The Lasting Impact of Smulympics

Here is the thing: last year, during the 2024 Paris Olympics, I did something silly and ridiculous but ultimately educational: I created SMULYMPICS.

SMULYMPICS was an effort to blend smut with pop culture through a reading challenge where I only read sports-related smut during the Olympics. 

What was funny about this was the result: I ended up becoming a sports fan!

It was one of those life changing moments when you look into the mirror and ask yourself: Is this me? Because I had this new-found respect for athletes through the characters about which I was reading. The characters in the books were able to help me understand and empathize with an athlete's experience. The books forced me to look at athletes for the people that they were with families, financial burdens, romantic lives, and even desire. 

It was a moment where the philosophy of SMUNTH was proven: that by reading smut you become more empathetic, knowledgeable, and interested in the psychology and ideals that surround sex. Romance books were a way for me to understand the head space of an athlete in a way I found relatable. So maybe by reading about a topic that you find fascinating (ie. sports, cowboys, dark romance) you can find that inroad to conversations about sex that feels digestible to you. 

But why do sports again? 

In complete and utter transparency this month was picked out of joy! I loved doing SMULYMPICS last year and all year I have missed reading about my little competitive characters. For me this was a reprieve. This was about picking a topic truly just because I wanted to.

Last year, I read the Windy City series and absolutely fell in love with all the characters. When the last book was released in May, I said, Sign me up! Then, Tessa Bailey - the queen who gave me golf - said Book 4 was about a D1 female, soft ball player and a guy who refers to himself as the “Orgasm Donnor.” Of course, I said, Sign me up! During Love Is In Bloom, when I got launched into the world of 2005 Irish rugby players, I said, I need more! And after all this,  when Emily Rath said, “Oh, Pucking Strong will be released at the end of August.” I was overjoyed and said, Add that to the list as well! And finally, I also added a new sport to my roster with Break Point; a tennis love story which was highly informative about the sport. So naturally I needed another sports month.

But did I learn anything new about myself and my taste in reading? Perhaps not. But did it reconfirm the belief that pushing yourself beyond what you know in the first place, like I did last year with Smulympics, was a good thing? That it did. 

My point is that pushing yourself to try new things often leads to exciting, new self-discovery. So if you are looking at your book shelf or your TBR asking yourself what to read next, try the thing you don't think you will like. It's September, it's school time. Do your homework. Study. You just might learn something new. 

Book Reviews:

Rating system: (this is based on price, just try and come between me and my kindle)

⭐️Library, ⭐️⭐️kindle, ⭐️⭐️⭐️paperback, ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️hard cover, 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ special edition

Spice level:

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Oh my God, I didn’t know you could do that!

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Not suitable to read at work

🌶️🌶️🌶️Good Lord!

🌶️🌶️HOT

🌶️ hot

FMC= Female main Character and MMC= Male Main Character

Pucking Strong by Dr. Emily Rath🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

The Jacksonville Ray series transcends all its faults and truly is a work of art. Some people criticize it for having silly character names, long page counts, or unbelievable plot lines. Furthermore, its look at unconventional love can stoke prejudice and fear in some readers. Taking all of this into account, it is still my opinion that this series deserves to be read because in reality these books highlight the humanity of people. Pucking Strong is the fourth book in the series and the main themes are grief, found family, and self discovery. I would say in some ways this is the most somber of the Rays series so far, only due to the tragic set up. The book is set 6 years after Pucking Around. The story follows Teddy O’Conner, former PT intern for the Rays, who returns as a fully trained doctor to fill in for Rachel who goes on maternity leave. During his time as an intern, Teddy harbored a substantial crush on Henrik Karlsson, the Swedish Forward for the Rays. When Henrick's sister is killed in a car accident in Sweden, which leaves her daughter orphaned and in critical condition, Teddy steps in to travel with Henrick. But things escalate when the two decide to get married to help Henrick gain custody of his niece. It's a wild plot line that instantly raises the stakes. The whole story then becomes an ode to found family and the love and care that can grow between people. The friendship evolves into deep caring and later into an interesting look at passion by exploring demisexuality. It's a testament to the importance of trust in relationships. Dr. Rath’s stories show her capacity for depicting human complexities. The fact that this book is Book 4 in the series is important because I would say at least 20 percent of the magic of this book is knowing the previous characters, and following the growth of all of them through each other's stories. This book was amazing! It was a new look at the Rays with a gorgeous payoff. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Rewind It Back by Liz Tomforde 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

