Reviewed by Larissa

TITLE:  Fire in the Ice

AUTHOR:  Ryan Taylor and Joshua Harwood

PUBLISHER:  Wainscott Press

LENGTH:  266 pages

RELEASE DATE:  May 14, 2021

BLURB:

What if love threatened to destroy everything you’d worked for?

Hockey right winger Tyler Jensen isn’t thrilled to get the news he’s been traded to the Bethesda Barracudas. The team may be red-hot in the rankings, but there’s someone there he’d rather not have to see every day.

Defenseman Kevin Moore is one of the top-rated rookies in the country. He’s living the dream playing for the Barracudas—until he hears that his old high-school crush Tyler is joining the team. Ty was once everything Kev wanted, but their age difference got in the way. Tyler decided a three-year gap was too much and left Kevin behind.

In Bethesda, Tyler doesn’t take long to notice that Kevin has grown up into precisely the kind of man he can’t resist—brawny, brainy, and beautiful. Kev feels the pull too, and as the men become closer, they work hard to keep their budding relationship secret. Professional hockey may be welcoming gay players now, but Ty and Kev aren’t sure management would like the idea of two Barracudas taking teamwork to an entirely new level.

As the playoffs loom, news of their romance gets out. Ty and Kev, caught in a storm of controversy that threatens to destroy them, need a power play to save their careers. How will they find one before it’s too late?

Fire in the Ice delivers on the promise that second chances can work and dreams can come true. If you like exciting hockey, plenty of humor, a beautiful HEA, new adults, young athletes, and enough heat to burn down the house, this book is for you. 

REVIEW: 

Fire in the Ice showcases a beautiful, second chance romance between two rising hockey stars, right-winger Tyler Jensen and defenseman Kevin Moore.  Kevin’s a rookie sensation living the dream with the Bethesda Barracudas.  The Barracudas, a third-year expansion team, flourish under the guidance of new team captain, superstar hockey center Nick Johnson.  Nick is a former prep school classmate of Tyler and Kev.  The three men have a tangled history that goes back seven years.

Ty and Nick were seniors Kevin’s freshman year of prep school.  They all played together on the prep school hockey team and bonded when the three of them came out as gay.  Ty and Nick started dating, initially unbeknownst to Kev, while Kev developed a hopeless crush on Ty that seven years later still remains. 

After Ty and Nick graduated, Ty and Kev’s relationship vacillated between Ty humoring the younger Kev’s crush on him, to Ty ignoring him, to Ty seeking out the friendship of Kev and becoming BFFs for a year, then Ty ignoring him again.  Then, a year ago, they run into each other again.  History, Kev’s wounded heart and Ty’s obliviousness combine to create a disastrous meeting and the fallout follows Ty when he’s traded to the Barracudas.  While Ty’s new teammates warmly greet him, Kev freezes him out and Ty doesn’t understand why.

The story arc that follows explores how Ty and Kev rebuild trust and connection.  They create an authentic romantic relationship amidst real-world challenges and external influences.  Refreshingly, these men act maturely and communicate openly with each other once Kev puts his lingering resentment aside to clear the air for the welfare of the team.  Thereafter, Ty and Kev invest in solidifying their friendship, which happens more easily than either expect. In friends to lovers fashion, they soon give into the simmering attraction and strong pull between them.  

However, they fear that their relationship will derail their careers. Disrupt their team’s winning season. Likely result in vilification by at least some of their teammates and the fans.  This drives them to keep their relationship a secret.  What plays out thereafter is equal parts expected and unexpected and wholly enjoyable.  

The authors deliver an impactful, emotional romance through excellent writing, carefully crafted, complex, multi-dimensional characters and an altogether absorbing storyline. While hockey solidly serves as the backdrop, the lens of the story remains where it belongs – on Ty and Kev. We see how they interact with each other and their immediate surroundings, family and teammates.

The authors do not stint in bringing Ty and Kev’s Barracudas teammates to life.  These players become multi-dimensional characters in their own right.  Ty, Kev and their teammates form a relationship that is lovely and heartwarming; found family dynamics that resonate.

Fire in the Ice delivers an overwhelmingly fun, funny, sexy (yes, in case you were wondering, there are plenty of hot, steamy scenes), warm and fuzzy romance.  It showcases a very real, beautiful story of love not just surviving in the face of adversity, but thriving.  Grab this book and enjoy an immersive, highly entertaining few hours of reading.

RATING:   

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