The Player: Edizione italiana

by Felice Stevens, Ester Manzini (Translator)

Un ex campione di football, un padre single e una piccola città piena di segreti: l’amore è il gioco più difficile.Il venerdì sera, i riflettori a bordo campo nascondono più di quanto mostrino…
Quando Keller Williams, l’ex campione della NFL, torna alla sua cittadina natale per allenare la squadra di football del suo vecchio liceo, scopre con sorpresa che gli piace stare lontano dalle luci della ribalta e passare invece del tempo con i ragazzini sul campo. La cosa ancora più incredibile è l’immediata attrazione che prova per Niall Harper, padre single di uno dei suoi giocatori.
Problema numero uno: Niall Harper non è gay.
Problema numero due: Keller non ha fatto coming out.
Problema numero tre: Niall lo detesta, e Keller neanche sa perché.

Niall Harper, bibliotecario alla scuola superiore, ha sempre fatto la cosa giusta. Tranne essere fedele a se stesso. Divorziato e preso dall’educare un figlio adolescente, Niall scopre con orrore che il nuovo allenatore della squadra di football è nientemeno che lo storico protagonista dei suoi sogni del venerdì sera, nonché la sua nemesi. Non che abbia importanza: Keller non si ricorda di lui. Niente di nuovo: Niall è sempre stato dimenticabile. Ma ora Keller vuole essergli amico, e anche qualcosa di più. È innegabile che quell’uomo insopportabile lo faccia ridere e gli scateni emozioni che mai avrebbe pensato possibili. Ma un campione come Keller potrebbe mai accontentarsi di un tizio normale come Niall?

Stare insieme è più che complicato, ma vale la pena correre il rischio. Niall rivela la sua relazione con il coach di suo figlio, e Keller fa coming out con la squadra, i fan, la stampa e i pettegoli cittadini. Nessuno dei due è preparato ad affrontare le conseguenze, ma ciò non li ferma. È arrivato il momento di correre per segnare la meta della vita e ottenere la vittoria definitiva: il loro lieto fine. E loro due sono pronti.

Genres: M M Romance, Sports, Romance, Contemporary, Sports Romance, Enemies To Lovers, LGBT

320 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 11, 2024

About the author

Felice Stevens writes romance because what is better than people falling in love? Her favorite part of a romance novel is that first kiss…sigh. She loves creating stories of hopes and dreams and happily ever afters. Her stories are character-driven, rich with the sights, sounds and flavors of New York City and filled with men who are sometimes deeply flawed but always real.

Felice writes M/M romance because she believes that everyone deserves a happily ever after. Having traveled all over the world, she can safely say that the universal language that unites people is love. Felice has written in a variety of sub-genres, including contemporary, paranormal and has a mystery series as well.

Felice is a two-time Lambda Literary Award nominee and the Lambda award-winner for Best Gay Romance for her book, The Ghost and Charlie Muir, as well as the e-Lit gold medal winner in romance for Broken Silence.

Reviews

[Carol [Goodreads Addict] · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Player is a stand alone, small town romance by Felice Stevens. This wonderful book features two men, neither out, both lonely, both wondering if they will ever find true happiness.



Niall Harper is thirty seven years old and is the school librarian at Overlook High School in Overlook, New York, a small town in upstate New York. Niall has lived his whole life in Overlook. Niall has always known he was gay but tried to live a life that was expected of him, marrying his best friend and having a son. Now divorced, Niall is a single dad to their fifteen year old son. No one except his ex-wife knows his secret.

Keller Williams is thirty eight years old. He played professional football for fourteen wonderful years before being forced out with a serious injury. Keller also grew up in Overlook and when he was asked to come home to coach his high school football team, he didn’t hesitate.



As soon as Keller sees Niall, he is immediately drawn to him. He doesn’t recognize him from high school. But no matter how hard he tries, Niall seems to greatly dislike him for some unknown reason. But Keller doesn’t give up easily. He will win over this man and find out why he seems to hate him so much. Because he wants to get to know him better. It’s a feeling he’s never experienced before but in Niall, he sees a hint of the dream he’s always carried. He sees a man that could be important to him, a man that could be part of his future.



As Niall and Keller get closer, so does their dream of living their realities, living the way they’ve always dreamed of with someone they love. But they soon find that things might not be as simple as they hoped. That there are plenty of people that don’t agree with their choices. Was happiness just a fleeting fantasy or is there a chance for these two to finally find happiness? You’ll have to pick this up to find out.

“Always starts now.”

For more about this book and so many others, come and visit me at Carol's Crazy Bookish World.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Carol...

[Jennifer☠Pher☠]

I'm throwing in the towel. I tried but I am not having a good time, at all.

The "Player" is named Keller Williams. I don't know about where you live, but here, that's a Real Estate Agency and it drove me crazy.

Everyone was sort of mean and opinionated. There is zero connection between the two guys. The kids calling at three and four AM was just so odd.

I'll stop there. None of it worked for me and I should have quit way before now.

DNF at page 201, 60%

[haletostilinski · Rating 3 out of 5]

Edit: Goodreads did it again. This actually has 13 likes, not 1. Ugh. 😡

⭐︎ 3.25 stars rounded down ⭐︎

I'm still, as I start this review, waffling between 3 and 4 stars. I'm rounding up, tentatively, at the moment. Nevermind, the more I think about this book, the more I write this review, the more I feel I can't give it 4 stars. It wouldn't feel like a genuine rating.

So, I'll start with the positives:

✓ I liked Keller a lot throughout this. He was my favorite character. Niall was...harder to come around to, which I'll get into, but I eventually came around on him and liked him well enough.

