You know when you have to go and check the book is a debut because it's so well realized that it's actually surprising that it's a debut???? Like this was well written, I knew what it wanted to be and the story it wanted to tell. And it was so cute!

The representation in this really stands out along with the messaging. We have Gene, a trans man with anxiety and ADHD as well as Luis, a mexican american man with anxiety/panic disorder (and a very cute service dog) as well as other queer side characters. This is one of those books where you really root for the characters who have been told their whole lives that these things are going to hold them back. And in some instances, it does. But what this book tells them is that achieving what you want is possible. Gene is an optimist, and this book is a representation of that. It's really worth reading the authors note at the end because he really explains this way better than I am doing.

Gene and Luis were so cute together. I really loved their slow coming together throughout the first half of the book. Though their relationship progresses it doesn't feel rushed to where they are at the end of the novel. It makes sense for the characters and they just have some really great romantic moments, but you also get the slow burn enemies (ish) to lovers.

One thing I wanted a bit more closure on is Gene and Vince's fall out which is resolved very quickly considering everything. I don't know I guess i'm a grudge holder but I feel like maybe saying SORRY at least once might have been called for. Again I think the authors note explains this a little bit more, about how baseball is about the ones who make it and the ones who get left behind and part of this book is that story and what it can do to professional athletes. Like I understand where Vince was coming from but I thought it was kinda shitty.

BUT that being said. This book is going to be really important to a lot of people. There's going to be queer people and trans people who read this and feel seen. It's a love letter to those people and to hope and queer joy. I think this author is going to be a big name and I will definitely look out for his next book.

This was such a wholesome, heartwarming romance! Gene is a lovable, loud, optimistic and funny man with a huge passion and drive for his goals and learns not to be afraid to demand what he wants. Luis is so soft, sweet and sensitive and a perfect balance for Gene.

There’s so much hope and joy in this book with great communication, banter and conflicts. I also loved the rep, which includes ADHD and anxiety, as well as some disability rep in side characters which include a Deaf character and a character with Down’s syndrome.

Although, this being a sports romance, I knew there would be sports in the book of course (specifically baseball) but there was a LOT of baseball talk. As someone not really into baseball, or sports at all, I’d have preferred it to be more of a background theme but that’s on me because the book couldn’t have made it any clearer on what I would be getting into.

Saying that, I really appreciated and loved the focus on how cis and straight sports are and how Gene and Luis existing in the industry was breaking barriers. This is such an empowering and inspiring message. I also loved the passion the author clearly shares with Gene, especially, on their love for baseball.

It’s hard to believe this is a debut novel. I endlessly recommend it! Especially if you’re a baseball fan.

A little slow in the middle plot-wise but the romance kept it interesting enough for me to stay engaged.

Considering i know nothing about baseball, I was easily able to understand everything going on so appreciate the care that was taken to make this accessible for non-sporty readers like myself.

i feel like i should mention that all my knowledge of baseball comes from the movie ‘a league of their own’ so there are certainly moments i didn’t fully grasp and the rules of baseball are still very much unknown to me.

that said, i adored this. i’d give it four and a half stars if i could. the writing was so descriptive and beautiful, it created such clear imagery the entire time. gene and luis and their entire team are so easy to route for — as individual characters on their own journeys, as pairings in their relationships, as a team with their games.

romance enjoyers, sports enjoyers, i recommend this wholeheartedly. one of my favourite reads of this year so far.

Thank you to NetGalley and Little Brown Book Group for the advance reader copy.

I loved this book! The main characters are amazing and the story was such a breath of fresh air especially for a queer book.

I’m not hugely into sports but the overall story and characters is what kept me reading and hooked.
There wasn’t any of the annoying miscommunication between the leads which I find is in a lot of romance books now.

Gene and Louis are sweethearts and deserve everything nice in the world.

I dare anyone to read this book and not fall in love with these characters. Gene and Luis have a special place in my heart.

Both having something to prove on the baseball field, Luis and Gene put their past behind them and work together to show the world what the Beavertown Beavers are capable of.

Filled with emotion, heart warming romance, passion and hope, this book is a must read.

Thank you NetGalley and Little Brown Book Group for the ARC.

4.5 stars. I absolutely adored this book. Not only is it filled with love and hope, but it’s just so uplifting and funny. Each character was so endearing and lively, and they all got along so well with one another. I loved Gene and Luis so much.

The romance was top-tier. Luis was open about exploring things with Gene, and they were super cute together. I also loved that Gene was the first trans man to attempt to go pro at baseball and fall in love along the way. Authors that emphasise that anyone can participate in sport regardless of age, sexual orientation, height, disability, or other factors are very appreciated, because I believe that there is a great deal of discrimination and poor mental health among trans athletes in today's trans community.

