Head Over Heels

2.25/5 starsThis is a hard one to rate, because while the romance in this book was absolutely dog shit, one of the most lackluster and chemistry-lacking romances I've ever read, the rest of the book was interesting. It tried to create a discussion on the culture of elite gymnastics and the abuse that has surrounded it. However, thinking back on it, I don't ever felt like it really dived into the brutality of elite gymnastics and mental health. The representation was kinda superficial? It could have opened that door a bit more, even if it's a hard topic to approach. But instead, I felt like I was told about the issues instead of being shown. They didn't affect the main character, but the side character (Hallie, the best part of this book), but we never get to see how Hallie deals with this other then a few scenes of Hallie obviously needing a therapist but no one really doing anything other than giving her a pep talk. And these issues were based off real events. We all know what happened, but if you need a reminder, the US gymnastics team doctor (who's name I won't mention, because I don't want to give that disgusting excuse for a human any more attention then he deserves) sexual assault over 100 athletes. For years. This is not something that something that should be written about and fictionalized to be a subplot for a romance novel. It wasn't handled poorly in this book, but it could have been much, much more impactful and tasteful. The book [b:Break the Fall 45993634 Break the Fall Jennifer Iacopelli https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1563188107l/45993634.SY75.jpg 68996280] may be a YA book, but I still think the same topics were less sugar-coated then they were in this book.

Cute and honest fun, and I've learned tons of gym vocabulary

I always love a book with a character that lives and breathes something that I know nothing about. I loved being introduced to the world of the gymnastics. The romance seemed to be secondary but that was fine with me.

I would give it a 3.5 tk four. The romance in the book was lack luster. Barely any chemistry. But the growth of the female lead was wonderful if feel points that could have been dramatised for effect wernt taken advantage of. Its nice but not that nice. But the content on gymnastics as well as their mental health as well as the silent abuse was spot on. There needs to be more books like this engaging people on the world behind the medals and the glory. The ture hardships of these athletes

Cute, Fun, With a dose of reality.

3.5 star ..

so so to me .

The cover art and marketing is deceptive. This is not a romance. In fact in a generally unimpressive book, the romance was the most lackluster aspect. The characters were bland and there was very little plot. The heroine's love interest was extremely irritating. I didn't believe in their reconciliation and felt the heroine was making a mistake. That is not how you should feel after reading what is billed as a feel-good romance.

The message of the importance of mental health and sexual assault awareness for young gymnasts was important. The book however, was not very captivating.

3.5 stars. Head Over Heels was a good, quick read. I have been a gymnastic fan ever since Nadia Comaneci's perfect 10 scores in the 1976 Olympics, and I followed with dismay the sexual assault allegations against gymnastics team physician Larry Nassar. So I've seen a lot of highs and low but remain fascinated with the sport. The 2020 summer Olympics have been postponed because of the pandemic, so until 2021, this book will have to suffice.

The novel is strongest when it sticks to Avery's struggle to find meaning in her life years after a freak injury ended her Olympic dreams. Her relationship with rising star Hallie and her strained yet unbreakable friendship with her former teammate Jasmine are heartfelt and full of Girl Power. Avery starts out broken and aimless, and ends up with purpose and a new passion.

However, the love story between Avery and fellow coach Ryan fell flat to me. It felt very pro-forma, ticking the boxes of approach/avoid/approach and then predictable breakup/grovel/reconciliation. Ryan didn't have much depth beyond being cute and hard-working. I was much more engaged in whether or not Hallie made it to the Olympics than I was in whether or not Avery and Ryan would stay together.

Along the way Orenstein references verbally abusive coaches (shades of Bela Karolyi), a physician sexual assault case similar to Nassar, and lots and lots of gymnastics moves that show she either did her research or has a background in the sport. She provides a balanced (no pun intended) view of the risks these women take when they sacrifice a regular life for a few minutes of fame, and lets the reader decide if it's worth the effort.

Orenstein's writing style is serviceable but not memorable. I don't know if I would read another book by her unless I was particularly interested n the subject as I was with this one. So I'd give Head Over Heels a qualified recommendation for readers like me who can still name all of the girls who captured our hearts as the Magnificent Seven, the Fierce Five and the Final Five.

I received an ARC of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.