An engaging and spicy romance that targets sports fans but with a well-developed arc suitable for aficionados of YA love...
In a small Minnesota town where life centers on hockey, a past trauma binds two childhood friends together, eventually leading to a close relationship in this YA novel.
Tate Tanley finds his identity in Juniper Falls defined by his father’s legacy. Keith Tanley led the high school hockey team to the 1994 state championship, and no matter how good Tate is in his own right, he is always measured against his dad. But everyone in town who reveres his father doesn’t realize he is a violent drunk who once broke Tate’s arm. There was only one witness, Claire O’Connor, Tate’s older sister’s best friend. Claire and Tate have kept the secret for over a year; she left town to pursue her dream of studying performance at Northwestern University, and he finished high school. But Claire returns to town when her father, Davin, becomes severely ill and he needs help running the family business (“the coolest hockey bar in the state of Minnesota, famous for the walleye horseshoe”). When the two friends meet again, Tate is no longer the awkward kid brother (“When did Tate Tanley get such a deep voice? And when did he start rescuing girls from drunk creepers in bars?” Claire muses). And Claire now seems within Tate’s reach. They’re both battling personal demons, but maybe together they can confront adversity and become stronger than if they stayed apart. Cross (Chasing Truth, 2016, etc.) has an extensive background in the world of sports that shows in her depictions of the town’s reverence for hockey, a team’s dedication, and the complex rules that govern college recruitment of athletes. But the book’s biggest strength is also its greatest weakness: readers who are not hockey lovers will experience periods of boredom when entire chapters focus on a game. But fans of YA romance should find the sweet and sexy courtship between Tate and Claire appealing as they move beyond their shared childhoods to see each other as maturing adults and potential objects of love and desire. Their relationship path is exceedingly realistic, fraught with the tensions of abuse and illness, rather than just another superficial liaison.
An engaging and spicy romance that targets sports fans but with a well-developed arc suitable for aficionados of YA love stories.Pub Date: Feb. 28, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-63375-655-7
Page Count: 300
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Review Posted Online: Feb. 2, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A troubling depiction of an unhealthy relationship.
A battered girl and an injured rugby star spark up an ill-advised romance at an Irish secondary school.
Beautiful, waiflike, 15-year-old Shannon has lived her entire life in Ballylaggin. Alternately bullied at school and beaten by her ne’er-do-well father, she’s hopeful for a fresh start at Tommen, a private school. Seventeen-year-old Johnny, who has a hair-trigger temper and a severe groin injury, is used to Dublin’s elite-level rugby but, since his family’s move to County Cork, is now stuck captaining Tommen’s middling team. When Johnny angrily kicks a ball and knocks Shannon unconscious (“a soft female groan came from her lips”), a tentative relationship is born. As the two grow closer, Johnny’s past and Shannon’s present become serious obstacles to their budding love, threatening Shannon’s safety. Shannon’s portrayal feels infantilized (“I looked down at the tiny little female under my arm”), while Johnny comes across as borderline obsessive (“I knew I shouldn’t be touching her, but how the hell could I not?”). Uneven pacing and choppy sentences lead to a sudden climax and an unsatisfyingly abrupt ending. Repetitive descriptions, abundant and misogynistic dialogue (Johnny, to his best friend: “who’s the bitch with a vagina now?”), and graphic violence also weigh down this lengthy tome (considerably trimmed down from its original, self-published length). The cast of lively, well-developed supporting characters, especially Johnny’s best friend and Shannon’s protective older brother, is a bright spot. Major characters read white.
A troubling depiction of an unhealthy relationship. (author’s note, pronunciations, glossary, song moments, playlists) (Romance. 16-18)Pub Date: Nov. 28, 2023
ISBN: 9781728299945
Page Count: 626
Publisher: Bloom Books
Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2023
Unexamined toxic masculinity makes this romance anything but.
A girl’s strained relationships with two brothers causes strife in this trilogy opener by Argentinian author Ron that’s translated from Spanish.
In the small American town of Carsville, Kamila Hamilton was friends with her neighbors the Di Bianco brothers. Taylor was Kami’s constant, kind companion; older brother Thiago grew increasingly antagonistic. When she was 10 and a half and he was 12, Thiago coerced Kami into her first kiss. Following the revelation of a family secret, the Di Biancos moved away, but a restraining order against Thiago led them to return to their old home after eight years without contact. But 20-year-old Thiago’s new job as assistant basketball coach at the high school where Taylor is on the team and 17-year-old Kami is a cheerleader brings the white-presenting trio into close contact, leading to tense confrontations over past events. Thiago and Kami’s interactions are marked by antagonism and lust (Thiago: “Accumulated rage, bitterness, hatred, and arousal….I could have taken her then and there, not even thinking of the consequences”; Kami: “I felt like a small, defenseless animal being hunted by a beast”). The softer and more empathetic Taylor tries to smooth things over. Thiago’s abuse of power—he uses his role as coach to confront and bully Kami—is uncomfortable and feels like a misguided attempt by the pair to process their traumatic history, which Ron purposefully reveals, making this overall read more cringeworthy than romantic.
Unexamined toxic masculinity makes this romance anything but. (Romance. 16-18)Pub Date: Sept. 16, 2025
ISBN: 9781464234279
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Bloom Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 29, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2025
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