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A Sharp Endless Need
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Expected 13 May 25Win a free print copy of this book!
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25 copies available
U.S. only
A vibrant and intimate novel about growing up, first love, and all the joy and heartbreak of competitive high school basketball
“Brilliant � so alive and vibrating that it took my breath away.”—Kevin Wilson, New York Times bestselling author of Nothing to See Here
Star point guard Mack Morris’s senior year of high school begins with twin cataclysms: the death of Mack’s father and the arrival of transfer student Liv Cooper. Playing side by side for their high school basketball team, Mack and Liv discover an electrifying, game-winning chemistry on the court. Off the court, they fall into an equally intoxicating more-than-friendship—one that feels out-of-bounds in their small Pennsylvania town. Mack teeters on the precipice of adulthood as desire and grief collide with drugs, sex, and the looming college signing deadline. Caught between the dual impulses of ambition and self-destruction, Mack must decide what kind of life they want to fight for.
Written with the lush longing of Andre Aciman’s Call Me By Your Name,the obsessive attention of Jean Kyoung Frazier’s Pizza Girl, and with all the romance and feeling of the beloved 2000 movie Love & Basketball, A Sharp Endless Need is a stunning testament to the big feelings of coming-of-age, falling in love, and, of course, playing sports.
“Brilliant � so alive and vibrating that it took my breath away.”—Kevin Wilson, New York Times bestselling author of Nothing to See Here
Star point guard Mack Morris’s senior year of high school begins with twin cataclysms: the death of Mack’s father and the arrival of transfer student Liv Cooper. Playing side by side for their high school basketball team, Mack and Liv discover an electrifying, game-winning chemistry on the court. Off the court, they fall into an equally intoxicating more-than-friendship—one that feels out-of-bounds in their small Pennsylvania town. Mack teeters on the precipice of adulthood as desire and grief collide with drugs, sex, and the looming college signing deadline. Caught between the dual impulses of ambition and self-destruction, Mack must decide what kind of life they want to fight for.
Written with the lush longing of Andre Aciman’s Call Me By Your Name,the obsessive attention of Jean Kyoung Frazier’s Pizza Girl, and with all the romance and feeling of the beloved 2000 movie Love & Basketball, A Sharp Endless Need is a stunning testament to the big feelings of coming-of-age, falling in love, and, of course, playing sports.
272 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication May 13, 2025
25 people are currently reading
11.9k people want to read
About the author
Marisa Crane
16books208followersMac Crane is an American writer. Their debut novel I Keep My Exoskeletons to Myself won the Lambda Literary Award for LGBTQ Speculative Fiction.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 142 reviews
January 29, 2025
wowwwwww, i literally care zero about sports and know nothing about basketball but i imagine people who do would get even more out of this than i did, and i sure got a lot!!!! queer girlhood intimacy and desire in small town bumfuck nowhere america is my shit ! and this book embodied and respected the heaviness and seriousness of that desire, the constant longing, and the drama of it all. the fuckery of weird parental relationships, grief, and the search for a purpose beyond the tiny little scope of your own world were so deftly described. simultaneously, the physicality of every interpersonal dynamic and interaction defining the dialogue as much as each word that is actually said was soooo amazing. very teen girl angst and the violence and confusion of it all. our main character's struggles with gender and sexuality in such homophobic and repressive/regressive environments were also so touching and compelling. a fantastic novel of lesbian longing on a high school basketball team in 2004!!
March 27, 2025
“A Sharp Endless Need� by Marisa Crane immerses readers in the early 2000s in a small Pennsylvania conservative town's stifling atmosphere, a backdrop to a compelling story about basketball and self-discovery. Despite my unfamiliarity with the sport, Crane expertly blends sports commentary with vivid imagery, creating scenes that resonate even with those less versed in basketball—a testament to the author’s engaging writing.
At the heart of the story is a complicated exploration of Mack and Liv's passionate yet tragic love. Their relationship is marked by intense longing, depicted through a slow burn that evokes sadness and desire. The suffocating environment they inhabit amplifies their struggle to be together, and the escapist fantasies they share serve as bittersweet reminders of their reality. The build-up of their feelings culminates in an unavoidable climax, capturing the intricacies of young love in a constrained setting.
Mack emerges as a rich, multifaceted character wrestling with significant challenges—grappling with the pressures of adolescence, the loss of her father, and her sexuality. His death serves as a pivotal moment that shapes the narrative. The subtle yet poignant exploration of grief is woven throughout her experiences, particularly in her fraught relationships with her mother and coach. A decisive moment reveals her mother’s indifference to her struggles, further deepening Mack’s emotional turmoil.
The story unfolds from the perspective of a future Mack, who occasionally offers insights that enhance the narrative while intensifying key moments. This choice of narration allows the past to feel immediate and relevant.
