I absolutely adored this book! It is so full of heart - queer joy, trans joy, baseball joy, found family joy!
This story is an ode not just to baseball but especially to minor league baseball, to the right to dream and yearn.
This was a delight to read through and through. I couldn’t put it down!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC!

Gene and Luis used to play baseball together in college, but things didn't necessarily end well. Luis got drafted to play in the major leagues and promptly left with no word. Luis got bumped down to the minor leagues due to an injury and has landed himself on the same team as Gene. The two keep butting heads on and off the field, and it's affecting their game. They come to a tentative truce, but eventually become friends again. Both Gene and Luis have to learn how to want things for themselves - be it a relationship or dreams of being on a major league team.

There were a couple of points that dragged a bit, and I found myself skimming those, but this novel was truly fun to read. Things I loved:
-Sports romance
-Rivals to lovers
-Gene and Nada were adorable together
-All of the characters felt fully realized, even side characters
-The queer representation, and the fact that while it is part of the story, it's not the driving force

I would highly recommend this book and my library will be purchasing a copy.

Sports and Romance? Always count me in! I absolutely loved reading this and it had me smiling from ear to ear. I really hope people read this book because it was so amazing!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐⭐
🌶️🌶️

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗲𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆:
- Baseball Romance
- Trans Rep
- Rivals to Friends to Lovers
- Hint of Second Chance

KT Hoffman got me good with this one. To be completely transparent, The Prospects was my first read with a trans MC and as a straight cis woman, I wasn’t sure if I would be able to relate to the story but because of Hoffman’s writing, I felt connected to these characters from the start of the book.

The Prospects is fully immersed in the baseball world and as a fan of the sport, I loved it. If you don’t know much about baseball, don’t worry about it! That won’t take away anything from the story.

Gene and Luis compliment each other perfectly with Gene’s sweet optimism and Luis’s quiet cinnamon roll personality. Butterflies still pop up in my stomach when I think about them.

I would love to see people pick this one up on pub day and start it in tandem with the actual MLB season! That would make this already great read just that more fun!

This was everything I needed it to be. These characters just BLEW ME AWAY. It was real, honest, messy, earnest, and so full of the wonder of being seen and loved for exactly who you are. As a non-binary trans person, reading trans characters that resonate is rare, but this was so affirming—Gene was so affirming. And the book’s banter and flirting and heat???? So effortlessly sexy. This book was so hopeful in a time for trans folks that is anything but. Gene’s positivity and belief in himself and the life he wants and knows he deserves is galvanizing. Read this. It’s pure serotonin.

When I saw “The Prospects”, I knew right away that I needed to read it! I was in love with the cover, and when I heard it was a queer sports romance I was absolutely smitten right away. The plot revolves around Gene, a loud and proud trans man, working his ass off on a minor league baseball team to make it big; when he finds out that an old teammate from college, Luis Estrada, is being traded to his new team, his world kind of tips upside down, and their journey from rivals to friends to lovers is one heck of a rollercoaster of emotions.

The banter between the characters is my fave, and I really liked that the side characters were just as loveable and relatable as the main characters. There is so much diversity in the characters and I was absolutely delighted by it! With that being said, there were moments when the author's take on mental illness felt a bit too in-your-face. I don't always like when a character kind of flat out says “I'm doing this because of my *insert mental illness here*.” I like a more subtle approach… But it didn't make enough of a difference that I didn't want to keep reading.

The love story between Luis and Gene…it's phenomenal. They were silly and sexy and I just wanted to give them both so many squeezes. I loved how supportive they were of each other and how organic their ups and downs felt. I also really enjoyed how the author explored what it means to chase your passions and dreams and what that looks like when those dreams and priorities sometimes change

Overall, "The Prospects" is a beautiful romance. Luis and Gene's story is well worth the read, and despite the few personal quirks I noted, it's a book I will be purchasing once it releases…AND recommending to all of my friends!

The Prospects by KT Hoffman was a pure joy to read!! The characters felt so real and fully fleshed out, as did the world of minor league baseball (a sport I typically find very boring but became very invested in while reading!!). I loved the insight into Gene’s head and learning about his history coming out as both trans and gay and how that affected his journey with baseball. It’s hard to discuss more details without spoilers, but I also loved Luis’ anxiety representation, and most of all the unabashed queer joy throughout! I loved this author’s writing style, and I particularly loved his ability to “show not tell” an issue I have with many other romance novels that I end up feeling fall short because they’re telling me a lot of things but not showing me why they matter. Not here; Hoffman has this down! Can’t wait for more from this author!

The Prospects is such a great addition to the sports romance genre! Baseball is by far my favorite sport and as someone who lives right by Beaverton, I was so excited when I was approved for an eARC of this book. I loved all of the complex relationships that were explored (both romantic and platonic) and the romance between our two main characters, Gene and Luis, was beautiful. The journey both our main characters go on is well written and delicately handled. It’s hard to believe this is a debut book- I can’t wait to read more from Hoffman in the future!

