Amy Andrews’ Look What You Made Me Do delivers a spicy sports romance with all the heat, drama, and tension you'd expect from a second-chance love story. The novel brings together headteacher Ella Lucas and disgraced NFL star Jake Prince in a plot filled with simmering chemistry and personal growth, though the predictable storyline and uneven pacing keep it from fully reaching its potential.

The novel centers on Ella and Jake’s reunion after a steamy, unforgettable encounter two years earlier. Now, with Jake’s NFL career in shambles and Ella’s high school on the brink of closure, their worlds collide once again. Ella needs Jake’s help to coach the underdog football team, while Jake needs to restore his reputation—and, reluctantly, agrees to help.

The chemistry between the two leads is palpable from the moment they reconnect. Andrews does a good job of balancing their past attraction with the present, giving their interactions an intense, slow-burn quality that keeps readers engaged. Ella is a no-nonsense, driven headteacher, and her strong personality adds a refreshing layer to the story. She’s juggling the future of her school and her attraction to Jake, who represents everything she’s sworn to avoid.

Jake is the classic sports anti-hero with a tarnished reputation but a good heart. While his reluctance to take on the coaching job adds some initial tension, his character arc, though familiar, is well-executed. As the novel progresses, Jake’s transformation from disgraced star to someone more grounded and self-aware is satisfying, even if it follows a well-worn path.

One of the novel’s strengths is its handling of the football subplot. The scenes with Jake coaching the underdog team inject energy into the story and give Jake a chance to show his softer, more supportive side. His interactions with the students and the football games themselves are well-written and add depth to his character. The sports angle also raises the stakes for Ella, whose future as headteacher hinges on the team’s success.

However, despite the strong chemistry and character development, the novel’s pacing is uneven. The buildup to Ella and Jake’s eventual romance is engaging, but the middle of the book feels bogged down by repetitive inner monologues and some predictable plot points. Ella’s constant push-and-pull regarding her feelings for Jake drags on longer than necessary, and while it’s clear she’s trying to protect herself, it can become frustrating for readers who are waiting for the relationship to progress.

Additionally, while the spice level is high, some of the emotional depth in their relationship is sacrificed for steamy scenes. While their physical chemistry is undeniable, the novel could have benefited from more exploration of their emotional connection beyond their shared history and attraction. The secondary characters, particularly the students on the football team, are entertaining but remain somewhat underdeveloped, with the focus primarily on Ella and Jake’s dynamic.

The resolution, while satisfying, is predictable, with the novel wrapping up Jake’s redemption arc and Ella’s career struggle neatly. The ending delivers on the romance and gives readers the payoff they’ve been waiting for, but it doesn’t stray far from genre conventions, making it feel a bit formulaic.

Final Thoughts:
Look What You Made Me Do is a fun, sexy sports romance that delivers plenty of heat and heart. Amy Andrews creates an engaging second-chance romance between two strong-willed characters, though the predictable plot and uneven pacing hold it back from being a standout. Fans of steamy sports romances will find plenty to enjoy here, but it may not leave a lasting impact. A solid 3-star read for those looking for a light, enjoyable romance with a touch of football drama.

This is an easy to read, heartwarming spicy romance.

It’s shorter than I anticipated and it moves quite quickly, sometimes a little too quickly.

It’s fun and a nice HEA.

Plus, there’s a few Taylor references that true fans will see straight through!

Actual rating 3.5 stars

I think this book would definitely be a 4.5 stars kind of book if there’d be a little bit more pages added to it, a little bit more elaboration and depth regarding some story elements. But overall as it is now, it was a really fun and addictive read for me anyways. It’s the perfect kind of somewhat smutty/sexy romance that was just a lot of fun to read, but also had some true emotions to it. I felt like there was more possible though, regarding the character developments for example, not only the MC’s but also in regards to the minor characters. I really liked the brother-sister relationship for instance as in; it has so much potential to become something even more special and I think the book would’ve been better for it, if there was more elaboration around this aspect. It would’ve become something ‘more’ than ‘just’ a fun romance which I think would’ve elevated the book just a tad more. But… Overall this was just a really good reading experience and I definitely recommend picking this one up whenever you’re in for a (sexy) romance. I flew through it and was done in 2 sittings so that says enough I think!

