Spotlight for PICKLE PERFECT by Ilana Long

 

PICKLE PERFECT by Ilana Long

Published:  Berkley Trade Paperback Original; October 28, 2025

Genre: Sports Romance; Romantic Comedy; Contemporary Romance

The story: Lulu Gardner only takes predictable shots. After faulting on tennis stardom at eighteen, Lulu, now a thirtysomething single parent, is in control of her game. But when an unanticipated blunder threatens her teaching job, Lulu’s stable, well-planned—okay, boring—world spins out. And somehow, her godparents convince her to join them for a “de-stressing” destination pickleball vacation in Costa Rica. Maybe an all-inclusive picklecation is just the pick-me-up she needs to loosen her grip.

 

Or it would have been if she wasn’t backhanded by the sight of her high school fling Tyler Demming on the beachside courts. Fresh off the tennis pro tour, the reigning bad boy of paddle sports is as studly and snarky as ever. Even though his public image took a hit with a ballsy publicity stunt, Tyler seems to be the big shot he’s always been.

 

But Lulu’s had years to steel herself against his rugged good looks and hypnotic charm. Despite the changes she sees in Tyler since their teenage days, Lulu will have no problem keeping her head in the game and her heart on the sidelines. Or so she tells herself….

 

Author Bio: Ilana Long first heard about pickleball when her sporty friend confessed that she was addicted to a game that was “like ping-pong but standing on the table.” Shortly after, Long joined the pickleball craze despite her utter lack of hand-eye coordination. Funny and energetic, Long has performed stand-up and improv comedy at the Second City in Chicago. She is the author of the picture book, Ziggy’s Big Idea, and her essays appear in multiple books in the Chicken Soup for the Soul series.