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Open Play #3
Offside
Radek Šíma and Tomáš Hájek were teammates first. Best friends after that. And somewhere along the way, on the road, between matches, they became something neither of them has ever said out loud.
It started once. Then it kept happening.
Now the World Cup has brought the whole Czech squad to Atlanta, the semifinals are days away, and the thing Šíma and Tomáš have been pretending isn't real is getting harder to leave in the dark.
Offside is the third book in the Open Play MM soccer romance series, a steamy friends-to-lovers story about two men, one situationship that was never supposed to mean anything, and a tournament that keeps raising the stakes.
Each book in the Open Play series follows a different couple and can be read on its own, though characters return throughout. For readers who love slow-burn MM sports romance, found-family teammates, and a guaranteed happily ever after.
Preorder now.
Heat Level: Steamy POV: Dual POV, present tense Series: Open Play, Book 3
It started once. Then it kept happening.
Now the World Cup has brought the whole Czech squad to Atlanta, the semifinals are days away, and the thing Šíma and Tomáš have been pretending isn't real is getting harder to leave in the dark.
Offside is the third book in the Open Play MM soccer romance series, a steamy friends-to-lovers story about two men, one situationship that was never supposed to mean anything, and a tournament that keeps raising the stakes.
Each book in the Open Play series follows a different couple and can be read on its own, though characters return throughout. For readers who love slow-burn MM sports romance, found-family teammates, and a guaranteed happily ever after.
Preorder now.
Heat Level: Steamy POV: Dual POV, present tense Series: Open Play, Book 3
- GenresM M Romance
178 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 6, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
August 8, 2026
DNF @ 83%
3.5 stars
That was all I could take. Just up to the resolution. The rest of the book can take a rest. So can I.
Thoughts as reading:
*at 50% I am debating not finishing the book. The verbal run around is frying my brain. Whether the book wins, or my brain burns is a match waiting for a result.
*at 62% The file says the author should ease up and let the writing flow without poetic license. That is a new rule. Percentage in verse should, at some point, flow freely. Too much of a good thing can lose the reader.
I really love Riley Bauer's stories. The writing style is uniqe and enjoyable...until it isn't. There comes a time when you realize that all the characters are the same voice. They are interchangeable because they all sound exactly the same. As I write this, I am 18% into the book and still can't remember who the MCs are. Clocks have attitudes and inanimate objects negotiate and announce things and the writing is so convoluted it's throws you off. Sue me, I'm tired as I write this and reading is difficult at the moment, but I really think the style has been overworked.
3.5 stars
That was all I could take. Just up to the resolution. The rest of the book can take a rest. So can I.
Thoughts as reading:
*at 50% I am debating not finishing the book. The verbal run around is frying my brain. Whether the book wins, or my brain burns is a match waiting for a result.
*at 62% The file says the author should ease up and let the writing flow without poetic license. That is a new rule. Percentage in verse should, at some point, flow freely. Too much of a good thing can lose the reader.
I really love Riley Bauer's stories. The writing style is uniqe and enjoyable...until it isn't. There comes a time when you realize that all the characters are the same voice. They are interchangeable because they all sound exactly the same. As I write this, I am 18% into the book and still can't remember who the MCs are. Clocks have attitudes and inanimate objects negotiate and announce things and the writing is so convoluted it's throws you off. Sue me, I'm tired as I write this and reading is difficult at the moment, but I really think the style has been overworked.
August 8, 2026
This lacked the heart and connection I typically feel in Bauer's writing. Maybe because it was much shorter than the previous? I didn't enjoy it as much, unfortunately. I skimmed towards the end. However, Bauer continues to portray heart ache well and gut punches me every time.
August 8, 2026
4.5
Well, this is a pretty good score for a novel that tries to be too clever by half, even if the bare bones of the story is cool. Soccer. The semifinals for the World Cup. A very cohesive team. And the tension of a captain and his lover, still in secret, after five years. The team doesn’t know, but that is because of their discipline covering the matter.
If I hadn’t been trying so hard to get past all the barbs, the overturning of normal verbal processes and the often bang on commentary, the score would be higher. Worth it for those who love soccer, mothers, grandmothers, and two good men.
Well, this is a pretty good score for a novel that tries to be too clever by half, even if the bare bones of the story is cool. Soccer. The semifinals for the World Cup. A very cohesive team. And the tension of a captain and his lover, still in secret, after five years. The team doesn’t know, but that is because of their discipline covering the matter.
If I hadn’t been trying so hard to get past all the barbs, the overturning of normal verbal processes and the often bang on commentary, the score would be higher. Worth it for those who love soccer, mothers, grandmothers, and two good men.
August 7, 2026
I really love this author's books. It definitely a unique style…think David Mamet with love sick athletes instead of greedy real estate developers. It’s very internal, and sometimes a bit of work to decipher. But worth it. It’s also fun to see MCs from the prior books at a different angle.
August 6, 2026
Keeping up the good work. Like everything Riley wrote so far. Svičková for the win
August 7, 2026
After Header, I was skeptical of liking Tomas and although I warmed up to him, my favorite parts wiener Sima and Dami.
August 8, 2026
3⭐️ 2🌶️
August 10, 2026
The names. Idk how the author kept them straight. And the story.... I was so miserable during the story. This was such a hard fought HEA.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews