If Shane and Ilya brought you here, start with Heated Rivalry, then read The Long Game. If you want the surrounding couples and hockey world as well, start with Game Changer and follow publication order. The confusing part is that Heated Rivalry is Book 2 of the series, while its direct sequel is Book 6.
You do not need to turn your first read into a six-book assignment. Choose the route that matches what you want more of: this particular relationship, or the wider ensemble.
What the book offers a viewer
Rachel Reid's novel follows rival professional hockey players Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov as their private relationship conflicts with their public careers. Its central question is not whether two opponents can be attracted to each other, but what room they can make for a relationship they cannot openly acknowledge. The author's book page is a useful spoiler-light introduction.
The reason to read after watching is the change of medium: prose gives you direct access to how the characters interpret an encounter, rather than leaving you to infer everything from a look or performance. Start at the beginning instead of trying to locate the chapter corresponding to your final episode. Adaptations can rearrange material, and a scene-by-scene matching exercise is an easy way to encounter spoilers.
This is adult romance with explicit sexual content. If what interests you is queer romance, rivalry, secrecy, and the cost of maintaining a public identity, the premise is a strong match. If you mainly want a detailed account of playing hockey, sample the prose before committing: the relationship is the reason for this reading route.
Choose one of these two routes
The Shane-and-Ilya route: Heated Rivalry → The Long Game. Read both in that order. The later book continues their relationship; it is not an alternative edition of the first. You can return to the intervening novels when you want more of the supporting cast. This is our suggested focused route, not a claim that the other books add no context.
The whole-series route: Game Changer → Heated Rivalry → Tough Guy → Common Goal → Role Model → The Long Game. This gives you the published introductions to the broader cast before the return to Shane and Ilya. The series listing identifies these six books in order.
What comes next? Reid's current FAQ lists Unrivaled, Game Changers Book 7, for June 1, 2027, continuing after The Long Game. As checked September 29, 2026, it is forthcoming. A preorder listing is not a book you can start reading today.
EPUB, PDF, and a free sample
There is a particularly useful format option here: Kobo's English Carina Press edition, ISBN 9780369748898, lists EPUB 3 (DRM-Free) under its download options. This is a paid ebook, with a Preview Now option on the listing. The linked record is the UK store; choose your own country and recheck the ISBN and download details before buying. Regional editions may differ.
For other retailers, use Reid's official book page. We did not verify an authorized, free full-book PDF or EPUB. The store preview and the author's extras are not the complete novel.
If you purchase an edition that actually supplies a DRM-free .epub, download the file from your retailer's library and open it in the CastReader EPUB reader. Choose a Device voice for free reading without a CastReader account; voice availability depends on your browser and operating system. CastReader AI voices require sign-in and have plan limits. This is a way to hear your own ebook while following the text, not a bundled copy of the novel or the commercial audiobook.
Before choosing the audiobook
Listen to the sample before buying, especially if you have the television voices in mind. Reid explains in her FAQ that the first three Game Changers audiobooks were narrated by Tor Thom; later books were mostly narrated by Cooper North. The same couple therefore does not imply the same narrator across every recording. The FAQ does not announce a completed recording by the television actors.
Keep a chapter number and a short location note when switching between audio and text. Page numbers vary across the original, illustrated, and ebook editions; an audiobook timestamp is useful only within that recording.
Save the extras for afterwards
The author's Heated Rivalry page links bonus material and deleted scenes. Read the placement notes before opening them, and finish the main novel first if you want to preserve its discoveries. Extras are a good next stop when you want another perspective; they are not required preparation.
Book, format, and release information checked September 29, 2026. Reading-route recommendations are CastReader's editorial guidance. Cover artwork belongs to its respective rights holders.