The Defender

Published in 2025, The Defender is a contemporary sports romance by Ana Huang. The novel is the second interconnected standalone in the Gods of the Game series, which follows the players of the fictional Blackcastle Football Club in London. The story centers Vincent DuBois, the team’s celebrated captain, whose life is disrupted by anonymous threats from a stalker. For his own safety, he moves in with his coach’s daughter, a sports nutritionist named Brooklyn Armstrong, sparking a romance catalyzed by a high-stakes bet to see who will fall for the other first. Thematically, the novel explores The Perils of Fame and Parasocial Relationships, The Challenges of Navigating Professional Ambition and Personal Contentment, and The Redefinition of Family Beyond Blood Ties.

Ana Huang is a #1 New York Times and international best-selling author known for her popular contemporary romance series, including Kings of Sin and Twisted. Huang rose to prominence on the social media platform TikTok, where her books became viral “BookTok” sensations, leading to a massive global readership. Her Twisted series has been optioned for a television adaptation by Netflix. Like many of her other works, The Defender utilizes popular romance tropes, including forced proximity, to structure its central relationship within the high-pressure world of professional English football.

This guide references the 2025 Bloom Books edition.

Content Warning: The source text and guide feature depictions of graphic violence, sexual content, cursing, and mental illness.

Plot Summary

Vincent DuBois, the captain of the Blackcastle Football Club, returns home after a match to find his security gate unlocked. Inside, he discovers a small box containing a detailed crochet doll of himself, which unnerves him. He checks into a hotel for the night. The incident follows a cryptic, annual calendar reminder on his phone for “THE DAY (Do Not Contact)” (5), which has already soured his mood.

Meanwhile, Brooklyn Armstrong, a sports nutrition intern at Blackcastle and the daughter of its head coach, Frank Armstrong, plans to meet her father for dinner, but he cancels at the last minute. Brooklyn has strained relationships with both of her parents, who divorced when she was young. Since then, her father has been a more peripheral part of her life, and she accepted the internship with Blackcastle in an attempt to get closer to him. Brooklyn’s mother, Sienna, who has always resented having to give up the life she believed she should have to raise Brooklyn on her own, is remarried and pregnant with Brooklyn’s second half-sibling. Brooklyn feels hurt that her mother has little time for her now that she has a new family.

Disappointed that her father canceled their plans, Brooklyn visits her best friend, Scarlett DuBois (who is also Vincent’s sister), and Scarlett’s boyfriend, Asher Donovan, a Blackcastle teammate. Vincent arrives seeking support and shows them the doll, which has a replica of a faint, little-known scar on his knee. He initially moves in with Scarlett and Asher, but feels awkward about invading their privacy. During a brunch, Scarlett suggests that Vincent move into Brooklyn’s spare room. Brooklyn initially refuses, but Vincent goads her by suggesting she is scared she will not be able to control herself around him. Provoked, she agrees to let him move in on the condition that he pay double the rent.

Vincent moves into Brooklyn’s flat, and they establish house rules, including Brooklyn’s strict “no bringing girls over” policy. Their dynamic intensifies when the flat’s air conditioning breaks, and Vincent’s frequent shirtlessness flusters Brooklyn. Vincent suggests they make a bet: The first person to cave and kiss the other loses £100. Brooklyn accepts, confident in her self-control. She attempts to win by wearing only an oversized football shirt while they watch Vincent’s favorite show, The Great British Bake Off. Their playful banter turns serious as they discuss their career ambitions, Brooklyn’s application for the ISNA Innovator Award—a prestigious honor in her field—and Vincent’s hope of landing a sponsorship with the athletic brand Zenith. Later, Vincent finds another item from his stalker on his car, a photo of the doll with the message, “Did you like your gift?” (100). To distract themselves, he and Brooklyn go to an arcade, where they play games, share personal secrets, and almost kiss. At the arcade, Brooklyn meets a fellow San Diegan named Mason, and Vincent feels jealous of their banter.

Vincent asks Brooklyn to be his plus-one to a critical dinner with Zenith executives, who mistake them for a couple. Back at the flat, Brooklyn suggests they make pancakes together, hoping to win the bet. The atmosphere grows tense, and Vincent confesses that he cannot stop thinking about her. Suspicious that his confession is a strategy to win the bet, Brooklyn questions his sincerity, offending Vincent. Their argument is interrupted when the pancakes catch fire, setting off the smoke alarm. In the chaos, Coach Armstrong arrives at the door and finds a shirtless Vincent in his daughter’s smoke-filled flat. A major confrontation ensues, during which Brooklyn tells her father she is turning down Blackcastle’s job offer because she feels she will always be in his shadow there. To get his player away from his daughter, Coach Armstrong forces Vincent to move into his house.