Thank you to NetGalley and The Little Brown Book, UK for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

⚾️ A heartwarming read ⚾️

I enjoyed the development of the relationship between the two main characters in this book. I applied for the ARC after an exciting special edition announcement and I’m glad I gave it a chance. It took me a little while to get into but once I did the pace and plot kept me engaged.

It isn’t my place to comment on the character representation but I did like that it wasn’t a traditional sports romance. I haven’t read many MM romances but the chemistry did feel authentic and I found myself rooting for Gene and Luis.

There were times I struggled with some of the baseball references and perhaps that’s because I’m not a baseball fan. I do think that altered my ability to enjoy some of the sporting elements.

Overall it was an enjoyable read and a really lovely introduction to M/M and trans romance, particularly if it’s not your usual genre.

Gene 'Nes' Ionescu is a minor league ball player, and he absolutely loves it. His dad was a pro baseball player, and it's all he's ever wanted to do. He's got his best friend, Vince, an older (lol, 38) player who is closeted but happily married to a rather charming man called Jack, and he's got baseball. Then Luis 'Nada' Estrada gets traded into the team. Luis and Gene used to play ball together for Stanford, but Luis got drafted and left Gene behind without a by your leave.

This is as much a story of growing up as it is of sport and falling in love. Throughout the book Gene slowly learns to accept that people moving on and growing doesn't mean they have to leave your life. It's a lesson I've really struggled with, that mandatory seeing a person every day because of work, etc, isn't the only reason you're friends with someone, and if they're important to you then you will still be in each other's lives as your lives continue to chug along.

The relationship between Nes and Nada goes from sorta-enemies, to friends, to lovers, and its really beautiful. It's not a perfect world, where no issues exist, but maybe it's a world that's a little better than ours.

This books was an absolutely delight to read, and I'd really recommend for, well, everyone. It's a brilliant debut from KT Hoffman and I can't wait to see what they write next!!!

I really enjoyed this one. I loved the characters and seeing them go from reluctant teammates who used to be reads to lovers was great as they each battled with what that would mean for their careers going forward.
I always love a sports romance and this one was sweet, hopeful and romantic.

This was great. I really enjoyed this one and got invested in the story and relationship through the story.

Admittedly I know very little about baseball and have no interest in the sport outside of the odd books I read featuring it but found I really liked the baseball elements of this and found it easy to follow. The characters were great and very well developed and the relationships between characters (not just the main couple) were diverse and solidly written.

I loved this and want to read more by this author immediately. I'm a big fan of this story.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an e arc in exchange for an honest review.

The Prospects is full of trans joy, mental health rep, hope and tenderness. I quickly fell in love with the characters and although I know Nothing about baseball, I do love queer sports fiction and this debut hit it out of the park (pun not intended).
It contains such a queer joy which is often difficult to maintain throughout but Hoffman succeeded.

Gene, the main character, is the first openly trans baseball player in his league (sidenote he's also gay and Jewish). He just wants to be the best he can be for himself, his teammates and his various parental figures. He wants to play bigger than minor league but struggles to ever see that happening, despite the support around him.

When Luis, Gene's teammate from their colleges days, is transferred to the team, Gene pushes harder to prove himself, but he also isn’t sure how to handle Luis. They were once friends but lost touch, but time can change a lot of things.
Luis is a wonderful character and is a brilliantly example of someone with severe anxiety. Plus his ESA is great and well written.

Luis and Gene together are a pairing you will fall in love with.

The book focuses on the team, creating a close knit cast that are each well characterised. I especially enjoyed how Gene didn’t focus too much on side characters, which were often players from other teams, I felt this portrayed the idea of feeling othered whilst also accepted in your own community really well.

It’s character driven, the topics are well handled and well written and some of the scenes are so simple yet so touching. It’s a really great debut.


Thank you to Little Brown Book Group and Netgalley for the ARC!

Ahhhhhhhhh I was so excited to get his book it was on my list to watch out for and boy did it meet my expectations the book is one about love, self love , enemies to lovers full of optimism and hope and just pure joy on every page, I loved every single thing about this book I don’t have a bad thing to say about this book, this is something to look forward to and I see myself rereading this and falling in love all over again genuinely one of the best things I’ve read in so long

Absolutely adored this book! It’s been a long time since I had to stay up reading and it was so hard to put it down. This was one of my most anticipated releases of the year and it did not disappoint. The writing style was phenomenal and these characters are going to stay with me long after finishing

Thank you to NetGalley and KT Hoffman for an eArc of this book!

This book was absolutely incredible! I fell in love with the characters on the first page and wanted it to never end.

This is such a heartwarming love story between two of the most adorable and lovable characters I have read about! I am a massive fan of sports romance and this was that and so much more!

This book had so many things I loved about it that I cannot possibly list them all but I devoured every single page and am extremely excited to see what the author writes next!