God Lord! I f’cking loved this book! The Windy City series changed me a year ago. It's a masterfully crafted world that has lived rent-free since last August. When Rewind It Back came out in May I put it into my September books because it was a sports romance. However, if I am being 100 percent honest, I did that because I was not ready for the series to be over. These characters mean the world to me and Rewind It Back lived up to my expectations. I got to see Rio, a character that I love, find his peace and Happily Ever After while also getting a great story. Childhood-friends-to-lovers will ALWAYS be my favorite. It feels like an honor to get to see how sweet and whole-hearted these two love each other. Hallie Hart is both cool and confident, while also being sweet and soft. She is the perfect partner to silly, kind, passionate, and emotional Rio DeLuca. The use of music was a fun and unique storytelling technique. I am heartbroken to be done, but - I can't wait to go back whenever I miss this world! <3 (End of Beginning by Djo on repeat)⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Pitcher Perfect by Tessa Bailey 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
What I love about Tessa Bailey is that I know I will always get a book that has me laughing and sweating at the same time. The comedy that she injects into her work is phenomenal and her premises are hilarious! This book is about a hockey player and D1 softball pitcher who decided to go on a fake date to make her brother's best friend jealous at - get this - her family's annual  athletic competition. The story is silly and goofy while also heartfelt, and the spice is amazing. What I appreciate about Bailey's writing is she never shies away from dirty talk that makes the book unapologetically slutty. There is something playful and empowering in that kind of smut writing style. This is a perfect sportsy-dirty-rom-coml What more could you want?!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Break Point by Yahrah St. John 🌶️🌶️🌶️

This book was very hard for me because there were things that I liked about the book but the storytelling frustrated me so much that I was challenged for most of the book. This is a second-chance romance between two exes. Teagan leaves the world of tennis after a knee injury. The loss of her career leads to the loss of her relationship with Dominic as well. The two both walk away from their relationship feeling broken and abandoned. 12 years later, Dominic has gone on to become the most successful tennis player of their time and Teagan has built a real estate business. They both end up needing to work a charity tennis tournament and are brought back together. They have undeniable chemistry that is very fun to read. But my frustration lies in the fact that the two characters never really address their issues. They begin to sleep with each other and fall back into a relationship without ever having a productive conversation about the past. For me, the story dragged on without the important conversations taking place. The storytelling relies on the physical relationship rather than the emotional one to move the plot forward. The two only have an open and honest conversation with each other in the last few pages of the book. I am more interested in books that have a good balance between emotional and physical tension.

⭐️⭐️

Saving 6 by Chloe Walsh 🌶️🌶️

This is Book 3 in the Boys of Tommen series and it’s the first one that doesn’t follow Jonny and Shannon. This story is about Shannon’s older brother Joey and his girlfriend Aoife. This book feels drastically different from the earlier ones. Joey is a character who has been beaten and abused and to deal with this reality he escapes into drugs. Joey is a hurler - an Irish sportsman. In the eyes of his abusive father, that’s his only redeeming quality. Joey’s a truly broken character who has a hard time seeing the beauty in the world unless he spends time with Aoife. For a YA novel, this book definitely has more sex. I would not say it’s smut. For Joey, sex starts out as another way to chase his demons but with Aoife he experiences sex with feelings. The story will not leave you feeling warm and fuzzy. If anything it will make you cry. But the reality is that love stories like Joey and Aoife’s are common. The first book in their story really focuses on the idea that we can't fix someone just by loving them. Sometimes people need outside help. But what we can do for them is to offer support. I need to read Redeeming 6 now so I can find some joy for them.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️