Tag Archives: Author: J.J. Mulder

One Touch Pass by JJ Mulder

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TITLE: ⟫ One Touch Pass
AUTHOR: ⟫ JJ Mulder

SERIES: ⟫ SCU Hockey #4
RATING: ⟫/5

BLURB: ⟫ Nate meets a stranger at a party, and in the span of seventeen minutes, his life changes.

Marcos meets a stranger at a party and wonders if the universe is laughing at him. His life has become a seemingly endless stream of bad days. Everything is a struggle, from his friendship with Max, to the simple act of changing in the locker room after a baseball game. Stress and anxiety sit so heavy on his shoulders, he can barely function under the weight of it. Starting a relationship is the very last thing he wants or feels he deserves. Particularly when Nate— beautiful, gregarious, and kind Nate— could have anybody he wanted.

If there is one thing Marcos knows, it’s this: Nate deserves someone far better than him.

But despite his best efforts to keep him away, Nate persists. He knows what he wants. He wants Marcos. He wants to coax him out of his shell, take him horseback riding, and treat him right. Seventeen minutes isn’t enough for Nate and Marcos.

REVIEW: ⟫ Currently reading – review to follow.

On The Edge by J.J. Mulder (SCU Hockey #3)

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TITLE: ⟫ On The Edge
AUTHOR: ⟫ J.J. Mulder

SERIES: ⟫ SCU Hockey #3
RATING: ⟫ 4.5/5

BLURB: ⟫ Henri Vasel has perfected the art of people pleasing. He’s a good student, a fair hockey player, and he has a group of friends he’d do anything for. He’s happy. Or, rather, as happy as he can be when he has a class with the one person he can’t seem to please at South Carolina University.

Atlas Kaiser hates a lot of things, but right now he hates Henri Vasel the most. He doesn’t want to have to stare at his perfect face, or listen to his adorable German accent. He wants to be left alone. Unfortunately, they’re partnered together for the semester so he’ll have to grit his teeth and try to make it work.

Animosity morphs into a tentative friendship, which eventually leads to more. But while Atlas doesn’t trust their budding relationship, Henri wants more.

REVIEW: ⟫ I sat after finishing this book to give myself time to let it settle. It wasn’t your typical mm romance, although I have to say Henri and Atlas are actually incredibly romantic! Henri could be classed as asexual, although he never actually labels himself that way. He simply hasn’t ever met anyone that interested him sexually before Atlas. Henri is an absolute sweetheart – very hard on himself, caring about others and generally just one of the good guys.

I wasn’t sure about Atlas initially – he was very prickly, judgemental and occasionally downright mean and I wondered if his grumpy was going to be too much for Henri’s sunshine. As I read more and realised what Atlas had been through, I began to understand his reluctance to let anyone in. I really appreciated how gentle, understanding and loving he was with Henri – not only was there constant informed consent, but there was an understanding on both sides that they could stop anything that was happening at any time. It was beautiful because it was just who they were to each other rather than something special.

The “misunderstanding” between the two of them was painful but it was a good kind of painful, inasmuch as it made Atlas realise that pulling away from Henri to avoid getting hurt wasn’t going to work because it was too painful being away from Henri. I loved the interactions with Atlas’s brothers, and Nate was the MVP of this with his way of ignoring Atlas and his grumpy personality and being the friend that we all need at some point in our lives.

I loved catching up with Carter, Zeke, Max and Luke as well as news about the coach and others. This was a really lovely, relaxing read – sometimes a bit sad, but ultimately hopeful in that the main characters found the right person for them, in spite of their character flaws. I can’t comment on whether or not it was an accurate representation of asexuality, but I thought it was quite eye-opening in how Henri felt about the sexual side of things – there were times when he just wanted to hold Atlas and sleep, and other times when they explored the sexual side of things, but it definitely took a back-seat to the character development and their relationship.

Ultimately, I very much enjoyed reading this story and felt a sense of satisfaction at the end with where they were and how they were living their lives. The SCU Hockey series has been quite the delight to read and I look forward to more from this author.

I received an ARC from GRR.

From Coast to Coast by J.J. Mulder (Offsides Book #4)

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TITLE: ⟫ From Coast to Coast

AUTHOR: ⟫ J.J. Mulder

SERIES: ⟫ Offsides Book #4

RATING: ⟫ 4.5/5

BLURB: ⟫ NHL forward Remy Stone steps off the plane in Calgary a newly divorced man. While he doesn’t necessarily want to live in Canada, the trade offered a good excuse for a fresh start and he means to capitalize on it.

