Conventionally Yours

January 13, 2020
Two trading-card game players find love in the agreeable first True Colors romance from Albert (the #gaymers series). College age Conrad Stewart and Alden Roth are long-standing rivals in the fictional game of Odyssey. They both have dreams of winning big at the national Massive Odyssey Con West tournament in Las Vegas and using the prize money to improve their uncertain futures. When the other Odyssey gamers they share a vlog with back out at the last moment, they wind up being the only two making the cross-country road trip to the convention together. Uptight, virginal, and neurodiverse Alden is secretly attracted to the more confident Conrad, who is privately coping with money troubles and family estrangement after his father kicked him out for being gay. Road trip bonding turns these enemies to lovers, and before they arrive at the tournament Conrad has given Alden his first kiss. After an overlong setup, Albert generates some drama at the competition as both young men weigh their relationship with their desire to win. The descriptions of Odyssey play are inventive and fun, but Albert wisely focuses more on how the game helps build the characters’ confidence. This sweet, relatively chaste romance will have crossover YA appeal. Agent: Deidre Knight, the Knight Agency.

March 1, 2020

This sweet new adult romance, the first in Albert's (Off Base) "True Colors" series, brings together two gamers in their early twenties skilled at Odyssey but floundering in life. Forced to drop out of college when his parents withdraw financial support, Conrad is living paycheck to paycheck when his understanding landlady tells him she's putting her house on the market. Socially awkward Alden is living in the shadow of an older sister who excelled academically and mothers determined their neurodiverse son will get into medical school on the second attempt--even if his heart isn't in it. When their internet-popular Odyssey group is offered tickets to a con, with a chance at breaking into the pro gaming circuit, Alden and Conrad decide a tournament win is the solution to their problems--if only they can survive the cross-country road trip in one another's company. As the miles pass by, they discover their mutual enmity giving way to compassion, curiosity, and something more. Though the book feels slightly overstuffed with plot elements, scenery, and blink-and-you'll-miss-em secondary characters, against that kaleidoscopic backdrop Conrad and Alden come to the fore. VERDICT In the end, this captivating, nerdy romance delivers a satisfying happily ever after.--Anna J. Clutterbuck-Cook, Massachusetts Historical Soc., Boston

Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 1, 2020
Two young men fall in love on a road trip to Las Vegas for a gaming convention. Conrad Stewart and Alden Roth's rivalry has made them the stars of a gaming vlog about a card game called Odyssey. When the local game shop owner who runs the vlog announces he has procured a set of complimentary entries for his players at the national Odyssey convention in Las Vegas, Conrad and Alden each have their own reasons for wanting to win. Alden is socially awkward and feels adrift after failing to get into medical school, and turning into a Odyssey pro would provide much-needed structure to his life; Conrad has been disowned by his family after they find out he's gay, and winning the tournament would give him the financial security to provide for himself and finish college. Due to a series of unfortunate mishaps, Conrad and Alden end up together on the road trip to Las Vegas for the convention. As they travel thousands of miles cross-country, they work together to navigate a series of minor mishaps and challenges. Once they learn to look past their knee-jerk dislike of each other, they realize that they are a pretty good team. Their romance is sweet and slow, with the more experienced Conrad showing Alden the joys of falling in love. Their romance has the classic hallmarks of the new-adult subgenre, with both of the main characters learning to face the challenges of the adult world while resisting family pressures and expectations. The tight pacing, interesting conflict, and careful characterization make this a great bridge for readers looking to make the jump from YA to adult romance. A well-crafted romance for fans of the smash hit Red, White & Royal Blue (2019).

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