Sports Romance
Love beyond the biceps: Virile heroes loved for their souls, not just their physical hunkitude.
Sports Romance
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Read-&-Rated Favorites (⭐ 3.5+)
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Consider Me by Becka Mack
⭐ 4.25
HOT, HEA
“Something about Carter is so comforting. A man who is so hot on the outside, but a massive nerd on the inside.” - Penelope Black
“Carter: ‘Just consider me.’ Me: Combusts.” - Cardigan B
Hockey, Golden Retriever, Reformed Playboy, Independent FMC, Sweet & Spicy Banter, Disney-Loving MMC, Tall MMC/Short FMC, Teacher (FMC), Tall MMC (6'4''+)
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He's Not My Type by Meghan Quinn
⭐ 4.25
HOT, HEA
“Loved Halsey's story. Sweet and quiet by day and the has the dirtiest mouth by night. I love his text chain with the hockey boys - especially all of Levi's advice. They are such great friends.” - Penelope Black
Hockey, Forced Proximity, Only One Bed, Roommate, Longtime Crush, Loss of Sibling, Found Family, Tall MMC, Dirty Talker
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Kulti by Mariana Zapata
⭐ 4.25
MILD, HEA
“I loved how the author didn't kill the reader with an abundance of mundane, unnecessary details. She went from one scene to the next seamlessly.” - Penelope Black
“Sloooooooow burn and then complete ignition.” - Cardigan B
Sports, Enemies to Lovers, Soccer, 25+ FMC, 35+ MMC, Age Gap, German MMC, Grumpy/Sunshine, Latina/Hispanic FMC, Coach/Athlete, Childhood Celebrity Crush, Slow Burn, Divorcing MMC
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Stand and Defend by Sloane St. James
⭐ 4.25
HOT, HEA
“Completely and unexpectedly loved this book. Carter is still my number 1, Halsey my number 2 and Banksy a solid 3. It was a tad too cutesy for me at the end and I wanted to vomit a little, but I will let it slide.” - Penelope Black
Hockey, Abusive Relationship, Innocent FMC, Confessional/Mirror Kink, Bodyguard, Forced Proximity, Roommates, Touch Her and Die Vibes, Slow Burn, Grumpy/Sunshine, 30+ MMC, 30+ FMC, Stalker, Dirty Talker, Aftercare, Exploring Fantasies, Sports, Pro-Athlete
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The Score by Elle Kennedy
⭐ 4.25
MEDIUM, HEA
“I was waiting FOREVER for Dean’s book. I knew there was more to him than the clown of the group. And oh boy I wasn’t disappointed. I will say I rather enjoyed his bath scene with the vibrator (it’s not what you think, but he totally owned it).” - Penelope Black
Friends with Benefits, Forced Proximity, Roommate, Found Family, College/University Students, Personal Growth Journey, Opposites Attract, Hockey
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The Boyfriend Goal by Lauren Blakely
⭐ 4.0
MEDIUM, HEA
“New fave sports romance author. This book felt so mature and open, it left me feeling cozy.” - Cardigan B
Roommate, Hockey, FMC has Overprotective Brother/Male Relatives, Opposites Attract, MMC is A Golden Retriever, Fish out of Water, Love Letter Lunacy, Forbidden Love Interest, One Night Stand, Sports
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Caught Up by Liz Tomforde
⭐ 4.0
MEDIUM, HEA
“Out of the series, this was my favorite. Daddy Kai was everything. Loving father, committed teammate, brother and friend. Miller was the type of FMC I love reading about. Strong, independent, doesn’t give a shit about what anyone thinks - wearing a uniform of sneakers and overalls.” - Penelope Black
MMC is a Single Dad, Nanny, Grumpy/Sunshine, Forced Proximity, Only One Bed, Found Family, Slow Burn, Sports, Chicago
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The Change Up by Meghan Quinn
⭐ 4.0
HOT, HEA
“I didn’t like the whole granola, holistic, hippie vibe of the FMC but the phone call after they started recognizing their feelings was chef's kiss” - Cardigan B
Friends to Lovers, Baseball, Body Modifications/Piercings/Tattoos, Artist, Bad Boy/Good Girl, Animal Lover, Grumpy/Sunshine, Forced Proximity, Only One Bed, Roommate, Afraid of Commitment, Childhood Trauma
