Thoughtfully written sports romance with excellent queer rep, witty dialogue, and a satisfying conclusion to the love story.

Alternating between when they meet for the first time, years ago, and the present where they meet again, we get to know Zach and Eugenio, where they are baseball players, lovers, and part of a family.
Bit by bit the picture unfolds before our eyes, what they’ve been through.
The consistency is strong, nothing escapes the author’s attention throughout the story.
Like Zach’s hard hearing, that he’s Jewish, his physics, every part of baseball, everything is present.
A lot of baseball business comes along, it’s the core, of course, the emotional and physical ups and downs of sportsmen.

Zach is aware of his every move, he can’t show the world how he feels about Eugenio, he can’t risk it for even one second. Zach doesn’t allow himself much, not even looking at Eugenio in a certain way. He’s strongly convinced staying in the closet is the best thing to do, even if it costs him the love of his life.

Even though there is love, they’re not really together. Eugenio doesn’t want to continue what they have. Zach doesn’t want to be outed, everything has to go in a sneaky way. There are a lot of sorry and promises coming from Zach. There isn’t any progress. Eugenio packs his bags and is gone.
After reconnecting Zach wants a second chance.

The slow burn is torturing slow, I’m so bad with it. Oh boy, Zach was exhausting, he’s so wary, I wanted to shake him, to wake him up. Eugenio was way too patient.
The story was not very romantic, I would have loved some more intense moments. While both men were kindhearted and mature, emotionally I couldn’t feel them all the time. Zach’s character was main here, Eugenio felt minor. The baseball is hugely present, every detail is on paper. For my pleasure, it was too detailed, and way too much, I was looking for the parts where there was interaction, of any kind, between both men. The last part of this story was more my thing.
Overall a largely and widely written narrative, captivating, entertaining, and nicely developed.

Thank you to Netgalley and the published for giving me an advanced copy of this book to read and review.

I received an arc of this title from NetGalley for an honest review. I love an excellent mm romance sports book. Loved the characters in this one too.

This KD Casey book never got to my kindle. I have no clue what happened. I will buy this and review it on my own, as I like this author.

It's always difficult when your worst enemy is yourself. Zach had this in spades. Eugenio wanted and deserved more from Zach but wasn't willing to push Zach, he had to want it for himself and that was something I respected.

If a character can achieve the growth needed to be complete on their own I'm a huge, huge fan and cheer even harder when they then get their person on their team. I can't say that actually happened here in this story though. The self-acceptance was there mildly and the proud part of owning himself kind of made an appearance, but more like a shy wave from stage right rather than something more whole-hearted. It was nice, but just not compelling.

In terms of the story's overall balance, it was totally out of whack. There was not enough time spent on character growth, romantic evolution and progression, or the many side things that needed resolution and page time. We got a lot, and I do mean A LAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHTTTTT of baseball. Way, way too much to even nod at the idea of balance. Too many small details took center stage for far longer than acceptable so we didn't have much time left over to address the many more important details of the story.

This was a good book overall and a new author to me that I'll be giving another chance, I just didn't sink into the story the way I hoped. The second chance trope was well served as they ended in a much better place after they came to terms with their past, their families, one another, and for Zach, himself.

KD Casey's books make me love sports romances! They are so good at balancing the setting with the plot so that you don't feel overwhelmed by baseball.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book! The title and this beautiful cover drew me in and i was excited to read this book! I will be recommending this book to others for readers advisory.

Unwritten Rules was so incredibly tender, sweet but in the sexiest way. The dual timeline were woven together so eloquently. This book has made me fall in love with baseball, specifically catchers. KD Casey has become an instant buy for me.

The main character hates himself for being gay and thus spends the entire time treating other people, even those he loves, like total garbage. Life is simply too short for queer romance with a self-hating protagonist that reads like it was written 15 years ago.

The pacing is off, especially in the first part, and so very slow that it's almost like the author was daring the reader to start skimming the text or simply skip entire pages. I'm sure all the technical information about baseball was highly necessary in the author's mind, but I had rather had read a story about characters that weren't quite so soulless.

There was a lot of baseball in this book, and it was pretty slow. I did find some appreciation for baseball though, and I loved the disability rep in this, which I definitely wasn't expecting to be present.

I am always on the lookout for more new and wonderful authors plus, I am a HUGE fan of m/m sports romances, so this book was a no-brainer to pick up. I am, however, not a fan of second chance romances. There are only so many bridges and I probably would have set them on fire long before the characters try for seconds. Anywho... Where was I? Oh yeah... But, because this was a new-to-me author, I decided to grab Unwritten Rules and give it a whirl. Unwritten Rules is a second-chance m/m sports romance with a heavy emphasis on baseball.

