Sport

Sam Walters has made a deal with the devil.In order to win a much-needed contract as physical therapist to one of the NHL's leading hockey teams, Sam must delay the recovery of their sniper, Mac Wanowski. The trouble is, the more she gets to know the taciturn hockey player, the more she aches to help him.Mac 'The Hammer' Wanowski chased the Stanley Cup dream for too many years. Last time he was close it had cost him his wife. As injuries continue to plague the team, Mac works to catch a killer and keep the woman he's come to love from the hands of a madman. Hockey can be a dangerous sport, especially when millions of dollars are at stake.

There's always love in the air at weddings. Or is it just lust? Yea, it's probably just lust.Ari & Logan don't know each other. Yet. They're thrown together at the singles table by the sheer misfortune of not having a plus one and quickly discover that champagne and tequila shots are just the excuse they needed to find themselves on the brink of the best - or worst - idea ever.Logan's a running back for the North Carolina Hogs and isn't looking for a relationship.Ari totally agrees as she doesn't have time to integrate his busy schedule with her own.F*ck buddies it is. Simple and easy - no strings.Sounds perfect, right? Or is it too good to be true?

Scared shitless and questioning everything he had ever known, Jackson Straw heads west on the fishing trip of a lifetime, a journey which tests his angling skills and fortitude, while pushing his grasp on reality to the breaking point.

My friends used to tell me 'What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.' Clearly, they lied because a few months later, I found out my one-night stand was pregnant. I couldn't handle a baby. I was Griffin Rockwell, the best wide receiver the league had ever seen. But what choice did I have? My baby girl was coming whether I was ready for her or not.Brooke turned out to be an amazing woman and mother. For seven years, we were the MVP's of co-parenting-and even better friends.That all changed when tragedy struck our makeshift family and I was faced with the terrifying possibility of losing the one woman I was quickly realizing I couldn't live without.I was at the height of my career and on the path to becoming the greatest of all time. But keeping my family together, with Brooke by my side, might prove to be the hardest route of all.

I knew exactly what I wanted out of my senior year.A full ride to Northwestern University, the title of American High School Journalist of the year, and a kiss, not just any kiss, but one from the boy I've been in love with since the sixth grade.By October, my plan was fully in motion with liplock by Christmas eminent. Eminent, that was, until Andie Mercantile moved to Marlowe Junction, swooping both my beat and my man.Now, I'm stuck writing the sports column-a subject I know nothing about. My goals aren't unobtainable, but they will take a lot more work. Just because a sports writer has never won journalist of the year before, doesn't mean it can't be done. And as for the kissing part, I'm not counting myself out just yet. After all, maybe learning a bit about competition is just what I need.Off Center is the second book in the Varsity Girlfriends series.

This novel is about the choices that make us. It is written in three fonts, which is the real reason for the title, and each font tells the story in a different way. One font tells the tale of a young man in his last semester of college, basking in the surety of success while wondering if it is the success he really wants. Another describes his basketball life, from six years old until thirty-six, logically, but not chronologically. The last is all poetry, and each chapter has one. The chapter titles are the poem titles, and the other two fonts describe the motivation for each poem.If this sounds like a mish-mash, you are correct. When you are in your early twenties and trying to find your way, your life should be a mish-mash. You should have more questions than answers. Every day should be a delightful terror. Knowing what you don't know is terrible and having the energy and resilience of youth to figure things out should fill you with delight. It is about discovering talents you never wanted and learning to not deny them. It is about exploiting the ones you have always known you have, and how they can limit your ability to become a whole person.Bottom line is, if you love coming of age stories, there is a font for you, and you can ignore everything else. If you love basketball and hate poetry, you can stick to another font. If all you want to read is the poetry, it's easy to find. It's all good.