Liv is equally compelling, with a home life marred by her father’s departure and her mother’s coldness. The complexity of her feelings for Mack leads to moments of vulnerability, as her fear of being seen becomes a chaotic backdrop to their relationship. While Liv’s actions sometimes elicit frustration—pushing Mack away yet yearning for closeness—they ultimately foster empathy, revealing a young woman struggling for acceptance in an unwelcoming environment. A profound revelation about her family dynamics brings depth to her character, making her journey of self-discovery resonate.
Katrina is a strong side character, initially perceived as unlikeable but evolving through her narrative arc. However, some other secondary characters felt a bit underdeveloped, lacking the influence they could have had on the larger story.
Overall, the book is a powerful examination of love, grief, and the struggle for identity within the confines of societal expectations, making it a profoundly moving read.
Expected publication Date is May 13, 2025
I want to thank Random House Publishing Group—Random House | The Dial Press for providing an e-arc through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own. I was under no obligation to provide a review.
At the heart of the story is a complicated exploration of Mack and Liv's passionate yet tragic love. Their relationship is marked by intense longing, depicted through a slow burn that evokes sadness and desire. The suffocating environment they inhabit amplifies their struggle to be together, and the escapist fantasies they share serve as bittersweet reminders of their reality. The build-up of their feelings culminates in an unavoidable climax, capturing the intricacies of young love in a constrained setting.
Mack emerges as a rich, multifaceted character wrestling with significant challenges—grappling with the pressures of adolescence, the loss of her father, and her sexuality. His death serves as a pivotal moment that shapes the narrative. The subtle yet poignant exploration of grief is woven throughout her experiences, particularly in her fraught relationships with her mother and coach. A decisive moment reveals her mother’s indifference to her struggles, further deepening Mack’s emotional turmoil.
The story unfolds from the perspective of a future Mack, who occasionally offers insights that enhance the narrative while intensifying key moments. This choice of narration allows the past to feel immediate and relevant.
Liv is equally compelling, with a home life marred by her father’s departure and her mother’s coldness. The complexity of her feelings for Mack leads to moments of vulnerability, as her fear of being seen becomes a chaotic backdrop to their relationship. While Liv’s actions sometimes elicit frustration—pushing Mack away yet yearning for closeness—they ultimately foster empathy, revealing a young woman struggling for acceptance in an unwelcoming environment. A profound revelation about her family dynamics brings depth to her character, making her journey of self-discovery resonate.
Katrina is a strong side character, initially perceived as unlikeable but evolving through her narrative arc. However, some other secondary characters felt a bit underdeveloped, lacking the influence they could have had on the larger story.
Overall, the book is a powerful examination of love, grief, and the struggle for identity within the confines of societal expectations, making it a profoundly moving read.
Expected publication Date is May 13, 2025
I want to thank Random House Publishing Group—Random House | The Dial Press for providing an e-arc through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own. I was under no obligation to provide a review.
March 11, 2025
The story is set in a small town in the early 2000s. Mack is a senior in high school and plays basketball. Her father passes away, and at the funeral, she meets Liv, her future teammate. Mack immediately feels drawn to Liv but keeps it to herself.
The book features a lot of basketball, and Marisa Crane describes it masterfully. It turns out she is a former college basketball player, so that makes sense. I liked that the author touched on many important themes: coming-of-age, self-discovery, dealing with loss, coming to terms with one's sexuality, and parent-child relationships.
But unfortunately, this book wasn’t for me. The characters frequentlyconsume alcohol and various drugs throughout the book. I understand that it’s about teenagers, but for high schoolers aiming to become professional athletes, it felt inappropriate to me. I also didn’t particularly like any of the characters, and the ending felt rushed, leaving me with so many unanswered questions. After finishing the book, I can't even say for sure—does it have a happy ending?
Thank you to NetGalley andRandom House (The Dial Press)for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.
The book features a lot of basketball, and Marisa Crane describes it masterfully. It turns out she is a former college basketball player, so that makes sense. I liked that the author touched on many important themes: coming-of-age, self-discovery, dealing with loss, coming to terms with one's sexuality, and parent-child relationships.
But unfortunately, this book wasn’t for me. The characters frequentlyconsume alcohol and various drugs throughout the book. I understand that it’s about teenagers, but for high schoolers aiming to become professional athletes, it felt inappropriate to me. I also didn’t particularly like any of the characters, and the ending felt rushed, leaving me with so many unanswered questions. After finishing the book, I can't even say for sure—does it have a happy ending?
Thank you to NetGalley andRandom House (The Dial Press)for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.
December 17, 2024
i'm going to try to write a review about this one without screaming at the top of my lungs. thank you to Random House, The Dial Press, and NetGalley for making an advanced digital copy happen for me.
this book is out May 13 2025. preorder it now. i have read it and i have it preordered in three different formats. i'm not kidding, i'm about to get really annoying about this book.
