Adam Dumas is Major League Soccer’s only openly gay player. When he is transferred to St. Louis, his new teammates don’t exactly roll out the welcome mat. It doesn’t help that Adam sees “the Gateway to the West” as a step down from his high-profile position in LA—an attitude Adam has no problem sharing with his new housemate and fellow center forward, Colin Evets. Colin is Adam’s only friend on the team, but when Adam misinterprets Colin’s Midwestern charm for something more, he could end up ruining both their friendship and their careers. As Adam struggles to make a better impression, Colin tries to decide if the person he’s been showing the world is who he wants to be with Adam. The pressure to win influences decisions both on the field and off as Adam and Colin discover how making the wrong move can be very right.
A really enjoyable story with great characters who drew me into the story. There is great contrast between the two men which made their relationship interesting to watch.
I was drawn to the character of Adam, not necessarily liking him at first, but sympathetic to his situation. Openly gay and a talented and experienced soccer player, he is unhappy with a team transfer. He moves to St Louis with only one plan, finish his contract and get out. He is pissed off and angry at the way he has been treated.
Colin, one of his new teammates, welcomes Adam to the team. They don't get off to the best start but Colin is a friendly and decent guy who gives Adam the benefit of the doubt. Colin is very inexperienced and uncertain about his sexuality, never having given it much thought before, instead focusing on his soccer. A misunderstanding results in Colin giving it a little more thought!
I appreciated the way Adam behaved with Colin. His old ways behind him, he was gentle and focused on Colin's feelings. As well as the romance, there was enough drama to keep things moving along. I also loved the way both men end up making certain decisions based on their feelings for the other - definitely warm and fuzzies!
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I liked the book, but I really can't feel the Adam character. Colin is amazing, so cute, adorable. But Adam… Ok, he comes already from a big football club so yes, he´s a bit flighty.
Adam is an out famous player that is suddenly transferred to a small club. He's mad, he only wants to shine enough to be picked again by a big club. But first he must deal with this club issue, his new teammates and a crush for the cute and friendly flatmate Colin.
The issues around football ... maybe are too dense for me that I really DON'T like this sport. But the story with Colin is lovely. Except not entirely believable his attitude change ~ But yeah Adam was very supportive helping Colin´s outing.
ALSO ADD
This book is from 2011. I'm reading it on 2016 and still I can't imagine an OUT famous football player here in spanish league This sport at least here is still quite retrograde and sexist. SAD, SO SAD.
Kind of slow getting started. This book had way more soccer lingo than I expected, details about the game, and about contracts and getting traded. I know for some people that works, but for me, I was just bored.
At first, I wasn't even sure if I was going to like Adam. He seemed like a jerk, a bit of a spoiled brat. But I did grow to really enjoy him, and especially Colin.
I was ticked when the first sex scene was fade to black, then the next one was more detailed, and one of the guys fainted!
3.5 stars When Adam Dumas finds out that he is being transferred into St. Louis by his old team the L.A. Galaxy, all he can think of is how to get out from there as soon as possible. Until his eyes capture the form of his new roommate, center forward Colin Evets, and soon Adams struggles to make better impression because he realizes he can fall for the younger player. Except, oh, Colin is not really gay ... isn't he?
I think it is the first story in realm of soccer that I have read. Kudos for that! Especially in the seems-to-be well-research work, into the world of soccer and MLS Division games. I enjoy the scenes of practices and the relationship among the players. I do wish to see more action on the field though ... but this is from a woman who watched World Cup since 1990 *lol*.
Unfortunately, I cannot seem to feel as emotionally connected to the characters. MAYBE, because while this story is written in 3rd person, but the main narrator is Adam. There is no perception from Colin, so I kind of feel one sided.
Adam and Colin they are so cute together, the sex is minimal but boy is their first sexual encounter together an experience, I could not stop laughing it was certainly memorable. The rest of the team were engaging and fun especially the locker room scenes and the play on the field. I thoroughly enjoyed this!
