Tristan Holt is nothing if not pragmatic. Despite a flourishing career as a defenseman for the Atlanta Venom, Tristan knows he can’t play hockey forever. One day he’ll retire—if an injury doesn’t force him to hang up his skates first. His backup plan? Finishing his business degree. But he doesn’t count on a very inappropriate attraction to his standoffish sociology professor, Sebastian Cruz.

Sebastian is on the bottom rung of the Sociology Department at Georgia State. He has his sights set on tenure, and he can’t afford to be distracted, especially not by a sexy student with a body straight out of Sebastian’s dreams. No matter how much Tristan tempts him, that’s one line Sebastian won’t cross. At least not until summer classes end. After that, everything is fair game.

But Sebastian lives loud and proud, and Tristan is terrified of being the first out player in the NHL. Neither of them can afford to risk their hearts when they can’t imagine a happily ever after. The problem is, unlike hockey, when it comes to love, there are no rules.

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I loved this story and these characters so much! Tristan is so sweet and I love how gentel and kind he is. Sebastian comes off as uptight and harsh but truly loves Tristan. Some of the kinks they engange in could be a torn off to some readers and while it wasn't totally necessary to the storyline, it wasn't over done to be overwhelming.

I will indefinably be reading more from Avon Gale and Piper Vaughn.

hockey and men go hand in hand. This is about 2 guys finding each other and learning to makes others realize it is ok to.

So this book reminded me a little bit of Annabeth Albert's All Note Long in that it had a romance with a person in the spotlight who wasn't comfortable with being out and gay. That's pretty much where the similarities end, though.

On top of that trope, we have a teacher / student romance. Sort of. It wasn't something that was largely telegraphed to me, and it's clear from the trajectory of the whole novel that it isn't meant to be the focal point. Tristan and Sebastian first meet because Sebastian is the teacher for one of his summer classes. But Tristan is also a professional ice hockey player and the way that he's written is as a mature adult who has lived his own life before coming back to study.

And the romance doesn't *technically* start until after Sebastian has graded Tristan's papers and he has passed and finished the class.

An interesting thing that this book did well was comparing Tristan's staying in the closet to Sebastian's not wanting to introduce Tristan to his workmates in case they recognised him as one of his former students.

The biggest bone that I had to pick with this novel was a pacing issue in the first half where it felt as though, to me at least, there was a great deal of sex and little to no negotiation or plot. Negotiation particularly would have fixed a lot of this problem for me. The two main characters enter into a dominant/submissive interplay in the bedroom, and many of the times when Sebastian asked whether Tristan was okay, or Tristan confirmed he was okay, was in the middle of a sex scene rather than at some other more neutral time.

I have read a lot of sports romance books over the years and can honestly say that hockey romances are my all time favorite. Avon Gale and Piper Vaughn are both very strong authors and they have put together an amazing story in Off the Ice!

The Overview

Okay, Tristan is a professional hockey player and smart enough to know that this could end in a heartbeat. He is going back to school part-time to finish his business degree as a fallback plan. His sociology professor makes him squirm in his seat but Sebastian fights their attraction every step of the way. At least until the class grades are in. Then, he gives in to the attraction that he just can’t fight anymore!

The Characters

I loved these main characters. Tristan is more than a jock. He may be big and tough but he has brains to go with the brawn. He also has no desire to be in charge in the bedroom. Which is great because Sebastian’s teacher voice is HOT when he tells him exactly what to do in bed!

For someone who has dedicated their career to the study of people, Sebastian makes a few pretty big screwups when it comes to Tristan. However, he owns up to his mistakes which I really like to see. I think it is a sign of maturity and there is a nice age gap to go along with the student/teacher kink.

These are complex characters with well developed back stories and no major drama or angst to stress over.

The Heat

If kink is your thing and you love sport romance books, you will LOVE Off the Ice. There is the age difference, the teacher/student role-playing, BDSM (dominance and submission mainly…and nothing really extreme), and a bit of humiliation which isn’t really my thing. It isn’t cringe-worthy but it is definitely a part of their relationship in the bedroom. There is insta LUST but they don’t act on things until they are no longer actually teacher and student. The love develops slowly and the relationship is thoughtfully created to bring emotion to the sex scenes. Definitely lots of heat in this one!

The angst

The only real angst is Tristan’s sexuality and his pro hockey career. Sebastian is out, very much so, and will not live a closeted life. Tristan has no desire to be the first publicly gay pro hockey player. They struggle to come up with a solution that will work for them and I like the way things ended. Realistically happy!

