You Don't Have a Shot

by Racquel Marie

Overview

A queer YA romance about rival soccer players from author Racquel Marie, perfect for fans of She Drives Me Crazy.

Valentina “Vale” Castillo-Green’s life revolves around soccer. Her friends, her future, and her father’s intense expectations are all wrapped up in the beautiful game. But after she incites a fight during playoffs with her long-time rival, Leticia Ortiz, everything she’s been working toward seems to disappear.

Embarrassed and desperate to be anywhere but home, Vale escapes to her beloved childhood soccer camp for a summer of relaxation and redemption…only to find out that she and the endlessly aggravating Leticia will be co-captaining a team that could play in front of college scouts. But the competition might be stiffer than expected, so unless they can get their rookie team’s act together, this second chance—and any hope of playing college soccer—will slip through Vale’s fingers. When the growing pressure, friendship friction, and her overbearing father push Vale to turn to Leticia for help, what starts off as a shaky alliance of necessity begins to blossom into something more through a shared love of soccer. . . and maybe each other.

Sharp, romantic, and deeply emotional, You Don’t Have a Shot is a rivals-to-lovers romance about rediscovering your love of the game and yourself, from the author of Ophelia After All.

"You Don't Have a Shot has every ingredient that makes rivals-to-lovers such a great trope, but it's also so much more. It's a story of grief and loss, of legacy, of culture, of holding the things and people that bring us joy close. I don't think anyone will be surprised when I say that Racquel Marie has done it again: this is truly young adult contemporary at its best." —Jonny Garza Villa, author of the Pura Belpré Honor Book Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250836342
Publisher:	Square Fish
Publication date:	04/16/2024
Pages:	400
Sales rank:	665,299
Product dimensions:	8.10(w) x 5.40(h) x 1.10(d)
Age Range:	14 - 18 Years

About the Author

Racquel Marie grew up in Southern California, where her passion for storytelling of all kinds was encouraged by her friends and big family. She received a BA in English with an emphasis in creative writing and a minor in gender and sexuality studies from the University of California, Irvine. There is, unexpectedly, a C in her first name. She is the author of Ophelia After All, You Don’t Have a Shot, and This Is Me Trying.

Editorial Reviews

★ 04/03/2023

Biracial (Colombian and white) 17-year-old Valentina “Vale” Castillo-Green—who describes her sexuality as “almost universally apathetic”—lives and breathes soccer. But following an angry outburst at her rival, Latina lesbian Leticia Ortiz, during a match, Vale is stripped of her captainship. She believes that her dreams of earning a college scholarship and escaping her emotionally abusive father are now forfeit. Her friends persuade her to attend a summer soccer camp intending to play a few games for fun, only for the camp administrators to reveal they’ve invited college scouts to the final match. Vale is certain this is her chance at regaining her lost dreams, but it turns out that Leticia’s at the camp, too, and they’ve been assigned as co-captains. To make it to the final game, Vale needs to train their inexperienced team into fighting shape and figure out how to get along with Leticia, who might not be as terrible as Vale had assumed. Via Vale’s witty and acerbic first-person narration and her palpable passion for soccer, Marie (Ophelia After All) delivers a textured sapphic romp that spins an earned enemies–to–lovers romance amid empathetic depictions of one teenager coming to terms with the effects of her treatment of others, as well as her treatment of herself. Ages 14–up. Agent: Thao Le, Sandra Dijkstra Literary. (May)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for You Don't Have a Shot:

A Junior Library Guild Selection

★"Via Vale’s witty and acerbic first-person narration and her palpable passion for soccer, Marie delivers a textured sapphic romp that spins an earned enemies–to–lovers romance amid empathetic depictions of one teenager coming to terms with the effects of her treatment of others, as well as her treatment of herself." —Publishers Weekly, starred review

"You Don't Have a Shot has every ingredient that makes rivals-to-lovers such a great trope, but it's also so much more. It's a story of grief and loss, of legacy, of culture, of holding the things and people that bring us joy close. I don't think anyone will be surprised when I say that Racquel Marie has done it again: this is truly young adult contemporary at its best." —Jonny Garza Villa, author of the Pura Belpré Honor Book Fifteen Hundred Miles from the Sun

"A refreshing, queer coming-of-age story . . . The lively banter and fun cast of broadly diverse characters support a story in which soccer forms the backdrop of a sweet romance and a teen figures out what’s truly important to her. Uplifting." —Kirkus

“A fearless and fiery winner. A captivating story of growth, redemption, and the unexpectedly beautiful places we find hope with a romance readers will unanimously cheer for.” —Julian Winters, award-winning author of Running With Lions

"Swoony, funny, and full of heart. Racquel Marie did an amazing job showing the magic of the beautiful game, and the place it can have in a teen’s life and that of their family and culture. . .The exploration of grief and how it plays in the family’s dynamics was expertly done." —Yamille Saied Méndez, Pura Belpré Award-winning author of Furia

"Full of heart, You Don’t Have a Shot perfectly captures the warmth of chosen family alongside the thrill of a will-they-won’t-they rival romance. This is contemporary YA at its finest." —Chloe Gong, #1 New York Times-best selling author of These Violent Delights

“With a fun rivals-to-lovers romance and touching moments of found family, You Don't Have a Shot feels a lot like a warm hug in the very best of ways. . .this book is for everyone who’s ever needed a light nudge in the right direction, and managed to find themselves in the process.” —Tashie Bhuiyan, author of Counting Down With You

"A fast-paced novel with a unique protagonist who discovers first love, truths about herself, and takes back the love for soccer she had left behind." —School Library Journal