Defenseman Grayson Brody has played most of his career with Calgary, but has long fallen out of love with his team. After coming out, he has struggled with his teammates and management, and wishes he’d never done it at all.

With the addition of Remy Stone shaking everything up—both on the ice and off—things start looking up for the first time in years. What starts as a friendship between them, turns into a casual, friends-with-benefits relationship.

Except a casual relationship with a teammate is fraught with complications; particularly when it starts to feel less casual to Grayson, and neither of them are sure what the future looks like for them.

REVIEW: ⟫ This book was absolutely delightful! Remy made me laugh, mainly because he was just so open and honest about everything – if he had a thought, he shared it! And Grayson – I would absolutely LOVE to see this made into a film just so that we could have a physical representation of him because he sounded absolutely lush!

We all need a friend like Alex – blunt, honest, caring and thoughtful, as well as being in a very helpful profession – and I loved catching up with the characters from the previous books. The relationship between Grayson and Remy was really lovely, with both of them doing their best to be honest about where they were and how they felt. I was rooting from them from the very beginning and really appreciated how genuine they were with each other. Even when Remy was trying to figure out what he wanted from the future – with Alex providing the necessary nudge to face some realities – he realised quickly how he had been messing up and addressed it.

I have really enjoyed all of the books in this series but in terms of the romance, this might be my favourite. Well – apart from Carter but that’s a different series by the same author so that doesn’t count! I received an ARC from GRR.

Between the Pipes by JJ Mulder (Offsides Book #3)

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TITLE: ⟫ Between the Pipes

AUTHOR: ⟫ JJ Mulder

SERIES: ⟫ Offsides Book #3

RATING: ⟫ 4/5

BLURB: ⟫ Nico Mackenzie is angry and argumentative— in every way, he is the exact opposite of NHL goaltender Anthony Lawson. Thrown together for a summer of coaching college hockey at South Carolina University, Anthony makes every effort to be friendly; Nico, on the other hand, seems intent on being infuriating and keeping the other man at arm’s length.

When a causal relationship forms between the pair, they form an unsteady truce. The summer is finite, however, and when it comes to an end a decision has to be do they end things as they are or try for more?

REVIEW: ⟫ Okay, so I loved Lawson in the first two books so I was very invested in him getting his HEA. I wasn’t sure about Nico – I loved him in Carter’s story which is in the SCU verse, but here he definitely came across as angry and a bit of a PITA. However, these two – the way they worked together, how much they cared about each other – they melted my heart.

I was heartbroken when the summer came to an end and was really not sure how the author was going to bring them back together. The way it was done, how it was handled – yeah, definitely worked for me. I loved seeing the other guys from in the series but I think Lawson holds a special place in my heart!

 

 

Square to the Puck by JJ Mulder (Offsides Book #2)

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TITLE: ⟫ Square to the Puck

AUTHOR: ⟫ JJ Mulder

SERIES: ⟫ Offsides Book #2

RATING: ⟫ 4/5

BLURB: ⟫ Corwin Sanhover could almost convince himself that the night six years ago didn’t happen. But when Nigel St. James is traded to South Carolina, it becomes a lot harder to keep their history in the past.

Nigel St. James can’t imagine a team he’d like to play for less than South Carolina, and he knows Corwin probably feels the same. But when things between them become friendly, it’s clear that they both still want each other now, the same as they did back then. Is it possible to start fresh and build a relationship, or are some things—and people—better left in the past?

REVIEW: ⟫ I wasn’t expecting the darker aspects of this story. They were very well handled – the way things came out seemed natural and real, and my heart broke for Corwin, especially considering what an amazing friend he was to Troy and Lawson in the first book of the series.

I really enjoyed reading Nigel and Corwin becoming a couple, especially with how patient and kind Nigel was with everything Corwin was handling. Really well handled/written and definitely enjoyed reading this.

Changing the Game by J.J. Mulder (Offsides Book #1)

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TITLE: ⟫ Changing the Game

AUTHOR: ⟫ J.J. Mulder

SERIES: ⟫ Offsides Book #1

RATING: ⟫ 4/5

BLURB: ⟫ Former college hockey player, Sam Jameson, is coming off of a bad summer. After the derailment of his hockey dreams, and a nasty breakup with his girlfriend, he’s ready to put his head down and work hard for the South Carolina NHL team. He doesn’t count on Troy Nichols, though.