--
i never know how to talk about books that i so deeply love.
this is a book with some of the most beautifully written prose and some of the most accurate depictions of lesbian longing that i've ever read. i think about this book and i feel it physically in my body. just the memory of reading it inspires a specific longing in me, as though i'm being pulled to something like a magnet. it's that good - it's given me a visceral reaction.
first off - if you're scared of sports, don't be. yes, this is a queer basketball romance. yes, there's basketball, but it's written in a way that doesn't make it too difficult to grasp what's going on, but the basketball scenes really aren't about basketball, anyway. this book is a wild testament to the love between teammates, the difficulties of unraveling your own identity in the moments you're trying to decide who you want to be. this book is about grief as much as it is about the grief of losing your youth, the grief of decision, and the perils of indecision. this book is about wild love.
we have mack, sports star. her dad dies. left with a ton of debt from credit cards he'd taken out in their names, her mom can't really be a mom. and even in this, you realize that the people we regard as the ones that are meant to protect us and take care of us are just people, too. there's this word - "sonder" - and it's a feeling of realizing that everyone has a life as complex and full as your own. that was what this book felt like.
liv transfers in. mack and liv connect on the court in that once-in-a-lifetime way that makes you desperately want to latch on to it, because you understand you may never have that feeling again. mack pines, even as we're introduced to liv's utterly disgusting boyfriend.
they both turn over stones, looking for the answers to their future. both courted by college scouts, both pushing their bodies to the limit at the expense of their futures, you realize what a specific snowglobe of a moment youth can feel like when you're in it. how much you don't want to leave that feeling of not being sure, because decision means mapping out who you want to be. it means your eventual death, too. this book made me feel immortal in that feeling.
this feels like a poet's novel, the prose is that gorgeous and lyrical. it unravels lust and love, but also sexuality, homophobia - both internalized and not, and gender. the feeling of being you, but not being able to communicate that to the world.
there are very few books that i feel like have fundamentally changed me, but this is one. thank you to mac crane for delivering to me the novel of my heart.
i can say with certainty this is my favorite book of all time.
this book is out May 13 2025. preorder it now. i have read it and i have it preordered in three different formats. i'm not kidding, i'm about to get really annoying about this book.
--
i never know how to talk about books that i so deeply love.
this is a book with some of the most beautifully written prose and some of the most accurate depictions of lesbian longing that i've ever read. i think about this book and i feel it physically in my body. just the memory of reading it inspires a specific longing in me, as though i'm being pulled to something like a magnet. it's that good - it's given me a visceral reaction.
first off - if you're scared of sports, don't be. yes, this is a queer basketball romance. yes, there's basketball, but it's written in a way that doesn't make it too difficult to grasp what's going on, but the basketball scenes really aren't about basketball, anyway. this book is a wild testament to the love between teammates, the difficulties of unraveling your own identity in the moments you're trying to decide who you want to be. this book is about grief as much as it is about the grief of losing your youth, the grief of decision, and the perils of indecision. this book is about wild love.
we have mack, sports star. her dad dies. left with a ton of debt from credit cards he'd taken out in their names, her mom can't really be a mom. and even in this, you realize that the people we regard as the ones that are meant to protect us and take care of us are just people, too. there's this word - "sonder" - and it's a feeling of realizing that everyone has a life as complex and full as your own. that was what this book felt like.
liv transfers in. mack and liv connect on the court in that once-in-a-lifetime way that makes you desperately want to latch on to it, because you understand you may never have that feeling again. mack pines, even as we're introduced to liv's utterly disgusting boyfriend.
they both turn over stones, looking for the answers to their future. both courted by college scouts, both pushing their bodies to the limit at the expense of their futures, you realize what a specific snowglobe of a moment youth can feel like when you're in it. how much you don't want to leave that feeling of not being sure, because decision means mapping out who you want to be. it means your eventual death, too. this book made me feel immortal in that feeling.
this feels like a poet's novel, the prose is that gorgeous and lyrical. it unravels lust and love, but also sexuality, homophobia - both internalized and not, and gender. the feeling of being you, but not being able to communicate that to the world.
there are very few books that i feel like have fundamentally changed me, but this is one. thank you to mac crane for delivering to me the novel of my heart.
i can say with certainty this is my favorite book of all time.
November 9, 2024
i have been BEGGING for a queer basketball romance and i got it! i wish i had this book when i was younger. although it focuses mostly on mack and liv's relationship, it's a coming-of-age novel at its core and delves into many deeper topics beyond that. a sharp endless need follows the main character, mack, as she navigates her relationship with basketball, her family, her teammates, and her sexuality and gender with 2004 u.s. politics as the backdrop.
i was most impressed by the crane's writing style. she describes basketball and sports in such a poetic way. there is truly something beautiful about knowing precise movements of people you love in a way that transcends language. i think if you grow up playing sports, you'd resonate a lot with the chase of perfectionism and the obsession with sports portrayed throughout. crane also normalises "taboo" subjects by writing in a matter of fact manner as if we're inside of mack's brain and experiencing the day-to-day thoughts that she'd have. i was very pleasantly surprised by how crane explored mack's gender expression. it's rare to find queer literary fiction with masculine representation where the character isn't trans-masc.
