Today, I have bestselling author Koko Klein in the interview chair. We’re discussing her latest release, Breakaway for Love, book one in the Hockey & Love series, a m/m sports romance. Be sure to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway.
****
1. Hi, Koko. First off, readers have an idea of the writer you, but what about the everyday you? Can you share about your personal life?
Koko: Wow! What a difficult question to start with!
In a nutshell: I’m a redheaded forty-something from Vienna with a husband, teenage son, and two crazy cats who keep us on our toes.
But delving a little more deeply, I’ve been playing the piano since I was six years old. Want to take a guess at my preferred musical era? That’s right—the Romantics!
I’m an absolute sucker for board games and have two ‘willing’ opponents—we share a house so they can’t get away!
I’m from Austria and have been living in Vienna’s historic city center for the last 20 years. History is literally on my doorstep—and I love it. Can there be anything more thrilling than walking in the footsteps of kings? Picking up the best coffee and strudel while I’m out and about doesn’t hurt either!
2. I’ve been perusing your Goodreads page, and I see you enjoy writing m/m romance. Can you tell me what draws you to writing in this genre?
Koko: That’s actually quite a funny story. You can blame someone I went to college with. This friend challenged me to create a version of Sleeping Beauty — with two princes as the MCs. That was back in 2004, and what can I say? I haven’t stopped writing about men in love since!
3. Let’s talk about the main characters. What do you love most about Nico and Daniel?
Koko: I’m not much of a plotter. Daniel’s character popped into my head while I was writing one of my other stories, and I knew immediately that he needed a story of his own—I loved how he pushed his way into my consciousness. I loved how he is open to listening to Sebastian, in Love on Ice, and how he leads his team, his loyalty to his friends and how he gives Nico all the time he needs.
Nico is someone I just want to scoop up and cuddle as hard as I can. He had such a hard time growing up and I love seeing him become more true to himself as the this story unfolds.
4. And what makes you want to shake these two?
Koko: Nico gets a pass, but I could definitely shake Daniel. Nico grew up in a totally homophobic family. Although he’s in his mid-20s, he’s only just beginning to accept his sexuality. And while Daniel is very understanding, sometimes his communication skills leave a lot to be desired — at one point, it almost costs them their relationship.
5. Without giving away any spoilers, what was your favourite scene to write and why?
Koko: Nico is an introverted kind of guy. He basically only has one friend—Vincent—and even they don’t talk about important stuff much. But then they share one phone call where Nico starts to open up—probably for the first time in his life. My heart was beating so fast when I wrote this … I just love it.
6. Why write a sports romance, especially hockey?
Koko: Hockey has always been a huge part of my life. Even though the most popular sports in Austria are skiing and soccer, my family has always been passionate about ice hockey. I spent half of my youth standing in the freezing cold and cheering on my brother’s team. Then I married a hockey player. Our honeymoon? Canada. In winter. To watch ice hockey. Our son insisted on playing, too, when he was only four years old! And that’s how I became a hockey mom.
Because of that, it might come as a surprise that my first series wasn’t sports focused! Instead, I started with a royal couple, although sledge hockey gets a cameo part in the Book 5 of that series, a hockey playing character made an appearance, so of course, I had to write his story. Then I got the idea for another one. Then another. In the end, I decided to separate these books from my Love in Terengia series and give them their own Hockey & Love series.
7. How is your novel different from other m/m sports romances?
Koko: National teams have always fascinated me because they present a special challenge for the players. They are taken out of their professional teams and thrown together for a comparatively short time. I wanted to harness that special time, so I set this novel at the Olympic Games.
Which national team do my characters play for? Terengia. It’s an island country I created out of necessity—at first. I wanted to write a royal romance novel, An Unexpected Love, but without ruffling any regal feathers, so Terengia was born. But now, my imagined country is very dear to my heart.
