Sports Fiction

In sports, everybody loves redemption stories, the underdog who no one believes in but through sheer hard work wins it all. But no one tells the stories of the players who work hard and don’t make it. In pro football, 53 guys get on the roster. Ten make it to the practice squad. And then there’s the 64th Man - that’s Billy Logan (Cena), who seems to always be one spot from glory.

See, I've been told I'm the "good time girl", not the one you take home to Mom. And while that label stung at first, I've since embraced it - living the wild and free life and sticking to a three-date max. That's just enough time to have some fun and snuff out the possibility of catching feelings. And it's been working for me for years...until Makoa Kumaka. Sadly, he also has a three-date rule - and it's the exact opposite of mine.

After being dumped on her 21st birthday, Bailey James rebounds right into the arms of her ex’s biggest competition... Chase Carter: antagonizer, womanizer, and infamous left winger for her college’s rival team. Following a string of scandals and substandard grades, Chase is on thin ice with his teammates and tyrannical coach. The last thing he needs is to have his focus and loyalty called into question by fraternizing with his team’s #1 competition, but a beautiful stranger who throws herself at him one night is too tempting to pass up...until she throws up on his shoes.

Jake Cullen is a freshman quarterback playing high school football in the high-pressure land of Friday Night Lights (Texas). He is also the brother of Wyatt Cullen, who quarterbacked his team to the Texas State Championship last season - not to mention the son of former NFL quarterback and local legend, Troy Cullen. To be a Cullen in Texas is to be royalty…and a quarterback. All of which leaves 14-year-old Jake in a Texas-sized shadow, a tall order for any boy, especially one who's merely a freshman.

Seventeen-year-old Frank Baker is a golfing sensation. He’s set to earn a full-ride scholarship to play at the university of his choice, but his single dad wants him to skip college and turn pro - golf has taken its toll on the family bank account, and his dad is eager to start cashing in on his son’s prowess. Frank knows he isn’t ready for life on the pro tour - regardless of the potential riches - so his swing coach enlists a professional golfer turned journalist to be Frank’s secret adviser.

Following a devastating injury that has left him side-lined and stripped of his beloved number 13 jersey, Johnny is struggling to hold on to his dreams. Lost, insecure and desperately seeking comfort, he sets his sights on unravelling the mystery of the girl with the midnight-blue eyes. With his best friend, Gibsie, by his side, Johnny embarks on his quest of exposing the secrets surrounding the girl who haunts his every waking hour. Secrets are exposed and lives are changed forever in Keeping 13: Part One, the explosive sequel to the best-selling audiobook Binding 13.

I like to party; to have a good time. Life’s too short not to. I learned that when I lost my grandpa. He told me to have fun while I can, and I intend to. Though sometimes when you’re having a good time, you forget others may see you as irresponsible. And sometimes you screw up. I’ve definitely screwed up a time or two, but I’m still determined to have fun. I’m hoping I’ll convince my best friend, Camden, to do the same along the way. He’s too serious. Too focused. Too busy taking care of everyone to just relax. And that’s where I come in.

Nashville nursing student Paige McMillan only wanted to get over a cheating ex. But a few sinful hours with a tall, muscular bad boy left the good girl with a lifetime of responsibility - and no idea who her adorable daughter's father really is. Love him or hate him, hockey superstar Lance Couture makes no apologies for being the best - or for living life to its fullest. He's hot, rich, and girls can't get enough of him. Why would a player like him ever settle down? When a pro hockey team comes to town, Paige spots a familiar face in the most unlikely place: on the ice.

Carter Beckett is the NHL’s resident bad boy, top player both on the ice and in the bedroom, and quite possibly the sexiest man to ever grace my field of vision. But worst of all? He knows it. He’s arrogant, self-centered, and the man doesn’t seem to know what a filter is, let alone how to use one. He’s had everything served to him on a silver platter, including endless strings of women, and apparently, I’m up next. I have the solution to all my sexual frustrations in a drawer at home, and it’s far less complicated than Carter Beckett.

Winning is important but this is championship quarterback Chase Layne's last chance for glory. All he wants for his final season is to win the Superbowl. But dreams of ending his career on a high will be sacked if his soon to be ex-wife has her way. She and her new boyfriend have plans to ruin Chase in a media smear. Avery Banks knows all about being played, and she's tired of being the loser. All she needs is a big score. Then she gets the dream job pretending to be a star football player's girlfriend. Easy, right? Except her sister sees an even bigger payoff: blackmailing him.