Thank you so much @publisher, for providing me an e-arc of this book. I’m really happy I got to read this story!

3.5 stars rounded up. It's a kind of sports romance, but it's an ex athlete instead of a cutter athlete. The path of our fmc and Mc have been intertwined, and who are they to fight it. There is some smut but not over descriptive. The story was good but loved too slow for me.

A short but full romance
3 stars

This book is a re-write and revamp of an older Amy Andrews book called Holding Out for a Hero. While I understand the story is pretty much the same, we’ve changed country - now USA instead of Australia, changed sports - now American Football instead of rugby and for a reason that escapes me, many Taylor Swift references.

School principal, Ella, has just run into football star, Jake, inexplicably in her favourite dive bar. They grew up hating one another until, on the night of her mother’s funeral, a steamy encounter back in their hometown changes their relationship. But it’s not until 2 years later that they bump into each other once again.

It’s been quite difficult to decide whether I liked Ella or not. The first time we meet her you can tell she’s going through grief and has a massive chip on her shoulder being back in her home town. Once she’s back in more familiar surroundings, she’s feisty and I did like her better, until she started arguing with Jake and slut shaming. Not a good look.

Jake had an equally tough childhood in a judgemental home town but managed to escape into football. Now kicked out the NFL, he’s managing a dive bar when he runs into Ella again. He’s another likeable enough character but I didn’t fall in love with him. And I really don’t like that after reconnecting with Ella (but not officially together) he sleeps with another woman. That gives me the ick and I don’t like it in a story.

Ella and Jake were a nice couple and they had a little spark between them, if not a raging inferno. When we first meet them, they’re about to have their first night together although in the end, we don’t get any details. I’m not sure if this coloured my view of them as a couple - I wasn’t impressed that Jake took advantage of Ella’s vulnerable state - but the sex scenes, what there were of them, didn’t sizzle.

Other than the title and the blurb, I really didn’t notice any Taylor Swift references in the book other than a character bemoaning the fact there were none of her songs on the jukebox. And as I said before, I don’t really understand why they were included anyway. I know Taylor Swift’s boyfriend is a football player but apart from that, what was the correlation?

It’s a surprisingly simple romantic tale but there are quite a lot of elements that all fit in and around the romance. It’s also not a long story at 258 pages long and it’s a classic Amy Andrews so you’re guaranteed to get writing you’re going to get lost in and want to keep reading. But, something just didn’t click with me to get me to love the story, our couple, or their romance. Still a nice little romance to while away a couple of hours but just 3 stars from me.

3.5 ⭐️

This was a cute small town sports romance- and I’m a huge sucker for sports romance. However, I thought that this was a bit meh . I still enjoyed it and was a quick short easy read!

Ella is a High school principle who's school is on the brink of closing. Jake is a forced to retire, pro football player who opens up a sports bar in a new town. Both Jack and Ella have their own past demons they're battling and when they see each other at his bar, all that gets brought up again. Being from the same small town, they have a past. I really enjoyed their history and how you could feel that familiarity.
A cute sports, second chance romance. Technically a quick read, but felt longer.
I did feel like there were many parts of the book that dragged on, while other parts that you want more of were too quick.
This book is supposed to give Taylor swift/ Travis Kelce, but the only things that gave those vibes were the title and the fact that Jake used to be a pro football player.
Thank you NetGalley for this ARC

Thank you to NetGalley, Amy Andrew’s, and the publisher for this ARC.

This was such a fun and spicy book full of emotion. Our two main characters Ella and Jake, are both trying to escape the small town they grew up in and all of the baggage that comes with it. Both characters have been through it in their past are trying to overcome, which really makes you feel for them.

Ella is trying her best to raise her younger brother, Cam, and give him a new start away from their town and the drama. He is having a hard time adjusting and takes it out on his sister. Ella needs to save the school she works for from being closed and decides to organize a school football team. Enter Jake. He reluctantly agrees to help in the hopes that it will also help Cam find himself.

