It’s no secret that any Olympic games, whether winter or summer, is going to be a hotbed of hookups and hangouts. This is not a bad thing; good for them, I say! So, of course, romance authors see this collective of thousands of athletes, trainers, coaches, and dignitaries and think: what if they kissed?
This lovely selection of books developed from the genius of the romance world looking at international competitions (whether or not they are called the Olympics, since there is probably a trademark involved). They feature a whole lot of answers to the question “why can’t they be together,” and they help us resolve it through the course of a book.
Sometimes these are people who have been competing for years; others, it’s people who are just meeting at the Olympic village for the first time. Either way, they’re in a space where they’re sure there’s no time for distraction, but thoughts of this one person (or two or three) just won’t leave them alone, even when they’re not there. Whether fun or angsty, it definitely draws us in—and lets us follow some world-class athletes around their sport of choice.
So, in the days leading up to the closing ceremonies of the Milano Cortina games, here are a few romances set at the “Olympics”—or some otherwise unnamed international summer or winter games.
(PS: while books like Heated Rivalry and Deep End might include scenes or athletes connected to the Olympics, we’re going to dig into books that utilize the games as a setting.)
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Skate It Till You Make It by Rufaro Faith Mazarura
In this follow-up to Mazarura’s summer games debut, we go to the winter games equivalent, where hockey player Ari is surprised to suddenly become the British National Team’s captain after the original one gets injured. A chance encounter with an American photographer on New Year’s Eve leads nowhere, but when the two run into each other a couple of months later at the Winter Games, circumstances lead them to pretend to date over the course of Ari’s quest for the gold.
A Good Puck by Rochelle Wolf
Another woman competing internationally in hockey, you say? This time, Charlie is in Milan for the winter games, playing for Team Canada. Olive, another woman from Toronto, decided to go to Italy on her own after her girlfriend dumped her right before their vacation. When they bump into each other, they quickly hit it off, but there’s a lot going on for each of them. This is one of five books in the connected Love On The Podium series, and if you enjoy that series, you might want to check out the Snow and Ice Games series, starting with Love on the Tracks by Tamsen Parker.
She’s an Anchor by Tember Sapphire
While this is the third book in Sapphire’s She Can Play series featuring women in sports, this is the only one centering an Olympian. Mary-Louise is a track star on the international stage. When she spends a memorable night with a dancer at her sister’s bachelorette party, she expects that to be the end of it. (Well, not completely. But that’s for you to discover on your own.) But when Alexandre shows up as her biggest rival’s coach, they have a lot to discuss. It’s best to read the entire series in order, but you can still enjoy this one on its own.
Olympic Enemies by Rebecca J. Caffery
Most of these have been about single athletes and people they meet, but this one focuses on two athletes, Lucas and Oliver. They’ve been rival gymnasts for several years, but now they not only have to room together, but they have to get along if their team is going to win the gold. All that forced proximity isn’t going to let them leave things in the status quo, of course. If you want to read more about rivals falling in love, check out Aiming High by Tanya Chris.
You might have noticed that there aren’t a whole lot of Olympic-style romances featuring characters of color, and there are even fewer ones written by authors of color. Hopefully, the coming years will change that—especially if we actually manage to host the Summer Games in L.A., which could prove to be one of the most diverse summer games in history, given the games’ current trajectory.
If you want more winter sports romance, here are some queer hockey romances to check out while we wait for the second season of Heated Rivalry. And if you’re interested in exploring romance around the world, check out this collection of romances with international settings.
English (US) · 