10 siblings, 7 fish courses, 6 hockey players, 5 cousins, 4 calling birds, 3 spouses, 2 houses & 1 night that changes everything.
Betrayed by first his body and then his girlfriend, Liam O’Reilly, assistant coach of the Seattle Thunder, is not having a very merry Christmas. So when a smoking hot hockey player in a Santa suit offers himself up like a present begging to be opened? Well, it’s a freaking Christmas miracle.
If only the man in question wasn’t hockey’s own bad boy, Joey ‘the Looch’ Luciano, his best friend’s little brother and the same kid who used to trail behind Liam like a loud, mouthy shadow.
Whatever. Wrong as it might seem, a one-time hookup with Joey is exactly what he needs to make the yuletide gay. By tomorrow, he’ll be back in Seattle, Joey will be in New York, and his troubles will be miles away.
But as Christmas Eve becomes Christmas Day, Joey weaves his way past all Liam’s defenses, and Liam starts to see the sensitive, caring man behind the cocky smirk.
When the last present is opened and the Christmas lights go dark, will Joey and Liam's night together be just another Christmas memory or can the holiday magic they made survive the pressures of the real world?
Boy Toys is a heart-warming Christmas story featuring the inappropriate use of a Santa suit, sibling bribery, and ninety separate instances of the f-word.
After time spent raising children, earning several college degrees, and traveling the world with the U.S. State Department, she is returning to her first love - writing.
A dreamer and an idealist, Amy writes about people finding connection in a world that can seem lonely and magic in a world than can seem all too mundane. She invites readers into her characters’ lives and worlds when they are their most vulnerable, their most human, living with the same hopes and fears we all have. An avid traveler who has lived in big cities and small towns in four different continents, Amy has found that time and distance are no barriers to love. She invites her readers to reach out and share how her characters have touched their lives or how the found families they have gathered around them have shaped their worlds.
Born on Long Island, NY, Amy has lived in Los Angeles, London, and Bangkok. She currently lives in Fort Collins, Colorado for who knows how long.
This is basically a prologue to the forthcoming book four due out in March. It's a lot of fun and sets up the romance between Liam and Joey, members of the vast O'Reilly and Luciano clans.
Liam's 10 years older than Joey and not expecting anything other than a normal Christmas when his long term girlfriend drops a bombshell on him.
Joey's had a crush on Liam all his life and with his ice hockey career flourishing, he's been getting a reputation as a womanizer. But the fact he likes men too is a surprise to Liam.
There's some cute interactions between the two men, a little bit of messing around but no full on sex and a lovely sense of the connected nature of these two big families.
I'm looking forward to reading more but first up is Thunder goalie Sergei.
I loved this short intro to the full story of Liam and Joey. I can't wait till March when it is released. I really like both MC's and I am looking forward to seeing where the author takes them. This was a fun read...
I was reading book #4 of this series and there was a big random time jump between chapters 1 & 2 and a lot missing from between, I was so confused until I realized this novella goes over the time between chapters 1&2. Not sure why it wasn’t just included in book four? Kind of weird, but oh well it was good and now I’m back to reading book 4
From page one you're dropped right in the middle of family drama. On Christmas Eve. With TONS of family. Everywhere.
Escaping the drama of being publicly dumped and cuckholded, Liam hides out in the attic with his "cousin" Joey. Ten years separate them. Joey is an NHL star; Liam is an NHL coach. Joey has been hero worshipping Liam for years. Joey is gay, but a complete virgin. Liam is bisexual. Sparks fly in the attic and later on in their shared room for Christmas.
The two were HOT, but this story has NO ENDING. It seems we must read the 5th book in the series to get this story. No cherries were lost here aside from a first bj.
This was fun, but not rounded out. I did like the craziness of a HUGE family holiday, however.
This is basically a long prologue to the book that will be Liam and Joey's book. It definitely had me wanting more already, and I wanted to read their story right away, and was like "wahhh I have to read Sergei and Alex first? What???" before I remembered that I had liked Alex and Sergei from what I had seen of them in book 2, sooo, I'll enjoy that but also be not so patiently waiting for Liam and Joey's book.
This is basically an introduction to their world, to their two HUGE families (seriously, seven kids, and a ton more grandkids and great-grandkids? I can't even imagine a family that big) that grew up next door to each other and are so entwined because of that they're like one big family but not. Because Liam and Joey aren't actually related but they grew up with super close families, although Liam didn't notice Joey much as he was 10 years older than him and Joey has had a crush on Liam since he was a kid, so...
What we got of them was super hot, but yeah, their story is definitely not over and I'm so excited for it!
This was a Christmas novella that’s an introduction to the next book. It was fine to read as a stand alone. I enjoyed Joey and Liam’s Christmas together and could certainly read their story in the next book.
Sweet story that is also a prequel for book 5. Joey has crushed on the older neighbor boy all his life. One Christmas Eve, he finally gets a chance with him. Liam needs some cheering up when the night takes an unexpected turn, and Joey is just the one to do it. When the boys go their separate ways, there’s no expectation for more. Have to wait a few months for the rest of the story.
Oh man, I'm hooked! This is a prequel to book 4 in the Hot Off the Ice series and I've already fallen in love with these men. The vulnerable Joey with all his swagger as a cover and the insecure Liam with his self-doubts and ennui regarding his career change. There's a lot of hotness in a seriously short story here and I love the alternating POV. This whole set up with the cheating almost fiancee, the possible transfer, the interconnected family, the rise and fall of careers, the lateral moves, the adoring looks, the sage and perfectly feisty grandmother (who I'm completely in love with, by the way--she better be in book 4)...all of these things combine to create a bit of angst, a lot of anticipation, a truck load of passion, and immense potential for heartbreak, frustration, revelations, changes, and some sweet/hot love and lovin' to come.
