Thank you NetGalley and Bold Stroke Books for the advanced review copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Sapphic soccer story. It’s a book I didn’t know I needed until I stumbled upon it by accident on NetGalley. I’m not even a sports person, but I love sports romances. It’s odd.

Kenzie is drafted to the Hurricanes. Her crush, Sutton, is team captain. There’s instant attraction, but Sutton has a girlfriend. She also seems to date people for like a soccer season and then end the relationship. Kenzie doesn’t want to break up a relationship or be the other person so she isn’t going to pursue Sutton despite the mutual feelings. They just don’t get together immediately after the reveal either, which is refreshing because it shows them as mature people assessing their feelings before just diving into a relationship.

There’s a lot of soccer stuff talked about, but it doesn’t detract from the story. This is probably a plus for someone who likes the sport... I don’t so it was just kind of whatever to me.

Trigger warning for sexual assault in the book. I hate how it was just like skimmed over, I think it could have made an even stronger story by going in depth and empowering the character it involves to face what happened to her. As a survivor myself, I think it should be addressed better in books, including links to resources for people who need them because of that situation.

The relationship is fantastic. Kenzie is so likable the entire story, and Sutton gets better as the story moves along. I think anyone who has had a celebrity crush will love this story because it’s what you always wanted to happen to you so it’s a little of vicariously living through the characters as well. And the sex scenes are great. Always love good ones of those in a book.

All in all, an awesome book and definitely a must if you love sports romance.

Kenzie Shaw is a rookie player for the New Jersey Hurricanes and her team captain is her long time crush and hero, Sutton Flores. A friendship develops, and despite problems, including one major one, their relationship intensifies.

I'm not a big sports fan but I had no trouble understanding the game descriptions and references, so if you're as sports challenged as I am, don't let that stop you from reading this one!

I love a slow burn romance. There's no rushing into a relationship or sex, just a nice build up from friends to lovers. I also found the interactions between team members to be fun. Snarky, sarcastic banter is my jam.

The characters were interesting and likable, and the book was nicely paced and plotted.

Be forewarned that there is a sexual harassment portion to this story, but not a major part of the storyline.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bold Strokes Books for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Kenzie Shaw is a rookie in women's major league soccer. Drafted by the New Jersey Hurricanes, she's relieved because it's her home state. But now, she has to figure out how to play alongside her idol and the woman she's crushed on for years., Sutton Flores.

Top of Her Game revolves around Kenzie and Sutton's relationship which unfortunately, feel a little flat for me. I kept waiting to really feel the chemistry between them, but I never got it. Sutton was described as a player and I never got to the point where I felt like she was ready to settle down for Kenzie. On the other side, with Kenzie idolizing her for so long, I'm not entirely sure I ever got past the point when I thought that she was no longer doing that.

That said, it was clear that they did care about one another deeply. They did want the best for one another and were incredibly respectful. That's what I really loved. How respectful they were of what another and what they needed.

Now, the little twist with the sexual harassment was... I don't want to say disappointing because it is an important subject to talk about and bring up especially in sports, but it was. It came in late in the book which left me feeling like the resolution to it had been rushed and speed through. It didn't give me that satisfying conclusion to the ordeal.

Overall, this was a good book. The romance (aside from the issues I mentioned) did have it cute and wonderful moments. The soccer scenes were written well and were easy to imagine.

I'm a fan of Ullrich's books  but this one just didn't hit the mark for me.  Full disclosure - I'm not a sports fan and all I know about soccer is limited to watching a few of the finals during the Olympics.  I will admit it's fascinating to watch when the stakes are so high - but it isn't something I'll consciously make time to tune in.  So the setting and premise didn't suck me in - and that allowed the left side of my brain to go to town, being picky and analytical not allowing the right side of my brain to sink into the story and enjoy.

Kenzie Shaw, a talented and skilled rookie, is drafted into the Hurricanes, New Jersey's women's professional soccer team.   Not only does she get to play for her hometown, she gets to play with her favourite player and long time crush, Sutton Flores.  Sutton,  seasoned soccer player who is also a member of the National team and an Olympic medalist, is also a seasoned player when it comes to relationships.  There's a connection between the two that builds - with Kenzie's crush developing into more as she gets to know Sutton as a person not a hero.

