Tag: Game Changers series by Rachel Reid

A MelanieM Review:Tough Guy (Game Changers #3) by Rachel Reid

Rating: 4.75 stars out of 5

They have nothing in common—so why does Ryan feel most like himself whenever he’s with Fabian?

Pro hockey star Ryan Price may be an enforcer, but off the ice he struggles with anxiety. Recently traded to the Toronto Guardians, he’s determined to make a fresh start in the city’s dynamic LGBTQ Village. The last thing he expects to stumble upon in his new neighborhood is a blast from his past in the fabulous form of Fabian Salah.

Aspiring musician Fabian loathes hockey. But that doesn’t stop him from being attracted to a certain burly, ginger-bearded defenseman. He hasn’t forgotten the kiss they almost shared back in high school, and it’s clear the chemistry between them has only intensified.

Fabian is more than happy to be Ryan’s guide to the gay scene in Toronto. Between dance clubs and art exhibits—and the most amazing sex—Ryan’s starting to feel something he hasn’t experienced in a long time: joy. But playing the role of the heavy on the ice has taken its toll on his body and mind, and a future with Fabian may mean hanging up his skates for good.

I discovered Rachel Reid through this blog’s recommendations for M/M Hockey Recommendations.  All it took was one story to know I had a new author for my auto buy list.  Luckily for me , the author also loves to write M/M hockey romances so I’m absolutely overjoyed twice over.

Game Changers is one of her fabulous series that I just impatiently wait for that next story to fall.  Tough Guy is the third installment and , again, just another outstanding tale of romance intertwined with the game of ice hockey and its players.  It’s a game I’m fanatic about and deeply appreciate those authors that share my love as well as have the ability to not only understand the complexities of the game but of the players and their careers.  It is a far cry from football, much closer in passion and spirit to baseball in what it takes sometimes to continue on because of the love of the sport.

In Tough Guy (Game Changers #3) by Rachel Reid, the author also writes about what happens when that passion begins to fade, what’s next.    Something that can cut deep  emotionally and mentally.  Reid’s characterizations have been a major draw of her stories.  They are layered portraits of real people, flawed, human, pained, and lovely.  So easy  to connect with, as you do here with both hockey star Ryan Price and musician Fabian Salah.

They have a complex back history, together and apart but when they mesh and reconnect, they are so endearing, so open, so, well perfect for each other, that the story just flew by as I was so engaged by their relationship and their path towards love.

By the end (as I feel with all the stories in this series) I was loathe to leave the couple behind.  I had fallen for them and wanted to linger a bit longer.

Oh well, now to wait for the next story in the series.  I hope Rachel Reid won’t make me wait too long.

I highly recommend this story and the entire series.  And this author.  What a splendid time you will have getting acquainted!

Cover art by Carina Press is just ok but doesn’t really relate to the storyline or character.  Meh.

Sales Links:  Carina Press | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Book Details:

ebook
Published January 13th 2020 by Carina Press
ISBN 1488068917 (ISBN13: 9781488068911)
Edition Language English
Series Game Changers #3

A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review: Tough Guy (Game Changers #3) by Rachel Reid

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

Rachel Reid creates memorable characters and there’s no exception in this story. Ryan and Fabian are unlikely to be forgotten in the same way that Ilya and Shane (who put in an appearance in this story) will forever hold a piece of my heart.

Picture Ryan: huge, 6’7” of muscle, a ginger (yes!) who bears an amazing resemblance to comic character Archie, but carries a mean look and uses his fists in his role as his hockey team’s enforcer. Inside, he’s a sweet man who doesn’t really like his job, hates to fight, wants to skate to win games, not rough up opponents, and who suffers from panic disorder—a panic that can strike at any time, not only when he has to fly to an away game. In fact, he left his last team due to a panic attack that ultimately resulted in being traded to the Toronto Guardians. 