Read and absolutely willingly reviewed this ARC for the author.
2+ Nie za bardzo jest tutaj o czym pisać - to tak naprawdę wstępniak do jednego z kolejnych tomów, świąteczny, który kończy się nijak i żeby tak naprawdę poznać całą historię bohaterów, trzeba przeczytać tom poświęcony tylko im. To można potraktować jako prolog, który chyba lepiej, jak byłby pierwszymi rozdziałami w głównej historii 🤷♀️
I loved this. This is a prequel to what will be Joey and Liam's book in this series. That being said, this is still a complete story. It's a back story on them and their families and covers two days during the Christmas holiday. They're childhood friends and this is the first time they cross the line to something more. It was sweet in places, funny in places and these two were smoking hot together. Wish their book was up next. I don't want to wait. (Not too long a wait though. Their book is due out in March)
This can be read as a standalone. You do not have to have read books 1 & 2 of this series to enjoy this one.
3.5 Stars I enjoyed this intro to the characters that will be in book 4. It was short & spicy. I look forward to reading more on Liam and Joey. I can do without the Michelle drama. I'm not too hot on Liam's family coming to her defense so quickly either. If there was no break up talk their was no official break up. So her doing what she did is wrong no matter how you dice it. His families actions irked me. Nico is a tool too. Just had to put that out there lol. Like I said good intro.
I enjoyed this story, recommended to me by a friend, but I didn't realize going into it that the two MCs, Liam and Joey would only have a brief one-night stand together and then would go their separate ways. I guess I'm going to have to delve into the series and make sure i get their full story, whenever it happens.
Hockey players, cute, new to man on man sex, Christmas and fun secret affair between Joey's grandfather and Liam's nana. Sweet.
But honestly? So unfair. Like giving me only one M&M and having me wait for more.
I had to read this before book 5, Joey and Liam’s full story. This is a prequel about the first time(s) they slept together. It’s Christmas and their two families pretty much celebrate together, their houses side by side. It build some great backstory. Read it before book 5 and don’t skip it like I started to do.
Not a fan of the abrupt ending in this book. I also felt like it was more a prequel than anything and being labelled the 3rd book in a series seems off. Though the two MCs have known each other since childhood I just never really got the connection.
I haven't read any of the other books in the series but think I will have to now!! That was hot!! Loved the family interaction. Hope I can be like Gran and still get some at 85!!!
The start to Joey and Liams story ... I didn't understand how Liams family could side with his ex like that.... but the way he left things with Joey was not ok
I’m so digging this series! This installment is a novella, kind of an intro to the couple in book 5 of the series (which is not out yet). This was a hot beginning for these two. Cannot wait to get their full story when they get to see each other again once that Joey is transferred to Seattle. Their families are a hoot. Crazy Italians and Irish together make a great background for Liam and Joey’s story. Looking forward to it.
This book is clearly meant to be sold during the Christmas time and it has all the right elements for a festivity book: family (actually two families with many characters, somehow confusing), food (and many left overs), a little bit of drama and a couple of pretty hot making out moments. Be aware that although it may be read as a standalone, there are so many open issues that you will want to buy the following book coming out in March 2018. So take this book as a Christmas hook up between long time friends as well as an introduction to A. E. Wasp writing if you don’t know her. There are a few more typos and errors in this book than usually, but her writing is as always engaging and funny.
Update September 24, 2018 - Boy Next Door is out! re-read Boy Toys just to plunge once again in the craziness of the O'Reilly and Luciano family and to get reacquainted with many characters and the families' interconnections before starting the new book.
This was a good setup! I thought this would be a short, sweet novella and I wasn’t looking for more. Not because it didn’t intrigue or interest me. But because I’ve come to the realisation that not everything needs to be a full novel. Some novellas can be satisfying in its succinctness.
But we’re getting a full book! So now I’m excited! Need to go check to see when it’s going to be out. Can’t get over the fact that AE Wasp is such a talented story teller!!
Honestly, I feel a little stupid dnf-ing something so short, but I'm just not into it. The story had a short but messy introduction and then the characters dived straight into sex with no buildup. That's just not what I'm into: I can't get invested in characters or a relationship I know next to nothing about.
I could see how reader might say thst this could hae been a prologue for book 5, but there is so much that would have been cutfor that to happen and I wouldn't want any of it taken out. Love the family dynamics and the drama mixed with the love that they all have for each other. The bonds between a Irish and Italian family in Boston is such a unique and powerful one.
You're in the story from the first page. While I usually dislike learning about a character in one sentence, this time it worked. It was like going to a house you know no one, but you feel instantly connected. I skipped this to read book #3 but now I can hardly wait to read more of Liam and Joey's story.
Nice little holiday short introducing Liam and Joey! I can't wait to get to their story!
TAGS -- Holiday/Christmas -- sports/Hockey -- friends to lovers -- one night -- first time -- in bed more than out -- loved the MCs... Liam & Joey -- made me chuckle -- a lot of secondary characters for the length -- family
This book is a cute short story prologue to a later book in the series. Does a nice job introducing the main characters and giving background. Also sets up what is going to happen in book five.
Not a stand a lone in the series. Good prelude to a story but it leaves you hanging very badly and then we have to wait for the next book which isn't even this story, so not fair.