admittedly, this was originally a 4.5-star read, leaning more towards 4 stars, but after revisiting highlights that stood out, i think this is a 5-star novel that i will be thinking about and recommending to friends. i feel like i know and understand mack very intimately and everything ties together well to make a very impactful coming-of-age story. thank you marisa crane, random house publishing, and netgalley for this wonderful novel!
i was most impressed by the crane's writing style. she describes basketball and sports in such a poetic way. there is truly something beautiful about knowing precise movements of people you love in a way that transcends language. i think if you grow up playing sports, you'd resonate a lot with the chase of perfectionism and the obsession with sports portrayed throughout. crane also normalises "taboo" subjects by writing in a matter of fact manner as if we're inside of mack's brain and experiencing the day-to-day thoughts that she'd have. i was very pleasantly surprised by how crane explored mack's gender expression. it's rare to find queer literary fiction with masculine representation where the character isn't trans-masc.
admittedly, this was originally a 4.5-star read, leaning more towards 4 stars, but after revisiting highlights that stood out, i think this is a 5-star novel that i will be thinking about and recommending to friends. i feel like i know and understand mack very intimately and everything ties together well to make a very impactful coming-of-age story. thank you marisa crane, random house publishing, and netgalley for this wonderful novel!
October 28, 2024
A gorgeous, gripping, wrenching story of first loves - whether it be burgeoning queerness, an obsession with the sport that defines you, or the intersection of the two.
I Keep My Exoskeletons to Myself is an all-time favorite novel, so I couldn't wait to pick up Crane's next work. Of course, it didn't disappoint. I devoured this book in a single sitting, unable to put it down. Crane's voice is poetic, sharp, and rich, and anyone will be able to find themselves reflected in a story about the pushing your body to the limits of your ambition. As a WNBA fan, I was enthralled by the depiction of queer young adults seeking validation in their adoration for basketball. The sport comes alive through Crane's prose. Games are frantic, intimate, passionate. The characters are vibrant and so relatable that I felt myself overcome with nostalgic sadness for them and their exploration of gender and sexuality.
I truly can't sing A Sharp Endless Need's praises enough - it's a book that I'd recommend to any queer person seeking purpose in their life, afraid to learn what might live beneath the driving force of their desires.
I Keep My Exoskeletons to Myself is an all-time favorite novel, so I couldn't wait to pick up Crane's next work. Of course, it didn't disappoint. I devoured this book in a single sitting, unable to put it down. Crane's voice is poetic, sharp, and rich, and anyone will be able to find themselves reflected in a story about the pushing your body to the limits of your ambition. As a WNBA fan, I was enthralled by the depiction of queer young adults seeking validation in their adoration for basketball. The sport comes alive through Crane's prose. Games are frantic, intimate, passionate. The characters are vibrant and so relatable that I felt myself overcome with nostalgic sadness for them and their exploration of gender and sexuality.
I truly can't sing A Sharp Endless Need's praises enough - it's a book that I'd recommend to any queer person seeking purpose in their life, afraid to learn what might live beneath the driving force of their desires.
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December 27, 2024challengers but for dykes with gender troubles (this is the highest compliment I can give)
January 25, 2025
i felt this book embed itself and take root deep in my bones.
March 25, 2025
A Sharp and Endless Need opens with the dance of basketball. The prose has a cadence that gives it an almost musical quality and the story that follows - the give and take between two young athletes - perfectly choreographs the dance within it.
Mack’s senior year is approaching and her dreams of DI athlete “stardom� quickly turn from passion to necessity after a family secret comes to light and she looks for an out to her small town life. Pressure is rising and the introduction of a new face on the team, Liv, brings about an undeniably fierce chemistry between the two girls both on and off the court.
Idling in parking lots indulging on whatever delicacies your pocket change affords you, how the sticky heat of a summer night can peel open your vulnerability like a fruit, AIM!!! � Crane captures the teen years with all of its bitter nostalgia and dramatics, made all the more intense by the grittiness of queer coming-of-age and the uniquely American fanaticism of high school athletics.
Thank you to Netgalley and The Dial Press for an eARC of this title!
Mack’s senior year is approaching and her dreams of DI athlete “stardom� quickly turn from passion to necessity after a family secret comes to light and she looks for an out to her small town life. Pressure is rising and the introduction of a new face on the team, Liv, brings about an undeniably fierce chemistry between the two girls both on and off the court.
Idling in parking lots indulging on whatever delicacies your pocket change affords you, how the sticky heat of a summer night can peel open your vulnerability like a fruit, AIM!!! � Crane captures the teen years with all of its bitter nostalgia and dramatics, made all the more intense by the grittiness of queer coming-of-age and the uniquely American fanaticism of high school athletics.
Thank you to Netgalley and The Dial Press for an eARC of this title!
