Hotshot is my favorite of Clare Lydon’s books that I’ve read, although it’s not without its flaws. Sloane, an American soccer star in a troubled engagement and a strained relationship with her parents, joins up with a UK football team for a year to get some space from her life. She runs into Ella, a former player turned lifestyle coach, on their first day. Lydon spends quite a bit of time building up their friendship and attraction, and when Sloane’s engagement ends they move into their own relationship in a natural way.

Along the way Sloane meets some extended family she has living nearby, and we get to know some of the other players and coaches. This adds some nice dimension to the story and gives Sloane and Ella both a bit more depth by extension.

Sloane is so intent on protecting Ella’s privacy and keeping her old and new lives separate that she ends up lying to her by omission. When it comes out there’s the inevitable breakup that’s part of Lydon’s formula, but for me that’s where the flaw in this book really is. Ella, whose literal job is to get players to open up and talk about things, who up until this point has been all about communication, cuts Sloane off completely. She refuses to talk or listen to her at all, causing tension and strife, which is extremely uncharacteristic of her and just…doesn’t make sense.

My issues with that aside, things resolve themselves as they always do, and overall this is a very enjoyable read.