The overall story was emotional with more than a little bit on man broody-angst, which is normally not a big deal for me, but in the backdrop of super baseball, sports info... well, it kind of felt a little bleak. Now, the writing definitely pulls you in, BUT the sheer amount of baseball facts and talk et al was kind of a detraction for me. I will just say that I am probably not a good target audience and leave it at that.

Further, the storylines featured dual past and present information, which really pulled me away from the overall story. For me, I'd rather have some sort of storyline in the present or past and then switch to explaining all the past/future, and then go back on with the story. I do eventually have to put the book down and then trying to remember where and when I was, just sort of pulled me away from the overarching storyline.

Zach and Eugenio's story is chock full of emotion and steam. You truly can feel their connection. As they built up to their relationship through friendship, you do actually get to witness all the feels and emotions develop, which is crucial for me. I really did like how Zach finally decided to deal with his internalized homophobia and feeling about himself. It is a pleasure to see a character grow on-page rather than come back all fixed in one fell swoop.

Overall, I really enjoyed Zach and Eugenio's story and I hope to read more from the author.

*ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

Unwritten Rules is MM second-chance sports romance. It is told from the POV of Zach, a professional baseball player and bounces between the present and 3 years ago. Throughout the past sections we see Zach realize he is attracted to Eugenio and begin and end a relationship. In the present sections we see the two find each other again and begin anew.

I really enjoyed the book and the relationship between Zach and Eugenio. Like most gay sports romances the book tackled the issues of internal and external homophobia as well as masculinity, and did so very deftly. This is a sports romance where the sport is on the page a lot. I don’t know baseball. I went to a couple games in college but have no idea how the game works so a lot of the baseball stuff was just gibberish to me and is honestly the only reason this wasn’t a 5 star book for me. I loved all the side characters and felt like they added a lot to the story. I would read more books by KD Casey.

Thank you to Carina Press, Harlequinbooks, and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Fun and steamy read - original, the banter, the teams, I just loved it. I can't wait to read more from Casey!

I’m a huge fan of queer hockey romance, so I was very excited for the opportunity to read this queer baseball romance.

The hockey romances I’ve read include gameplay scenes as an integral part of the narrative, but the focus is on the camaraderie off the ice. Zach and Eugenio are both catchers, so there isn’t as much gameplay per se, but this book places an equal emphasis—if not a dominant one—on the mechanics of baseball versus romance. I thought I knew a lot about baseball from schoolyard games and rooting for hometown teams, but this book opened my eyes to so many things I didn’t know about this quintessential American sport.

I don’t mean to imply that this is a negative aspect of the book—on the contrary, I’m so impressed by Casey’s extensive knowledge of the sport, and I appreciate its inclusion in the romance.

Speaking of which, I’m always a sucker for second chance romance, and this book delivers a big heaping spoonful of second chance. The timeline skips around from the present day, in which Zach is going to see his ex-boyfriend Eugenio again for the first time in three years—and then three years ago when they first met.
So needless to say, this book is full of *feelings*, from Zach’s regret about the way they left things, to the realization that his attraction has not waned, to the hope that he can make amends to the man he hurt. The angst level remains fairly low, but it’s a constant presence.

This is a single-POV romance, with Zach serving as narrator. He’s a fascinating protagonist: he’s a professional athlete who uses a hearing aid, and he’s also Jewish. He’s mostly secular, but he respects the traditions his parents still observe. I should point out that Eugenio is Venezuelan-American. It’s always nice to see a diverse spectrum of representation in romance novel protagonists.

Baseball players—like most professional athletes, I’d imagine—sure do eat a lot, and this book made me so hungry with all the descriptions of food. AND, there’s cooking for people as a love language, and I could just swoon.

I would absolutely recommend Unwritten Rules. This was a great book, and I’m looking forward to reading more from Casey in the future.

I received a digital ARC of this book from Carina Press/NetGalley.

Well, this is awkward...for a few months now, I have been off and on , trying to read Unwritten Rules and finally managed to finish it today; considering, I read a book a day , it's baffling.

Here is the thing , Unwritten Rules is undeniable a well written book and K. D. Casey is a very articulate and talented writer.

Yet, this is a sport story with some romantic elements to it; not the sport romance I was expecting to read. To me this tale falls more into Women Fiction than Romance.

