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Breaking the Rules

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He’s completely insufferable. He’s going to get me fired. If only he wasn’t so hot.

Ever since he was thrown out of his parent’s home for being trans, John balances on a knife’s edge. He’s unwilling to draw attention to himself, lest he lose his scholarship and job as an RA.

Hayden asks for forgiveness, never permission. Why bother when he can charm his way out of trouble with a smile and a wink?

When Hayden’s mischief entangles John in a white-lie, their fake friendship is the only thing holding back University higher-up’s suspicion. Locked in a stalemate, John is on the line, breaking more rules than he believed possible. Hayden pushes John to the edge, toeing the line of the most infamous Campus Housing rule: absolutely no romantic relationships between an RA and their resident.

268 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 4, 2023

11 people are currently reading
113 people want to read

About the author

Nick Alamance

1 book5 followers
As a lover of fiction, romance, and engaging queer stories, Nick is passionate about writing from his experiences as a gay trans man. His work is an extended love-letter to LGBTQ+ young adults and their allies finding their footing and embracing one another.


Check out Nick's Patreon for behind-the-scenes content, exclusive chapters, and more!



Breaking the Rules - out September 9th on Amazon.

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5 stars
12 (22%)
4 stars
30 (55%)
3 stars
9 (16%)
2 stars
3 (5%)
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0 (0%)
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
Profile Image for Brooke.
831 reviews560 followers
August 22, 2023
⭐️ 4 stars ⭐️

For the first time in years, John already felt at home. It was a peculiar, floating sensation that made his whole body warm.


Heartwarming and delightful, following along John’s journey of self-acceptance and learning to live more freely was lovely and utterly enjoyable.

I loved the slow but nice build-up from friendship to lovers. Their relationship was adorable, John and Hayden were just meant for each other - the RA who always follows the rules vs the rule breaker.

I would definitely not classify this as an enemies to lovers, they were more strangers than anything. Either way, a great fantastic read.

Tropes:
- trans MC
- College setting
- Grumpy/sunshine

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

POV: 3rd person, single (only John’s)
Profile Image for Denise Ruttan.
449 reviews44 followers
September 2, 2023
“Breaking the Rules” was an incredibly charming rivals to lovers college romance about finding yourself and where you belong when the odds are against you. It was not without its issues but I loved Hayden and John as a couple so much that I forgave it for some inconsistencies.

John is an RA at LeeU whose rigid commitment to keeping the rules ties to his big secret. He’s a trans guy who was kicked out of his family’s home after transitioning, and always one broken rule away from homelessness. Hayden is a new resident whom he catches throwing a late-night party. He’s carefree, a risk taker and extroverted, and John’s uptight and straight-laced, so the pair immediately butt heads. John lets Hayden off for the party and writes Hayden up for a noise complaint instead, and much to his horror, is assigned to mentor him instead.

There wasn’t much time spent on the “enemies” part of their relationship; I can understand completely the motivation behind John’s aversion to risk. Annoyance turns to a fixation and a growing attraction, something new for John as he’s spent enough of his emotional energy on his gender identity and livelihood.

This was opposites attract in the best of ways, with Hayden bringing John out of his social shell and Hayden in turn acting as a supportive shoulder for John to lean on.

I thought the trans rep was very well done here, from John’s anxieties about his appearance, his confusion about whether his feelings for Hayden were jealousy or attraction, to his regimen keeping up with his testosterone injections. I appreciate ownvoices rep for the authenticity.

My edition had a number of proofreading errors, namely punctuation issues, mismatched words, some grammar stuff, that I hope can be fixed in the final copy. They weren’t distracting enough for me and I’m more forgiving of indies but they were noticeable enough that they might be a turnoff for some people.

I also felt the side characters could have been fleshed out a bit more and that we got more of the color of college life other than parties and rivalry games. I was hoping for a found family element that was kind of missing in this because the focus was so heavy on their relationship and John’s internal conflicts. It could have spent less time on body language like the heat going straight to John’s stomach, etc., and more time on worldbuilding. If you like high angst stuff though, you’ll appreciate the tension.