✓ David, Niall's son, was great, I was happy with his character.

✓ I like that this book took it's time with these two coming out, and then focused on the fall out once they did, and that it wasn't all hunky-dory, easy peasy, everyone has no problem with it. It felt more realistic the way there were several parents who placed complaints with the school about Keller and there was a whole school board meeting and everything.

✓ I enjoyed the secondary characters. I liked both of their best friend married couples who did nothing but support them. I also liked that Angie, Niall's ex, wasn't made out to be a villain in the least. Additionally, I liked the care this book took to build Keller's relationship with the high schoolers his was coaching, and that he was a caring adult figure for the boys who needed that more than anything. I enjoyed the high school boys on his team as well, they were very well fleshed out characters.

✓ This never felt like a slow read, I was always engaged in the story while reading and never felt bored.

Now...for the not so great:

✕ I felt like Niall was pretty immature for the age he's supposed to be at the start of this. Keller was never a part of the bullying that he went through in high school. Instead, he was punishing Keller by association, and acted like a teenager with his avoidance and assuming of Keller's character just because he'd made up his mind on him before actually getting to know him. He could have very easily heard Keller out by talking to him, like Keller asked him, and got a lot of his assumptions cleared up, but he stubbornly refused to for quite some time.

In fact, he tells his son that he and Keller "talked it out" at some point, but it was more like Keller was persistent and had to talk to Niall in spurts at different times because he refused to see past his own assumptions to try and hear him out. Sure, once he finally let go of a lot of his unfair attitude toward Keller, he became much more likable, but still. He was hard to like at first because of the way he was treating Keller, and I had to wonder for awhile what exactly Keller was seeing in Niall, because I sure wasn't seeing it.

✕ Where was the sex? As far as I'm concerned, the sex was so vaguely written, the scenes went by so fast that there might as well have not been any at all. Where's the steam, the passion, the detail? At least one or two detailed sex scenes would have been nice. Instead it is all extremely glossed over, and I'm supposed to feel the passion between these two? Not likely.

✕ Because of it taking awhile for me to warm up to Niall, and the lack of any sex between these two, I didn't feel much chemistry, if I'm honest. I did start to feel romantic chemistry in the second half, but it took some building up for me, because it was taking Niall so long to let go of his preconceived notions about Keller and for him to loosen up and show who he was under the attitude. But sexual chemistry? Practically nonexistent the whole way through.

✕ I don't think Niall's transition from not being ready to come out to being ready was handled particularly well. One minute he's shaking at the idea of other's knowing about him, and the next he's ready to face the world knowing about him and Keller. Yeah, he started to loosen up a little as a few more people found out here and there, but I still wasn't getting the sense that he was ready to face the whole world, so I was surprised when he was all the sudden just...cool with it. It rang false to me.

Here the book was, taking it's time getting there for Niall (Keller was more ready sooner and quicker, so his transition to not ready to being ready felt more natural and earned) and then all the sudden it was like lightening speed getting him to being ready, which seemed to be for conveniences sake to help the pace of the story move along. But still, it didn't quite work.

Sorry to say that, at the end of the day, this was mostly just okay for me.

It had its positives, to be sure, and I wouldn't say it was bad or anything of the sort. But it had glaring issues that I couldn't ignore.

So overall, fairly middle of the road for me. And hey, maybe others will not feel as I did about Niall and about their chemistry, that is fairly subjective.

If you don't feel Niall is hard to get behind as a likable character at first, then this will be more smooth sailing for you than it was for me. (I still think the barely there sex scenes will stick in your guys' craw like it did mine, though.)

So all that to say, there were still enough things to like in this to recommend this, it just fell a bit short on the things I was looking forward to the most - the romance, the sex and one of the main characters.

Unfortunate, as the premise really grabbed my attention and intrigued me, and I was excited to dive into this one.

But I've had a very up and down relationship with this author's work, so maybe it isn't too much of a surprise that this wasn't one of the wins for me.

Ah well, better luck next time.

I received a copy of this book from Gay Romance Reviews, and this is my honest review.

[Debra ~~ seriously slacking on her reviews ~~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been on a small-town romance kick lately, and I always love a couple in their later 30's or older, so this couldn't have come at a better time.

Keller is a closeted ex-NFL player, back in his hometown to confront the loss of his mother and start a new job as the football coach for his old high school team. Niall is the closeted school librarian whose son, David, is on the team. Niall had a hard time in that same high school, mostly thanks to the football team, so when he finds out Keller is back, he is less than welcoming. This doesn't sit well with Keller who may not remember Niall, but he definitely wants to get to know him.

The romance between Keller and Niall is very sweet. It's Niall's first time exploring a relationship with a man and the first time Keller cares who the man in his bed is. While they face a number of obstacles, they manage to keep the relationship itself angst and drama-free as they test the waters. The real problems come from outside - Niall needing to come out to his son, and the inherent problems of a conservative small-town.

You don't need to be a football fan to enjoy this story. I liked the slow build-up of the relationship and the consideration given to each man's different circumstances. I also enjoyed Keller's interactions with his team. Fans of Felice Stevens will spot a small cameo for a character who I'm glad to see will also be getting his own book.

[Cadiva · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are a lot of things I really loved about this book.

I did also find a couple of things a little bit over-egging the pudding, but nothing that was out of keeping with the narrative being told.

Overall though, this book hit more high notes than low. I loved Keller, he's one of those sunshiny people who brings a high energy everywhere he goes, and he fiercely loves the kids on his high school football team.

Heading back to his home town has brought with it challenges, but also put him in the orbit of school librarian, and father to one of his players, Niall.

