Reviewed by: Taylor
TITLE: The Understatement of the Year
SERIES: The Ivy Years #3
AUTHOR: Sarina Bowen
PUBLISHER: Rennie Road Books
LENGTH: 253 Pages
BLURB:
What happened in high school stayed in high school. Until now.
Five years ago, Michael Graham betrayed the only person who ever really knew him. Since then, he’s made an art of hiding his sexuality from everyone. Including himself.
So it’s a shock when his past strolls right into the Harkness College locker room, sporting a bag of hockey gear and the same slow smile that had always rendered Graham defenseless. For Graham, there is only one possible reaction: total, debilitating panic. With one loose word, the team’s new left wing could destroy Graham’s life as he knows it.
John Rikker is stuck being the new guy. Again. And it’s worse than usual, because the media has latched onto the story of the only “out” player in Division One hockey. As the satellite trucks line the sidewalk outside the rink, his new teammates are not amused.
And one player in particular looks sick every time he enters the room.
Rikker didn’t exactly expect a warm welcome from Graham. But the guy won’t even meet his eyes. From the looks of it, his former… best friend / boyfriend / whatever isn’t doing so well. He drinks too much and can’t focus during practice.
Either the two loneliest guys on the team will self destruct from all the new pressures in their lives, or they can navigate the pain to find a way back to one another. To say that it won’t be easy is the Understatement of the Year.
THIS BOOK IS A STANDALONE. NO CLIFFHANGERS. NO PRIOR EXPERIENCE NECESSARY.
Warning: unlike the other books in this series, this heartbreaking love story is about two guys. Contains sexual situations, dance music, snarky t-shirts and a poker-playing grandmother.
REVIEW:
Do you know those movies or books that just nail a certain time in your life perfectly? Even if it’s not exactly the life you led, you are immersed in the vibe and years you were there. There are thousands of books written about the college experience, but there are few I relate to or take me back to that time. I didn’t play sports, I’m not a gay male, and I live nowhere near where the MCs live and yet…I lived and breathed COLLEGE and all those pains and joys of that time in this book.
Michael Graham and John Rikker are two young hockey players, former boyfriends/loves, and both just trying to make it to the next day as any young adult tries to do.
Sarina Bowen is a new-to-me author and normally writes m/f romance, but no one should be worried this is “dressed up het”. At all. Graham and Rikker are so very special to me, and the reason their story resonates so well is because Graham’s emotional turmoil isn’t played for manipulation. Rikker’s at times understanding, sad, lonely, completely aware that he’s a fool to hang on, but in love all the same. There are those moments of awkwardness, embarrassment, drunkenness and drunken honesty, road trips, team spirit and the sports season, mundane studying and activities, and friendships.
This isn’t just a story of two men falling in love, and I love it so much the more for that reason. It’s Graham gaining confidence, becoming open with friends and family, it’s the freedom of taking off on your own for a bit, it’s the confusion of what’s not said, and really it’s just about growing comfortable with yourself, which tends to happen for many with experience and age. In this instance, Rikker is already fairly comfortable with himself, at least when it comes to his sexuality and Graham has so much self-loathing he can’t even entertain the idea that people he love might still support him.
“I’m not going to be their gay son.”
It’s the ups AND downs of life, with a lot of sweet moments that made me tear up. I’m a sap sometimes. But the tears? They were good for the most part, and often not even romance or lover relationship caused. Sometimes it’s the simplest and quietest moments that will affect you the most.
“He kissed me between the shoulder blades. “Getting along together was never the problem with you and me,” he said. “We’re both easy. It’s just the rest of the world that’s hard.”
Everything I love about NA was there, everything I love in this type of romance was there, and the female character Bella needs her own book — with Rikker and Graham there as well.
Happy sighs all around.
RATING: 
BUY LINKS:
Wow. Fantastic review Taylor. I’ve added this to the tbr and bumped it up. Thanks!
Well worth it! Loved this book so much!
Great review of a fabulous book. Loved this story so much. It had everything and the performances by two of my favorite narrators Teddy Hamilton and Christian Fox took it to another level! 5 stars plus. If you’ve only read this book I encourage you to listen to it as well. One of my favorites.