Plus there were some plot inconsistencies, like John barely has enough money to eat but then he goes for a paid internship in Spain for the winter because he’ll have housing. How’s he going to afford the plane ticket?

But the romance was so sweet that these were just minor annoyances.

Overall, a lovely coming of age story. Thank you to Booksprout for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Profile Image for Sam B.
197 reviews1 follower
August 26, 2023
I really enjoyed this book, primarily down to how cute the relationship itself was. John and Hayden complemented each other well, and I really liked their interactions. Both characters felt very fleshed out and believable. It also felt like a very realistic portrayal of a trans character but as I am not trans myself, I can't fully confirm that view.

The only reason I'm not giving this 5 stars is I can see areas where the writing can be improved to make it just that bit more engaging. Also I think some more time spent with their friends would be good, to flesh out their college lives a bit more.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Saskia Veldhuis .
1,893 reviews15 followers
September 6, 2023
4.5 stars. This is a higher rating than the plot itself would have had from me, but I am so glad I read John's slowly growing acceptance of himself as a trans man and Hayden's reactions to him. John's continuing physical transition and Hayden's support allowed John to finally have some energy over to learn more about himself and grow in other areas, to have more of the coming of age experience that he was missing out on. The trans representation was beautifully portrayed and very realistic.
I received a complimentary copy of this book via Booksprout and am happy to leave a voluntary review.
Profile Image for Kimberly Dorris.
41 reviews
September 7, 2023
I really loved this story. I’ve only read a few books with trans characters so far, and I think John is by far my favorite. And the sweet, protective relationship between Hayden and John is so special. They explore each others boundaries in positive, loving ways. I adore the way Hayden’s family accepted John with open arms. This story, just overall, is fantastic. I really look forward to reading more from Nick in the future!!.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
2,285 reviews16 followers
September 5, 2023
This is a new to me author and from what I can see this is their debut novel and it’s a good story, I enjoyed reading about John and Hayden’s relationship, the story flowed well and kept my interest from start to finish, I would definitely read more from this author in the future.
Profile Image for sol.
25 reviews1 follower
November 30, 2023
would i reread it?
╰┈┈➤no
would i recommend it?
╰┈┈➤yes
𓍊𓋼𓍊𖡼.𖤣𖥧𖡼.𖤣𖥧𓋼𓍊𓋼
🍄 forbidden romance
🍄 school rivals to fake friends to lovers
🍄 good boy x not so good boy
🍄 resident advisor x resident
🍄 opposites attract
𓍊𓋼𓍊𖡼.𖤣𖥧𖡼.𖤣𖥧𓋼𓍊𓋼
it's a light and fast-paced read. although there's a bit of angsty stuff at nearly the end.

i would've liked the scs had more development and interacted more.
𓍊𓋼𓍊𖡼.𖤣𖥧𖡼.𖤣𖥧𓋼𓍊𓋼
my warmest thanks to Nick & Booksprout for the copy!!
Profile Image for Gabs (gaybism).
266 reviews70 followers
Read
December 4, 2025
I was excited to get into this book purely because of the trans rep and own voice.

John’s an RA and sticks to the rules because he can’t afford to be homeless after his family kicked him out for being trans. I liked the rep and a lot of the struggles were very well described. John’s hardships and fears were very real. I appreciate an own voice representation.

Hayden has always been a carefree rule breaker. After having a party, John threatens to report him but decides to go easy on him by making it a noise complaint and not including the drinking part.

They often end up butting heads because of their different personalities. John’s then assigned to mentor Hayden and keep an eye on him so he doesn’t break any more rules.

There are quite a few typos and inconsistencies with the plot that I was going to overlook because the story seemed interesting enough. However, some elements of the book seemed a little problematic to me, hence why I won’t rate.

Hayden who’s Puerto Rican, was made out to be a bad boy who constantly breaks the rules, drinks and can’t act seriously in university. He then became John’s assignment. The administrative director tells John “maybe if you pointed Hayden on the right path, you could write your cover letter about it.”

