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The Official Blurb
“What happens when a romance book-loving woman on a journey of self-discovery has her whole world altered when she finds her childhood best friend got her pregnant by accident?
Lots of hormones, role playing, banter, and angst.
Angie Johanssen is the oldest of five siblings and has been taking care of her family since she was a child. Now she puts her personal experience to professional use as a children’s therapist. But encouraging her patients to talk about feelings is much easier than admitting she has them for her best friend and new roommate.
Eight man and CFO Rafael Jimenez is a goofy, playlist-making, salsa-dancing rugby player for Philadelphia’s D1 team with his eyes set on bachelorhood. But when he moves back to the city, and his curvy best friend needs a place to live, he offers up his spare bedroom just like old times.
However, when the tequila starts flowing at his housewarming party and Rafael wakes up in bed with Angie—the sister to three of his teammates—will bachelorhood be as appealing as it once was? Can he rediscover his teenage crush?.”
Every Version of You by Sloan Spencer: Rugby, Risk and Habanero Heat
The Basics
Title: Every Version of You
Series: The Rugby Lovers Series
Author: Sloan Spencer
Published: 2024
Genre: Sports romance, rugby romance, contemporary romance, romantic comedy, friends to lovers, surprise pregnancy
Spice Level: Habanero 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Written in first person with alternating perspectives from Angie and Rafael, this book blends friendship, accidental pregnancy and negotiated kink into one surprisingly grounded rom-com.
And, yes, tequila absolutely made their clothes fall off.
The Premise
Angie Johanssen is the oldest of five siblings and has essentially acted as their mother since losing her own mum in a car accident. She’s now a children’s therapist, emotionally intelligent and deeply accustomed to carrying responsibility.
Rafael Jimenez is a CFO and hobby rugby player. He’s been Angie’s best friend since childhood, ever since she took him under her wing when he was new at school. He recently moved back to town for work and remains a steady presence in her life.
After one very tequila-heavy night with friends and family, Angie and Rafael wake up half dressed with no memory of what happened. There’s no clear evidence they had sex. Angie gets what appears to be her period. Crisis averted.
Except it wasn’t.
Angie later discovers she is very much pregnant.
Instead of forcing a rushed marriage or spiraling into melodrama, they choose to raise the baby together. No wedding. No fairy tale shortcuts. Just two best friends deciding to co-parent like adults.
They move in together because Angie needs housing. They decide that while living together and preparing for parenthood, they might as well have sex exclusively with each other.
You can see where this is headed.
As feelings deepen, Angie begins to question whether Rafael is getting the benefits of a committed relationship without actually offering commitment. She wants long-term partnership. Rafael carries deep commitment issues rooted in a father who taught him never to be “trapped” by a woman.
The tension is not about lust. It’s about whether friendship can evolve into something durable.
What I Loved
The Details
This book is thoughtful in ways that made me genuinely smile.
There’s a Spotify playlist at the front with a QR code so you can listen while you read. Specific songs are marked throughout the book. I loved that level of immersion.
There’s also an American rugby terminology guide. Did I retain everything? No. Did I appreciate having it? Absolutely.
Angie’s cat is named Razzle Dazzle. 10/10
Representation and Realism
The cast includes polyamory, bisexuality and a transgender character. It feels reflective of real life instead of performative.
Therapy is normalized, including for male characters.
Angie is a size 18 to 20 heroine (same, girl) whose desirability is never treated as surprising. She simply exists in her body.
And when Angie develops a pregnancy symptom where water tastes contaminated, I have never felt more seen. That happened to me when I was pregnant with my daughter, Sidney, and it never went away. I will be bitter about contaminated water forever. So thank you, Sloan Spencer, for that deeply specific validation.
The Spice
This is a habanero read.
Angie and Rafael explore fantasies, scenes and kink as two healthy consenting adults. They negotiate. They use safe words. They debrief.
Their safe words are Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers. That alone deserves applause.
Not every scene was my personal jam. One particular fantasy had me saying what the hell. But Rafael also hesitates and reworks it in a way that respects his boundaries while honoring hers. That acknowledgment of discomfort made it feel far more grounded.
It’s playful. It’s negotiated. It’s adult.
The Quiet Romance
For all the kink, the most romantic moments are simple.
Rafael leaves snacks on Angie’s nightstand.
When they fight and she stays elsewhere, he brings her pillows, toiletries and clothes because a pregnant woman deserves her comfort.
That’s partner care.
Learning Curve
I am learning a lot this year from romance novels.
This book had me Googling primal domination, consensual non-consent, sleep creep and switching. I thought I understood some of those terms. I didn’t fully understand them.
Growth.
Challenges
Pregnancy romance is not typically my favorite trope. I didn’t love being pregnant and I never wanted to repeat the experience after having my beautiful daughter.
But Sloan Spencer recommended this book to me personally when I met her at a romance event in Milwaukee last fall. And, you know what? She DID choose the best book for me.
The characters carried this story beautifully and I loved the spice level. There was only one scene request where I was truly thrown off. The fact that Rafael also balked made it feel intentional instead of gratuitous.
Final Thoughts
If you enjoy sports romance that’s light on the technical play and heavy on emotional maturity, this is a fun read.
If you like friends to lovers, surprise pregnancy, inclusive casts and spicy rom-com energy, Every Version of You delivers.
It’s habanero hot but anchored in care.
And sometimes that is the best combination of all.
I appreciated that.
Final Thoughts
If you want to hear more of my thoughts on the book, you can listen to the podcast episode on your favorite podcast streaming service. Or click here for our in-house podcast player. You can also find out if I won the episode Boobie Prize. Want to read the book for yourself? You can get it here:
Have you read Every Version of You? Let me know your thoughts on this book in the comments!
