Romance Readers Reading Challenges discussion

Our April m/m pick is Offside .

This was a freebie around Halloween time from Dreamspinner Press. If you've got a copy please join us in reading it and stop by this thread and chat about it :)

It's lendable on Amazon if you can find someone who has it to lend, or it costs $4.61 on Amazon, which seems to be the lowest price right now.

I'm in! Really looking forward to this one :)

I didn't realize this is by Ryan Loveless of Ethan, Who Loved Carter fame! I keep hearing good things about that one, haven't gotten to it yet.

Fran wrote: "I didn't realize this is by Ryan Loveless of Ethan, Who Loved Carter fame! I keep hearing good things about that one, haven't gotten to it yet."

I finished that one the other day. I really enjoyed it even though I had a *little* trouble with how the characters worked long term...

Jane (PS) wrote: "I finished that one the other day. I really enjoyed it even though I had a *little* trouble with how the characters worked long term..."

I read it this month too, and a couple of times had a little of the same feeling, but then I'd remind myself that there are couples out there with a lot worse issues that make it, so why not them? and I'd get over it...they were just so wonderful together! :D

I have Offside borrowed & in my email ready to go! Thanks for looking out Fran :)

~KarenH~ wrote: "Jane (PS) wrote: "I finished that one the other day. I really enjoyed it even though I had a *little* trouble with how the characters worked long term..."

I read it this month too, and a couple of..."

True Karen - it was a very heart-warming story :) Hope this one is as good!

Whee! I'm back in the RRRC group for the first time in about a year. I have a copy of this e-book, so I think I will try to join ya'll for this buddy read in April. :)

LOL! Where you been Flibb!?

hehehe! Excellent question. Playing bingo in the SOS group and then the M/M group took up a good deal of my reading time, but I'm back!

YAY! :)

Welcome back Flibb!

Wow - are you bingo'd out now? (I have to admit that I am, at least for a while!)

Thanks, Fran!

This book looks good, but I'm a sucker for sports-themed romances. I got this one while it was a freebie on DSP last year, but I probably would have paid for it regardless.

I'm hoping it will be good.

Yep, I'm bingoed out for a little while. I'd play again, though. I had fun :)

Jane (PS) wrote: "Wow - are you bingo'd out now? (I have to admit that I am, at least for a while!)"

I am definitely bingo'd out as well. Would I sign up right now if it were posted? Heck yes!

LOL Breann - It's the thought of missing out on something isn't it??

I finished this one. I really liked it. A bit far-fetched in places, being 'out' in pro sports and flaunting it...unheard of here in the U.S. But I was proud of the guys, not caring what others thought, just trying to live their lives. I really liked Colin and Adam. A little too much soccer talk for me, but that's just me, not a soccer fan. Overall, a nice read, I enjoyed it :)

I was thinking of starting this today, but was side-tracked by . I might chop and change with them - see how the mood takes me :)

I am getting a slow start this month, not sure when I am going to get to this one... Maybe next week.

I'm looking at starting it probably sometime next week also. I'm doing pretty well with audiobooks so far this month, but having trouble getting much actual reading done - I've been taking advantage of our first stretch of decent weather of the season and trying to do some outdoor spring cleaning. Great for listening, but not so much for reading! :D

I've read the first chapter, and love it so far :)

I've just finished Offside - 4 stars. I really enjoyed it. There was a lot of growth /development for both MCs. There were some parts that riled me up on behalf of one or both MCs (which is good). I really couldn't understand how Adam was so forgiving of the Galaxy player's action against Colin, but they could clearly separate it all *shrugs*...

Anyway, Loveless remains a solid buying option for me :)

Just started & read the first chapter. Adam is an arrogant jerk but still likable somehow?? So far, so good!

Adam starts out with a seriously bad attitude, but that gets a lot better pretty quickly. He grows up a lot in the course of the story :)

Finished - 3 stars. Most mm sports romances that I've read are pretty angsty, so it was nice to read a lighter sports romance.

Fran wrote: "A little too much soccer talk for me, but that's just me, not a soccer fan. "

I was thinking this too. I kinda skimmed over the soccer stuff.

I quite enjoyed the soccer talk. I enjoyed this story a lot more than Out in the Field - which was probably the last solid sports romance that I read...

