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Verdict: An emotional, well-crafted comeback romance between a guarded veteran tennis pro and the fiercely protective single mother of a teenage prodigy, with a satisfying happily ever after. Many fans call it Spangler’s best — but the prickly teenage daughter pushes some readers to the edge.
Best for: Readers who want redemption, found family and grown-up romance in a sports setting.
Heat level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️ (steamy, per readers)
Rating: ★★★★☆ (3.9/5 — a 4.10 Goodreads average across 651 ratings, 3.74 on StoryGraph from 122 reviews, and 4.6 stars across 316 Amazon ratings)
Tropes: Single parent, athlete / non-athlete, comeback, redemption, slow build, found family.
Love All is Rachel Spangler’s 2018 contemporary lesbian sports romance from Bywater Books. Veteran pro Jay Pierce has been burned by players and the press, and on her last comeback she trusts no one. Sadie Larsen knows almost nothing about pro tennis, but when her daughter Destiny breaks onto the women’s tour at 17, she is determined to protect their family of two.
It holds a 4.10 average across 651 Goodreads ratings, with 77% of them four or five stars, 3.74 on StoryGraph from 122 reviews, and 4.6 stars across 316 Amazon ratings.
What Is Love All About?
As Jay and Destiny fight their battles on court — including when their coach pairs them up — Sadie and Jay fight their attraction off it.
Competition, press pressure and parenting all test whether “love all” really means no one goes home a winner.
What Works in This Book
- Emotional pull: Readers describe crying, staying up until 5am and feeling every high and low.
- Jay’s redemption: Reviewers love her sarcastic wit and her comeback arc.
- Money and media: Readers found the costs of life on tour and the press intrusion eye-opening.
- A different pairing: Only one lead plays, and readers enjoyed seeing the couple build a loving relationship over time.
Book Synopsis
A burned-out tennis veteran and a single mother protecting her prodigy daughter are thrown together on tour.
Neither expected the path to be easy. Neither expected each other.
My Review
Spangler’s sports writing is joyful and her emotional beats land; many readers name this her best book. Jay and Sadie are both people who have been counted out, and watching them trust each other is the heart of it.
Destiny is the dealbreaker for a vocal minority: readers call her horrible or annoying, and some felt her late redemption didn’t make up for her behaviour. Others found the plot predictable, the media too villainous, the supporting characters too good to be true, or the middle slow.
My honest note: If you can ride out a difficult teenager, it’s one of the warmest books on our tennis shelf.
| Element | In Love All |
|---|---|
| Central relationship | Jay Pierce (veteran pro) & Sadie Larsen (single mother) |
| Core tropes | Single parent, comeback, athlete / non-athlete |
| Setting | The women’s pro tennis tour |
| Heat level | 🌶️🌶️🌶️ |
| Length | 298 pages (Kindle) |
| Ending | HEA |
| Content notes | Lesbophobia, bullying, press scandal, toxic ex, gaslighting (StoryGraph users) |
How Spicy Is Love All?
Readers describe a steamy romance; StoryGraph users flag sexual content, some of it graphic.
StoryGraph users also flag lesbophobia, homophobia, bullying, a toxic relationship and gaslighting; one user tags an adult/minor relationship as a minor element.
Who Should Read This Book?
You’ll likely love it if: you like second-act heroines and single-parent romances. It is on our sapphic sports romance list.
You may want to skip it if: hostile teenage characters make you want to throw the book.
In short: A big-hearted comeback.
What Readers Are Actually Saying (September 2026)
On Goodreads the split is 37% five stars, 40% four, 17% three, 3% two and 1% one. On StoryGraph, 75% tagged it emotional. Several readers say they are now Spangler completists.
Why readers love it (according to the discourse): The emotion first. Second, Jay. Third, the tour realism. Fourth, the HEA.
What readers argue about and complain about: Destiny, above everything. Second, predictability. Third, a slow middle.
The comparison worth making first: Edge of Glory, Spangler’s earlier sports romance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are both leads tennis players in Love All?
No. Jay is the player; Sadie is the mother of 17-year-old Destiny, a new pro on the tour. Readers liked that twist on the sports romance.
Does Love All have a happy ending?
Yes. The Lesbian Review calls it a perfect happily ever after.
Why do some readers dislike Love All?
Mostly because of Destiny. Several readers found the teenager’s hostility hard to take, and one DNF’d at 80% because of her.
How spicy is Love All?
Steamy — one reader calls the romance steamy, and StoryGraph users flag sexual content.
Is Love All on Kindle Unlimited?
Not when we checked; the Kindle edition was listed at $9.99.
If You Loved Love All, Read These Next
Try Edge of Glory or Code of Conduct. For more, browse our sapphic sports romance list or the full Book Reviews archive.
The Bottom Line
Love All sets out to give a scarred veteran one more shot at tennis and love, and it delivers with real feeling. What holds it back is a teenager many readers can’t stand. Recommended. Check Love All on Amazon →
The Eikna Overall Ranking
On the Eikna scale, Love All ranks as a very good sports romance — emotional, occasionally exasperating.
The Evidence Scorecard
Overall ★★★★☆ 3.9/5
- ✓ 4.10 average across 651 Goodreads ratings
- ✓ 77% of Goodreads ratings are four or five stars
- ✓ 3.74 on StoryGraph from 122 reviews
- ✓ 4.6 stars across 316 Amazon ratings
Romance ★★★★☆ 4/5
- ✓ Grown-up
- ✓ Palpable chemistry
- ✓ Built over time
- ✓ HEA
Characters ★★★★☆ 3.6/5
- ✓ Witty Jay
- ✓ Strong Sadie
- ✓ Divisive Destiny
- ✓ Too good to be true for some
Writing ★★★★☆ 3.9/5
- ✓ Joyful sports writing
- ✓ Tight plotting for some
- ✓ Predictable for others
- ✓ Slow middle
Emotional Impact ★★★★☆ 4.2/5
- ✓ Tagged emotional by 75%
- ✓ Tears
- ✓ Redemption
- ✓ Heart-tugging
Heat Level ★★★★☆ 3.5/5
- ✓ Steamy
- ✓ Sexual content flagged
- ✓ Adult romance
- ✓ Not the focus
Ending ★★★★☆ 4.2/5
- ✓ Perfect HEA
- ✓ Exciting build-up
- ✓ Destiny’s redemption
- ✓ Standalone
Re-read Value ★★★★☆ 3.6/5
- ✓ $9.99 Kindle price
- ✓ 298 pages
- ✓ Spangler fan favourite
- ✓ Not on Kindle Unlimited
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