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A review by aliu6
Slammed by Lola Keeley
5.0
4.5 stars
Elin Larsson is at the top of her game, ranked #1 in the world in women's singles. She's only a few more slams away from breaking the all-time record, and then maybe, just maybe, she can start to think about retirement. Until then, she needs razor-sharp focus and absolutely no distractions. But a chance meeting has her eye caught on Antonia Cortes Ruiz, an up-and-coming younger player who recently rejoined the game following a potential career-ending injury. Somehow, Toni has Elin finding joy in tennis again. As the two women gravitate to each other, they must soon discover whether their love can survive the competitive environment on court.
This was a really satisfying read. It just made me happy after reading it, which has made me realize how few books leave me with that feeling. (I'm often either glad to have made it through to the end of a book that has been dragging, or disappointed because I wanted to see more of the characters.) Slammed left off perfectly, with just the right amount of closure for the happy couple.
I really liked both characters. They come off as really good people. The story is narrated in first person by Elin, so we get her reactions most of the time, and it was interesting to hear her thoughts about the game. It's cute how she's so confident in the sport and yet pretty awkward when it comes to flirting. Toni seems like a very warm character, although I wish we had gotten to see more from her point of view.
I also liked the diverse cast of side characters. There are multiple people of color, and Elin has a trans sister. The nonromantic subplot involves exposing racially discriminatory practices within the tennis association, so that was also interesting.
Plot wise, I was really into it. I used to play tennis, and I'm also a fan of romances between athletes who compete against each other. I thought this might be an enemies-to-lovers story, but Elin and Toni hit it off right from the start, and the competitors angle never really becomes a dividing force between them. I liked the slow burn in the beginning where Elin is still trying to figure out whether Toni is straight, and once they finally got together, they were a sweet couple.
Why the loss of .5 stars? As much as I enjoyed the storyline, the writing was a bit choppy for me. I'm not sure if it's partly because I'm unused to books totally narrated in 1st person POV from one character. At times, the words didn't fit quite right, or they didn't flow well. There were also various inconsistencies within the book.
All in all, a highly enjoyable read. I would recommend!
Elin Larsson is at the top of her game, ranked #1 in the world in women's singles. She's only a few more slams away from breaking the all-time record, and then maybe, just maybe, she can start to think about retirement. Until then, she needs razor-sharp focus and absolutely no distractions. But a chance meeting has her eye caught on Antonia Cortes Ruiz, an up-and-coming younger player who recently rejoined the game following a potential career-ending injury. Somehow, Toni has Elin finding joy in tennis again. As the two women gravitate to each other, they must soon discover whether their love can survive the competitive environment on court.
This was a really satisfying read. It just made me happy after reading it, which has made me realize how few books leave me with that feeling. (I'm often either glad to have made it through to the end of a book that has been dragging, or disappointed because I wanted to see more of the characters.) Slammed left off perfectly, with just the right amount of closure for the happy couple.
I really liked both characters. They come off as really good people. The story is narrated in first person by Elin, so we get her reactions most of the time, and it was interesting to hear her thoughts about the game. It's cute how she's so confident in the sport and yet pretty awkward when it comes to flirting. Toni seems like a very warm character, although I wish we had gotten to see more from her point of view.
I also liked the diverse cast of side characters. There are multiple people of color, and Elin has a trans sister. The nonromantic subplot involves exposing racially discriminatory practices within the tennis association, so that was also interesting.
Plot wise, I was really into it. I used to play tennis, and I'm also a fan of romances between athletes who compete against each other. I thought this might be an enemies-to-lovers story, but Elin and Toni hit it off right from the start, and the competitors angle never really becomes a dividing force between them. I liked the slow burn in the beginning where Elin is still trying to figure out whether Toni is straight, and once they finally got together, they were a sweet couple.
Why the loss of .5 stars? As much as I enjoyed the storyline, the writing was a bit choppy for me. I'm not sure if it's partly because I'm unused to books totally narrated in 1st person POV from one character. At times, the words didn't fit quite right, or they didn't flow well. There were also various inconsistencies within the book.
All in all, a highly enjoyable read. I would recommend!