Others: Overwhelmingly positive The hits just keep coming for Troy Barrett. Traded to the worst team in the league would be bad enough, but coming on the heels of a messy breakup and a recent scandal… Troy just wants to play hockey and be left alone. He doesn’t want to be in the news anymore, and he definitely doesn’t want to “work on his online presence” with the team’s peppy social media manager. Harris Drover can tell standoffish Troy isn’t happy about the trade—anyone could tell, frankly, as he doesn’t exactly hide it well—but Harris doesn’t give up on people easily. Even when he’s developing a crush he’s sure is one-sided. And when he sees Troy’s smile finally crack through his grumpy exterior, well… That’s a man Harris couldn’t turn his back on if he wanted to. Suddenly, Troy’s move to the new team feels like an opportunity—for Troy to embrace his true self, and for both men to surrender to their growing attraction. But indulging in each other behind closed doors is one thing, and for Troy, being in a public relationship with Harris will mean facing off with his fears, once and for all.
Genres: romance
Lists: …
Mikaella Clements
2021 · 336 pages · 3 reviews
Others: PositiveFaking a love story is a whole lot easier than being in love . . . The world can see that international A-list actress Whitman ("Win") Tagore and jet-setting playboy Leo Milanowski are made for each other. Their kisses start Twitter trends and their fights break the internet. From red carpet appearances to Met Gala mishaps, their on-again, off-again romance has titillated the public and the press for almost a decade. But it's all a lie. As a woman of color, Win knows the Hollywood deck is stacked against her, so she's perfected the art of controlling her public persona. Whenever she nears scandal, she calls in Leo, with his endearingly reckless attitude, for a staged date. Each public display of affection shifts the headlines back in Win's favor, and Leo uses the good press to draw attention away from his dysfunctional family. Pretending to be in a passionate romance is one thing, but Win knows that a real relationship would lead to nothing but trouble. So instead they settle for friendship, with a side of sky-rocketing chemistry. Except this time, on the French Riviera, something is off. A shocking secret in Leo's past sets Win's personal and professional lives on a catastrophic collision course. Behind the scenes of their yacht-trips and PDA, the world's favorite couple is at each other's throats. Now they must finally confront the many truths and lies of their relationship, and Win is forced to consider what is more important: a rising career, or a risky shot at real love? The View Was Exhausting is a funny, wickedly observant modern love story set against the backdrop of exotic locales and the realities of being a woman of color in a world run by men.
What made the match, strongest first
Denise Stone
2024 · 7 reviews
Others: PositiveThe broodiest goalkeeper in the Premier League meets his match in a radiant knitting influencer in this sexy grumpy/sunshine sports romance by best-selling author duo Kels & Denise Stone CAMERON HASTINGS I was running from the paparazzi when I crashed into a mystery girl with bright eyes and lavender hair. All it took was a smile from her, and I was a goner. We agreed to one night. No strings. No real names. So imagine my surprise when I discover she’s moving across the hall from me—in another country. But I don’t have time for distractions, especially after last season. It doesn’t matter that I’m the best of the best, the only American keeper in the Premier League. I need to prove myself to my new team. I need to give them everything so we have a shot at winning the championship. But I have a problem. It was supposed to be one night. But I want more... DAPHNE QUINN I blame it on my Yes Year: finally stepping out of my comfort zone, moving to London, and . . . Him. The man I spent that magical evening with. But this version of him, the guy who wears all black and a matching scowl, is nothing like the man I remember. I do my best to avoid him, instead focusing on creating a real-world safe space for my online knitting community and collecting as many experiences as I can during my stint abroad. But one neighborly run-in leads to another, and suddenly, I’m catching glimpses of him again. For the first time in my life, I feel confident enough to play by my own rules. To live my life on my own terms, bullies be damned. But how do I play to win when I’m facing down a man who protects his heart at all costs? Close Knit is the first book in The Hastings series, a collection of interconnected standalone sports romances about the Hastings siblings, scions of sports royalty.
