Hedgehog Harry

Poolside by Taylor E. Weston was on the top of my list for upcoming bookclub picks. The author is attending a Romance Bookstore Day event locally at the local romance book store HEA Book Boutique and was announced as attending Sports Romance Con 2027 next summer.

Poolside is the second in the Southeastern Alumni series which starts with Courtside (reviewed here). It focused on workaholic divorceé Tommy and swim coach Chuck who have been friends since college and particularly close since Tommy’s divorce. I tag the book as friends to lovers in the graphic but I think my favorite AO3 tag – idiots to lovers – may be more accurate.

The sex scenes are spicy, evocative, and grounded. The novel deals in part with the effects mental health medications can have on libido and I found it sensitively explored. It is by far responsible for the most texts I’ve gotten from a friend over spicy scenes in a book we were both reading. And responsible for me stopping multiple times through out the day to question do I need to watch Spartacus? Answer: unclear.

The same group of close knit found family from the first book feature in Poolside. Tommy and Chuck are both somewhat isolated in different ways and Chuck becomes more so over the course of the book. Hearteningly, neither Tommy or their other friends disappear from Chuck’s life when things get difficulty. They don’t smother Chuck; they give him space as he needs it, but they don’t let him entirely isolate. It was nice to see agency intact within caretaking, which can be a delicate balance. I think Weston handled the portrayal well.