Catch Review — Is It Worth Reading?

Verdict: A glass-ceiling NFL romance with an irresistible hook — the new quarterback’s wife is the high school girlfriend the offensive coordinator never got over. Readers love Sutton and the football world, but the reverse-order flashbacks, single point of view and a married love interest make it divisive.

Best for: Second-chance fans who enjoy a woman breaking into men’s pro sport.

Heat level: L4 · Explicit (4/5) (very steamy, per one reader)

Rating: ★★★★☆ (3.6/5 — a 3.89 Goodreads average across 964 ratings, 3.51 on StoryGraph from 175 reviews, and 4.4 stars across 469 Amazon ratings)

Tropes: Second chance, first love, married love interest, glass ceiling, high school sweethearts, forbidden.

Catch is Kris Bryant’s 2023 contemporary lesbian sports romance from Bold Strokes Books. Once her high school team’s first female quarterback, Sutton McCoy is now offensive coordinator for the NFL’s new Connecticut Cheetahs. Then the team signs Grayson Moats — her old high school nemesis, and husband of Parker O’Neal, Sutton’s first love.

It holds a 3.89 average across 964 Goodreads ratings, with 65% of them four or five stars, 3.51 on StoryGraph from 175 reviews, and 4.4 stars across 469 Amazon ratings.

What Is Catch About?

Parker has lived with regret since her strict, religious parents forced her to end things with Sutton in high school. With Grayson now on Sutton’s team, the three of them are thrown back together.

Sutton never planned to interfere in the star quarterback’s marriage — but standing on the sidelines while a second chance appears proves almost impossible.

What Works in This Book

Breaking barriers: Readers love Sutton’s success in a male-dominated sport.
Accessible football: Even non-fans say the game never overwhelms the story.
Supporting cast: Readers enjoyed Sutton’s friends and family.
Heat and chemistry: Fans call it steamy and satisfying.

Book Synopsis

An NFL coach’s new quarterback comes with a complication: his wife is the girl she loved in high school.

Fifteen years later, the feelings haven’t gone anywhere.

My Review

The premise is terrific, and Bryant writes Sutton’s world with confidence. One fan calls it her best book yet, and another says they would have read it in one sitting.

The structure is the biggest sticking point: alternating past and present chapters, with the past in reverse order, lost several readers and slowed the present-day momentum for others. Some wanted Parker’s point of view; others felt the couple never really confront the past, so forgiveness comes too easily. The married love interest will be a dealbreaker for some, and one football fan flags an NFL divisional error.

My honest note: Worth it for the premise if the flashback structure and an affair don’t put you off.

Element	In Catch
Central relationship	Sutton McCoy (NFL offensive coordinator) & Parker O’Neal (her first love)
Core tropes	Second chance, married love interest, glass ceiling
Setting	An NFL expansion team, with high school flashbacks
Heat level	L4 · Explicit (4/5)
Length	264 pages (paperback)
Point of view	First person, Sutton only; reverse-order flashbacks
Content notes	Infidelity, homophobic parents, toxic relationship

How Spicy Is Catch?

Steamy — readers describe satisfying chemistry and heat.

StoryGraph users flag homophobia, lesbophobia and a toxic relationship, plus minor cancer, death of a parent and alcohol.

Who Should Read This Book?

You’ll likely love it if: you want second chance romance in the NFL. It is on our sapphic sports romance list.

You may want to skip it if: cheating or non-linear timelines bother you.

In short: Great play call, messy execution.

What Readers Are Actually Saying (September 2026)

On Goodreads the split is 30% five stars, 35% four, 26% three, 5% two and 1% one. On StoryGraph, 72% tagged it lighthearted and 59% emotional. Two readers single out the cover as especially sexy.

Why readers love it (according to the discourse): Sutton first. Second, the NFL setting. Third, the second chance. Fourth, the heat.

What readers argue about and complain about: The reverse flashbacks, above everything. Second, the single POV. Third, easy forgiveness. Fourth, the affair.

The comparison worth making first: Romancing the Kicker, another story of a woman breaking into the NFL.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there cheating in Catch?

The love interest, Parker, is married to the team’s new quarterback when the story begins. One reader who hates cheating says Bryant still won them over by the end; another felt forgiveness came too easily.

How is Catch structured?

In Sutton’s first-person point of view, alternating present-day chapters with high school flashbacks — and the flashbacks run in reverse order. Many readers found that confusing.

How spicy is Catch?

Steamy; one reader calls it very steamy.

Do I need to know American football?

No. Several readers who don’t follow the NFL, including British readers, say the football never felt overwhelming. One football fan did spot a divisional error.

Is Catch on Kindle Unlimited?

Not when we checked; the Kindle edition was listed at $9.99.

If You Loved Catch, Read These Next

Try Romancing the Kicker or Illegal Contact. For more, browse our sapphic sports romance list or the full Book Reviews archive.

The Bottom Line

Catch sets out to reunite first loves inside the NFL, and its hook and heroine are strong. What holds it back is the structure. Worth a read for second-chance fans. Check Catch on Amazon →