Drafted to play for the Jacksonville Sea Storm, an NHL affiliate, twenty-year-old Lane Courtnall’s future looks bright, apart from the awkwardness he feels as a gay man playing on a minor league hockey team. He's put his foot in his mouth a few times and alienated his teammates. Then, during a rivalry game, Lane throws off his gloves against Jared Shore, enforcer for the Savannah Renegades. It’s a strange way to begin a relationship.

Jared’s been playing minor league hockey for most of his career. He’s bisexual and doesn’t care if anyone knows. But he’s determined to avoid another love affair after the last one left him devastated. Out of nowhere a one-nighter with rookie Lane Courtnall gives him second thoughts. Lane reminds Jared why he loves the game and why love might be worth the risk. In turn, Jared hopes to show Lane how to be comfortable with himself on and off the ice. But they’re at different points in their careers, and both men will have to decide what they value most.

Sports romances are one of my favorite subgenres, and for some reason—gee, maybe it’s because I grew up in northern Minnesota?—hockey romances are right there at the top of the list. So when someone recommended Avon Gale’s Breakaway to me, I clicked to buy without a second thought. I was rewarded with a fun read full of cute fluff and plenty of hot stuff too.

Lane Courtnall is finally making money playing hockey after being drafted by the NHL, though to start, he’s playing on a team in the lowest level of the minor league in Jacksonville, Florida, a city that has essentially no hockey fans. But that’s okay because he’s only twenty and has a bright future in front of him. But he’s socially awkward, which means he inadvertently alienated most of his teammates right off the bat. He also feels awkward because he’s gay on a professional sports team. Jared Shore has played minor-league hockey for years and knows he won’t be moving up. As enforcer for the Savannah Renegades, he’s known for his rough, physical style of play. He’s bisexual and completely uninterested in getting into another serious relationship, and he has a rule against sleeping with other hockey players. So when Lane picks a fight with him in a misguided attempt to prove himself to his team, it’s truly laughable. When their paths cross later that night, Jared isn’t laughing at the signs that the obviously inexperienced rookie wants him bad. And after the one-nighter, it’s got Jared rethinking not just his sex life but his hockey life too.

The thing that’s most noticeable from the start of reading this book is the writing style, particularly the writing that comes during the scenes from Lane’s point of view. It’s perfect for Lane’s awkward behavior. Many times during the book, he says things that should be really offensive or just plain weird, but it quickly becomes clear the man doesn’t have a mean bone in his body. He just doesn’t have a filter, so whatever he’s thinking, it’s out in the open. It’s quite humorous at times, and because he’s Canadian, his impulsive need to be nice and polite makes the things he says and does even more odd and funny. Once you get past the awkward, he’s impossible not to love. But his awkwardness comes from more than just his lack of social grace. He has a lot to overcome to be comfortable in his own skin.

Jared is a fun character to read as well, especially his dealing with Lane’s idiosyncrasies. But even apart from that, as the story reveals Jared’s past, along with his having to make decisions about his hockey career, I found myself enjoying him even more than Lane. They work well together, not only because of the scorching hot sex scenes (that yes, have a fun bit of awkwardness to them too) but also because they bring out the best in each other, helping each other realize what’s important and how to be better individually.

One of the reasons I enjoy hockey romances so much is that the game itself is almost like a secondary character, or at least I like it when that happens. That’s certainly the case in this book, and the author’s use of the game to wrap around the challenges Lane and Jared face made it all the more entertaining. In addition, a real secondary character, Zoe, befriends Lane near the beginning of the book, and she turns out to be a great addition to the story as well.

When I read Breakaway six months ago, it was my first exposure to Avon Gale. I understand this is a much lighter and fluffier work than some of her previous writing, but that’s fine with me. I can’t resist a hockey romance, not just because it’s hot men being hot together but because I like hockey too. This was definitely a winner for me.

I purchased a copy of Breakaway before I started reviewing for this site.

After last season’s heartbreaking loss to his hockey team’s archrival, Jacksonville Sea Storm goalie Riley Hunter is ready to let go of the past and focus on a winning season. His new roommate, Ethan Kennedy, is a loud New Yorker with a passion for social justice that matches his role as the team’s enforcer. The quieter Riley is attracted to Ethan and has no idea what to do about it.

Ethan has no hesitations. As fearless as his position demands, he rushes into things without much thought for the consequences.Though they eventually warm to their passionate new bond, it doesn’t come without complications. While trying to financially help Ethan, Riley must hide his family’s wealth so as not to hurt Ethan’s immense pride. For their relationship to work, Ethan will need to learn when to keep the gloves on and let someone help him—and Riley will have to learn it’s okay to let someone past his defenses.

