Homophobia, and Vomit
Minor: Religious bigotry and Panic attacks/disorders
darkmattersoybean's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Racism, and Cursing
Moderate: Sexual content, Violence, Fatphobia, and Mental illness
Minor: Medical content and Death
More...