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henrygravesprince's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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? It's complicated
5.0
This is one of the best romances I’ve ever read. The prose is strong, the characters and their development are incredible; it’s one of those books where I feel I can not only tell how much the author loves the story and characters, but the commitment to the craft of storytelling and character building, too. That’s something I’ve had a hard time finding in romance books.
I read this while dealing with my own internal issues around addiction and I think the portrayal of alcoholism is very compassionate and realistic. I really appreciate the compassion woven throughout this book in general.
I read this while dealing with my own internal issues around addiction and I think the portrayal of alcoholism is very compassionate and realistic. I really appreciate the compassion woven throughout this book in general.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism and Addiction
Moderate: Antisemitism, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Alcohol, Mental illness, Ableism, Biphobia, and Homophobia
Also worth noting that divorce has a prominent part in this story.firefly's review
emotional
funny
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Mental illness, Alcoholism, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Injury/Injury detail
relin's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
I really enjoyed the characters and their relationship. It was really lovely to see the ways that they both worked on things, how it was to bi men falling in love, and the fact that the people they loved previously were not demonized. This book steered clear of only having men in it, and allowing men to have complex relationships and friendships with each other, and women. Also the dog is perfect!
Really enjoy the writing style too.
Really enjoy the writing style too.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual content
Moderate: Antisemitism, Classism, Addiction, Cursing, and Alcohol
Minor: Ableism, Sexism, and Infidelity
Alcoholism is in recovery and not pressured by main characters.wilybooklover's review
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
4.5
I thoroughly enjoyed this even though I didn’t understand any of the sports details.
I loved that Reid and Charlie helped each other to heal and that the only real conflict in their relationship came from external sources. They’re always kind and communicative with each other and I just adore reading those kinds of relationships. I really enjoyed how Charlie’s bisexual awakening played out so calmly, with a bit of Googling and thinking on how he viewed men in the past. No dramatics or existential crises here! I also liked how his (soon-to-be) ex-wife wasn’t demonised.
This book delves into some hard topics (addiction, mental health, divorce, religion) but still manages to feel light and hopeful — in large part thanks to the low-angst romance taking centre stage.
I’m not sure why so many reviewers are calling it a slow-burn because it definitely isn’t. The characters have an instant connection and get together before the halfway mark which is actually on the early side of things!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Addiction, Alcoholism, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
aromarrie's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
reid giordano, new favorite fictional character, it’s been decided. also this is a new favorite sports romance, my thoughts about it better articulated in my eventual goodreads review but here it’s just like….i really loved this book.
i loved reid & charlie. i loved christine & stephanie, the former who’s relationship with art made for a stellar scene at around the epilogue. i loved zach, who’s our main character in unwritten rules but only a brief side character in this story, yet still has a solid presence even while sitting in the background. i loved the jewish rep, because it’s something i don’t see as often as i should in traditional publishing, and so seeing it here, seeing what being Jewish means for reid, specifically, it added a meaning to his journey that again, will probably be better articulated on goodreads.
that journey is what boosted the rating to this book because i felt connected to zach’s character in the previous story, there’s no question about that, but with reid it was just…something else. something about his journey with sobriety and fighting each day from grabbing an alcoholic drink (and succeeding; he never touches one drop of alcohol throughout this entire story) while playing as a relief pitcher on his team, a team he couldn’t even call his own because he felt like any second now he would be pushed to somewhere else. there was something about the way he said in one instance, “Sometimes it feels like I’m making the same mistakes over and over”, and i just…fell very deeply for his character and this story as a whole.
again, baseball has and probably never will be my thing but it played a strong role in this book and without it, we wouldn’t have characters like reid and charlie, who in regards to the latter, has a relationship with anxiety and whose pov felt so easy to sink into without any trouble, much more comforting than anything else. he has his own trouble with facing up to external conflicts, mainly with other people, as we see in his final stages of the divorce between him & christine, his soon to be ex-wife, and even with reid. yet because of reid, it feels like he manages to learn how to speak up more about what he thinks and what he wants. charlie’s a star in the baseball world and a millionaire to add on top to that and this story doesn’t make you forget that, but his relationship to the game and to other characters, to himself, made him feel so grounded and i loved that about him.
i loved this book, again, and reading the title after finishing the story feels like it could be interpreted in more ways than one, and that’s stellar.
i loved reid & charlie. i loved christine & stephanie, the former who’s relationship with art made for a stellar scene at around the epilogue. i loved zach, who’s our main character in unwritten rules but only a brief side character in this story, yet still has a solid presence even while sitting in the background. i loved the jewish rep, because it’s something i don’t see as often as i should in traditional publishing, and so seeing it here, seeing what being Jewish means for reid, specifically, it added a meaning to his journey that again, will probably be better articulated on goodreads.
that journey is what boosted the rating to this book because i felt connected to zach’s character in the previous story, there’s no question about that, but with reid it was just…something else. something about his journey with sobriety and fighting each day from grabbing an alcoholic drink (and succeeding; he never touches one drop of alcohol throughout this entire story) while playing as a relief pitcher on his team, a team he couldn’t even call his own because he felt like any second now he would be pushed to somewhere else. there was something about the way he said in one instance, “Sometimes it feels like I’m making the same mistakes over and over”, and i just…fell very deeply for his character and this story as a whole.
again, baseball has and probably never will be my thing but it played a strong role in this book and without it, we wouldn’t have characters like reid and charlie, who in regards to the latter, has a relationship with anxiety and whose pov felt so easy to sink into without any trouble, much more comforting than anything else. he has his own trouble with facing up to external conflicts, mainly with other people, as we see in his final stages of the divorce between him & christine, his soon to be ex-wife, and even with reid. yet because of reid, it feels like he manages to learn how to speak up more about what he thinks and what he wants. charlie’s a star in the baseball world and a millionaire to add on top to that and this story doesn’t make you forget that, but his relationship to the game and to other characters, to himself, made him feel so grounded and i loved that about him.
i loved this book, again, and reading the title after finishing the story feels like it could be interpreted in more ways than one, and that’s stellar.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
marysbookinit's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
tense
slow-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Sexual content
Minor: Ableism, Biphobia, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual assault
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