I just finished this one and was surprised how much I enjoyed it. I'm not always the biggest Ryan Loveless fan. I got a little annoyed in the middle, when Adam kept apologizing and people kept telling him to "fix it" with Colin, when as far as I was concerned he really hadn't done much to apologize for. I guess I can see how not everyone outside the two of them could see that, but it still bugged me.

And am I the only one, or was the fainting thing just weird? I was fully expecting that it would turn out to be an undiagnosed concussion from the tackle during the game earlier that day, but they were both like, "well, that was weird!" and the whole thing was dropped.

I did like Adam and Colin together, though. Colin's sunny personality was a good match for Adam's harsher experience of life. And it was interesting to read about a professional athlete coming out right now when there are stories popping up about maybe as many as 4 NFL players currently working behind the scenes to stage their own coming outs. (Comings out? Neither sounds right.) I'd like to think that an out gay player would be accepted as easily by his teammates as Adam was when he first joined the team, but I have my doubts.

LOL, I thought the fainting thing was weird too.. then it just went away and was never mentioned again. I'm no sexpert, but I don't think fainting is the norm :D and was surprised nothing came out of it. I thought maybe there was head injury or something from the game? Nope, just a big d*ck.

Becky wrote: "And am I the only one, or was the fainting thing just weird? I was fully expecting that it would turn out to be an undiagnosed concussion from the tackle during the game earlier that day, but they were both like, "well, that was weird!" and the whole thing was dropped...."

LOL... I forgot about that! Yes - I was totally on the same track thinking it was a side-affect from that tackle.

I started this today and I am really curious about this now!

I finished today and I really enjoyed it! It was a first for me by this author but not my last. I do agree, the fainting thing was weird! Really weird, so weird I would have definitely been at the emergency room not blowing it off. At the beginning I do think there was too much soccer talk - I kept waiting for the story to start. But once it did, I didn't feel like it overwhelmed the plot. Overall, another great pick!

What's next? =)

MountainKat wrote: "What's next? =)"

hehe... I was gonna ask the same thing :)

I've been hearing so much about Let's Hear it for the Boy, that I've been dying to read it! It's pretty short, but lendable & free on prime (I just don't know how long those usually last...)

Since Let's Hear it For The Boy is so short do you want to do two next month? Maybe a freebie from LiAW? Any goodies come to mind?

I would absolutely reread Into Deep Waters

^^but that one is a bit longer than the average LiAW story. Kinda defeats the purpose of having two books next month :D

Breann wrote: "I've been hearing so much about Let's Hear it for the Boy, that I've been dying to read it! It's pretty short, but lendable & free on prime (I just don't know how long those usually last...)"

That story sounds great! I'm on board for LHIFTBoy.

My only other shorter stories that I have to read soon is Country Mouse (p79) by Amy Lane and An Oral Fixation (p19) by Piper Vaughn. PVaughns is from the Love Is Always Write...

I'd also be up for Into Deep Waters - but that's a reread for Breann...

Country Mouse sounds good!

Country Mouse does look good!

Those all sound great to me - I'm up for just about anything! Of course, I still need to get busy and read this month's book...

There is actually a second story already published that follows on from Country Mouse - aptly called City Mouse! If we go with Country Mouse this time, we could follow up in a few months with City Mouse :)

~KarenH~ wrote: "Those all sound great to me - I'm up for just about anything! Of course, I still need to get busy and read this month's book..."

LOL - well, I really enjoyed this month's selection, so I think the wait will be worth it, once you open the book :)

I'm late to the game (as usual). I finished the book last night. I really liked parts of the book and ended up giving it 4 stars.

I was pretty happy with the build up to the relationship between Adam and Colin, but I almost felt that Loveless gave in too soon.

For example, who was the girl that was with Colin and staying overnight? did she really cover that? I loved the tension that was playing out between them, but it all dissolved a little too soon for my tastes.

I did like the book, though :)

I'm in the middle of reading Country Mouse at the moment, actually.

If anyone is interested in another sports story, Noah is free on Dreamspinner right now. No idea how long that will last, though. http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/stor...

Becky wrote: "If anyone is interested in another sports story, Noah is free on Dreamspinner right now. No idea how long that will last, though. http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/stor......"

Thanks Becky! I just picked it up :)

Becky wrote: "If anyone is interested in another sports story, Noah is free on Dreamspinner right now. No idea how long that will last, though. http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/stor......"

Me too! Thanks Becky!

Me three! Thanks Becky!

Any time!