Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: Touch of Maple
SERIES: Love in Maplewood
AUTHOR: Amy Aislin
PUBLISHER: Self-published
LENGTH: 221 pages
RELEASE DATE: May 30, 2025
BLURB:
After being traded numerous times over the course of his pro hockey career, all Bellamy Jordan wants is a place where he belongs. Burlington, Vermont, home of the Vermont Trailblazers, his newest team, might just be that place. The bonus: he’s within spitting distance of the grandparents who raised him. The drawback: his long-time rival’s gorgeous brother—who he can’t get out of his mind—also lives nearby.
And he hates Bellamy on sight.
Jason Zervudachi is busy enough trying to diversify his family’s maple syrup farm while completing his master’s degree. Adding in an attractive complication like Bellamy? Hard pass. Even so, there’s something more behind Bellamy’s eyes that draws Jason in, but Bellamy is his brother’s rival. There’s a sibling rule against that, right? There must be.
Except Bellamy isn’t at all what Jason expects—and neither is the connection between them.
With the highest percentage of LGBTQIA+ residents in Vermont, Maplewood is a town where everyone belongs. And with festivals year round, there’s always something fun happening! This multi-author, low-angst queer series features ten standalone romances—each set against the backdrop of a different festival. Come for the celebrations, stay for the happily-ever-afters!
REVIEW:
Oh how I loved this story 🙂
Bellamy, a professional hockey player, is such a sweetheart and he’s not had it easy at all. Between his past with his neglectful parents and always getting traded to new teams and moved around, he’s felt alone. Always the outsider. He’s constantly trying to prove himself. Only when he lands in Burlington and is in close proximity to the grandparents who raised him and the potential boyfriend and a team that feel more like a family does he find himself really wishing for stability. Then there is the constant trash talk from Ryland, his long time rival. It’s really complicated by the fact that for the first time he think he might have actually found someone to love who might love him back and that guy is Ryland’s older brother? Awkward!
Jason has been burned in the past as well. He’s had guys use him to get to his famous hockey player brother. Those betrayals have left their marks and he’s not to open to trusting anyone. It takes a while for him to feel like Bellamy isn’t trying to use him for something too. Whether it’s to mess with Ryland and the “rivalry” or for some other thing that Jason can’t envision, he’s not sure why a professional hockey player would be interested in a Maple Syrup farmer in Vermont 😉
Jason and Bellamy start to see each other more frequently. Bellamy is nothing like Ryland has described him. Jason sees a sweet guy who has never felt like he was worth anyone’s time or love. This has been complicated by the rivalry with Ryland that has been going on for a decade. But Jason can’t stay away. He knows when Ryland finds out he’s dating his rival, well it’s going to be something. Just what Jason doesn’t know. Bellamy doesn’t want to cause problems for Jason but he really doesn’t want to give Jason up either. He’s finally with a team who has welcomed him and he wants to stay someplace for once. His grandparents are getting older and he wants to stay near them too. It’s never worked out for him and he’s skeptical that it will this time too, but he wants to try.
Will Jason be able to work things out with his brother? Will Bellamy get to stay with the Burlington team? Will Bellamy always be on the outside looking in at a happy family and team and be sent off again to find himself always trying to fit in? You’ll have to read it to find out 🙂
Love love love everything about this story. The setting, the characters, just perfection 🙂 Jason and Ryland’s family were awesome and entertaining. His sister was a hoot and I would love to read more stories about her 😉 Bellamy and Jason were such a perfect fit – even if they didn’t know it right away. Jason really SAW Bellamy and that was pretty much a first for him. Bellamy had spent his lifetime hiding his hurt and trauma and the resultant feelings of unworthiness. But with Jason, he was able to be honest. And Jason truly did love him. Jason had been just avoiding any sort of relationship after his past two disasters of being used. Bellamy had zero designs in using Jason in any way. I also LOVED Bellamy’s teammates. They were so welcoming and supportive. Dabbs was wise beyond his years. I loved the epilogue and how things worked out for everyone 🙂 This is a low angst story, but not without TONS of feels. I just loved how these two made things work in the end. Everyone showed a lot of growth and maturity and respect for each other. Well done! Highly recommended.
RATING: 
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