Great beginning to a new M/M series!

In the past, the few books I have read in this genre have been great. Maybe because I love the authors' other books or I was already invested in the characters getting together. Regardless of the reason, Illegal Contact must be included in my list of M/M favorites. Why? Well, the characters are memorable. The writing is wicked and the romance is hot!

Gavin Brawley is the tight-end for the Barons, a New York's football team. He was suspended and is under house arrest for six months after he was caught on tape fighting. Gavin has a reputation for losing his cool easily but he doesn't seem to care about any of that except playing football. Completely different from his two friends, Simeon and Marcus, who are the golden kids of the team. Joe, Gavin's manager, knows Gavin needs a personal assistant at home to help him out. Gavin isn't crazy about the idea but in the end, he knows is unavoidable.

Noah Monroe has a mountain of student loans. He's looking for a job to help pay the bills and to help his father, who's currently unemployed. Noah has no idea about football. He couldn't care less about it and it shows in his first interview with Gavin and Joe. He's surprised when he actually gets the position. Noah knows he's going to butt heads with Gavin but he won't back down without a fight.

What neither was counting on was in those pesky sparks igniting.

Gavin and Noah were completely different people. Noah was the geeky cute guy, while Gavin was the strong athlete. It was interesting seeing how this two realized they did have a common ground after all. Gavin was able to show his softer side, while Noah learned that not every jock is dumb.

The one negative I have is that Gavin hooked up with someone else while interested in Noah. Yes, call me naive but I like my MC's to be faithful.

For any M/M lover, this one is a must read.

4/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by Intermix via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I get a little anxious when I get a new book by Santino, it’s sort of like going on date, you know this could make you feel all kinds of good but you have so many expectations. I love his writing and have been a fan of his for a long time now. For me, there’s not much that will top the Five Boroughs series, so to start a new series like the Barons has me all kinds of upside down because I want that feeling again; that feeling where you get into a book so deep and it provokes such an intense feeling, you’re literally immersed in that world, you’re invested in the characters and you fall a little bit in love with them and can’t stop thinking about them... even if you’re in the shower or out grocery shopping with that dopey, faraway look on your face or if someone talks to you and you answer without any real thought ‘cos your mind’s still thinking about what a character said... So in this book we meet Noah; desperate for a job that would help pay off his massive student debt and help his Dad out after losing his own job and Gavin; lauded NFL superstar, currently under house arrest for being caught on video fighting. Noah begins working as Gavin’s PA and we find out that both men haven’t had an easy past, and as they get to know one another, their views on each other start to change, there’s lots of assumptions and misinterpretations but simmering underneath is a boat load of lust and chemistry. I loved that Noah didn’t take any crap and I laughed out loud at some of his back-chat to Gavin, I’m not a lol person but Santino has the knack of hitting you with a line of perfect snark and sarcasm that just slays me. There’s a great supporting cast of Jasmine, Marcus and Simeon - even Joe! - and I look forward to reading more about them in future books. I’ll not expand more on the actual story as you need to read this book. This could have been a light and fluffy telling but it oh so definitely wasn’t. It showed how you can have preconceived ideas and notions about a person that can be blown out of the water once you get to know them and at the centre of it all this was a really great love story that had a delicious slow burn and was extremely well told. We all crave that feeling of getting to know someone new and having that chemistry with them and falling in lust so deep, where you can’t stop thinking about them, and if the feeling is mutual, oh my god, it’s the best feeling in the world and Santino always takes us through this experience, play by play and you can almost taste it as it’s done so well., he just nails it. The sex scenes were out of this world hot and I had to put my Kindle down for a minute or two just to digest each one. I honestly loved this book, it was everything I could ever want in a romance and it stands head and shoulders up there with the rest of the authors work. Perfect!

