Title: Scoring Wilder
Author: R.S. Grey
Book: Stand Alone
Format Read: Ebook (Goals to buy a paperback edition)
Rating: 5/5 Stars
The Cover: There are few times when using other books’ dust jackets to cover up your book is acceptable. This is one of those times. I mean it’s an accurate representation on what the book is about, I’ll give it that; There is a hot guy whose shirtless quite a bit, and our lead is an athletic girl who own a pink sports bra and jogs to stay in shape for soccer, but dear god I cannot take this book out in public! It is so obviously a smutty romance novel. I mean it is a romance novel with a shit ton of smut, but I don’t need the whole world knowing that. Thank god I read this on a E-reader.
Random fact relating to said book: I discovered this book a little before 11 pm, spent 3 hours trying to locate a copy (it was published by an Indie Author, not your run of the mill publishing house), only to buy it on my e-reader and pull an all nighter. Which sounds pretty stupid considering I had an early class the next day, but I totally finished it #NoRegrets
Book Blurb:
With Olympic tryouts on the horizon, the last thing nineteen-year-old Kinsley Bryant needs to add to her plate is Liam Wilder. He’s a professional soccer player, America’s favorite bad-boy, and has all the qualities of a skilled panty-dropper.
• A face that makes girls weep – check.
• Abs that can shred Parmesan cheese (the expensive kind) – check.
• Enough confidence to shift the earth’s gravitational pull – double check.
Not to mention Liam is strictly off limits . Forbidden. Her coaches have made that perfectly clear. (i.e. “Score with Coach Wilder anywhere other than the field and you’ll be cut from the team faster than you can count his tattoos.”) But that just makes him all the more enticing…Besides, Kinsley’s already counted the visible ones, and she is not one to leave a project unfinished. Kinsley tries to play the game her way as they navigate through forbidden territory, but Liam is determined to teach her a whole new definition for the term “team bonding.”
Actual Review:
You know how you pick up a book and flip to the first chapter, and you just know that you found a new favorite. Well I did it, I found my new favorite.
Cheat on me once, shame on him. Cheat on me twice…what the actual fuck is going on? How in the world have I managed to find my last two boyfriends cheating on me? No, not together. Although, that would have been much more poetic, and at least they could have included me or something.
Meet Kinsley, a recent high school graduate who made the ULA women’s soccer team in hopes of making it to the Olympics. Her last two boyfriends cheated on her, and after attending a party on the day of birthday (not a party in celebration of her birthday) she hits on the famous Liam Wilder, a tattooed soccer legend, who turns her down flat because he’s her couch. Obviously that isn’t going to stick, I mean if you read the synopsis you just know they are going to bang.
As a couple, Kinsley and Liam had great chemistry, both physically, and emotionally. I loved their tensing, and how they cheered each other on. I loved how full of life Liam was (so many times bad boy = broody), and how he generally cared for Kinsley. He cared enough about her reputation to quit being a couch and admit to their attraction so he would take the blows to his reputation, knowing he his sponsors would be angry (The people who pretty much pay him). Which is pretty freaking honorable, if you ask me.
Which leads me to the press. They played a huge role in the novel, from raising the stakes of secrecy to impacting Kinsley’s life. She never really thought about the fame that comes with doing something she loves, until joining the ULA soccer team. Both she and Liam are famous, and by having them experience encounters with the press (usually negative) it really helps plant the idea that they are considered legends in the soccer world. It also strengthens their relationship, by making them call each other when the press lies about them, and when a photographer assaults Kinsley, you can really see Liam care about her well-being. And really there is nothing more romantic than showing how much you care.
Another major aspect of this book was friendship, and Grey did a fantastic job (as it wasn’t all sexy times). First there’s Becca, whose that spunky, wild friend and in total support of Kinsley’s forbidden romance, as long as she didn’t get the gritty details.
“Good morning, you filthy neighbors! Tuck away your naughty bits, Becca’s on the scene!” Becca’s voice rang out as the back door opened.
I was also surprised to see she got her own budding romance. If Kinsley’s and Liam’s romance is hot, then Becca’s and Penn’s is sweet. Becca, being a virgin, who also freaks out about spending the night with Penn the first time, so she asks Kinsley to stay with Liam; and Penn, who just got out a long-term relationship with his b*tch of an ex. Honestly these two were so cute.
I love how Becca and Kinsley were ready to ditch their “men” in order to be there for each other, and that is true friendship. Be it two girls, two guys, girl & guy or human & alien. Giving up what you love, in order to be there for your friend who is clearly in the emotional wrong, because they matter that much to you. These two are friendship goals
Then there is sweet Emily. You know that shy friend whose easily embarrassed, and skypes their long distance boyfriend. That innocent (or maybe not so much) friend that you can’t help but feel protective of. That’s Emily, and I would like to take a moment of silence for Ms. Grey for NOT turning Emily into a backstabbing friend.
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Kinsley has a stronger connection with Becca, they share things and are there for each other much more than Emily. In fact Emily finds out about Liam indirectly, but chooses to keep it a secret. She doesn’t decide to join Tara’s gang, or exploits that information, and I love that. I have read so many books where that second friend feels so left out of the loop that they decide to take revenge, and never have I been more surprised and pleased to see that Emily didn’t fall into this trope.
This book had everything I never knew I wanted. The Bitch Squad (Older Teammates who exploit that). Cheating Ex that want’s to get back together (bonus points for putting him on Liam’s team). That Understanding Coach, who believes in Team Bonding exercise extremes, like I’m talking going to an Army Base and using their obstacle course extreme. Loving and caring Soccer Moms (cause soccer moms are so much more than aggressive cheerleaders).
I think if I had to pick a favorite scene, it would be the epilogue, (which was perfect and cute) but if I couldn’t pick that then it would have to be this one.
I wanted to strangle her. No I wanted to strangle her then bring her back to life, and then strangle her again. I couldn’t even look at Liam. I felt his eyes on me, but I was focused on the floor beneath his shoes. This couldn’t actually be happening. Rewind. Someone hit rewind!
“You used my gift card to get a Brazilian wax?” Liam asked, and I could hear a hint of a smile in his voice.
Oh drunk Becca, I love what mishaps you cause between our lovebirds…
Conclusion:
Scoring Wilder was a refreshing read. Its faults were small and mostly on it not turning out like how I predicted (i.e there was not enough soccer, misleading synopsis [they settled the whole sneaking around thing halfway though the novel], and Emily playing a bigger role). I also really wanted to see a soccer face off between Kinsley and Tara, but that last scene between them and Tara’s future was gold. Overall I love this book and I highly recommend if your 17+, love sexy times, dumb fun, soccer, and stellar friendships.
Seshat
*Wow it’s been a while since I’ve read a contemporary…and a smutty romance book…and a book about sports (specifically soccer), and never have I read all of those at once. I mean I think the closest I came to it was Shut Out by Kody Keplinger, even then there wasn’t smut to this degree and it didn’t exactly focus on Soccer. Actually that was one of the reasons I sought Scoring Wilder out, because I was in the mood for a smutty romance book that dealt with soccer a little more then Shut Out did.
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