I loved it!

I really loved this novella but I was a little puzzled as to why the authors decided to release this one after Nice Catching You. As I wrote this review though, I came to understand the logic of publishing this book after Nice Catching You. I was very satisfied with how The New Next One ended but a large part of that was probably because I had already read Nice Catching You. So, my recommendation is to read that book before you read this one.

Some purists would say that this book isn’t a romance because it doesn’t have an HEA or HFN. A friend suggested that I should say it’s a love story rather than a romance. Whatever you want to call it, I thought it was a beautiful story. One of the MCs does get an HFN in this book and the other gets his HEA in Nice Catching You.

The New Next One (that unusual title makes sense after you’ve read the book) is a story that didn’t leave me feeling unfulfilled or sad. It’s not a tragic love story. It’s a story about all the passion and emotion of first love and I loved it.

I almost forgot to say that Nick J. Russo did another fine job with his performance of this book. He’s done a great job will all of the books in this series.

A complimentary copy of this audiobook was provided to me at my request but my review was voluntary and not influenced by the author and/or narrator.

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Sweet and Hot!

4.5 Stars!

This was bittersweet for me. For one part, I really liked Nick and Tyler individually and together. Their jump from friends to lovers was seamless and even if they had to keep their relationship a secret from everyone in their school and their team, it worked for them. For the other part, since this is the prequel to Nice Catching You, I knew how this book was going to end and it hurt.

This was a short audiobook, filled with all the awe and tender hotness of that first love, masterfully narrated by Nick J. Russo who just brings those youthful feelings forth with his voice. Definitely a recommendation from me!

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First Love

Ryan Taylor and Joshua Harwood have written a really sweet story about first love. This time it's about Nick's first love and growing up with all the problem around it. And of course hockey is also a theme.
I loved this heartwarming story and it got pretty emotional at the end. Greatly done, I highly recommend this audiobook. And it makes you want to listen to Nice Catching You, because that's where you get to see what happens next with Nick. I listened to this story again right afterward as well. So good!
As always, Nick J. Russo has done a great job. Nick, to me, is the perfect narrator for the Bethesda Barracudas Hockey series. His narration is engaging and emotional.

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1 person found this helpful

A short story about two of my favourite characters

An enjoyable short story about Nick who we met in Book #1 and Tyler who we meet in book #3. Nick J Russo does a good job of portraying the characters in this novella, I really liked his portrayal of Nick.

Tyler and Nick have been friends for years and have hidden the fact they are gay from each other and everyone else. When Tyler takes a risk and expresses his feelings to Nick everything changes for them both, but it's still a secret from the rest of the world. I really felt for these guys, it's sad they felt the need to hide who they were so as to be able to play a sport. I loved their blossoming relationship and it was nice to get the background of them both, especially Tyler as his relationship with Nick and their friend Kevin really comes into play in Fire in the Ice. I'd have probably preferred to read this before book #1 as I'm all for continuity of timelines when reading a series, but it still works well reading/listening to it after.

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Lovibg is letting go

Tyler and Nick have been teamnates and friends, untill the day Tyler decides to be brave and they become more. This is a well wriiten sweet novella about friendship, love and support. I can highly recommend this read by these authors.
update July 2002:
Just finished listening to the audiobook that just came out. Nick J. Russo did a wonderful job as he did with the other books in the series. It was sweet to hear tgis story narrated and relive how it all begun for these characters and the series.

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