March 7, 2025
yeah i read a book about basketball!! and yeah i understood none of it :)
thought this was a beautifully written coming of age, the writing was smart and addictive, which is a hard thing to balance. there are so many side characters who only get a few chapters but i am still thinking of where the story leaves them. even if you aren't interested in sports, i still think it's worth trying this book out.
thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an ARC!
thought this was a beautifully written coming of age, the writing was smart and addictive, which is a hard thing to balance. there are so many side characters who only get a few chapters but i am still thinking of where the story leaves them. even if you aren't interested in sports, i still think it's worth trying this book out.
thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an ARC!
October 17, 2024
One of the best books I’ve read all year. Lesbian coming of age sports novel that hits like a punch to the gut. I requested this as soon as I saw it because I loved Exoskeletons and I still can’t believe how good it is. Read if you’re interested in lesbianism, gender, yearning, self-destruction, daddy issues, women’s sports, or the song $20 by Boygenius.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC!
January 6, 2025
The yearning gay sports novel of my dreams. 😭
March 26, 2025
Wow. This has been the maddest of Marches. Marisa Crane knocked it out of the park with this one. I keep trying and utterly failing to write a coherent review. I feel nauseous. No really, I’m going to throw up. A dizzying kaleidoscope of queer adolescence, of those unmoored years where external expectations and internal confusions and terrifying desires all threaten to tear you apart (but also, all ultimately are what mold you at your core).
I don’t really know how to talk about the basketball of it all � it feels both utterly central to these characters' identities yet also utterly interchangeable with any other intensely committed practice. I know everyone has already said “challengers but for lesbians,� but in case there are any goodreads algorithms out there listening, it’s worth repeating.
I have many mini gripes (some fuzzy story threads, an ending I didn’t quite think was fitting, sections that could use tighter editing), but they are all outweighed by the sheer intensity of the journey this book took me on. Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.
I don’t really know how to talk about the basketball of it all � it feels both utterly central to these characters' identities yet also utterly interchangeable with any other intensely committed practice. I know everyone has already said “challengers but for lesbians,� but in case there are any goodreads algorithms out there listening, it’s worth repeating.
I have many mini gripes (some fuzzy story threads, an ending I didn’t quite think was fitting, sections that could use tighter editing), but they are all outweighed by the sheer intensity of the journey this book took me on. Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.
November 24, 2024
This. is a great thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat! Mackenzie and Liz both play basketball and coach Puck also pays Mackenzie $20/hr to clean his house. When Mac sees Liv who now goes to her high school, she is instantly attracted and "in love." But of course they must keep it a secret as their parents don't know and they are so young. They attempt to go on dates with boys but their attraction to each other is undeniable. This is such a sweet and realistic look at young love and the lengths young people will go to to try to hide it or change themselves1
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!
April 10, 2025
I was immediately drawn to this book by the promise of basketball and young queer love and it did not disappoint. Mack is a star rising, in the quest to be a god on the court. As we follow her story, she deals with the loss of her father, the pressure of how to reach her dreams, as well as the feelings that come with being a lesbian in a small town in the early 2000’s. In order to deal with these feelings, she uses vices as an escape. Through her journey of self discovery, themes of gender, sexuality, regret and the need to become known are explored.
I felt that this book was very relatable for me as I was once a young queer kid growing up in south. There were parts where Mack denies feelings and lies to friends in order to hide who she truly is. The feeling of shame and wanting to not be attracted to women resonated with me because they were the same feelings I had growing up. I am so glad that stories like these are being told because they are so important in making LGBTQ+ people feel seen. I also enjoyed all of the nods to small town Pennsylvania as a transplant to PA. I could tell the author was from here and knew what they were talking about.
Overall, the story was interesting and I was so invested in Mack’s journey. This book made me feel so much and left me devastated. The basketball scenes were very fun and the chemistry Mack had on the court with Liv was electric. I was rooting so hard for Mack to get the ending she deserved. I would highly recommend this coming of age story to a sapphic audience as well as fans of the WNBA.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for providing me with the e-ARC of this book.
I felt that this book was very relatable for me as I was once a young queer kid growing up in south. There were parts where Mack denies feelings and lies to friends in order to hide who she truly is. The feeling of shame and wanting to not be attracted to women resonated with me because they were the same feelings I had growing up. I am so glad that stories like these are being told because they are so important in making LGBTQ+ people feel seen. I also enjoyed all of the nods to small town Pennsylvania as a transplant to PA. I could tell the author was from here and knew what they were talking about.
Overall, the story was interesting and I was so invested in Mack’s journey. This book made me feel so much and left me devastated. The basketball scenes were very fun and the chemistry Mack had on the court with Liv was electric. I was rooting so hard for Mack to get the ending she deserved. I would highly recommend this coming of age story to a sapphic audience as well as fans of the WNBA.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for providing me with the e-ARC of this book.
March 21, 2025
so raw and real in its portrayal of high school girls and queerness, i don’t usually care for sports books but the amount of basketball content here didn’t hinder my reading experience at all. loved!!!!
April 4, 2025
The writing was excellent but there were some pacing issues and the ending bugged me.
April 21, 2025
THE TENSION. this was so beautiful omg
Thank you to Netgalley for an Advanced Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to Netgalley for an Advanced Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
February 14, 2025
got an advance copy in exchange for a review! thanks netgalley!