Niall is gay but so closeted that he's even beyond the closet in Narnia levels. His ex-wife knows but that's it. So when he sees that Keller's returned to their small town, it brings back all the bullying and horrendous experiences he had at the hands of some of his teammates 20 years previously.

This was one of the areas I found annoying. Niall lumps Keller in with the actions of a specific person and instantly dismissed him, and it takes multiple times, almost to the point you could say Keller becomes a stalker! before they actually have a conversation and he discovers Keller was completely unaware.

I felt it just went on a bit too long. Niall is definitely supposed to be a much more shy and considered person, with less confidence and a lot of fear, but he also comes across occasionally as a bit of a judgemental prig himself.

For a while I wondered just what Keller was seeing in him other than finding him outwardly attractive!

However, Felice uses the connection through Niall's son David to turn the antagonism into reluctant, then a proper friendship between the two. It's fairly slow paced but it works and I loved the kindness and awareness Keller has towards Niall's inexperience of any kind of sexual activity, including kissing, with a man.

Their moments become very tender and loving and that was a definite highlight of this story which worked well to temper the angsty and tension causing elements.

The sexuality of a football coach shouldn't have any affect on their ability to do the job, nor should it be headline news for an NFL ex-player to have a boyfriend and come out once their playing career is over.

But it still is.

So, while it completely fit the plotline, I felt it just became a tad too preachy about society as a whole and less about the overall journey relating to Keller and Niall specifically.

It's more of a personal thing that when a book feels like it's hitting the preaching to the choir levels of using dialogue to hammer home how equality should be important etc, I find it jarring because the target audience isn't likely to ever read it.

Should such stories still be told, absolutely they should! And Felice Stevens is a skilled enough writer that it's only a slight brush rather than you're getting slammed over the head with a big, neon flashing light!

And, I will say, that I loved how those who were most important to Keller were there to support and back him up when his job did become threatened.

#ARC kindly received from the author via Chaotic Influencers. I am voluntarily leaving a review

[Alexa]

DNF @ 60%

This lowkey boring. Mostly bc, as the reader, I felt zero connection between the characters. Like did these two even like each other?? And Niall?? Good god, his kid is more mature than he is 🙄🙄 and respectfully, if they’re sex life is that quick uhm might I suggest taking notes from the books Niall loved to read so much lmao

[Brat · Rating 5 out of 5]

beautifully written small town story starts out like sorta enemies to lovers

characters are so strongly written i fell in love with all of them.

i just LOVE that women were not the evil ones in this and that people can be divorced and still care for one another

highly recommend this

not the spiciest but still steamy more romantic to me anyways

[JP · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a sweet little book. I very much liked the tropes - small town, jock + nerd, coming out, grumpy/sunshine, etc. but… I don’t feel like any were particularlyyyyy well executed.

At times it was clear Keller was supposed to be a bit cheeky, a bit sassy, a happy-go-lucky kinda guy but he just came off as… abrupt. He’s often put his foot in his mouth, but so would Niall.

There was an oddness about the way they interacted generally. It often felt a little off kilter. Stilted. Like it was a means to an end. It felt like the author knew the story they wanted to tell and then had to insert dialogue around it to get to the end goal. It made it feel like there was no real chemistry, instead it was just exposition. The dialogue was also often a little repetitive from one sentence to the next, one page to the next, one chapter to the next.

Again, I liked it. I wanted to love it. But it felt like it was written by AI. All the components were there, but it was all at surface level. No real depth to the characters.

[Agnieszka · Rating 3 out of 5]

That was... alright. I wanted something light and this book was exactly that.

[Hanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I give this one a 3.5 and round up to a 4. I love a small-town story with a single father finding love but I felt this story fell flat in some areas.

I enjoyed the characters but to be quite honest I felt that Neil was rather detached at first and it took time for him to grow on me. He wasn't the best-written character however I did love that he was a father first and foremost and made sure his relationship with his son was his priority.

I think the biggest issue I had with this story was that the dialogue was so oddly written and at times there was not a smooth transition between scenes or movement with the characters. The way they spoke with each other just felt weird and unnatural. It was not the whole book but I felt a good bit of it I kept thinking in my head "What?". For example, at the beginning when Kellar starts taking calls from students at night it was weirdly written in my opinion.

Overall, this book was okay. Glad, I read it but I probably wouldn't re-read it.

[Henna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Keller has moved back to his home town, after retiring from NFL, to coach high school football team. He has been in the closet his whole career. But things are about to change when he sees Niall in a bar. He doesn't understand why Niall hates him, he doesn't even know the guy.

The more the couple spends together, the more feelings get involved. Niall has to think about his son, and come out to him.

There are some small town things going around, which is where some grit and and angst come to the story. Niall, Keller, the kids from the team and their friends all have each others back and the story has a lovely HEA.

[frannilys]

The writing was unfortunately not the best.

The conversations felt unnatural like they had to tick certain boxes while talking and therefore blurted out the most random stuff just to say it. But no normal human being would talk or behave like that.

[DJO · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was surprised at how much I liked this. I read some reviews before starting and many were not promising. But I found it to be a fun, fluffy, and engaging story that utilized the former student and his (supposed) bully trope quite nicely. Both Keller and Niall were likable guys, each nicely fleshed out, and their romance felt believable and was pretty hot. I liked the team dynamics and heavy dose of acceptance and support under Keller (although those middle-of-the-night phone calls were pretty plot device-y) and thought the shitty situation with the QB’s asshole abusive dad was handled in a satisfactory and believable way. The story had decent conflict and tension yet there was also an overlying pleasant dose of Kumbaya that I found appealing and it for sure caught me at the right moment.

