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Linemates #1
Linemates
Life is going pretty well for Derek LaVigne. He’s playing professional hockey in Los Angeles where hockey is barely on the radar, and this allows him to live in relative anonymity. Derek’s world is tilted on its axis when he’s traded to the Detroit Wheels. Not only is this one of the top teams in the National Hockey League, he’ll also be playing in a city that lives and breathes hockey. It sounds like a dream come true, but soon enough it becomes clear it isn’t.
The reason for Derek’s change of heart is Trevor Ladouceur. Five years ago Derek and Trevor were linemates on Team Canada at the World Junior Championship. They were inseparable both on and off the ice and became known as the Wonder Twins. After winning the gold medal, they slept together. Trevor was gone the next morning, and they haven’t spoken since. Now they’re together again, and the expectation is for the Wonder Twins to help Detroit win the Stanley Cup. Much to Derek’s dismay, he realizes he’s falling in love with Trevor all over again.
The reason for Derek’s change of heart is Trevor Ladouceur. Five years ago Derek and Trevor were linemates on Team Canada at the World Junior Championship. They were inseparable both on and off the ice and became known as the Wonder Twins. After winning the gold medal, they slept together. Trevor was gone the next morning, and they haven’t spoken since. Now they’re together again, and the expectation is for the Wonder Twins to help Detroit win the Stanley Cup. Much to Derek’s dismay, he realizes he’s falling in love with Trevor all over again.
227 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 18, 2015
55 people are currently reading
397 people want to read
About the author
D.K. Dunn
2 books31 followersD K Dunn has enjoyed writing since childhood. She penned her first story, which was a Snoopy/”Star Wars” mash up at the tender age of 8. Several years later her imagination is still running wild. Her best ideas come to her while she’s either stuck in traffic or in the shower.
She’s a proud fangirl, who loves “Supernatural,” “Star Wars,” and the Detroit Red Wings. Reality TV is one of her guilty pleasures. A day can easily be wasted falling under its siren-like spell. When she’s not writing or watching too much TV, she enjoys traveling, reading, vidding, cheese and ice cream. She’s a firm believer that you can’t go a day without cheese or a good laugh.
She’s a proud fangirl, who loves “Supernatural,” “Star Wars,” and the Detroit Red Wings. Reality TV is one of her guilty pleasures. A day can easily be wasted falling under its siren-like spell. When she’s not writing or watching too much TV, she enjoys traveling, reading, vidding, cheese and ice cream. She’s a firm believer that you can’t go a day without cheese or a good laugh.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews
May 19, 2015
Unfortunately, this is a double whammy review for me. First time author and the first review for the book listed here at GoodReads. And I didn't like the book.
I love when new authors write and publish M/M romance fiction. The more the merrier! And while I did not like this book, the author did a nice job of writing it. It had little to no typos, there was no annoying jumping around from POV to POV and the description of events was easy to decipher.
The problem here is the content.
MC Derek "Veens" LaVigne is a young hockey player in the NHL. 5 years ago he played on the Canadian hockey team that won a gold medal at Junior Worlds with close teammate and lineman Trever "Laddie" Ladouceur. The men enjoyed a great connection that spilled over on the ice that soon had their coach and fans calling them The Wonder Twins.
On the night of their final win at Junior Worlds, after some cocktails for liquid courage, Derek and Trevor fall into bed together. When Derek wakes the next morning, he finds Trevor long gone and doesn't hear from him until 5 years later when Derek is traded to the Detroit Wheels, which is the team Trevor plays for.
Here is where things get rough. Trevor treats Derek like a leper or, more appropriately, like a third grade girl with the mad case of the cooties. He avoids Derek at every turn and even refuses to pass the puck and play like teammates during their games. The book is written from Derek's POV, so we get to see the constant conflicting emotions in his head. From one minute to the next, Derek goes from lusting after Trevor, hating Trevor for being an asshole and loving Trevor and the connection they once shared.
Now, during this time Trevor has told Derek that their night in bed was a colossal mistake and that he isn't actually gay. He even has an evil, blonde bimbo girlfriend who treats Derek like dirt every chance she gets. It should be noted that there are only 3 woman in this book. Ashley, Trevor's girlfriend, Melanie, a PR rep for the team and Derek's mom. With the exception of Derek's mom, who we only briefly see twice, the women in this book are portrayed as evil and conniving. Trevor even refers to Melanie as the "wicked witch" at one point. The author doesn't give women any place in this book and even goes so far as to berate them via the MCs. Example from Derek's inner monologue:
I swear, the longer I was in Detroit, the more I acted like a chick. Someone must have stolen my dick and replaced it with a vagina. I'd been extra concerned about my appearance, pining over Trevor, practically analyzing his every word and action, and overly emotional at times.
And if you think the women are being disrespected, it is nothing compared to what gay men get. (Derek is in the closet and had no plans to come out, so he plays along with the team's homo phobic chatter.) Common chatter includes:
“I'll take the Chateau Latour,” Spillie mimicked Duffy in his best aristocratic voice. He snorted. “Dude, you are so gay.”
Duffy folded his hands on the table and shot Spillie a pointed look. “If you don't shut your trap right now, I'll shove a wine bottle so far up your ass that we'll see who is really gay.”
“You think you're such a badass,” Spillie smirked, completely unfazed.
“I know I am.” Duffy slyly grinned. “Just like I know that you'd love nothing more than to share a tent up on Brokeback Mountain with Mo.”
“Hey, leave me out of your homoerotic fantasies.” Mo threw his hands up in protest.