For an Italian reader, Offside is a bit of a fantasy tale for two main reasons: first of all, soccer players in Italy are like heroes, and like that they are high-paid professionals with a huge following and in no way a favourite of the team could be easily exchanged, like a pawn of a bigger game; second, homosexuality is still a taboo, no one will admit there are gay soccer players in the Italian league and in no way a soccer player could come out without losing his team and everything else.
Said that, I know the same is not abroad, and I think that in the US, soccer is more a little brother sport of the bigger game like Football and Baseball; maybe, for this reason, a soccer player has less pressure in comparison to other athletes, and he is allowed more freedom, even to come out. That is the point of this novel, Adam is a not so young athlete (true he is less than 30 years old, but for someone who started his career when he was 15 years old, he is an old player now) who is kicked out from his team to let space to younger meat. He has now a contract with a team in St. Louis, Missouri, very far from Los Angeles, not only on a miles distance, but also on custom. While Adam, openly gay, has some freedom in Los Angeles, which is not the same in provincial St. Louis.
Truth be told, most of his troubles are not from him being gay, but since he is the new guy in town. Indeed the other team-mates are mostly welcoming him, and in one specific case, Colin, seems even interested in him as more than a fellow soccer player. Colin is way younger than Adam, not only in age, but also experience. Sexual experience. From what I gathered, Colin is a virgin in every sense of the word, and basically Adam is corrupting him.
The relationship between Colin and Adam is mostly sweet and even funny; maybe even a little too much funny, Colin fainting during sex, not once but two times, is maybe not so realistic, but it adds a “comic” touch to the whole story. Aside from that, Colin and Adam don’t meet many obstacles to their love story, and Adam finds also support around him, from friends, colleagues and relatives. That is again nice, I realize that sometime I’m a bit pessimistic, but I don’t find so many time such situation in today society, even if we are in the XXI century. But more and more I find this in the stories I read, and more than once authors and readers commented that that is their own experience (like the same author in the author's bio of this novel), so maybe it’s possible, and I’m glad that it is.
I have to admit I know very little about soccer so slogging through all the contract BS, terminology and play action was slow going for me. I guess that bit at the start of the book - about how it's only once ever 4 years that Americans even remember we have professional soccer teams - hit dead center on point.
I liked Michaels (I mean, he's a goalie like our own awesome Tim Howard), and really would like to read more about him. He's an Aussie, so that's practically a given. And maybe Logan. All that sleeping around with so many women just screams over-compensation or maybe hiding something. IDK. I'm going to check for sequels when I'm done.
The fun-sex parts were great because sometimes it's either all ridiculously hot, or has no detail at all...and I liked the idea of laughing during sex because it SHOULD be fun. Right? Anyway, that was all well and good but I could have done without Colin fainting. Twice. It's a bit melodramatic and self-serving. (Seriously, Adam's cock is that good? I dunno...) At first I thought maybe he had an injury he neglected to mention or that he hit his head and was having an aneurysm. (Adam did mention a few chapters earlier about hidden bruises and it was easy to think that was foreshadowing of some sort.)
So yeah, it was good. I didn't zone out during the game descriptions - so that in and of itself is an endorsement. (The only time that will never, ever be an issue is Football. I luuuurrrrve me some gay footballer stories and I'll pick apart what's wrong in a play if it's written incorrectly, so...yeah.)
Off to see about the next one - if one exists. (And if something is going to be #1 there really ought to be another one or that's like false advertising or something.)
This story at first was a little slow but it didn't take too long to heat up. Now M/M smut lovers beware this book is not saturated by endless sex scenes but actually this story does offer a great story of being 'out' in professional sports, the adversity that an out player is faced with, etc.
Adam, the MLS league's first out soccer player is traded and comes to St. Louis with a chip on his shoulder and seems jaded. And when we meet Colin, his love interest, I wondered, "Is he gay or not?"
I think Ms. Loveless did a good job with telling a good tale of coming out for the first time and of falling in love. This is first and foremost a romance.
Now mind you the road of Adam & Colin falling in love was a bumpy one - there were one night stands, nerves, reference to large...appendages, a plucky Australian soccer player, a funny soccer team and a visit to a male strip club. I had fun taking that road to Adam and Colin's love and recommend this story to those who love good M/M romance.
