Here’s How To Read Each ‘Heated Rivalry’ Book in Order (They’re All Page-Turners!)
The tantalizing series has an entire MM novel universe fans are just now discovering.
Published Jan. 6 2026, 5:01 p.m. ET
The chilly nights of fall-winter 2025 received a little extra spice when Heated Rivalry began steaming — I mean, streaming — on HBO Max. The Canadian-based six-episode series stars two hockey players, Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie).
The players’ unexpected and secretive love story between the two rivals and the messiness that can come with such a relationship.
Like many buzzed-about TV series, Heated Rivalry is an adaptation and takes the same name of Rachel Reid’s Game Changers series, which focuses on a hockey romance.
Now, after cooling off from the series’ first season, fans will be happy to know that there is an entire Heated Rivalry universe that doesn’t solely follow Shane and Ilya. Here’s what to know about all of the Heated Rivalry books and its order.
The ‘Heated Rivalry’ book series begins with Rachel Reid’s first hockey romance, ‘Game Changer.’
Rachel’s first book in her MM (man-man) romance series, Game Changer: A Spicy Gay Hockey Romance, debuted on Oct. 8, 2019. The book follows the relationship between New York Admirals captain Scott Hunter and his smoothie guy, Kip Grady, a relationship that, as described in the book, is “only on Scott’s terms and always behind his closed apartment doors.” Though the Heated Rivalry TV show solely focuses on Shane and Ilya, Kip and Scott’s story appeared in episode 3 of the series.
‘Heated Rivalry’ was Reid’s second steamy MM novel.
Drawing from the second novel in Rachel’s Game Changers series, the second book, Heated Rivalry, explores the enemies-to-lovers romance between hockey rivals Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov, whose clandestine hookups slowly grow into something more. The story between the two lovers is so intense that Rachel revisited it again when she closed the series, but more on that later.
‘Tough Guy’ tells the story of high school friends-turned-lovers.
After Heated Rivalry’s success, Rachel followed up with Tough Guy in 2020. The book follows Ryan Price, a hockey star who was recently traded to Toronto, as he tries to find his way off the ice in the city’s queer scene. While in Toronto, he runs into aspiring musician Fabian, with whom he went to high school with, and the story unfolds from there.
‘Common Goal’ shows the dynamic between an older and younger man falling in love.
Rachel’s fourth novel in her Game Changers series, Common Goal, is described as a “spicy friends-with-benefits MM hockey romance.” The book also explores an age gap relationship between its central characters, recently retired goaltender Eric Bennett and a much younger graduate student named Kyle Swift. The story shows how Eric and Kyle start a friends-with-benefits situation that leaves them both wanting more.
Rachel Reid’s fifth ‘Game Changers’ book, ‘Role Model,’ shows there’s no one way to be gay.
In Rachel’s 2021 book, Role Model, the main character, Troy Barrett, is on the heels of a messy breakup and has been traded to the worst team in the league. To make matters worse, the team’s social media manager, Harris Drover, has a mandate to work on his online presence. While trying to make their working relationship work, love blossoms between Troy, grumpy and closeted, and Harris, out and proud.
The author gave her ‘Heated Rivalry’ characters a happy ending in the series’ final book, ‘The Long Game.’
Published in 2022, The Long Game is the direct sequel to Rachel’s Heated Rivalry book. The novel picks up with Ilya and Shane ten years after they first met. Now that they’re retired, The Long Game begs the question of whether either of them will live out loud now that they’re no longer tied to their demanding careers.
“Ilya is sick of secrets,” the book’s description reads. “Shane has gotten so good at hiding his feelings, sometimes Ilya questions if they even exist. The closeness, the intimacy, even the risk that would come with being open about their relationship…Ilya wants it all. It’s time for them to decide what’s most important—hockey or love. It’s time to make a call.”
Fans of the Heated Rivalry TV show may want to hold off on reading The Long Game, as it could spoil the TV show’s ending. In December 2025, the popular series was quickly picked up for a second season, meaning Ilya and Shane’s story is far from over.