#!jocks

Title: Crosscurrents Author: Adam Phillips Format: Novel Published/Free: Free Length: 266,000 words Status: Complete Rating: Mature Warnings: Contains m/f as well as m/m; some angst. Link: https://www.gayauthors.org/story/adam-phillips/crosscurrents Summary: Andy and Matt, best friends and teammates from childhood, grow together, learn together, and struggle to remain friends when their evolving relationship outpaces their ability to understand it. Review: A high school story with some autobiographical elements, this is one of the few stories out there that addresses bisexuality in a realistic, honest way. Andy is in many ways the quintessential high school jock, and can come across as arrogant at times, but he's also remarkably self-aware. (Original Post)

Title: Blood On The Ice Author: Katriena Knights Format: Novel Published/Free: Published Length: 303 pages Status: Complete Rating: Mature Warnings: Not provided Link: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/blood-on-the-ice-5 Summary: The neutral zone is no place for a vampire. A right wing for the Chicago Blackhawks, all Travis Payne wants is to see his name on the Stanley Cup. He certainly doesn’t expect to be attacked by a vampire on the eve of the Finals. But when he wakes up in the Warm Room of the Cook County Morgue, he knows his life will never be the same. Review: Yeah, I know. I know. I. Know. In my defence, I read this on a dare, but it turned out to be so much better than I expected. First of all, abandon logic all ye who enter. Don’t ask why vampires would be playing hockey. Don’t ask what they get out of it. Don’t think about the physics. Just, don’t son. Instead, sit back and enjoy the hell out of the weird. In saying all that, the book spends a (pleasantly) surprising amount of time on Travis’ attempts to adjust to his new vampirism and the difficulties he faces. I found myself feel bad for the guy, especially when he tries to reconnect with his human friends and team. Another surprise, the romance is pretty slow build. I mean, you know who the LI is going to be, but there’s none of that rushed “love at first sight” thing, and protracted miscommunications are nowhere to be found here. Given this is a slash novel, there are only a handful of female characters but they’re all well written and treated with respect, which is just the cherry on top really. You don’t need to be a hockey fan to read this. Just know the very basics (three forwards, two defence, a goalie and they try to put a black plastic cylider in a goal) and that should be enough. I can’t recall anything that was egregiously awful. Maybe a bit of bloodplay, it’s not all that fluffy (although it does have a HFN ending), and there’s some POV switching? Basically, I enjoyed it and it’s perfect for when you’re in the mood for some crack about vampires on ice. (Original Post)

Title: Almost Like Being in Love Author: Steve Kluger Format: Novel Published/Free: Published Length: 354 pages Status: Complete Rating: Teen Warnings: Warnings not provided Link: http://www.stevekluger.com/ALBIL.html Summary: A high school jock and nerd fall in love senior year, only to part after an amazing summer of discovery to attend their respective colleges. They keep in touch at first, but then slowly drift apart. Flash forward twenty years. Travis and Craig both have great lives, careers, and loves. But something is missing.... Travis is the first to figure it out. He's still in love with Craig, and come what may, he's going after the boy who captured his heart, even if it means forsaking his job, making a fool of himself, and entering the great unknown. Told in narrative, letters, checklists, and more, this is the must-read novel for anyone who's wondered what ever happened to that first great love. Review: This is one of the funniest, most purely entertaining pieces of slash fiction I've ever read. Don't read this if you're looking for angst, catharsis, dramatic heart-wrenching passion, or emo teens. This is a romance of a different kind: all of the characters are mature, intelligent smart-asses who care about things: politics, other people, food, baseball, having their children marry doctors... This is a book about the journey, not the destination. I loved the setup of the book: the first forty pages are Travis and Craig falling in love in high school, and then the book wrenches you forward to their lives as thirty-somethings without telling you exactly what happened. The reader feels the loss almost as much as the characters themselves (though gradually the reasons for the drifting-apart are explained). Both Travis and Craig have narrative sections, so you get both sides of the story. And the ending is absolutely perfect, just when the author has made you care about all the characters, even Craig's current boyfriend. The book's epigraph, from the song "Almost Like Being in Love," tells you exactly how you'll feel after finishing it: "What a day this has been/What a rare mood I'm in..." Basically, I loved the book and I laughed my head off, and I hope you will too. (Original Post)

Thankfully, their socially awkward and painful encounters are eventually intervened upon by good-meaning friends who, after shaking their collective heads in exasperation, help steer them towards their eventual happily-ever-after. If you like rivalry-fueled romances and adorable bouts of massive mis-communication, then this gem is a must read for you!

Title: Yankee Author: TheZot aka Zachary O’Toole Format: Novel Published/Free: Free Length: 16 chapters Status: Complete Rating: Teen Warnings: Not HEA, some violence Link: http://www.orbital-one.co.uk/Authors/TheZot/YankChaps.htm Summary: Justin's a fish out of water no matter where he goes, and never more so than when this Boston kid has to move to rural Georgia. Sometimes things don't work out the way he expects, which isn't a bad thing. Review: Sounds cliche, hum? Yet it's written realistically, nobody's perfect in it, sometimes it's funny, sometimes it's sad and awkward and there isn’t a happy ending. (Original Post)

Title: Second Shot Author: Quonus10 Format: Novel Published/Free: Free Length: 81.5k Status: Complete Rating: Mature Warnings: Warnings not provided Link: http://www.gayauthors.org/story/andrew-q-gordon/secondshot Summary: What do you do when you are deep in the closet but you meet the man of your dreams? Do you take the chance and risk the consequences? Review: I enjoyed reading this story since the first chapter. The author does a great job writing the two main characters, you get to really know them through the story and you can see how they grow up and mature. The love they share and the problems they have to deal with make them both better persons for it. It's a story about being with someone that's still struggling with letting others know about their sexuality, about coming out and dealing with the consequences. It's about love, friendship and family. (Original Post)

Title: Someone Hit The Lights Author: Mccoma Format: Short story Published/Free: Free Length: 3.1k Status: Complete Rating: Everyone Warnings: Warnings not provided Link: http://mccoma.livejournal.com/1688.html#cutid1 Summary: For all that the assistant coach is going to give him shit for taking a dive when they needed him to skate it off, the blond forward is in the box and making eyes at him across the ice. All in all it's not a bad way to go. Review: Hockey slash. Yummy, hot and the tension.. Baby it's wonderful. It's a oneshot, open(ish) ended and so tastefully crisp in it's blunt and appealing writing. It's a personal favourite. (Original Post)