Rating: 4.5🌈
V. L. Locey’s Watkins Glen Gladiators series is such a special warmhearted group of stories and characters. Locey’s gift of being able to bring a fully immersive universe such as the Watkins Glen Gladiators AHL team to life, then fill it up with characters that a reader will find endlessly fascinating, entertaining (looking at you,Greck),amazingly diverse, and always endearing,that’s what makes it so lovely.
Her stories are humorous, realistic, and filled with people stumbling through life as best they can, a HFN on their way to a HEA. Filled with cats, and as here, a pack of rescue dogs as real as their owner, and locations we’ve come to know as well.
The slow paced romantic relationship between 38 year old Tanner “Fossie” LaBrie of the Watkins Glen Gladiators and Keyshaun Williams, successful gym owner, is low angst, supported by both their families in a way we get to really enjoy the family dynamics and interactions, and understand the true nature of the men themselves.
There’s no real drama. Between them that is. It’s on the ice as the Gladiator’s go for the Cup in exciting scenes and memorable plays. Without the recuperating Fossie who has to watch from the sidelines. That’s the reality too.
Locey doesn’t make a mistake here. Not on or off the ice. It’s a relationship that’s still very much in play but going forward in the right direction. I love this. Realistic expectations and grounded.
Plus we get a very special wedding and vows. That’s the ice on the Cup!
A highly anticipated story in a lovely series hit the goals and more.
Watkins Glen Gladiators:
- Between The Pipes #1
- Defending The House #2
- Dump and Chase #3
- Taking The Body #4
- Reading The Play #5
- Playing The Man #6
Buy
Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.com › Playin…Playing the Man (Watkins Glen Gladiators #6)
Blurb
If only getting back into playing shape were as easy as falling in love…
Tanner LaBrie—aka Fossie to his teammates—is feeling every bit of his thirty-eight years. His shoulder aches when it’s cold, his arms need to be longer to see the crossword puzzle app on his phone, and his knees are incredibly unhappy about the abuse they’ve taken. During one of the final games of the regular season, one of his weary joints decides to give way. The need for surgery is not a surprising one for Tanner. He’s been putting it off for years, but escaping the knife is not an option now. Post-surgery rehab is a son-of-a-gun, but if Tanner is anything, it’s stubborn. Just ask any of his ex-boyfriends. So when his therapist suggests finding a local yoga group, he scoffs at first. Unsure of how he would fit in with the gals in leotards, he nonetheless signs up for a class at his local gym where the teacher is not at all the person listed on the signup form. Not that Fossie is complaining when Keyshaun Williams, the enigmatic and sexy gym owner, shows up with a floral exercise mat, some whale song CDs, and a smile that nearly erases how out of place the defenseman feels.
Keyshaun Williams is living the life he has always dreamed of…for the most part. His new business is a huge success, his family is happy and healthy, and his sister—the only somewhat straight triplet—is a few weeks away from giving birth to twins while his brother is about to open a franchise of Williams Wellness in Buffalo. Yep, life is looking pretty darn great for the former Army dietician/Golden Gloves boxer. Great aside from the quiet house he goes home to every night. Being a few years on the other side of thirty has him seeking someone to settle down with, raise a family, maybe adopt some dogs or raise some goats. Heck, maybe dogs and goats. A man could dream, right? And yes, dreamy would describe the towering, mature, stunningly attractive D-man for the local hockey team who has, it seems, signed up for a senior yoga class that Keyshaun is leading as his sister nests and eats far too many chocolate-covered jalapenos. Tanner LaBrie ticks all his boxes as well as a few he didn’t even know he had. Maybe those long looks the hockey player has been shooting his way for months means Tanner is interested in more than achieving the perfect camel pose?
Playing the Man is a low-angst, small-town, queer hockey romance starring a rehabbing hockey player, a personable gym owner, a fitness center filled with snoopy seniors, meddling but well-meaning siblings, rescue dogs, tons of namaste, and one barktastic happy ever after.
- Publication date: September 21, 2024
- Language: English
- Print length: 192 pages
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words 