Relationship Goals by Brittany Kelley

Posted July 7, 2025 in review Tags: Fake Relationship, grumpy/sunshine

Relationship Goals by Brittany Kelley

Genres: Contemporary Romance
Source: ARC, NetGalley

Goodreads

An infamously grumpy star soccer player is forced to fake date a Hollywood starlet, only to develop real feelings for her—just as she learns he was pretending and vows to get even.

Abigail Hunt’s Hollywood dreams could best be described as slow burn…but she’s about to graduate from TV sidekick to dramatic actor. When the esteemed director of what she’s hoping will be her breakout role suggests she do a deep-dive for her part by shadowing the director of a struggling pro soccer team, she jumps at the chance to prove she’s ready.

She wasn’t expecting notorious grump and gorgeous star player Luke Wolfe to ask her out though, and suddenly her research is getting a lot more…hands-on. Their relationship quickly sets social media on fire, and Luke seems determined to prove he’s more than his villainous reputation. But just when Abby is happier than ever—her name in the spotlight and heart in good hands—the other cleat drops: Luke
was coerced into faking their relationship.

Furious, Abby refuses to give him the satisfaction of dumping him—she decides to get even. It’s only a matter of time until she pushes the right buttons.
She just didn’t expect him to keep putting up with it—or to say I love you.

Relationship goals has fake dating between a soccer start and a famous athlete. It is very much like How to Lose A Guy In 10 Days. The heroine, Abigail, does some truly crazy things to get Luke to dump her after she figures out he is dating her for the PR. But, Luke needs her or he ends up on the transfer list.

What I enjoyed: This book was funny! They have a great grumpy/sunshine vibe that I enjoyed. There is great banter between Abby and Luke.

What I didn’t enjoyed: Abigail was annoying. Her behavior was all a bit too much. It was funny, but it was cringey at times. Really, all of this book was kind of a miscommunication. She thinks it real, he thinks it a PR stunt, but they never actually talked to each other.

Overall, I struggled with this one. It felt really immature for me. Abby’s feelings were hurt when she found out it was just fake for Luke, but then she went off the rails. Luke could have been honest at any point and shared his feelings. So could Abby. But they didn’t. So, Relationship Goals was funny, but frustrating.