Coach Stare Down: For Puck's Sake, Book 6

4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars | 622 ratings

Price: 29.66

Last update: 02-13-2025


About this item

All it takes is just one look.

Adak

After a series of relationships where I've been made to feel inadequate because of my asexuality, I've made the sole focus of my life my coaching career. I love hockey—the chill of the ice, the fast-paced, high-stress game. I love the fans and the atmosphere. The energy. Now that I'm coaching in the NHL, I feel a sense of serenity and comfort with life. All that's left is to get my team to the Stanley Cup.

A series of unfortunate injuries has riddled the Bobcats into a serious funk. The frustration that my boys feel echoes through me, and after one of the most horrible plays I've ever witnessed, I turn my back on the ice—only to catch his eyes. Suddenly, I know what I've been missing. In a sea of over 15,000 faces, I found the one I've been waiting my entire life for.

There's sadness in his eyes that's only overcome with the fear behind it. Nothing will stop me from making Oren mine and giving him the life and love he deserves. Nothing.

Oren

My life is shit. I'm the pariah of my family, for hell knows why. All I want is to get away. But I tried once—at nineteen, I ran, and my father, with his buddies on the police force, dragged me home. I've since been dragged down into submission.

But then I meet his eyes, and everything inside me just… shifts. Adak takes a chance on me, and I think that perhaps my father has finally met a wall he can't barrel through to keep control. That is until he starts blasting his hate everywhere.

I wouldn't blame Adak if he chose to leave. This is his career on the line. His image and reputation. Am I worth it?

This is an LGBT+ story with content for mature listeners.


Top reviews from the United States

  • HB
    5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful telling of a rough subject
    Reviewed in the United States on May 23, 2024
    Okay, I get very wary of stories that deal with abuse because it is so easy to mishandle them in so many ways. This was done tastefully. The abuse wasn't played up or featured more than necessary for angst or drama, and you get enough closure. Though not everything is tied up in a pretty closure bow, I found that the points I cared about were.
    Also a stellar example of Ace representation. It might be the best Ace romance I have read yet. While there are spicy scenes still it didn't lean in to some of the more uncomfortable tropes of Ace romances, that often come off as disrespectful. The boys are relationship goals, and I wish we could spend more time in their cozy day to day lives.
    That said if you are looking for something that is just full of smutty, spicy scenes move along. The book has plenty of appropriate spice for the characters identities, but it's not the over the top constantly going at it 24/7 spice often seen in the genre. Crea doesn't deserve low scores because you were disappointed an Ace character and a survivor weren't horny every other page.
  • Kates_Currently_Reading
    4.0 out of 5 stars ????????????????????, ???????????????????????????????????? ????????????????????????????
    Reviewed in the United States on May 20, 2024
    Adak is the head coach for the Anaheim Bobcats hockey team. Oren’s family has season tickets to watch the team play. Adak becomes enamored with Oren when he sees him in the stands and has security invite him back to his office. Oren’s father and older brothers are upset that Oren gets this privilege, but it's typical for Oren’s lousy home life, where he’s basically a prisoner.

    After their first meeting, Adak and Oren start seeing more of each other and soon begin dating. However, Oren has to be very secretive about it because he doesn't think his father would allow him to date even though he’s 24. Oren is very inexperienced, which is fine with Adak. Adak is asexual, which Oren researches so that he can be respectful of Adak’s boundaries.

    “Coach State Down” is a medium-angst romance between two very sweet men. Although the relationship between Adak and Oren started quickly once they met, it felt very natural. Due to the fact that Adak is asexual, there weren’t a lot of spicy scenes, but I feel that the love and affection between the two men more than made up for it. I also felt that the way Oren’s abusive family situation was handled was done well.
  • Lo
    5.0 out of 5 stars So good!
    Reviewed in the United States on June 3, 2024
    This was so cute! I liked the rep that she showed in this book, everything for both characters was done so well and with so much care and attention! I thought that both the characters were really unique, they had a lot to bring to the table, and I loved seeing their romance and everything develop! Adak had such a great family, and seeing the bond he had with them was great. And while Oren didn’t have good family members, he had amazing friends and I loved seeing them have his back! Highly recommend this book!
  • Laura C.
    3.0 out of 5 stars Mixed Feelings
    Reviewed in the United States on May 17, 2024
    Ms. Reitan was very honest at the beginning of this book and I salute her for wanting to stay true to what it’s like for an asexual person to have a relationship with someone. For this reason, I also want to be honest, this type of relationship would be very hard to maintain long term in real life. It’s true that s…x is not the most important aspect of a relationship but it is an important aspect. I believe someone with a healthy or high libido would not be able to sustain a long term relationship with an asexual individual unless there was a type of understanding or openness to involve someone else sometimes. And I hate those types of arrangements.

    I liked Adak a lot, as well as Oren. But unfortunately, I couldn’t enjoy this type of relationship. I love that they found a balance so kudos to them but I kept feeling bad for Oren. Others maybe fine with it but it’s the way I feel about it. It’s totally normal to want to feel desired and have proof of it. Unfortunately, this story fell short for me. Oren is so young, I feel bad for him. His love for Adak has him compromising on such an important aspect of the relationship. It definitely takes someone special to agree to be with someone like Adak. I also felt Adak was not willing to try harder on this. He seemed to want to be comfortable all the time. If Oren is to compromise and not push for what he wants then you should do the same by giving in to sometimes. If it can’t get up, take a pill. It’s not just a physical act but a mental as well as Adak mentions so why can’t he sacrifice a little of the physical? Let Oren enjoy his body sometimes.

    Bottom line is, I felt that while Adak was an almost ideal boyfriend, sweet and caring, he also did not want to push beyond his comfort zone for Oren. I didn’t like this.
  • Michele
    4.0 out of 5 stars Emotional Overload
    Reviewed in the United States on May 16, 2024
    My emotions went through it with this book. Both Oren and Adak have their own struggles for very different reasons. But they aren’t grumpy or bitter from it either.

    These two are real, deep, and complex characters. The person Oren becomes is beautiful. I’m so proud of him. I love that Adak won’t change who he is and takes the time to educate Oren about his needs. Communication is key.

    A chance moment brings Adak and Oren together. It’s a long and rough road to their HEA. But these two are each other's missing piece. Finding your person is always worth the wait and the journey.

    Although this is a slow burn romance with a low level of spice it is still very intimate.

    And as always with this series there is an incredible amount of love and support from the supporting characters. These found family vibes steal my heart.
  • Lori R. Dunn
    5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful
    Reviewed in the United States on December 2, 2024
    This story is very beautifully written. It deals superbly and explains asexuality, which is how Adek identifies. It also deals with Orens emotional and physical abuse by his family and what he does to get away.

    I absolutely loved these two men and thought their journey together was handled with love and compassion.

    5/5 stars

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