Football is the heartbeat of Brownwood, Texas. Every Friday night for as long as assistant principal Tylene Wilson can re-member, the entire town has gathered in the stands, cheering their boys on. Each September brings with it the hope of a good season and a sense of unity and optimism.Now, the war has changed everything. Most of the Brownwood men over eighteen and under forty-five are off fighting, and in a small town the possibilities are limited. Could this mean a season without football? But no one counted on Tylene, who learned the game at her daddy's knee. She knows more about it than most men, so she does the unthinkable, convincing the school to let her take on the job of coach.Faced with extreme opposition?by the press, the community, rival coaches, and referees and even the players themselves?Tylene remains resolute. And when her boys rally around her, she leads the team and the town to a Friday night and a subsequent season they will never forget.

"Trophy Son brings Conroy's The Great Santini and Malamud's The Natural into the present day...A terrific book." -Harlan CobenNew York Times bestselling author Douglas Brunt's third novel, Trophy Son, tells the story of a tennis prodigy, from young childhood to the finals of the US Open, Wimbledon, and other tournaments around the world. Growing up in the wealthy suburbs of Philadelphia, Anton Stratis is groomed to be one thing only: the #1 tennis player in the world. Trained relentlessly by his obsessive father, a former athlete who plans every minute of his son's life, Anton both aspires to greatness and resents its all-consuming demands. Lonely and isolated-removed from school and socialization to focus on tennis-Anton explodes from nowhere onto the professional scene and soon becomes one of the top-ranked players in the world, with a coach, a trainer, and an entourage.But as Anton struggles to find a balance between stardom and family, he begins to make compromises-first with himself, then with his health, and finally with the rules of tennis, a mix that will threaten to destroy everything he has worked for. Trophy Son offers an inside look at the dangers of extraordinary pressure to achieve, whether in sports or any field, through the eyes of a young man defying his parents' ambitions as he seeks a life of his own.A USA Today Notable BookA New York Post "Must Read" Book"Keenly observed and provocative." - Sports Illustrated

Emma Jordan has returned home after her father's death to run the animal sanctuary that had been his legacy. But strange things start happening, and it seems that someone is out to shut her down, someone who doesn't mind putting lives in jeopardy to see it through. When Hidden Falls' sexiest fireman starts to ask questions, Emma needs to make sure his charm doesn't distract her from keeping her dreams alive. Ben McQuaid has an obligation as a local fireman to protect the community, even from a well-meaning wildlife veterinarian who's in way over her head. But, it's becoming hard to keep his loyalty to the town and his desire for the pretty vet separate. As Ben and Emma become caught in a dangerous game of cat and mouse, their feelings for each other are growing. Will they let duty drive them apart or will they dare to fall?

A Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize Winner of the Kirkus Prize for Fiction . A Recipient of the Windham-Campbell Prize for Fiction . A Finalist for the James Tait Black Prize for Fiction . A Finalist for the Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction . A Finalist for the Rathbones Folio Prize . Longlisted for an Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence . One of New York Times Book Review 100 Notable BookNamed a Best Book of the Year by Entertainment Weekly . GQ . The New York Times (Selected by Dwight Garner) . NPR . The Wall Street Journal . San Francisco Chronicle . Refinery29 . Booklist . Kirkus Reviews . Commonweal Magazine"In its poetic splendor and moral seriousness, The Sport of Kings bears the traces of Faulkner, Morrison, and McCarthy. . . . It is a contemporary masterpiece."-San Francisco Chronicle Hailed by The New Yorker for its "remarkable achievements," The Sport of Kings is an American tale centered on a horse and two families: one white, a Southern dynasty whose forefathers were among the founders of Kentucky; the other African-American, the descendants of their slaves.It is a dauntless narrative that stretches from the fields of the Virginia piedmont to the abundant pastures of the Bluegrass, and across the dark waters of the Ohio River; from the final shots of the Revolutionary War to the resounding clang of the starting bell at Churchill Downs. As C. E. Morgan unspools a fabric of shared histories, past and present converge in a Thoroughbred named Hellsmouth, heir to Secretariat and a contender for the Triple Crown. Newly confronted with one another in the quest for victory, the two families must face the consequences of their ambitions, as each is driven---and haunted---by the same, enduring question: How far away from your father can you run?A sweeping narrative of wealth and poverty, racism and rage, The Sport of Kings is an unflinching portrait of lives cast in the shadow of slavery and a moral epic for our time.

