My Kind Of Guy
Hockey Guys #4
March 24, 2026
He’s a backup goalie with a broken game. The only thing he needs more than a win is the hot, grumpy bartender who pours his weekly beer.
Becker James is having a spectacularly bad season. Once a top draft pick, he’s now riding the bench in the minors, one failed save away from being cut. The highlight of his week? A lonely hour on a barstool at Sportsballs, Denver’s queerest watering hole—and Forest, the bartender with flannel sleeves, a gruff voice, and a beard that stars in Beck’s dreams.
Opportunity strikes when Forest’s LGBTQ hockey team—the Stickhandlers—loses their goalie last-minute. Beck makes Forest an offer: he’ll help them beat the most hated team in the beer league, but he wants something in return—one night together.
Cue the record scratch, because Seth Forrester doesn’t do hookups. After his last one went horribly wrong, he swore off men for good. He’s definitely not falling for the awkward hottie who just stammered through an indecent proposal.
But Beck is prepared to press his case, no matter how awkward it gets. And one beer league game turns into something messier, sweeter, and so much harder to walk away from…
That was my nickname in Chicago, too. And Vancouver. That’s what happens when you keep getting traded. Brooklyn is my last chance, especially after my poor performance last season.
But I can make this work. The new guy knows to keep his head down and shoot the puck. The new guy puts the game first.
What he doesn’t do is hook up with the other new guy—a hot athletic trainer who lives in my building. Gavin needs this job with my team. He’s a single dad with responsibilities.
We can’t be a couple. My arrogant agent–who’s also my father–will lose his mind if I’m dating a dude. And my team needs me to score goals, not whip up a media circus.
Too bad Gavin and I are terrible at resisting each other…
Seth Forrester is a single dad and bar owner who’s been struggling financially and just never seems to be able to get ahead. He’s a little bitter, grumpy, guarded, and has been avoiding any kind of hook-up or relationship for a while due to a bad experience.
Becker James has been frequenting his bar for quite a while. He’s younger, quiet, socially awkward, and just loves to watch the hot bartender. But one day as he’s listening to their conversations as he usually does, he finds out that their beer league team is in need of a goalie for an important hockey game, so he offers his services. It turns out Beck is kind of hiding the fact that he’s actually a goalie for the minor league team, but that fun game fires him up to do better in his own team games and brings him back some joy to hockey.
Becker James has been frequenting his bar for quite a while. He’s younger, quiet, socially awkward, and just loves to watch the hot bartender. But one day as he’s listening to their conversations as he usually does, he finds out that their beer league team is in need of a goalie for an important hockey game, so he offers his services. It turns out Beck is kind of hiding the fact that he’s actually a goalie for the minor league team, but that fun game fires him up to do better in his own team games and brings him back some joy to hockey.
Beck is such a sweetheart. He’s weird, unfiltered, but just such a golden retriever who is obsessed with Forest and just wants him to want him the same way. I just adored him and his infectious energy.
And Forest can’t really control his wants and needs, but he tries so hard to control everything else. He doesn’t think he’s a good bet, and he feels inferior because of his messy life and financial situation, so he tries to put distance between them, but they somehow keep finding their way back...at least to the bedroom.
And Beck is just taking whatever scraps he can get and trying to keep a lid on his own real feelings. But once the lid comes off, there is no putting it back on. And they will not be able to hide behind their "rules" and will have to face their fears and real feelings.
I loved these two together. Beck is just so much fun and such a breath of fresh air that he just kind of lights up Forest and makes him feel like his old self again. He sees Forest and doesn’t care about money or messiness, and he’s understanding even about his limited time. But Forest has such fears, self-worth and trust issues, and he is such a good guy who doesn’t want to be the one to drag Beck down as things are going better for him, so he’s kind of self-sacrificing too. Beck just wants to be chosen, and he is also undergoing changes in his own life that are both exciting and adding new pressures.
And Forest can’t really control his wants and needs, but he tries so hard to control everything else. He doesn’t think he’s a good bet, and he feels inferior because of his messy life and financial situation, so he tries to put distance between them, but they somehow keep finding their way back...at least to the bedroom.
And Beck is just taking whatever scraps he can get and trying to keep a lid on his own real feelings. But once the lid comes off, there is no putting it back on. And they will not be able to hide behind their "rules" and will have to face their fears and real feelings.
I loved these two together. Beck is just so much fun and such a breath of fresh air that he just kind of lights up Forest and makes him feel like his old self again. He sees Forest and doesn’t care about money or messiness, and he’s understanding even about his limited time. But Forest has such fears, self-worth and trust issues, and he is such a good guy who doesn’t want to be the one to drag Beck down as things are going better for him, so he’s kind of self-sacrificing too. Beck just wants to be chosen, and he is also undergoing changes in his own life that are both exciting and adding new pressures.
I have loved this series, and this one is no exception. I was really invested in these two trying to figure it all out and begin to realize what they really wanted and needed. It brings back some of the team and the recent couples from the series, and they have their roles in this one. It's an age-gap, virgin, single dad, fling-to-more, grumpy-sunshine, opposites-attract, hockey player and bartender romance with fun, fire, and feels.