“I'll even autograph it for you—with hugs and kisses.”
Clint stopped laughing, his face suddenly serious. “I really miss you,” he confessed. “It hasn't been the same.”
“Miss you too.”
Clint set down his burger and wiped his hands. “Okay. It’s starting to get really gay here. We need to man up this conversation, pronto.”
It should be noted that the boys never do come out to their friends and teammates. The book ends and we don't get to see any of the love and support for each another during the coming out phase.
Now, to get to Derek and Trevor's "relationship". Even though the two share a room while on the road, they wasn't ANY sex until the last 5% of the book. (This might have made for some seriously fun sexual tension, but it was merely awkward and rather uncomfortable to read about. Derek even goes out one night and fucks a stranger in the back room of a gay club. When he gets back, he admits it to Trevor with a,"So what?" and Trevor seems to not give any fucks.) During the final 5% of the book, Derek gets his bell rung on the ice during the playoffs and it causes Trevor to finally man up and admit how much he LOVES Derek. He says it with absolutely no passion and it left me wondering, Huh? When did THIS happen? I must have missed that chapter. Of course we already know Derek is in love with Trevor because of his inner monologue. At least we think so because, as I mentioned above, his mood swings are the thing of legends when it comes to Trevor.
There was absolutely NOTHING romantic in this book. There was one sex scene at the 95% mark that I actually skimmed because I was so disgusted with Trevor being a douche nozzle for years and years and them suddenly declaring his undying love to Derek, for which Derek immediately rolls over and swoons with mutual love. Yep. Derek the Doormat.
There is not one thing I can recommend to anyone wanting to read this book. I do hope the author will try again, but this was just a huge fail for me.
CANNOT RECOMMEND.
May 29, 2015
While I quite enjoyed it despite knowing very little about ice hockey, I was disappointed by the lack of romance and the abrupt ending. It screams for a sequel, because the MCs have very little hope of a HEA based on this.
June 4, 2015
Good on the sport action, poor on the romance
I love reading books with a sports theme, and this one was great in the parts that related to the hockey games and training but the romance part of this book let it down.
Derek and Trevor meet 5 years ago playing on the same team at the Junior Championship. They became inseparable and their closeness transferred to the ice giving them the moniker of "the wonder twins". Neither of them knew if the other one was gay or not, and after a night out celebrating their championship win they got together. Trevor disappears during the night and they have not seen each other since. 5 years later they are both playing for different NHL teams. Derek is transferred to Trevor's team in the hopes that they can reproduce the magic of the "wonder twins".
The story starts with Derek's transfer and Trevor's cold reception to Derek and progresses through them trying to navigate through past hurts. It takes along time for the guys to finally get together.
My problems with this one came from the two MCs, Derek and Trevor. Both characters seem like they have bipolar as the moods changed rapidly throughout the book. One minute they have a slight friendship then back to arguing or not talking to each other. I really didn't feel any connection between them other than the fist love aspect. I can't understand with the way Trevor treated Derek he kept trying to be friendly with him. Trevor's about face came out of nowhere.
I also had a problem with Derek and this part is going to be hard to articulate. Derek spent a lot of the book pushing Trevor to admit he was gay. Now in a lot of other books in this genre where the characters were hooking up continually and one character was refusing to admit he was gay, I would be totally on Derek's side wanting Trevor to admit it. But in this book, there was no hooking up. They got together for one night 5 years ago, and as far as Derek knew, Trevor had a girlfriend and was continually saying he was straight. Who's to say that he wasn't bi, experimenting all those years ago or just living behind his own wall of denial. So be it, that's his choice. Without the hookups Derek's continual argument about it felt to me really pushy and kind of forcing him to admit it. I wanted Derek to leave Trevor alone and let him work it out for himself. If Trevor didn't want him, which it felt like that for 90% of the book, Derek should have just moved on and given up on his first love.
The women in this book were portrayed appallingly. With the exception of Derek's mother, who was hardly seen, all of the women were written as the ball breaking she wolves. Surely there could have been at least I female character that had page time written as a normal human being.
I gave this one 2.5 stars and that was due only to the hockey parts
I love reading books with a sports theme, and this one was great in the parts that related to the hockey games and training but the romance part of this book let it down.
Derek and Trevor meet 5 years ago playing on the same team at the Junior Championship. They became inseparable and their closeness transferred to the ice giving them the moniker of "the wonder twins". Neither of them knew if the other one was gay or not, and after a night out celebrating their championship win they got together. Trevor disappears during the night and they have not seen each other since. 5 years later they are both playing for different NHL teams. Derek is transferred to Trevor's team in the hopes that they can reproduce the magic of the "wonder twins".
The story starts with Derek's transfer and Trevor's cold reception to Derek and progresses through them trying to navigate through past hurts. It takes along time for the guys to finally get together.
My problems with this one came from the two MCs, Derek and Trevor. Both characters seem like they have bipolar as the moods changed rapidly throughout the book. One minute they have a slight friendship then back to arguing or not talking to each other. I really didn't feel any connection between them other than the fist love aspect. I can't understand with the way Trevor treated Derek he kept trying to be friendly with him. Trevor's about face came out of nowhere.