If you love sport romance books, I definitely suggest getting Off the Ice by Avon Gale and Piper Vaughn!

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Avid Reader – ☆☆☆☆
3.5 stars
M/M Sports Romance, undertones of power play

This was a sweet story about preconceived notions and fighting the urge to hide. However, it is also very similar to a lot of other secretly gay, awesome sports player stories.

Tristan is a great defense player for a national hockey team. He is also gay and in the closet. He is working hard, despite being a full-time pro athlete, to obtain a degree in case the worst should happen and he were to be unable to play. I really liked his dedication to his education and his forward thinking about his future. I think that was what made this book somewhat different from the other stories that deal with closeted pro athletes.

Then you have Sebastian. He is a professor and wants to make sure that his career is long. He tries to stay away from students in a romantic way, but when he sees Tristan he is immediately intrigued. Of course, he also makes a very poor first impression.

Despite their attraction and their obvious chemistry, Sebastian does not want to be back in the closet and Tristan does not want to be the poster boy for gay athletes.

Overall, it's a nice story about love and trust, accepting yourself, and hoping for the best. I do hope that some of Tristan's teammates get their own story as I thought that they were very helpful in progressing the story.


Sarah – ☆☆☆☆☆
This is pretty much the perfect romance for me. I loved the idea of an NHL player finishing his degree during the off season and I loved the romance between the brawny hockey player and his brainy professor even more.

Avon Gale is my absolute favourite hockey romance writer. I love the sense of family that Tristan finds in his team and I love the irreverent banter between teammates. However, this story is called Off the Ice for a reason. The focus of the book is Tristan’s life beyond hockey. I loved his cautious approach to his wealth, his careful planning for the future, and his struggle to balance a relationship and a career. He is an intelligent and thoughtful character who feels much older than he is.

Sebastian is an equally brilliant character. I fell in love with him immediately after his first “No shit, Sherlock” response to a paper he was grading. He passionate and thoughtful – and clueless about hockey. I love that he appreciates Tristan’s mind before he even knows who he is.

I really enjoyed the kink in Sebastian and Tristan’s relationship. This is a sexy story and the D/s relationship is hot because the power exchange feels natural and exciting for these two characters – without any of the tired tropes used in most generic BDSM erotic romance.

This collaboration between Gale and Vaughn brings readers the best of both authors and I really loved the story. I’m hoping this is the start of a new series because there are several characters on the Venom team that I’d love to get to know a whole lot better.


Angie – ☆☆☆☆
HOT for teacher! I am not sure how many more hockey books we can have with the plot being "I am gay and play hockey" but this one worked for me. I loved Sebastian and Tristan. They just worked for me. Not only was there hot sex but they joked around, they had some things in common, and they both brought something to the table. The age gap worked for me too, as well as the kink factor; I am usually not into mild humiliation, but the authors made it work for me. One of my favorite parts was when Tris was quizzing Seb over hockey questions and his sexual rewards. Good book with not a lot of angst or drama.


Lee’Anne – ☆☆☆☆
I’m giving the story 4 stars, but I’d definitely give the steam in this book a solid 5 stars! Sebastian and Tristan really heat the pages up!

Tristan is an up and coming hockey player who knows that hockey won’t last forever. He’s decided to go back to school and finish his degree so that he has a backup plan after his career with Venom ends. Tristan knows his Sociology class is going to be tough, but he has no idea how tough until his super hot professor walks in. Though Sebastian teaches about not judging by the way someone looks he’s very quick to judge Tristan as a know-it-all athlete who is trying to breeze through his class, even if he is pretty on the eyes. When one of Tristan’s papers is plagiarized, Sebastian is quick to lay the blame on Tristan assuming he’s the one to have done the plagiarizing… and so begins their intense relationship. Though the attraction is seriously intense, the two know that they have to wait until the class is complete before they can pursue anything – so the day that class ends, the two are all over one another.

I really enjoyed that this book felt like it had two plots – there was Tristan in school getting with Sebastian and then his battle with coming out as gay in the NHL world. It made the book that much harder to put down. Tristan and Sebastian’s story is powerful and inspiring. I look forward to more from these authors!


Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
I really enjoyed this sports romance with a touch of academia thrown in. It introduces a new series, which I think will be a winner – and I am looking forward to the next one already!

