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Ivy League Players #1
Untouchable Player
In this spicy MM hockey romance, defenseman Jesse finds himself catching feelings for his friend’s nerdy little brother and knows if his captain finds out, there will be hell to pay.
Nate just wants to be left in peace to study without his brother Harrison’s hockey teammates hanging around and getting on his nerves. Until he sees a familiar tattoo on a gay dating app belonging to the hockey team’s tough guy Jesse. When Harrison asks him to tutor Jesse for a class he is failing, maybe Nate can discover if it really is Jesse on that app?
Jesse is used to being called dumb, but being tutored by his captain’s younger brother in a subject he doesn’t even study is humiliating. Especially when he’s that cute. But when Nate treats him like more than just some dumb jock, Jesse might have bigger problems on his plate.
Book one of the Ivy League Players series. Can be read as a standalone. Every book in the series will follow a new couple at a different fictionalized Ivy League college.
Nate just wants to be left in peace to study without his brother Harrison’s hockey teammates hanging around and getting on his nerves. Until he sees a familiar tattoo on a gay dating app belonging to the hockey team’s tough guy Jesse. When Harrison asks him to tutor Jesse for a class he is failing, maybe Nate can discover if it really is Jesse on that app?
Jesse is used to being called dumb, but being tutored by his captain’s younger brother in a subject he doesn’t even study is humiliating. Especially when he’s that cute. But when Nate treats him like more than just some dumb jock, Jesse might have bigger problems on his plate.
Book one of the Ivy League Players series. Can be read as a standalone. Every book in the series will follow a new couple at a different fictionalized Ivy League college.
268 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 4, 2025
508 people are currently reading
1591 people want to read
About the author
Emmery Fox
6 books73 followersWhen I'm not trying to invent the perfect book boyfriend, I'm studying towards a graduate degree in Modern History, trying to little avail to get better at drawing and watching You've Got Mail for the millionth time!
I write spicy MM romance with special emphasis on sports, small towns and childhood sweethearts.
I love romance books with spicy scenes that don't feel detached from the couple's relationship dynamics, and when our protagonists respect and root for each other.
I write spicy MM romance with special emphasis on sports, small towns and childhood sweethearts.
I love romance books with spicy scenes that don't feel detached from the couple's relationship dynamics, and when our protagonists respect and root for each other.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 159 reviews
September 29, 2025
4 Stars
Untouchable Player is a really fun introductory read from debut author Emmery Fox.
It’s an M/M new adult romance, following college hockey player Jesse, as he falls hard and fast for his team captain’s younger brother Nate, as the two young men grow closer when tutoring sessions lead to unexpected friendship and quickly developing mutually-squishy feelings.
As a fan of college sports romances, as well as being a huge lover of both a nerd x jock pairing AND a juicy brother's best friend trope, it didn’t take much beyond reading the synopsis for me to be super keen to try this one out. And it thankfully paid off, as I found Jesse and Nate be really lovely characters in their individual ways, sharing a romance that was super cute in its manifestation.
The story very much had a sexual exploration/awakening arc for both characters, with Jesse finally acknowledging his bisexuality while virgin Nate got to (ideally) have all his firsts with an adoring and attentive Jesse. It was hot but also very, very sweet; I really liked their easy connection and the tenderness they showed each other, even beyond the bedroom.
Yes, the story itself is quite formulaic for a sports and college set romance, and it doesn’t do much in the way of breaking the mould in the genre, but I had a really good time nonetheless, enjoying all the characters, their heartfelt story, and the engaging writing—although another edit wouldn’t hurt, considering the handful of spelling and grammatical errors I noted along the way.
I liked this one a lot and reading the sequel (Unlovable Player) in this college themed series will be a no-brainer for me—in fact, I eagerly look forward to it!
Untouchable Player is a really fun introductory read from debut author Emmery Fox.
