Last week, I arrived super late to the party, and finally binge-watched Heated Rivalry. And what’s a reader to do after watching a compelling TV series and knowing there’s a long wait for season 2? Obviously, it was time to try the book series!
I read books 1 and 2 this week (and technically, the series name is Game Changers, but let’s face it, anyone walking into a bookstore is going to say “hey, where are those Heated Rivalry books?”).
My reactions to the books are below… and fair warning:
THERE WILL BE SPOILERS!
I’ll be talking about the books themselves, but also discussing a few plot points in comparison to the TV version.
YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
Let’s lace up those skates and hit the ice…
Game Changer (Game Changers, #1) by Rachel Reid
Synopsis:
New York Admirals captain Scott Hunter takes his pre-game rituals very seriously. In this case, it’s not just a lucky smoothie he’s craving—it’s the man who made it.
Pro hockey star Scott Hunter knows a good thing when he sees it. So, when a smoothie made by juice bar barista Kip Grady precedes Scott breaking his on-ice slump, he’s desperate to recreate the magic…and to get to know the sexy, funny guy behind the counter.
Kip knew there was more to Scott’s frequent visits than blended fruit, but he never let himself imagine being invited back to Scott’s penthouse. Or kissed with reckless abandon, nevermind touched everywhere all at once. When it happens it’s red-hot, incredible and frequent, but also only on Scott’s terms and always behind his closed apartment doors.
Scott needs Kip in his life, but with playoff season approaching, the spotlight on him is suddenly brighter than ever. He can’t afford to do anything that might derail his career…like introducing the world to his boyfriend. Kip is ready to go all-in with Scott—but how much longer will he have to remain a secret?
If you’ve watched Heated Rivalry, you’ll recognize the plot of Game Changer as the focus of episode three of the TV series, which takes us away from the characters of episodes 1 and 2 (see next book!) and into a whole new set of characters… starting with a smoothie shop! Scott and Kip meet over smoothies and are both instantly smitten, but there’s a problem: Scott is the captain of the New York hockey team, incredibly famous and recognizable, and firmly in the closet.
Which has never felt like a choice for him: There are no out gay players in the NHL, and as depicted in the book, hockey has never been a world in which a gay man might feel safe. As Scott points out, gay slurs are the go-to on the ice for trash talking and riling up the opposition. So Scott has never been in a relationship, and has only ever indulged in the rare hook-up while traveling somewhere where he can be incognito.
Meeting Kip changes everything for him. Their connection is intense and passionate, and they become inseparable. But Scott and Kip can only be together in the privacy of Scott’s home, and Kip starts feeling like a dirty little secret. Despite being madly in love with Scott, Kip isn’t willing to go back in the closet for him. Scott has to decide whether a public persona that denies who he truly is is worth protecting, especially if it means giving up a relationship with the person who’s come to mean everything to him.
I really liked the Kip and Scott episode of the TV series, and for most of Game Changers, the plot beats are pretty consistent with the TV version. I enjoyed delving a little further into each character’s backstory, and getting more of Scott’s thoughts on his career, the homophobia in the NHL, and why he’s felt the need to remain closeted for so long.
I knew going into these books that they’re very spicy, which is usually not my reading preference at all. So no, I wasn’t shocked to see just how detailed and explicit the sex scenes are… but I did find myself thinking “enough already!” after a while. I know how body parts work! As the book moves further and further along, the scenes begin to feel repetitive and unnecessary. Early on, they show the instant chemistry and wild attraction between the characters, but as these explicit scenes continue throughout the entire book, for me at least, it feels like too much. The book probably would have been about half the length with a bit more of a closed door approach! And yes, the TV adaptation shows a lot… but not the up close and personal anatomical details that we get in the book.
One thing I liked a lot about the book’s approach is Scott’s journey toward coming out. In the TV version, he makes what seems like a spur-of-the-moment decision, after his team wins the championship, to kiss Kip on the ice in front of the entire stadium… which also happens in the book, but earlier, he’d already come out to his agent, coach, and three best friends on the team. He hadn’t planned the public kiss in advance, but we know already that he’s been thinking about how to fully come out, and we can see why he’s moved in that particular moment to share the joy of the moment with the person he loves.