Becker James is barely hanging on to his hockey career after having been a top draft pick. He loves playing hockey, but he hasn’t had much ice time of late. Though he gets along with his team, he worries about what they will think if and when they find out he is gay, but it doesn’t stop him from giving his all to his focus on the ice.
Seth Forrester juggles owning a bar with his best friend while co-parenting his son with his ex. Those two things don’t leave much time for anything else, though he doesn’t lament missing out on dating after a hookup took advantage of him and left him with a much lighter savings account. Pulling himself out of the financial hole, as well as the emotional one, has taken a toll on his interest in letting anyone new into his life. He is grumpy, stressed about all his responsibilities, and doesn’t take time for fun outside of his rec-league hockey games.
Beck spends time at Forest’s bar and finally works up the courage to proposition Forest in trade for helping out Forest’s beer league hockey team. I loved the slight mystery (to the characters) about Beck’s hockey ability. These opening scenes built a lot of the background that the beginning plot points would focus on. There were times that I grew frustrated with Forest’s sheer determination to hold on to the effects of his last hookup, even beyond the point that one could call what he and Beck had a hookup, but it also fit his dedication to the grumpy side of his persona.
I absolutely loved Becker! He is such a goofy cinnamon roll of a character. He is awkward and a little on the shy side, but he has the best sense of humor and never shies away from a good laugh. My love for Beck made up for the frustration I felt towards Forest. I also loved the connection that developed between Beck and Forest’s son, Charlie. They connected in a way that was wholesome and fun. Their connection, based on video games and relatable homework tips, made it harder for Forest to keep Beck at arm’s length, and also helped heal some of the baggage Forest was carrying.
The second half had me loving both characters as they actively worked to build a better relationship. And the final few chapters were *chef's kiss*. I love the way Sarina writes MM and hockey. The hockey is important, but the connection between the characters by the end is relatable and realistic. This was a fun continuation of the Hockey Guys series, and some previous favorite characters play side roles here. I enjoyed watching how this book connected with the others in the series.
Teddy Hamilton and Brandon Francis brought these characters to life. The audio added another level of fun to the interactions between Beck and Forest. Getting used to the voices each narrator used for the opposite character took a little bit of getting used to, but the different tonalities did help track who’s POV the chapter was coming from.
The New Guy
The Hockey Guys #1
The Hockey Guys #1
A new male / male hockey romance from 24-time USA Today bestseller Sarina Bowen!
My name is Hudson Newgate, but my teammates call me New Guy.
That was my nickname in Chicago, too. And Vancouver. That’s what happens when you keep getting traded. Brooklyn is my last chance, especially after my poor performance last season.
But I can make this work. The new guy knows to keep his head down and shoot the puck. The new guy puts the game first.
What he doesn’t do is hook up with the other new guy—a hot athletic trainer who lives in my building. Gavin needs this job with my team. He’s a single dad with responsibilities.
We can’t be a couple. My arrogant agent–who’s also my father–will lose his mind if I’m dating a dude. And my team needs me to score goals, not whip up a media circus.
Too bad Gavin and I are terrible at resisting each other…
TOMMASO
The furniture district is my personal hell. I don’t know my ass from an ottoman. But when a hot designer comes to my rescue, I realize my problems are bigger than the house I’m trying to furnish.
A scorching kiss over fabric samples makes me question all my choices. But is it too late to change my entire life to get more of them?
CARTER
I need this gig, but my cocky new client leaves out a couple crucial details:
He doesn’t mention that he's a famous hockey player. And he doesn’t own up to the way he’s always trying to undress me with his dark, broody eyes.
The man throws out more mixed signals than a broken traffic light. I've never been more sexually frustrated in my entire life. I need to back away before I do something stupid, like lose my heart.
Oops. Too late.
The Last Guy on Earth
The Last Guy on Earth
Our 5 star reviews
One cold December day, two men are blindsided by a hockey trade; one is the most decorated goalie in the league, while the other one is the youngest coach in the majors.
Jethro Hale is the last player Coach Clay Powers wants to see on his roster, but the G.M. pulls a fast one. And it's not like he can even explain why. Nobody knows about their love affair fifteen years ago.
Cue the all-star awkwardness, the painful memories and the reawakening of deep feelings on both sides.
Unfortunately, their attraction still burns brightly. But it can never be. A player and a coach? The scandal would overshadow the team’s banner year.
If only they could resist each other…
If you love grumpy heroes, high stakes hockey, struggling single parents and smoldering kisses, grab your copy of The Last Guy on Earth.
These are M/M standalones set in the Brooklyn Hockey world.
Check out other M/F books here:
Brooklyn Hockey series
Sarina Bowen is a 24-time USA bestselling author, and a Wall Street Journal bestselling author of contemporary romance novels. Formerly a derivatives trader on Wall Street, Sarina holds a BA in economics from Yale University.
A New Englander whose Vermont ancestors cut timber and farmed the north country in the 1760s, Sarina is grateful for the invention of indoor plumbing and wi-fi during the intervening 250 years. She lives with her family on a few wooded acres in New Hampshire.
Sarina's books are published in over a dozen languages with fifteen international publishers.
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