We also have Ella’s BFF and her two zany ex-circus employee aunts. Add in a few more lovable characters, a couple of unlovable characters, and a precious rescue dog and you have the recipe for a funny, spicy, rom-com with tons of heart.

“Look What You Made Me Do” by Amy Andrews is a short, spicy, sports romance that follows female main character Ella and male main character Jake, as they unite to save the troublesome school that Ella is principal of. Hailing from the same small town, Jake, a young and retired NFL superstar reacquaints with Ella, an unpopular and troubled teenage girl, now turned school principal, in a larger city, both having ran away from their past. Upon reuniting, they are reminded of their attraction for one another and flames spark between the two of them. Ella, who is desperate to save the school from being shut down amid budget cuts, teams up with Jake who is initially unwilling to create, start up and coach a high school football program to gather morale, raise awareness and unite a community who can all work together to save the school. In the process Jake and Ella rediscover the deep attractions that they have for one another and reignite a steamy romance. As they set out to do good for the community their pasts are dragged up, something which they both desperately hoped would be kept quiet for obvious reasons.

Readers looking for a short, yet spicy sports romance will be interested in this book by Amy Andrews. The romance and connection between both main characters were sweet, yet I thought both characters could have been explored more in depth. The characters come from troublesome home lives and I would have liked to see their backstories and struggles explored and elaborated on in more detail. I think that this would have lead to more interesting and characters. This book definitely wasn’t bad but I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it to other readers. I think that this book definitely had potential and there were parts that were done well, but there were parts that were not well executed and let the overall rating of this book down.

I am very excited to be reading this book! My full review to follow.
Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for this ARC. All thoughts and comments are my own.

This romance is a fun read. I don't often read sports romance but I liked this one.
This story is fun and quirky and the cover is really cute too. I think a lot of romance readers will like this one, which is available for purchase right now.

This story starts off with a huge bang, Ella is back in her small home town after her mothers death and as a big screw you to the town she propositions the bad boy NFL player Jake ( they knew each other at high school) at the local bar in front of everyone.

Two years later they meet again after Jake buys Ella and her friend’s favourite bar in the town where she lives and works as the high school principal.

With Ella’s school at the brink of closure, can Jack be her knight in shining armour?

This book blew my socks off, it was so much more than I thought it would be, the romance was amazing but it was the found family and the small town lore that never leaves you, the holding on to your parents mistakes that had my heart.

All the side plots had me reading page after page until I’d read the last page.

I could read a 10 book series with all these characters and never get bored.

The book was everything I needed at the time of reading it. From the romance to the childhood trauma and overcoming it 19years later. The diverse characters and challenges they went through while being together and supporting there local school.

Absolutely amazing!! Was incredibly fun to read and something I couldn’t put down even if I tried!! Only wish it was longer

This review is being posted as part of the Look What You Made Me Do blog tour hosted by Rachel’s Random Resources.

Look What You Made Me Do is the latest romance novel from author Amy Andrews. This is a quick and steamy read, perfect for fans of a good sports romance.

This is a second-chance romance of sorts as Ella and Jake knew each other from High School and had previously had a one night stand, so fans of that trope will particularly enjoy this book. The couple had electric chemistry and the spicy scenes were incredibly well written. Three words: pool table scene. I was OBSESSED.

In addition to the romance, this book has a whole lot of heart. Ella is a school headteacher trying to save her school from closure. Her school is in a small town serving disadvantaged students and to see the growth we see in the students on the football team in particular, going from students with poor attendance and grades to standout members of the school community, was really heartwarming.

Ella was a fantastic protagonist who felt very real and relatable. Her passion for improving outcomes for her school community was admirable. I also found the storyline with Ella’s late mum to be really interesting, as was the portrayal of Ella’s complicated grief journey following her passing. Also with his own baggage, Jake was a brilliant MMC. He was a gentleman, even in the bedroom, and became a brilliant role model for the young football players he was mentoring. His backstory was really interesting and had depth to it I wasn’t expecting to see within a romcom novel, which was a really nice addition.

