Power Play

Gunner Ryan has come a long way since his turbulent rookie season with the Indianapolis Racers. He knows they traded him to the Denver Direwolves just to get rid of him, but that trade gives him a position on the first line, a shot at winning the Cup, and a team that accepts him exactly as he is. He's found his place, and he's slowly figuring out how to be happy again. But the arrival of a six-year-old daughter he never knew existed brings it all flooding back, a physical reminder of the past he thought he'd left behind. As Gunner navigates unexpected fatherhood, no one is more supportive than his captain and best friend, Will Calder. Gunner knows his new daughter and his team have to be his first priorities, instead of his own selfish wants. Now more than ever, he can't risk letting Will know how he feels, not when one careless word could bring the whole thing tumbling down. But Will doesn't make it easy, and if Gunner isn't careful, he's going to lose it all.

The viral hockey romance sensation from international bestseller, Chelsea Curto. Comes with an exclusive bonus chapter. She gives me that smile again. The one that makes me feel alive. Like I've been sleeping for thousands of years and now that I'm finally waking up, she's the only thing I can see . . . Piper Mitchell needs something in her life to finally make sense. Fresh off a divorce, stuck in a career that’s lost its spark, and terrified of dating again, she decides to focus on the one thing she can control: getting more confident in the bedroom. Liam Sullivan might be the league’s best goalie, but he’s never been great with people. Behind closed doors, though, he knows exactly what he’s doing – and after some gentle pressure from Piper, he agrees to help her learn. It’s supposed to be simple: a no-strings, mutually beneficial arrangement that stays firmly off the ice. After a night of explosive chemistry in Vegas – one they can’t fully remember – they wake up with matching wedding rings. Determined not to let chaos derail their seasons, Piper and Liam agree to keep the marriage until hockey ends. It’s convenient, they insist. It's just for the hockey season. It doesn't mean anything. But as the clock ticks down on their fake-marriage-with-benefits, can Piper and Liam make it work in the real world? Or will their relationship be a power play straight to disaster? Power Play is a spicy friends-to-lovers hockey romance with the teach-me trope, accidental marriage, fake-dating fun, he falls quietly but hard, and a guaranteed happily ever after from bestselling author Chelsea Curto. The steamy second entry in the DC Stars series. The DC STARS will become your new obsession . . . ' Utter perfection. Another must-read by Chelsea Curto' 'I will recommend until im blue in the face' 'I feel speechless. This is everything I wanted in this book and more. 6* tier read!!!' 'I LOVE THIS BOOK SO SO MUCH. I WOULD GIVE IT 10 STARTS IF I COULD ' 'Really combined all the things I love: strong women, obsessed men, banter, heartfelt spice' ' This book is everything. If you're looking for a spicy ice hockey romance where she's an athlete too , this is for you'

The viral hockey romance sensation from international bestseller, Chelsea Curto. Comes with an exclusive bonus chapter. She gives me that smile again. The one that makes me feel alive. Like I've been sleeping for thousands of years and now that I'm finally waking up, she's the only thing I can see . . . Piper Mitchell needs something in her life to finally make sense. Fresh off a divorce, stuck in a career that’s lost its spark, and terrified of dating again, she decides to focus on the one thing she can control: getting more confident in the bedroom. Liam Sullivan might be the league’s best goalie, but he’s never been great with people. Behind closed doors, though, he knows exactly what he’s doing – and after some gentle pressure from Piper, he agrees to help her learn. It’s supposed to be simple: a no-strings, mutually beneficial arrangement that stays firmly off the ice. After a night of explosive chemistry in Vegas – one they can’t fully remember – they wake up with matching wedding rings. Determined not to let chaos derail their seasons, Piper and Liam agree to keep the marriage until hockey ends. It’s convenient, they insist. It's just for the hockey season. It doesn't mean anything. But as the clock ticks down on their fake-marriage-with-benefits, can Piper and Liam make it work in the real world? Or will their relationship be a power play straight to disaster? Power Play is a spicy friends-to-lovers hockey romance with the teach-me trope, accidental marriage, fake-dating fun, he falls quietly but hard, and a guaranteed happily ever after from bestselling author Chelsea Curto. The steamy second entry in the DC Stars series. The DC STARS will become your new obsession . . . ' Utter perfection. Another must-read by Chelsea Curto' 'I will recommend until im blue in the face' 'I feel speechless. This is everything I wanted in this book and more. 6* tier read!!!' 'I LOVE THIS BOOK SO SO MUCH. I WOULD GIVE IT 10 STARTS IF I COULD ' 'Really combined all the things I love: strong women, obsessed men, banter, heartfelt spice' ' This book is everything. If you're looking for a spicy ice hockey romance where she's an athlete too , this is for you'

