Book picks similar to
The Shutout by Dianna Roman
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If Wishes Were Horses
Silvia Violet - 2014
Now he’s got another chance to capture his target, but the gorgeous rancher he’s investigating makes him long for things he can’t have.Ken gave up his society life to run a ranch, and he’ll do anything to protect what’s his. When he starts to suspect his new employee is hiding something, he knows he should send the man away. But Andy is as gorgeous as he is infuriating, and he‘s pulling Ken to him like a magnet. Both men long for control, yet neither knows how to surrender.A clash of wills is inevitable, but neither man expects the tenderness that grows every time they touch. With secrets between them and outside forces threatening the ranch, each man will need to decide how far he’s willing to go to protect the other.
The Magic Between
Stephanie Hoyt - 2022
Legend says those with opposite magics have the greatest chance of forming the unbreakable Bond it desires. A.B. Cerise is an obsessive compulsive pop star with the ability to turn invisible. He’s an out bisexual with absolutely no belief in Bonds. He has a love-bruised heart, thinks dating in the spotlight is a hassle at best and a nightmare at worst, and has no intention of going through it all over again. Matthew Hellman-Levoie is the NHL’s number one goalie prospect, the youngest in a hockey dynasty, and one of the rare few who can see the unseeable. He’s a straight man who wears his heart on his sleeve, has grown up searching for a Bond, and dreams of finding the love of his life. Legend never said anything about what to do when sparks fly between two people opposite in more ways than just magic.
Rebound
Remi Ryan - 2018
It can't be love. Noah: Five years ago, I left the small town where I was nothing but the star quarterback's geeky little brother, and I never looked back. Then I got my heart broken, and suddenly I find myself running back to the last place I’d call home anymore. The only thing that's makes my return bearable is Aiden - my bullying big brother's best friend and teammate, and my first guy-crush from way back when. He's practically family, and definitely straight — so he's strictly off limits... But then there's no denying the heat between us, and I soon discover that while Aiden's not out, he's definitely not as straight as he makes out, and one scorching encounter threatens to change everything. Aiden: I barely recognize the smoking-hot stranger introduced as my best friend's little brother. He's gone from shy and nerdy to a total catch. Just one look at those sad baby-blues and I'm all too happy to offer him a safe place to land. With my football career as my priority, I'd always kept relationships casual and simple. What kindles between Noah and me is anything but. I’ll have to put everything on the line to get him to trust me, and if he can’t, I stand to lose everything I love. I’ve never fallen so hard before, but could Noah ever feel the same way about me? Rebound is 55k of sweet, steamy insta-lust that turns to more, with a twist of angst and a guaranteed happy-ever-after. It is a stand-alone novel, and the first of a series. No cliffhanger, and that's a promise.
Season's Change
Cait Nary - 2022
He’s got a fresh start playing for a new team, but getting his hockey career back on track is going to take more than a change of scenery. He’s got to shut his past out and focus. On the game, not on his rookie roommate and his annoyingly sunny disposition—and annoyingly distracting good looks. All Benji Bryzinski ever wanted was to play in the big leagues, and he’s not going to waste one single second of his rookie season. Yoga, kale smoothies and guided meditation help keep his head in the game. But his roommate keeps knocking him off track. Maybe it’s just that Olly is a grumpy bastard. Or maybe it’s something else, something Benji doesn’t have a name for yet. Olly and Benji spend all their time together—on the ice, in the locker room, in their apartment—and ignoring their unspoken feelings isn’t making them go away. Acting on attraction is one thing, but turning a season’s fling into forever would mean facing the past—and redefining the future. Trade SeasonBook 1: Season's Change
Name From a Hat Trick
L.A. Witt - 2020