I also had a problem with Derek and this part is going to be hard to articulate. Derek spent a lot of the book pushing Trevor to admit he was gay. Now in a lot of other books in this genre where the characters were hooking up continually and one character was refusing to admit he was gay, I would be totally on Derek's side wanting Trevor to admit it. But in this book, there was no hooking up. They got together for one night 5 years ago, and as far as Derek knew, Trevor had a girlfriend and was continually saying he was straight. Who's to say that he wasn't bi, experimenting all those years ago or just living behind his own wall of denial. So be it, that's his choice. Without the hookups Derek's continual argument about it felt to me really pushy and kind of forcing him to admit it. I wanted Derek to leave Trevor alone and let him work it out for himself. If Trevor didn't want him, which it felt like that for 90% of the book, Derek should have just moved on and given up on his first love.
The women in this book were portrayed appallingly. With the exception of Derek's mother, who was hardly seen, all of the women were written as the ball breaking she wolves. Surely there could have been at least I female character that had page time written as a normal human being.
I gave this one 2.5 stars and that was due only to the hockey parts
October 25, 2015
Derek is gay and plays for the NHL team in LA. He gets traded to Detroit for a chance at the Stanley cup. He should be psyched but he’s absolutely not because this will pit him head to head with the hit and run lover he had 5 years ago who left him all alone after a night of drunken sex.
Trevor, who is now 24, “can’t be gay” and play professional hockey – or so he tells himself. He continually pushes Derek away and claims that the night they spent together was a mistake.
As they Wonder Twins begin to work with one another to win the cup, they begin to form a somewhat stable friendship, or at least not openly hostile.
Trevor’s hot girl-friend – who is a total bitch – finally tires of playing second or third fiddle to hockey, the dogs and even Derek – and drops him. Trevor is forced to re-evaluate his life and realizes Derek has been right for him all along.
**
So… I wanted to like this. I like the idea of GFY/OFY, hot hockey players? – oh yeah; coming out stories – you bet! – enemies to lovers – awesome! This sounded like it had a bit of all that. Yeah, no.
It had a guy with his head in his a** the ENTIRE time, constant back and forth between the two MCs over the SAME ISSUE and only pne – count it – one sex scene at the very end of the book. It also had a long list of things that bugged me: making most of the women in their lives act like b*tches, making fun of being gay, no coming out for either character and a totally unbelievable “I love you” declaration that came from out in left field.
When we get to the end I have absolutely no belief that this relationship will work out and really I didn’t even care by that point. I sort of liked Derek, but never cared for Trevor at all. There was a LOT of hockey, a smidge of sexual tension, and very little romance.
Audio
Michael Pauley did a good job with this book. He tried to give all the various hockey guys a unique voice and even tried a little Canadian accent now and then –eh? At times he sounded almost out of breath and I can’t tell if it was because Trevor always was angry but his narration make him always sound that way.
I can’t really recommend this book, it didn’t do it for me on any level, but the narration wasn’t the problem. So for the narration I give it a 2 of 5 stars.
Review here http://thebloggergirls.com/2015/09/22...
Trevor, who is now 24, “can’t be gay” and play professional hockey – or so he tells himself. He continually pushes Derek away and claims that the night they spent together was a mistake.
As they Wonder Twins begin to work with one another to win the cup, they begin to form a somewhat stable friendship, or at least not openly hostile.
Trevor’s hot girl-friend – who is a total bitch – finally tires of playing second or third fiddle to hockey, the dogs and even Derek – and drops him. Trevor is forced to re-evaluate his life and realizes Derek has been right for him all along.
**
So… I wanted to like this. I like the idea of GFY/OFY, hot hockey players? – oh yeah; coming out stories – you bet! – enemies to lovers – awesome! This sounded like it had a bit of all that. Yeah, no.
It had a guy with his head in his a** the ENTIRE time, constant back and forth between the two MCs over the SAME ISSUE and only pne – count it – one sex scene at the very end of the book. It also had a long list of things that bugged me: making most of the women in their lives act like b*tches, making fun of being gay, no coming out for either character and a totally unbelievable “I love you” declaration that came from out in left field.
When we get to the end I have absolutely no belief that this relationship will work out and really I didn’t even care by that point. I sort of liked Derek, but never cared for Trevor at all. There was a LOT of hockey, a smidge of sexual tension, and very little romance.
Audio
Michael Pauley did a good job with this book. He tried to give all the various hockey guys a unique voice and even tried a little Canadian accent now and then –eh? At times he sounded almost out of breath and I can’t tell if it was because Trevor always was angry but his narration make him always sound that way.
I can’t really recommend this book, it didn’t do it for me on any level, but the narration wasn’t the problem. So for the narration I give it a 2 of 5 stars.
Review here http://thebloggergirls.com/2015/09/22...
May 29, 2015
A good read if you are a Hockey fan...which I am. It's good for a new writer to stick with a subject they are personally familiar with and it appears this author does know hockey. I got a giggle out of how the author got so creative in renaming the NHL teams. I'd imagine that was not an easy feat to pull off, since they are so many levels & teams in the sport of hockey.
The story kept me interested...perhaps it was the hockey angle only...IDK. This book could be rated PG-13...definitely not erotica and couldn't really fit into the romance slot either. A bit disappointing that we had to wait until the very end of the book for the MC to finally get together. Yes, it's somewhat implied that it's a HEA, but we don't get to see how that comes to be because of the book's abrupt ending. Too many questions left unanswered for me.
Would I buy a book 2 of this story? Yes. IF there is one, but I'm not privy to that info.
The story kept me interested...perhaps it was the hockey angle only...IDK. This book could be rated PG-13...definitely not erotica and couldn't really fit into the romance slot either. A bit disappointing that we had to wait until the very end of the book for the MC to finally get together. Yes, it's somewhat implied that it's a HEA, but we don't get to see how that comes to be because of the book's abrupt ending. Too many questions left unanswered for me.