I love sports themed books and this was a great one. I loved how the team and most people in the sport of Soccer were OK with homosexuality. Great goal to strive for in real life for sure. I really liked the character of Colin and his internal struggles. Adam was a great character to actually watch mature and develop personally outside of the world of soccer. The "falling in love" did seem to happen very fast to me--Adam was a major player but then all of a sudden he wants to date Colin. Perhaps Adam's thought process could have been described a bit more but this did not detract from the awesomeness of the story. And I LOVED the ending. Thought it worked out perfect!
It's a book about soccer with a love story thrown in while I was hoping it'd be the other way around. The progression of their relationship kind of threw me. A bit hot and cold. Like they were nothing then all of a sudden they're everything. And my biggest and loudest complaint is we had a virgin here and his first sexual encounter with the love of his life was OFF PAGE! Are you kidding me here??? Not all the sex was off page but THAT'S the one scene that doesn't make the cut? wtf? We did get told about it after the fact but still.....not the same! I will admit to being very entertained throughout the book though and I did really enjoy it.
I enjoyed this book, even though I am not a soccer fan. Our hero falls in love with a (maybe) straight teammate, kicks himself, but ends up with his man. Not sure I buy that the team would support this couple, but maybe soccer is different is ways from our other American sports teams, but I think there would be more negative comments from other players on the team.
Who wouldn't love these two guys?
Well written, great research into the world of professional soccer, and good characterizations. Give it a read. Comment
This has the best game play that I have read in a while. There are a lot of team players to remember at the beginning but once the story got going I didn't worry so much about remembering who was who. Yes, yes I enjoyed the romance and tension as well. I was sure that Adam was going to well and truly blow his chances with Colin. The balance between the romance and the game was perfect for me. :-) I really enjoyed this and look forward to reading more by Mr. Loveless.
Ryan Loveless has such a natural flow of words...the experience is reminiscent of biting into a mouth-watering BLT..each bursting-quench of flavor reminds you of why it's a favorite. This was too short & Colin I found too naive for my taste, but Adam Dumas was a keeper.
Okay, I liked this book but not enough to give it more than three stars. There was something about Adam and Colin's relationship that fell flat for me; it had potential but I felt that it wasn't expressed/explored more.
Also, the first time sex scene not shown on page... kinda annoying but didn't bother me too much (although Colin passing out every time as was implied was like 'why???' moment).
Although I’m not a huge MLS fan, I know his is a love story at heart and MLS is just the vehicle. That being said, the story felt a little forced. Maybe I’m not worldly enough to know what really goes on with people, but everything felt just a bit off. I didn’t have any feels with this story. 3.0 for Aussies.
Adam is a brash take no nonsense kind of guy. He loves his job playing soccer and loves his team he grew up playing with. An unexpected transfers throws his life upside down. It is unsure why since he was one of the teams top scorer
Adam must now go to a new team mid season. Here he meats Colin and he does not hold back on the fact that this is a pit stop to better things.
Adam immediately feels an attraction to Colin and he suspects it might be reciprocated.
As the relationship progresses Colin will have a public outing. This does not deter either Adam or Colin.
Drama occurs during the teams match against Adams former team . But we get our happy ending.
I liked this book, but I thought it could be better.
Adam Dumas is a standout soccer player for the L.A. Galaxy and a bit of a problem child. He's openly gay and though having been groomed since adolescence by the team's president, business is business in professional sports and Adam finds himself transferred mid season to St. Louis.
When Adam meets Colin Evets, a young but eager player from Montana, Adam misconstrues Midwestern charm and youthful exuberance for interest and quickly finds himself on the verge of ruining a budding friendship and both men's careers.
This tale of romance and coming out in the world of professional soccer is well written and charmingly told. I enjoyed spending time with both men and enjoyed the clubhouse atmosphere that developed once the initial awkwardness was resolved. This is very much a book of this millennium as these events would be very different if set even 10 years earlier and part of my pleasure in this read was just acknowledging how far we've come.
If, like me, you're American born and have read and enjoyed Sean Kennedy's Tigers and Devils and Tigerland, here is an opportunity to bring the romance among professional athletes home and read about it in the language you grew up with.
