Check, Please! Book 1: #Hockey

Eric Bittle arrives at Samwell University in Samwell, Massachusetts, as a freshman on the men's hockey team. Back in the South he was a junior figure skating champion in Georgia, and he also films vlogs and bakes as a hobby. None of that prepares him for the level of play at Samwell.

The team is a long way from the co-ed club hockey he knew at home. Checking is allowed, and Eric is afraid of it. He also has a problem off the ice: Jack, the team captain, is very good-looking and moody, and Eric is deeply in love with him.

This is a graphic novel, collecting the first half of a popular webcomic of the same name. It is the first of two volumes. The tone is comic, with an emotional side that grows as Eric's feelings and his place on the team come into focus.

The story is a coming-of-age one set across four years of college. It follows a young man working out who he is among his teammates, while he learns a rougher sport than the one he trained in.