Troy, the star forward for the team, is unexpected in more ways than one. And when sparks fly between the pair, there seems little sense in holding back. Can they make it work, or is this little more than a rebound?

A low angst MM hockey romance. Just a happy, feel-good story about two men falling in love.

REVIEW: ⟫ Well, I’ve been sick again so I needed a nice and easy, feel-good story and this one delivered. The relationship between Sam and Troy was so lovely to read – they were open, honest, caring and very present for each other. There was no subterfuge, no last minute misunderstandings – the author did exactly what they said they would and provided a happy, feel-good story about two men falling in love and I truly enjoyed reading it.

Save the Game by J.J. Mulder (SCU Hockey Book #2)

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TITLE: ⟫ Save the Game

AUTHOR: ⟫ J.J. Mulder

SERIES: ⟫ SCU Hockey Book #2

RATING: ⟫ 4.5/5

BLURB: ⟫ After a traumatizing event and rough sophomore year, Max Kuemper does his best to keep his head down and not draw attention to himself. School and hockey are the only two things he can handle; it’s all he can do to keep himself afloat. He wants to forget about what happened to him and bring the secret to his grave.

Confident and flirty Luke Kelly likes to play the field—dating as well as baseball. When he meets Max during a night shift at work, he takes an instant liking to him, despite the other man’s reserved exterior and shy personality.

But secrets have a way of coming to light, and both Max and Luke will have to come to terms with what that means for their relationship.

REVIEW: ⟫ By no means the easiest thing to write about, I can only say how impressed I was by how J.J Mulder handled this issue. The manner in which we get to see and feel how Max is handling things, as well as Marcos, was incredibly touching and I admit, I spent a lot of times on the verge of tears whilst reading this book.

Luke was incredibly special. He went from being a cheerful, easy going, almost light figure to someone that Max could rely on for understanding, assistance and love and the two of them together made me feel so hopeful. They didn’t try to pretend that things weren’t difficult, weren’t perfect, needed breaks, but ultimately it felt like they were fighting together for something and I found this so precious, so special.

It was lovely to see Carter and Zeke again and I enjoyed the fact that it was a cameo that let us know how they were doing without making it feel like they were horning in on Max’s book. I really AM going to read the Coach’s book but my TBR pile is teeteringly tall so it may take a while, but I have promised myself it’s going to happen!!

I hope we get more from SCU Hockey because the people feel so real – faults and all – but ultimately the kind of people you want at your back.

Shots on Net by J.J. Mulder (SCU Hockey Book #1)

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TITLE: ⟫ Shots on Net

AUTHOR: ⟫ J.J. Mulder

SERIES: ⟫ SCU Hockey Book #1

RATING: ⟫ 4/5

BLURB: ⟫ Carter Morgan III hates everything about South Carolina University except for one thing: hockey. As the starting netminder for the team, he lives for those moments when he can step onto the ice and between the pipes. Unfortunately, his time at school and on the team is slowly coming to an end; although he’d love nothing more than to pursue a career in the NHL, he knows better than to get his hopes up.

Zeke Cassidy needs a place to live. When he answers an advertisement for a roommate, he’s not sure what he is expecting except that it isn’t Carter Morgan III. Carter is unfriendly, aloof, and they have nothing in common; even so, the pair hit it off immediately and become friends.

Carter knows Zeke isn’t interested in being anything beyond friends and roommates. Unfortunately, knowing this doesn’t stop him from hoping for more, no matter how much he tries to convince himself it’s impossible.

REVIEW: ⟫ This book completely crept up on me and I am so pleased to have found a new author to read! Zeke was an absolute delight – just so upfront and honest, open and caring – exactly what Carter needs. And Carter! Oh my, I just wanted to give him the biggest hugs and hold on tight – that boy deserved so much better than he had gotten before Zeke turned up! The fact that Zeke could read through his grumpy exterior, treasured every single one of his smiles, and made Carter begin to realise that he could have more – really brilliantly done!

I haven’t read anything from this author before but you can bet I’m hitting up everything on their back catalogue after this – Coach Mckensie needs to be read, obviously!!