Immediately after I finished Breakaway, the first novel in Avon Gale’s Scoring Chances series, I bought and excitedly dove into the second book, Save of the Game, because while hockey romance is my favorite within the subgenre, hockey romances about goalies are the ones I like best because, frankly, goalies are weird. Something about weird always appeals to me.

Riley Hunter’s last season ended on the disappointing note, just missing out on the coveted Kelly Cup. As a goalie, he has an extra impetus to make sure the team is successful: being with another team would mean being forced into back-up role again, needing to prove himself just to get the chance to get back on the ice. So he’s ready to move on and do what he does best to make this a winning season. Ethan Kennedy is the new enforcer for the team, a role that suits him perfectly, as he’s always been the sort to stand up and protect those in need. He’s also Riley’s new roommate, and the unapologetically brash New Yorker is the complete opposite of Riley’s quiet, neat, and solitary existence. And it turns out Riley’s attracted to Ethan and has no idea what to do with it. After an innocent event leads Ethan to suspect the attraction, he responds as he does with so many things in his life: he dives in without thinking about what might be the result. And of course, things like this never come free from challenges.

Goalie stories work for me because of the obvious metaphor of goalies defending things from reaching their target. In addition, this one is an opposites-attract story. Early on, the reader learns that Riley grew up in a fantastically wealthy family with access to anything he might want except, of course, for the most important thing a child needs, love. As an adult, the fact that he’s a billionaire has made it difficult for him to get close to people; he’s always felt like when everyone knows, they assume he’s bought his way onto a professional sports team, and he thinks the only people who want to be his friend only do so for his money. So he keeps it a secret, trying his best to help those who are important to him. On the other hand, Ethan’s family is tight-knit and supportive in spite of their meager surroundings. He’s a man with a huge heart who’s not afraid to help those in need, but his pride makes it difficult to accept help from others.

There is a lot to like about their relationship, starting with the fact that while neither of them has been with a man before, neither makes a big deal about the discovery that they’re bisexual. They also don’t hide it from anyone either. It’s unusual, since so often in life—and, thus, in M/M romances, being an artistic reflection of real life—these issues are the source of so much angst and drama. Here, the relationship between Riley and Ethan is probably one of the healthiest I’ve read: they weren’t afraid of what was developing between them nor of what others would think, and most importantly, they communicated! Talk about refreshing! Of course, that also means the book was missing a good bit of the conflict familiar in M/M romances. The result is a light and fun story, but also one that can focus on what makes them different as a way for the characters to grow individually and together.

As with Breakaway, the hockey storyline in Save of the Game is just as interesting as the romance. This book also has some good secondary characters, probably the best of which is the team’s coach, who has some of the funniest lines in the book. It was also nice to see cameos from the previous book’s characters, even though their appearances were mostly throw-away scenes that didn’t further the plot of this story much.

Save of the Game makes the second book I’ve read from Avon Gale, and so far, it’s two for two. I’m really looking forward to reading the next one.

I purchased a copy of Save of the Game before I started reviewing for this site.

Power Play (Scoring Chances #3)
Avon Gale
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Released May 9, 2016
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Overtime (Scoring Chances #3.5)
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Released July 26, 2016
Empty Net (Scoring Chances #4)
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Expected September 2, 2016
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Spartanburg Spitfires’ goalie and captain Isaac Drake ended last season with an unexpected trip to the playoffs. He’s found a home and family with his coach and mentor, Misha Samarin, and he’s looking forward to making a serious run for the Kelly Cup. But things take an interesting turn when Isaac’s archnemesis, Laurent St. Savoy, is traded to the Spitfires. After Laurent’s despicable behavior in the playoffs last year, Isaac wants nothing to do with him – no matter how gorgeous he is. But that changes when Isaac discovers the reason for Laurent’s attitude.

Laurent St. Savoy grew up the only son of a legendary NHL goalie in a household rife with abuse, constantly treated like a disappointment on and off the ice. When a desperate attempt to escape his father’s tyranny sends him to the Spitfires, the last thing Laurent wants is to make friends. But there’s something about Isaac Drake that he can’t resist, and Laurent has an opportunity to explore his sexuality for the first time, but he’s cracking under end-of-the season pressures. When facing the playoffs and a rivalry turned personal vendetta, Isaac’s not sure he’s enough to hold Laurent—or their relationship—together.

Avon Gale

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