This is the first book I’ve read by Avon Gale and Piper Vaughn, either as individuals or as a writing team. It sure was a great way for me to get introduced to their work. I don’t follow any sports—none, nada, zip, zilch—but for some crazy reason I really like reading sports themed romances.

The blurb for this book is pretty good but it doesn’t begin to convey the depth of this story. Tristan is a closeted NHL player who finds himself attracted to his harsh, demanding, and openly gay sociology professor. When they both realize the attraction is mutual, they have to fight the attraction until Tristan is no longer Sebastian’s student. The depth in the story comes with how the writers detail the slowly developing relationship between the two characters and how Tristan has to decide between coming out and losing the man he loves.

Writing reviews is probably not nearly as hard as writing a book but sometimes it is really difficult for me to come up with the right words to describe how much I love a book. Off the Ice is one of those books. The story made me laugh and cry big fat ugly tears but I loved every minute of it. Stories that affect me so deeply are the best kind and Off the Ice was one of those books.

The Hat Trick series was originally published by Riptide Publishing. It has been refreshed by the authors and is now being released by Carina Press. I’m eagerly looking forward to the next book in this series.

Reviews for Piper Vaughn

Reviews for Avon Gale

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Tristan pulled the cap off as heat gathered in his face. He tossed it atop his book bag and combed his fingers through his hair. No doubt it looked a mess after being damp and crushed under his hat for the past hour. “Sorry, sir.”Professor Cruz ignored him and kept talking. Or rather, ranting. Tristan groaned inwardly. Great. Another hard-ass who ran his classroom like some kind of drill sergeant. Tristan hated the type, but whatever. He’d survived coaches who would make Sebastian Cruz resemble a cuddly little lamb. Tristan couldn’t be intimidated easily, even if, yeah, it embarrassed him to be scolded like a high schooler in front of his peers.

Eh, you win some, you lose some in the professor roulette. If there was one thing hockey had taught Tristan, it was self-discipline. He enjoyed sociology and thought the classes would be beneficial to him as a potential businessman. Tristan could cope with Mr. Don’t-Expect-Me-to-Be-Your-Buddy for seven weeks.

“So power and inequality,” Professor Cruz was saying, “let’s talk about how that relates to blue-blooded Manhattanites and me, growing up as a Puerto Rican welfare kid in the Bronx.”

Well, he didn’t waste any time, did he?

Tristan flipped open his MacBook and started taking notes as Professor Cruz lectured. Warm and fuzzy the guy was not, but he certainly didn’t lack in passion for the subject matter. Soon, Tristan was fascinated. Professor Cruz absolutely came alive as he spoke. True, he suffered from a bad case of Resting Asshole Face, and Tristan wouldn’t go so far as to call him handsome, not exactly. Still, there was something compelling. Professor Cruz—tall and whipcord lean with warm golden-brown skin and wavy raven-black hair—definitely qualified as eye candy.

Hat Trick Series

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