Heartthrob star quarterback Tyson Palmer has it all: a million-dollar arm, a winning season, and the promise of a Super Bowl ring. But more importantly, football’s biggest star is the ultimate comeback kid. After an addiction to painkillers nearly derailed his career, Tyson got sober and went from zero to hero in the eyes of the public. But one person remains unconvinced: Dani Carr, a sports commentator with high ratings and a following of her own. Dani can’t forgive Tyson’s transgressions or forget a single passionate night with him back in college. To make things worse, Tyson doesn’t realize that the bombshell with huge ratings is the cute co-ed whose heart he once broke.But can a sports journalist trying to claw her way to the top and a quarterback who knows all about rock bottom make it to the Super Bowl without destroying each other?And can Tyson use his million-dollar moves to get past Dani’s defenses—or will she sideline him for good . . . ?

A sexy sports superstar discovers his body isn't the only thing that needs healing in this newest Stardust, Texas novel from New York Times bestselling author Lori Wilde.With major league good looks and talent, Dallas Gunslingers relief pitcher Axel Richmond was living the good life. Even if the roar of the crowd could never distract him from the loss of his young son. But now with an injured shoulder and his career on the line, Axel is stuck recuperating at a ranch in Stardust, Texas . . . striking out only with his gorgeous physical therapist.Kasha Carlyle has one week to get Axel back in action or she can kiss her much-needed job with the Gunslingers goodbye. And any chance to seek custody of the orphaned half-sister she never knew existed. She quickly learns that Axel's guarded heart also needs healing . . . requiring all kinds of sneaky plays and sexy moves in extra innings.Praise for Lori Wilde's Stardust, Texas Series and Love Of The Game?Amusing, passionate, and rampant with sexual tension, this magic dusted escapade is just plain fun and a wonderful harbinger of things to come. Wilde is an expert at developing endearing Texas communities and here gives fans another one to savor.??Library Journal?[A] sweet and sexy story of first love, small towns, and family.??Booklist?Wilde brings readers to Stardust, Texas, where baseball and romance are the name of the game . . . Wilde has another winner.??RT Book Reviews

Every dream comes with a price . . .Dallas.Sacrifice. I'm familiar with it.I've had to leave behind everyone I cared about?my sister, my best friend, my band, and my high school sweetheart?in order to chase my dream of making it in Nashville.But when Robyn Breeland walks back into my life, it's as if the universe has decided to give me a second chance. I'm just not sure it's one I'm willing to take.Robyn.Heartbreak. I practically majored in it.Dallas Lark was the first boy I ever loved and the one who'd shattered my heart into pieces. But I've moved on. Working in promotions at Midnight Bay Bourbon, I'm too busy to sit around moping over my ex. But when my company decides to sponsor his tour, I'll have to face him whether I'm ready to or not. Dallas is determined to drive me to distraction, and my body begs me to let him.Trouble is, my heart can't tell the difference between a second chance and making the same mistake twice.

Ride Around Shining is the story of an aimless white guy who lies his way into the world of black basketball players, bathing in their reflected glory until his adoration turns to envy and destruction. Despite a history of accidents, Jess lands a job as a chauffeur for an up-and-coming Trail Blazer named Calyph West and his young wife, Antonia. Calyph is black and Antonia is white and Jess becomes fascinated, innocuously at first, by all they are that he is not. But in striving to make himself indispensable to them, he causes Calyph to have a season-ending knee injury, then brings about the couple's estrangement, before positioning himself at last as their perverse savior.In the tradition of The Talented Mr. Ripley, The Great Gatsby, and Harold Pinter's The Servant?not to mention a certain Shakespeare play about a creepy white dude obsessed with a black dude?Ride Around Shining tries to say the unsayable about white fixation on black culture, particularly black athletic culture, something so common in everyday life it has gone all but unaddressed.