Reviewed by Larissa

TITLE: Between the Pipes

SERIES:  Watkins Glen Gladiators, Book 1

AUTHOR: V.L. Locey

PUBLISHER: Self-published

LENGTH:  194 pages

RELEASE DATE: January 11, 2023

BLURB: 

Two men who have sworn off romance are about to crash headfirst into love.

Liam Kneller-Polkman has no time for dating. None. Zero. Zip. His mind has to remain focused on hockey if he wants to secure a goaltending spot on the Watkins Glen Gladiators. He’s committed his whole summer—heck his whole life—to play in the pros someday and he’s not going to lose focus now. Eyes on the prize is his new motto. As training camp grows closer, he accompanies the Gladiators’ team captain to a race at the famed speedway in his new hometown. There he meets Tarcy Hayward, the smolderingly hot, much older driver of the famed number 66 stock car. One look, one smile, and one memorable dinner are all it takes for Liam’s good intentions to stay on track to crash and burn.

Tarcy Hayward’s been around the romance track a few times, each lap leaving him a little older and a lot more wary of giving his heart to someone again. Ever since his wife died, his life has been devoted to his two adult children, his grandson, and racing. He’s happy now that the only thrills he gets are on the racetrack. Or so he thought. When Liam Polkman enters his garage, all the safety barriers in the world aren’t enough to save his heart from the impact. It takes just one night with the stunning young goalie with light green eyes to launch Tarcy’s heart into a high-octane sprint where love always takes the checkered flag.

Between the Pipes is a low angst, age gap gay hockey romance that features an outgoing young goalie, a cautious older race car driver, two families who are not above meddling just a bit to see their loved ones happy, lots of on-ice and high-speed action, and a straightaway sprint to a happy-ever-after.

REVIEW: 

The idiom “Between the Pipes” refers to the pipe-like bars that make up the frame of a hockey goal.  Liam Kneller-Polkman, the protagonist in V.L. Locey’s delightful Between the Pipes, is a hockey goalie prodigy following in the footsteps of his hockey legend Uncle Bryn. Liam has prioritized hockey his whole life, and he gives his all to it both on and off the ice. He aggressively defends his hockey team from the onslaught of the opponent and gives no quarter in the effort.  The area “between the pipes” is territory not easily navigated for either the goalie or the opposing team trying to score on it. It takes strategy, skill, an intuitive understanding of the game, and an ability to read the other players.

In Locey’s titular Between the Pipes, the idiom refers to much more than the obvious hockey reference to the game and Liam the goalie. Metaphorically, it’s also the challenge of threading the needle to achieve a goal, like establishing and maintaining a relationship between Liam and his two-decades-older love interest, famed NASCAR race car driver Tarcy Hayward. It’s no small feat to negotiate a tricky romance where the age gap is large, Tarcy isn’t out as a bisexual, they both are star players in dangerous sports, and distance and traveling for their respective organizations keeps them apart. Getting to a solid HEA under those circumstances isn’t easy, and requires all of Liam and Tarcy’s skills and intuition to navigate those professional and personal challenges.

Liam is the same Liam from Locey’s According to Liam series.  In that series, the reader actually follows Liam as he grows up.  In this story, he’s now twenty-two, graduating from Harvard and moving on with his hockey career. I did not read that series and yet did not find it challenging at all to engage with this story.  That being said, right out of the gate, it will be evident that Liam has a fascinating, complex history with a loving, unique family and loyal, longtime friends. Locey adeptly provides the context you need within the body of Between the Pipes, and while you wonder about the background, it doesn’t hinder the story. If anything, it piques your interest in her According to Liam series. If you have read that series, I suspect Liam’s character may read a bit differently because you remember him as a child and then adolescent.

For fear of overextending the comparison, I’d be remiss if I didn’t call out the “Between the Pipes” accomplishments of Locey in this story. Like the game and her carefully created, vivid, endearing characters, she has her own needle to thread to balance this love story successfully and make it accessible to readers who don’t already know Liam and his background. But she does it and with aplomb. 

Between the Pipes provides a virtually no angst story, full of heart and humor. The immediate attraction between Liam and Tarcy quickly morphs into more, and Locey makes it seamless and plausible. She creates a beautiful, loving world of family and friends for both men, even though they are sometimes interfering, at times overbearing, in a well-intentioned way. 

Tarcy’s meddlesome adult children have a terrific relationship with him. While the level of intrusiveness may be empirically uncomfortable to some (including the no holds barred topics of discussion), I found it sweet and humorous rather than annoying.  Liam’s family is more sprawling but no less all-up-in-your-business. The love and support for Liam are evident and unquestionable, and I again, felt the meddlesome family members to be sweet and funny rather than irritating.

The romance itself, despite its complexities, reads as a rather straightforward romance which reflects Locey’s skill at creating authentic relationships.  There are so many reasons why this relationship shouldn’t work, and yet it makes perfect sense that it does. It displays two mature men (Liam is mature well beyond his years) communicating, being honest, and taking risks in a thoughtful, meaningful way.

I really enjoyed Liam and getting to know his teammates.  Locey starts to create that sports team found-family that is so appealing and heartwarming.  She sets us up for the next book which shifts away from Liam and his family to the team’s captain. But as far as characters go, Tarcy really steals the show with his honeyed voice and southern charm.  He’s such a sweetheart which makes all of the on-page racing (highly enjoyable content) feel more perilous.  

Between the Pipes is an easy read that will have you smiling throughout.  It’s also on the shorter side (less than 200 pages), so it’s perfect for a relaxing afternoon.  Recommended.

RATING: 

BUY LINKS: 

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