Conclusion , one must enjoy/love the game of baseball with all it's intricacies and nuances to really appreciate this book.

I just reviewed Unwritten Rules by KD Casey. #UnwrittenRules #NetGalley

This book was read thanks to NetGalley

I want to start this saying that I am big sports fan too, so when i read the plot from this book I knew that I had to read it.


And let me tell you that it didn't disappointed me, the author touched ever single detail that you would expect in a LGBT book with sports industry in it... and they did such a good job portraying it, it felt real, it felt respectful of the journey an LGBT people usually goes to accept themselves and how sometimes society makes it harder for them.


Highly recommended.

I finished this book last night and I'm still trying to gather my thoughts, to find words that describe my feelings and to make sure I can do this book justice. Because this book was an experience. One I won't forget about easily. One that went up to my all-time favorites shelf right away. I'm sure Zach and Eugenio will stay with me for a long time. I have embraced their story and their love with both arms, ensuring them they own a place close to my heart. I truly fell in love with these guys!

I also fell in love with KD Casey's writing. This book is written in present tense and third person, solely from Zach's pov, and I know there will be readers who don't favor this way of story telling, but for me it worked perfectly.

This is a true sports romance in more ways than one. It is clear the author has a great love for this game called baseball. For me, as a non-American, living in a country where baseball is quite a small sport, I was afraid the technical side of the game would lower my enjoyment, but it didn't. Like, at all. I loved to see how sometimes the sport and its terms was used as a metaphor for Zach's behavior and his fear for coming out. It was refreshing and educational at the same time, and highly entertaining as well.

In this story we meet Zach, and from the moment I met him, I just knew I was going to love his story. The writing, being inside Zach's head, the going back and forth in time - everything about it just worked for me. Zach is in his late twenties when he meets Eugenio at spring training. He has known he is gay for quite some time, but he is deeply closeted. Fearing he might not be able to play again when someone finds out, fear for his parent's reactions, because he feels like he's one huge disappointment to them already. He has the occasional hookups when he needs to scratch an itch, but he just doesn't believe a relationship will be in the cards for him.
Until he meets Eugenio. Sweet, loving Eugenio. I fell in love with him too. The way their relationship develops felt very genuine and real. The friendship and the falling in love. Though Eugenio doesn't hide his sexuality, he is forced to keep their relationship secret. Zach tries, he really does, but the effort isn't enough. His fear is always stronger than his intentions, and it's not surprising when Eugenio gets tired of hiding, of Zach's excuses.
I loved how Zach's fear was described, because it felt so legit. Being a straight cis woman, I never had to go through what he had, so I can't relate to any of it, but it wasn't hard to imagine it would be like that. The need to at least have someone to talk to. About the longing to be yourself, about the love of your life just walking out of the door because you are not courageous enough to show the outside world who you really are. Who you love.
Eugenio walking away was Zach's wake up call. And even though Eugenio never forced Zach to come out, I also understood why he was done with hiding their relationship. He needed to tell someone too, talk to someone about how he felt, that he was in a relationship with someone he loved. But he couldn't, because of Zach, and I understood he gave up after 2 years.
We witness their love develop in flashbacks, and despite the secrecy of it, it's so sweet and endearing. And you just want to know where it went wrong and how. When it finally does, the heartbreak Zach suffers from is written so beautifully, it tugged on my heartstrings, calling on all my feelings.
So, so touching.
When they meet again after 3 years, when you get to see how miserable Zach was without Eugenio, when you see how, after everything that happened, there's still a lot of love left, you just know everything will be all right. And then you will finally be able to exhale, to let go of the breath you were holding all this time.

Needless to say that I highly recommend this book, specially for the readers who love a well written sports romance. Baseball fans will be delighted with this book!!

This book gives good romance and good baseball. Two thumbs up. I hadn't read anything by KD Casey before but if this turns into a series I will definitely be checking it out.

I love me some queer sports romance. I was super into the idea of flipping between past and present interactions, of knowing their breakup was inevitable but still rooting for them to succeed. It was also great to see a HoH character whose makes adjustments for his disability without it being a focal point of the plot.

That said, Unwritten Rules was…okay. I had trouble getting through the prose: it often felt like watching a scratched disc skipping, with scenes that continue across inexplicable short jumps in time. The past/present scenes felt unbalanced, and I kept feeling two steps behind when flipping between time periods. I also found the baseball jargon difficult; I much prefer sports stories where the sport aspect is more accessible to a layperson.

I stuck it out longer than I would a straight, able-bodied romance but probably wouldn’t have finished otherwise.