What made the match, strongest first
Sierra Simone
2021 · 457 pages · 7 reviews
Others: PositiveI can’t have Elijah Iverson. I can’t have him because he’s my older brother’s best friend. I can’t have him because I broke his heart five years ago; because he’s now engaged to someone else—someone kind and dependable who deserves his whiskey eyes, his soft mouth, his fierce intellect. I can’t have Elijah because I’ve chosen God instead. The Bell brothers, though . . . well, we don't exactly have the greatest track record with vows. But I’m determined to do this monk thing right—to pledge myself to a cloistered life and spend the rest of my years in chastity and prayer. But now Elijah’s here. He’s here and he’s coming with me on my European monastery road trip, and between the whispered confessions and the stolen kisses and the moments bent over an ancient altar, my vows are feeling flimsier by the day. And vows or not, I know in my heart that it would take more than a good and holy monk to resist Elijah Iverson right now. It would take a saint. And we all know that I’m no saint.
What made the match, strongest first
Elliot Fletcher
2023 · 4 reviews
Others: PositiveOpposites attract when a fish-out-of-water actress and a grumpy Scottish whisky distiller are forced to work together to save the business they both love. As a child, April Sinclair dreamt of escaping her quiet island life to become a world-famous actress. Now fully grown and with her once-flourishing career at an all-time low, what better way to figure out where it all went wrong than to go back to the beginning? April has her sights set on a new challenge, and that is saving her family’s distillery on the idyllic Scottish Isle of Skye. What she doesn’t expect to find is Malcolm Macabe, short-tempered and exceedingly attractive, living in the home she has just inherited. He may be a million miles away from the shy teenager she knew growing up, but one thing is for certain: he doesn’t want her around anymore. Master distiller Mal has three loves in his life: Whisky, his dog and silence. He has no time for the pampered princess poking her nose around his distillery, even if said princess is the one who got away. More comfortable in the shadows than the spotlight, Mal is content to wait her out. She’ll grow bored and run back to her glamorous world of nail salons and take-away coffee eventually. When sparks begin to fly, he tells himself it doesn’t matter…because April Sinclair could never want a man like him, right?
What made the match, strongest first
Lauren Asher
2021 · 368 pages · 3 reviews
Others: MixedRowan I’m in the business of creating fairy tales. Theme parks. Production companies. Five-star hotels. Everything could be all mine if I renovated Dreamland. My initial idea of hiring Zahra was good in theory, but then I kissed her. Things spiraled out of control once I texted her using an alias. By the time I realized where I went wrong, it was too late. People like me don’t get happy endings. Not when we’re destined to ruin them. Zahra After submitting a drunk proposal criticizing Dreamland’s most expensive ride, I should have been fired. Instead, Rowan Kane offered me a dream job. The catch? I had to work for the most difficult boss I’d ever met. Rowan was rude and completely off-limits, but my heart didn’t care. At least not until I discovered his secret. It was time to teach the billionaire that money couldn’t fix everything. Especially not us.
What made the match, strongest first
Rachel Reid
2022 · 448 pages · 3 reviews
Others: Mostly positiveTen years. That’s how long Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov have been seeing each other. How long they’ve been keeping their relationship a secret. From friends, from family…from the league. If Shane wants to stay at the top of his game, what he and Ilya share has to remain secret. He loves Ilya, but what if going public ruins everything? Ilya is sick of secrets. Shane has gotten so good at hiding his feelings, sometimes Ilya questions if they even exist. The closeness, the intimacy, even the risk that would come with being open about their relationship…Ilya wants it all. It’s time for them to decide what’s most important—hockey or love. It’s time to make a call.
What made the match, strongest first
Loved itIn Role Model, I think Rachel Reid really hits her stride. I was nearly ready to give up on the series at this point. This one kind of bucks that trend. Although technically I suppose the narrative arc is still the same template, this one has a lot more substance, I think.
Loved itRole Model by Rachel Reid, I finally finished the Game Changer series thanks to Heated Rivalry, and this one was a five-star for me. This was so good. I love this one so, so much.
