e-ALC, 07:26:05
Narrated by: Elena Rey
Release Date: May 12, 2026
Published by: Books on Tape
Read from: April 28-29, 2026
Stand-alone
Source: PRH Audio App (I received this ALC free from the publisher and their app. This did nothing to influence my review.)
Content Warning: Homophobia, Bullying, Outing, Ableism, Cursing, Alcohol, Cancer, Lesbophobia, Toxic Relationship
For Readers of: 2sLGBTQ, Audio, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Sparkly Covers, Neurodiverse (Autism), Own Voices, Realistic Fiction, Romance, Sports, YAFor 16-year-old Ellie, beach volleyball camp is a disaster until she’s paired with Sierra, an athletic prodigy who teaches her that volleyball…and love are about taking the right shot in this sporty sapphic romance.
Ellie dates the Right Guy, says all the Right Things, and acts the Right Way to avoid being ridiculed for her autism. When that Right Guy unceremoniously dumps her right before they’re supposed to go to beach volleyball camp together, Ellie’s perfectly curated world comes crashing down and she’s labeled the boring, weird girl.
Desperate to regain her good reputation (and yeah, sure, the boy…), Ellie goes to Camp SMASH, which is nothing like she expected. There, she’s paired with Sierra, a mysterious, standoffish volleyball legacy who makes Ellie’s quest to get her boyfriend back even more complicated…
Dive into this sporty summer romance full of the classics: a ragtag group of friends, a tense game of capture the flag, and a swoon-worthy sapphic love story.
*MY THOUGHTS*
This was such a wonderful surprise. I loved this so much. I knew I would like it, but i wasn’t ready for the way I was obsessed. I will say tho, this reminded me a lot of one book that I read and loved last year too!0
The one thing that stood out to me was the volleyball. I know, I know. You thought I was going to say the romance or something. While that’s cool, I loved the volleyball best. The sport was like front and center, and everything was factual information. And I loved that she wasn’t like a prodigy or something, She went in to learn and everything seemed authentic.
The romance itself was so good! I think it worked best because they were friends first. Well kind of. They took the time to learn each other and I loved to see that. And it wasn’t insta-love. It had a real feel to it. They were cute af too. I loved to see the way she was in a relationship as someone with autism. And their first kiss? ADORABLE. The characters were part of why I loved this so much as well. They truly all had their own identities. And the mental health and neurodiverse patches were woo good! Seeing the two of them come together was cool too.
The family situation stood out to me too. The way she treated her brother was cruel tho. She pushed him away but he was still there for her. Idk how she did it. There’s no way I could shut out my sibling like that. I was glad that she let that list go. I know what she was trying to do, but it definitely fdid more harm than good.
Apparently stories with autistic athletes are my jam. This is the second time in 2 years that one has taken my number 1 spot for the year already. I loved this. It had me ready to write my own paper on how I’ve changed and in what ways. That’s just how much I was in this story lol I know if you pick it up, you will be too!
Overall, I give this