It’s an M/M new adult romance, following college hockey player Jesse, as he falls hard and fast for his team captain’s younger brother Nate, as the two young men grow closer when tutoring sessions lead to unexpected friendship and quickly developing mutually-squishy feelings.
As a fan of college sports romances, as well as being a huge lover of both a nerd x jock pairing AND a juicy brother's best friend trope, it didn’t take much beyond reading the synopsis for me to be super keen to try this one out. And it thankfully paid off, as I found Jesse and Nate be really lovely characters in their individual ways, sharing a romance that was super cute in its manifestation.
The story very much had a sexual exploration/awakening arc for both characters, with Jesse finally acknowledging his bisexuality while virgin Nate got to (ideally) have all his firsts with an adoring and attentive Jesse. It was hot but also very, very sweet; I really liked their easy connection and the tenderness they showed each other, even beyond the bedroom.
Yes, the story itself is quite formulaic for a sports and college set romance, and it doesn’t do much in the way of breaking the mould in the genre, but I had a really good time nonetheless, enjoying all the characters, their heartfelt story, and the engaging writing—although another edit wouldn’t hurt, considering the handful of spelling and grammatical errors I noted along the way.
I liked this one a lot and reading the sequel (Unlovable Player) in this college themed series will be a no-brainer for me—in fact, I eagerly look forward to it!
May 22, 2025
I really wanted to like this book. I love hockey romance and I love the shy guy and sunshine guy trope. This book has so much potential but I think the writing was not up to par. Reading it towards the end was really difficult. I felt really disconnected from the book, the writing itself just seemed to be really lackluster so I wasn’t invested in it as much as I wanted to be, and I didn’t connect with it.
July 26, 2025
This was cute! There were a few typos and some sentences that didn’t quite make sense, but I still enjoyed it overall. It was also very low-drama, which was exactly what I was in the mood for. Might check out the rest of the series soon.
March 5, 2025
“I like people who surprise you, you know. People who aren’t who you think they are.”
⋆｡ ﾟ☁︎︎ ｡ ✧ ⋆ ★ ★ ★ three stars 🍓｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡ ⋆
if there’s one thing about me is that i will eat up hockey romances. don’t know a thing about the sport. don’t want to know a thing about it either. but yes i will still devour them
there were so many grammatical and writing mistakes in this but did that stop me from binge reading this in a few hours? no <3 the vibes in this was so good, nate and jesse were the cutest ever
January 21, 2025
4.25 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️-- rounding up for GR because I think this deserves to be read and has a lot of promise for the series.
I found this book to be such a delight! (Why aren't more people talking about it?) I love low angst but sometimes I can find them kind of boring, but this kept me hooked the whole time. Jesse & Nate were really great. Nate is a little insecure and self deprecating but not so much that he totally gets in his own way. (I also low how he expresses some of that insecurity to Jesse after they start connecting for real - yay communication!) Poor Jesse is just trying to live up to all the expectations weighing him down by his (kind of awful) father, but still have a little fun in college. These two are really great together and I loved watching them warm up to each other and eventually become the support each other needs to take ownership of their future.
Yes, the ending felt a little quick, and the thing with Jesse's parents and Nate's parents maybe resolved itself a little too neatly but I can overlook this.
This is a really promising start to a series and a great debut novel. I highly recommend to anyone who loves a low angst, MM college hockey romance.
I found this book to be such a delight! (Why aren't more people talking about it?) I love low angst but sometimes I can find them kind of boring, but this kept me hooked the whole time. Jesse & Nate were really great. Nate is a little insecure and self deprecating but not so much that he totally gets in his own way. (I also low how he expresses some of that insecurity to Jesse after they start connecting for real - yay communication!) Poor Jesse is just trying to live up to all the expectations weighing him down by his (kind of awful) father, but still have a little fun in college. These two are really great together and I loved watching them warm up to each other and eventually become the support each other needs to take ownership of their future.
Yes, the ending felt a little quick, and the thing with Jesse's parents and Nate's parents maybe resolved itself a little too neatly but I can overlook this.
