You Should Be So Lucky
Ratings16
Average rating4.2
An emotional, slow-burn, grumpy/sunshine, queer mid-century romance for fans of Evvie Drake Starts Over, about grief and found family, between the new star shortstop stuck in a batting slump and the reporter assigned to (reluctantly) cover his first season—set in the same universe as We Could Be So Good.
The 1960 baseball season is shaping up to be the worst year of Eddie O’Leary’s life. He can’t manage to hit the ball, his new teammates hate him, he’s living out of a suitcase, and he’s homesick. When the team’s owner orders him to give a bunch of interviews to some snobby reporter, he’s ready to call it quits. He can barely manage to behave himself for the length of a game, let alone an entire season. But he’s already on thin ice, so he has no choice but to agree.
Mark Bailey is not a sports reporter. He writes for the arts page, and these days he’s barely even managing to do that much. He’s had a rough year and just wants to be left alone in his too-empty apartment, mourning a partner he’d never been able to be public about. The last thing he needs is to spend a season writing about New York’s obnoxious new shortstop in a stunt to get the struggling newspaper more readers.
Isolated together within the crush of an anonymous city, these two lonely souls orbit each other as they slowly give in to the inevitable gravity of their attraction. But Mark has vowed that he’ll never be someone’s secret ever again, and Eddie can’t be out as a professional athlete. It’s just them against the world, and they’ll both have to decide if that’s enough.
Series
Featured Series
2 primary booksMidcentury NYC
Midcentury NYC is a 2-book series with 2 primary works first released in 2023 with contributions by Cat Sebastian.
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I'd like to give a huge thank you to Netgalley and the publisher (HarperCollins) for this chance to read an advance copy of one of my favorite author's work in exchange for an honest review.
And, to be honest, I was a little uncertain about this book upon reading the synopsis. Despite Sebastian being pretty much my go-to author for queer historical romance, there were several things that I wasn't sure I'd like.
Like, I don't consider the 1960's to really be historical, I am not a fan of the so called grumpy/sunshine romances and finally, a solid 95% of my knowledge and fan-ness for sports goes securely to hockey.
But, really, I should have had confidence that this book would be as amazing for me as all Sebastian's other works.
Taking place in the 1960's is really more of a backdrop and is used to inform us readers of the society of the times (and a little look into what being queer in that time would be like) and is very understated and doesn't at all try-hard like a lot of other mid-century ‘historical' books I've read.
The romance is wonderful and soft and sweet. I love the fact that the guys are so careful with each other - and themselves - and there is plenty of conversations and kissing before the sex. (Though I most assuredly do not consider this slow-burn.) Mark is, honestly, not grumpy - he's just a cat in human form. He's fussy and particular, likes to gripe and complain, can unleash his claws, but what he really wants is to be told he's important. Eddie is...a golden retriever that was accidentally crossed with a chihuahua, because he has more bite to him than I have ever seen in a ‘sunshine' character.
All in all, everything about the romance makes me very happy. (Add to the fact that there is no melodrama, no late-story separation and no misunderstandings and this book feels like an old favorite in all the best ways, just a calm, relaxing romance.)
About the baseball...Well, it was a decently important part of the story, but as someone that knows very little - and the little they do know they picked up by osmosis from a dad and a brother that were/are baseball fans... It worked. It was easy to follow and things were explained well enough without getting into the minutia. (And, I mean, it's no hockey, but we all knew that going into it.)
Finally, I want to say that I love the attention to community this book had. It wasn't huge, but it was there and very important for both Mark and Eddie. They needed people they could be true to themselves around while also being safe, and I really think they found it and I am glad for them.
This book was a very sweet, very easy to read romance and I am so happy I got this chance to read it.
Review crossposted to Netgalley/Goodreads.
