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paulnewman's review against another edition
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
weweresotired's review against another edition
3.0
It is a bit of a journey to get to the happily ever after for Zach and Eugenio. Zach can be incredibly frustrating as he struggles to overcome his fears of coming out and struggles to be a good partner to Eugenio. The book was sometimes hard for me to follow because it skips back and forth in time between the past, when the guys first met, to the present, when they're seeing each other again for the first time in a long time. I also struggled at times to keep track of which team which guy was on and how they wound up there. (I also kept trying to place this in a timeline with the other KD Casey book I read, One True Outcome, which is set in the same baseball league and has a few characters who appear in each.) The ending felt a bit rushed, although I wonder if I'd feel that way if the story had been told chronologically? Not sure. Anyway, this was fine and I'll definitely be reading Casey's other books but I wish this was just a little bit better.
1943tre's review against another edition
5.0
I hate baseball frankly and have barely any interest in sports so the fact that I’m rating this a 5 should tell you something.
The writing in this is excellent. KD Casey writes with such credibility, such care, such power. In this, she creates two coexisting planes—what Zach actually does, and what he wants to do. In so many moments she gives us both, and what he does is always tightly controlled compared to what he wants to do, and from that Casey creates a compelling, delicious tension that has you frustrated (in a good way) from page 1.
The baseball plays a huge part of this novel for sure, but I’m here to tell you that you can let it wash over you if you’re just in it for an angsty, very sexy romance. For those who know anything about baseball, I’m positive this novel will be even better, but it was great all the same for me. And the smut was A+. To put it simply, I was screaming crying throwing up. This bitch knows what she is doing!!!!
The writing in this is excellent. KD Casey writes with such credibility, such care, such power. In this, she creates two coexisting planes—what Zach actually does, and what he wants to do. In so many moments she gives us both, and what he does is always tightly controlled compared to what he wants to do, and from that Casey creates a compelling, delicious tension that has you frustrated (in a good way) from page 1.
The baseball plays a huge part of this novel for sure, but I’m here to tell you that you can let it wash over you if you’re just in it for an angsty, very sexy romance. For those who know anything about baseball, I’m positive this novel will be even better, but it was great all the same for me. And the smut was A+. To put it simply, I was screaming crying throwing up. This bitch knows what she is doing!!!!
chelcie's review against another edition
Holy moly I loved it! I’m not a baseball fan. In fact, my spouse has banned me from going to games at Fenway because tickets are too damn expensive for me to get bored and pull out my Kindle.
Still, I loved this story. And I found the baseball setting compelling because it was more than mere backdrop. As I read, I went down many rabbit holes about what pitch framing is, how bullpen norms have changed over time, why catchers are likely to become coaches, and unionizing the minors. To be clear—you absolutely don’t have to have any idea what pitch framing is to appreciate the hotttttt teaching-tricky-professional-skill-as-reason-for-MCs-to-touch-each-other sequence. It’s just that these characters and setting are so vividly realized that my longtime aversion to watching baseball was reset. I became curious again.
What will stay with me the longest is the yearning tone, from the perspective of Zach, the main character, who feels deeply, but fundamentally doesn’t believe he can have love and intimacy while playing baseball. Whereas Eugenio continually offers a refrain of gentle affirmation: Yes, it’s okay to say we’re together because we are together. Yes, it’s okay to hope for more because I want more. At the same time, by a certain point Eugenio’s needs aren’t being met, so the arc of the second chance romance narrative is about Zach doing the work of moving toward being in right relationship. This is a book about what we owe our romantic and sexual partners, our family members, our friends, and our employers, and what they owe us — the webs of mutual obligation that shape our communities.
When I finished, I cried. I texted like 5 people to be like “read this now; I’ll wait.” I immediately turned back to the beginning and began reading over again. And I bought tickets to see our minor league affiliate play.
Still, I loved this story. And I found the baseball setting compelling because it was more than mere backdrop. As I read, I went down many rabbit holes about what pitch framing is, how bullpen norms have changed over time, why catchers are likely to become coaches, and unionizing the minors. To be clear—you absolutely don’t have to have any idea what pitch framing is to appreciate the hotttttt teaching-tricky-professional-skill-as-reason-for-MCs-to-touch-each-other sequence. It’s just that these characters and setting are so vividly realized that my longtime aversion to watching baseball was reset. I became curious again.
What will stay with me the longest is the yearning tone, from the perspective of Zach, the main character, who feels deeply, but fundamentally doesn’t believe he can have love and intimacy while playing baseball. Whereas Eugenio continually offers a refrain of gentle affirmation: Yes, it’s okay to say we’re together because we are together. Yes, it’s okay to hope for more because I want more. At the same time, by a certain point Eugenio’s needs aren’t being met, so the arc of the second chance romance narrative is about Zach doing the work of moving toward being in right relationship. This is a book about what we owe our romantic and sexual partners, our family members, our friends, and our employers, and what they owe us — the webs of mutual obligation that shape our communities.
When I finished, I cried. I texted like 5 people to be like “read this now; I’ll wait.” I immediately turned back to the beginning and began reading over again. And I bought tickets to see our minor league affiliate play.
dwolfe347's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
jmatsen's review against another edition
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
rebeccabadger's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
adammm's review against another edition
5.0
Heated Rivalry if it weren't problematic. (4.5 rounded up)
cheye13's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I was rather impressed with this one. Gay sports romances tend to fall short for me when the voice and plot are incongruous, but this one meshed perfectly. I would have preferred a smidgen more actual baseball game (rather than the politics behind the scenes), but the book painted a very full picture of the sport as the setting. The cast was also wonderfully well-rounded and standalone for the first in a series; the side characters are not only memorable, but add to the story. Picking them out in later books will feel familiar rather than like a challenge. Above all, the stakes felt significantly emotional while remaining safe & believable. Despite the conflict occurring primarily in Zach's head (as readers, we can easily predict coming out will be fine), his emotions sufficiently convey the gravity of being a gay professional athlete.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Sexism and Pregnancy
the major content warning is homophobia, but it's entirely internalized homophobia and primarily about the fear of coming outholtopia's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75