This is a really promising start to a series and a great debut novel. I highly recommend to anyone who loves a low angst, MM college hockey romance.
May 12, 2025
Cute but nothing special. Some unnecessary drama with Nate’s parents (dad cheating on mom, but they make up, I really didn’t get why that was part of the story) some real drama with Jesse’s parents (dad wants him to make it to theNHL and sacrificed everything for that). And a big brother who’s outs his team mate when he finds out he’s his brother’s boyfriend. I don’t think there was enough attention for that, although the team reacted fine. There was a mysterious acting team mate that fixed it with a look. Didn’t quite understand that either.
I read the book is about one hour. And I’m happy about that because more time definitely wasn’t worth it.
I read the book is about one hour. And I’m happy about that because more time definitely wasn’t worth it.
Read
August 1, 2025DNF 7%
I can already tell this writing is not for me, but I also cannot get over the casual misogyny of this quote: “I still can’t believe no one else’s mom taught he then how to cook before they left for college.” And I know it’s not THAT big of a deal and the character is probably just referencing that it was his mom taught him but I can’t let go of it lol
I can already tell this writing is not for me, but I also cannot get over the casual misogyny of this quote: “I still can’t believe no one else’s mom taught he then how to cook before they left for college.” And I know it’s not THAT big of a deal and the character is probably just referencing that it was his mom taught him but I can’t let go of it lol
January 6, 2025
UNTOUCHABLE PLAYER was so cute! I love MM hockey romances so this was right in my wheelhouse and Emmery Fox delivered a fun, endearing, and loveable debut.
Jesse is a college hockey player in desperate need of a tutor so his team captain suggests his nerdy brother, Nate. I really liked both MCs and the way they supported and encouraged each other. Especially the way Nate was always quick to defend Jesse whenever someone called him dumb. They're total opposites, Jesse the loud, easy going jock and Nate the quiet and intense science nerd but they respected each other and brought out the best in each other.
Jesse and Nate's transition from tutors to friends to lovers was a lot of fun and the spice was great. Nate was a virgin and more than ready to lose that status and while Jesse knew he shouldn't be fooling around with his captain's brother he couldn't resist Nate. I loved that Nate, while inexperienced, still knew what he wanted and Jesse treated him with so much care and consent. These two were just so perfect together!
This was a debut so it had some hiccups: many of the dialogue sentences weren't capitalized, new paragraphs weren't always clear due to the formatting, the timeline was a bit vague (even to the characters), and the ending wrapped up a little too nicely considering how toxic Jesse's dad was. But overall this was very impressive for a first book and highly enjoyable. I'm looking forward to reading more by Emmery Fox.
Content Warning: toxic parenting
Jesse is a college hockey player in desperate need of a tutor so his team captain suggests his nerdy brother, Nate. I really liked both MCs and the way they supported and encouraged each other. Especially the way Nate was always quick to defend Jesse whenever someone called him dumb. They're total opposites, Jesse the loud, easy going jock and Nate the quiet and intense science nerd but they respected each other and brought out the best in each other.
Jesse and Nate's transition from tutors to friends to lovers was a lot of fun and the spice was great. Nate was a virgin and more than ready to lose that status and while Jesse knew he shouldn't be fooling around with his captain's brother he couldn't resist Nate. I loved that Nate, while inexperienced, still knew what he wanted and Jesse treated him with so much care and consent. These two were just so perfect together!
This was a debut so it had some hiccups: many of the dialogue sentences weren't capitalized, new paragraphs weren't always clear due to the formatting, the timeline was a bit vague (even to the characters), and the ending wrapped up a little too nicely considering how toxic Jesse's dad was. But overall this was very impressive for a first book and highly enjoyable. I'm looking forward to reading more by Emmery Fox.