5 AMAZING stars

I have read before books from Santino Hassell but this is my first from him alone and I can't help myself from being blown away by his beautiful writing and awesome characters!Illegal Contact is a story of passion, tension,slow burn and temptation. It has everything I wanted in a story, amazing plot,slow burn,super hot and sweet romance.
Another thing that I loved about this story is the fact that the characters felt realistic! Gavin and Noah's relationship is complex, both of them are so different.Gavin is cocky and in the begining a little bit angry and dificult so I don't blame Noah for not liking him at first.On the other hand we have Noah who is sweet,cute and smart. I freaking loved their romance, it's so intense and the slow burn is perfect.There are some really hot moments between them!

Overall it was a sweet,passionate and romantic!I highly recommend it to everyone!!

I really loved this book and the characters. A football player with a bad anger problem is on house arrest. His agent decided that he needs a personal assistant. When Noah is hired the two don't get off to a great start, but they eventually grow on each other.

As a huge fan of Santino Hassell's previous novels, I was excited to read his first sports romance. I'm so happy to say that I wasn't disappointed at all. Hassell's novels always wade between light-hearted and serious and this one was no different, as both characters were dealing with their own personal struggles (such as Gavin's anger and Noah's academic past) as well as the usual angst when it comes to new relationships. Overall, I loved reading about Gavin and Noah and their journey. It was just utterly delightful and I can't wait to pick up the next in the series when it comes out.

When football is your salvation and your entire life revolves around football ... being on house arrest during football season is hell. Gavin Brawley is not your cordial congenial football "personality" who makes nice with broadcasters and fans. ("My personality was enough to detract from my looks, and always had...") He's brutal and focused on the field, fiercely loyal to his football family and everything else is a distant second. Yup, he's an asshat but damn it, he's overcome a lot of serious shit and he's still standing.

Noah, a nice guy with no job or car, a huge student loan and issues, becomes Gavin's PA out at his ridiculously huge Long Island estate, despite not having a clue who he is and not being particularly fond of his attitude:
"You get paid to play a game," I repeated. "You're not a savior of the people. You're an overpaid jock." [Gavin:]"And yet you're over here trying to get a job running errands for this overpaid jock."

Illegal Contact is a long, slow hot burn as these two dissimilar men spend time together, at first begrudgingly with a side of belligerent and then moving into a friendship and then (finally) something more. I love how it takes time for their relationship to develop and their dynamic is alternately sizzling and kinda sweet. There's a steamy physical relationship here but it feels more relaxed and less angsty than those in the "Five Boroughs" series:
"...my miserable ass really fucking liked him. In the hand holding kind of way, not just the ass-pounding way. Although I wanted to do that too."

There's a lot of issues to overcome for this pair; Gavin's in the closet, at least until he's done with football and Noah's some issues having to do with a relationship with his former employer and doesn't want the same with Gavin:

Noah wants the full "Brawley treatment. Hard and demanding and ruthless as he took me. I wanted it - probably more than I'd ever wanted anything expect to pay my damn student loans - but I couldn't."

In a nutshell ... I straight-up frickin' loved Illegal Contact and can't wait to read Simeone's story in the next book. 4.5 stars.

Every time I read a book by Santino Hassell I am more and more certain he can do no wrong. I don't know how he does it, but I fully trust that anything he writes will be great, no questions asked.

I love sports romance, but lately I haven't really been that into it given it's all the same thing over and over. But since I saw Santino announcing this book on twitter I've been dying to get my hands on it, and when I finally did I devoured it, I couldn't put it down.

Gavin Brawley is a bisexual tight end of the New York Barons in house arrest for getting into fist fight. So for the duration of his punishment he needs to get a PA to help him keep his affairs in order, here enters Noah Monroe, just out of college looking for a job to pay off his mounting student debt. It seems like an easy choice to go for this position, be a personal assistant to a football star seems easy money, right? Wrong.

They don't start on the right foot, and Gavin goes out of his way to make sure Noah doesn't have it easy, that makes for an entertaining start to say the least. Their banter is so amusing, I loved how it developed into mutual respect and something more later on. Slow burn with haters-to-lovers is lowkey what I live for, if you - like me - loves those tropes done right, you should definitely pick this up.

