A review by maddiebees
The Long Game by Elena Armas

emotional funny lighthearted slow-paced

3.5

This was such an anticipated read for me and I really wanted to love this book but it just fell a little flat for me. I love a good slow burn but this just felt slow with very little burn. I liked the disastrous meet-cute but it just felt like there was no spark between Adalyn and Cam and that made it really hard for me to root for them to get together. Despite that, I loved both characters individually Even if I wasn’t totally in love with the book, I was definitely in love with Cameron! There’s just something about grumpy football players that I can’t get enough of. 

 

I think my biggest complaint is that we saw the slow shift in Adalyn’s perspective as she warmed up to Cameron but we never really got that from him and I think that led to a bit of a disconnect for me. 

…Also, the overuse of Darling started to grate on me after about the first fifteen times. It just felt a bit forced; like, I get it. He’s british and fond of her but another pet name would have been a nice little switch up! 

 

However, I really loved the banter between Adalyn and Cameron at the beginning of the enemies arc and the interactions at goat yoga and at the pottery thin further on!  I also loved the small town setting. I think that was a big saving grace for me while I was reading. I loved the sense of community and side characters and the Green Warriors! The scenes of Cam interacting with the team reminded me of Roy Kent in season two of Ted Lasso when he’s coaching his niece’s team and I adored it. 

 

Overall, I enjoyed the book well enough but I just wish there’d been something a little more compelling that made me want to keep turning the page. 

 

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for providing me this ARC in exchange for my honest review!