TWO CAN PLAY THAT GAME

An athlete and a social media influencer share concrete reasons for starting their fake relationship. Neither has a good reason to end it.

Sapphic sports fans are overdue for a WNBA romance and this propulsive story doesn’t disappoint. When an errant basketball hits sex-positive influencer Chelsea Evans, sitting courtside and bored at a New York Rebels game, it’s retrieved by Adrienne “AD” Daniels, a striking 6-foot-4 player. They flash Chelsea an irresistible smile and the two wind up at AD’s house for a hot hookup. Chelsea knows the score—including AD’s reputation as a player both on and off the court—but figures the encounter will be fodder for her social media, without disclosing AD’s identity, of course. Unfortunately, someone posts a photo of the two together, which gives AD’s manager an idea. A stable relationship would make AD, a nonbinary lesbian, more attractive to sponsors. For Chelsea, the WNBA affiliation would allow her to diversify her content and juice her follower count. For both, companionship and hot sex are incidental benefits. The relationship is fun but still fake and set to expire at the end of the season. But when AD is injured during a game, Chelsea begins to realize the depth of her feelings. This novel contains so much good queer, Black, nonbinary, and polyamorous representation. The secondary characters are funny, sweet, and multidimensional enough to hold the potential for several spin-off books. More importantly, this romance is nearly impossible to put down.

Like the best relationships, this book is light on conflict and heavy on communication and spice.