Content Warning: toxic parenting
February 5, 2025
The writing in this is just too juvenile and personality-less. DNF.
dnf
February 5, 2025DNF 4% (2/5/25)
I can overlook grammatical issues. But, when you tell me what dialogue is happening without just giving me the dialogue or you have these awkward info dumps, it is too much. It needs work.
I can overlook grammatical issues. But, when you tell me what dialogue is happening without just giving me the dialogue or you have these awkward info dumps, it is too much. It needs work.
April 9, 2025
Love this trope and the characters were sweet together, but the writing style really was not for me and I found myself needing to skim through a lot
I also would’ve loved to see harrison and nate having a bit of a better sibling relationship
I also would’ve loved to see harrison and nate having a bit of a better sibling relationship
September 6, 2025
2 stars
The writing is so Wattpad that I checked the date at one point just to make sure I didn’t travel back in time to my own days of reading gay smut with bad grammar and improvable writing on there.
The writing is so Wattpad that I checked the date at one point just to make sure I didn’t travel back in time to my own days of reading gay smut with bad grammar and improvable writing on there.
September 9, 2025
3.5 ⭐️
Cute but unremarkable
𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗧𝗢 𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗘𝗖𝗧:
- jock x nerd
- brother’s teammate
- college hockey
- size difference
- opposites attract
- friends with benefits
Cute but unremarkable
𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗧𝗢 𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗘𝗖𝗧:
- jock x nerd
- brother’s teammate
- college hockey
- size difference
- opposites attract
- friends with benefits
December 3, 2025
I could read books like that all day long
May 9, 2025
it was an alright way to pass the time, but it's kind of forgettable. like every character felt like a character and not like a person
Read
May 10, 2025finding out i have such low standards for myself when it comes to romance is so sad...why do i do this to myself...
im going to be soo fr with yall ive read fanfiction that is better formatted, better written, and better paced than this book. the buildup was fine (i lowkey felt like the whole im just fucking men to get it out of my system and then ill just be a family man was so fucking unnecessary and now that im typing it out reminds me exactly like this one guy i know who goes to an ivy league. shoutout matthew and his family values (he's never seeing this ever) ANYWAY but after they were like together the transition from sex with a guy im into and like spending time with to i want to be his boyfriend to I LOVE YOU????? u said u wanted to be bfs RIGHT after you had sex... and no one thought he was dickmatized??? 😭😭 anyway. the romance was just so whatever. idk this wasnt bad by any means and but ugh. did not like and wouldn't have finished if i wasn't so determined to get through it so i could read the historical romance i downloaded so im giving it a 1.
i just feel like there was so much to explore that the author mentioned and then. like put down for the sake of...a romance?? the conflict w jesse's dad that has been BUILT UP for so long happens 3 pages before the whole book ends??? everything is just swept under the rug which. disappointing 3. my parting words are going to be the prevailing thought i had while reading this which was "if this was a fanfic i would have clicked out of it almost immediately"
im going to be soo fr with yall ive read fanfiction that is better formatted, better written, and better paced than this book. the buildup was fine (i lowkey felt like the whole im just fucking men to get it out of my system and then ill just be a family man was so fucking unnecessary and now that im typing it out reminds me exactly like this one guy i know who goes to an ivy league. shoutout matthew and his family values (he's never seeing this ever) ANYWAY but after they were like together the transition from sex with a guy im into and like spending time with to i want to be his boyfriend to I LOVE YOU????? u said u wanted to be bfs RIGHT after you had sex... and no one thought he was dickmatized??? 😭😭 anyway. the romance was just so whatever. idk this wasnt bad by any means and but ugh. did not like and wouldn't have finished if i wasn't so determined to get through it so i could read the historical romance i downloaded so im giving it a 1.
i just feel like there was so much to explore that the author mentioned and then. like put down for the sake of...a romance?? the conflict w jesse's dad that has been BUILT UP for so long happens 3 pages before the whole book ends??? everything is just swept under the rug which. disappointing 3. my parting words are going to be the prevailing thought i had while reading this which was "if this was a fanfic i would have clicked out of it almost immediately"
July 23, 2025
3,5 stars.
Very cute story, very solid debut. And because the reviews here are rather harsh, I'm rounding up to 4 stars.
My main beef: The hook that leads to Nate and Jesse actually spending time together - Jesse needing a tutor - is resolved far too quickly. If Jesse is doubting himself and believes what other's project on him - that he's dumb which he obviously isn't - then it takes more than two or three sessions with Nate explaining stuff for him to believe in himself. Apart from that it's nice to see Jesse's eventual partner - Nate - insisting on telling him that he's not dumb but smart. Which is so important in a relationship imo. On and off the page/fiction.
I'd have loved to see more interaction with the hockey team, but then I'm always up for more hockey.
Big advantages: It's lovely to see a tender relationship. Jesse is a great intimacy tutor - also an indication how smart he really is.
Having good female side characters: Nate's best friend is almost too good to be true, but then she's a psychology major and psychiatrist-to-be, so it's not too far off.
Nate's mom is supportive and in a goofy way, too. She's not too one-dimensional either.
Yes, the problem with Jesse's overbearing father is resolved too quickly and the financial aspect glossed over.
But this is a debut and a strong one as it made me like especially Jesse a lot.
Will look for the next installments of the series.
Very cute story, very solid debut. And because the reviews here are rather harsh, I'm rounding up to 4 stars.
My main beef: The hook that leads to Nate and Jesse actually spending time together - Jesse needing a tutor - is resolved far too quickly. If Jesse is doubting himself and believes what other's project on him - that he's dumb which he obviously isn't - then it takes more than two or three sessions with Nate explaining stuff for him to believe in himself. Apart from that it's nice to see Jesse's eventual partner - Nate - insisting on telling him that he's not dumb but smart. Which is so important in a relationship imo. On and off the page/fiction.
I'd have loved to see more interaction with the hockey team, but then I'm always up for more hockey.
Big advantages: It's lovely to see a tender relationship. Jesse is a great intimacy tutor - also an indication how smart he really is.
Having good female side characters: Nate's best friend is almost too good to be true, but then she's a psychology major and psychiatrist-to-be, so it's not too far off.
Nate's mom is supportive and in a goofy way, too. She's not too one-dimensional either.
Yes, the problem with Jesse's overbearing father is resolved too quickly and the financial aspect glossed over.
But this is a debut and a strong one as it made me like especially Jesse a lot.
Will look for the next installments of the series.
January 8, 2025
Felt as if it was originally written as a highschool romance but then edited to be college
Mom was too involved. It was weird. The animosity from the brother was unnecessary and didn’t add to the plot at all.
But other than that the story was cute.
Mom was too involved. It was weird. The animosity from the brother was unnecessary and didn’t add to the plot at all.
But other than that the story was cute.
Read
March 20, 2025Cute and sweet! A lot of editing errors here though. The lack of direct address drove me crazy, especially when there were so many instances of it. A couple maybe typos and forgotten quotation marks, but nothing major.
A few hockey inaccuracies. The biggest one I noticed is the idea that players are drafted right after high school.
A few hockey inaccuracies. The biggest one I noticed is the idea that players are drafted right after high school.
December 8, 2025
Un jugador de hockey universitario con sueños y la presion de su familia para llevar más lejos en su carrera.
Un chico nerd con sueños profesionales, que no sale mucho y abiertamente gay. Su hermano es el capitán del equipo de hockey.
Un nerd y un jugador qué necesita ayuda para conservar su beca.
Código de hockey, gay lgbt
Un chico nerd con sueños profesionales, que no sale mucho y abiertamente gay. Su hermano es el capitán del equipo de hockey.
Un nerd y un jugador qué necesita ayuda para conservar su beca.