I've sworn off women because I caught my fiancee with my brother. Now, they're both dead to me. They represent an ache so deep, I might never recover. I've never known a goal I couldn't score - or a girl I couldn't score with. Until I see her curled up in a sexy ball in my hospital room. She's off-limits. Julia Wales is lush, smart, more determined than I am, and 100 percent taboo. For the first time in my life, I want someone I can't have.

Ella Couture didn't mean to save herself. But success runs in the family, and Ella, a fiery and self-made interior decorator, never wanted to settle for anything less than a quality man. But another disappointing breakup has Ella flirting with the idea of a meaningless fling - because this whole v-card business has gone on for way too long. When Ella visits her brother, Lance, for the weekend, she finds herself all alone with his teammate Radar. The rugged hockey star is tall, chiseled, and gorgeous - and based on his past, he won't get attached....

Freshman footballers Jason Roddin and Tom Jefferson are a perfect pair: Jason is a blazing-fast wide-receiver, while his best friend Tom has all the skills a standout quarterback needs. After summer football camp at an elite sports-focused boarding school, the boys are thrilled to be invited back with full-ride scholarships. But on day one of practice, they're shocked when the team's coaching staff makes Tom, a black kid, a receiver and Jason, a white kid, a quarterback.

Max Best is not living his—ahem—best life. His job's a drag, his home's a shooting gallery, his hopes are nil, and lately, even his beloved game of football has devolved from a chaotic, ecstatic delight into a cold, calculating equation complete with stats, tech terms, and mindless lingo. But then Max rescues a mysterious old man from a mugging. "Nick" seems friendly enough . . . until he innocently asks his savior, "Would you sell your soul to be a top football manager?" Naturally, Max says yes, and in that instant, everything changes.

Missing Links is the story of four middle-class buddies who live outside Boston and play golf together at Ponkaquogue Municipal Golf Links and Deli, not so fondly known as Ponky. An 18-hole garbage dump with hazards that include a concrete river surrounded by a chain-link fence and the pillars of the elevated train that runs through the course, it is reputed to be the worst golf course in America.

Troy White is a star quarterback who can predict a football play before it happens. Ty Lewis is the football hero - a wide receiver with exceptional speed, living in the shadow of his NFL superstar brother. Both boys are striving to win the 7-on-7 tournament that's being held at the Super Bowl in Miami, sure that they can claim victory for their team. From the moment the two football champs cross paths, Troy and Ty begin to size each other up.

Neil Josten is out of time. He knew when he came to PSU he wouldn't survive the year, but with his death right around the corner he's got more reasons than ever to live. Befriending the Foxes was inadvisable. Kissing one is unthinkable. Neil should know better than to get involved with anyone this close to the end, but Andrew's never been the easiest person to walk away from. If they both say it doesn't mean anything, maybe Neil won't regret losing it, but the one person Neil can't lie to is himself.

The Foxes are a fractured mess, but their latest disaster might be the miracle they've always needed to come together as a team. The one person standing in their way is Andrew, and the only one who can break through his personal barriers is Neil. Except Andrew doesn't give up anything for free, and Neil is terrible at trusting anyone but himself. The two don't have much time to come to terms with their situation before outside forces start tearing them apart. Riko is intent on destroying Neil's fragile new life, and the Foxes have just become collateral damage.

It's been a dozen years since two of the world's best women hockey players, Niki Hartling and Eva Caruso, first competed against each other in the Olympic Games. The pressure of the intense USA-Canada rivalry forced an end to their love affair, and both women moved on - Niki to coach and to marry, Eva to stretch out a playing career that her ravaged body can barely sustain anymore. The Games are upon them once again. Rivals and former lovers on hockey's biggest stage, will Niki and Eva feel the same spark that first brought them together?

Stupid Fast is playwright Geoff Herbach’s first book for young adults. No one’s more shocked than shy 15-year-old Felton Reinstein himself when he undergoes a tremendous growth spurt. After dusting the football jocks in a race, Felton marvels at his new athletic ability. Everything isn’t looking up, however. Felton must also come to grips with his mother’s sudden depression and his bratty younger brother. And then Felton learns a shocking secret about his past that helps put things in perspective.