Would I buy a book 2 of this story? Yes. IF there is one, but I'm not privy to that info.
May 19, 2015
This book was underwhelming on the romance side of things. Nothing really pop off till near the end of the book. It definitely needs a sequel.
May 16, 2023
Biphobia and misogyny do not make your characters more authentically gay. They just make them unlikeable and offensive
January 26, 2016
Derek and Trevor were two hockey players who played so well as juniors that their Team Canada won the Gold Medal at the World Junior Championship and they both went on to the NHL.
Of course, that night after they won the gold they slept together but in the morning when Derek awoke he was alone. Trevor's gay panic and abandonment left a deeply wounded Derek. It's now 5 years later. Derek is playing hockey in L.A. and has been able to explore his sexuality a bit because hockey isn't really on anyone's radar out there.
But he's been traded to the league leading Detroit team where Trevor is playing (and dating the local weather girl). Detroit's coach wants to "reunite the wonder twins" but in a city where hockey players are famous, how will Derek deal with finding his place on this much better team, resolve his issues with his old flame and still be true to himself?
D.K. Dunn has done a great job here. The story is compelling, the hockey details are spot on, the Michigan setting is exactly right (even down to a casual mention of Euchre) and the two guys seem realistic and both are sympathetically drawn. This is one of the best M/M sports centered books I've encountered.
However don't go into this expecting anything too steamy. No one even gets laid in the first 15 chapters. This is a sweet tale of coming-out and redemption and of re-establishing a relationship that was ended prematurely. But don't ever forget, this is also a hockey story. The MC's may be athletes but with all the scrapes and bruises and brittle machismo attitudes that the sport is known for. Others have criticized this story for including misogyny and sexism and it IS there, but then among professional hockey players it seemed perfectly accurate to me.
Michael Pauley does the narration here and does a great job of voicing Derek from whose POV the story is told. He gets the attitude as well and the pacing during key sports scenes works really well.
*** Note: I received a copy of this audiobook for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest and impartial review ***
Of course, that night after they won the gold they slept together but in the morning when Derek awoke he was alone. Trevor's gay panic and abandonment left a deeply wounded Derek. It's now 5 years later. Derek is playing hockey in L.A. and has been able to explore his sexuality a bit because hockey isn't really on anyone's radar out there.
But he's been traded to the league leading Detroit team where Trevor is playing (and dating the local weather girl). Detroit's coach wants to "reunite the wonder twins" but in a city where hockey players are famous, how will Derek deal with finding his place on this much better team, resolve his issues with his old flame and still be true to himself?
D.K. Dunn has done a great job here. The story is compelling, the hockey details are spot on, the Michigan setting is exactly right (even down to a casual mention of Euchre) and the two guys seem realistic and both are sympathetically drawn. This is one of the best M/M sports centered books I've encountered.
However don't go into this expecting anything too steamy. No one even gets laid in the first 15 chapters. This is a sweet tale of coming-out and redemption and of re-establishing a relationship that was ended prematurely. But don't ever forget, this is also a hockey story. The MC's may be athletes but with all the scrapes and bruises and brittle machismo attitudes that the sport is known for. Others have criticized this story for including misogyny and sexism and it IS there, but then among professional hockey players it seemed perfectly accurate to me.
Michael Pauley does the narration here and does a great job of voicing Derek from whose POV the story is told. He gets the attitude as well and the pacing during key sports scenes works really well.
*** Note: I received a copy of this audiobook for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest and impartial review ***
August 14, 2016
Too much hockey talk in this one and too little romance. The MCs don't get together until the 90% mark, there's one sex scene in total and we don't even get to know if the MC's are coming out. Disappointing ending.
September 20, 2015
3.5 stars
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August 25, 2015This one didn't work for me
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June 27, 2021
This was bad to fine depending on the page. I assume I'm going to keep running into first person (WHY?!) so I'll try my best to shut up about that. The writing was pretty utilitarian and tended toward over-narrating both Derek's thoughts and his actual literal actions which made it sometimes feel like it was written by a robot or an algorithm.
My biggest issues here were the lack of tension -- this had potential for it even outside of the issue of being gay and surrounded by homophobes but it never actually let any of that tension simmer -- and that every woman who appeared (which was like, three? four of them?) were either matrons or shrews for the entirety of their brief appearances. Also that Derek kept insisting that Trevor was gay and never considered the existence of bisexuality/other queer identities while also making Derek really hostile about deciding someone else's sexuality.
It also had quite a few easily Google-able factual errors and went to the trouble of changing all the team names and still choosing to name one after Indigenous people? Woof.
My biggest issues here were the lack of tension -- this had potential for it even outside of the issue of being gay and surrounded by homophobes but it never actually let any of that tension simmer -- and that every woman who appeared (which was like, three? four of them?) were either matrons or shrews for the entirety of their brief appearances. Also that Derek kept insisting that Trevor was gay and never considered the existence of bisexuality/other queer identities while also making Derek really hostile about deciding someone else's sexuality.
It also had quite a few easily Google-able factual errors and went to the trouble of changing all the team names and still choosing to name one after Indigenous people? Woof.
dnf
November 29, 2021DNF at 44%
Desperately asking for dual perspectives. The non-perspective hero is infinitely more interesting than our narrator — he’s the driver of the story; the one who is making decisions about when they do or don’t interact, do or don’t play well, do or don’t flirt. We need to know what he’s thinking.
Also the complete lack of acknowledgement of bisexuality is bewildering. It was published in 2015, which certainly feels recently enough that there should be at least a smidgeon of nuance.
