Scored by Lily Harlem

Okay, so I eat, sleep and breathe football and reporting the beautiful game is my dream career. But that doesn’t mean I don’t have time for a major crush on the England captain, Lewis Tate. The bloke is sex on legs, hot with a capital H. Add in his awe-inspiring talent, his brooding good looks and what’s not to lust after?

So my excitement is sky-high as I set off with the official press team to cover England’s battle for the European Cup. But when a series of unfortunate, or as it turns out fortunate events, attracts Tate’s attention my way, who am I to say no?

Add in a misogynistic manager, an over-zealous colleague, two blue silk ties and some incredible ball-handling skills and it becomes clear the road to victory, for me, will be an intensely erotic journey. Determined to savor every moment, I hang onto my sanity as best I can while living the fantasy and wondering if it can ever become reality. Because once Lewis Tate has taken me to heaven and back, its clear no one else will ever compare.

Scored is a fantastic read—especially, and pardon the pun, if you’re a fan of football/soccer. Ms Harlem’s voice is a delight—very fresh and lively—and she has the ability to put me right there amongst the characters. Her style is always a pleasure too, and Scored—here comes a pun again!—is one of the top scorers out of the books I’ve read so far this year.

Lewis Tate is our sexy England captain hero, who made me swoon. I loved the way he was perceived as surly to the public but in private he’s just like anyone else—he has insecurities, he has needs, and whoa, does he ever have the determination to get what he wants!

And he wants Nicky, a football reporter who lives, breathes and sleeps football. She’s had the hots for Lewis for a long time but never thought she’d get the chance to be close enough to share breathing space with him, let alone a bed. But she does, because fate has a winning plan…

When they have their first kiss in the elevator—phew, is it hot in here, people?—the sexual attraction is so tangible I held my breath while reading that scene. Who knew a written kiss could seem so real? Without having to be told how she felt, I felt it. Weak knees, loss of the ability to breathe, heart racing, everything in the world fading away except for that kiss. Brilliant!

With secondary characters who only make this book all the more real, Scored holds a bundle of people that I want to know more about (hint hint!). There’s Nicky’s reporter friends, other team members, and call me whacky, but I’d even love to read a book about the hateful England boss who I think might have a softer side other than the hard-nosed one he shows.

Best Bits: Every scrummy, yummy, wonderful line. I read this book in one sitting, unable to put it down.

Verdict: What I love about Ms Harlem’s work is that she writes in 1^st person—and she’s excellent at it—but at no time do I ever feel I’ve been denied the chance to get to know the hero. Ms Harlem expertly sprinkles lines throughout that show exactly who the hero is, what he’s feeling—and the same goes for the secondary characters. Everyone is displayed so very well, and I’ll admit to being a serious fan of this author’s work, and Scored is my ultimate fave so far. This isn’t just a gush-fest but an honest-to-goodness response to how I feel about this book and the woman who wrote it. She is very good. You don’t just have to take my word for it either. Find out for yourself!

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