One thing I really like about Terengia is that, like my home country of Austria, it’s a small country with barely 5 million inhabitants. For international competitions, small countries often face a particular set of challenges. But it has it’s up sides, too. All the guys in the team have known each other since childhood, having played with or against each other all their lives.
8. What can we expect from you in the future?
Most of my Love in Terengia series has already been published in English. As for the Hockey & Love series—I’ve already published 6 novels and 2 short stories for my German readers, as it’s my native language. Plus, I’m currently working on novel number 7, not to mention being hounded by my German readers to write another short story about a side character they adore. These are being published in English, too, so you won’t have to wait too long.
Book #2 in the Hockey & Love series comes out on May 5. I love it. It’s a summer romance set on a cruise ship where one of Daniel and Nico’s teammates ends up taking tango lessons. For four hours a day. With his sister’s best friend. Best male friend …
9. I enjoy doing random questions, so humour me: I love that!
• What’s your favourite movie?
Hidden Figures. This movie impressed me so much! Being a scientist myself, I admire the women who were the first to do something amazing for future generations.
• What book is currently in your e-reader?
There are a lot of German books on my e-reader at the moment that are, unfortunately, not translated into English. But if anyone here reads German, my favorite authors are Leona Bolt, Brooklyn Shore, and Svea Lundberg. The next book in English I’m looking forward to is the next Puckboy book from a series written by Eden Finley and Saxon James.
• Who’s your favourite musical group?
I’m a huge fan of classical music, especially the Romantics. My three favorite composers are Franz Schubert, Frederic Chopin and Edvard Grieg. My husband prefers to listen to heavy metal. Our favorite band to listen to together is Apocalyptica—four guys from Finland who play metal on Cellos.
• What song puts a smile on your face?
Quite a lot of my hockey books have musical references in them. In the last one, Savage Love by Jason Derulo and Jawsh 685 played a huge role. That song now puts a smile on my face every time I hear it.
10. Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Koko: Yes, acutally, since we are on random questions, my favorite board game is Ark Nova. The more complex board game get, the more I love them.
****
Title: Breakaway for Love
Series: Hockey & Love, book one
Author and Cover Artist: Koko Klein
Genres: Contemporary MM Sports (Hockey) Romance
Tropes: Enemies-to-Lovers, Gay Awakening, Forced Proximity
Themes: Coming out, Homophobic Parents, Olympic Games
Tense/POV: first person, present tense, alternating POV
Heat Rating: 4-5 flames
Length: 64 000 words/ 230 pages
Release Date: March 3, 2025
Publisher: Sicherheit & Consulting Krautgasser GmbH
Between hatred and desire.
Blurb: Nico was brought up to hate Daniel. The feud between their families is centuries old. But now they are both part of the Terengian national ice hockey team.
Working together is proving difficult. A medal at the Winter Olympics in Beijing seems increasingly out of reach. Frustration threatens to tear the team apart. Still Nico and Daniel grow closer every day.
But Nico is keeping a secret. A secret that threatens his very existence. But with every second they spend together, Daniel comes closer to uncover it.
Note: It’s book one of the HOCKEY & LOVE series. Every book in the series is a stand-alone story with a guaranteed happy ending. The next book in the series will be published in May. It does not end on a cliffhanger.
Buy Links – Available in Kindle Unlimited
Daniel:
Stay away from the Hovenbergs, my grandfather’s voice booms in my head.
I hesitate for a moment but then kick the cone high into the air. The next moment I hear cursing and my grin becomes so wide there’s a serious risk my face will explode.
The slender figure of my arch-enemy steps through the trees and stops at the edge of the pond. In his right hand, he’s carrying my new favorite toy as if it were something incredibly disgusting. In the dim light, I see that his face is contorted with rage. His ear-length hair is a bit disheveled.
Did I hit him in the head? Oops! I should probably apologize, but I’ve always loved winding him up, even back at school — he’s cute when he’s angry.
Whoa! Where did that thought come from?
I feel a little heat rising to my face, and I hope the poor light and my cheeks being red from the cold will hide my blush. Instead, I try to keep the defiant grin on my face.
