#home field advantage
New Releases: June 7, 2022
New Releases: June 7, 2022
Middle Grade
Alice Austen Lived Here by Alex Gino
Sam is very in touch with their own queer identity. They’re nonbinary, and their best friend, TJ, is nonbinary as well. Sam’s family is very cool with it… as long as Sam remembers that nonbinary kids are also required to clean their rooms, do their homework, and try not to antagonize their teachers too much.
The teacher-respect thing is hard when…
Home Field Advantage by Dahlia Adler was released and is now on sale as of yesterday! I had the opportunity to receive a free advanced copy of this book.
I got home from Pride, sunburnt and fully expecting to pass out when I decided to pick up this book to read before bed. Cue me reading the entire book in one sitting, not even moving, and staying up way too late before work!
Despite that, I probably would have rated this book lower if it wasn’t about being queer. There were some parts that hit me really hard as a queer person who has struggled with religious trauma and that relatability definitely brought the score up.
I highly suggest that readers view the trigger warnings before reading this book because it definitely wasn’t a bundle of queer joy.
Home Field Advantage follows Amber, a high school cheerleader from a small-town vying to become captain, but she’s also got a secret – she’s polysexual. She’s been fine not having crushes on any of the Atherton High School kids, waiting until college until she can be out and free. That is, until the new quarterback, Jack, shows up.
After the fatal car crash involving Robbie, Atherton’s former quarterback, Jack Walsh becomes the high school’s first female football player – which already would make waves but on top of that, Jack is very obviously a lesbian, and the team feels like she is “taking” the quarterback position away from the guys on the team while trampling over Robbie’s legacy.
Amber and Jack navigate their attraction, social relationships, at times conflicting motivations, and small-town bigotry.
All in all, I did enjoy this book, but I do think there were a lot of issues that would have led me to rate this lower if it wasn’t queer and tugging at parts of my heart.
Thank you to NetGalley, Dahlia Adler & Wednesday Books for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Read my full review on StorygraphorGoodreads.
The fact ao3 has no Home Field Advantage fics feels like a crime. Yes I know the book has only been out a week, but I crave more of Jack and Amber and Malcolm and Miguel and I want to Dan Sanchez get what’s coming to him. Just this book feels like everything high school me would have wanted even though I hadn’t really figured out I was queer yet. It’s a cliche romance that finally lets me understand and love the cliche of the quarterback/cheerleader romance. And yet it’s so much deeper since it deals heavily in both misogyny and homophobia while making it clear forced outing is never a thing that is going to happen.