And he’s my daughter’s hero. And now he’s…my boyfriend??When Jase Kelly scores his fourth professional hat trick, it’s more than just a career highlight. In one of the hats raining down onto the ice, there’s a note from two fans—a girl whose migraines keep her from coming to games, and her dad, who hopes to get her an autograph for her birthday.Devin McKenzie just hopes for a signature or maybe a chance for his daughter to meet her favorite player. Instead, Jase Kelly pulls out all the stops to give Dallas an evening of hockey, autographs, and all the souvenirs she can carry. She’s beyond starstruck. And Devin? Being starstruck wouldn’t make his heart race like this…would it?Jase only wanted to cheer up a fan. He never expected to be so attracted to her dad. One look at Devin, though, and he’s speechless. And suddenly a lot more certain than he’s ever been about his sexuality.Once they connect, they’re so good together it’s almost effortless… as long as Jase keeps Devin from seeing how the slightest bit of stress—or even nothing at all—can reduce him to shaking and hyperventilating. Meanwhile Devin desperately hopes that this one time, he’s found someone who won’t bolt from the reality of dating a parent of a child with chronic health issues.They won’t be able to keep those cards hidden forever, though. Sooner or later, their respective truths will come to light.Fate brought them together. Can love save them from falling apart?Name From a Hat Trick is a 115,000-word standalone contemporary M/M romance.CW: on-page anxiety and panic attacks
Strong Enough
Melanie Harlow - 2017
I wasn’t looking for Derek Wolfe.I wasn’t looking for anybody. All I wanted was to start a new life in America. But when I found myself stranded here with no place to go, he came to my rescue, offering me a place to stay.He’s smart, successful, and sexy as hell—I can barely sleep knowing he’s right down the hall. And when the chemistry between us explodes one night with fierce, fiery passion, it’s hard to deny there’s something real there.But he does.He says he was drunk. He says it was a one-time thing. He says he’s not into guys and what we did meant nothing.He’s lying. Because it happened again, and again, and again. And it’s better every time. I know we could be good together, and I want the chance to try, but I’m done hiding. If he’s not strong enough to admit the truth, I’ll have to be strong enough to walk away.
My Hero
Max Vos - 2013
Little did he know that years later, as a senior in college and Olympic diving hopeful, Rich would meet up once again with Johnny Milloway, now a big football player – and when Rich says big, he really means ‘bear’. The shy jock remembers his savior, and the two men become friends. Johnny isn’t put off by the fact that Rich is gay. In fact, the more time he spends with Rich, the more curious he becomes. Johnny wants to know all kinds of things – what it’s like to kiss a guy, for instance. Only it doesn’t stop there…Rich finds it difficult to believe that this relationship can go anywhere. Johnny is straight, and Rich isn’t prepared to deal with the heartache he knows will come his way in the future. He has enough on his plate as it is – the Worlds are just around the corner, his father would rather watch a football game than spend time watching his son dive…. What he doesn’t count on is Johnny, who can be very determined. And having Johnny in his life proves to be a catalyst for some pretty earth-shattering changes.
Surviving Love
S.C. Wynne - 2021
Suffering from anxiety and asthma, he rarely ventured from his mundane routine. He lived vicariously through his books and TV shows, envious of the exciting lives others led. But when Mason is involved in a car accident that almost claims his life, he realizes hiding from the world to protect himself was a fool’s game all along. Mason decides it’s time to truly live his life. He tries out for a spot on his favorite reality TV show Devious Island and he gets accepted.Jack Harrison teaches people how to survive in the wild. He’s everything Mason isn’t: confident. Commanding. Cunning. The minute Jack sets eyes on Mason, he enjoys making life difficult for the city boy. He thinks Mason is sexy, but in over his head. In his opinion, the sooner the wimpy city boy is sent home, the better.
Off Balance
Jay Hogan - 2020
Not to Painted Bay. Not to his family’s struggling mussel farm. Not to his jerk of a brother. Not with his entire life plan in shreds. And certainly not into the tempting arms of MORGAN WIPENE, the older, ruggedly handsome fisheries officer who seems determined to screw with Judah’s intention to wallow in peace.But dreams are fickle things. Shatter them and it’s hard to pick up the pieces. Hard to believe. Hard to start again.But the hardest thing of all? Finding the courage to trust in love and build a new dream where you least expected it.
