61 pages • 2 hours read
Elle KennedyThe Deal
Fiction | Novel | YA | Published in 2015A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Background
Genre Context: New Adult
The new adult (NA) genre is a relatively recent genre that emerged in the early 21st century as a response to the gap in the publishing industry between the young adult (YA) and adult fiction markets. The NA romance genre is a subcategory that focuses on the pivotal romances between characters in their late teens or mid-twenties. These stories typically include protagonists who are navigating their first adult milestones, such as college, first jobs, and serious romantic relationships.
The NA genre took shape in the early 2000s, spurred by the realization that there were limited stories geared toward readers who had aged out of YA but did not yet resonate with adult fiction. Before the inception of the NA genre, popular YA authors such as Sarah Dessen and Meg Cabot wrote books with “crossover appeal”: novels that target readers of two different age categories. These precursors to NA fiction were marketed as YA but hinted at more mature themes.
In 2009, St Martin’s Press took on a significant role in formalizing the NA genre, officially coining the term “new adult” during a writing contest. The publisher sought stories that were similar to YA fiction but could be marketed and published as adult fiction. Other traditional publishers were slow to embrace this concept, finding it difficult to market NA books. However, the NA genre soon surged due to the boom of self-publishing, and traditional publishing companies eventually accepted the genre’s potential.
The genre of NA romance in particular got its start with independent authors and digital platforms such as Kindle Unlimited; the rise of e-readers and self-publishing platforms provided a fertile ground for NA romance to flourish. Among these early popular NA romances are Beautiful Disaster (2011) by Jamie McGuire and Slammed (2012) by Colleen Hoover. As a whole, the NA romance genre often focuses on the well-worn themes of first love and heartbreak, the struggle for financial independence, and an array of mental health challenges, family dynamics, and long-term trauma. Topics such as sexuality and sexual exploration are also fair game, and the trope-heavy genre has had a significant role in popularizing conventional romance plot structures such as the “enemies-to-lovers” scenario, the college or sports romance, and the “fake-dating” premise. By the mid-2010s, as NA novels began to attract mainstream recognition, major publishers started acquiring successful indie titles from authors such as Elle Kennedy, Colleen Hoover, Jennifer L. Armentrout, and Anna Todd. By the 2020s, the genre had gained considerable momentum and has welcomed prolific authors such as Ana Huang and Danielle Jensen to its ranks.
Series Context: Off-Campus
The Off-Campus series by Elle Kennedy is a popular new adult romance series that follows the romantic and personal lives of a group of college students at Briar University. The series primarily focuses on male members of a fictional hockey team at the university as they develop romances with female love interests. Each of the installments alternates between the first-person perspectives of the male and female love interests. Known for its humor, emotional depth, and steamy romances, the series features four standalone stories with interconnected characters, along with a final novel with a plot that encompasses all four couples.
The Deal (2015) follows Hannah Wells and Garrett Graham. Hannah, a music major, strikes a deal with star hockey player Garrett, agreeing to tutor him in philosophy if he commits to fake dating her so that she can gain the attention of her crush on the football team. However, as they spend more time together, their fake relationship becomes real. The novel’s key theme is healing from trauma and includes popular new adult romance tropes such as fake dating and a bargain.
The Mistake (2015) follows Grace Ivers and John Logan. Logan, who is Garrett’s best friend and a fellow hockey player for Briar University, attempts to win Grace back after a one-night stand goes wrong. In The Score (2016), Hannah’s best friend and roommate, Allie Hayes, endures a heartbreak after the end of her relationship with Sean, who is introduced in The Deal. She enters into a no-strings-attached fling with Dean, Garrett and Logan’s friend and the flirt of the hockey team. As matters progress, the fling eventually becomes more meaningful. Finally, The Goal (2016) follows Sabrina James and John Tucker. Sabrina is an ambitious law student who has a fling with hockey player Tucker, but when she becomes pregnant, they must navigate the challenges of impending parenthood.
While each story can be read as a standalone novel, they all feature cameos of characters and protagonists who take center stage in other installments. This pattern also continues in the spin-off series, Briar U, which consists of The Chase (2018), The Risk (2019), The Play (2019), and The Dare (2020). Set in the same universe but featuring a new cast of characters with occasional appearances from the original crew, the Briar U series places a similar emphasis on romance, hockey, and the challenges of adulthood. The novel’s plots likewise feature a similar mix of humor, steamy romance scenes, and emotional depth. Kennedy also follows this pattern in her latest series, the Campus Diaries, which draws from both the Off-Campus and Briar U series. The first installment, The Graham Effect (2023), follows Gigi Graham, the daughter of Garrett and Hannah.