Hayden had the potential to be an amazing character. He was caring, loved his friends and was extremely considerate when it came to John and him being trans. I wish his character was more developed.

Later, after John made a conscious choice to break the rules and gets in trouble for it, Hayden decides to go fix it by telling the AD that everything was his fault, which results in him losing his internship and maybe losing his scholarship. Even though this gets resolved, it still didn’t sit right with me. No one would risk their life or future like this after knowing someone for such a short amount of time.

This book had really good potential and I wish the possibilities were better explored.
Profile Image for Kerem.
32 reviews1 follower
September 8, 2023
It's been so long since I've read a queer romance and this reminded me why I love them so much.

It's only human of me, I immediately love books when characters remind me of myself. I saw a lot of myself in a lot of characters, mostly John and Julia, so I probably sympathized with them too much. I like that, despite being a contemporary college romance, the stakes were actually high. I completely understood Johns panic and the feeling of hopelessness that came with putting his livelihood on the line. Not only that, but the desire to place his emotional needs over physical needs too. Hayden was cute but that stern part of me always saw it from John's perspective.

I will say, plot wise, I feel a lot of side characters were pushed aside. John didn't have to forgive his family (obviously, I wouldn't either), I still wish there'd been a better closing note on it though. Filling in the blanks, it's clear John found a great support system at college, and it was hinted in the last picnic with Julia, but I wish it'd been better developed. This is also my way of saying I wish there'd been more Julia! She was so well written and I loved that she cared about John without being overbearing or pushy. So level-headed too, her advice in the midst of John's panic was so sweet.

Side note: don't expect a complete enemies to lovers situation. John and Hayden have their differences but it's definitely a forced proximity situation. In my opinion though, that's way better in contemporary romances.

As a cis woman, there isn't much I can say about the struggles John faces, but as far as I can tell, this book has great queer representation. I genuinely can't wait to see what other novels the author comes out with. This was such a great debut novel and hopefully it gains lots of traction.
Profile Image for Mariana ✨.
351 reviews440 followers
September 12, 2024
3,5 * — This was a cute book! John was a great MC, and I especially loved the trans rep here. Probably my favourite I've read! I really enjoyed getting the inside view on trans issues and John's internal struggles with self-acceptance and worries about how others may perceive him.

Hayden is the type of person who I'd absolutely hate in real life (he's always breaking rules, and he disregards other people in the process, which is something I just can't deal with), but his personality really worked for me in the book. Despite being irresponsible and careless, Hayden is still sweet and kind, which I appreciate. His confident attitude also never really crossed the line into cockiness, which made him charming, which I much prefer over arrogance.

I really enjoyed Hayden and John's dynamic. It definitely felt like they were well-matched in terms of personality, and I love that they genuinely cared and were there for each other. I like that they became friends first. Their romance was sweet and I really enjoyed the way they openly spoke about their feelings and attraction to each other.

I didn't really like the 3rd act conflict. You could see it coming from a mile away, and it felt really stupid and irresponsible. + the back and forth at the end with John trying to clear Hayden's name, then Hayden clearing John's, etc etc was tiiiiiring. I just wish that last part of the book was cleaner, but whatever.

There were a couple of typos, but since this is self-published, I don't really mind. The writing overall was good and flowed very well. This is a very easy-to-read book, and I would definitely recommend it. I would really LOVE to read more books by this author!!!! I'm lowkey begging!!!! Please write more!!!!!!!
Profile Image for Maria Martins.
161 reviews4 followers
September 7, 2023
I really enjoyed this book!

John and Hayden are two quite misunderstood people. They’re both vulnerable but have very different ways of protecting themselves.

I’ve only read a few books with trans characters so far, and I think John is by far my favourite. The trans representation was beautifully portrayed and very realistic, from John’s anxieties about his appearance, and his confusion about whether his feelings for Hayden were jealousy or attraction, to his regimen keeping up with his testosterone injections. Really good!

