FRATERNIZE

A professional cheerleader finds herself caught between two football players.

At 22, Emerson Rodner is determined to continue her career even though at 190 pounds, she isn’t the typical cheerleader. Getting her chance with the Bellevue Bucks’ cheerleading squad—and despite the strict policy against fraternization—Emerson immediately attracts the attention of cocky player Grant Sanchez. Emerson is intrigued by Grant, but she’s also distracted by the arrival of a newly arrived player, Miller Quinton: her high school best friend and lover before misunderstandings and a separation ended their relationship. When Grant makes a mistake, will Emerson give Miller a chance? While the love triangle is compelling, the plotting is misleading: a dual-narrative structure sets up expectations that are then overturned in a twist that necessitates the awkward addition of a third voice. Additionally, while Emerson is white and Miller is mixed-race (black/white), Grant’s ethnicity is left undefined beyond his last name. The characters’ post-college ages and the narrative’s lack of inherent teen appeal combine with the explicit sex to move this from a young-adult to a new-adult classification.

Although it’s admirable how Emerson succeeds with her big, curvy figure, teen girls who could use this message will probably have to look for this title outside of a library’s or bookstore’s teen section.