Hedgehog Harry

I heard about Take Him Home by Ashlyn Harmon while attending a panel at Sports Romance Con 2026. It was a panel on LGBT+ representation in sports romances and had a stacked group of panelists. I was caught off guard by how emotional I became during the event. Being in a room of people celebrating queer joy hit me hard and left me feeling grateful. When I saw Ashlyn Harmon was looking for arc readers, I didn’t walk, I ran. Well, thanks to years of volleyball, I got weak ankles, so I walked enthusiastically.

In Take Him Home out and proud country star Wyatt steps up to the plate as a fake boyfriend when his high school crush turned the Kansas City’s star hitter Adrian is publicly outed. Wyatt promises himself he won’t let old feelings reemerge but things get complicated when it seems Adrian may want more too. Will the fake boyfriends become real boyfriends? Will they find a way to live authentically in conservative, traditional career fields? And will someone adopt that adorable pittie mix with the cute name?

It can be rare to see a story that understands the benefits and obstacles of Midwest life as a member of the LGBT+ community. The author Harmon does not shy away from the fact that Adrian and Wyatt have to deal with plenty of homophobia in their perspective fields and in their location. Wyatt recognizes he has more to learn about racism in baseball and does the work there as well. Small moments like the zip line attendant/instructor talking about one of Wyatt’s songs being her and her wife’s first dance are sweet. Finding those moments of kinship in what can be an isolating part of the world is everything.

Favorite line: “How much fiddle is too much and does that answer exist in country music?”