PS. I cannot wait for Simeon's story!!!! He's such a fun character that I'm sure his book will be incredible.
PPS. *whispers* can we get a novella on Marcus and Jasmine?

I picked this story up because (a) Santino Hassell is an excellent author, whose work I’ve adored in the past, and (b) the blurb rang some major bells for me. In fact, I recently read a novel that had a similar blurb, so yes, this is my trope. I will mention a quick aside here that the one I read previously was good, but this one is outstanding so there’s really no comparison other than the blurbs themselves.

Once I started reading this book, I quickly became caught up in the world of professional football where tight end Gavin Brawley is on suspension from his Super Bowl-winning team and is under house arrest for assault. Doesn’t matter that the assault was on a scumbag, who was trying to blackmail Gavin’s closeted gay BFF, who happens to be the team’s quarterback. He’s paying the consequences for his out-of-control anger, and that includes being stuck in his barely furnished mansion with no one to talk to for the next six months other than his manager and his agent, and there’s only so many workouts a person can do in one day to keep busy.

When his manager compels him to hire a personal assistant to deal with his fan (hate) mail and to set up a (positive) social media presence, he picks the guy who seems the least suited to the role. There’s something about Noah—a mouthy guy from Queens—that sets him off, and not necessarily in a good way. The guy doesn’t mind telling Gavin what he thinks of him, and wonder of wonder, the guy knows nothing about football!

The slow burn/UST in this story is intense as Noah is highly attracted to the stunning, musclebound man with the hard, always angry-looking outer shell with a bit of a softie inside. And Gavin finds the feisty, cute guy with the tall, willowy frame, the nerd glasses, and the gorgeous smile pushes all the buttons he didn’t even know he had. One of my favorite passages comes early in the story when Noah is assigned the task of taking video clips of Gavin as he works out:

“I’d walked in on him this morning and the sight of his ass and thighs clenching and flexing had nearly caused me to degrade myself.”

And, “Just take videos of him working out…The fans would go wild… I’d also go wild with lust and have to banish myself…”

When they finally do get together, the sex is smoking hot, the scenes detailed, and if one happens to be in public, one’s red face and flushed skin might indicate just how smokin’ hot it is!” Warning: Use of a personal fan is not mandatory, but highly recommended!

This book has everything I love in a romance story—amazing, interesting characters; outstanding secondary characters; an exciting plot; a relationship that starts out on the surface as a sexual attraction and develops into so much more; a bad boy with a soft heart; a nerdy-looking guy, who can organize chaos with one hand behind his back; a big, brawny, muscular alpha-type man, who will sacrifice his career for his best friend; men who are deep in the closet with no plans to emerge; and a sweet romantic ending. Along the way, I found even more to love than what I’ve listed, and I feel compelled to go back and reread the darn thing—right now. I can’t wait for book two in this series, and I can’t begin to rate this one highly enough.

Probably my favourite Santino book to date. Can't recommend enough.

I loved this book from the first word to the last.

The characters were flawed but perfect for each other. Despite Gavin being a bit surly he's a sweetie deep down. He's defiantly a character that will stay with you over time.
Noah is a no nonsense guy whose been there done that attitude has this couple getting off on the wrong foot.
They quickly learn to deal with each other and as a reader I enjoyed watching the sparks fly.
I love that I was able to encounter every emotion while reading this book.

I'm looking forward to read more in the series and by this author

Illegal Contact is kind of a modern retelling of Beauty and the Beast. "Beauty" is a guy named Noah who is hired to be the temporary PA for the "Beast" who is a famous NFL player who was recently put under house arrest for assault. Gavin is not thrilled to have some stranger in his home snooping through his life, micromanaging everything. He doesn't need anyone to take care of him and babysit him but yet, there Noah is, cooking his meals and scheduling his day for him. To say Noah's thrilled with the idea would be a complete lie, but he is in dire need of money and plans to suck it up, do his job, deal with the ornery bastard who is his boss, and get paid. What neither of them planned on was falling in love. However, the clock's ticking away on their time together until the moment Gavin is cleared to join his team and goes back to not only the insane hours of training and playing ball, but also pretending to be straight.