A love story to baseball (mostly the minor league variety) and human love….in all it’s varieties Gene is a trans, gay man who’s also a terrific baseball player on the verge of breaking into the major leagues. Currently, this scenario is almost fairy tale-like but The Prospects’ aspirational love story is sweet and feels very real. When Gene was a freshman at Stanford, he made the varsity baseball team and met Luis who was a senior. They won the College Baseball World Series…Gene stayed to finish his degree and Luis was recruited to the majors. Gene never told Luis about his feeling and Luis left without saying goodbye. Now, 8 years later, they’re on the same triple A team and it’s awkward to say the least. Luis had a car accident that’s kept him in the minors and Gene was never scouted for the majors and has worked hard to make his way up through the minor league system. Both of these guys have baggage and scars and anxieties but they are so right for each other…they just have to be open to love.

I learned a lot about transphobia and how some things people say can be taken in a different way or inadvertently be offensive.

I'm definitely the odd one out here in not loving this one. The story was alright, there were definitely times when I was in it, but then it would go flat for me again. I'm not quite sure why. The writing was fine, I liked the characters well enough (Gene in particular), but I'm only feeling lukewarm in the end (which usually means it's a me problem and not a book problem). I'm glad there are more enthusiastic reviews though. If the blurb sounds good to you, check it out.


Note: I received a free electronic edition of this book via NetGalley in exchange for the honest review above. I would like to thank them, the publisher, and the author for the opportunity to do so.

This was absolutely perfect. It was emotional, funny, hopeful, and just so, so good. There was trans rep, adhd rep, anxiety rep, and it was all so well done and well written. The character growth for both of the main characters throughout the book was really great, and I loved watching Gene and Luis' relationship grow into friendship, into a romantic relationship. They worked so well together, and the author did such a great job writing their relationship. I honestly can't articulate how much I enjoyed this book, and I think it will end up in my top ten for 2024! I would completely recommend this debut, and I can't wait to see what KT Hoffman writes next!

I enjoyed this so much! Definitely was very reminiscent of Casey McQuiston & Anita Kelly’s stories & that is a complimenttt! KT Hoffman, everyone is gonna know your name soon! Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for this ARC.

A really heartwarming happy fuzzy feeling inducing romance. Gene is a great character, he's just a GOOD GUY. He has his baggage but he TRIES. It's also really fun to read someone just love what they do, and find so much joy in it. Usually characters are so dispassionate or stressed to the max by other life issues, and while Gene does have his stress...he's still enthusiastic about life. I enjoyed him so much. And Luis, ahh I love him. He's so quiet and intensely in his own head. Watching him come out of his shell and just be a solid rock that Gene can trust and rely on is so GOOD. I really love them together so much. This just made me so happy while reading it.

This book is so incredibly special. It was such a beautiful, optimistic, and hopeful love story & I loved every minute of it! Thank you so much to Net Galley for letting me read this one early. (I also don’t like baseball but the author made it sound interesting and fun and special ???? 10/10 writing)

I was excited to read this book about a trans man baseball player. This book was good, but it could have used some editing. The dialogue rambled at times and the story dragged at points. I also think that it was missing that x factor chemistry between the two main characters. I felt disconnected from them and their love story at times.

They had this history, which was revealed to be pretty significant later on, in my opinion, but it wasn't really flushed out. Some flashback scenes could have worked to elaborate on that. It also would have helped build the enemies vibe a bit more.

There were many things I liked about this book. It was a beautiful story of a trans man finding love and success in a field where it feels like the odds are stacked against him. I loved the scenes where Luis and Gene made kickass plays on the field - it was exciting! And the sex scenes in this book were superb!

This was a decent debut book and I hope to read more by this author.

Steam level: 🔥🔥🔥

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I've been following this book since it was known as The Keystone Combination. I immediately fell in love with Gene and his story of learning it's okay to want things. I had some trouble with all the baseball terminology but it did not take away from the story. The pacing felt right, the side characters were charming, and I felt a spectrum of emotions.

If you like:
- Gay sports anime ⚾️
- A ray of sunshine short king 🏳️‍⚧️
- Anxiety representation
- Open door spice 🌶
- Cheering for the underdogs
- Roasting as your love language 🩷
- Having emotions and feeling them

Read this book

This is an incredible debut novel! This story filled my heart with so much warmth, hope, queer joy, and love.

The Prospects is a heartfelt, feel-good sports romance following, Gene, an optimistic transgender minor league baseball player, who, at the beginning of the novel finds out his former teammate/friend turned rival has been traded to his team. The Prospects is so funny and so full of joy and hope, while also exploring themes of gender, sexuality, anxiety, and how to deal with change. I didn’t think a book could make me care about baseball *this* much, but it had me rooting for Gene, Luis, and this lovable team of underdogs. I really enjoyed this novel and look forward to reading more by KT Hoffman in the future.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group, Dial Press Trade Paperback, and NetGalley for access to this arc!

When I first heard about this book in September, I knew instantly I had to read it. This book was so good, I almost can’t believe it is the author’s debut. This is also the second romance novel I’ve read with a trans MC and I loved how different Gene’s experience here was different from the previous trans MC of another novel showing that the trans experience is far from one size fits all. Gene’s eternal optimism mixed with Luis’s anxious nature was a perfect fit together. The care and love they showed for each other and what made them different was truly beautiful.

I also want to say I think this novel comes at a great time with the current discourse about trans athletes (though reality is more focused against trans women athletes). Reding about the additional testing Gene had to endure was eye-opening and I can only imagine how dehumanizing that can begin to feel.

Beyond that, I loved this novel. I love seeing queer love and I’m so excited to see more trans love represented in the romance genre. I especially love reading these stories from authors within the queer community.

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!