Okay, I am not a sports girlie. So my family had to listen to about a million baseball questions as I was reading. And while I can analyze a book, it went over my head – no lies. That being said, The Prospects was still a book I deeply enjoyed! Keep reading this book review of The Prospects for my full thoughts.
Summary
Hope is familiar territory for Gene Ionescu. He has always loved baseball, a sport made for underdogs and optimists like him. He also loves his team, the minor league Beaverton Beavers, and, for the most part, he loves the career he’s built. As the first openly trans player in professional baseball, Gene has nearly everything he’s ever let himself dream of—that is, until Luis Estrada, Gene’s former teammate and current rival, gets traded to the Beavers, destroying the careful equilibrium of Gene’s life.
Gene and Luis can’t manage a civil conversation off the field or a competent play on it, but in the close confines of dugout benches and roadie buses, they begrudgingly rediscover a comfortable rhythm. As the two grow closer, the tension between them turns electric, and their chemistry spills past the confines of the stadium. For every tight double play they execute, there’s also a glance at summer-tan shoulders or a secret shared, each one a breathless moment of possibility that ignites in Gene the visceral, terrifying kind of desire he’s never allowed himself. Soon, Gene has to reconcile the quiet, minor-league-sized life he used to find fulfilling with the major-league dreams Luis makes feel possible.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
I am not a sports person, but I will make an exception for the queer sports stories. Straight sports? Boring. Queer sports? You’ve got me intrigued. Not only that, but The Prospects has a nemesis to romance with some history behind it. It’s a perfect example of a rival who gets under our skin, who points out the flaws and flags we don’t want to see, but often know. Featuring a mix of mediums, we see game clips via commentary which definitely makes the sports a bit more palatable to unknowing readers.
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The Prospects is an example of teamwork, of pushing and pulling, and opposing forces. It’s an example of not really knowing each other, seeing the things we’d wish were hidden, and also misconstruing signs. The Prospects features team dynamics, found family, and re-evaluating our dreams. Find The Prospects on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Bookshop.org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.