The game scenes were action-packed and amped up and gets your blood pumping - even as a non-sports fan, I could appreciate the thrill of the plays, the skill of the players and I was cheering the Hurricane's as they pounded down the pitch against their opponents.   There's a nice realism in the games and in the development of Kenzie as she transitions from college superstar to a professional league as well as Sutton's trying to find her place as the Captain.

I think the thing that kept me from enjoying the romance was the juxtaposition between the two characters.  Although Kenzie has graduated from college, she just seemed so very young and the transition from her girlhood crush on Sutton to an actual relationship just didn't work for me - I still got the impression that the infatuation and hero worship was still there.  I will give her props on insistence that she wouldn't entertain a relationship with Sutton until she was single and for moving the relationship forward at a pace she was comfortable with - so she wasn't a pushover. As for Sutton,  I couldn't seem to come to terms with the idea that something was different with Kenzie, not that Sutton was intentionally leading her on, but her "rookie of the year" tradition made me not so sure that Sutton really was just in love with being in love (as her friend intimated) or the thrill of the chase.    There was definitely chemistry between the two, I just wasn't a hundred percent sold that this wasn't going to end up being a fling.

I didn't read the blurb, so the harassment that occurs in the latter half of the book caught me by surprise. Things could have been set up a bit earlier in the book for what happens - especially with the management's involvement.  I applaud Ullrich for addressing it and showing how easily something like this can happen and the impacts on those affected.  The conflict and decisions (Sutton's) that spun out from it just felt a bit too contrived and overshadowed the the actual incident and we don't really get a solid resolution to it.

If you are a soccer fan, this will likely hit all the right notes for you.  Ullrich is a great writer and, even as a non-sports person, I got sucked into the energy and suspense during the game play.    This is a good read, my left brain just got in the way.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with an eARC of this book!

This was the fluffy (though not always fluffy) sapphic romance I needed. I was cheesing hard throughout reading this book and I loved it. I mean obviously we all watched the Women's World Cup this summer and Megan Rapinoe did some amazing things for women everywhere and it is my humble opinion that Sutton Flores is inspired by her. What I loved most about this book was that there was no immature or childlike drama, the drama that happened was real, adult, and plausible. The adults spoke to each other like adults and like actual grown women. I sadly can't remember the last time I read a book where I truly felt like the women were real and emotionally intelligent like this. It's not that they were perfect and said and did the right thing every time, it's that they learned, listened to their friends and loved ones, they respected themselves, their friends, and their partner's opinions, emotions, and beings. That's amazing. If you're looking for a fun queer f/f romance, please pick this up you will not be disappointed. Especially considering the talks of consent, respecting boundaries, and the good things that come to those who wait.

Kenzie Shaw is a talented rookie soccer player playing in the US women’s major league. She’s drafted to play in New Jersey, alongside her idol and teenage-crush, Sutton Flores. Sutton is one of the top players in the game, a superstar who’s very loyal to her team players and family, but jumps from one relationship to the other. Both women feel a growing attraction to each other but when they decide to act on it, a sexual harassment case threatens to tear them apart. Will they be able to stay together and fight for what matters most?

I love a good lesbian sports romance book and if it’s soccer, even better. After all, I come from Argentina, the land of Maradona and Messi! This book has the perfect timing of being released in the aftermath of the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup which had unprecedented world coverage. For us lesbians, it’s really cool not only to enjoy the game but also to see some of these fabulous sportswomen being out and proud and fighting for women’s rights. So, a book like ‘Top of her game’ is right up my alley.

M. Ullrich is one of my favourite lesfic authors, I really liked her previous book ‘Pretending in paradise‘. Unfortunately, I’m a bit on the fence with this one, somehow it didn’t work fully for me though I’m aware that it’s just my personal taste and I might be in the minority here. I think that Ms. Ullrich did a great job with some of the soccer scenes, the descriptions of the intensity of the game or the stress to perform at one’s best the whole time. However, in the romance department, I didn’t feel the connection between the mains, their chemistry was just ok for me, maybe because the author tells more than shows it.

My other criticism is that the sexual harassment subplot wasn’t totally convincing. I don’t want to go into details to avoid spoiling anything, but it didn’t feel completely believable and even more, at some parts, it felt more like a plot device than a natural development. Considering how much sexual harassment is present in all sports, I praise Ms. Ullrich for dealing with this issue, though for me, this part of the story didn’t work as well as the soccer scenes. Having said that, if you are a soccer fan, I’d recommend you give this book a go.

Overall, a good lesbian sports romance recommended for soccer fans. 3.5 stars.

ARC provided by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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