Praise for Ophelia After All:

"This contemplative coming-of-age is a perfect addition to YA shelves." —Buzzfeed

"Ophelia may not have a label for her sexuality, but she definitely gives all the delightful disaster bisexual vibes a reader could hope for as she endearingly bumbles through her identity crisis...Deeply relatable." — NPR

"Marie writes Ophelia and her friends through the hurdles and heartaches of senior spring with charm and insight, giving each character complexity and their varied cultural experiences the space, consideration, and depth they deserve. A feel-good and effortlessly inclusive coming-of-age story that deftly captures the aching tension of queer adolescence." —Kirkus

"Filled with realistic elements, this lovely coming-of-age story follows Ophelia as she explores her identity as well as the ups and downs of high school...This touching debut offers an emotional ride that readers will be happy to embark upon." —Booklist

"With a lovably messy, flawed cast of characters and a relatable, authentic protagonist questioning her sexuality while going through the pains of growing up and growing apart...Ophelia After All is a welcome breath of fresh air in the YA contemporary genre." —The Nerd Daily

"Debut author Marie. . .shows a wonderful knack for creating sweetly complex relationships...and inclusive portrayals, including aromantic, asexual, bisexual, and pansexual representation—the book never feels like a manual: Ophelia, Talia, and their friends are fully human creations." —Publishers Weekly

"Look: The banter in this book alone is enough to develop a deep, life-affirming crush on Ophelia After All. But it is in the deep, loving characterization of Ophelia and her friends that Racquel Marie creates a memorable, boundary-breaking story about identity, friendship, and the messy complications between the two. Utterly remarkable." —Mark Oshiro, author of Anger is a Gift

"A sweet and tender ode to love and self-discovery. Racquel Marie's vibrant and insightful prose, and fresh, funny, fearlessly vulnerable characters make for a beautiful debut you won't want to miss. Ophelia After All is utterly lovely." —Courtney Summers, New York Times-bestselling author of Sadie

"Bursting with feelings, Spanglish, and authenticity...captures the power and wonder of falling in love with crushes, friends, and the infinite versions of ourselves. I would follow Ophelia Rojas and her unforgettable friends anywhere." —Nina Moreno, author of Don't Date Rosa Santos and Our Way Back To Always

"Ophelia After All is a marvel—a clever and hilarious coming of age story with a beautifully beating heart. This is the novel you hug to your chest after you read the last page." —Brittany Cavallaro, New York Times-bestselling author of A Study In Charlotte

"Ophelia Rojas is the type of character that leaps off the page and directly into your heart—Ophelia After All is a queer delight through and through." —Leah Johnson, bestselling author of You Should See Me in a Crown

"Marie’s debut YA novel adds more welcome queer and multiracial Latinx leading characters to the teens-coming-of-age canon. . .While this engaging story will especially resonate with individuals who share the protagonist’s identities and who seek to see themselves reflected in the stories they read, Ophelia is highly relatable as a soulful and eccentric individual who tries to find her way and reclaim a clear sense of who she is." —Horn Book

From the Publisher

10/06/2023

Gr 8 Up—After her mother's death, Valentina Castillo-Green threw herself into soccer—the sport her mother played as a young girl and that her father pushes Valentina to excel at. Now, four years later, 17-year-old Valentina has lost an important game and the captaincy of her school's varsity soccer team. Her chance of obtaining offers from colleges decreases as her father's disappointment increases. When her best friends Dina and Ovie suggest returning for one last summer to the camp they went to as children, Valentina ultimately agrees. When she arrives, not only is she surprised to find out that the soccer teams at the camp are serious and lead to major school offers, but she also learns that she must co-captain a team with her biggest rival, Leticia Ortiz. What starts off as an uncertain summer co-captaining a struggling team turns into a life-changing experience where Vale finds new friendships and realizations that bring her closer to her brothers, helping her realize she doesn't have to treat others like her father treats her. Along the way, Vale experiences love with the one girl she always thought would be her rival. This realistic fiction novel will have readers turning the pages, experiencing the flurry of emotions Vale does—from uncertainty, to painful confrontations, to hope and happiness. Vale is Colombian on her mother's side and Irish-American on her father's, and identifies as queer. VERDICT A fast-paced novel with a unique protagonist who discovers first love, truths about herself, and takes back the love for soccer she had left behind.—Selenia Paz

School Library Journal

2023-03-14
A refreshing, queer coming-of-age story.

Valentina Castillo-Green is captain of her soccer team, and even with her two best friends playing by her side, she still allows herself, as usual, precisely seven seconds to panic before the last and biggest game of the season. Not only is Vale’s intensely competitive father closely watching, they’re playing against undefeated Hillcrest, the team Leticia Ortiz, her childhood nemesis, is on. The game goes poorly, in large part because of Vale’s impulsively angry interactions with Leticia. More bad news follows—coach tells Vale she won’t be captain the following year, putting her chances of a college soccer scholarship at risk—so her besties propose a fun alternative for the summer. The three of them return to the soccer camp in Santa Cruz that they used to attend together. It starts out well with some happy reunions, but things quickly go south because not only is Leticia there, she’s assigned to co-captain a team with Vale, one that could salvage her college dreams. But in spending more time together, the girls develop feelings for one another. Colombian and Irish American Vale is easy to root for. She sounds authentically her age as she wrestles with believable problems and complaints, engages in self-reflection, and confronts her changing feelings for Letitia. The lively banter and fun cast of broadly diverse characters support a story in which soccer forms the backdrop of a sweet romance and a teen figures out what’s truly important to her.

Uplifting. (Fiction. 13-18)

Kirkus Reviews