*A Wall Street Journal Business Bestseller* 'A deeply reported and business-savvy chronicle of Tesla's wild ride' --Walter Isaacson 'A masterclass in narrative journalism' --Bradley Hope 'Exemplary' -- The Times 'An exceptional work' -- Washington Post Inside the outrageous, come-from-behind story of Elon Musk and Tesla's bid to build the world's greatest car and the race to drive the future. Elon Musk is among the most controversial titans of Silicon Valley. To some he's a genius and a visionary and to others he's a mercurial huckster. Billions of dollars have been gained and lost on his tweets and his personal exploits are the stuff of tabloids. But for all his outrageous talk of mind-uploading and space travel, his most audacious vision is the one closest to the ground: the electric car. When Tesla was founded in the 2000s, electric cars were novelties, trotted out and thrown on the scrap heap by carmakers for more than a century. But where most onlookers saw only failure, a small band of Silicon Valley engineers and entrepreneurs saw potential and they pitted themselves against the biggest, fiercest business rivals in the world, setting out to make a car that was quicker, sexier, smoother, cleaner than the competition. Tesla would undergo a truly hellish fifteen years, beset by rivals, pressured by investors, hobbled by whistleblowers, buoyed by its loyal supporters. Musk himself would often prove Tesla's worst enemy--his antics repeatedly taking the company he had funded himself to the brink of collapse. Was he an underdog, an antihero, a conman, or some combination of the three? Wall Street Journal tech and auto reporter Tim Higgins had a front-row seat for the drama: the pileups, wrestling for control, meltdowns, and the unlikeliest outcome of all, success. A story of power, recklessness, struggle, and triumph, Power Play is an exhilarating look at how a team of eccentrics and innovators beat the odds... and changed the future.

*A Wall Street Journal Business Bestseller* 'A deeply reported and business-savvy chronicle of Tesla's wild ride' --Walter Isaacson 'A masterclass in narrative journalism' --Bradley Hope 'Exemplary' -- The Times 'An exceptional work' -- Washington Post Inside the outrageous, come-from-behind story of Elon Musk and Tesla's bid to build the world's greatest car and the race to drive the future. Elon Musk is among the most controversial titans of Silicon Valley. To some he's a genius and a visionary and to others he's a mercurial huckster. Billions of dollars have been gained and lost on his tweets and his personal exploits are the stuff of tabloids. But for all his outrageous talk of mind-uploading and space travel, his most audacious vision is the one closest to the ground: the electric car. When Tesla was founded in the 2000s, electric cars were novelties, trotted out and thrown on the scrap heap by carmakers for more than a century. But where most onlookers saw only failure, a small band of Silicon Valley engineers and entrepreneurs saw potential and they pitted themselves against the biggest, fiercest business rivals in the world, setting out to make a car that was quicker, sexier, smoother, cleaner than the competition. Tesla would undergo a truly hellish fifteen years, beset by rivals, pressured by investors, hobbled by whistleblowers, buoyed by its loyal supporters. Musk himself would often prove Tesla's worst enemy--his antics repeatedly taking the company he had funded himself to the brink of collapse. Was he an underdog, an antihero, a conman, or some combination of the three? Wall Street Journal tech and auto reporter Tim Higgins had a front-row seat for the drama: the pileups, wrestling for control, meltdowns, and the unlikeliest outcome of all, success. A story of power, recklessness, struggle, and triumph, Power Play is an exhilarating look at how a team of eccentrics and innovators beat the odds... and changed the future.

Gunner Ryan has come a long way since his turbulent rookie season with the Indianapolis Racers. He knows they traded him to the Denver Direwolves just to get rid of him, but that trade gives him a position on the first line, a shot at winning the Cup, and a team that accepts him exactly as he is. He's found his place, and he's slowly figuring out how to be happy again. But the arrival of a six-year-old daughter he never knew existed brings it all flooding back, a physical reminder of the past he thought he'd left behind. As Gunner navigates unexpected fatherhood, no one is more supportive than his captain and best friend, Will Calder. Gunner knows his new daughter and his team have to be his first priorities, instead of his own selfish wants. Now more than ever, he can't risk letting Will know how he feels, not when one careless word could bring the whole thing tumbling down. But Will doesn't make it easy, and if Gunner isn't careful, he's going to lose it all.