And the sweet, protective relationship between Hayden and John is so special. If you like high angst stuff though, you’ll appreciate the tension in this one!

The negative side: I’d have appreciated a little more worldbuilding, plus there were some plot inconsistencies (like John barely has enough money to eat but then he goes for a paid internship in Spain for the winter because he’ll have housing. How’s he going to afford the ticket?), but overall, it’s a lovely coming of age story and the romance was so sweet that these were just some minor stuff.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Marty Hamrick.
594 reviews1 follower
September 8, 2023
I loved the emotional insights into John's emotional state. The anxiety, social stress, tension, body images issues that everyone deals with to some degree are well-illustrated for this particular character and I completely empathized with his need for safety and control given his circumstances, but I LOVE how he learned to embrace and be himself by the end of the story. Overall, I feel like it was engaging and well-written, and the relationship between John and Hayden was wonderfully entertaining. I wouldn't classify it as enemies-to-lovers because they were just a little at odds with their viewpoints and never really disliked each other. I love how well-matched and balanced they were for each other; it was a lovely yin-yang of personalities where Hayden brought John out of his shell and John helped Hayden learn a bit of restraint situationally. Overall it was a well-written debut and I'd definitely read more stories by this author.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
200 reviews4 followers
September 7, 2023
An interesting story that drew me in very quickly. John and Hayden are two quite misunderstood people. They’re both vulnerable, but have very different ways of protecting themselves. One of the really good things about this book is that the author gives insight into John’s struggles as a result of being trans, how that affects some of his choices, and how people can be oblivious to this. And as a rule-follower myself, I totally get how John struggles with breaking rules. I like how John and Hayden are drawn to each other - despite being very different - and how they learn to trust each other. I really enjoyed reading this story and watching the progression of their relationship, and was very invested in the outcome, though it wasn't entirely clear to me if this was an HEA or HFN.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Traci S.
2,021 reviews12 followers
September 6, 2023
The author does a wonderful job establishing how precarious John’s feels in his life, how easily he can lose everything. John is so fueled by fear it’s a little bit heartbreaking how much he avoids rocking the boat. I also loved how exasperated John is by Hayden, how frustrated by Hayden’s free spiritedness he gets. I liked their friendship and it how it evolved in a natural way. With Hayden, John starts to engage with college life - which was amazing to see. They also really make such a sweet couple. The writing is well done, entertaining and with well developed main characters. I will definitely read more from this author.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.


Profile Image for Sara.
2,330 reviews40 followers
October 6, 2023
Highly enjoyable college romance

I found this book through Skye Kilaen’s newsletter. And I liked it a lot! I think it’s really well written and I was engaged with the story. Haydon is so sweet and accepting of John and he helped bring him out of his shell a bit more. I do wish Julia had more page time. And it’s not really explained how John could afford a plane ticket when all throughout the book he is worried about money. But those are minor details to me and didn’t take away from my enjoyment at all. Will be on the lookout for more from this author.
Profile Image for PenelopeDawn.
243 reviews3 followers
September 9, 2023
I can’t think of anything i disliked about the story. The boys are both sweethearts and i adore their relationship. Both of them are dealing with quite a bit of familial trauma and they work through it together, even when they get upset with each other. I wish there was more of a reconnection or closure with John’s family.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Aimee .
1,173 reviews12 followers
September 7, 2023
Cute story

While I liked the overall story, I don't really know what to say about it. I liked how John and Hayden went from enemies to lovers and Hayden helped John feel more comfortable with being trans. Something felt off though throughout the story. I just didn't connect to it like I was hoping too.
394 reviews
September 13, 2023
Breaking The Rules is an incredible mm romance that feels so incredibly genuine. There are a lot of mm books that hyper-exualize the pairings but this book felt just like any other relationship and that was so special.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Amanda Reeves.
3,586 reviews34 followers
September 5, 2023
This is the first book I've read by this author and I really enjoyed it. Loved Hayden and John, so sweet.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews

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