Look What You Made Me Do also has a wonderful cast of supporting characters. Ella’s brother Cameron was one of my favourites, particularly due to his character development over the course of the book as he finds direction in life through his newfound passion for football and gradually starts to repair his relationship with his sister. Seeing him find a much-needed male role model in Jake was really nice too. There’s also a lovely found family element to the story with Ella and her best friend Rosie finding a home and a family with Rosie’s eccentric great aunts Daisy and Iris (who, side note, were brilliant characters in themselves).

Overall, Look What You Made Me Do is a fantastic steamy romance which fans of a good sports romance will devour as quickly as I did. Although this was my first time reading anything from Amy Andrews, her writing style hooked me quickly and I can’t wait to read more from her.

Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Spice Level: 🌶️ 🌶️ 🌶️/ 5 (Open Door)

I have posted my review on my blog www.yourschloe.co.uk

*Thank you to NetGalley, Amy Andrews, Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources.

Ella is the headteacher of a school, which is being threatened with being closed down. But when she bumps into a one-night stand, and retired football player, from her home time he may be the person to keep it open.
But Jake is still hiding from his past, and although willing to help Ella he has one rule, and that is no media. But can these two really save the school and keep it professional?
I loved the chemistry between the two characters and how they had so much in common, their banter was comical at times that I was grinning with every word.
There were also several side characters in this novel who all played an important role in this narrative. I especially loved Rosie and the aunts.

A nice little sports romance. Ella and Jake have known each other for years but nothing ever happened between them. They were both subject to small town gossip due to the actions of their parents. Jake hit the big time as a football star while Ella became the opposite of her mother, a good girl and teacher.

The 2 of them are thrust together for one steamy night after Ella’s mum passes away and then it’s another 2 years until they are reunited.

Jake and Ella are back in each other’s lives with her trying to save the high school she is principal of and Jake becomes the coach of the new football team.

Their attraction to each other hasn’t dwindled but their path to happily ever after is filled with a lot of bumps.

I enjoyed this small town sports romance and the medley of different characters that are part of Ella and Jake’s story.

Thanks to #NetGalley for the advanced copy, this is my honest review.

This was abgreat short read and I enjoy a good sport romance so this was that. Thanks for letting me read this book I was grateful to get to

Look What You Made Me Do by @amyandrewsbooks

Thank you to Amy, @netgalley and @theboldbookclub for the opportunity to read this book!

FMC Ella is from a small town and whose mom had a reputation. MMC Jake was the football star of that small town and got out to play pro football. They run into each other years later and the attraction is still there and hotter than ever. When Ella needs Jake’s help to save her school for troubled kids, Jake jumps in to start and coach the high school football team.

This was a cute and spicy second chance sports romance. It was a quick read and the audiobook was really great! I loved the narration and it had me laughing one minute and squealing the next 🥰

If you like:
🏈Grumpy Football Player
👗FMC with a past
🏚️Complicated history
💞Second chance
🐶Underdogs
🔥SPICEEEE

Give this one a try!

#netgalley #amyandrews #lookwhatyoumademedo #boldbookpublishing #bookreview #secondchance #smalltown #underdog #booklover #bookaddict #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookish #advancedreaderscopy #sportsromance #footballromance

Ella and Jake grew up together in the same small town in Kansas. Like all small towns, everyone knows everyone else’s business. Both of them have lived in the shadows of their relatives and their own pasts. Ella is principal of the high school, but it’s being threatened with being shut down and consolidated. She’s also raising her teenage brother and he’s surly and uncooperative (with some reason and well, he’s a teen). Jake is retired from the NFL and has bought a bar and made it his own. Turns out it used to be Ella’s favorite Friday night hangout, but that was before Jake changed all the music on the jukebox. To save the school, Ella convinces Jake to come to the school and coach a football team, hoping if they can win, it will show that the school is necessary.

I liked the friendship between Ella and Jake but their relationship went from 0 to 60 in just a couple of pages. I don’t mind instalove but they haven’t seen each other in years and bam, they’re kissing. The writing is okay and it is easy to read quickly. I learned this is a rewrite and compared to Taylor/Travis; I didn’t really get that, but it is a fun read.