Scan barcode
A review by thwipys
The Prospects by KT Hoffman
5.0
K.T. Hoffman is batting a thousand
*Thank you to Random House for providing me an E-ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
The Prospects is a novel about the romance between teammates-turned-rivals-turned-teammates again, wrapped in Minor League Baseball. Gene, the MC, is an openly trans and gay baseball player who harbors a grudge against former teammate Luis, but when Luis is moved to Gene’s team at the start of the season, the forced proximity reveals hidden feelings. They navigate their new dynamic while trying to push their team to success.
I am a trans gay man like Gene, and I find it difficult to read books with a trans POV character. It’s always felt too real or too fake. The Prospects is the first I’ve read that hasn’t made me feel weird. At no point was I cringing at an overdone conversation about transness to ‘educate’ cis readers, or a scene where the love interest had to explicitly say he’s still into the MC and justify that attraction for the sake of cis audiences. The representation was a highlight for me instead of a detriment. In the same vein, Hoffman’s ‘note from the author’ captured a lot of my feelings about being a trans author as well.
I also played baseball for years in grade school, so this was pretty much written for me (Gene even has ADHD like me). The sports aspect was easy to get into for me, and I found myself very invested in the team’s success. None of the ancillary characters felt flat or unjustified, and the chemistry between Gene and Luis was natural. I was actually rooting for them instead of just watching them, like with a lot of the romance I’ve tried reading lately.
The pacing was quick, so reading it quickly without getting bored was easy. I will say it may be harder for someone totally new to baseball terminology to follow at first, but it doesn’t get too technical. I found the inclusion of batting statistics actually really cool, though I do love numbers so that could just be me.
I think this is a fantastic debut from Hoffman and I hope he keeps it up. Trans hope is so important, especially now.
*Thank you to Random House for providing me an E-ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
The Prospects is a novel about the romance between teammates-turned-rivals-turned-teammates again, wrapped in Minor League Baseball. Gene, the MC, is an openly trans and gay baseball player who harbors a grudge against former teammate Luis, but when Luis is moved to Gene’s team at the start of the season, the forced proximity reveals hidden feelings. They navigate their new dynamic while trying to push their team to success.
I am a trans gay man like Gene, and I find it difficult to read books with a trans POV character. It’s always felt too real or too fake. The Prospects is the first I’ve read that hasn’t made me feel weird. At no point was I cringing at an overdone conversation about transness to ‘educate’ cis readers, or a scene where the love interest had to explicitly say he’s still into the MC and justify that attraction for the sake of cis audiences. The representation was a highlight for me instead of a detriment. In the same vein, Hoffman’s ‘note from the author’ captured a lot of my feelings about being a trans author as well.
I also played baseball for years in grade school, so this was pretty much written for me (Gene even has ADHD like me). The sports aspect was easy to get into for me, and I found myself very invested in the team’s success. None of the ancillary characters felt flat or unjustified, and the chemistry between Gene and Luis was natural. I was actually rooting for them instead of just watching them, like with a lot of the romance I’ve tried reading lately.
The pacing was quick, so reading it quickly without getting bored was easy. I will say it may be harder for someone totally new to baseball terminology to follow at first, but it doesn’t get too technical. I found the inclusion of batting statistics actually really cool, though I do love numbers so that could just be me.
I think this is a fantastic debut from Hoffman and I hope he keeps it up. Trans hope is so important, especially now.