This is one of the first adult sports romances I've read and I had a great time, overall! It has just enough holiday vibes to be perfect for this time of year, but not so much that it takes over the story. Even thought he demisexual rep was not on page, it was clear in multiple scenes that Landon's experiences matched with that label. I think a lot of ace people would resonate with Landon's feelings about arousal and his complicated feelings about suddenly feeling sexual attraction when that's so rare for him.  Even after Landon starts having sex with Casey, he still has boundaries that Casey is willing to respect, while still getting what he needs in that area. As someone who often gets bored with sex scenes, I found these had enough variety and character development to keep me interested. Beyond the rep, I connected with both Landon's grief and Casey's self esteem issues related to his intelligence. The way Casey's parents treated him and the class difference between him and Landon could have been addressed more, which is what kept me from rating this any higher. I would still recommend if you're interested in a hockey romance set around the holidays! There are multiple sex scenes between Landon and Casey, none of which involve penetration with anything other than a toy. Casey has sex with other people in the book, but there is no actual cheating. 

I've taken a while to review this book because I loved it so much I wanted to do it justice. It was just what I needed to feel something in a moment when doing so felt otherwise impossible. This is a story about two queer, probably neurodivergent men finding each other, even in their workplace that pushes them to the social margins. I loved how well this book showcases all of the caretaking, trust, healing, and commitment romance involves regardless of any sexual relationship. If you're looking for an asexual romance in every sense of the word, you'll find it here. From a craft perspective, I found it just about perfect in pacing, which is rare for me to say about a novella, and the writing was clear and fit the characters' personalities. It's quiet and sweet without sacrificing all friction and conflict. Beyond the romance, I was also very invested in Arthur's complicated relationships with his family and the setting where high stakes action is going on elsewhere while the characters we're following basically work an office job for most of the book. I could go on, but I don't want to give too much detail with how short this is. So do yourself a favor and set aside a couple hours to read it! His Quiet Agent has no sex scenes and only discusses it in terms of the characters discussing their asexuality.

CW: Death of a parent, disordered eating, recovering from serious injury, and hospitals

The Alpha and His Ace by Ana J. Pheonix is a cute novella, but I didn't find it particularly memorable. The writing is decent and he worldbuilding was fun, although I would have liked to see more of it, especially how the mating bond works. I enjoyed Brandon's earnest and enthusiastic nature, especially when it comes to Aidan, but he doesn't read as much of an alpha to me. I don't have any major complaints about the ace rep, but it definitely seems written for a mostly allosexual audience with the only POV we get being the allo character and how much explaining the basics of asexuality there is. But I appreciated that Aidan had hobbies outside of just being asexual and the novella did explain how much variety exists on the ace spectrum. I also liked Brandon's arc of realizing that he deserves to have his needs met, too. However, the entire conflict revolves around unnecessary miscommunication, which made the resolution feel too easy for my taste, especially for a mixed orientation relationship.  There is one sex scene without penetration towards the end.