The New Guy

The New Guy (Hockey Guys Book 1)Sarina Bowen2023348 pagesOverall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½MM Sports Romance (Hockey)Plot: Hudson Newgate is feeling the pressure. As a professional hockey player for the Brooklyn Bruisers, he knows how important it is to maintain his focus on the game. Still reeling from his fourth trade in as many years, the prospect of acclimating to a new team, again, is starting to feel like all work and no joy. His father, a former pro player who is also Hudson’s agent, is being pushy and demanding. It’s lonely being the perpetual new guy, and all Hudson wants is to be able to slow down for a second and have an actual life.Hudson is lonely enough that one night he decides to break his only rule: he hooks up with a stranger at a bar. It was an act of desperation, and it didn’t mean anything. They didn’t even get very far. He can’t. Hudson is buried so deeply in the closet he’d get lost trying to get out. But he can’t get the guy out of his head. This becomes especially problematic when they bump into each other at work the next day.First Take: I have hearts for eyes after reading this one. I loved everything about it. It pushed all my romance buttons: high stakes, a secret, forbidden relationship, adorable offspring, and SPORTS! So much sports, it was glorious. Gavin & Hudson are complex and dynamic and need something only the other can give. You can tell immediately that they have great chemistry and the type of bond that could survive the long haul– if only they could pull their heads out of the sand long enough to notice.Characters: Hudson Newgate is a runner. After years of focusing on his job at the expense of his personal life, he doesn’t really know how to do relationships. And when things get difficult, he runs. Avoid & deflect. The game is most important. But he’s starting to realize that being alone is actually pretty lonely. Gavin Gillis is a single dad just trying to keep his life from falling apart. Parenting is his most important job, but he also has to put food on the table. And with a pair of overbearing grandparents lurking in the background like hungry sharks, he knows he can’t mess things up. Hudson Newgate is exactly the sort of distraction Gavin doesn’t need. Breakout character award goes to Gavin’s precocious and feisty daughter, Jordyn, who isn’t afraid to drop some serious truth bombs– sometimes kids are even wiser than the grownups.Praises: Sarina Bowen did her research before writing this one. I really enjoyed getting an inside view into the world of athletic trainers and what they do (I think it’s pretty accurate, I once had a student who worked as an athletic trainer and from what she told me, it seems very comparable). Gavin and Hudson have problems, but they put in the time to work through them. It gets a little messy at times between our two heroes, but it also feels really real. I thought this book was engaging, thoughtful, and deeply moving. It took things seriously but without being too serious. There was drama but it wasn’t over-the-top, and there was some angst, but it felt warranted. In short, I loved it!Critiques: I suppose if I had one critique it’s that I wish the last 20% didn’t move so quickly. There were some time jumps and a bit of glossing over, and I couldn't help but think slow down! as the pages quickly melted away. It was over and resolved before I knew it. My biggest complaint with my favorite stories is that I don’t ever want them to end, and I felt that way about this one, too.Prose: Dual 1st person POV Hudson and Gavin. These two have some baggage for sure. And they aren’t great at communicating at times. But when they finally let go enough to be honest with themselves and each other, it’s nothing but adorable sweetness that emerges.Steam: 4/5 Long distance means things get a little creative and there’s plenty of steam.Trigger Warnings: Death of a spouseTropes: Single Dad, Grieving Lover, Grumpy/Sunshine, Athlete Hero, Guy Next Door, New Guy in Town, Bi Hero, Coming Out, Forbidden Love, Forced Proximity, Hidden Identity, Workplace RomanceCliffhanger: HEA, No cliffhanger.Memorable quotes:“I can’t close my eyes without seeing your face. I can’t climb into bed without wishing you were there. I was never really living until I had you. And I’ve never said that to anyone. Ever.”I belong here with him. I know that now. I don’t remember the moment he went from being my obsession to my dream. But here I am.Suddenly, the most outrageous thought pops into my brain: everyone can play ping-pong at our wedding.Stand-Alones, Prequels, Sequels, & Tangents: Book 1 of the Hockey Guys series. Book two, I’m Your Guy, follows one of Hudson’s teammates on his journey to a happy ending. Hudson & Gavin make a couple cute appearances in the next installment so the series is probably best enjoyed when read in order.

3.5 stars. Per usual, Sarina Bowen delivers an angsty, full romance with likeable characters, set in the world of Brooklyn hockey. The New Guy is easy to fall into, easy to read, and even easier to race to the finish. Gavin, an athletic trainer, and his daughter, Jordyn, are the single dad-daughter combo you always want to see, and Bowen realistically characterizes both the joy of having a child and the difficulties of juggling it with grief over losing your spouse, work, friends, family, and dating. Throw in Hudson, a grumpy hockey player who has already been traded by several teams, has a jerk of an agent in his dad, and is in the closet about his bisexuality, and you’ve got some real drama. And yet…the thing that came out of this book, as with many of Sarina’s books, is how natural the relationship between Hudson and Gavin is. It’s completely understandable that right away, they realize this isn’t a one-night stand, and right away, they’re both afraid. Breaking through all the barriers they have to deal with is sometimes a rough road, and - I’ll be honest - some of the barriers were more believable than others. That was really the only place where The New Guy fell down for me - that Bowen trafficks in the real, and it was hard for me to believe some of the curveballs. That said, the characters sing in her familiar, easy prose and I loved seeing Gavin the medical professional at work, and Hudson come to his full potential. A solid Sarina Bowen book. Read if you love m/m grumpy-sunshine romance, and triumphing over mental issues.