'Essential reading for anyone trying to understand where the next influence operation is being built' ELIOT HIGGINS, founder of Bellingcat 'Revelatory . . . will fundamentally change how you understand modern power' KELLY CLANCY, author of Playing with Reality __________________________________ In Power Play , leading game industry expert George E. Osborn reveals how video games - the world's largest entertainment medium - are being used by autocrats, populists and violent extremists to influence the real world around us. Video games are the world's largest entertainment medium. They are played by billions of people of all ages every year, generating hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue. But they are more than an entertainment product. They connect people across the globe, creating digital third places where people talk, share ideas and build identities, fostering diverse communities capable of dominating the digital discourse now shaping our reality. While democracies continue to underestimate the potential for influence in this space, others have seized the opportunity to control, co-opt or collaborate with video game communities to wield the power of these vast information ecosystems. Saudi Arabia is spending tens of billions of dollars acquiring video games businesses to wash its reputation. Russia has funded video game development to help spread disinformation about the war in Ukraine. Steve Bannon utilised tactics deployed by online video game communities to propel Donald Trump into the White House, and Charlie Kirk's alleged assassin even carved video game references into his bullets. Supported by the insights of politicians, academics and industry experts, Power Play is the vital guide for understanding this new political frontier, highlighting what democracies must do to protect and harness the immense power of play before the essential battle for digital influence is lost for good.

'Essential reading for anyone trying to understand where the next influence operation is being built' ELIOT HIGGINS, founder of Bellingcat 'Revelatory . . . will fundamentally change how you understand modern power' KELLY CLANCY, author of Playing with Reality __________________________________ In Power Play , leading game industry expert George E. Osborn reveals how video games - the world's largest entertainment medium - are being used by autocrats, populists and violent extremists to influence the real world around us. Video games are the world's largest entertainment medium. They are played by billions of people of all ages every year, generating hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue. But they are more than an entertainment product. They connect people across the globe, creating digital third places where people talk, share ideas and build identities, fostering diverse communities capable of dominating the digital discourse now shaping our reality. While democracies continue to underestimate the potential for influence in this space, others have seized the opportunity to control, co-opt or collaborate with video game communities to wield the power of these vast information ecosystems. Saudi Arabia is spending tens of billions of dollars acquiring video games businesses to wash its reputation. Russia has funded video game development to help spread disinformation about the war in Ukraine. Steve Bannon utilised tactics deployed by online video game communities to propel Donald Trump into the White House, and Charlie Kirk's alleged assassin even carved video game references into his bullets. Supported by the insights of politicians, academics and industry experts, Power Play is the vital guide for understanding this new political frontier, highlighting what democracies must do to protect and harness the immense power of play before the essential battle for digital influence is lost for good.

He's Silicon Avenue's most wanted hacker. And she's his new bride... Tristan It's not every day a hacker is blackmailed into an arranged marriage. And I'm not to marry just anyone off these New York City streets-but Lauren Astor. Yes, that Lauren Astor. Tech heiress, hot-shot lawyer, and my new corporate ally with a smart mouth. Except, Lauren's more than just my arranged wife. She's my obsession. My every temptation. A dangerous line waiting to be crossed, only to sow devastating consequences in a deadly game of fate. But until I take that step... I'll always have eyes on her. Lauren It's not every day Silicon Avenue's most promising young lawyer is forced to marry a complete nobody. Tristan... Walker? *crickets* But in the wake of my father's inexplicable disappearance, our family's crown jewel, Astor Security, is in desperate need of a CEO. And there's only one crypto-billionaire, computer whiz capable for the job. So, I'll set Tristan's inconvenient loner status aside, play his blushing bride, and nothing more. Should be easy enough, right? Wrong. Because not only is my new arranged husband domineering, territorial and hell-bent on owning me in every possible way... He's riddled with secrets. This book contains a possessive, dirty-talking, and very morally-gray hero. Readers should expect plenty of steam, nail-biting angst, dark secrets, and a deeply nuanced plot. There is dual POV, no cheating, and a guaranteed HEA.

Piper Mitchell needs one thing to go her way. Divorced, feeling stuck in her professional life and terrified of reentering the world of dating, she's decided she's going to work on something she can control: learning how to be good in the bedroom. Enter Liam Sullivan. The star NHL goalie might not be a people person, but he's the perfect teacher. He knows what he's doing behind closed doors, and with a little convincing, he agrees to be Piper's guide. Things between them are casual and easy. Something they can both benefit from. And when a road trip to Vegas as Piper and Liam waking up from a night they can't remember with matching wedding rings, they decide to figure out how much more fun they can have as husband and wife. It's just for the hockey season. It doesn't mean anything. But as the clock ticks down on their fake-marriage-with-benefits, can Piper and Liam make it work in the real world? Or will their relationship be a power play straight to disaster?

