Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: The New Next One
SERIES: Nice Catching You
AUTHORS: Ryan Taylor and Joshua Harwood
PUBLISHER: Wainscott Press
RELEASE DATE: January 22, 2021
LENGTH: 90 pages
BLURB:
How much are you willing to give up for the man you love?
Best friends Nick Johnson and Tyler Jensen seem to have the world by the tail. The eighteen-year-old stars of their school’s hockey team are looking forward to playing in college and hoping for careers with the pros.
Nick and Tyler know a lot about each other, but there are a few important details they haven’t discussed. To start with, neither man knows the other is gay. Making things interesting, Nick has a massive crush on Tyler, something he’s kept to himself for a long time. And although he’s never said a word about it, Tyler has wanted to date Nick since they met.
On a cold Minnesota night after a big win, Tyler finds the courage to confess his feelings to Nick. When Nick admits his attraction to Tyler, their relationship turns on a dime. As they fall in love, they skate around the challenges of a secret romance in an all-male boarding school, but what will happen when the stakes rise dramatically in a sport not known for being gay-friendly? Will Nick and Tyler make the easy choice or the hard one?
The New Next One is a 20,000-word, new adult, friends-to-lovers romance featuring young athletes, plenty of steam, and a lot of emotion. The events of this book precede those told in the authors’ book Nice Catching You.
REVIEW:
Note: While this is the second in this series, it’s actually a prequel to the first book. It can be read as a standalone or before/after the first book in the series.
Nick Johnson is a star hockey player at his prep school in Minnesota. He’s gearing up for the season. One night after a win, his best friend Tyler, says something to him that seems like flirting. What? Nick’s wondering now if he’s reading this wrong, giving on vibes he’s certainly not intending to give or just what’s going on.
After the game, the team gets together and ultimately Nick and Tyler who have been best friends since they started high school, go off on their own to a secret place where they can be alone. And Tyler confesses that he’s had feeling for Nick for some time. Nick had assumed the Tyler was straight, but turns out all the girl talk was just that – talk. Nick confesses that he’s known he was gay for some time, but that hockey isn’t a welcoming environment for gay guys.
Nick and Tyler meet when they can, hiding their relationship from everyone. They are going to the same college, so there’s no reason to come out and they figure they can just keep in the closet and play their game. But then things go a bit differently and Nick ends up being the best high school player in the country and he gets another offer from another school. How will this affect their relationship? Can they make it?
This is a very sweet first love story. This is Nick’s backstory before going to UNY. I really liked seeing how he and Tyler negotiated their relationship and the tenderness they showed for one another. They were very cute together and honest. Their blooming love was very sweet. The love and trust they showed and the growth they made was really well written. This is a bit of a bittersweet story, but very authentic and true to love. Recommended especially for lovers of first time love and its challenges.
RATING:
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