*** Note: I received a copy of this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest and impartial review ***
I read this a few weeks ago & just hadn't rated it as yet. I liked the sports aspects of the story & the fact that this was my first m/m soccer book made this at least unique & interesting. It starts off with Adam Dumas getting dumped by his old team (L.A. Galaxy) & being sent to St. Louis, a fact he is none too happy about. The author tries to play this up as Adam going from big town to small (backwards?) town, which doesn't exactly fit my impression of St. Louis but whatever. Soon Adam connects with another player, Colin who may or may not be gay. This is the romance of the story.
Adam does some questionable things in his pursuit of Colin (who takes a naive young man who's hesitant about coming out to a place where there is a gay stripper & then proceeds to get a lap dance in front of him??) but is not a bad guy. Colin comes across as a little too naive than what you'd be if you're on a professional sports team. They're opposites in many ways & you don't really feel a connection to them as a couple until later in the story. But if you enjoy your romance mixed with some sports, then this should satisfy. I particularly liked the scenes on the field, in the locker room & with the other players.
This book is probably closer to 2.5 stars, but I'll round up to be generous.
Adam is your stereotypical arrogant jock... only, gay. The only out player in the MLS, in fact. Colin is your typical boy-next-door innocent type from Montana who lives only to play soccer. What do you get when you put them together?
Apparently, sex so good it makes you faint. *snicker*
No, in all seriousness, I enjoyed this book. It's a bit silly in places (see the fainting-during-sex comment above), and Adam is kind of an arrogant ass at the beginning, like most sports stories that start with a star athlete who's suddenly moved to a place he feels is beneath him. But of course, he grows to appreciate his new team, his new city, and his new love and gets a final 'fuck you' to the guy who dropped him like a hot potato, so I liked him by the end.
It's a light, quick, fun read, and I enjoyed the Gateway's team dynamic - they are a fun group of boys (I especially enjoyed Michaels).
*Special thanks to Dreamspinner Press for the TweetAway!
I struggled to rate this - I actually realy liked this and was tempted to give it 4 stars, but I decided to round down. Mostly because I thought the relationship was rushed - it was like once Colin realized he really was gay and decided to go on a real date with Adam, all of a sudden they were boyfriends/partners for life? There was no build up. I also felt like it ended rather abruptly - I still feel like I'm going to go home from work today and finish it and then I remember 'oh yeah, I already did.'
I was a little offended by the implications that A. Montanans have hick accents and B. Salt Lake has a subpar soccer team. Neither of those things are true. But they didn't affect my rating, I just wanted to get that off my chest.
Overall a good book and I'll be looking for more from this author.
It's more than three but less than four. The writing was smooth, the soccer background - as far as I can tell - accurately depicted and well - researched. I found Adam aptly characterized with his arrogance and initial purely self-centered ways. But the romance simply didn't work for me overall, even though there were some nice moments, like Adam and Colin's first kiss. I couldn't see why Adam was attracted to Colin, and Colin's utter worldly innocence asked a lot in ways of suspension of disbelief. Still, it was a cute story.
The story itself was nice. I liked it. But I have an impression that Mrs Loveless had more ideas than time and possibilities. Book seems to be rather chaotic, in some places even raw and unfinished. And I have to agree with most readers, the relationship between MC's is rushed. Maybe it's not the author fault, the book was just too short. If it was only twice as long ;) Unbelievable, but cute.
I wasn't impressed. The characters were really immature and I got pretty tired of them both acting like teenagers. I did like the fact that Adam was an out player and made no apologies for it. Unfortunately this didn't hold true for his relationship with Colin. It seemed like he was constantly apologizing, which I didn't understand. And I didn't like Colin a whole lot either. I'm just going to chalk this one up to "not my cup of tea" and move on.
I need a rating that tells me that my thoughts on this are just: It's a book.
The writing was not really my taste and for such a small page count, the story tried to do way too many things at once in too short time. The relationship does not seem to be the centerpoint of it despite little else happening.
This was just a really nice story. The coming out aspect was nice and the couple were just so adorable together. A few times I lost slight interest but I was glad in the end I finished and would gladly give this book 4/5 :)