16 Recs for the Winter Olympics

The Favorites by Layne Fargo

She might not have a famous name, funding, or her family’s support, but Katarina Shaw has always known that she was destined to become an Olympic skater. When she meets Heath Rocha, a lonely kid stuck in the foster care system, their instant connection makes them a formidable duo on the ice. Clinging to skating—and each other—to escape their turbulent lives, Kat and Heath go from childhood sweethearts to champion ice dancers, captivating the world with their scorching chemistry, rebellious style, and roller-coaster relationship.

Until a shocking incident at the Olympic Games brings their partnership to a sudden end.

As the ten-year anniversary of their final skate approaches, an unauthorized documentary reignites the public fascination with Shaw and Rocha, claiming to uncover the “real story” through interviews with their closest friends and fiercest rivals. Kat wants nothing to do with the documentary, but she can’t stand the thought of someone else defining her legacy. So, after a decade of silence, she’s telling her story: from the childhood tragedies that created her all-consuming bond with Heath to the clash of desires that tore them apart. Sensational rumors have haunted their every step for years, but the truth may be even more shocking than the headlines.

Head Over Skates by Gigi Blume

Sometimes you have to play dirty to score big.

OWEN:
I've never met a challenge I couldn't deke out—until Emily Brooks blasted into my world with all the subtlety of a slapshot to the face.
When an underwear incident (don’t ask) gives Emily ammunition for her gossip blog Blades After Dark, I’ve become her very reluctant muse. Perched on her Zamboni with a crafty smirk on that gorgeous face, she’s determined to turn my life into one big penalty box.
Not only does this woman have an Olympic-sized grudge against me, she cheered—yes, cheered—for the other team.
When I find out she has a secret she doesn’t want out, it’s gloves off.
I’m tempted to toss her right into the sin bin, but she’s skating circles around me.
In a catsuit. (don’t ask about that, either)
But now the championship cup’s gone missing, and we find ourselves sleuthing in closed quarters—despite Emily’s stubborn determination to keep me at stick's length.
Now I can’t stop thinking about that stolen kiss, and I want another taste.
Am I playing for keeps? Or am I the one who's being played?

EMILY:
My Olympic figure skating dreams got toe-picked, but driving a Zamboni at the Toronto Blizzard Dome has its perks—like not being recognized.
Beneath the cloak of anonymity, my words do what my skates used to; they slice with precision—in my late-night hockey blog.
Enter Owen Jablonski, the cocky star player with more notches on his hockey stick than all the pucks in Canada. Yet he singles me out to—get this—come on to me.
The gall. But the pen is mightier than the skate blade, so they say.
Do I have reasons for slamming Owen’s name against the boards? Yes, I do.
And when a funny post about him goes viral, can you blame me for finding Owen's flustered face a little bit delightful?
But instead of a simple exposé, Owen turns the tables on me and brokers a twisted deal: polish his precious public image in my blog in exchange for his silence on my identity. It's extortion with a side of sultry glares.
And secret kisses against the wall.
He's maddening, infuriating... a reeaaally good kisser.
Now I’m stuck in a reluctant pact with Owen. Stack on a mystery and the sting of his smoldering kiss on my mind, the heat between us might just melt all the ice in the rink.
He’s not what I expected, or wanted. How fiercely protective he is. How he insists I wear his jersey. How my heart flips when he stands up for me.
Or the way his eyes rake over me with want.
Oof. Is it getting hot in here?
I need to body-check my feelings before Owen scores more than just goals.

If You Love Me by Helena Hunting

Two nights with her ruined me for all other women, but I never got the chance to make her mine.

I’m the pinnacle of control. I protect the net, my team, and my daughter.
It’s my final season and I can’t afford any distractions.
Except our new assistant coach just walked in.
And I would know her face anywhere.
She’s the one I dream about.

That weekend, I was just a man—not the legend, the dad, the mentor.
I didn’t care that I was a decade older.
For the first time in my life, I was ready to risk everything if it meant having her.
Until I woke up to an empty bed and no note.
Three years of wishing I knew how to find her, now she’s my new boss.

I can be patient.
But for her—I want to break all the rules.

