Reviews - The Prospects | The StoryGraph

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2.25k reviews for:

The Prospects

KT Hoffman

4.31 AVERAGE

nerg363's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

annamariereads's review against another edition

5.0

4.75⭐️

I do not understand anything about baseball, but boy did I love this book so much!!
Queer joy, trans joy, found family. A little bit funny, a little bit steamy, and a whole lotta vulnerability.
Read this book! Gene and Luis and The Whole Beaverton Crew™️ certainly steal bases and will also steal your heart (oh that was so cheesy and I'm not even sorry about it lmao).

nickartrip102's review against another edition

3.5

emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

For my next read I randomly selected a title from my TBR list and landed on The Prospects by K.T. Hoffman. Gene Ionescu has always loved baseball, a sport perfect for underdogs and optimists like him. As a member of the Beaverton Beavers, Gene is the first openly trans player in professional baseball. He has nearly everything he has dreamed of, but Luis Estrada never figured into that dream. Luis, Gene's former teammate and current rival, gets traded to the Beavers, throwing Gene off his game. When the two are forced to work together to improve their game on the field, they grow much closer and the uncomfortable tension between them slowly becomes uncomfortable in a much more thrilling way.

Sports romances are not really my thing, but I remembered so many positive reviews of The Prospects when it was released that I threw caution to the wind and purchased a copy anyway. I'm glad that I did! I still didn't care one lick about balls or bats or running plates or whatever, but Gene and Luis? I definitely cared about them! Gene being trans allows for a deeper conversation about the sporting world beyond the typical "can I be gay and do sports" storyline that is typical of the subgenre (not that it isn’t an important conversation, but it can only be interesting so many times. And although I may be a year late in reading this, it is very timely)

I really enjoyed Luis, I thought he was an absolute pussycat. Adored! I would have liked a bit more background for his character, a bit more understanding. I also like the way Hoffman handled anxiety in his storyline. It also helped me to understand his character, because I found him a bit baffling at first, but baby the way I was jealous of Gene by the end of the book was wild. Such a soft-hearted, good guy. Love that energy in a romantic lead. I wasn’t expecting any sex scenes, but honey they took me by surprise. Very hot. I love the way this story ended! It wasn’t the direction that I was anticipating, but it made The Prospects a worthwhile journey.

empem12's review against another edition

5.0

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted 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: No

lspaulding4193's review against another edition

4.0

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted 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

While I do feel like someone took pieces of my life for this book (how many trans men are living in Portland metro and born on April 1?!?!), I am willing to admit it was a pretty entertaining read. The romance could have simmered longer for my taste and had more rivals energy. But while I’m not a fan of baseball, my favorite moments were about Gene and his struggle with wanting his dream baseball career. The end definitely got me teary eyed on that account,

particularly the jerseys in the fan store

. IYKYK

19wongfo2's review against another edition

Without a doubt a joyful read just like in the blurb and loved the trans rep, just would have enjoyed this more if I was actually educated about baseball. Also, it was an absolute travesty that the love interest's support dog, Dodger (A HUSKY!!!), was so sidelined because I needed more cute dog scenes.