Vincent moves in with Coach Armstrong, who keeps him busy with early morning runs and extra training sessions. Brooklyn and Vincent find that they miss each other and text often. After Brooklyn has an emotional breakdown at work following a difficult conversation with her father, Vincent comforts her and invites her on his upcoming birthday trip to Budapest with the other Blackcastle players and the team’s kit manager, Seth. In Budapest, Vincent receives a creepy, anonymous text wishing him a happy birthday and revealing the sender knows where he’s staying. Later, at a club, he becomes jealous watching Brooklyn dance with their teammate Noah Wilson. He and Brooklyn leave for pizza and walk through the city. As it begins to rain, he confesses he would have kissed her in the kitchen during their argument and would “lose every single fucking bet” (233) to be with her. They share their first kiss.

Brookly attends the Blackcastle Holiday Gala, where dates with the players are being auctioned off to the highest bidder to raise money for the franchise. Brooklyn confesses to Scarlett that she kissed Vincent in Budapest, and Scarlett is thrilled. During the bachelor auction, Brooklyn sees Vincent’s discomfort on stage and impulsively bids £35,000 on him, though she is ultimately outbid. Moved by her gesture, Vincent goes to her flat, where they have sex for the first time and officially begin their relationship. Vincent tells Coach Armstrong that they are dating, and the coach gives his reluctant blessing. On Boxing Day, Vincent takes Brooklyn to the empty Blackcastle pitch, where they have sex. Afterward, Vincent reveals that the “Do Not Contact” reminder from the beginning of the story was for his birth mother’s birthday. He’s known her identity for a while but has never contacted her.

Brooklyn flies to California to support her mom during the birth of her new baby sister, but when she arrives, her mother makes her stay in a hotel and acts as though Brooklyn should cater to her every whim. Brooklyn is thrilled when Vincent arrives at her hotel to surprise her. At brunch, Sienna treats Brooklyn poorly, and Vincent confronts her for her callous behavior while Brooklyn is in the bathroom. Brooklyn overhears Sienna admit she resents Brooklyn for ruining her “chances of having a real life and career” (343). Heartbroken, Brooklyn cuts ties with her mother. Returning to London, she receives a job offer to be the personal nutritionist for rising star gymnast Haley Moore. During the interview, Haley tells Brooklyn that, while the position was originally intended to be remote, they’ll now need her to move to Chicago. Brooklyn feels torn between excitement about the job and dread of leaving Vincent and London.

Meanwhile, Vincent’s stalker leaves a photo of Vincent and Brooklyn kissing in Budapest on Vincent’s car. When Vincent informs the police, the detective confirms their previous suspect has an alibi for the time of the trip, meaning the real stalker is still at large. Fearing for Brooklyn’s safety, Vincent encourages her to take the job in Chicago. She agrees, but only after negotiating a clause in her contract that allows her to move back to London and work remotely if Haley qualifies for nationals.

After two months apart, Haley qualifies, and Brooklyn flies to London to surprise Vincent. She stops at a coffee shop to kill time while Vincent is at practice and runs into Mason, the guy she met at the arcade. After a brief chat, Brooklyn heads to Vincent’s. She enters his house using a key provided by his bodyguard, Spike, but finds Seth, the team’s young kit manager, already inside. Seth reveals his obsession with Vincent, describing the crochet doll, anonymous texts, and the photo as “gifts” of appreciation. He reveals that he saw Brooklyn in the coffee shop with Mason and accuses her of cheating on Vincent. Believing Brooklyn is ruining Vincent’s life, he attacks her with a knife. Brooklyn fights back, but Seth overpowers and begins to strangle her. Vincent and Spike arrive just in time to stop Seth from killing her, and Seth is arrested.

In the aftermath of the attack, Vincent and Brooklyn confess their love for each other. One month later, Brooklyn attends the Champions League final, where Blackcastle stages a dramatic comeback to win. Six months later, Brooklyn has permanently moved back to London and is living with Vincent. The stalker threat is gone, and Vincent has found peace, realizing his self-worth is not tied to external validation. As they watch The Great British Bake Off, Vincent reflects that with Brooklyn, he is finally home.