Off Your Game by Susan Renee

Good looks and wads of cash usually get me whatever I desire, unless I desire a box of my favorite cereal at the grocery store right before it closes. As if tonight’s loss wasn’t bad enough, I'm now watching said box of cereal, my literal good luck charm, disappear in some woman’s cart.

The brazen woman denies my cash offer along with my proposal for a more intimate payment. How much loss can a man take in one day?

At this point, who cares how rude I am to her? She’s public enemy number one and chances of seeing her again are slim to none. That is, until she appears at the arena the next morning as the newest marketing rep for the Chicago Red Tails hockey team.

Just my luck.

Carissa Smallson is feisty, outspoken, and boldly confident. She's also funny, down to earth, and…ugh, she’s insanely pretty. Everything about her is both unbelievably annoying and terrifyingly attractive.

As Captain of the team, I’m always laser focused on my job, but lately I can’t stop thinking about her. I lead my team to victory night after night. Hustle, hit, and never quit.

But if I’m not careful, she could knock me off my game.

Behind the Net by Stephanie Archer

He's the hot, grumpy goalie I had a crush on in high school... and now I'm his live-in assistant.

After my ex crushed my dreams in the music industry, I’m done with getting my heart broken. Working as an assistant for an NHL player was supposed to be a breeze, but nothing about Jamie Streicher is easy. He’s an intimidatingly hot, grouchy jerk who can't stand me. The guy has a massive ego. Keeping things professional will be no problem, even when he demands I move in with him.


Beneath his surliness, though, Jamie’s surprisingly sweet and protective.

When Jamie learns how bad my ex was in bed, his competitive nature flares, and he encourages and spoils me in every way. The creative spark I used to feel about songwriting? It’s back, and I’m writing music again. Between wearing his jersey at games, rowdy parties with the team, and being brave on stage again, I’m falling for him.

He could break my heart, but it might be worth it.

Just Breaking the Rules by Lauren Blakely

Everyone knows the golden rule of business: don’t bang your business partner.
Especially if he’s your brother’s hot-as-sin, hockey-star best friend.

But when the sexy single dad athlete saves me from a cake contest catastrophe—and shows me how good he is with his hands—I blurt out the world’s worst business pitch: Want to invest in my bakery?

With no loan or backup plan, this is my last shot at proving I’m more than my past mistakes, and shockingly, he says yes.

We set one rule: don’t mix business with pleasure.
Except Corbin Knight’s impossible to resist.

When he’s not scoring goals, he’s staying up late with me to test tempting recipes.
Braiding my hair before we bake like it’s foreplay.
Giving me his jersey to wear to games.

I try to keep a professional distance from the bossy, possessive and dangerously flirty hockey player, but soon we’re testing the limits of the kitchen counter.

This bakery is my chance to finally get my life right, so I fight the messy feelings.
Until one night, he shows up after closing and admits he can’t stop thinking about me.

Suddenly I’m ready to break every rule—no matter the cost to our dreams.

And breaking the rules has never tasted so good.

Ride by Harper Dallas

No one rides like Chase Austin.

Bad boy. Player. Adrenaline junkie. Snowboarder Chase Austin has a reputation—and not just for being the world’s best extreme athlete. He’s as cold as the mountains he rides, loyal only to his crew . . . and panties drop wherever he goes.

Photographer Brooke Larson knows better than to let him get through her emotional Kevlar. So what if she used to have his poster on her bedroom wall? She’s not a teenager with a crush anymore. Chase Austin is her key to the big time, and she’s getting his photo no matter what.

Too bad the only place Chase wants her is in his bed.

Men leave. Success is forever. Brooke knows the drill, and she’s not letting anyone get in the way of her career—or into her heart.

But whether it’s on the slopes or between the sheets, riding with the best means risking it all.

From Lukov with Love by Mariana Zapata

hey're the coldest of enemies off the ice . . . But could their shared passion on the ice turn to unexpected heat?

If someone were to ask Jasmine Santos to describe the last few years of her life with a single word, it would definitely be a four-letter one.

After seventeen years of figure skating - and countless broken bones and broken promises - she knows her window to compete is coming to a close.

