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10+++++ STARS!!!!!

I haven't read a book in awhile that has left me so affected, so happy, so...GAH! I LOVED IT, LOVED IT, LOVED IT. I'm feeling particularly confused right now because I want to say so much but I don't know how! So to save time and space, I'll point out what I loved, adored, gobbled up so much:

1. SOCCER, SOCCER, SOCCER. Love that sport. The World Cup? It's a Holiday at my house where everything can wait until 'The Game' is over. Many books are soccer related, right? Sure, but not like this. This felt like I was in the game, it was realistic and amazingly, details of the sport were sporadically blended in and never took over the incredible, romantic storyline.

2. The older man/younger woman. Sure, it's also quite common, but a girl who's looked up to and admired a renowned and iconic soccer superstar, then to have said star become her best friend and slowly so much, much more? FANTASTICAL. I loved it. I can't even...

3. The slow, molasses worthy, pack a lunch, SLOW build up. I'll be honest, if you want the bang, bang, thank you ma'am, you ain't gonna get it here. This was a great example of using patience as a virtue. But damn, does it deliver in spades when they get together. The beauty is, the sexual tension and nuances of Kulti's and Sal's fantastic relationship was enough, it was beautiful, amazing, phenomenal and had my heart melting over and over...and that was when they were friends! When they got together? The steam, although not long was TO DIE FOR. The epilogue had me in tears, blissed out tears.

4. The writing...exquisite. I could not put this down, and this baby was long! But incredibly, when I finished I wanted to cry because I wanted more!

5. Sal. I like, not love most of the heroines I read about, but this awesome, kick-ass chick was amazing. I loved Sal as much as I loved Kulti and he was THE MAN. Sal was everything I've ever striven to be. She was the best person I wish I knew. And Kutli? Rough around the edges, yes, but a diamond underneath...sigh.

If I'm building this up then sorry if you'll be disappointed. But sometimes a book just jives with you and affects you in a way that's difficult to put in words. I dreamt about this book when I wasn't reading it, okay? I squeezed in time just to read a damn page! It never dragged, never wallowed and never let me down. I can't say enough. Just remember the love between these two is slow to deliver though you see it in all they do, all the time. The relationship Sal had with her dad was exemplary, touching and pulled at my heartstrings. If I could eat this book I would, I know I sound crazy. But seriously, the BEST I've read all year, possibly in the last two years. YES, THAT GOOD.

I'm checking out everything this author has written, up to and including any pamphlets she may have penned in her early writing career. This was funny, laugh out loud hilarious! Quoting what Sal called Kulti would look weird out of context ( eg. A German Bratwurst ), but I had to stop and catch my breath a few times! It was engaging, that word created alone for how this book kept me hooked, and incredibly romantic. I can't say enough but I'll stop here because I'm gonna start repeating myself, so yeah...FREAKING LOVED IT to the moon and back!!