Me being me, I did have a couple of issues. I thought it weird and frustrating that Keller and Niall never had a convo re their preferences in bed. Niall was a gay virgin and seemed ready to explore. But Keller kinda just plowed in without discussing and topped the first time and every time after. Yes, they were apparently perfectly happy with that arrangement, but I couldn’t help but find it hella presumptuous on Keller’s part. Another big niggle was how Keller outed himself and Niall in public, taking the decision out of Niall’s hands and impulsively kissing him in front of the packed stadium after their big win. I know he was excited and got lost in the moment, but wow, that was pretty uncool and led to plenty of fallout. I also cringed several times at some extremely awkward dialogue along the way (the one mom talking about the sex talk she had w her kid comes to mind 😬) and found the gay science teacher so balls-to-the-wall douchey as to not be believable.

In the end, none of these things ended up being an overly huge deal and I just let myself enjoy the sweet feel-good fluffiness of it all.

[Clara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cute But Couldn’t Connect

This story was sweet at times and I enjoyed the build up of how the couple started getting to know each other, but I just couldn’t connect to any of the characters.

All the voices of the characters sounded so similar it made it very frustrating to read. No one felt really unique or stood out enough. Even the dual POV was hard to follow because the two voices of the MCs were eerily similar. Also, the dialogue was so strange sometimes. Sometimes very simple, sometimes it didn’t explain enough so I was left confused what the MCs were even talking about, and most of the time the dialogue would go from a super simple moment to super introspective and it just didn’t fit the moment or the character. Reading shouldn’t feel like reading, but the writing in this book made it impossible to really immerse myself in the story and characters.

I also didn’t like the relationship with the ex wife. The first half of the book Niall talks repeatedly about how close they are but the second half of the book makes their relationship seem so strange and strained. I get the author wanted to show Niall coming in to his own and becoming more assertive but it was unnecessary to make tension between him and his ex when it wasn’t necessary.

Tropes: Childhood Classmates to Lovers, Single Dad, Dual POV, Hurt / Comfort
Rating: ⭐️⭐️ 2/5
Spice: 🌶️🌶️ 2/5
Relationship: MM

[Evelyn Bella (there WILL be spoilers) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not going to lie, this was basic as hell for me, but the way Keller handled everything after the coming out pushed it into the stratosphere for me. But the meh beginning.....

No apologies. No pandering. No dimming himself, or their relationship. I absolutely loved it.

Also, I liked the way their relationship started. It was all very adult and mature. Even with the fact that there's a kid and I generally don't enjoy them in romance, especially when they have big roles.

AND WHAT KIND OF HEATHEN HIGH SCHOOL KIDS CALL THEIR COACH AT 2AM TO 4AM???

I know he said call whenever, but they really took liberty with this.

[Crisana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I usually tend to find the books from this author quite middle of the road. And this one is probably like that as well but somehow I enjoyed it quite a lot, so I gave it an extra star.

[Rombutan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring and way too cliche. And the cover is something else

[Nerida · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I read the blurb for this I thought it was just what I needed - small town, opposites attract, sweet and spicy romance.

In the end I honesty don’t know what I got. I really liked Keller, but Niall never stuck for me. Whereas Keller just seemed like a good guy, Niall was honestly just immature and defensive. The way he behaved for the first 50% of the book was absolutely uncalled for and made no sense for a man in his late 30’s.

The writing was choppy and a bit all over the place; I couldn’t tell you how bad some of the transitions were. It got to a point where I honestly didn’t know where some of the scenes were taking place and who was talking.

There were some things about this book that really worked, though. Two closeted men in their late 30’s coming out on their own terms? Fantastic. Single parent drama? Great.

There was a lot of external drama that seemed to just be thrown in and over the top. A lot of side characters had a lot going on, and it just felt like waffle by the end. If a lot of that was cut out it would have saved a good 50 pages and made it more enjoyable.

There were some really sweet moments between Keller and Niall and Niall’s kid (I’ve already forgotten his name like every other side character). But there was no passion in the actual relationship - the “spicy times” were jumpy and over way too quick, and I never really felt any intimate build up between the two.

To round out, this was just average for me. I wish it would have been more 😔

I received an ARC for this book and these are my honest opinions.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

A few convenient and weird plot devices were an issue for me. Kinda spoiled it. Meh. To me it is not professional for a coach to be encouraging kids to speak to him in the middle of the night. I found this super off putting, but this was used to show the coach knew what was going on with the team. I thought this could be achieved through other means, perhaps. This was off putting and made it difficult for me to finish.

[Nedra81 · Rating 1 out of 5]

I just couldn’t go on anymore. Too much negativity, no connection, and the town was even rude.

DNF at 54%

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Retired NFL player Keller returns to his high school hometown to coach their team. He is immediately attracted to a player's father, Niall, who he finds out was bullied by Keller's high school team and is wary. Also both men are closeted. It's a fairy tale of a book with an unrealistic amount of people open to change in a small town but it's a delightful ideal and gives you hope for that toxic environment. But like a fairy tale, you get so wrapped up in the beautiful telling of it, you never want it to stop. I loved Keller and the so bottled up Niall, their friends and family and their wonderful group of kids on the team and at home. Keller's words about fame and rights struck home tearfully. I received a copy of this book through Gay Romance reviews and this is my honest opinion.

[Tracy~Bayou Book Junkie · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars

The blurb drew me in and and the story kept me turning the pages. I’ll admit, some of the story was a bit far-fetched and kinda preachy at times, but it was still a good story.