But when the offer of a lifetime comes from the arrogant idiot she's spent the last decade dreaming about pushing in front of a moving bus, Jasmine might have to reconsider everything.

Including Ivan Lukov.

Finding Her Edge by Jennifer Iacopelli

Adriana Russo is figure skating royalty.

With gold-medalist parents, and her older sister headed to the Olympics, all she wants is to live up to the family name and stand atop the ice dance podium at the Junior World Championships. But fame doesn’t always mean fortune, and their legendary skating rink is struggling under the weight of her dad’s lavish lifestyle. The only thing keeping it afloat is a deal to host the rest of the Junior Worlds team before they leave for France.

That means training on the same ice as her first crush, Freddie, the partner she left when her growth spurt outpaced his. For the past two years, he’s barely acknowledged her existence, and she can’t even blame him for it.

When the family’s finances take another unexpected hit, losing the rink seems inevitable until her partner, Brayden, suggests they let the world believe what many have suspected: that their intense chemistry isn’t contained to the ice. Fans and sponsors alike take the bait, but keeping up the charade is harder than she ever imagined. And training alongside Freddie makes it worse, especially when pretending with Brayden starts to feel very real.

As the biggest competition of her life draws closer and her family’s legacy hangs in the balance, Adriana is caught between her past and present, between the golden future she’s worked so hard for, and the one she gave up long ago.

Bear Town by Fredrik Backman

People say Beartown is finished. A tiny community nestled deep in the forest, it is slowly losing ground to the ever encroaching trees. But down by the lake stands an old ice rink, built generations ago by the working men who founded this town. And in that ice rink is the reason people in Beartown believe tomorrow will be better than today. Their junior ice hockey team is about to compete in the national semi-finals, and they actually have a shot at winning. All the hopes and dreams of this place now rest on the shoulders of a handful of teenage boys.

Being responsible for the hopes of an entire town is a heavy burden, and the semi-final match is the catalyst for a violent act that will leave a young girl traumatized and a town in turmoil. Accusations are made and, like ripples on a pond, they travel through all of Beartown, leaving no resident unaffected.

Unsteady by Peyton Corinne

Rhys Koteskiy is back — at least, he's supposed to be.

During last year’s Frozen Four, the Waterfell University hockey captain, and NHL legacy, took a brutal hit that left him with a concussion and a new discomfort on the ice. Plagued by nightmares and panic attacks every time he attempt to skate, Rhys wonders if he’ll ever play again — if he’ll ever want to.

Sadie Brown is staying focused this semester — no matter what.

Currently drowning in debt, custody hearings for her younger brothers and skating practices, she's just trying to make it to the next day. A spitfire figure skater known for her bad attitude and frequent disappearing acts, she has a reputation on campus. And it’s not a pretty one.

When she accidentally witnesses one of the golden boy hockey captain’s panic attacks and attempts to help him, a strange sort of understanding strikes up between them.

No questions asked. Just comfort.

But Rhys finds himself drawn to Sadie. Where he feels empty, a shell of the man and player he was before, Sadie is so full of everything it bursts from her; every emotion she feels seems like it’s blasted at max. Rhys is desperate to feel anything, Sadie wants to stop feeling so much.

But healing doesn’t mix with secrets, and they’re both skating a thin line, unsteady .

The Deal by Elle Kennedy

She’s about to make a deal with the college bad boy…

Hannah Wells has finally found someone who turns her on. But while she might be confident in every other area of her life, she’s carting around a full set of baggage when it comes to sex and seduction. If she wants to get her crush’s attention, she’ll have to step out of her comfort zone and make him take notice…even if it means tutoring the annoying, childish, cocky captain of the hockey team in exchange for a pretend date.

...and it’s going to be oh so good

All Garrett Graham has ever wanted is to play professional hockey after graduation, but his plummeting GPA is threatening everything he’s worked so hard for. If helping a sarcastic brunette make another guy jealous will help him secure his position on the team, he’s all for it. But when one unexpected kiss leads to the wildest sex of both their lives, it doesn’t take long for Garrett to realize that pretend isn’t going to cut it. Now he just has to convince Hannah that the man she wants looks a lot like him.