Picture Fabian: 5’7”, slender, creative, artistic, a musician, wears makeup, is a fabulous dresser who sometimes wears lace undies, and who hates hockey players. His father and mother are hockey fanatics who took in student players who attended a special camp each year, and they discounted Fabian for his lack of interest in the sport and his focus on music. Needless to say, gangly, awkward teen Fabian feared homophobic jocks and hated hosting them—all except for one guy named Ryan, who he had a crush on that was never revealed.

Fast forward and a chance encounter with a huge ginger in his department at SuperSaver brings it all back. Ryan Price is up close and personal again and Fabian is so speechless he fails to act. This sets the stage for a long, sweet, slow-burn story of love and change and growth in both the characters and their relationship. Ms. Reid takes them through the early stages of reuniting in friendship, stumbling into sex, and finally realizing just how deeply they care for each other.

I loved the characters—their flaws, their foibles, their fun together. I was saddened through the tough times, broken-hearted over Ryan’s insecurities, anxiety, and frustration with his career, and I rejoiced with Fabian as his musical career took off and he came into the spotlight he’d been working years to reach. The two together fit like puzzle pieces long abandoned and now brought together to form their perfect whole. I simply loved this story and I highly recommend it to all lovers of hockey and MM romance. And one more word: get the entire series. This set of stories is outstanding.

Cover art by Carina Press:

Sales Links:  Carina Press | Amazon

Book Details:

ebook
Expected publication: January 13th 2020 by Carina Press
ISBN 1488068917 (ISBN13: 9781488068911)
Edition Language English
Series Game Changers #3

A MelanieM Review: Heated Rivalry (Game Changers #2) by Rachel Reid

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

Nothing interferes with Shane Hollander’s game—definitely not the sexy rival he loves to hate.

Pro hockey star Shane Hollander isn’t just crazy talented, he’s got a spotless reputation. Hockey is his life. Now that he’s captain of the Montreal Voyageurs, he won’t let anything jeopardize that, especially the sexy Russian whose hard body keeps him awake at night.

Boston Bears captain Ilya Rozanov is everything Shane’s not. The self-proclaimed king of the ice, he’s as cocky as he is talented. No one can beat him—except Shane. They’ve made a career on their legendary rivalry, but when the skates come off, the heat between them is undeniable. When Ilya realizes he wants more than a few secret hookups, he knows he must walk away. The risk is too great.

As their attraction intensifies, they struggle to keep their relationship out of the public eye. If the truth comes out, it could ruin them both. But when their need for each other rivals their ambition on the ice, secrecy is no longer an option…

One-click with confidence. This title is part of the Carina Press Romance Promise: all the romance you’re looking for with an HEA/HFN. It’s a promise!

As a fan of both hockey and hockey fiction, I’m always on the lookout for more contemporary romances with hockey and gay hockey players at the center of the action.  So I was delighted to come across this new release from Carina Press.  It represents both a new author and a new series for me.  And since I ended up loving both the story and this couple, it will send me running to pickup the first story in the series.

To be honest, I wasn’t sure at first how I felt about the format the author uses in Heated Rivalry (Game Changers #2) by Rachel Reid.  Told from both points of view of the main characters, we start the novel when they are teenagers vying for status and an award.  It is their first meeting and the beginning of their personal hockey competition and interaction.  From then on the story starts jumping forward as they meet in different cities in various time intervals, the competition and heated rivalry flaring hotter and hotter. Each time frame advancing both the personal competition between them as the best hockey players currently coming up in the game, and something more.  A physical closeted relationship that’s still somewhat impersonal….until it starts to be something more.

As I said I started out unsure about this flash forward framework because it didn’t allow the reader to see any development of a relationship between the men.  Until I realized that was the point.  There wasn’t one.  Only the one we saw on ice.  But midway, those jumps in time slowed and a relationship between the men started to develop beyond the competition and mere physicalilty they had allowed themselves.  And we as readers relished it all the more for the lack of intimacy that had gone before.

