10 Steamy Hockey Romances To Devour After 'Heated Rivalry’

As the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan approach, a strange rumor about cardboard beds in the Olympic Village has started to circulate online once again. While the “sex-proof” bed rumors have been debunked time and time again with vigorous jumping videos and official statements, the close proximity of young athletes in top fighting form continues to attract steamy speculation. Some locals and spectators have even changed their locations in dating apps in hopes of a chance encounter with an Olympian.

This year’s Games (Feb. 6-22) collide serendipitously with the Heated Rivalry takeover. With Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie as official Olympic torch bearers clad in matching white Milano Cortina tracksuits, the worlds of winter sports and romance novels have neatly overlapped. And while viewers have been quick to point out the distinct lack of actual hockey scenes in the books, there’s no doubt that the sport will have droves of new fans this year.

Beyond the NSFW rumors, sports romance readers have even more reason to tune in this year. In the ice dancing category, Team USA’s Madison Chock and Evan Bates, whose skating-partners-to-lovers story feels ripped from the pages of a romance novel, will compete as a married couple. Over on Team Canada, hockey stars Marie-Philip Poulin and Laura Stacey, who also famously fell in love on the ice, will defend their 2022 gold medal win in tandem.

While many have chalked up Heated Rivalry’s runaway success to its more graphic elements, sports romance is more than just sculpted bodies. (“I really don’t think it was the butts,” François Arnaud, who plays Heated Rivalry’s Scott Hunter, said on SiriusXM last week.) He’s not wrong. The genre’s forced proximity, slow burn, vulnerability, and competition are equally responsible for bringing Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov into our hearts, screens, and bookshelves.

So, whether you’re reading for the enemies-to-lovers trope, the Games themselves, or, yes, the butts, here are 10 more steamy winter sports romance books to make your cold, cold winter oh so hot.

The Long Game by Rachel Reid

If there’s a Shane- and Ilya-shaped hole in your heart, the latest installment in Rachel Reid’s Game Changers series may be the answer. Ten years into their relationship, fame and pressure from family, friends, and the league force the pair to reconsider keeping their love a secret. And yes, the cottage makes an appearance.

From Lukov with Love by Mariana Zapata

Jasmine Santos, a figure skater on the brink of losing everything, is handed one final opportunity: partnering with the conceited childhood rival she’s spent her entire career despising. What begins as unadulterated animosity transforms into a slow burn hot enough to melt even the coldest ice.

Ice Breaker by Hannah Grace

Anastasia Allen has it all figured out: a college scholarship, a spot on the skating team, and high hopes of scoring an Olympic gold medal someday. The only thing standing in her way? Sharing the ice with the hockey team, led by its infuriating — but undeniably handsome — captain, Nate Hawkins.

The Favorites by Layne Fargo

In this Wuthering Heights meets Daisy Jones and the Six epic, we follow ice dancers Kat and Heath from childhood through their Olympic career. Told through Kat’s perspective 10 years later, the novel revisits their love, obsession, grit, and incendiary chemistry.

The Game Changer by Lana Ferguson

Hockey player Ian Chase needs a PR miracle after a very public, very messy breakup. Enter a fake relationship with his teammate’s younger sister, a local baking-show darling with a long-held crush and problems of her own.

Like Snow We Fall by Ayla Dade

When Paisley Harris, a disciplined figure skater with a troubled past, and Knox Winterbottom, a rebellious snowboarder, end up living under the same roof, their rivalry turns into chemistry.

Canadian Boyfriend by Jenny Holiday

Growing up, Aurora Evans created a fake boyfriend based on a Canadian hockey player to escape social functions. Years later, the man behind the lie appears in her dance studio, this time very real.

Gravity by Tal Bauer

For fans of M/M hockey romances, this dual-perspective novel by Tal Bauer follows Bryce Michel, Stanley Cup favorite and captain of the Montréal Étoiles, and Hunter Lacey, a stagnant player on the Carolina Kitty Hawks, on a collision course at the NHL’s All-Star Weekend.

Kiss and Cry by Keira Andrews

In this enemies-to-lovers tale, moody Olympic hopeful Henry Sakaguchi is forced to train alongside golden retriever Theo Sullivan, whose sunshiny personality hides his surprising depth. As the Games draw closer, they begin to realize there’s something more valuable than gold.

The Deal by Elle Kennedy

The first installment in the BookTok-favorite Off-Campus series, The Deal follows Hannah Wells, who agrees to tutor the childish hockey captain Garrett Graham to build her confidence while his slipping GPA puts his athletic career at risk. As the two grow closer, their mutually beneficial relationship turns anything but academic.