Playing Offside: An MM Rivals to Lovers Sports Romance (Sporting Secrets Book 1)

Uh such a great book! I finished it in a few days. Im getting the other ones in the series as well. The author did a great job with this one. Great job Jax!!!

There are some books that really jive with one's mood and Playing Offside was one of those for me. I thoroughly enjoyed this title. It was a welcome breather while I was struggling to progress on a book I was reading. I adored Aiden and Tyler. Their dynamics and chemistry is just really good. I loved the banter and exchanges these two had in the story. The book just had enough drama, conflict and angst that it wasn't overwhelming for me during the time I was reading it. There were some really sweet and romantic moments that balances out the terrible events that happened that caused our leads grief and anguish. Both Aiden and Tyler have issues they needed to work on - Aiden with his fear getting close to someone but only to ultimately lose them in the end and Tyler - with his shame of being gay and being afraid of disappointing his mother for just being that. Some of the conflicts (including some of the issues of both leads) were dealt in an almost fairy-tale like manner - too good to be true one might even say. However, I found it appropriate enough as it matches the overall tone of the story being told. Everything between Aiden and Tyler started with a hook-up that slowly in the course of the story grew into a strong and beautiful connection between these two people. Their relationship enabled them to flourish and learn more about themselves and it gave them the strength to face everything head on including coming out to the world. Playing Offside is an entertaining…

I am quickly becoming a huge fan of Jax Calder! This book is an enjoyable story in every bit the same was as the two other works I have read of her’s thus far. The characters are real and likeable, and the storyline moves through what is such a complicated issue for so many of us: privacy and pride while still being respected by others and, more importantly, ourselves. Few if any of us would be in such a public position as the characters here, but the struggles and anxieties remain the same. I would recommend this book to people from many different backgrounds, but I love the positive message it most especially brings to younger people who maybe doubt whether they can pursue and hopefully even achieve their dreams if they also have to struggle with being queer. Role models and positive narrative make this book inspiring and uplifting, and I hope many others will share this book on with many others. Another great read from Jax Calder…thanks to her once again!!

This is a contemporary mm sports romance, the first book in a series that should be read in order! Wowza there is so much emotion in this lovely story about two rugby blokes who fell into bed and then fell in love. It was a great read and I recommend it. 💜💜💜💜💜

This is the first book by Jax Calder that I didn't absolutely love. Part of that was my complete lack of rugby knowledge. Is it necessary to be a rugby fan to read the book? I don't think so but it could help things make more sense. Here is what I am confused about: at the beginning Aiden stated he was trying to break the record of 1600 points while being only 28. He was 28 at the start and had 200 something more points to go. After the New Zealand games, he still had 15 points to go. The Supreme League started and he somehow still needed 15 more points to go. Then comes training camp for NZ again, presumably a year since the start of the book and he would be 29 now (Tyler 21) and he still needs 15 more points. Do points scored in the Supreme League not count? Did he really score no points at all in a year of rugby? Rugby aside, I thought the love story was nice and it was also great that these guys weren't instantly in love with each other. They had a lot of things to work out before they could get to their HEA and it was nice to see it all work out. This also just needs another through by an editor and then it would be improved on that front. I will read the next book in this series and I do enjoy the author so I will continue to read from her for sure.