You, Again

The Elmwood Stories, Book 1

By: Lane Hayes

Narrated by: Nick J. Russo

Length: 6 hrs and 7 mins

Publisher's summary

MM Small Town/Hockey Romance

The hometown hockey hero and his best friend’s brother....

Vinnie

Hockey is in my blood. I learned to skate before I learned how to ride a bike. I’ve been on a wild ride, playing at the highest level for some of the biggest and best teams in the league. But now it’s over, and I’m not sure what to do with myself.

So I'm going home to Elmwood.

But I’ll tell you what I’m not gonna do—I’m not going to coach my buddy’s junior hockey league. No chance. I don’t know how to deal with kids, and besides, the other coach—who happens to be my best friend’s brother—hates me. With reason.

That may be old news, yet something tells me we’re going to have to deal with the past.

And that's almost as scary as coaching teens.

Nolan

No, I don’t hate Vinnie, but he drives me nuts.

He’s cocky, goofy, selfish, and yeah…after all these years, I’m still attracted to him. But I’m a responsible adult now. I run my family’s business, and with the help of my ex, I’ve made Elmwood Diner into a New England institution.

So maybe my life isn't particularly exciting at the moment, and maybe Vinnie isn’t the worst. Nonetheless, I have no desire to rekindle a friendship with the hockey hero, who no doubt will be on the first flight out of town the second he gets bored or gets a better offer.

And I’m not coaching with him. No way.

Ugh....

I can’t believe I’m doing this again.

You, Again is an MM bisexual, best friend’s brother, frenemies to lovers romance, featuring old friends, a new quest, and a little hockey HEA!

©2023 Lane Hayes (P)2023 Lane Hayes

omg so sweet

I absolutely loved the ending. when they share their feelings it's completely epic. there was a lot of hurt that needed to be mended. but both characters seemed to come with that work being done. the tension came from those misunderstandings and fears about the people they once were and not the work that needed to be done. the story is about coming home to claim the love deserved.

Heart warming story...awesome performer!

Nick J. Russo is in my top 10 go-to male narrators so this was my first Layne Hayes title. I thoroughly enjoyed it so much that I immediately got the 2nd book in the Elmwood series - "Next Season". I fell in love with the characters and the spice was tastefully performed by Russo of course 😘. Can't wait for that hunky French Canadian Jean Claude's (aka JC) story...lol

4 stars - worthy of a repeat listen

An unexpected delight!

This story — the well-developed characters, the lovely writing, the cozy small town Vermont vibe, the scorching smexy scenes, and Nick’s always smooth narration — is an absolute, unexpected delight. I had zero expectations going in and ended up truly loving every minute of it. In fact, I just eagerly downloaded book two. Well done, Lane. This one is a keeper!

enjoyable second chance romance

A sweet and sexy second chance romance for Nolan and Vinnie.

Nolan and Vinnie are secret high school sweethearts. Nolan is Vinnie’s best friend’s younger brother and the 3 of them were great friends all through school. Nolan and Vinnie spent one hot and steamy summer together before Vinnie left for college and he buried his bisexuality deep down, not ready to confront it when he was determined to make it to the NHL.

Vinnie returns home to his tiny town freshly retired and finds himself attracted to Nolan all over again and despite Nolan’s misgivings about Vinnie he can’t stay away from him. They quite quickly restart something and their feelings deepen quickly too but considering their history they’re both unsure to admit what they’re sharing is simply more than experimenting.

This is a very low angst, second romance romance that is incredibly sweet from start to finish. I am a big Nick J. Russo fan and he knocks this one out of the park.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this audiobook.

Joy to listen to

This story is so sweet, so fun, and the audio is 🔥 Lane Hayes gives us a story of a hockey player retiring and returning to his hometown. He reunites with friends, family, and the man he has had a crush on since his teen years.

Vinnie and Nolan had a crush on each other as teens and one night shared a passionate kiss. Then Vinnie screwed it up and left for college. He was drafted to the NHL and basically didn’t return to his hometown until he retired. He has some making up to do 🥺

This story is about endings, beginning, and do overs. Finding yourself again and learning what is important to you.

Lane is a wonderful storyteller and she couldn’t have chosen a better narrator to bring this story to life. Nick J. Russo is an amazing performer. He brings all the characters to life, even the female and children characters. This audio was a pleasure for my ears and heart 💜

Story: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Audio: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️

I loved it!

I loved this book when I read it with my eyes and I loved it even more when I listened to Nick J. Russo’s performance of the story. There’s a reason he is on my list of favorite audiobook performers and audiobooks like this one are why. His voice is always pleasant to listen to and he does distinctive voices for each character. I really can’t say anything else to add to my original review from when I read it so it follows below here.

I’ve been a Lane Hayes fan for quite a while now. She writes all kinds of great romance, from New Adult stories to those with older MCs like this one. Vinnie is an NHL star who has retired and returned to his home town where his best friend and his best friend’s slightly younger brother live. He hasn’t been back home for several years and even then, he didn’t stay long.

Vinnie and Nolan aren’t exactly enemies but they also aren’t friends. When Vinnie is roped into coaching the local junior hockey team, he has to work with Nolan who is the team’s coach. The two finally clear the air about something that happened when they were in high school and then Vinnie admits he’s attracted to Nolan.

I love that these two MCs are over 30-years-old. They’ve both been living fulfilling lives and there’s not a lot of dithering about where life has taken them. You, Again is full of heart and gave me lots of feels. Vinnie has to deal with finally owning up to being bi-sexual and Nolan has to face the fact that Vinnie might not be in Elmwood beyond the summer.

This is a great story with an interesting cast of secondary characters including a former teammate of Vinnie’s and Nolan’s ex-boyfriend, who is the head chef for Nolan’s diner. I was delighted to learn that these two will be the MCs for book two, Next Season, coming in late October 2023.

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

Such a good story

I enjoyed this when so read it and listening to Nick Russo’s narration just added something more. Just like when I listened to this, Vinnie’s cocky and arrogant attitude got in my nerves because he seems to think that money is the answer for all of the ice rink’s problems. He also seems very cavalier about his attitude towards Nolan. But underneath all of that bluff and bluster is a really sweet guy who just needed to come home and take time to figure out what he wants in life. Nolan isn’t sure he trusts Vin anymore and is waiting for the other shoe to drop so to speak. Spending time together and coaching the kids slowly brings them both back around to where they should have been. It is such a good story and a lot of fun to read/listen to. Definitely worth it.

Great start to the series

Enjoyed this one. It was a cute story with a small town vibe. Definitely will check out the next in the series when it is released. Great narration too.

sweet second chance

As a fan of this author this wasn't my favorite book but it was sweet and low angst. Still enjoyef it. The characters are lovely and well written. Great narration