“Have a go if you think you’re tough enough,” I tease.
Why am I provoking him? I’ve no idea what I’m doing. I should just apologize and let him go back to the hotel, but as captain, don’t I have a responsibility for him? Shouldn’t I at least try to get him on my side — nemesis or not?
Then Hovenberg swings his arm and throws the pinecone at me. I take it deftly with my chest like a soccer player and even manage to bounce it back and forth twice on each knee before it lands on the ice again. Now, that was impressive, even if I say so myself.
Hovenberg hasn’t moved from the edge of the pond. His arms are folded in front of his chest and he’s glaring at me. I’m sure if the light were better, I’d see storm clouds collecting in his eyes. He’s so easily provoked. That’s why it’s so much fun, and why, even in our school days, it was so hard to follow my grandparents’ advice.
I kick my recovered cone so that it lands right at Hovenberg’s feet, but he doesn’t move an inch.
“Is the big bad hockey player suddenly afraid of the nasty ice?” My voice drips with sarcasm.
Nico’s stern expression becomes even darker. If he were an animal, he’d be growling at me by now. In fact, I do hear a rumbling sound, although I’m not entirely sure because of the breeze rustling the leaves of the trees.
My nemesis sets a foot on the dark ice surface. He looks totally unsure of himself, and I wonder if he’s never been on natural ice before. I spent half my childhood on frozen ponds like this one. The ice is thick enough for safety which anyone who grew up here should know.
That consideration sparks another recollection of the rumors that were going around at school about him. Supposedly, Hovenberg’s father had his own little ice rink built for his son on their property, and if that’s true, it must have cost a fortune! My family is one of the richest in the country, but when I once suggested to my grandparents that instead of the tennis courts which nobody used, we could build an ice rink, my grandpa’s reply was to flip me the bird.
Hovenberg puts his second foot on the ice eventually and stands there in his white moon boots, his legs spread wide. His posture looks off. I can’t read it for sure, but I wonder whether he’s getting ready to pounce on me, or if he’s just damn scared and trying not to show it.
Then the pinecone shoots across the ice toward me. I stop it with my right foot and shoot it back to Hovenberg. This goes back and forth a few times, but Hovenberg doesn’t move from the edge of the pond.
Is he really that scared?
Until now, I’d made sure the cone always landed at the feet of my impromptu playmate. Now, I decide to make this more of a challenge. I kick the pinecone past him towards an imaginary goal behind him, but Hovenberg skillfully intercepts the cone and flips it back to me just as I did to him. It’s like being back at school as we try to outdo each other.
My mood lifts as we play. It was fun playing on the ice by myself, but it’s definitely more fun with two, and the longer we play, the more I forget who I’m having fun with. Forget that I actually hate him. Forget everything that stands between us.
My winter boots are being tested to their limits and my breath is coming out in gasps when all of a sudden, the pinecone flies toward me at an unexpected angle. Without a second thought, I dart to the right and jump to prevent the cone from sailing into my goal, but the ice gives way to snow, and I stumble over the edge of the pond and land in a soft pile. The breath is momentarily knocked out of me by the shocking cold that spreads over my face and trickles down my collar, then laughter takes over.
When was the last time I had this much fun?
I turn onto my back slowly but when I do, the laughter dies in my throat.
I’m alone!
The makeshift ice rink is deserted.
****
The Austrian bestselling author Koko Klein lives with her husband, son, and two crazy cats in the heart of Vienna’s historic city center. She loves to walk on roads kings were already travelling centuries ago. When she’s not busy coming up with new stories (once again failing to sleep because of them), she plays the piano (until her son has had enough of classical music), devours books (until the cats need to be petted right now), or plays board games (until her husband prefers to switch on the PlayStation).
Follow Koko: Blog/Website | Facebook | Instagram | Newsletter Sign-up
****
Enter for a chance to win one of three e-books from the author’s backlist!
Maggie Blackbird 