Quickie Review----May Contain Spoilers, Proceed At Your Own Risk

The Understatement of the Year is a story I went into completely blind and I am happy that I did so. This book was a pure delight and one of my catnips is second chance romances and seeing how Sarina Bowen handled this setup was so unique. I was also delightfully surprised to see that this was a M/M romance as well. That is one of my favorites in sports romance especially. But when it comes to Sarina Bowen, she really knows how to develop these M/M relationships so well. I really love the moments that we see between this couple. They have such a bitter past which is painful for both of them. We get to see them work through the guilt and pain and find a relationship with each other once again. We also see some solid friendships but also seeing that there was some bigotry that was implemented. So be mindful of that. I wasn't really a fan of that aspect, it felt a bit too much in the way that it was handled. Overall I had a fun time with this one and eager to continue to the next installment of a fun series. ( )

4.5 ( )

I see I missed writing a comment about this book, but it was actually quite beautiful - the title was memorable but I couldn't quite remember the story. The new guy on the hockey team is gay ... but his bravery, toughness and tender-hearted nature conspire to make him the immensely appealing hero of this book. Inevitably, Rikker's spirit fortifies and liberates Graham.

A few words from the description to remind me of the story: Rikker didn't exactly expect a warm welcome from Graham. But the guy won't even meet his eyes. From the looks of it, his former... best friend / boyfriend / whatever isn't doing so well. He drinks too much and can't focus during practice. ( )

Twee homoseksuele jeugdvrienden komen elkaar na jaren weer tegen in een ijshockeyteam. De een is openlijk homo, de ander zit nog in de kast ( )

This book is about two hockey players, who were best friends and lovers in high school but were separated due to a hate crime. That incident changed their lives forever and has so much impact on their thought process than they realize. When the openly gay Rikker transfers to Harkness, Graham gets the shock of his life. The story follows them on their journey to find themselves, their friendship and love again.

Rikker is such an amazing character. He is honest and caring and so full of love, it was a joy reading about him. He doesn’t choose to be the only openly out player in Division One hockey but when circumstances force him to, he doesn’t let it change his love or focus for the game. He is also totally comfortable in his sexuality, but can’t escape the homophobic comments of his teammate or rival teams. But his biggest weakness is his first love, Graham.

Graham is a self loathing, paranoid guy who is dead set on trying to prove that he is not gay but he cannot keep away from Rik. But he is also such a douche. He treats Rik so badly for most of the book, first by being so uncomfortable even being in the same room as him and not even acknowledging their past and then being secretive about their relationship. It was good to see him finally accept the truth about himself but I wish he had treated Rik better.

I also loved the characters of Graham’s mom and Rik’s grandma. They are so sweet and supportive and love their children no matter what, and irrespective of their religious beliefs, it was just so endearing. Bella is also a great friend and I was so sad for her, but she is so understanding and caring, it made me tear up. Rik’s ex Skippy is an absolute live wire and brings some amazing humor and laughs whenever he appears.

If I ignore the stupidity of Graham for a bit, I really loved his relationship with Rik. They share an old and beautiful friendship, understand each other deeply and it felt so good to see them get together. It broke my heart to see Rik love Graham so much but still have to hide it from the world. The ending definitely warmed my heart but it was also so abrupt and I was disappointed to not get to read more about them being together and happy.

This is an amazing book about friendship, first love, second chances and trying to find happiness by being and accepting yourself for who you are and not what the world wants you to be. ( )