I absolutely loved this book when I started it. I think the ending might have lost me a little bit, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it. A very very good coming of age book with a very distinct vibe to it. I forget where it’s set exactly, but I could picture myself there. I was never top of any sport, but I got the feeling of dedication to something, to the point of obsession. But even though I might not have lived most of the main character’s experiences, I related to the emotions. They’re written very well, where you understand what they’re feeling and thinking and why they do what they do. It all feels like that hazy night time feeling when you’re in high school and you feel like the world is ending but also you’re on top of it.
Overall, a very good queer coming of age story that takes you into the heat of basketball. LOVED the set up in that sense. I only have recently begun to understand basketball (boiler up), but i did feel very proud of myself for understanding what they were talking about with basketball (most of the time). I would definitely recommend checking this one out. I’m not good at putting it in words, but you feel like you’re in this book. The love of the game! Feeling a little like the world is ending because you’re graduating! That insane friendship that is definitely more than a friendship! Wow! Read it
I absolutely loved this book when I started it. I think the ending might have lost me a little bit, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it. A very very good coming of age book with a very distinct vibe to it. I forget where it’s set exactly, but I could picture myself there. I was never top of any sport, but I got the feeling of dedication to something, to the point of obsession. But even though I might not have lived most of the main character’s experiences, I related to the emotions. They’re written very well, where you understand what they’re feeling and thinking and why they do what they do. It all feels like that hazy night time feeling when you’re in high school and you feel like the world is ending but also you’re on top of it.
Overall, a very good queer coming of age story that takes you into the heat of basketball. LOVED the set up in that sense. I only have recently begun to understand basketball (boiler up), but i did feel very proud of myself for understanding what they were talking about with basketball (most of the time). I would definitely recommend checking this one out. I’m not good at putting it in words, but you feel like you’re in this book. The love of the game! Feeling a little like the world is ending because you’re graduating! That insane friendship that is definitely more than a friendship! Wow! Read it
February 6, 2025
4.5 stars | Really excellent. Well crafted and well thought out, everything in this has a purpose and is never forgotten. Loved liv & mack's characters and their arc! I think the only thing that lost me was it felt like they became friends and had attraction for each other very fast � I think this would benefit from slowing down the beginning a little and a bit more elaboration about the very beginning of their relationship when they first met. Overall though, this didn't take away from the story or the characters and I still connected with them a lot!! Think the ending was great too. Thank you Penguin Random House and NetGalley for the arc :)
March 11, 2025
Rev2.5/5 �
Thanks netgalley for the e-arc in exchange for my unbiased review!
I love books about coming of age and this did leave me wanting a more. More character development and more attention to the themes presented (e.g. self harm). It felt like some pivotal moments were brushed over.
I think it relies too heavily on basketball and alienates readers that don't love the game but I think if you're a queer or lesbian reader you could look past this!
I loved that this was set in the early 2000s as I too was growing up at this time too!
All in all this wasn't a bad book (I thought the writing and the topics were interesting), I just think it could be better!iew to come...
Thanks netgalley for the e-arc in exchange for my unbiased review!
I love books about coming of age and this did leave me wanting a more. More character development and more attention to the themes presented (e.g. self harm). It felt like some pivotal moments were brushed over.
I think it relies too heavily on basketball and alienates readers that don't love the game but I think if you're a queer or lesbian reader you could look past this!
I loved that this was set in the early 2000s as I too was growing up at this time too!
All in all this wasn't a bad book (I thought the writing and the topics were interesting), I just think it could be better!iew to come...
April 29, 2025
one of my most anticipated arcs and it did NOT disappoint -- i absolutely loved this one. this is the kind of book i wish i wrote. there is so much emotion in every single aspect of this, from mack's drive to win all the time to her feelings about liv to the way she lives her life around all of these people that all expect different things from her.
liv and mack never talk about anything but manage to say everything, whether through basketball or obtuse conversation or ice cubes. there's something so different about the space between being friends and being together, mutually understanding that you are the most important people to each other at that moment in time but not knowing what to do about it or how to say it because yeah, you're eighteen and your entire identity is wrapped up in how you love people.
augh. everything i could say is better unsaid and everything unsaid needs to be expressed. five stars.
liv and mack never talk about anything but manage to say everything, whether through basketball or obtuse conversation or ice cubes. there's something so different about the space between being friends and being together, mutually understanding that you are the most important people to each other at that moment in time but not knowing what to do about it or how to say it because yeah, you're eighteen and your entire identity is wrapped up in how you love people.
augh. everything i could say is better unsaid and everything unsaid needs to be expressed. five stars.
March 13, 2025
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for this arc!
There were things I loved about this book and things I didn’t. I loved Mack’s yearning for Liv and her coming of age story. I enjoyed her grappling with her sexuality and her crush, as well as navigating grief.