Lots of homophobia, both external and internalized.
Desperately asking for dual perspectives. The non-perspective hero is infinitely more interesting than our narrator — he’s the driver of the story; the one who is making decisions about when they do or don’t interact, do or don’t play well, do or don’t flirt. We need to know what he’s thinking.
Also the complete lack of acknowledgement of bisexuality is bewildering. It was published in 2015, which certainly feels recently enough that there should be at least a smidgeon of nuance.
Lots of homophobia, both external and internalized.
October 12, 2020
Al comienzo fue regular, pensé que estaría lleno de salseo y no, prácticamente fue drama innecesario casi todo el libro, y cuando los problemas 'se arreglan' el libro se acaba, lo que parece en realidad muy inconcluso.
January 14, 2025
super light on the romance but, look, I'm a sucker for drama (and saw there was a sequel) so mostly the star rating was because the writing was bad
December 7, 2015
Note: This audiobook was provided to me by the publisher through Hearts on Fire Reviews in exchange for an impartial review.
When hockey player Derek LaVigne receives word that he’s been traded from LA to Detroit, he’s excited and nervous to be going to a team that has a chance in the playoffs. To top it off, his first love plays for Detroit, one Trevor Ladouceur, but Trevor is in denial and so deep in the closet, he may never come out.
The duo was known as the Wonder Twins when they played together as linemates on Team Canada at the World Junior Championship and both reporters and fans are looking forward to seeing them in action once more. But if Derek was hoping to get close to Trevor again, he’s deeply disappointed as Trevor rejects even his offer of friendship.
Thankfully, his new teammates welcome him and quickly adapt to him both on and off the ice, and eventually, after multiple disappointing opportunities, he and Trevor seem to have drawn a truce and they begin to play together with the potential others had seen in them. For Derek, even though he cares about Trevor, the game is the most important thing in his life right now and making it to the conference finals is uppermost on his list of goals.
Will the two ever get back to the closeness they shared? Can Trevor let go of his need to appear het long enough to allow room for Derek in his life? Will their team win the Stanley Cup this year? All questions are answered by the dramatic finale. And one little hint—it sure looks like the Wonder Twins will be together longer than just this season.
I really enjoyed this story, my first by this author, and I believe a very large part of my enjoyment is due to the outstanding performance of narrator Michael Pauley. It was very easy to distinguish voices—he had a whole bag full of various tones which he used to lend authenticity to the narration. His dramatic style of presentation was just the icing on the cake. I’m looking forward to more from this author and from this narrator in the future. In the meantime, I highly recommend this audiobook for hours of entertainment.
When hockey player Derek LaVigne receives word that he’s been traded from LA to Detroit, he’s excited and nervous to be going to a team that has a chance in the playoffs. To top it off, his first love plays for Detroit, one Trevor Ladouceur, but Trevor is in denial and so deep in the closet, he may never come out.
The duo was known as the Wonder Twins when they played together as linemates on Team Canada at the World Junior Championship and both reporters and fans are looking forward to seeing them in action once more. But if Derek was hoping to get close to Trevor again, he’s deeply disappointed as Trevor rejects even his offer of friendship.
Thankfully, his new teammates welcome him and quickly adapt to him both on and off the ice, and eventually, after multiple disappointing opportunities, he and Trevor seem to have drawn a truce and they begin to play together with the potential others had seen in them. For Derek, even though he cares about Trevor, the game is the most important thing in his life right now and making it to the conference finals is uppermost on his list of goals.
Will the two ever get back to the closeness they shared? Can Trevor let go of his need to appear het long enough to allow room for Derek in his life? Will their team win the Stanley Cup this year? All questions are answered by the dramatic finale. And one little hint—it sure looks like the Wonder Twins will be together longer than just this season.
I really enjoyed this story, my first by this author, and I believe a very large part of my enjoyment is due to the outstanding performance of narrator Michael Pauley. It was very easy to distinguish voices—he had a whole bag full of various tones which he used to lend authenticity to the narration. His dramatic style of presentation was just the icing on the cake. I’m looking forward to more from this author and from this narrator in the future. In the meantime, I highly recommend this audiobook for hours of entertainment.
May 19, 2015
3.5 rounded up.
It's hard to read a sports book and not compare it to other sports book, particularly when you haven't read too many books about that sport. Right up front I'll say that Winging It felt a bit more authentic (although I don't doubt that Dunn knows hockey), but if memory serves me, this had way more actual during-the-game hockey. If you aren't a fan of play-by-play sports books, this might be a skip.
The writing itself was okay--kind of amateur (repetitive, awkward sentences), but either it improved over the course of the book or I stopped noticing. She makes up the teams composing the NHL, which was kind of fun even if it added a thin layer of distance between the reader and the sport. I liked the story itself because it falls somewhere in the "post-breakup" spectrum (the guys were into each other when they were younger, they hook-up, one freaks out, they haven't spoken since), which is one of my favorite things. We do have to deal with one of the two MCs being a prick a lot of the time, and I'd have liked to have seen a bit more overt romance from Trevor (we're in Derek first-person POV the whole time, and he's pretty clueless, but even still, it would have been nice), but the story moved along quickly enough that I didn't dwell too much on it.
I wish we'd gotten some additional follow-up after they got together--for example, , but that would have tacked on a serious number of extra pages.
The book isn't perfect--I think some stronger editing would have helped smooth out the writing and rough edges of the story itself, plus made sure that the characters were either more consistent throughout the course of the book or that we got better explanations for their behavior (for Trevor in particular, since we were in Derek's head the whole time). But I enjoyed it, read it quickly, and I'd definitely read a sequel if there were ever one.