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Face Off by Chelsea Curto
⭐ 4.0
MEDIUM, HEA
“Consider Me' vibes - and straight to my heart.” - Cardigan B
Hockey, MMC is A Golden Retriever, Smart, Strong, Independent FMC, Red-Haired FMC, Sweet & Spicy Banter, Friends with Benefits, Rivals
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If You Hate Me by Helena Hunting
⭐ 4.0
HOT, HEA
“I didn't skim ANY of this book. That rarely happens. Tristan made me so angry for being such a brute about his feelings, but I loved their chemistry and fire.” - Cardigan B
Veggie Play, Enemies to Lovers, Brother's Best Friend, Age Gap Romance, Hockey, Pro-Athlete, Forced Proximity, Roommate, Touch Her and Die Vibes
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Rewind It Back by Liz Tomforde
⭐ 4.0
MEDIUM | HEA
“Rio FINALLY gets his HEA. Honestly, I thought he was just hopeless or there was something wrong with him. The miscommunication got a bit frustrating, but overall such a heartwarming ending” -Penelope Black
Childhood Friends, High-School Relationship, Breakup due to Misunderstanding, Hockey Pro-Athlete MMC, Interior Designer MMC, Mamma’s Boy MMC, Down-on-her Luck FMC, Secrets
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Blindsided by Amy Daws
⭐ 3.75
MEDIUM, HEA
“Started super slow and I almost DNF'd. I keep going and enjoyed it. Sweet story about plus-sized, cat loving gal and a Scottish footballer.” - Penelope Black
Football / Rugby, Pro-Athlete, Friends to Lovers, Virgin FMC, Scottish MMC, Scotland, Fake Dating, Curvier FMC, Protective MMC, Sports, Witty Banter, Slow Burn, Body Positivity, 25+ FMC, 25+ MMC, Best Friend's Sister
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A Lie for a Lie by Helena Hunting
⭐ 3.75
MEDIUM, HEA
“She’s an instantly-likable, awkward, direct FMC. He’s a hockey god who saves her from a snow storm. They reconnect later in life after a secret pregnancy and sparks fly.” - Penelope Black
Hockey, Accidental/Surprise Pregnancy, Trapped in a Cabin, Secret Baby, Second Chance, Down on Her Luck FMC, Age 30+ MMC, Slow Burn, Breakup Due to Misunderstanding, FMC is a Single Mom, Rich/Wealthy MMC, Story Told in Past and Present, Protective MMC, Meet-Cute, Forced Proximity
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Replay by Amy Daws
⭐ 3.75
MEDIUM, HEA
“Darker than you expect. It has lots of depth and redeemable characters.” - Cardigan B
Soccer (European Football), Overcoming Past Trauma, Second Chance, Secret Pregnancy, Secret Relationship
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Cross-Checked by Julia Connors
⭐ 3.5
MEDIUM, HEA
“I liked all of the pieces individually. The FMC and MMC were redeeming. The setting was believable. It all worked. But together, it got a little preachy.” - Cardigan B
Hockey, Hot Dad, Witty Banter, Friends to Enemies to Lovers, Hockey
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Just Drive by Devyn Sinclair
⭐ 3.5
MEDIUM, HEA
“Not your typical ‘Sports’ Romance and it’s refreshing. Would have liked more "getting to know you" moments between the MCs. Too much closed-door, look-back steam references. I came here for the spice. Gimme.” - Cardigan B
Omegaverse, Pack Dynamics, Knotting, Formula One Racing, MC is an Only Child, Childhood Trauma, Loss of Parent (Death), Male, Male, Male, Female (MMMF)
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Pucking Around by Emily Rath
⭐ 3.5
HOT, HEA
“She a sports medicine doctor who loves hard. They’re hockey players or adjacent and pulled into her orbit. MCs are written well and the story is fun. Why Choose hockey. Haven’t seen that before.” - Cardigan B
Hockey, Why Choose, Doctor, Second Chance, Workplace, Grumpy/Sunshine, Witty Banter
@35CARDIGANS @BLACKCAT100
Find us on The StoryGraph
Join The StoryGraph, our romance book tracking app of choice. Scope out our TBRs, see which titles we’ve read, and watch us rate in real time. Just more proof that we’re humans.
(Yea, we also use goodreads…but so do our families. Who we’re connected to).
Sizzle Scale
HOT
(Blazing & Explicit): This is the full five-alarm fire. Bedroom doors are flung wide open, and the scenes are DETAILED, EXPLICIT, and SCORCHING HOT. No fading to black here.
MEDIUM
(Simmering & Steamy): Expect passionate kisses that don't always fade to black. Could be graphic, but probably one scene that goes full throttle. Things get steamy, and the chemistry is sparking. You’ll blush, but you won’t need a fire extinguisher... yet.
MILD
(Sweet & Tender): Expect sweet sighs, maybe a stolen, chaste kiss or two, and plenty of heartwarming moments that make you go "awww." If things get more intimate, the bedroom door gently clicks shut (fade-to-black).
FLOUR
(Platonic, if anything): Rare to find around here. This is a book that has…no romance at all. We probably read this by accident.
FAQs
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A guide to romance novels of all heats and sizes. We’re recommending books we’ve read (we’ve read 1,000s) and telling you what to expect. We’ll help you do your research - your time and money will be happy.
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‘Happily Ever After’ - nearly every book you find on The Velvet Pages has an ‘HEA’. It means that the story reached a satisfying conclusion. It might say “To Be Continued” which means there’s probably an HEA in the series, but that particular title didn’t resolve the relationship.
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This is how sexual or sexy a book is. There’s a range: Hot, Medium, Mild, and Flour.
Hot is ‘“holy Hell I’m sweating.”
Medium is steamy.
Mild is tender and sweet.
Flour means there’s nothing romantic here.
We label each book so you know what to expect and you can choose what you’re comfortable reading.
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We rate each book out of 5. Cardigan B and Penelope Black can rate a book the same score on occasion, but usually the rating you see is an average of their scores.
The ratings are pretty subjective, but include things like:
Did the story make sense?
How did the characters measure up?
Was the writing literate?
Was the premise or were the plot points memorable?
Were the mysteries solved? Did the questions get answered? Did you leave me on ANOTHER CLIFFHANGER, ONYX STORM?
Did the book make us feel something?
Was there a cute cat?
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We recommend starting with Historical Romance, Fantasy Romance, or Sports Romance. They’re the most popular and you’ll find recognizable tropes.
Start with Mild to Medium heat and definitely choose an HEA.
If you’re still stuck, email us and we can give you some recs!
Heyyyvelvetpages@gmail.com
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We’ll read pretty much anything. Each month, Penelope and Cardigan select a list of about 20 books to read together. There’s at least one book from each genre and some popular titles that have been recently released.
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We sure do! It’s called ‘The Velvet Edit’. You can sign up at the top or on the ‘Contact Us’ page. We send out a themed list of recommendations each month and a ‘Quickie’ (a single title spotlight) two weeks later. We won’t spam you.
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That’s the section of the site where we share what we’re reading this month for our book club. You can check out our other reading lists from the past few months of 2025, too.
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Nope, not even close. The books on the site are generally the ones we enjoyed the most. Or hit on different trends we see coming up.
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They are! If you buy from a button click on the site, we might earn a commission. You’re not paying more for the product, though. We’re all about ‘pay less for smut’ around here.
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We use Storygraph. It has a friendly app interface and has every book we’ve read. It also shows your reading stats, which is unique.
We have separate Goodreads accounts, but they’re connected to our friends and family and…I don’t want them to see that I read the first and second book in a series about a merman with two dicks.
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MMC is Male Main Character. FMC is female main character.
There are typically one of each, but there can be multiple in genres like Omegaverse or Reverse Harem.
Or, like in the case of Court of Thorns and Roses, the MMC could be one person in one book and another person in another book.
Don’t come at me about ‘spoilers’ - these books were published in 2015.
Email us
Looking for a book recommendation? Want to give us a recommendation you’ve read? Need to yell into the void?