Due to this format, we need the 2 pov narrative to fill us in on the men, their background and the drama that is happening around them and to them in some cases.    These characters are well developed and if they seem a tad familiar to those that follow hockey there is a reason for it.  If you read the Afterword by the author, you will know that Reid was a fan of the HBO hockey series about  Penguins/Capitals rivalry, specially the one between “good boy” Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins and  “bad boy” Russian Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals. As a Caps fan, I can tell you it’s a hard fast competition that continues today between “The Kid” and “Ovi” .  And it sparked the inspiration for this romance and story.

The slow to develop emotional intimacy is what we crave here because what they already have is an intense physical one.  So the payoff for the men at the end is a realistic one.    It’s not a HEA but an authentic HFN which I thoroughly appreciated.  It’s what they had worked for, were still working for, and, cleared eyed as to how the NHL is run, homophobia included, make plans that we as readers not only get behind but quietly cheer for.  And hope to see this couple pop up in future stories.

I really enjoyed this tale.  The author has a feel for hockey action on the rink, a well developed storyline, great characters and a ending I believed in.  Love it.  And now to go back and check on the first book in the series.

This is definitely a standalone novel as far as I can tell.  One that I recommend, especially if you are a fan of hockey and hockey romances like me.

Cover art by Carina Press.  Ok not a fan of this cover.  Could be for any romance, nothing really distinguishes it as a hockey novel.

Sales Links:  Amazon

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 310 pages
Published March 25th 2019 by Carina Press
Original Title Heated Rivalry
ASINB07H5K8SFW
Edition LanguageEnglish
Series Game Changers :

Game Changer

Heated Rivalry

A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review: Heated Rivalry (Game Changers #2) by Rachel Reid

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

My first book from this author, but it won’t be my last. This story engaged me and kept me riveted with not only memorable characters, who happen to be sexy hockey players, but also men who grow from 18-year-old rookies looking for a quick hookup to mature all-stars who know each other better than anyone else in the world and become willing to risk their hearts for a chance at permanence.

Talk about slow burn! These two took forever to realize their instant lust attraction—which they perpetuated for several years—was more than they ever thought they could have. After all, pro hockey players didn’t come out. They didn’t settle down with one man.  And they certainly didn’t leave their homeland—Russia in Ilya’s case—to find their HEA with the man who newscasters set up as an archrival.

After years of texting, secretly meeting up after games in each other’s hometown, Ilya and Shane—Lily and Jane on each other’s cell contact list—finally face the fact that they aren’t just meeting to scratch an itch. They care deeply for each other and there’s a glimmer of hope for a future together if they plan it well.  And since Shane is a planner…

From the beginning of this story, I was swept up in the rich characterizations, the excitement of pro hockey, and the secretive sexy banter and wish fulfillment. I enjoyed being with Shane as he matured and developed feelings for Ilya. And Shane was fortunate to have two supportive, interesting and loving parents—especially his mother who was a hoot with her knowledge of pro sports.  Ilya, unfortunately, was not as blessed. An aging father who suffered from dementia, a demanding brother who constantly wanted money, and a stepmother who was zero in the nurturing department were all he had in his homeland and he got to the point where he dreaded going back to Russia in the off season.  I adored Ilya with his accent, his sense of humor, and his ego—huge and well-deserved.  And together, these two men were fantastic.  By the end of the story, after they’d made their decision to be a couple, I couldn’t put the book down. 

Every word, every page turn brought me closer to the end of the book, and I didn’t want to finish.  I savored their time together, and I am hopeful we’ll see them again at some point in the future because I’m not ready to release them from my heart.  Very highly recommended. 

Cover art is every bit as heated as the title.

Sales Links;  Amazon

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 310 pages
Expected publication: March 25th 2019 by Carina Press
Original Title Heated Rivalry
ASINB07H5K8SFW
Edition Language English
Series Game Changers #2