I didn’t like how much this book relied on basketball. I skimmed most of those parts because I don’t resonate with it. I also didn’t like the extreme amounts of drug and alcohol use. It felt inappropriate and over the top.
At times it felt repetitive and lost my interest. The ending was also not satisfying to me. But that being said, I wish I had read this in high school and I hope young queer women and femmes give this book a shot!
There were things I loved about this book and things I didn’t. I loved Mack’s yearning for Liv and her coming of age story. I enjoyed her grappling with her sexuality and her crush, as well as navigating grief.
I didn’t like how much this book relied on basketball. I skimmed most of those parts because I don’t resonate with it. I also didn’t like the extreme amounts of drug and alcohol use. It felt inappropriate and over the top.
At times it felt repetitive and lost my interest. The ending was also not satisfying to me. But that being said, I wish I had read this in high school and I hope young queer women and femmes give this book a shot!
March 20, 2025
Thank you for Netgalley and the publisher for arc in exchange for a honest review. This book was a bittersweet exploration of an extremely homoerotic friendship revolving around basketball. i really liked the imperfect perfection of the main characters. i think people who enjoyed sunburn or the song naked in manhattan by chapell roan will loveeeeee this. i highly recommend to just about anyone and can’t wait for this to come out!!
March 27, 2025
I love this damn book. It’s so smart about the ways we build our lives around the things we love, and people we love. The romance is hot, the coming of age thrashing is so real, and it’s expansive about gender. Yes yes yes
January 24, 2025
Okay, so, I do not sport—walked the mile in high school and even loathed *that* kind of Do Not Sport—and so I was, admittedly, kind of bummed to find out that Crane's sophomore novel centered basketball. I was worried the framework of the novel would alienate me, that I'd drown beneath or grow bored of all the Sport Lingo I don't know. I talked myself into ordering it from NetGalley because I loved Crane's first novel I Keep My Exoskeletons to Myself so much that I figured I'd be a dumb idiot not to at least give A Sharp Endless Need a go.
And holy hell am I glad I did.
Not only does Crane write basketball in a way that's totally accessible to an athletically illiterate person as myself, but they also, like, write basketball in a way that, um, yeah—how do I say this—maybe was very sensual? Like gave me feelings? There's this utterly intense and intimate and confident eroticism in the basketball scenes that's almost sexier than the actual, overt sex scenes themselves (and that's saying something since Crane did spice so well in Exoskeletons). Not only did I not feel alienated by the basketball moments, but I found myself craving them. Whenever Mack and Liv were on the court the tension between them was simultaneously cut and amplified, everything they avoid off the court, come so close to acknowledging only to run from, is realized and played out on the court, so-to-speak.
I'm not doing this justice, but I think what I'm trying to say is that Crane is a poet, a master of complex and nuanced subtext balanced with an at once gorgeous and accessible prose style. Their novels communicate as much lust and confusion and raw love in the periphery as they do in dialogue, and it's that peripheral and nuanced plotting that will keep bringing me back to their novels over and over and over again.
And holy hell am I glad I did.
Not only does Crane write basketball in a way that's totally accessible to an athletically illiterate person as myself, but they also, like, write basketball in a way that, um, yeah—how do I say this—maybe was very sensual? Like gave me feelings? There's this utterly intense and intimate and confident eroticism in the basketball scenes that's almost sexier than the actual, overt sex scenes themselves (and that's saying something since Crane did spice so well in Exoskeletons). Not only did I not feel alienated by the basketball moments, but I found myself craving them. Whenever Mack and Liv were on the court the tension between them was simultaneously cut and amplified, everything they avoid off the court, come so close to acknowledging only to run from, is realized and played out on the court, so-to-speak.
I'm not doing this justice, but I think what I'm trying to say is that Crane is a poet, a master of complex and nuanced subtext balanced with an at once gorgeous and accessible prose style. Their novels communicate as much lust and confusion and raw love in the periphery as they do in dialogue, and it's that peripheral and nuanced plotting that will keep bringing me back to their novels over and over and over again.
March 16, 2025
Ohhh. Oh Marisa Crane we are really in it now. This was Stunning. Kinda like Sunburn by Chloe Michelle Howarth mixed with Idlewild by James Frankie Thomas and the main character is Zendaya in Challengers except basketball and gay. This book tasted like sweat. It was so so good. Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced copy!
