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Verdict: A tennis-heavy friends-to-lovers romance set over one Wimbledon fortnight, with thoroughly researched, genuinely tense matches. Readers who love the sport are delighted; romance-first readers find the love story thin next to all that tennis.
Best for: Tennis fans who want the matches to matter.
Heat level: Not rated — though one reader calls the chemistry smoking hot
Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3.4/5 — a 3.67 Goodreads average across 256 ratings, 3.49 on StoryGraph from 40 reviews, and 4.3 stars across 49 Amazon ratings)
Tropes: Friends to lovers, former doubles partners, athlete / athlete, slow burn, underdog.
Lucky Loser is Yolanda Wallace’s 2011 contemporary lesbian sports romance from Bold Strokes Books. Talented but oft-injured Brit Sinjin Smythe enters Wimbledon trying to resurrect her career and fighting her feelings for her friend and former doubles partner, Laure Fortescue. Laure has fame, fortune and a top-ten ranking — and a rule against dating other players that she would gladly break for Sinjin.
It holds a 3.67 average across 256 Goodreads ratings, with 58% of them four or five stars, 3.49 on StoryGraph from 40 reviews, and 4.3 stars across 49 Amazon ratings.
What Is Lucky Loser About?
Having had her heart broken by one player, Sinjin isn’t willing to risk it again. Both women arrive at Wimbledon desperate to win — Sinjin because it would be her greatest victory, Laure because it could be her last.
Where does love fit in a game only one can win?
What Works in This Book
- Research: Readers praise Wallace’s attention to the minutiae of tennis.
- Match tension: Several readers were on the edge of their seats during fictional matches.
- Laure: One reader fell for Laure, and her final match nearly brought them to tears.
- Slow build: Fans of the romance liked the gradual friends-to-lovers development.
Book Synopsis
Two friends and former doubles partners chase the same Wimbledon crown — and may be falling for each other.
In the high-stakes world of women’s tennis, love means nothing. Or does it?
My Review
Wallace makes tennis exciting on the page, which is harder than it looks; readers who don’t follow the sport say it made them care anyway. The two women are flawed and fleshed out.
But the balance tips heavily toward tennis, and several readers found the romance underwhelming as a result. Others mention odd pacing with sudden time jumps, lots of name-dropping, a slow start, and one objects to the portrayal of the only Russian character. A few readers enjoyed it and promptly forgot it.
My honest note: Pick it up for Wimbledon; don’t expect a romance-first book.
| Element | In Lucky Loser |
|---|---|
| Central relationship | Sinjin Smythe (British player) & Laure Fortescue (top-ten star) |
| Core tropes | Friends to lovers, former doubles partners, slow burn |
| Setting | Wimbledon |
| Heat level | Not rated |
| Length | 288 pages (paperback) |
| Tennis-to-romance ratio | About 80/20, per one reader |
| Content notes | Career injuries; one reader flags a negative national stereotype |
How Spicy Is Lucky Loser?
Readers don’t dwell on it, though one calls the chemistry smoking hot.
No StoryGraph content warnings are listed.
Who Should Read This Book?
You’ll likely love it if: you watch Wimbledon every year. It is on our sapphic sports romance list.
You may want to skip it if: you don’t care about tennis.
In short: Grass-court drama, quiet romance.
What Readers Are Actually Saying (September 2026)
On Goodreads the split is 19% five stars, 39% four, 32% three, 7% two and 1% one. Reviews cluster around three and a half stars, with tennis fans rating highest.
Why readers love it (according to the discourse): The tennis first. Second, the match tension. Third, the slow-burn friendship.
What readers argue about and complain about: Too much tennis, above everything. Second, a thin romance. Third, pacing.
The comparison worth making first: Slammed, a newer tennis-first romance.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much tennis is in Lucky Loser?
A lot. One reader estimates the ratio of tennis to romance at about 80/20, and several say non-fans may find it heavy going.
Is Lucky Loser friends to lovers?
Yes. Sinjin and Laure are friends and former doubles partners, and the romance develops slowly over Wimbledon.
Where is Lucky Loser set?
Over a Wimbledon fortnight.
Is there anything readers object to?
One reader objected that the only Russian character is portrayed negatively; another found the pacing odd, with sudden time jumps.
Is Lucky Loser on Kindle Unlimited?
Not when we checked; the Kindle edition was listed at $5.99. The audiobook narrator uses different accents for each player.
If You Loved Lucky Loser, Read These Next
Try Wallace’s Break Point or Slammed. For more, browse our sapphic sports romance list or the full Book Reviews archive.
The Bottom Line
Lucky Loser sets out to make Wimbledon the stage for a friends-to-lovers story, and the tennis is excellent. What holds it back is how little room the romance gets. For tennis fans. Check Lucky Loser on Amazon →
The Eikna Overall Ranking
On the Eikna scale, Lucky Loser ranks as a fair sports romance — sport first, love second.
The Evidence Scorecard
Overall ★★★☆☆ 3.4/5
- ✓ 3.67 average across 256 Goodreads ratings
- ✓ 58% of Goodreads ratings are four or five stars
- ✓ 3.49 on StoryGraph from 40 reviews
- ✓ 4.3 stars across 49 Amazon ratings
Romance ★★★☆☆ 3/5
- ✓ Friends to lovers
- ✓ Slow build
- ✓ Thin for some
- ✓ Hot chemistry for one
Characters ★★★★☆ 3.5/5
- ✓ Flawed leads
- ✓ Beloved Laure
- ✓ Wounded Sinjin
- ✓ Stereotyped rival
Writing ★★★★☆ 3.5/5
- ✓ Well researched
- ✓ Tense matches
- ✓ Heavy detail
- ✓ Odd time jumps
Emotional Impact ★★★☆☆ 3.4/5
- ✓ Underdog story
- ✓ Final-match tears
- ✓ Moderate angst
- ✓ Forgettable for some
Heat Level ★★☆☆☆ 2/5
- ✓ Rarely discussed
- ✓ Tennis-first
- ✓ Not rated
- ✓ Adult romance
Ending ★★★☆☆ 3.3/5
- ✓ Wimbledon-set
- ✓ Rarely discussed
- ✓ Standalone
- ✓ Satisfying for fans
Re-read Value ★★★☆☆ 3.2/5
- ✓ $5.99 Kindle price
- ✓ 288 pages
- ✓ Accent-rich audiobook
- ✓ Not on Kindle Unlimited
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