Kip and Scott are lovely characters. They really only get the spotlight for one episode of the TV series (plus a couple of other quick glimpses), so obviously a book devoted to them is able to go deeper in terms of exploring their emotions, motivations, and experiences.
Publication date: 2018
Length: 368 pages
Rating:
(I don’t have quarter-star graphics… but if I did, I’d go with 3.25 stars)
Heated Rivalry (Game Changers, #2) by Rachel Reid
Synopsis:
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.
Watching the TV version of Heated Rivalry is what convinced me to pick up the books — I wanted more Ilya and Shane!
Their story is compelling: Meeting as teen pre-draft hockey players, they’re drawn together immediately despite their differences. Shane is a controlled, respectful, nice guy from a supportive family, who lives for hockey. Ilya is the “bad boy” Russian player who loves to rile up his opponents, indulge his wild side, and be absolutely fierce on the ice. From their initial encounter onward, when they end up the #1 and #2 draft picks, then start their NHL careers on rival teams, the entire hockey world views them as enemies, and their rivalry drives the already crazy fan interest through the roof.
Shane and Ilya have a secret that no one can know: Since their earliest days in the league, they’ve been hooking up for intense encounters which are particularly eye-opening for Shane, who’d never questioned his sexuality previously. Over the years, they find ways to meet up whenever they’re playing in the same town. Their chemistry is explosive. But as time passes, they both begin to realize that the sex is only a part of what they want from one another… and acknowledging deeper feelings scares them both to death.
The storyline itself is pretty terrific. Two big, fierce, ultra-manly hockey players who secretly fall in love, yet can never let anyone know? Good stuff — and what makes it so compelling to read are the reasons and complications behind their dynamics, from fear of jeopardizing their careers to Ilya’s painful family history and the reality of what being out might mean for Ilya if he ever returned to Russia. As in Game Changer, both men are aware that there are no out hockey players, and that homophobia is still rampant within the hockey world. Their struggle to find a solution that doesn’t ruin their lives and yet allows them to have a real relationship is what drive this story forward.
As with Game Changer, the book is absolutely overflowing with frequent, highly explicit sex scenes. And yes, I knew what I’d be getting into when I picked up these books, so perhaps it’s not fair to complain about this aspect! On the one hand, the hot and heavy graphic scenes show how intense Ilya and Shane’s connection is, and how at the outset, it really is “just” about the sex. On the other hand… when practically every chapter has an up-close-and-personal scene with everything spelled out in detail — it’s a lot (and as in the first book, it just feels repetitive after a while).
Tastes vary, and I fully recognize that plenty of readers love the high spice content! As a personal preference, it’s just not what I look for in my romance reading. If not for having watched the TV series, I never would have picked up these books, knowing in advance their reputation for explicit content. So I accepted that that’s what I’d be reading — but I do think in terms of the reading experience, the books would be so much stronger if some of the space taken up by those scenes were devoted to more character and plot development.
Overall, though, I did enjoy reading Ilya and Shane’s story. I love their connection and their inner lives, and appreciated getting a sense of the next steps for them (after the closing scenes of the TV version).
Publication date: 2019
Length: 372 pages
Rating:
Will I continue with the Game Changers series?
Not right now. There are four more books currently available, with a 7th book scheduled for publication in June 2027. Books 3 – 5 apparently focus on other characters, and book #6, The Long Game, picks up Ilya and Shane’s story again (which then continues into book #7, Unrivaled). As I’m mainly interested in Ilya and Shane’s journey, I might skip ahead to The Long Game… or I might just wait for the 2nd season of the TV version, and then decide whether to read more.
As of this moment, reading two books in this series feels like plenty! I’m glad I gave them a try, but it’ll be a while (or maybe not at all) before I feel like diving back into this world.
Bookshelf Fantasies 