Piper Mitchell needs one thing to go her way. Divorced, feeling stuck in her professional life and terrified of reentering the world of dating, she's decided she's going to work on something she can control: learning how to be good in the bedroom. Enter Liam Sullivan. The star NHL goalie might not be a people person, but he's the perfect teacher. He knows what he's doing behind closed doors, and with a little convincing, he agrees to be Piper's guide. Things between them are casual and easy. Something they can both benefit from. And when a road trip to Vegas as Piper and Liam waking up from a night they can't remember with matching wedding rings, they decide to figure out how much more fun they can have as husband and wife. It's just for the hockey season. It doesn't mean anything. But as the clock ticks down on their fake-marriage-with-benefits, can Piper and Liam make it work in the real world? Or will their relationship be a power play straight to disaster?

I was my own worst enemy. For as much as I depended on order and a structured life to easier manage my bipolar disorder, fire was irresistible and indisputably my favorite toy to play with. On the ice, it turned me into a hotheaded hockey player. In the bedroom, my attitude was my last defense, a front I wanted to see tumbling down. But lately, all I got was burned. Love sucked . Correction: it sucked when you were in love with your parents' closest friend and he didn't feel the same. I admitted my feelings for Madigan Monroe over a year ago, and I was still waiting for a response. Now my balance was gone. My anxiety was all over the place, my fits of rage had just earned me a suspension from the team, I questioned myself at every turn, and being home for two weeks was gonna make it impossible to avoid Madigan. I used to be his Abel, his sweetheart, his trouble. It'd been the two of us against the world since I was a kid. I'd even discovered we had kink in common On paper, I was seemingly perfect for him. Maybe that was why his nonverbal rejection hurt so much. Or maybe it was because, recently, he seemed hell-bent on us "being friends" again. Whatever. I was a loser, and I couldn't resist him for crap. DD/lb-dynamic.

I was my own worst enemy. For as much as I depended on order and a structured life to easier manage my bipolar disorder, fire was irresistible and indisputably my favorite toy to play with. On the ice, it turned me into a hotheaded hockey player. In the bedroom, my attitude was my last defense, a front I wanted to see tumbling down. But lately, all I got was burned. Love sucked . Correction: it sucked when you were in love with your parents' closest friend and he didn't feel the same. I admitted my feelings for Madigan Monroe over a year ago, and I was still waiting for a response. Now my balance was gone. My anxiety was all over the place, my fits of rage had just earned me a suspension from the team, I questioned myself at every turn, and being home for two weeks was gonna make it impossible to avoid Madigan. I used to be his Abel, his sweetheart, his trouble. It'd been the two of us against the world since I was a kid. I'd even discovered we had kink in common On paper, I was seemingly perfect for him. Maybe that was why his nonverbal rejection hurt so much. Or maybe it was because, recently, he seemed hell-bent on us "being friends" again. Whatever. I was a loser, and I couldn't resist him for crap. DD/lb-dynamic.

Piper Mitchell needs one thing to go her way. Divorced, feeling stuck in her professional life and terrified of reentering the world of dating, she's decided she's going to work on something she can control: learning how to be good in the bedroom. Enter Liam Sullivan. The star NHL goalie might not be a people person, but he's the perfect teacher. He knows what he's doing behind closed doors, and with a little convincing, he agrees to be Piper's guide. Things between them are casual and easy. Something they can both benefit from. And when a road trip to Vegas as Piper and Liam waking up from a night they can't remember with matching wedding rings, they decide to figure out how much more fun they can have as husband and wife. It's just for the hockey season. It doesn't mean anything. But as the clock ticks down on their fake-marriage-with-benefits, can Piper and Liam make it work in the real world? Or will their relationship be a power play straight to disaster? Power Play is a spicy friends-to-lovers sports romance with the teach me trope, a sprinkle of fake dating and accidental marriage and a guaranteed happily ever after.

Piper Mitchell needs one thing to go her way. Divorced, feeling stuck in her professional life and terrified of reentering the world of dating, she's decided she's going to work on something she can control: learning how to be good in the bedroom. Enter Liam Sullivan. The star NHL goalie might not be a people person, but he's the perfect teacher. He knows what he's doing behind closed doors, and with a little convincing, he agrees to be Piper's guide. Things between them are casual and easy. Something they can both benefit from. And when a road trip to Vegas as Piper and Liam waking up from a night they can't remember with matching wedding rings, they decide to figure out how much more fun they can have as husband and wife. It's just for the hockey season. It doesn't mean anything. But as the clock ticks down on their fake-marriage-with-benefits, can Piper and Liam make it work in the real world? Or will their relationship be a power play straight to disaster? Power Play is a spicy friends-to-lovers sports romance with the teach me trope, a sprinkle of fake dating and accidental marriage and a guaranteed happily ever after.