Keller and Niall were both likable and they had good chemistry. The story is well-written and filled with plenty of smexy times, but I felt the scenes were a bit rushed.

I loved the football team, as well Keller and Niall’s friends and family. There is an ongoing romance in the background that I really want to read, but I don’t think we’ll get their story, which I’m sad about. This was an enjoyable and recommendable read.

*Borrowed from KU*

[Alex Moy · Rating 2 out of 5]

As soon as the coach handed out his cellphone number I knew exactly where this story was going to go, and it absolutely did. I feel like it was very predictable overall, and I didn't love the main characters. David was the best character by far. Overall this book was not for me.

[Beaumont · Rating 3 out of 5]

I want to preface this by saying this is not a bad book. But it is kind of an awkward one on a lot of points. I really liked Keller, Niall, Angie, David, and pretty much all the characters and their interactions. I even liked all the other kids and I rarely like children in books. The main romance was sweet and very enjoyable as well. But I did struggle with several other things. A lot of it felt stilted at times and awkward, and that ran throughout the book but was particularly notable in the last quarter of it.

I always struggle with books that focus heavily on coming out and queerphobia because they’re almost all awkward and overly tragic. Because this is a genre romance with a visibly queer main couple I didn’t worry too much about the tragedy, but the awkward stuff was there. However I did appreciate the author acknowledged and had a lot of people be bigoted assholes (which is realistic), but also that they lost. That was satisfying and nicely different from real life.

This book was almost a 4 star read, but a lot of it got a little weird. On topics of being queer, domestic violence, and a few other things the writing was…emphatic but really off. It was off enough that I struggled with the story in several places. Normally with this author’s writing the voice actor is able to smooth the weird stuff over, but while this voice actor did a very good job, he wasn’t able to do that like a couple of the others who have voiced for this author. That kind of made the awkward stuff stand out more to me. That being said, without the voice actor I probably wouldn’t have finished the book, and he did WONDERS for making the dialogue feel less bizarre sometimes.

One big thing that bugged me was why wouldn’t Angie go if she knew something was threatening her son? That makes zero sense, and smacks of misogyny in the writing. Angie is portrayed as a take-charge person with a solid head on her shoulders, and yet she asks no questions and sends her big strong men off to see what the problem is and solve it??? That kind of sent me over the edge. Also, confronting domestic abusers without a plan is a terrible idea and likely will result in the abused people getting hurt. Yet it was done again and again and again, though admittedly with zero negative consequences.

Keller is a 38 year old cis white gay man. He’s closeted to everyone but his mom and BFF. He’s a recently retired football player, who had his career ended by an injury. He returns to his hometown to be a football coach, and decides if he can’t be completely healthy with his body anymore due to lasting issues from his injury, he’ll work on being mentally and emotionally as healthy as possible. He’s very kind and very protective toward his students. He’s a sweet and patient man. He’s tall and muscular but not as muscular as before he was injured. He has an ex-wife named Tiffany who he married to maintain the image of being straight, and was relieved when he found out she was cheating on him and gave him an out for a quickie divorce.

Niall is a 37 year old cis white gay man. He’s closeted to everyone except his ex-wife. Growing up in a small town with conservative parents, he knew he was gay from age 13 but knew he could never tell anyone and he had to “do the right thing” and marry a woman and have a biologically child. He never cheated or even thought of being with a man and had resigned himself to passing as straight his whole life. His ex-wife Angie is a strong person and a kind person, she figured out he was gay and even when Niall said nothing has to change because he loves her for all he can never be in love with her, Angie knew it would hurt Niall and her and their family too much to keep pretending. Unlike Niall, Angie knew the right thing wasn’t an MF nuclear family with a bio kid, but rather whatever made them all happy and safe. Niall is a cautious man who was bullied heavily by Keller’s friends in high school. He’s now the school librarian. His teen son David divides his time between the small town with his dad, and Chicago with his mom.

Contains:
—MCs who didn’t run in the same circles but went to the same high school
—period-typical homophobia
—closeted MCs
—gay mc x gay mc
—MC was married to a woman and has a bio kid
—football coach x school librarian
—MC who had a public image as a “player,” but isn’t actually
—heavy handed themes
—derisive comments about the villain being fat and unfit and not pretty
—passive misogyny in the writing
—parental abuse (side character)
—high school football coach x school librarian
—jock x nerd
—ex wife is a good person
—coming out
—lots of homophobia themes (and some general queerphobia as well)
— MC proposing with his father’s ring

Other:
—third person dual POV
—cheating: no
—romantic rival: no
—breakup: no
—kids: yes, Niall has a teenage son named David
—sex: yes, explicit sex scenes. Strict roles. Niall likes to bottom and Keller likes to top. Niall has only ever had sex with Angie and has never slept with or kissed a man. Keller has had a lot of one night stands with men.
—HEA: yes



It had taken [Niall] this long to figure out what that dancing, fluttery feeling in his chest was. For the first time, he was himself.

“No…you don’t understand.” Niall blew out a stream of air and wiped his cheeks. “I’m finally here.”
“What do you mean?”
Eyes soft and with a glimmer of a smile on his lips, Niall sat up. “Since I was thirteen, I imagined what it would be like with a man, and now…it’s overwhelming to be here. I’m me. Who I’m supposed to be.”

The thought of Niall kissing another man made him want to upchuck the breakfast he’d eaten.

Keller hadn’t ever considered being someone’s boyfriend, and yet now he wanted to hang a sign around Niall’s neck that read: taken by Keller Williams. No touching. Even more strange? He wanted to wear a matching one.

[RE Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed aspects of this, but some issues led to a lower rating from me.

