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4.18 AVERAGE
4.18 AVERAGE
⭑ ⭑ ⭑ ⭑ ⭑
❝ You are my best friend, my love, my playmate, my teammate. You’ll have a team with me wherever we are, whatever you are playing. ❞ - this was the slowest slow burn of my LIFE. I love Mariana Zapata!!!
❝ You are my best friend, my love, my playmate, my teammate. You’ll have a team with me wherever we are, whatever you are playing. ❞ - this was the slowest slow burn of my LIFE. I love Mariana Zapata!!!
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I love Mariana Zapata.
Sal and Kulti were so much fun to follow along with and their slow-burn was just as immaculate as the other Mariana Zapata books that I have read.
Sal and Kulti were so much fun to follow along with and their slow-burn was just as immaculate as the other Mariana Zapata books that I have read.
The slowest of slow, slow burns. But gosh it's so good and swoony.
Star Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25 / ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice Rating:
Star Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25 / ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice Rating:
slow-paced
I loved this book so much I read it back to back!
Mariana Zapata is the queen of a SLOW BURN! Although this book is very slow in the beginning, there is a lot of tension that is built between the 2 main characters. Originally I went in thinking I would not like the large age gap. I was also skeptical of the potential for a childhood idol turned lover. The author made sure to build a lot of character development and true friendship before bridging the gap into lovers. This made the story a little bit more believable. It also lessened the potential power dynamic by making sure that he never pressured her and she would call him out if he was being an ass.
Overall, I was very surprised and delighted with this book. This cements my love for Marina Zapata (If you have not read "The Wall of Winnepeg and Me" you are missing out)!
Characters: 5/5
Plot:4/5
Writing:4/5
Overall: 4.5/5
Mariana Zapata is the queen of a SLOW BURN! Although this book is very slow in the beginning, there is a lot of tension that is built between the 2 main characters. Originally I went in thinking I would not like the large age gap. I was also skeptical of the potential for a childhood idol turned lover. The author made sure to build a lot of character development and true friendship before bridging the gap into lovers. This made the story a little bit more believable. It also lessened the potential power dynamic by making sure that he never pressured her and she would call him out if he was being an ass.
Overall, I was very surprised and delighted with this book. This cements my love for Marina Zapata (If you have not read "The Wall of Winnepeg and Me" you are missing out)!
Characters: 5/5
Plot:4/5
Writing:4/5
Overall: 4.5/5
Kulti - Mariana Zapata
5/5 ⭐️
Wooowweeeee- I want to give this book a million stars, I know I have said this a ton recently, but I am obsessed. I am a sucker for the grumpy hard exterior that reveals a total lovesick simp haha. I love how strong all of MZ’s female MCs are, they are always such cool and badass women! I am realizing between this book and the wall of Winnipeg that I love a sports romance. The chemistry between Sal and Rey is off the charts, the nicknames has me smiling and looking absolutely crazy while beaming at a book. I ended up staying up until 1:30 because I absolutely could not put this book down, and decided that sacrificing the sleep was worth it to hear the ending. Please read this book, especially if you love a slow burn, or are a soccer fan! I swear, one of these days I’m gonna pass away from how cute they book boys are!!
Synopsis:
“Trust me, I’ve wanted to punch you in the face a time or five.”
When the man you worshipped as a kid becomes your coach, it’s supposed to be the greatest thing in the world. Keywords: supposed to.
It didn't take a week for 27-year-old Sal Casillas to wonder what she'd seen in the international soccer icon - why she'd ever had his posters on her wall or ever envisioned marrying him and having super-playing soccer babies.
Sal had long ago gotten over the worst non-break-up in the history of imaginary relationships with a man who hadn't known she'd existed. So she isn't prepared for this version of Reiner Kulti who shows up to her team's season: a quiet, reclusive shadow of the explosive, passionate man he'd once been.
The banter in this book is immaculate, every thing about this book if perfection and amazing!
5/5 ⭐️
Wooowweeeee- I want to give this book a million stars, I know I have said this a ton recently, but I am obsessed. I am a sucker for the grumpy hard exterior that reveals a total lovesick simp haha. I love how strong all of MZ’s female MCs are, they are always such cool and badass women! I am realizing between this book and the wall of Winnipeg that I love a sports romance. The chemistry between Sal and Rey is off the charts, the nicknames has me smiling and looking absolutely crazy while beaming at a book. I ended up staying up until 1:30 because I absolutely could not put this book down, and decided that sacrificing the sleep was worth it to hear the ending. Please read this book, especially if you love a slow burn, or are a soccer fan! I swear, one of these days I’m gonna pass away from how cute they book boys are!!
Synopsis:
“Trust me, I’ve wanted to punch you in the face a time or five.”
When the man you worshipped as a kid becomes your coach, it’s supposed to be the greatest thing in the world. Keywords: supposed to.
It didn't take a week for 27-year-old Sal Casillas to wonder what she'd seen in the international soccer icon - why she'd ever had his posters on her wall or ever envisioned marrying him and having super-playing soccer babies.
Sal had long ago gotten over the worst non-break-up in the history of imaginary relationships with a man who hadn't known she'd existed. So she isn't prepared for this version of Reiner Kulti who shows up to her team's season: a quiet, reclusive shadow of the explosive, passionate man he'd once been.
The banter in this book is immaculate, every thing about this book if perfection and amazing!
Spoilers:
- I absolutely don’t appreciate that I have to sit here and listen to her say poop a hundred times as a way to feel like Kulti was more human
- Having to pick him up drunk and then pay for a hotel is so annoying and while I would probably do the same thing she should have left him there
- Also she literally took care of him and he was such a jerk about it, she saved you the bare minimum is to not acknowledge it
- Her always doing things to help him is crazy because if he was as rude to me as he was to her I wouldn’t even give him a second thought
- I thought them changing a fake tire together was funny
- I genuinely can’t stand the poop thing is pisses me off so much
- Him giving her money to drive him home is crazy like I get it as a gesture but I would lowkey be offended
- Her calling him sauerkraut and him calling her taco is so funny
- It’s kinda cute that they played soccer together and he had so much fun he asked if she wanted to play again
- It was cute that he came to check on her when she got hurt at the softball game
- He is still actually such a jerk to her sometimes, she’s his only friend and he treats her so badly
- Kulti just forcing himself into her life is crazy but I guess drives the plot
- Kulti saying that he could get her shoes for free was iconic. Slow clap.
- She has a degree in landscaping? That’s a thing?
- Oooo he joined the team for her
- I actually think their friendship is so cute, the face mask thing was so cute I’m obsessed
- Him getting mad about her training with someone else is so annoying like I get she has a past of accidentally sleeping with married men but leave her alone
- The aggressive hug me back after their kinda fight was actually cute
- Aww she’s in love
- He consoled her in such a Kulti way it was actually kinda cute
- Love that he’s in love with her
- It was so sweet that not only he was willing to give up his spot coaching for her but also buying out her contract so that she could play for a new team
- I can’t believe he calls her snail
- I love that he says wherever she goes is where he is going and knows what to do so he doesn’t have to stay working for the team without her
- Obsessed with her being a European soccer star and them getting married and living happily together
- Also obsessed with the fact that she’s the one that is a professional soccer player and he’s not currently even though he was in the past
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes