Unstoppable Love

D.C. Renegades #4

by Erin Marie Bassett

Duncan's Book coming June 2026

Genres: Romance, Hockey

Kindle Edition

Expected publication June 2, 2026

About the author

Erin Marie Bassett is a geriatric millennial, wife and mother of two living in Chicago. (A mile west of Wrigley Field but she, like her husband and kids, are St. Louis Cardinal Fans). When she’s not reading or writing romance, Erin helps small businesses and local organizations use the magic words to connect with their communities. She volunteers hard at her kids school and she believes in the power of S.L.O.W. Living.
Her doctor tells her not to but she drinks a lot of coffee. Like, a lot.

Take the Book Boyfriend Quiz to be matched with one of Erin's MMCs!
erinmariebassett.com
@erinmariebassett

Reviews

[Rachael Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I went into Unstoppable Love without having read any other books in the series, and I want to lead with that because I think it shaped my experience.

First, the good stuff. A cowboy in a kilt AND a hockey player? Yes, please. Both characters are incredibly lovable, with cute banter that made me smile. Duncan is hilarious, genuinely laugh out loud funny, even when he's getting on Rhys's nerves. And the spice? Really well done. (🪞 If you know, you know.) The chemistry between these two is undeniable from the jump.

Now, my only caveat, and this may be a "me problem" since I haven't read the earlier books, is that so much energy goes into the side characters and their stories. At times, it pulled me out of the reading experience because I wished more of that focus stayed on the main couple. I suspect if you have read the other books, this wouldn't feel like an issue at all. For me, it didn't add to the plot so much as distract from it.

That said, I did really like all the side characters. Watching Rhys get welcomed into the group of WAGs was absolutely perfect. I loved every bit of that.

One of my favorite things about this book was the magical, feel good world where homophobia simply doesn't exist. That didn't have to be a point of contention or trauma. Sometimes it's just nice to step outside reality and pretend our community gets to exist freely without the weight. This book delivered that beautifully.

Overall, Unstoppable Love is a super cute, low angst, feel good story. I really enjoyed it, and I'll absolutely be open to reading more from this author.

[Kimberly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew this book was going to be fun, but I was not prepared for Duncan and Rhys to completely take over my life for two straight days. Erin Marie Bassett’s Unstoppable Love honestly felt like one of those romances that sneaks up on you. You go in expecting hockey, flirting, chaos, and spice, and then suddenly you’re sitting there emotionally attached to two fictional men while ignoring your laundry and staying up way too late saying “okay just one more chapter.” Huge thank you to Erin Marie Bassett for the gifted ARC because this one completely worked for me.

Duncan has always been that funny guy in the background of the Renegades books. The loud one. The one making dumb jokes, keeping everybody laughing, and pretending he’s fine even when he’s clearly carrying more than he lets people see. And honestly? Getting inside his head made me love him so much more. Underneath all the humor there’s this really lonely side to him, especially watching everybody around him settle into relationships while he’s still trying to figure out where he fits in everyone’s lives.

Then Rhys shows up with his tattoos, Scottish accent, rockstar energy, and quiet understanding of Duncan that honestly melted me a little. Their connection felt natural right from the beginning. The flirting was easy, the chemistry was ridiculous, and their conversations actually made me believe these two people would choose each other outside of the attraction too. That’s what really sold this romance for me.

And listen… the chemistry? Absolutely wild. The banter had me laughing constantly, but there were also moments between them that felt soft and vulnerable in a way I wasn’t expecting. Rhys sees through Duncan’s whole “I’m the funny guy” routine almost immediately, and Duncan brings this warmth and chaos into Rhys’s life that he didn’t even realize he needed. They balance each other out so well without trying to change who the other person is.

Also, the team group texts continue to be one of my favorite parts of this entire series because they genuinely feel like real friends giving each other nonstop grief twenty-four hours a day. The found family aspect of these books always hits for me, and this one especially reminded me why I love sports romances when they’re done well. It’s not just about the romance. It’s about belonging somewhere.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“Love doesn’t take people away from your life. It only adds more people to it.”

That line got me a little bit, not gonna lie.

And yes, the spice absolutely delivered. There’s tension, there’s heat, there’s a mirror scene that nearly took me out, and somehow it all still felt emotional instead of overdone. The relationship development and emotional connection stayed front and center the whole time.

This book made me laugh, made me emotional, and honestly just made me happy while I was reading it. If you love hockey romances with actual heart, found family, tattooed rockstars, emotionally messy but lovable characters, and couples that genuinely make sense together, you’ll probably fly through this one like I did.

Now excuse me while I continue pretending fictional hockey players are setting realistic standards for emotional communication.

Okay but seriously… who’s your favorite D.C. Renegades couple so far? Because Duncan and Rhys might’ve just stolen the top spot for me.

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[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all, thank you so much for allowing me to ARC read this in exchange for my honest opinion. I’m always grateful for the opportunity to read early, but this one? This one absolutely owned me from start to finish.

Secondly… OKAY. DUNCAN. Let’s talk about Duncan because I absolutely fell head over heels for this man. His personality? Perfection. His lame sense of humor? Weirdly adorable and somehow made me love him even more. The way he carries himself, the charm, the heart underneath all of it—he completely stole the show for me. He’s the kind of character that feels impossible not to love.

But THEN… you add in a hunky Scottish rockstar?! Excuse me?! Holy crap. Chef’s kiss. That pairing should not work as ridiculously well as it does, and yet it absolutely explodes off the page. The hot-as-sin hockey player mixed with the swoon-worthy rockstar energy? It’s pure chaos in the best possible way.

The chemistry between these two was unreal. The flirting? Top tier. The tension? Off the charts. The banter? Absolutely immaculate—especially with Duncan’s ridiculous, terrible, amazing lame jokes that somehow just made everything better. Their dynamic felt effortless, magnetic, and so incredibly fun to read. Every scene between them had me grinning like an idiot because they just worked.

But what made this book stand out even more was how much emotion was layered underneath all that chemistry. It wasn’t just fun and flirting—it had heart. It had vulnerability. It had moments that made me want to scream, moments that made me want to hug both of them, and moments that had me sitting there with the biggest goofy smile on my face.

This book had me going through all the emotions. I was laughing, swooning, wanting to rage at certain moments, and completely loving every single second of it. That’s the kind of story I adore—the ones that pull every emotion out of you and somehow leave you wanting more.

And honestly? These two are absolutely my new favorite couple. No contest.

This book was amazingly written, addictive, emotional, hilarious, and full of chemistry that practically set my Kindle on fire. I am absolutely feral for this story, these characters, and whatever comes next because I need MORE immediately.

[JenBookEnthusiast · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unstoppable Love by Erin Marie Bassett is the 4th book in the D.C. Renegades series.

I absolutely LOVE Rhys and Duncan! I was literally scrambling for my kindle charger because my battery was depleted and I couldn't let a little electrical deficiency keep me from finishing their amazingly funny and very charged story in one day!

For starters, I am a goner for Duncan and who wouldn't be with his wit, humor, his charming personality and compassionate nature. Of course, it doesn't hurt that he is a sexy, flirty professional hockey player. Gotta love watching those warmup sessions on the ice! He uses his humor to deflect and focus on others and keeps things on a surface level to avoids romantic relationships.

Then there is Rhys with his good looks, confidence, charisma, tattoos, sense of humor, and his Scottish Country Rock Star music persona. Rhys is coming off a bad relationship when he meets Duncan and the instant connection sparks off the pages. The heat and chemistry between them could melt the ice in the rink!

Their journey as they navigate this connection while dealing with their current career commitments and Duncan adjusting to life changes among his teammates and where he fits in definitely emphasizes the complexity of any relationship and draws you into this heart-melting and engaging story.

The group chats, the amazingly supportive and funny family members along with the awesome teammates and their partners provides depth to this story that delivers their own level of laugh out loud humor, levity, and emotional connections.

Such a wonderful story and I'm addicted to these guys! So looking forward to find out what happens next with the D.C. Renegades.

I want to thank Erin Marie Bassett for the early copy of this book and I'm sharing my voluntary opinion.

[Jaiden Hettick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to receive an advanced reader's copy of this book! This is my first hockey romance book, so big day for sure. (spoilers) Duncan, a very serious hockey players fall is love with a Scottish country singer (pretty sure that is the first time I have ever typed those three words together) named Rhys. I do love it when the funny character that clearly uses it as a defense mechanism gets his story... i.e., Chandler Bing. I also love a singer/rockstar vibe because that is just perfection. I do love that in this book, they have their struggles and a third-act breakup, but I appreciate that the reason they break up isn't extremely intense. Often times third act breaks up can be an unforgiving issue in my mind, and I loved that the only issue was mostly distance and not fully expressing their issues. I feel that the way they were able to solve the issue seemed realistic. I loved Duncan's friends being heavily involved in the relationship and the well-being of their friend. My only issue was that I was slightly confused by the Crosbys' plot line, but that could be my dyslexia being confused by the number of characters. Also, the two male characters did move very fast... like things were happening in chapter 10 of a 58-chapter book. A little too fast for me, but my fav trope is a nice slow burn, so do with that information what you will.

FAV PART - I love Rhys being a part of the WAGS. Also, loved the New Year's plot line of Rhys ex trying to get back together and kissing him on TV, but Rhys right away no falling for it and called Duncan because he was worried he saw it (end spoilers).

Thanks again Erin for the free book! Hope it does well on release day :)

[Courtney M Lawson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each book of the D.C. Renegades just keeps getting better and better, but Duncan and Rhys have stole the show for me. 🥰🥰

I've always liked Duncan, he's the goofy, charismatic flirt and is the friend/teammate that's always there for everyone. You get to learn his internal battles when he goes from being everyone's comedic relief of a friend to now getting pushed aside a little when life starts happening and everyone else's relationships take a spotlight.

Rhys being the one to take care of Duncan in a way that teaches Dunc more about himself while Rhys learns more about letting go and having fun... there couldn't have been a better match. I will ship them all day, everyday. The chemistry between this tatted rockstar and hunky hockey player is nuclear grade. 🥵🥵

This book was funny, spicy, and heartwarming. I laughed, cried, and lost some hours of my sleep. Unstoppable Love is my favorite Renegade book, so far, and I highly recommend reading it!!

5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
3/5🌶🌶🌶

[Nathan Starnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book as an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy), and the following review reflects my honest, voluntary opinion on the work.

This is a unique book on its own as it combines hockey romance with show-stopping musical performer romance. The personalities of the two main characters are well fleshed out, which makes them undeniably lovable. The stoic X goofball dynamic really sets the love story up well, and even if you aren't big into romance books, I can confidently say this book will make you laugh. Most of my bookmarks while reading are jokes or funny moments I thoroughly enjoyed and would like to return to later. Additionally, the inclusion and support surrounding the deaf community were heartwarming. I also really enjoyed that one of the MCs has a dental aid, as that realistic side of life often is not portrayed well in media outlets. I believe this book works very well as a sweet palate cleanser that guarantees lovable material, characters, and plot lines.

[Kirsty B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Massive thanks to Erin for the ARC. I had such a blast!

I knew I was a Rhys girl as soon as I found out he could ride a horse 🥵 The Paisley family is one that I would really like to be apart of.

I don't think anybody else possibly makes me laugh as much as Erin does, the humour in all of her books is unmatched.

Duncan is the most mature immature man I know 😂

Hearing the other side of the conversation as to why Crosby said well what gets you wet made me cackle. I'm really enjoying the shared timeline with book three and getting some more insights from that.

As funny as this book is I wasn't expecting it to be quite so deep. It was really good to see Duncan really develop as a character and I really enjoyed seeing him go from quite closed off in terms of his emotions to such an open character.

Props to you Erin, it was fab 🩷

[Vaughn Rose · Rating 3 out of 5]

ARC review 🤪

I did not think this book was going to land for me, but around 70% I got hooked in. I hate to DNF a book, even if it sucks because at least then I see the whole story and understand why the author wrote what they did and I’m glad a stuck through this one.

The book is segmented to me-like it could’ve been two books. The first part when they meet feels like a completely different story than when they’re together later. By the end I almost forgot the whole beginning until it was referenced again.

Duncan is exactly the kind of person I surround myself with, so I enjoyed his character a lot. The engagement with all the side characters really made me feel immersed in the community/setting of the book.

I didn’t read any of the other books in this series, but learning about the other characters almost convinced me. I’m very invested in Felix’s future.

[Myranda Page · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ahhh I love this book so much! First of all thank you ARC for sending me an advanced copy so I can read this masterpiece! I have never read any of the other books in this series, so I definitely didn’t get some parts of this book.

With that being said, even though I didn’t I absolutely love this. I love a hockey romance book and when you bring in a ROCKSTAR. So much better, I fell in love with the characters. I think that’s what really sold it for me but the storyline was really well done.

I am not giving away any spoilers at all in this but I definitely say if you have a chance to read this book, you should! 10/10 for me. I’m such a sucker for books like this, the main characters are so well written too. You’ll fall in love just like I did.

[Jordan Farhat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holy Moly, Duncan, Duncan, Duncan... He has been a favorite of mine throughout this series and I fear he has stolen top spot! This was such a fun read, Rhys such a serious guy who wants to be picture perfect always, good thing Duncan came along to balance him out. Rhys does the same for Duncan. These two really brought out the best in each other and always looking out for one another, while overcoming communication hurdles and Duncan’s lack of relationship experience, they finally figure it out. This is such a fun series and I love that we get to catch up with all the couples from pervious books, Cannot wait for E.T’s and French Fries!!!

[Katie Vitale · Rating 4 out of 5]

✨ARC Review✨

I LOVE seeing a different side to Duncan! He's been the comedic sidekick/relief and I just knew there was a squishy center.

I love how Duncan was able to bring out the fun for Rhys and Rhys showed Duncan that love doesn't take away people, it only adds people to your life. These two complement each other so well. Duncan builds Rhys confidence and Rhys takes care of Duncan after he takes care of everyone else.

[Paige Rewald · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've really enjoyed this series so far and I think this one might be my favorite. I've been on an MM kick this year and when you throw in my favorite sport it just makes it even better. I liked that this one didn't have a bi-awakening or like a big coming out so the focus was just on the relationship itself. I absolutely loved Duncan, I'm a sucker for a play boy with golden retriever energy. I love this found family and the group chats are always hilarious. Can't wait to read the next one.

[Aly · Rating 4 out of 5]

The only thing I have to say is that I found new men to add to my harem of book boyfriends!! The weirdly adorable geek who just melts my heart and the strong man who can throw me around like a rag doll whenever he wants? Perfect combo! I’ll take four of em!! The way that Erin wrote this book truly shows how talented she is. She was able to write it so you’d feel the rollercoaster of emotions. The live, the hilarious moments and overall had me kicking my feet smiling at the book.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this! Rhys and Duncan - both famous and not looking for love - but it definitely found them . Loved the meet cute in Scotland - so perfect! And I really loved how hard they both fell for each other. I love a good MM romance and this had great spice, found family and true love. Highly recommend. I love these hockey players so much. This series is great too!

[Anna-Bel Chambers · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC Review!
Everything about this was perfect 😭 I loved the main characters- and always love hearing from the side characters. I loved how supportive they were of Duncan!! Truly a joy to read from start to finish.

[Karly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Duncan + Rhys = 💜🤟🏻

Full review to come! 💕

[Christina Kearney · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a fun story. Looking forward to the rest of the series.

[Courtney Noble · Rating 5 out of 5]

Funny. Romantic. Absolutely perfect.

Erin Marie does it again with Duncan and Rhys’ story. I laughed. I cried. I felt warm and fuzzy.