First, I liked the premise, and I liked Keller overall. He's kind of an irrepressible personality, and it was fun to spend time with him.

The downsides, though, did make it hard for me to suspend my disbelief at times. For instance, the idea that Keller would give his cell number to his team and they'd use it right away? I found that highly unlikely. I've taught teens before, and even with his status as a retired NFL player, I don't see them trusting him that easily and quickly. And even though it was anonymous, I think that could be a tricky legal issue too (perhaps). I don't know, but it made me uncomfortable. ETA: Funny, I wrote this before I completely finished, and Stevens had parents with concerns. Now the timing is ridiculous (ie, they didn't care until they realized he was gay), but honestly, I think most parents would be a little concerned with a football coach who gave out his personal cell number to players. Interestingly enough, Stevens has done this before in another book -- in that one, a teacher believed it was his job to essentially 'raise' his students in place of the parents and that his views were more righteous than the parents', as well. Regardless of students' family situations, teachers have no place trying to take over for parents, imo. Once again, Stevens' political views are seeping into her books, and although this is normal (I mean, authors should be able to put anything they want in their books), it frustrates me as a reader that she makes it sound like those views are 1) legal and 2) more moral than those who might disagree. :/ Just another reason why this author just isn't for me.

But politics aside, the aspects which really held me up mostly had to do with Niall -- starting with the fact that he's very inconsistently portrayed here. For the first third (at least) of the book, he's just plain unlikeable. He's insecure, he's bitter, and he's cold. I truly could not believe that he'd ever have gotten someone like Angie to marry him. She's described as a smart, confident woman, and since they couldn't have had any chemistry between them to overwhelm her that way, then she would've married him because of his personality -- and he just didn't seem to have a pleasant one until much further into the book.

Along with that, Niall's insistence on expecting Keller to 1) know how his teammates treated Niall in high school and 2) have done something about it back then is ridiculous. It makes him look so childish and immature and incredibly bitter. Honestly, if I hadn't liked Keller from the first page, I would've stopped reading the second Niall's POV came along. But then, as we get further into the story, Niall starts looking like a completely different person. And yes, this new person is more likeable, but I had a hard time reconciling that Niall with the previous one. :/

Also, and this is something I've noticed Stevens does in many of her books, it's annoying when one character falls for another -- who is unlikeable in almost every way -- simply because he's hot. Keller was attracted to Niall, so he ignored how mean and bitter Niall was toward him. Give me a break -- and also, having a rough childhood does not give a person an 'out' to be a selfish, immature adult. I definitely don't enjoy that trope, either.

Finally, I really didn't like how Keller came out to the world. I didn't see him asking Niall if it was okay that he kiss him in front of the entire team and all the parents -- it wasn't cool at all for him to do that without previous discussion. And he should have known how the press would react, but he didn't warn Niall at all. Ugh. It wasn't well handled, imo, and it disappointed me because, up to that point, Keller had been the adult, mature one.

So yeah, it wasn't my favorite, and I felt like it could've been so much more. I've read Felice Stevens before, but it's been a while -- and now I recall why she's on my 'not for me' list.

[Naia Sterne · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

C’era una volta un ex quarterback della NFL che, dopo un infortunio e la morte della madre, decide di tornare nella sua cittadina di provincia e accettare il posto come allenatore per allenare il liceo locale. Lo immaginiamo con il sorriso smagliante da pubblicità di dentifricio, i bicipiti luccicanti, il cuore grande così e il segreto sulla sua sessualità che si porta dietro da sempre. Questo è Keller Williams: l’uomo che vorresti come vicino di casa, coach motivazionale e forse anche come fidanzato (sì, ammettiamolo).

Peccato che ad aspettarlo non ci sia solo la squadra di football, ma anche Niall Harper, bibliotecario scolastico, divorziato, padre modello di uno degli allievi di Keller e... ex liceale bullizzato proprio da quei compagni di squadra con cui Keller condivideva spogliatoio e gloria. In altre parole: se Keller è il golden retriever della situazione, Niall è il gatto diffidente che soffia e scappa sotto il divano. Talmente diffidente da proiettare su Keller tutto l'astio verso i propri bulli, anche se Keller non è mai stato presente a nessun episodio di bullismo, Niall è certo che Keller sapesse e che se ne fosse fregato.

Keller e Niall sono immediatamente attratti l'uno dall'altro (dio, Niall lo era già al liceo, impossibile resistere alla star del football). La cosa migliore è che, visto che nessuno di loro ha fatto coming out, sono entrambi convinti che l'altro sia etero. Gli ingredienti per un disastro? Forse. La fortuna è dalla nostra unicamente perché Keller è particolarmente fastidioso e insistente. Prima occupa ogni energia per capire perché Niall lo odi così tanto e poi per diventare suo amico e, beh, esplorare quell'attrazione che ha idea potrebbe essere reciproca.

Niall. All’inizio sembra fatto apposta per risultare insopportabile: rancoroso, rigido, un po’ acido. Il classico amico che rovina la cena lamentandosi del servizio. Solo più avanti, grazie all’insistenza di Keller, si scioglie e diventa un’altra persona, cambia dal giorno alla notte. Carino, certo, ma la trasformazione, è troppo veloce, lascia il lettore un po’ perplesso: schizofrenia o risveglio?

L’idea di base funziona: il nerd ferito e il ragazzo popolare dal cuore d’oro, due adulti che si incontrano (anzi, si scontrano) vent’anni dopo e passano inizialmente dall'essere amici, raccoglitori di mele, complici, amanti. Perché qui non si parla semplicemente di dare una chance all'amore ma, soprattutto, alla fiducia, all'accettare sé stessi ed avere la vita felice che si è sempre e solo sognata, credendo non fosse possibile.