Código de hockey, gay lgbt
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 5, 2025
4.25⭐️
this was so much better than i expected! loved the nerd/jock relationship and they were just too darn cute together. i could not put this book down when i was reading, it sucked me in!
this was so much better than i expected! loved the nerd/jock relationship and they were just too darn cute together. i could not put this book down when i was reading, it sucked me in!
May 27, 2025
Such a good book! Definitely a slow burner. The spice is about 2.5. I enjoyed this college based romance.
July 9, 2025
3,75 ⭐️
Read
October 29, 2025DNF @ 10% - just not for me
May 30, 2025
2.75⭐️
This book is in desperate need of an editor for all the grammar issues and typos. Overall, the story was alright. Not bad but nothing special. The mom was wayyyyy too involved in her children’s lives which was pretty weird to begin with but by the end it was a little uncomfortable to read at times
This book is in desperate need of an editor for all the grammar issues and typos. Overall, the story was alright. Not bad but nothing special. The mom was wayyyyy too involved in her children’s lives which was pretty weird to begin with but by the end it was a little uncomfortable to read at times
January 5, 2025
Cute debut low angst
I’ll read the next one
I’ll read the next one
January 16, 2025
3.5 would have been higher, but kept getting pulled out of the story. If it's set in New York, and your MC's are from NY and Philly, make their dialogue/spelling match. Too much spoilt instead of spoiled, programme instead of program...use US English if that's how they're supposed to talk. Other than that, great story.
February 20, 2025
Jesse and Harrison. Hockey player x tutor. (His teammates nerdy brother) cute!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 8, 2025
Okay, so hear me out. It starts off a little messy and chaotic and there are some grammatical and structural imperfections, but once it finds its footing? This is one super cute, very sweet, nerd/jock, brother’s teammate college hockey romance that’s as much about finding yourself as it is about finding romance. Both of these guys are absolutely adorable, and it’s fun to watch them fumble around and figure things out.
I picked this one up after seeing a post about it, and I’m glad I did. It’s a low angst, easy read with just enough hockey and Cher to keep things light but also make them interesting.
You can also expect:
- Dual-tutoring trope
- Sexual exploration
- Virgin MC
- College hockey
- The BEST besties
- Family drama
- Toxic parenting
I picked this one up after seeing a post about it, and I’m glad I did. It’s a low angst, easy read with just enough hockey and Cher to keep things light but also make them interesting.
You can also expect:
- Dual-tutoring trope
- Sexual exploration
- Virgin MC
- College hockey
- The BEST besties
- Family drama
- Toxic parenting
January 18, 2025
A Sweet and Spicy College Romance
"Untouchable Player" by Emmery Fox is a delightful debut novel that combines the charm of young college romance with the excitement of sports. This MM hockey romance follows Nate, a studious college student, and Jesse, a tough hockey player, as they navigate their feelings amidst academic pressures and sports commitments.
The story is well-developed, transitioning smoothly from tutoring sessions to flirtatious encounters. However, the romance feels a bit rushed, leaving the reader wanting more depth in the emotional connection between the leads.
Despite this, the characters are endearing, and their interactions are sweet and spicy. The author's writing style is engaging, making it easy to become invested in Nate and Jesse's story.
Overall, "Untouchable Player" is a promising debut, and I look forward to exploring more of the Ivy League Players series.
"Untouchable Player" by Emmery Fox is a delightful debut novel that combines the charm of young college romance with the excitement of sports. This MM hockey romance follows Nate, a studious college student, and Jesse, a tough hockey player, as they navigate their feelings amidst academic pressures and sports commitments.
The story is well-developed, transitioning smoothly from tutoring sessions to flirtatious encounters. However, the romance feels a bit rushed, leaving the reader wanting more depth in the emotional connection between the leads.
Despite this, the characters are endearing, and their interactions are sweet and spicy. The author's writing style is engaging, making it easy to become invested in Nate and Jesse's story.
Overall, "Untouchable Player" is a promising debut, and I look forward to exploring more of the Ivy League Players series.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 159 reviews