This is my first time reading the author's work and after reading the acknowledgements it would seem that this genre or storyline is a new one for the author. I'm glad he took a chance on it because I really enjoyed it. I loved Gavin's character. He was this broody S.O.B who had disdain written all over his face any time he had to deal with Noah or kind of anyone in general other than his friends. The media has painted him as this brutal, don't give a crap, football player with anger management issues. However, as Gavin is forced to spend time with Noah, he starts to loosen up and the softer side of him starts to show through. I loved that the author didn't make this an insta-love story. Instead these two characters start off just dealing with each other whenever they need to, to actually understanding the nuances of the other person. They went from enemies, friends, to lovers, and I loved that they had the slow and gradual change in their relationship. Retellings are a hit or miss for me but I feel like Santino Hassell hit the nail on the head with this one. The synopsis doesn't say it's a BatB retelling and maybe the author didn't even plan for it to be but it was awesome. And if it is just a happy coincidence then all the more power to him

Illegal Contact is a great story that has a Beauty and the Beast vibe, a celebrity romance, football players, and some pretty steamy scenes. It's an all around great read and I look forward to reading more of Santino's work.

Loved it! Like other Santino Hassell books I was sucked right in. I loved the push and pull between Gavin and Noah, their personalities were so different but you could still feel the chemistry between them. What a great first book and I am certainly looking forward to book two.

**I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review**

Illegal Contact is the first book in the latest series, The Barons by Santino Hassell. I first discovered Hassell when reading a collaboration by himself and another of my favourite authors, Megan Ericsson. And am I glad I did as it was such a fantastic book. I literally couldn't wait to find out what happened next with the result that I was awake until 5am until I finished it.

Gavin Brawley, a rather unlikeable football player has serious anger management issues which have resulted in him being placed under house arrest for 6 months. As such he is unable to do anything for himself and is forced to hire a Personal Assistant to basically run his entire life for him. Enter Noah Monroe, a cute nerd with a fiery personality and someone who is not afraid to tell it like it is.

Noah is in desperate need of employment due to the fact that he is in serious debt and that he was fired from his last job for an indiscretion with his boss, a mistake he is in no hurry to repeat. However despite having no interest whatsoever in football or even any idea who Gavin is he when he goes for the job, the opportunity and the money just seems too good to let slide.

The two guys just seem to butt heads from the word go. As it turns out little Noah has a very similar attitude to Gavin in the sense that he is not afraid to speak his mind and often calls him out on his bullshit. As the two gradually get to know each other the barriers begin to slowly come down and it is obvious to everyone around them that there is an undeniable attraction between these two, even if they are the last ones to discover it.

There were several things I loved about this book:
- The fact that the two main characters were realistic and easy to relate to. I have to admit that at the beginning I wasn't a fan of Gavin but it was through the absolute sweetheart who was Noah that I learned to love him and see his true character.

- The story unfolded slower that most M/M romances. At times I found myself frustrated because I really wanted to skip ahead and find out how what happened next but it was totally worth the wait when they eventually did get together.

- The other characters were just brilliantly written and they made me love the story even more. Even if at times you wanted to punch them in the face for the things they did/said :)

-The fact that although it was a story with a football theme, an extensive knowledge of the sport wasn't required. Which was good as I am literally ignorant to any and all aspects of American football.

-Finally was the fantastic ending. I liked how it was a HFN ending as opposed to a skipping off into the sunset HEA. For me this was more realistic and true to life, yet still gave the satisfying ending to the story that the reader needed.