Il problema è che, tra le pagine, si passa da momenti adorabili a situazioni che ti fanno alzare un sopracciglio più in fretta che davanti a una scena di Beautiful. Tipo: Keller che distribuisce il suo numero di cellulare agli studenti, motivo nobile, sicuramente. Romantico nelle intenzioni, ma nella realtà? I genitori insorgono… ma solo dopo aver scoperto che il coach è gay. Tempismo perfetto, come sempre nelle commedie americane di provincia.

La chimica fra i due, esiste, anche se inizialmente sembra un po' “eh, vabbè, è bello, quindi mi piace”. Il che è realistico – chi non si è mai innamorato di un sorriso (di una serie di addominali) prima ancora di conoscere il carattere? – ma avrei voluto di più. Altro meh, il momento del coming out che di prassi è una delle mie parti preferite negli M/M, qui... arriva con un gesto teatrale: un bacio in pubblico, senza che colui che ha preso l'iniziativa abbia mai consultato l'altro. Eh no, non si fa così, mi eravate rimasti sul "abbiamo tutto il tempo del mondo, quando sarai pronto.." e sbam.
Beh, questo mi ha lasciata davvero basita.

Il risultato? Una lettura piacevole, con un ritmo che non annoia mai, personaggi secondari adorabili, e due protagonisti che – seppur non sempre coerenti – trovano il modo di conquistarti. Non è un capolavoro indimenticabile, è una di quelle storie che, a seconda dell’umore, può farti sospirare o sbuffare.

[Ramsi · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5 stars

So, first things first:
I had fun reading the book and was entertained and engaged.
But – and I feel bad saying this - I have trouble to review and rate it. The last of Felice's books were hits with me and I happily gave them 4 or 5 stars but in this case... four stars don't seem fair to be honest. More like 3,5 and that's what I'm going with.

Like I said, there is no doubt I did enjoy reading the story. First thought was even: oh I really like that!
But on the second read through and the longer I thought about it, there were things that jumped out to me and I didn't find those endearing.

For example:
Niall. I really had trouble even just liking him at first. I mean I get that he was bullied in the past but the way he acts towards Keller at the beginning just because he knew those people who bullied him.... that was everything but fair. Or even mature. No, it came across as very childish behaviour.
I couldn't really understand what Keller saw in Niall, not the way he was treated by him in the beginning.

When they finally cleared the air between them – all through repeated tries to talk about it from Keller – Niall became more likeable for me. But I never did warm up to him too much.

Was I still glad when they finally managed to find happiness with each other? I sure did but it fell a bit flat for me all in all.
I had really trouble feeling the chemistry and passion between them - perhaps because of the few somehow a bit lacklustre feeling intimate moments. I am not one who needs a lot of sex in the story but if it's there I want to feel their love and sexual attraction and this time I had trouble with it. Perhaps because I still am not the biggest fan of Niall. I am sorry :(

On the other hand here are the positive aspects for me:

- the biggest one: Keller, one of our MCs.
I adore him, you could even say I fell in love with him. He seems so genuine and simply a very nice and likeable person. He was so caring! He gave his all for the kids on his team, being fair and lending them an open, judgement-free ear. He was there for them and tried to help where he could.

- David, Niall's son, he was a great, strong secondary character and enriched the story

- Angie, the ex wife of Niall, she was a good person, no female villain how those ex wives are often portrayed. I really did a fist pump when she was introduced and was just an overall nice and likeable character, still even a friend to her ex Niall.

- overall there were a lot of great and supportive secondary characters, especially the two best friends couples.

- the slow burn: it just fit the story

- Btw: I especially enjoyed the interactions between Keller and the football kids and it warmed my heart to see them reach out to him when they needed someone to talk to. And to stand up for him when it was needed.


The drama surrounding the coming out of those two, that is both a positive and negative thing for me. On the one hand I'm glad that it wasn't all smooth sailing because it made the scenario and story more believable and realistic. But on the other hand the way it was handled felt a bit...preachy? I can't explain it better, sorry, that's why I am not an author.

Spoiler: What made me really really sad and mad was that the decision the school-board made felt like it was made solely because of the threat the football team uttered and they didn't want to lose the possibility of winning the state championship and not because they stood behind the coach. There were too many voices that spoke against him and didn't want a coach who was gay to believe the outcome had other reasons. Yes, it is speculative on my part but I found that heavily implied.

Overall conclusion: there were both positives and negative aspects for me but I can say I was never bored while reading it.
So I was entertained and am still happy to have read the book. But in the relationship department it was only an okay read for me.

Perhaps it was the mood I was in at the time of reading so it's entire possible other readers won't feel as strongly about some aspects as me.
Like I said it is not a bad book just not something to write home about - for me