I read a lot of this genre, and keep thinking there is a limited life on the being the first to come out in a sport, but it is done well, and with the second angle of the student-professor relationship, the issue is not overplayed. The kink is absolutely delicious and made the story much richer, as well as being super hot.

RJ was a great foil for Seb and his issues and concerns, and clearly a good friend, and huge hockey fan. We also got to meet a number of other hockey players, with a few hints as to who might get their story told next.

If you are a hockey fan, like a bit of D/s, and the frisson of a professor-student attraction, then you will enjoy this.

★★★★☆ 3,5 stars for this funny and hot story about an ice hockey player and a sociology professor with an angsty bit of real life problems that sadly exist when you don't fit the norm 

The story is told in two different POV's. Tristan's, an ice hockey player who goes back to university in his spare time because he wants to have something for when his sports career will end someday. And Sebastian, the hot sociology professor Tristan gets to drool over each class. They'd both like nothing more to get the other nacked and spend some sweaty quality time together. Sebastian's got a policy though. Do not sleep with the students, it's called and Sebastian wants to abide by this rule. Good thing the semester is ending soon.



Overall the book was great, it has quality and charm but I just could't bring myself to care for Sebastian. I don't know why, I just couldn't give a shit about the guy. Tristan was a cute little muffin though! So that kind of saved the book for me. They were both very well done characters though, complex with backstory and even the side characters didn't feel flat. Also A+ for conversation, something quite a few books fuck up. As well as the writing in general, some scenes I just loved so much, they were gold!

"I doodled your name in the cover," Tristan had joked, grinning.

"With little hearts around it?"

"Nah." Tristan had winked. "Dicks. Not little, though."

Another thing that just wasn't for me was the slight dom/sub, spanking and slight humiliation kink. I just didn't like those scenes. So, usually I would give the book less stars, but those scenes were well done by Gale and Vaughn as well, so I just feel like I have to give stars due to the quality. There are enough people out there who appreciate the kinks in this story and I can definietly rec this story if you like them.

All in all a very well done story and I'll definietly remember the authors and check goodreads for someof their other works because I loved the writing and witty sentences that caugth me off guard quite a few times and had me laugh out loud.

Gay closeted pro hockey player and his college professor? Sign me up! Tristan is a successful hockey player for Atlanta Venom but he’s not letting that success be the dictating force of his life. He knows it scan all go away with one simple injury, and on best case scenario he needs to be make sure he is financially ready to retire when the time comes. So he wants to finish his business degree while also continuing his pro hockey career. He ends up taking a sociology class during his off season with sexy professor Sebastian and the sparks of attraction are pinging from the very first moment he sees him.

There are so many things about this book that worked for me! First off, the student/teacher trope. Although their relationships didn’t develop physically until they weren’t student/teacher anymore I still always find this setup very sexy and I especially like this in this one. I didn’t think it had any taboo element to it. There’s also an age difference between them with Sebastian being older than Tristan, obviously. And then there’s the fact that big, muscly hockey player Tristan not only is a bottom but he has some very specific things that turn him on. I’ll have to admit some of those turn ons are usually things I steer clear of because I’m not a big fan (i.e. humiliation) but I didn’t really have any problems with them in this story. I think the authors made them seem natural to the character and the moments they chose to incorporate them in.

They are both also dealing with real issues. Sebastian has been out as a gay man and having to go back in the closet to have a relationship with Tristan is a struggle. Tristan not wanting to be the first NHL out player. Even the stigma of Sebastian dating a former student with the rest of the faculty members. I thought there was a nicely rounded story with issues they had to overcome that didn’t feel made up. Excellent job!

Overall, I fell hard for these two. Their chemistry, their honesty with each other, the way they didn’t hold back their emotions when they were together. This felt mature, sexy AND sweet all wrapped in one package. I really enjoyed them together and can’t wait to read more from this series. Anxiously awaiting the next one.

Steamy hot chemistry between the two. Not sure that humiliation as a kink works for me but I thought it was handed well.

This book just did not hold my attention. Had to DNF at about 20%

I wanted to DNF this book for sure more than 10 times, my last time was at around 80%. But then I thought, you suffered already too long, you can do it, you can finish it. I did, but I have to be honest: I skimmed through the last half of the book.