February 12, 2025
“please, tell me about me, i wanted to say. tell me who i am so i don’t have to tell myself.�
a beautiful reflection on young love and finding yourself in a world so big and vast it feels like it’s made for you but also goes against everything you are. this book really resonated with me as a kid who also went through high school sports grappling with accepting my lesbianism and navigating what it all meant. exploring the complexities of newfound sexuality is so confusing and scary but so exciting all at once. reading this shot me straight back to high school and it made my heart break for Mack, myself, and others in the same position we once were in. but it also filled me with so much pride and joy knowing we will always end up where we’re supposed to.
i really appreciate mack’s unabashed confidence in her masculinity; it’s so important to have lesbian fiction with proud masculine characters and show that masculinity can be beautiful yet confusing, normal and natural.
the more i sit with this book, the more i love it and the more i want to sob. i think this book will mean more to me than i can know right now but for now i will leave this off with my favorite quote from this book: “i liked that she loved it enough to ruin it. it’s how i wanted liv to feel about me.�
a beautiful reflection on young love and finding yourself in a world so big and vast it feels like it’s made for you but also goes against everything you are. this book really resonated with me as a kid who also went through high school sports grappling with accepting my lesbianism and navigating what it all meant. exploring the complexities of newfound sexuality is so confusing and scary but so exciting all at once. reading this shot me straight back to high school and it made my heart break for Mack, myself, and others in the same position we once were in. but it also filled me with so much pride and joy knowing we will always end up where we’re supposed to.
i really appreciate mack’s unabashed confidence in her masculinity; it’s so important to have lesbian fiction with proud masculine characters and show that masculinity can be beautiful yet confusing, normal and natural.
the more i sit with this book, the more i love it and the more i want to sob. i think this book will mean more to me than i can know right now but for now i will leave this off with my favorite quote from this book: “i liked that she loved it enough to ruin it. it’s how i wanted liv to feel about me.�
January 6, 2025
Phenomenal! Hooked after the first chapter.
I loved the use of physicality instead of words in some places; the act of an action being stronger than inaction. The metaphors felt very pointed especially in relation to basketball. And I know next to nothing about sports, but I love how it sets a background for Crane’s diction. Crane has a strong hold on their authorial voice and a sharp eye for wordplay. You don’t need to understand anything about basketball to know what’s happening.
Desire, the mess of life, complicated feelings about gender and sexuality, and grief are all very prominent themes. It felt real, it was messy and toxic and somehow an incredibly real read of queer longing. Longing for something more and something better.
I liked the openness of the ending it feels very real to leave with questions unanswered and problems unsolved. There’s both a grief and a pleasure to not knowing what happens between Mack and Liv, the thoughts of what could be if the circumstances of their youth was different.
It’s a raw expression of early 2000’s queer identity, desire, (sports!), youth, and what’s beneath the raw meaty surface of what it all means.
Thank you so much to Random House, The Dial Press, and NetGalley for the ARC!
I loved the use of physicality instead of words in some places; the act of an action being stronger than inaction. The metaphors felt very pointed especially in relation to basketball. And I know next to nothing about sports, but I love how it sets a background for Crane’s diction. Crane has a strong hold on their authorial voice and a sharp eye for wordplay. You don’t need to understand anything about basketball to know what’s happening.
Desire, the mess of life, complicated feelings about gender and sexuality, and grief are all very prominent themes. It felt real, it was messy and toxic and somehow an incredibly real read of queer longing. Longing for something more and something better.
I liked the openness of the ending it feels very real to leave with questions unanswered and problems unsolved. There’s both a grief and a pleasure to not knowing what happens between Mack and Liv, the thoughts of what could be if the circumstances of their youth was different.
It’s a raw expression of early 2000’s queer identity, desire, (sports!), youth, and what’s beneath the raw meaty surface of what it all means.
Thank you so much to Random House, The Dial Press, and NetGalley for the ARC!
April 1, 2025
3 1/2 Stars
A Sharp Endless Need is a coming of age book about a relationship between two basketball teammates. Set in the early 2000's Mack is a high school basketball player heading towards college D1 sports. Shortly before her season, her father unexpectedly dies and a new teammate, Liv, enters her life as a member of her team.
Told in the first person from Mack, the story really captures the angst and confusion of this time for a youth, especially one struggling with their sexuality. Mack doesn't feel whole anywhere but the basketball court and it shows.
The writing was beautiful throughout and I think the author really captured the overall feeling she was going for. I detested the ending of the book. As other readers have noted, the depiction of drug and alcohol use of all the characters was questionable. I wasn't an athlete at that time, but I was a teen and maybe I'm naïve, but I do not think it was a realistic portrait of that time. I did love how Crane captured just the absolute wild nature of that time period - something a little feral that you can't put your finger on.
Thank you to The Dial Press for providing an advance copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
A Sharp Endless Need is a coming of age book about a relationship between two basketball teammates. Set in the early 2000's Mack is a high school basketball player heading towards college D1 sports. Shortly before her season, her father unexpectedly dies and a new teammate, Liv, enters her life as a member of her team.
Told in the first person from Mack, the story really captures the angst and confusion of this time for a youth, especially one struggling with their sexuality. Mack doesn't feel whole anywhere but the basketball court and it shows.
The writing was beautiful throughout and I think the author really captured the overall feeling she was going for. I detested the ending of the book. As other readers have noted, the depiction of drug and alcohol use of all the characters was questionable. I wasn't an athlete at that time, but I was a teen and maybe I'm naïve, but I do not think it was a realistic portrait of that time. I did love how Crane captured just the absolute wild nature of that time period - something a little feral that you can't put your finger on.
Thank you to The Dial Press for providing an advance copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
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