Writing Disability Into Hockey Romance: An Own-Voices Author's Approach

I write hockey romance as an autistic author, and disabled and neurodivergent characters live at the center of my books — not at the margins as lessons or obstacles. My heroines get the grumpy-sunshine banter, the swoony hero, and the happily ever after, and they get to be fully themselves while they do. For the identities I don't share, I hire authenticity readers so the representation holds up.

Here's what that looks like on the page.

In Playing Games (January 2027), my heroine Rowena is autistic. She codes on her laptop during the quiet stretches at her bank job, she can't stand the sensation of long hair, and an arm slung over her shoulders reads as smothering rather than sweet. Her love interest, Jason, learns her — not a softened version of her. I write Rowena from the inside, because I am autistic too, and I wanted a heroine whose brain works like mine to get the fairy tale without having to mask her way through it.

That thread didn't start with Rowena. In Playing with Trouble, Ella spends the book convinced she's failing, until a quiet night with an audio-reading tool shows her that her brain processes information beautifully — just not the way school insisted it should. In Playing with Fire, Sloane's roommate Mel Ortega is a wheelchair user who gets to be funny, sharp, and central. And in Playing It Safe, Briar Beckett organizes her entire life around staying close to her sister Delphine, because love and caregiving are the same muscle for her.

Why authenticity readers matter to me. Writing from the inside is only half the work. For the parts of a character's life I haven't lived, I bring in authenticity readers before a book ever reaches you — the way I work with hockey experts on the sport, and the way I worked with readers on my first biracial protagonist so I could write her with care.

Frequently asked questions

Does Lainey Davis write neurodivergent romance? Yes. My forthcoming novel Playing Games features an autistic heroine, written own-voices, and neurodivergent and disabled characters appear across the Playing series.

Are these books still steamy and funny? Absolutely. They're high-steam, comedy-forward hockey romances with guaranteed happily ever afters. The representation deepens the story; it never replaces the swoon.

Where should I start? Playing with Trouble is the easiest entry point to the current Pittsburgh Fury books.

The Lainey Davis Hockey Reading Order: A Complete Guide

The Lainey Davis Playing series reads best in published order, though every book stands alone with its own couple and its own happily ever after. The published order is Playing for Keeps, Playing for Payback, Playing with Fire, Lit for Him, Playing with Trouble, and Playing It Safe, with Playing Games arriving January 2027.

Here's the full order with each couple and central trope:

1. Playing for Keeps — Gunnar & Emerson. Woke-up-married / accidental marriage.

2. Playing for Payback — Alder & Lena. Fake dating / roommates.

3. Playing with Fire — Tucker & Sloane. Surprise baby.

4. Lit for Him — Brian & Noa. Holiday novella, agent and bookshop owner.

5. Playing with Trouble — Howie & Ella. Brother's best friend / forced proximity.

6. Playing It Safe — Cameron "Mayhem" & Briar. Fake dating / dual-team romance (publishing October 15, 2026).

7. Playing Games — Jason "Rookie" & Rowena. Gaming-chat-room meet / roommates (January 2027).

All the books share one world: the Pittsburgh Fury men's team, the Pittsburgh Uprising women's team, and the arena they share, the Furnace. Characters recur, restaurants recur, and cats recur.

Do I have to read them in order? No. Each book is a complete standalone with its own couple and HEA. Reading in order gives you the payoff of watching the ensemble grow.

Where should I start? If you want the current Fury generation, start with Playing with Trouble. If you want the whole saga from its roots, start with Playing for Keeps.

Are the books steamy? Yes — high steam, emotional depth, comedy, and always a happily ever after.

Hockey Romance to Read If You Love Elle Kennedy and Hannah Grace

If you love Elle Kennedy and Hannah Grace, read the Playing series by Lainey Davis. These are steamy, funny, Pittsburgh-set hockey romances with grouchy heroes, sharp heroines, and a found-family ensemble that carries across the whole series. Each book stands alone with a guaranteed happily ever after, and the tropes run trope-forward: brother's best friend, fake dating, forced proximity, and one bed.

If Icebreaker pulled you in with a hockey player who falls first and falls hard, you'll recognize that energy in Bernard "Howie" Houser. In Playing with Trouble, he gives up his own bed for his best friend's little sister and spends the season pretending he doesn't notice a single thing about her. It's a brother's-best-friend, forced-proximity romance with a curvy nurse heroine who sees straight through the party-boy act.

Elle Kennedy readers tend to come for banter and stay for the team. The Playing series is built the same way. The Pittsburgh Fury move as a unit, argue over meatballs at Gianna's, and show up for each other on and off the ice. Readers consistently call out the found-family warmth and the way the humor never undercuts the emotional stakes.

Want the fake-dating book? Playing It Safe pairs Cameron "Mayhem" Miller, a tattooed enforcer who reads Shakespeare and cooks for the woman he's falling for, with Briar Beckett, a defender on the Pittsburgh Uprising women's team who trusts no one and carries her whole world alone. Even his cat betrays him for her.

Where to start: New readers usually begin with Playing with Trouble. If you prefer to read a series from its roots, start with Playing for Keeps and the earlier Stag-family books.

★★★★★ “Fun, funny, sexy — and completely satisfying from beginning to end.”