I belong to the very minority with my opinion about this student/teacher romance. I didn't like it. Though during the first chapters I really believed that it could be a good plotted novel: Tristan Holt, a closeted NHL ice hockey player decides to finish his business degree and for this reason takes a summer class in sociology. Sebastian Cruz, an openly gay sociology professor, who doesn't even know how to skate, not to mention how to play ice hockey, feels attracted to his new student the first time he sees him in his class. The feelings are mutual. They manage somehow to keep their attraction to themselves until the summer class ends. AND AFTER nothing could keep them back.
The moment their affair ACTUALLY starts the whole story suddenly leaves the paths of reality and turns into a dom/sub sex exaggeration. I can't believe I say it, but it is sex that ruined this book for me. I don't understand where Tristan's submissive behavior came from and why Sebastian turned into a ridiculously dominant lover, but it was not authentic, not convincing, not hot, because for me it felt like a bad caricature. And it was just toooo much of it. TOO FUCKING MUCH (please pardon my French). The cherry on the cake - insta love. All other good topics (among others, Tristan's coming out) got simply lost in endless forced dirty talks and sunk in the sea of cum. Very pity.

More a traditional romance, with a side order of hockey, fans of the writing duo of Avon Gale and Piper Vaughn will be thrilled with Off the Ice, the first in their new Hat Trick series. There is a definite style in the combination of these two fine authors which is an interesting contrast to how each of them writes on their own. Very polished, the authors’ final product is a story with a great message, interesting characters, and fiery romantic scenes (it’s okay to infer I’m saying the sex is hot!).

Alternating between both main characters’ points-of-view, Off the Ice is the story of closeted NHL hockey player Tristan Holt and out-and-proud university professor Sebastian Cruz. A good deal of the novel is about their initial attraction, the build up to establishing their relationship, and the sparks that fly when they get together.

With a message about accepting yourself for who you are and doing what needs to be done to assure your integrity, Off the Ice will resonate with readers.

Both Tristan and Sebastian have issues to deal with, but when they come together, face the problems, and work for a resolution...well the chemistry between these two is spectacular.

There’s a slight age gap and power differential and toppy Sebastian sees the submissive in Tristan almost right away. Once he encourages Tristan to speak up about his desires, Sebastian leads them into an adventurous romantic relationship.

These boys get down and dirty in the best possible way, and it certainly kept me scrolling along.

Gale and Vaughn establish a really nice flow to this book. I love how Sebastian and Tristan progress from their initial lust to the security of a more established relationship. Watching Tristan grow comfortable enough to make his needs known, and how Sebastian assures Tristan he’ll get the job done, really illustrates the chemistry between these two guys. And it continues outside their sexual relationship as they face every day issues throughout the story.

The authors set the stage nicely in Off the Ice with the promise of future novels surrounding players from the Atlanta Venom hockey team. The goalie Ryu Mori, who is also closeted, and the team captain Daniel Bellamy, who is coming out as bisexual, promise to be intriguing stories and I’ll be looking forward to reading them both. Hopefully very soon!

*3.5 stars*

I liked this, at times very much, but when I reflected back on the story about a week after I read it, nothing stood out to me, which isn't a great thing.

I was one of the few who didn't love Avon Gale's collaboration with Piper Vaughn, and though I ADORE Avon Gale's solo works, I think I'll steer clear of her work with Piper in the future. It just doesn't give me that *squee* feeling.

I was drawn to this book because it has SO many themes that I enjoy. I love kink, age gaps, and hockey players. I think the authors did a pretty good job with those themes, but I wasn't 100% blown away, even though I enjoyed the writing overall.

I found the college class to be a little too preachy for me, to be honest. Yes, I get that the book touched upon many important issues, but it came across as didactic and sanctimonious. It is tricky to strike the right balance when you are "teaching the readers," and I don't think this book quite got there.

The kink was nice, honestly, and one of my favorite dynamics is a bigger guy as the bottom in the relationship, but I wanted a bit more from the kink. It reminded me of Permanent Ink in that way. I like my kinky books super kinky!

I know I'm sort of harping on the negatives, but I did like this book. I think these two guys went through a lot to be together, and I'm a sucker for a grumpy, snarky MC. However, I don't know if I will continue on with this series as I don't seem to connect with this writing duo as much as other readers.


**ARC provided through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**

Off the Ice is a very promising start to this new hockey-themed series. I was hooked on past hockey books by Avon Gale and was excited to get my grubby fingers on the one, too.It started off a little strange for me but once I got used to Sebastian’s “ways”, I was good to go. The BDSM factors are very tame compared to some stories, but the super controlling ways leaning towards humiliation took a few for me to wrap my brain around. Once I realized it was done out of love, and it was what Tristan needed, I was good to go.