Actual rating: 4.5 ☆

I wish I could be eloquent enough to describe how beautiful THE PROSPECTS is. It's an impressive debut novel, full of hope and tenderness that made me feel like I was hugged by a warm blanket. It's so rare to experience that kind of queer joy from start to finish, and KT Hoffman handled that so well. Sometimes it was so full of yearning that I had to take breaks.

Gene, the main character, is the first openly trans baseball player in the league (he's also gay and Jewish). I had so much love for Gene, he tries to be the best version of himself for him and his teammates while crushing his own dreams and desires because he feels like he's not allowed to dream that big. Because, while he loves his minor league team, he dreams to go to the major league but doesn't let himself believe it's possible.

Everything changes when Luis, Gene's teammate from their colleges days, is transferred to the Beaverton Beavers and takes Gene's spot on the team. Gene now has to find his place in the lineup as well as in Luis' life. They were friends but lost touch years ago, and they're now both different.

Ah Luis...another favorite character. I don't want to say too much about him because it's best to get to know him like Gene's does, but he was so touching. And his emotional support dog was the best.

I liked that the story focused on a small cast of characters: Gene, Luis, Vince and Baker, all queers but from different generations and backgrounds. The other side characters were interesting as well, of course, but by having a focus on these four it was a way to see how being queer in the league can affect a person.

Speaking of the league: did I know anything about baseball prior to reading this book? Not really. I only played the sport once when I was younger, and I still don't know the rules and positions. Did it prevent me to enjoy this book? Not at all! Sure, sometimes I had to look up what certain words meant, and I didn't grasp the context of a few scenes, but I didn't mind. Because THE PROSPECTS is about baseball but not only.

Again, I don't want to say too much about it because it's more character driven. What I want to mention, though, is the care that went into crafting this book. The way it handled coming out, transidentity, anxiety, masculinity in sport and other topics was so refreshing. It made me so soft as well. It's rare to see that kind of representation, let alone in the way it was presented. I hope that we'll get more romance like this one. Like the ear-piercing's scene...in the words of Lady Gaga it was "talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show stopping, spectacular, never the same, totally unique, completely not ever been done before". It really nailed what it's like to be in a homoerotic friendship and falling for your friend.

THE PROSPECTS was one of my most anticipated reads of this year, and I'm so happy and thankful that I got to read and arc. I can't wait for more people to fell in love with it, and I look forward for KT Hoffman's next books!

Thanks to NetGalley and Little Brown Book Group for the ARC.

I should start off my review by saying that I do not know anything about baseball. However, I have seen one person compare this to E.L. Massey’s work, and I knew I had to get my hands on this!

This book was an absolute joy from start to finish. The characters and relationships were so well written, and I felt like the author tied together everything very well and wrapped things up neatly by the end.

I didn’t struggle as someone who knows nothing about baseball. While some parts had me a little confused, it was nothing that a quick internet search couldn’t fix! I also appreciate that the author didn’t try infodumping to explain baseball terms to readers.

The romance was sweet and incredible, and I absolutely adored how their story wrapped up. It felt very realistic and I found it to be quite moving at times.

Overall, this is a book I will certainly purchase upon publication date.

Highly recommend!

As per request from publisher, I will not be posting my review on Goodreads until two weeks from publication date.

Can I just keysmash and call it a review?

I don't have a single clue about baseball. Parts of this book felt like they weren't actually in English. I finished, and I still have no idea what an out or an inning is or what is good?? My single tour of Fenway Park in 2019 did not prepare me for this.

Did I love this book with my heart and my soul? Yes. So completely. This book is a treasure - an absolute gemstone of diversity and representation and unapologetically being yourself. You've got trans MCs, gay MCs, neurodiverse MCs, anxious MCs, POC MCs, characters whos labels were irrelevant in the face of who they really are - real, human, flawed characters. I could see myself and facets of my identity represented so well in these characters that on paper, look nothing like me.

The relationships in this book are so wonderful - the romance of course is a delight (and SPICY), but so are the friendships, and the found family (one of my absolute favoruite tropes). The journey the characters take, and the decisions they make feel so real and concrete and just - ugh. I need to keysmash.

UBouihdfoisfnoasinfisanonDOUsubda.

This! Book!. Read it!!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for approving my request to read an arc of this book .
This incredible book has been on my radar since it was first announced and I was over the moon to get to read an arc. A keyboard smash isn’t the easiest thing to understand, so I will try to use actual words to sum up how much I loved this book. As a trans masc person myself, I found Gene such a relatable and distinctly human character. He felt so real to me, as did the other characters. I loved the neurodivergent inclusions and Gene’s ADHD and Nada’s anxiety were written about in such a caring and real way.
I loved the romance side of the story, and even though I don’t understand baseball, I also really enjoyed reading about the games. It was so much fun.
I implore anyone who enjoys lgbtq+ fiction, romance, or perhaps a bit of spice, to read this book. I honestly can’t recommend it enough ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️