Alright ya'll-- you might already know this about me, but Elle Kennedy's The Deal is the book that got me into real life HEA romances. It is by far my most re-read romances and I cannot wait for the dual narration audiobook to be released! If you didn't know, you can add all of EK's Off Campus audiobooks to your library with whispersync for only $1.99. That's a whole lot of Garrett.
But here's a few books to help you recover from the book hangover that is The Deal.
First, and most obviously- the rest of the Off Campus series and the spin off Briar U books.
I'm not sure which covers I like better here, the abs editions or our lady leads! But what I love the most about this series is the adorable friendships these hockey player have with each other. Elle's character development is awesome and it's so great to see our favorites pop up in each other's books.
Second, and second obviously- check out one of Elle's co-authors Sarina Bowen.
If you're looking for college romance, or new adult- go for her Ivy Years series.
If you want more hockey romance check out the Brooklyn Bruisers! There's a whole team of hunky hockey guys.
Or, if you want something a little different, check out her True North series which follows a family of cider making farmers and their friends. Seriously swoon worthy.
Next Up: Josh and Hazel's Guide to Not Dating by Christina Lauren!
This book has one of the best heroines I've ever read. And I'm so glad it was my first ever Christina Lauren book. It's also my auto-recommend for first time romance readers. I've lent my copy to a few of my friends, and I promise they were back in a few days asking for new book recommendations from me. While it's not sports romance, it's got some great humor.
Want to see my full review for this one? Check it out here:
After this one, go 'head a check out Christina Lauren's full back log. I'm slowing making my was through.
Another great contemporary new adult romance is Jana Aston's Good Time.
This was one of the first Rom-Coms I read and I loved it! So many lols on the count. I really enjoy Jana Aston's writing style and her female characters are awesome! #girlpower
I would say Good Time and Josh and Hazel are the most different from the world of Garrett and his hockey friends, but these two books really opened my eyes to the world of Rom-Com.
Rather than new adult in the sense that our characters are in college-- these heroines are young women early in their careers and learning to establish themselves.
If you'd rather stick to college sports, try Kristen Callihan's Game On series.
The book I first book I read after The Deal was The Hook Up! My two favorites in the series are The Friend Zone (Game On book 2) and The Game Plan (Game on Book 3). This awesome series follows teammates from high school into the NFL and Kristen Callihan lines up some great tropes for us: from Friends to Lovers, a Virgin Hero, Roommates, and more.
Actually, when I first started reading series romance-- I would only ever read the first book. I guess I thought of the sequels as how terrible movie sequels used to be. But that was one of my early romance read blind spots and now I often love books later in the series because we get to watch all the characters grow.
And finally, Amy Daws' Harris Brothers series.
What I love about this series is that while the guys are [almost] all teammates, they're also brothers. So they're just a big, hilarious, ab filled family.
When I read this I started with the second to last book in the series, S and LOVED it. Then I bounced around and chose what to read next based on tropes. I love a good fake relationship story- so after Dominate and Surrender I read Endurance.
Bonus: Amy Daws is literally my favorite person on Instagram.