Illegal Contact Review — Is It Worth Reading?

Verdict: An entertaining, well-written action-mystery with a rare premise — a woman quarterbacking a college football team toward a national title while someone tries to hurt her — but the romance is a sideshow, compressed into a few days, and the ending wraps up too quickly.

Best for: Readers who want bodyguard suspense and football, and don’t need a deep love story.

Heat level: Not rated — readers rarely mention it

Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3.3/5 — a 3.74 Goodreads average across 99 ratings, 3.5 on StoryGraph from 8 reviews, and 4.5 stars across 111 Amazon ratings)

Tropes: Bodyguard, protector / protectee, forced proximity, romantic suspense, athlete / non-athlete.

Illegal Contact is Becky Harmon’s 2017 lesbian romantic suspense from Bella Books. Flagler Security agent Jamison Krews promises her longtime friend and training officer, Mel Carter, that she will protect Mel’s little sister. Shea Carter, 26, is the quarterback of the Tallahassee Tigers, and someone does not want her team to win the National Championship.

It holds a 3.74 average across 99 Goodreads ratings, with 56% of them four or five stars, 3.5 on StoryGraph from 8 reviews, and 4.5 stars across 111 Amazon ratings.

What Is Illegal Contact About?

Shea is older than her teammates and focused on the title, not on the threats against her. Jamison has to convince her she is more than a babysitter — and keep her alive — as the attacks escalate.

After a rocky start, attraction grows between them, and it threatens to get in the way of Shea’s safety.

What Works in This Book

Action and suspense: Readers call it an action-romance with plenty of intrigue and a well-developed suspense plot.
Football: Readers who love the sport, including a college athletic trainer, enjoyed the storyline.
Writing: Several reviewers say it is well written, with realistic dialogue.
Quick read: Readers found it easy to finish.

Book Synopsis

A security agent keeps a promise to protect her mentor’s sister — a star quarterback with a target on her back.

Protecting Shea means earning her trust, and maybe her heart, before whoever is behind the threats strikes.

My Review

The premise is great fun, and Harmon handles the suspense and sport well; readers kept turning pages to find out who was behind the attacks. Some readers found the chemistry spot on.

But most reviews say the romance is secondary. With the plot unfolding over a few days, readers question when the two actually fell in love, and several note they never have a significant conversation. The ending is the other sore point: one reader calls it a rapid conclusion, with only a sentence explaining why Shea was targeted. Some found the premise far-fetched, and one grew tired of Mel treating her adult sister as a baby.

My honest note: Read it as a sporty thriller with a romantic subplot.

Element	In Illegal Contact
Central relationship	Jamison Krews (security agent, 30) & Shea Carter (college quarterback, 26)
Core tropes	Bodyguard, forced proximity, romantic suspense
Setting	College football in Tallahassee
Heat level	Not rated
Length	224 pages (paperback)
Series	Flagler Security (per readers); follows its own couple
Content notes	Threats and attacks on the heroine

How Spicy Is Illegal Contact?

Readers barely discuss it, which fits a book they describe as more mystery than romance.

StoryGraph has no user-submitted content warnings. Expect threats and physical danger.

Who Should Read This Book?

You’ll likely love it if: you enjoy bodyguard suspense and football. It is on our sapphic sports romance list.

You may want to skip it if: you want a romance-first book with a slow build.

In short: Strong on the field, fumbles the romance.

What Readers Are Actually Saying (September 2026)

On Goodreads the split is 25% five stars, 31% four, 36% three, 6% two and 1% one. Several readers rate it three to three-and-a-half stars and say they enjoyed it as an action read despite the romance.

Why readers love it (according to the discourse): The suspense first. Second, the football premise. Third, the writing.

What readers argue about and complain about: A sideshow romance, above everything. Second, the compressed timeline. Third, the rushed ending.

The comparison worth making first: Guarding the Athlete, another bodyguard-and-athlete romance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Illegal Contact more romance or mystery?

Readers agree the balance tips toward action, mystery and sport, with the romance as a side plot.

Is Illegal Contact part of a series?

Yes. Readers place it in Becky Harmon’s Flagler Security books, but it follows its own couple.

Does the romance feel rushed?

For many readers, yes. The plot unfolds over just a few days, and several reviewers say the couple barely have a real conversation before falling in love.

How spicy is Illegal Contact?

Reader reviews say very little about sex scenes; the focus is the protection plot.

Is Illegal Contact on Kindle Unlimited?

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

If You Loved Illegal Contact, Read These Next

Try Guarding the Athlete or Romancing the Kicker, about a woman breaking into the NFL. For more, browse our sapphic sports romance list or the full Book Reviews archive.

The Bottom Line

Illegal Contact sets out to mix college football, danger and love, and the action works. What holds it back is how little room the romance gets. For suspense fans. Check Illegal Contact on Amazon →