Blow Me
Mari Thorne - 2020
That was, until he kissed me at my graduation party and I freaked out, ran away, and didn’t come back for three years. Now I’m home, conflicted about my future, and determined to repair our broken friendship, though it seems he’ll never forgive me for hurting him.Aaron: Three years ago, I made a huge mistake. I kissed my friend at his graduation party. My very straight friend that I had a huge crush on. Because I couldn’t keep my lips to myself, he ran away and ghosted me. Oh well, his loss, right? Since then, I’ve moved on with my life, or so I thought.Brady’s back in town, and I don't want anything to do with him. Then, he kisses me, leaving me reeling once again. But that doesn’t mean I plan on forgiving him. I didn’t think I’d find myself in a position to need his help, though. When he steps up to help my brass band out, he’s in my life again whether I want him there or not.Blow Me is a 55,000 word friends-to-lovers novel about finding your soulmate through music, the unbreakable bond of high school band, forgiveness, and choosing what makes you happy. It features a bisexual awakening, humorous moments, steamy scenes, a small-town brass band, a pug named Petunia, and trumpets.
Don't You Dare
C.E. Ricci - 2022
A dare. A single kiss.That’s all it took to flip my world upside down.I’ve always classified myself as straight, and as far as I can tell, so has he.I didn’t think one kiss would change that, but I was so wrong.Now, I can’t stop thinking about him. In all the ways I shouldn’t.My best friend.Aspen.His taste is branded in my memory, his touch seared in my skin.And I want more.This simmering attraction I feel only grows with passing time.Which is why I start tossing out new dares.Riskier ones that toe lines we never thought we’d cross.I’m gambling with our friendship, knowing it could ruin us.But there’s so much more at stake here.Like my heart.*Don't You Dare is a new adult college romance featuring two best friends, too many baseball puns, scorching dirty talk, and a whole lot of bi-curious exploration. Not suitable for anyone under 18 years of age.*
Dirty Forty
Mia Monroe - 2021
Business partners, roommates, best friends...we do everything together. But the last thing either of us expected was to be staring forty in the face just as single as we both were when we made a silly, drunken marriage pact twenty years ago. The problem? Zach is gay…and, well, I’m not. Under pressure from family, that pact comes rushing back, and I lock us into a fake engagement. But is it possible some part of me wants it to be real?Convincing Zach I’m legit is another story. With each passing day, I wonder if my feelings of affection for my best friend can morph into the love I desperately want in my life. Something in Zach’s eyes tells me we can have it all if we just try. It may have taken me a lifetime to see Zach with new eyes, but with every touch and discovery, it’s been worth the wait. On the edge of Dirty Forty, it’s time to go for it.All I have to do is convince Zach it’s real.Dirty Forty is a best friends to lovers, marriage pact, demi/bisexual awakening featuring thirty years of pining, a fake engagement, curious kisses, and two guys finally embracing what’s always been in front of them.
The Life We Have
Kelsey Kingsley - 2020
That is, until the discovery of his father, Sebastian - a world renown drummer in a famous rock band.Overnight, Greyson's world had been turned upside down, taking him from rags to riches. And now, six years later, Greyson's only goal is to follow in his dad's footsteps.Except, while his father is a reformed ladies' man, Greyson is gay. And that's a secret he's not ready to let go of.But he never planned on meeting Zach.How can he keep the man he loves without disappointing the man he admires?
Striking Distance
Sarah Rees Brennan - 2020
Pacat and Johanna The Mad.Sixteen-year-old Nicholas Cox is the illegitimate son of a retired fencing champion who dreams of getting the proper training he could never afford. After earning a place on the elite Kings Row fencing team, Nicholas must prove himself to his rival, Seiji Katayma, and navigate the clashes, friendships, and relationships between his teammates on the road to state championships—where Nicholas might finally have the chance to spar with his golden-boy half-brother.Coach Williams decides to take advantage of the boys' morale after a recent victory and assigns them a course of team building exercises to further deepen their bonds. It takes a shoplifting scandal, a couple of moonlit forest strolls, several hilariously bad dates, and a whole lot of introspection for the team to realize they are stronger together than they could ever be apart.The first installment of this enticing original YA novel series by Sarah Rees Brennan, rich with casual diversity and queer self-discovery, explores never-before-seen drama inspired by C.S. Pacat's critically acclaimed Fence comic series and boasts original cover and interior art by Johanna The Mad.Text and Illustration copyright: © 2020 BOOM! StudiosFence(TM) and © 2020 C.S. Pacat