I can honestly say that if there’s one book I wished I could read again for the first time, it would be The New Guy. It gave me all the feels. All of them. It made my heart stop beating.The New Guy is an M/M hockey romance that can be considered a spin-off of the Brooklyn Bruisers/Brooklyn Hockey series, but is definitely a standalone.The thing is, Sarina Bowen writes like a dream. She excels at it. And she’s especially skilled at writing hockey romance. And M/M romance. Now, when she combines the two? It feels like the sweetest magic. It’s highly addictive.The New Guy has plenty of magic. What I love the most about it is how perfectly balanced it is. It’s emotional but not depressing. It’s funny and sweet but not too light. It has weight. It’s emotional and steamy, and the hockey is relevant and thrilling. It’s impossible to put down. It’s a 10 out of ten, would highly recommend for me.The love story between Hudson and Gavin hits all the checkboxes for me. You have Hudson, the broody hockey player that has been traded too many times and desperately craves stability and a sense of belonging, so in order to prove his worth makes hockey his only priority. Then there’s Gavin, the widowed single dad who’s ready to move on and moves to Brooklyn on a whim to work for a hockey team as an athletic trainer.Hudson and Gavin are both new in town. They meet like strangers in a bar, and their connection is almost instant. You can feel the attraction between them, it’s almost palpable. Also? Their chemistry is off the charts and their banter is delicious, and it only gets better the more time they spend together. But things go south as soon as they realize they’re neighbors. And that they work for the same team. The problem is they find themselves unable to resist each other.I loved everything about The New Guy. You get a big dose of the Bruisers’ shenanigans and get to meet a few new characters as well. I thoroughly enjoyed Jordyn, Gavin’s seven year old daughter. She stole the show. I love how Sarina Bowen writes children, and I especially loved seeing Hudson and Jordyn together. They’re adorable.I also had the privilege of listening to the audiobook, so if you are like me and love listening to your books, Teddy Hamilton and J.F. Harding did an outstanding job portraying Hudson and Gavin. I will definitely listen to this book over and over and over again.

Very captivating story! It's been a while since I got so hooked on a book like this, but Sarina Bowen hade devouring this book in one sitting! The couple is lovely and very mature, which was great! I'm in love with Gavin's character, honestly! Will definitely read the next on in the series!

Cuando vi que Sarina Bowen sacaría un libro de romance de hockey MM mi corazón se emociono sin embargo soy consciente que debo dejar de buscar a Wes y Jamie en cada uno de sus libros.La historia es entretenida y se lee rápido, me encanta que tenga el POV de ambos protagonistas y se centre en ellos pero dandole a cada uno su historia de fondo. Tanto Hudson como Gavin tienen sus propios problemas con los cuales lidiar pero en medio de todo ello se toman tiempo de conocerse y desarrollando sentimientos.Siento que Gavin me gusto más de lo que esperaba, yo esperaba tener problemas con él porque no me gustan los niños, ni cuando uno de los protagonistas tiene un ex metro, sin embargo no me molesto, incluso me divertía leer a su hija y debo admitir que era un tipo muy centrado que sabia lo que quería y no estaba atascado en el pasado.Con Hudson tengo un amor-odio, pobre tipo sentía pena por como de mal hablan ido muchas de las cosas en su vida, su propia familia poniéndole el pie en el camino de su vida personal y su carrera pero también era bastante frustrante como tenía problemas para aceptarse a sí mismo y cómo él mismo jodia las cosas.Fue entretenido y me gusto pero también creo que todo se soluciona muy rápido en los últimos capítulos y me resulto poco creíble pero amo los finales felices entonces puedo vivir con ello.…Y por cierto, antes había visto que este era un stand alone, ahora resulta que será una serie y estoy completamente a bordo para leer el siguiente.

“You’re my favorite complication.”Well once again Sarina Bowen writes an amazing MM romance. Every single book I have read by this author I have absolutely loved! Gavin and Hudson’s love story is told in dual POV and is an amazing story of coming out, healing after loss and learning to live your life for you!Gavin was an amazing man and father! I couldn’t even imagine what he went through losing a partner and raising a child on his own. His daughter Jordyn was super cute and I loved the dynamic she brought to the book and the relationship she developed with Hudson.Hudson had a lot to work through with his career, family -wise and personally. He screws up so many times but always found a way to make things right the best way that he could. I liked that Gavin was visibly upset most times, it seemed more real that way, even if Gavin did forgive him quickly, but it’s hard not to forgive the ones you love!They had a wonderful HEA which I really wondered how it would even happen. Thankfully they figured everything out and the epilogue brought on many happy tears for beautiful reasons. If you are a fan of Sarina Bowen you will not be disappointed by this sports romance!

This is the third MM romance book I've read by Sarina Bowen and it certainly didn't disappoint. I couldn't put it down. I've been going through a tough time but this book really made a difference to my day. I was so it ended, even though it was a lovely ending. Can't wait to read the next one now.

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