It's hard to read a sports book and not compare it to other sports book, particularly when you haven't read too many books about that sport. Right up front I'll say that Winging It felt a bit more authentic (although I don't doubt that Dunn knows hockey), but if memory serves me, this had way more actual during-the-game hockey. If you aren't a fan of play-by-play sports books, this might be a skip.
The writing itself was okay--kind of amateur (repetitive, awkward sentences), but either it improved over the course of the book or I stopped noticing. She makes up the teams composing the NHL, which was kind of fun even if it added a thin layer of distance between the reader and the sport. I liked the story itself because it falls somewhere in the "post-breakup" spectrum (the guys were into each other when they were younger, they hook-up, one freaks out, they haven't spoken since), which is one of my favorite things. We do have to deal with one of the two MCs being a prick a lot of the time, and I'd have liked to have seen a bit more overt romance from Trevor (we're in Derek first-person POV the whole time, and he's pretty clueless, but even still, it would have been nice), but the story moved along quickly enough that I didn't dwell too much on it.
I wish we'd gotten some additional follow-up after they got together--for example, , but that would have tacked on a serious number of extra pages.
The book isn't perfect--I think some stronger editing would have helped smooth out the writing and rough edges of the story itself, plus made sure that the characters were either more consistent throughout the course of the book or that we got better explanations for their behavior (for Trevor in particular, since we were in Derek's head the whole time). But I enjoyed it, read it quickly, and I'd definitely read a sequel if there were ever one.
August 2, 2015
The world of professional sports is one I am not exactly familiar with. From what I know about trading, loyalties can change at the drop of a hat when players move to a different team, and that seems very difficult to me. It is the situation Derek, who narrates this story in first person, is confronted with. He is happy where he plays hockey in LA, not exactly a city where the sport is the center of everyone’s attention. Then he is traded to Detroit, and not only is he suddenly in the limelight since hockey is taken very seriously by fans there, his new team is also at the top of the National League. As if that weren’t enough, he also faces having to play with a former teammate on Team Canada at the World Junior Championship. A teammate he did not part with on good terms…
Derek faces a tough professional situation, as well as a personal challenge. And while there is a LOT of hockey in this novel, especially for a non-sports reader like me, there is more than enough personal conflict as well. That, more than anything, held my attention. Derek’s past with Trevor slowly became clearer to me, but what Derek went through as he fell for Trevor all over again was tough.
Trevor treats Derek quite badly, and even though I can see why, I did not like that one bit. It takes Trevor quite a while to start being honest with himself, never mind own up to the way he’s been treating Derek. Both of them have to learn to work together for the sake of their careers, and this story is certainly realistic in terms of showing how hard that is.
If you like athletes as main characters, if fighting for the courage to come out is a topic you are interested in, and if you’re looking for a read that focuses on the professional as much as the personal challenges in two men’s lives as they struggle to find their happy ending, then you will probably like this novel.
NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Derek faces a tough professional situation, as well as a personal challenge. And while there is a LOT of hockey in this novel, especially for a non-sports reader like me, there is more than enough personal conflict as well. That, more than anything, held my attention. Derek’s past with Trevor slowly became clearer to me, but what Derek went through as he fell for Trevor all over again was tough.
Trevor treats Derek quite badly, and even though I can see why, I did not like that one bit. It takes Trevor quite a while to start being honest with himself, never mind own up to the way he’s been treating Derek. Both of them have to learn to work together for the sake of their careers, and this story is certainly realistic in terms of showing how hard that is.
If you like athletes as main characters, if fighting for the courage to come out is a topic you are interested in, and if you’re looking for a read that focuses on the professional as much as the personal challenges in two men’s lives as they struggle to find their happy ending, then you will probably like this novel.
NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
April 7, 2017
I am a bit conflicted about this one. I enjoyed reading it and wasn't bored or tempted to put it down despite the many detailed hockey match descriptions or the lack of sexy scenes. There was an element of unrequited love which is a favorite trope of mine and it was interesting and touching to see Derek pine after Trevor.
However. There were many things going wrong, like the fact that all secondary heroes were 2-dimensional at best. Derek, our hero leaves his team of 5 years and is teary eyed to be separated from his friend Clint at the beginning of the book, only to call him once or twice in the space of 3 months later, and was even concidering cancelling their date when he visisted LA so that he could hang out with Trevor instead. Not a flattering attribute of Derek's character if you ask me. Also, in one scene he wants to show Trevor that he can be 'out' (Derek is only out to his family and best friend) and also play hockey successfully, and later that same night he flirts with a girl so that his teamates don't realize he's gay and does so without any regret or second thought whatsoever because as he tells Trevor, his career isn't worth risking. Finally, while the heroes were supposed to be 23-24 years old, their actions and thoughts were that of teenagers, not adults. Besides, while it is apparent there's chemistry and physical attractuion between our heroes, there was never any real indication that they were in love, or how they had fallen in it 5 years ago and never got over each other.
The fact remains though that I enjoyed it anyway, but I'd like it even more if some of the things above were handled differently.