[Taylin Clavelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed for Love Bytes - part of a dual reviewer split decision review – 3.5 hearts and 4.5 hearts.
An injury took Keller Williams out of the NFL early. It also kept him in the closet. So, Keller returns to his hometown to coach high school football. When he meets the Librarian, Niall - Keller has dreams of living as his true self in the open. Being one of the geeks, Niall doesn’t have good memories of his high school, especially the football team bullies, and tars Keller with the same brush as some of his teammates. There is some perception sorting to accomplish, in private and in public. Are Keller and Niall up to the challenge?
The Player is a story that I had a dilemma with because this is what I class as an informative story. The tale deals with sensitive subjects from the viewpoints of teenagers and adults in differing scenarios. These issues must be in the public domain and not hidden. Fiction is one medium at an author’s disposal. Therefore, I considered myself informed – bravo on a good job. However, I also wanted to be entertained because the medium was fiction and not a documentary-style text. And here’s my dilemma – how do you get a serious subject over without outrageously sensationalizing it and make it memorable while being entertained? I’m guessing this is where the football arc originated. This combination was an admirable yet challenging task to achieve. While the story was well written, something for me was missing and I struggled to articulate my thoughts.
The story was told in the third person from the viewpoints of Keller and Niall. The imagery was good without being OTT and gave me some super mental pictures of the town and its people. Despite his overly healthy bank account - Keller’s need to be surrounded by the comfort of his mother’s memory came over well. It was also good that Niall’s skepticism/animosity wasn’t easily washed away. This made the burgeoning relationship with Keller a sedate burn – not slow because Keller knows what he wants. As well as the bully, skeptics, gossips, and bible brigade, there is a heartwarming number of supporters prepared to stand up for what is right. The teenagers, too, seem to mostly have their heads screwed on properly, trying to be conscientious. To this end, parts came across as a touch cookiecutter.
The story is novel-length and details how the past hurts impact the present. Having experienced many emotions as a teenager, Keller wants to be an unbiased ear for students who believe their others may be too close to a subject to be objective. He desires to stand for everything right, regardless of the naysayers. Keller is an admirable man.
There are several classic scenarios in this story. With a few exceptions, most of the cast are nice people wanting to do what is right, unwilling to see a person suffer from the prejudices of others. I have hope that the world is going that way, but from a reading perspective; much of the journey is overly safe. I left this story with a full heart, but a spark was missing that made me want to score it higher. Given the tale’s wholesome nature, I expect that others will give higher marks, I guess what you get out of this story is all about what your mood is looking for.
This book was provided free in exchange for a fair and honest review for
Love Bytes.

[Mirjam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Keller Williams and Niall Harper,






Keller never envisioned a return to his hometown, but fate dealt a double blow: the sudden loss of his mother in an accident, and a devastating injury from a brutal hit just as he was poised to make a crucial catch.
Seeking solace, he finds himself drawn back to the simplicity of small-town living. His aspiration? To carve out a new life, embracing his true self, finding companionship, and ultimately, attaining happiness.
Unexpectedly, coaching at his old high school becomes a fulfilling endeavor. Guiding a group of enthusiastic young men toward growth and improvement brings him a sense of purpose. However, amidst the camaraderie, he encounters a man whose presence radiates hostility, sparking a curiosity within Keller. Though unfamiliar with him, he senses an unresolved issue that demands attention.







Keller is the head football coach for Niall's son, David. Despite finding solace in his quiet role at the school library, Niall is both embarrassed and curious about the attention Keller directs his way.
Haunted by memories of high school bullying at the hands of football players, Niall struggles to trust Keller, even though Keller himself wasn't the bully; rather, it was his friends.
However, as Keller chips away at Niall's defences, revealing his genuine self beyond the jock stereotype, their dynamic takes an unexpected turn, making life for both of them decidedly more intriguing.







The book had its highs and lows, but it held my attention throughout.
Niall, the protagonist, was a bit of a puzzle to warm up to, and at times, I found him perplexing. Thankfully, the wonderful secondary characters added depth and support.

Despite the engaging storyline, I felt lukewarm about the romantic aspect. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the overall experience and am glad I gave the book a chance.

[Emmi (bookish_redpanda) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actual rating: ⭐⭐⭐.75
Spice level: 🌶️🌶️.5

This one was actually quite hard for me to rate. I enjoyed the story. It was a very sweet, small town romance between the ex-NFL player, now high-school football coach, and the school's librarian. Relatively low angst - I'll get to that in a moment - with no 3rd act break up. But there were also many parts that didn't... I guess sit well with me.

I liked Keller. He definitely came across as a man who was feeling the loss of his mother, of his career - but he wasn't going to let it ruin his life. I loved watching him put the passion he has for his sport into coaching the high school team. Niall on the other hand... I found it very hard to connect with him - and at some points, to even like him. He definitely did not act like a man in his late 30's for a large portion of the book; hung up on something he thinks happened in the past. And I also find it kind of... strange, I guess is the best word, that he's only ever told his ex-wife about his preferences, and has never put more into exploring them. I get small town life, but also... yeah.

I loved that it was a love story between a slightly older couple. Quite often with M/M romances, it's more new adult, or age-gap tropes, but this was actually really sweet. And I loved how it included things that needed them to be older to really work out - the single dad with a son on the football team, the closeted ex-NFL player.

I also need to point out that this was a book written in 3rd person. Normally I don't read these, because I feel that you don't really understand characters motivations, thoughts and feelings as well as in a 1st person POV novel; I definitely think that if this book were to be written from a mix of Kellar and Niall's 1st person perspectives, it would have flowed much better, and we would have connected far better with the men.

There was a large cast of side characters - which at times became too much, as I couldn't remember who Dara was (or her purpose other than being a named character), and some throwaway information about some side characters that I feel didn't need to be announced - the doctor mentioning he was a doctor during the climactic scene). I did love the little side story between Shane and Van. But in saying that, the stuff with Shane's dad (who's name I honestly don't recall) seemed almost a little too... farfetched. That whole side plot I feel could have been handled much better (though I do understand it needed to roll that way for dramatic effect).

I did enjoy the love story. I loved watching the men come out of their shells. Of David accepting Keller into his life as more than just his coach. And I won't lie; Keller's speech had me swooning whilst also wanting to yell "right on" at the book, because so many truths were said in that moment.