5* for this book as I honestly can't recommend it enough. It is fantastic and literally had me hanging onto every word. As such I will definitely be reading more of his work in the future and would love to see this book published as a paperback too. Santino Hassell is a brilliant author and I can't wait to read the next instalment in this series, sequel or otherwise.

Storyline: 5
Angst: 3
Tissue: 0
Value: 5
Panty Scorching: 5
Over All Rating: 4.5 Stars
Kindle eArc provided by Netgalley
Reviewed by Robin

Gavin doesn’t want any help after he’s sentenced to house arrest and suspended from his NFL football team but his agent insists upon one. Noah just lost his last job in social work because slept with the wrong man at work. The two couldn’t be more opposite but Noah takes the job to help out his unemployed father and pay back student loans. With an antagonistic beginning these two slowly navigate working together while an unexpected attraction blossoms. Will a closeted football player with anger issues and a nerdy personal assistant find a way to work and play together?

“A man who could have anyone he wanted, man or woman, had acted like a brush of my lips had given him life. And that was fucking surreal. And dangerous.

It could never happen again.”

Wow...I loved Gavin and Noah's story. Like Noah, I'm not a huge sports fan. These two clash constantly because nerdy Noah has preconceived notions about how easy and privileged Gavin's hetero life must be and Gavin doesn't want someone with him constantly that might sell him out in the end. But really....it's all about the off the charts attraction, people! I love the way the author deals with all of the emotions that develop between these two and the real life issues they face when the world intrudes. I actually was tearing up at some of the tough decisions. Noah really seemed to bring out Gavin's soft side. I'm such a sucker for the tough guys with the marshmallow centers!

I really would love to read Simeon’s story. The guy with the endorsements and a secret life has come out as gay. I want to see if Simeon is going to keep being his crazy self or will this make him all introspective and ready to settle down.

This is a solid 3.5 for me. While I liked this book, I just didn't love it. I honestly felt like I read this story before, many, many times before. Good beginning to a series that I will definitely continue to read.

3.5 stars

A little slow but it was a sweet story and I enjoyed it overall. Gavin is a professional football player who gets into a legal skirmish due to his temper. As a result he's on house arrest for a few months and needs to hire a personal assistant. Noah is recently out of college and has lost his first job. He's desperate for money so he's willing to take any job. Including that of cranky football player's assistant.

The story starts with a bit of an enemies to lovers type vibe. Gavin is super difficult and honestly I didn't blame Noah for not liking him. I didn't either. As the story goes on, Gavin starts to open up and the two men become friends. Slowly they become more. For those of you who like slow burn romances and UST this is going to be your jam. It's almost 70% before these two even kiss.

The slowness was a bit of an issue for me. Not in how slowly it took them to become lovers, that part was fine, just the entire first half was slow for me. I didn't like Gavin at all and the overall plot was just not catching my attention. Then around the half way mark or so it picked up and held my interest until the end.

Noah's character is what kept me connected. I really liked him and I felt bad for him. He was a nice guy in a bad situation. His snark and smart mouth towards Gavin also made me smile more than once. Gavin's character bugged me for two reasons. One was he was just an ass. I didn't find him to be a likable person at all until very late in to the story. The second is an on going issue for me with this author's books. The last few books I've read the characters all talk the same way and use the same slang. These characters are always "salty", "thirsty", "triggered" and "fuck boys". It makes them all sound like variations of the same character and makes me feel like I've already read this all before. So...Gavin felt very "been there, read that before" to me.

This book was sweet and a bit romantic. Something a bit different from this author. Overall I enjoyed it. I didn't love it but I did like it enough that I will be reading the next in the series. And, on that note, we meet some of Gavin's friends who will be MC's in later books and they were interesting.

**ARC provided by publisher through Netgalley*

Swoon swoon swoon. With a slow-burn romance, well-developed heroes, and fantastic side characters, this book hit everything I love. I dare you to finish this and not absolutely love Gavin and Noah.