However. There were many things going wrong, like the fact that all secondary heroes were 2-dimensional at best. Derek, our hero leaves his team of 5 years and is teary eyed to be separated from his friend Clint at the beginning of the book, only to call him once or twice in the space of 3 months later, and was even concidering cancelling their date when he visisted LA so that he could hang out with Trevor instead. Not a flattering attribute of Derek's character if you ask me. Also, in one scene he wants to show Trevor that he can be 'out' (Derek is only out to his family and best friend) and also play hockey successfully, and later that same night he flirts with a girl so that his teamates don't realize he's gay and does so without any regret or second thought whatsoever because as he tells Trevor, his career isn't worth risking. Finally, while the heroes were supposed to be 23-24 years old, their actions and thoughts were that of teenagers, not adults. Besides, while it is apparent there's chemistry and physical attractuion between our heroes, there was never any real indication that they were in love, or how they had fallen in it 5 years ago and never got over each other.
The fact remains though that I enjoyed it anyway, but I'd like it even more if some of the things above were handled differently.
March 15, 2016
~I received a free copy of this book to read and review for Inked Rainbow Reads Review Team~
3 stars for this M/M
If you like lots of hockey and lots of hockey action this book is for you. If you want romance, this is not the book you want to read. There was more action on the ice than off. I was seriously skimming through parts of the book because I was so sick of hearing about hockey non-stop. I know it is a book about two hockey players and they live and breathe hockey, I get it. But that is seriously all the book is about, there is the back and forth with the hating Trevor from Derek’s point of view, then Trevor either being a super jerk or denying he is gay. NOTHING happens until right at the end of the book and then BAM it is just over! Trevor says he loves Derek, Derek has a few questions and then the book is over. We don’t find out if Trevor ever admits to anyone else he is gay, we don’t see if their relationship goes any further than one more bout of sex and words of love. This book had so much potential and fell short for me.
3 stars for this M/M
If you like lots of hockey and lots of hockey action this book is for you. If you want romance, this is not the book you want to read. There was more action on the ice than off. I was seriously skimming through parts of the book because I was so sick of hearing about hockey non-stop. I know it is a book about two hockey players and they live and breathe hockey, I get it. But that is seriously all the book is about, there is the back and forth with the hating Trevor from Derek’s point of view, then Trevor either being a super jerk or denying he is gay. NOTHING happens until right at the end of the book and then BAM it is just over! Trevor says he loves Derek, Derek has a few questions and then the book is over. We don’t find out if Trevor ever admits to anyone else he is gay, we don’t see if their relationship goes any further than one more bout of sex and words of love. This book had so much potential and fell short for me.
March 15, 2016
This book was good but not great. It certainly had action on the ice (and I’m a big Detroit [RW] Wheels fan) but the action in the bedroom was lacking. It took me a while to warm up to Veens (Derek) and Laddie (Trevor) but I did kind of. The characters to seem to be lacking in depth but eventually I warmed up to them. Unfortunately it was more than half way through the book. I absolutely hated Trevor in the beginning; I mean he acted like such a total tool. Eventually Trevor gets his head out of his a**, all due to Derek’s injury, and they finally get together. The ending felt like it kind of left me hanging although this clearly did not have a cliffhanger. Overall, I enjoyed the book and would like to see more from Derek and Trevor.
I received a free copy of this book to read for Inked Rainbow Reads in exchange for an honest review.
I received a free copy of this book to read for Inked Rainbow Reads in exchange for an honest review.
May 19, 2015
I was feeling in the mood for a hockey book when I saw this coming out today. And boy do you have to be in the mood for hockey because there is a whole lot of it in the book!!!
Some other reviewer saw misogyny and sexism in this book. Can't say that I have. There is only one female character in the book and she is present for about 10 paragraphs. She is pouty and with a chip on her shoulder but it happens! There is also the mother who is present for about 5 paragraphs. She is very supportive.
The ending felt a bit rushed in the last 5% of the book.
All in all, an ok book. 2.5 stars rounded up.
Some other reviewer saw misogyny and sexism in this book. Can't say that I have. There is only one female character in the book and she is present for about 10 paragraphs. She is pouty and with a chip on her shoulder but it happens! There is also the mother who is present for about 5 paragraphs. She is very supportive.
The ending felt a bit rushed in the last 5% of the book.
All in all, an ok book. 2.5 stars rounded up.
September 5, 2017
At the beginning It was nice, reading the struggle between the 2 MC and the way to reacquaint themselves. But as the book progressed, I got bored. Why should I read tons and tons of hockey matches, going out for beer, try to hide the gay side and argue about it? And after long telling of matches and passes and winning and losing, tac! Love finally wins, and all doubts end. But, unfortunately this happens after almost 200 pages and just at the very very end of the book. Big NO-NO for this one too.
May 26, 2015
2.5* rounded up. I wanted to like this more than I did. It got a 5 star review on one of the blogs I read, so I had high expectations but it just didn't work as a romance, because there wasn't really any romance until almost the end of the book. Because of that I don't really believe these guys are gonna get their HEA.
December 11, 2015
Hm, I had an opportunity to listen Linemates as an audiobook edition. And to be sincere, if I hadn't listened to it, I wouldn't rate it with three stars. The way it ended, just didn't feel right. It was bland and unrealistic.
April 8, 2018
The very definition of "meh" with a hearty helping of misogyny. (Actually, in that sense, it's probably more realistic than most hockey fiction.)
February 21, 2025
I liked the Wonder Twins setup and the history between the characters. Trevor's difficulty with his sexuality and his seemingly callous and selfish behavior in the past are easier for me to understand and have sympathy for than it is for the narrator. They were both very young when things first happened (and still are in present time).
The pace of the burn was good, not overly dragged out to fill pages nor instant hopping into bed behind the girlfriend's back. I could feel the tension between them. The payoff at the end was a little underwhelming, though. I would've liked to have seen more of a catharsis and HEA.