Out of Bounds by Julia Connors

I’m a type-A planner. Arriving at my best friend’s wedding newly single—not planned. Off-the-charts chemistry with her much younger brother—also unplanned. Agreeing to be his roommate for a few weeks—wait, was there a plan?

Jilted by my cheating ex-fiancé and left homeless in the process, it’s a no-brainer to take my best friend Jackson up on her offer to stay in her condo in Park City. The only catch? Jackson’s already agreed to let her younger brother Beau stay there for a few weeks.

Living with Beau short-term shouldn’t be an issue, except when we meet again for the first time in a decade, our chemistry is off the charts. But Beau is everything I’m not looking for in a guy: he’s unpredictable and self-centred, a known womanizer, and incapable of committing to anything besides travelling the globe snowboarding. Plus, no guy is worth losing my best friend over.

As barely tolerating each other turns to barely restrained attraction, our relationship is pushed far past the boundaries we’ve both erected. Can we keep it casual as our relationship heats up, or are we risking every plan we’ve ever made?

Revolve by Bal Khabra

Sierra Romanova was an Olympian figure skater before a life-altering accident on the ice left her with panic attacks every time she enters the rink. Now, back for her final year at Dalton University, she’s ready to reclaim the spotlight, with all eyes on her…including those of hockey player Dylan Donovan, whose audacious words goad her back into her skates to prove him wrong.

After getting kicked off his hockey team for his reckless behavior, Dylan is left with slim chances of making it to the NHL draft. But Dylan’s whole world revolves around the ice, and if hockey is forbidden, well at least there’s figure skating. Even better, it means more time at the rink with Sierra. Sure, he’s helping her rebuild her confidence, but pushing her buttons along the way? That’s just a bonus.

As the figure skating world awaits Sierra's comeback, she finds herself in need for a new pairs partner. The only person she knows who can match her skill on the ice is none other than the cocky hockey player who refuses to cut her any slack. Dylan's a wildcard, Sierra's a seasoned pro, but together, they might just be the perfect match on the ice.

Heart Check by Emily Charlotte

Luke Dawson and Harper Braedon could have been friends. They trade shifts at the same diner, share classes at school, and are driven by their greatest passions: hockey for Dawson and jewelry-making for Harper. But some things aren't meant to be. Dawson thinks Harper is stuck-up, too good for anything resembling school spirit. Harper thinks Dawson is a self-centered jock, a perfect fit for a hockey team that seems to absorb all the budget away from the arts departments.

When his beloved hockey coach gets fired for misallocation of funds, Dawson is terrified that all his plans for impressing scouts are vanishing before his eyes. A rumor goes around that Harper was the one who got him fired, and suddenly she’s public enemy number one.

But even with their mutual dislike at an all-time high, Harper and Dawson can’t escape splitting shifts forever. Can forced proximity help them find some common ground, or will long-held grudges finally succeed in bringing them both down?

Offside by Avery Keelan

Heartbreaker. Troublemaker. And my ex's biggest rival.
After my boyfriend of two years unceremoniously dumps me on my twenty-first birthday, my friends drag me to a trendy new nightclub to drown my sorrows. Several drinks later, I spot the perfect rebound standing next to the bar: Chase Carter, my ex's worst enemy. A notorious antagonizer, Chase is cocky, smart-mouthed... and undeniably hot. Even better, he's rumored to be impressively skilled at more than just hockey. What better way to move on?

Unfortunately, my plan falls apart after I have one cocktail too many and throw up all over Chase's shoes. Following a night of him taking care of me while I'm at my worst, I'm certain he'll never want to see me again. But the next time our schools face off, he finds me in the crowd after the game—and when we fake a kiss in front of my ex, the sparks that fly are real.

Before I know it, we’re having “study dates” and he's taking me out for a do-over birthday to replace the bad memories with good ones. Beneath his brash exterior, he’s protective and sweet, not to mention generous in every sense of the word. The only problem? We're caught in the midst of a bitter rivalry that extends far beyond the arena. My brother hates him, my friends don't approve, and I'm being forced to choose between my loyalties and my heart.

He's the last person I should fall for, but it might just be too late.

Written by Carlie Renee