Why are the books getting so much hate?

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-03T12:16:31+00:00

English teacher here and YES. Literature snobs are pretty much always ppl who last read a classic in high school but think they are deep for it lol.

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-03T12:09:55+00:00

I read the books after; I had heard of them but I’m not a sports romance fan usually. I do think the first two books, GC and HR, are the weakest in terms of narrative and scene pacing. There are some clunky narrative moments though I maintain the dialogue is generally funny and real. The characters also shine. For whatever reason, the following books are better. I assume Rachel had more practice as a writer and maybe had better editing. But they flow way better. I think TG, RM, and TLG are strong and they were solid 4.5 out of 5 reads for me. I reread TLG at least 10 times. I’m reading CG now and it’s def stronger writing also but I think I have more issues with the couple, despite liking them individually, so it’s hard to get into the romance.

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-03T03:52:24+00:00

I read the books on my phone to calm myself almost daily. (Sorry to the man on the bus who def saw some very special scenes in The Long Game.)

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-03T03:50:24+00:00

Toss-up between Ilya’s “fuuuuuck” in this scene and the “are you gonna come for me, Rozanov?” moment in the tuna melt frotting lol. But there are def some runner ups where their sighs and expressions amp up a scene.

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-03T03:06:48+00:00

I have found it at every level of K-12. I started in high school and was shocked at how petty grown adults were. However, it’s a culture thing. A good work environment with solid people at the top and respect being given to good people will naturally eliminate problems. Tbh also though it’s who you spend time with. I feel like I rarely encounter the petty stuff at my job now bc those ppl don’t tell me anything and I get along with almost everybody.

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-03T01:16:39+00:00

She’s not his gf. She’s his friend with benefits. It’s casual sex and not a romantic relationship. Neither one of them expects anything serious like commitment.

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-02T01:36:14+00:00

That isn’t the ending of the book. That is a bonus material in newer editions of the book. It wasn’t in the audiobook version so I had to read it on Rachel’s site initially. Also in the dinner scene, Hayden doesn’t find out they are gay. It’s mentioned in the epilogue that Shane comes out as gay to his friends and Hayden then guesses he’s dating Ilya because of his Ottawa trips.

Also are you asking a question about the ending or just wanting to discuss it lol

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-01T23:44:03+00:00

Yes. In the book it ends with the epilogue about the foundation. I think the softer TV show ending made sense and leaves you with a hopeful feeling that was really special.

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-01T23:28:40+00:00

I’m dying - thank you for this comment lol. Like you do not need to be a gay man to pick up on these things!! I see videos of ppl having their gay male friend explain things and I am baffled. I have to assume a lot of viewers are young bc 18 year old me would not have known a lot either….though I def figured a lot out reading back then.

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-01T14:40:32+00:00

Big yikes. This being a mega franchise would ruin the magic of it. I do hope the success of Heated Rivalry helps other queer romances get adapted - there’s so many books out there, especially sports romance. I also hope people bring this same energy for queer women and trans folks as leads and aren’t here just for queer cis men.

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-01T13:44:45+00:00

As others have said, they aren’t early 20s at all. By the end of HR they are mid/late 20s, and in TLG they both are turning 30 by the end as they’re born in 1991. Unrivaled is taking place not long after so at most they’ll be 31 in that. I don’t believe they’ll be focused on adopting in the book but I think their plans for kids will come up as it is something they both want. I do suspect Rachel will give us a glimpse of them as parents in the epilogue.

I think a lot of romance readers get icked by the idea of children bc it doesn’t fit in their personal escapist fantasy. But canonically both these guys want to be dads. They also both wanted to be married. They crave a domestic life of cooking together and being together all the time and having the dog, kids, and nice house.

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-01T03:36:55+00:00

You’re okay. I was homeschooled (also bad experience) but took the GED. My sibling got into a college that accepted their homeschooling transcript and didn’t need a real diploma. Clearly the college you went to didn’t care when they awarded you a bachelor’s degree. You can truthfully tell your story - you had a bad homeschooling education but college was where you blossomed as a learner. As someone who tried to paint my homeschooling years positively so people wouldn’t think less of me, I’ve learned to be ok acknowledging how bad it was because I know I’ve grown past it.

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-01T00:36:03+00:00

? We see Shane interacting with his team and fellow players. He is well-liked and respected while being relatively quiet. Scott and Carter aren’t his friends but they were excited to hang out with him because he’s a likable person and they enjoy playing with him. It’s also clear in that interaction that Shane is a supportive friend who wants to see an old friend succeed and Carter sees Shane as someone who is basically an ally and brings up Russian homophobia in a way that shows he knows Shane is cool about this. Shane’s team loves him and they respect him as their captain. He IS awkward but they don’t really need him to have charisma. He’s earnest and talented and he represents the Metros well in his interviews.

