Unwritten Rules by KD Casey

This was such a sweet, gripping and heart-warming second chance m/m sports romance about a closeted baseball player having to choose between risking his whole career or being brave enough to reveal his most vulnerable self for a chance of true love and happiness.

The story follows baseball player Zach Glasser, who has put up with a lot for the sport he loves, pretending this is the life he’s always wanted. The thing is though, that it really could have been everything he’d ever wanted, if only he’d had the guts to tell his family and team that he was in love with his teammate Eugenio Morales.

Now three years later, Zach is struggling on, trying to cope with his broken heart, his regrets and the endless nights alone. But he still can’t get Eugenio out of his mind, and when they both get selected to play in the league’s All-Star Classic, those feelings and that chemistry come roaring back. But it’s all too late, or isn’t it…?

​I rooted so much for both Zach and Eugenio from the very first moment and my heart ached for them in their struggles. They were both such wonderful characters, with depth and as far from any stereotype cliches you can come. I loved the wonderful chemistry between them… it was so intense and sizzling it was almost palpable!

It was such a powerful story about accepting and being proud of who you are, for wanting things and for being brave enough to chase after those things no matter how scary it feels or how hard it might make your life. It dealt with difficult topics in an honest and realistic way, I could certainly both understand Zach’s fear of coming out, and why Eugenio had to leave, wanting a relationship where he didn’t have to hide his true self.

The book was told in alternating timelines, slowly revealing the backstory and how the relationship between Zach and Eugenio started and how and why it ended. In the middle the book dragged a little though, and felt a bit too repetitive. I think it could have benefitted from a little faster storytelling with the breakup issues coming up a bit earlier, but all in all this was such a swooning, heart-warming, sweet and emotional second chance romance about two teammates falling head-over-heals in love with each other no matter how much they tried not to.

Thank you so much Nicole (Nicole Reads MM) for the recommendation!

Rating:
4 stars

Get your own copy:
Amazon
Add to Goodreads

Author info:
KD Casey