There were some scenes and descriptions that felt like dead weight. One that stuck in my head was an extended description of Derek's drive home from the arena and the interior of his apartment, which didn't serve much purpose. It's not like the details of the apartment even told us much about him as a character. Honestly, he's much more of a cipher than Trevor, despite having the POV for the entire book.
The prose didn't light my world on fire, but I appreciated the amount of actual hockey in this one.
The pace of the burn was good, not overly dragged out to fill pages nor instant hopping into bed behind the girlfriend's back. I could feel the tension between them. The payoff at the end was a little underwhelming, though. I would've liked to have seen more of a catharsis and HEA.
There were some scenes and descriptions that felt like dead weight. One that stuck in my head was an extended description of Derek's drive home from the arena and the interior of his apartment, which didn't serve much purpose. It's not like the details of the apartment even told us much about him as a character. Honestly, he's much more of a cipher than Trevor, despite having the POV for the entire book.
The prose didn't light my world on fire, but I appreciated the amount of actual hockey in this one.
July 18, 2023
good writing, hard to read
I’ll start with the positives, the characters are well developed with interesting personalities and they’re not perfect. It’s refreshing to read a romance book with a single pov. There’s a good amount of hockey that is well written and captivating. The dialogue is clear, I’ve read too many books where I can’t tell who is speaking and that is never the case in this book. The very little smut at the end of the book was good, vanilla and enjoyable.
The Bi erasure is extremely disappointing. There is not a single moment where Derek being bisexual is even considered. It’s not suggested in the slightest that either character thinks it’s a possibility. The words Bi or Pan do not appear once. On top of that, there’s some slight homophobia going on that’s just unnecessary, coupled with with some toxic masculinity BS. Reading this book as a queer person was a struggle. It was almost a dnf for me but I couldn’t pass up a well written book on ku…
I’ll start with the positives, the characters are well developed with interesting personalities and they’re not perfect. It’s refreshing to read a romance book with a single pov. There’s a good amount of hockey that is well written and captivating. The dialogue is clear, I’ve read too many books where I can’t tell who is speaking and that is never the case in this book. The very little smut at the end of the book was good, vanilla and enjoyable.
The Bi erasure is extremely disappointing. There is not a single moment where Derek being bisexual is even considered. It’s not suggested in the slightest that either character thinks it’s a possibility. The words Bi or Pan do not appear once. On top of that, there’s some slight homophobia going on that’s just unnecessary, coupled with with some toxic masculinity BS. Reading this book as a queer person was a struggle. It was almost a dnf for me but I couldn’t pass up a well written book on ku…
March 1, 2019
3.5*
I enjoyed this more than I was expecting from some of the reviews.
It will suit hockey fans in particular as it is heavy on play and the competitions and away games - sometimes hockey stories can have hardly any game time so this does not fall into this trap!
Trevor is in denial and so probably doesn’t even consider himself in the closet as he’s not gay. However, the strain of his history with Derek does show.
Derek is gay and openly so to friend and family but in the closet as far as his hockey career and team is concerned. However his feelings for Trevor have not diminished and his efforts to forget about him don’t work.
There is lots of unresolved tension between the two for much of the book and it ends with a resolution of sorts but how any form of a future goes, who knows?
I enjoyed this more than I was expecting from some of the reviews.
It will suit hockey fans in particular as it is heavy on play and the competitions and away games - sometimes hockey stories can have hardly any game time so this does not fall into this trap!
Trevor is in denial and so probably doesn’t even consider himself in the closet as he’s not gay. However, the strain of his history with Derek does show.
Derek is gay and openly so to friend and family but in the closet as far as his hockey career and team is concerned. However his feelings for Trevor have not diminished and his efforts to forget about him don’t work.
There is lots of unresolved tension between the two for much of the book and it ends with a resolution of sorts but how any form of a future goes, who knows?
November 22, 2019
1.5 stars, and only because it's really not completely unreadable, just incredibly frustrating to have read and finished, and I feel bad putting one star. Did not feel any chemistry between the couple- in fact, the outright hostile self-hating homophobia that the one in denial, Trevor, has over Derek, the one who has come to terms with being gay, was vile and extremely off-putting. Constantly the pattern between them was the cold shoulder, unprofessional blatantly not passing the puck to his effing linemate, him initiating probing conversation only to later insult Derek... On and on this happens. And there are STILL lines where Derek is like, I still can't help it, why am I still falling for him! I hate the self-hating bullying gay jock trope and it was at its absolute worst here. There's no feeling of "finally!" when they actually get together, but for me it was more "oh no Derek, run, you deserve better!". So much so that when there's a whole ass graphic sex scene with a rando Derek picks up at the gay bar before anything even happens between the MCs (btw, happens only the last 20 pages of the book-ish), I was actively cheering for Derek to get some. He also has to deal with a bizarrely written, inexplicably catty and bitchy beard girlfriend of Trevor's named Ashley, who was written so women-hating cliched that I was expecting the reveal to be that she was blackmailing to out Trevor or something- turns out to not be the case. This whole book was basically just the hating of Trevor on Derek, him being just very emotionally volatile, before wanting to be with Derek after an on ice injury at the last 90% of the book. Very unresolved ending- I think there's a sequel or should be, but I don't know if I would want to read it. I'll see. I guess maybe one not-bad thing I can say about this is that the hockey game scenes are quite detailed and thorough. I'm not a real-life hockey fan (lol just got suckered into these hockey romances, and rn especially M/M ones). So the game scenes go over my head and run kinda long, but I'd imagine the detail would be a nice bonus if you were an actual fan?
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