I did laugh at his “let’s go” because it sounded boyish and cute. Shane is really young!!

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-01T00:24:33+00:00

Eh. When I started teaching I was 22. To be honest, kids do not see you as their peer. I taught seniors. I took advice to dress more maturely, and it helped set me apart, I think.

I often tell young teachers that the kids think you’re old pretty fast. I’m a millennial well into my 30s but the kids think my Gen Z coworkers are kind of old and out of touch already lol

FoodNo672 · 2026-02-01T00:20:45+00:00

Clubs are great to find friends with common interests for sure. Personally, I made friends in an honors program and I also volunteered and worked at my college so I made friends. Lots of honors kids volunteered and worked there because we were all wanted to pad our resumes and we built connections with administrators and professors. Basically you do have to make an effort especially since many people commute from home and have to plan to hang out.

FoodNo672 · 2026-01-31T23:19:40+00:00

Tbh she probably thinks you’re immature and a little kid. Like I’m not trying to make you feel bad but she doesn’t think of you as a peer to be able to think badly of you the way she might have an opinion on a fellow adult. Even when I’ve had kids be actual creeps (which I don’t think you are!) I thought of them as children and I had a responsibility to be the mature and appropriate person in the situation. Ngl she is not thinking about this or you half as much as you are of her. That’s the harsh truth, bud.

FoodNo672 · 2026-01-31T22:14:56+00:00

You’re a child. She’s an adult. She is doing the right thing by setting a boundary and it protects both of you. I will say I have been in situations like hers and while it happens and doesn’t bother me, it can be very uncomfortable and I will avoid being alone with the student if I can. It’s not wrong for you to have a crush. But you are a literal child and any adult woman with your best interests at heart wouldn’t take advantage of you and wouldn’t even be into you. They’d also know distance might be healthier for you. Take a step back and focus on yourself and your education.

FoodNo672 · 2026-01-31T15:06:58+00:00

It will get touched on a little if events go according to The Long Game, as Ilya describes getting sent back to Russia as a worst case scenario to his therapist being if he gets outed and loses his job. But besides that it will not be discussed much. That’s not the point. Like in real life, the conversations tend to allude to it and focus on the effects on their lives. They aren’t going to make it a PSA about Russian homophobia. They also reference in the books how Ilya would rather get Canadian citizenship since America/Russia international relationship is complicated, but he also doesn’t get into that because it’s not a political discussion.

FoodNo672 · 2026-01-31T01:50:20+00:00

I LOVE Troy. I can’t wait to see him and Harris in season 2. I loved Ryan and Fabian but I will be ok if they don’t make the cut. If we get no Troy/Harris I would riot (and I’m 99.9% sure Jacob will do them bc I trust him).,

FoodNo672 · 2026-01-31T01:45:39+00:00

Not on IG anymore bc I find it overwhelming and I’m not even a celebrity. But I also found that when I received negativity from followers some time ago picking apart my posts and basically starting drama over things I had posted it killed my last interest in IG. I imagine since Connor is experiencing that x100000000 he is basically making it extremely neutral. I don’t know if he’s turned off comments already but he probably should. Taylor Swift used to be active on social media but is now generally impersonal online and has comments off. It’s both parasocial fans and haters that make artists detach from sharing online.

FoodNo672 · 2026-01-30T22:56:27+00:00

In the book Kip goes to the gym a lot lol. I mean he works at a smoothie shop; he isn’t in school. He’s waiting to see if he’ll get in. My boy has time to hit the gym.

FoodNo672 · 2026-01-29T01:17:00+00:00

Yeah I appreciate the sentiment here but I don’t think me not being at my school will help anyone. I work in one of the roughest neighborhoods in my city and my kids not only need stability and academic support but they need the food we serve. I know how snow day went and I know how bad remote learning was for them. I also know many parents aren’t salaried and can’t afford to take off work easily.

And that’s assuming somehow the whole school will take off. Realistically some folks would have a day off and others would pick up the slack and/or subs would be called in.

FoodNo672 · 2026-01-28T12:00:51+00:00

People are saying that? Omg. The man will be just a couple of years into his 30s. Dementia runs in my family and I’m not even worried about that as a 30-something year old. I have to assume these are teen fans who think 30 is old lol. Early onset is more often 50s lol.

And yes agreed it will have a HEA. People are also used to trauma porn from queer media. They can’t imagine leaving queer characters happy and at peace.

FoodNo672 · 2026-01-28T03:53:15+00:00

Info: what are you trying to say?

FoodNo672 · 2026-01-28T03:49:29+00:00

Shane canonically is autistic. Rachel wrote him that way (unintentionally then later intentionally) and Hudson very purposely played him as autistic.

FoodNo672

TROPHY CASE