Tristan is a young, professional hockey player. Young, hot, and very big. He is also super sweet and I fell for him almost instantly. He is also closeted. Sebastian is his summer school professor. Tristan wants to go back and finish his degree. What he wasn’t expecting was to find out he was more hot for teacher than he was for sociology. Sebastian is out and proud and a bit older than Tristan. He is also fearful of beginning something with a student that could jeopardize his tenure chances. This two really are not good on paper…they should not work, but they are combustible in the bedroom and that keeps them both breaking their own rules. Which eventually leads to feelings.

It took me a while to finish this book, but that was only because I needed to wrap my mind around their relationship. It wasn’t a bad one, just different for me. I’ve read many books by both authors so I knew I just needed to give it a bit of time, and it worked. I ended up really loving it and I think most readers will, too.

Off the Ice is the story of Tristan, a hockey player who goes back to college to finish his degree, and Sebastian, his college Professor. Tristan has not come out yet and deals with the fear of being the first hockey player to come out.
The story is more than your average sports novel. It is well written with interesting characters and a unique storyline. Be aware that this is a M/M storyline.
I received an ARC from Netgalley for my honest review.

This is a MM sports romance. As the title suggest the sport in the book is hockey, it also involves a university professor. With a May/December romance between them, these two very different men have a very interesting story. I like sports romances and this one did not disappoint. The characters are well developed and the book was hard to put down. This is my first read from these two authors, I have read them separately, but not as a team. I received a copy of this book from the publisher. This review is my opinion.

I love a really well written sports romance and this one was really well done! We have all kinds of wonderful things in this book - two great characters, opposites attracting, some hockey, student/teacher, dirty talk and some mild kink as well! We also get a relationship that builds - instant lust but thankfully no instant love. We also get two characters who have some hard decisions to make but take the time to think it through and all the ramifications of those decisions.

This book centers around Tristan Holt who is a 23 year old NHL hockey player who is in the closet to his family, his team and the world at large. He knows that hockey won't be his life forever and he wants a back-up plan so he decides to finish his degree. His first class is a sociology class where he meets his professor Sebastian Cruz. Sebastian is only teaching summer classes in hopes that it helps him get tenure. He is broody and gruff and although he is teaching about bias he makes one of his own about Tristan. Thankfully, he own up to it quickly and the two get to know each other a little better. They are both very attracted to each other but they also know that because of the student/teacher relationship they can't act on it. That doesn't mean they can't fantasize about each other though and once the grades are in all bets are off.

Sebastian is quite a bit older than Tristan and a dominant personality. I loved that he was the dominant one in the bedroom but out of it they were equals. The sex between them was super hot and I liked that they didn't rush into the I love yous. There was a bit of humiliation play which I don't really like but it wasn't so much that it made me uncomfortable. In fact, I thought the author did a great job of having Sebastian give Tristan exactly what he needed and wanted.

The angst was derived from the fact that Sebastian was out and proud and didn't want to go back in the closet and Tristan wasn't ready to come out. I thought this book did a great job of slowly letting Tristan make some decisions about coming out. <spoiler>I really liked that it was his family first, then later his team and that he didn't decide to come out to the world which I wouldn't have found believable given his reticence.</spoiler>

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and found it had everything I'm looking for in a sports romance including some excellent secondary characters that I'm really looking forward to reading about. I highly recommend this book and hope to get Ryu's story next!

In this coming out tale, Tristan and his professor Sebastian have a good spark between them, and once they are no longer in any academic relationship, Sebastian and Tristan hook up.

What was a physical attraction turns into more over the months they are together. They really are cute and fit each other quite well. But there's one sticking point -- Sebastian is out and Tristan isn't. This becomes a source of conflict between them, and it isn't going away.

I liked the exploration of the dilemma Tristan faces in Off the Ice. And since I really liked Tristan and Sebastian together, I felt his pain too. There weren't any real surprises here, so it was the interaction between the two main characters that kept me reading.

There's a definite dominant/submissive flavor to Tristan and Sebastian's relationship and their love scenes weren't the usual fare in M/M and I liked that too.

Overall, no big surprises, interesting characters and dynamics, in a fairly typical sports-themed M/M.

An ARC was provided for review.