{"id":19376,"date":"2024-10-22T15:02:08","date_gmt":"2024-10-22T19:02:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/library.torontomu.ca\/asianheritage\/?page_id=19376"},"modified":"2026-01-04T18:12:18","modified_gmt":"2026-01-04T23:12:18","slug":"bal-khabra","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/library.torontomu.ca\/asianheritage\/authors\/bal-khabra\/","title":{"rendered":"Bal Khabra"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Bal Khabra is a Canadian writer and romance enthusiast who creates characters with differing cultural backgrounds. This offers her an opportunity to slip in hints of her South Asian roots. Khabra is based in British Columbia. She discusses her experience with Wattpad and TikTok that eventually led to her contract with a major publisher in KWL Podcast Episode #343 From Romance Reader to Romance Author<\/a> (kobowritinglife) May 14, 2024.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Fiction<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Collide<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Toronto: Berkley\/Viking\/Penguin Random House Canada, 2024.
Series: Off the Ice ; #1<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Publisher’s Synopsis (From its website)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

An ultimatum from Summer Preston\u2019s thesis advisor thrusts her into an unexpected collision with the hockey team\u2019s captain, Aiden Crawford. She\u2019s caught between conflicting desires of fulfilling her lifelong dream of becoming a sport psychologist and staying as far away as possible from the god-awful sport. And once she meets Aiden\u2014well, let\u2019s just say he confirms all her worst assumptions about hockey players. 

Being the captain of the college hockey team has its perks, except when a reckless mistake by Aiden\u2019s team threatens to jeopardize their entire season. As punishment, Aiden\u2019s coach nominates him as the subject of a student research project. Participating is the last thing he wants to do, especially since the girl leading the project looks like she could wield his skates as a weapon.

Summer can\u2019t stand Aiden\u2019s blas\u00e9 approach to life, and Aiden doesn\u2019t understand why she\u2019s twenty years old with a twenty-five-year plan. But their bickering soon turns to bantering\u2014and once they let their guards down, there\u2019s nothing to check their feelings.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Fiction<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Embrace<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Toronto: Viking, 2026.
forthcoming Aug. 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Synopsis<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Kian Ishida is all about parties, hockey, and living in the moment. But when he realizes he\u2019s headed to the NHL without his degree, his late dad\u2019s one wish for him, he\u2019s determined to make up those last few credits. Desperate for help, he joins a study group led by none other than Scarlett Kilner. She\u2019s as gorgeous as she is smart. Too bad he doesn\u2019t know yet that she\u2019s his coach\u2019s daughter.

After making a reputation for herself, all Scarlett wants for her senior year is to prove she\u2019s more than her mistakes and graduate without tarnishing her well-respected father\u2019s name. But when Kian Ishida, one of her dad\u2019s star hockey players, joins her study group, things get complicated.

As Scarlett helps Kian, their study sessions turn into something more\u2014stolen glances, lingering touches, and a connection neither of them expected. Kian has to decide what\u2019s more important: the dream he\u2019s worked for his whole life or the girl he never saw coming.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Fiction<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Revolve<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Toronto: Berkley\/Viking\/Penguin Random House Canada, 2025.
Series: Off the Ice ; #3
forthcoming October 2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Publisher’s Synopsis<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Sierra Romanova was an Olympian figure skater before a life-altering accident on the ice left her with panic attacks every time she enters the rink. Now, back for her final year at Dalton University, she\u2019s ready to reclaim the spotlight, with all eyes on her\u2026including those of hockey player Dylan Donovan, whose audacious words goad her back into her skates to prove him wrong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After getting kicked off his hockey team for his reckless behavior, Dylan is left with slim chances of making it to the NHL draft. But Dylan\u2019s whole world revolves around the ice, and if hockey is forbidden, well at least there\u2019s figure skating. Even better, it means more time at the rink with Sierra. Sure, he\u2019s helping her rebuild her confidence, but pushing her buttons along the way? That\u2019s just a bonus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the figure skating world awaits Sierra’s comeback, she finds herself in need for a new pairs partner. The only person she knows who can match her skill on the ice is none other than the cocky hockey player who refuses to cut her any slack. Dylan’s a wildcard, Sierra’s a seasoned pro, but together, they might just be the perfect match on the ice.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Fiction<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Spiral<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Toronto: Berkley\/Viking\/Penguin Random House Canada, 2025.
Series: Off the Ice ; #2<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Publisher’s Synopsis (From its website)<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Elias Westbrook, a newly drafted hockey player for the Toronto Thunder, is facing the challenges of fame and media scrutiny. With a growing fan base and too many expectations on his shoulders, he\u2019s struggling to make his first career goal. The tabloids are reporting on his every move, including which woman he was last seen with, but all he wants to do is escape the spotlight.

Enter from stage left Sage Beaumont, an aspiring ballerina with dreams of joining the Aurora Ballet Theatre, but her lack of popularity online leaves her at a major disadvantage for securing the lead role. When Sage finds herself with the perfect opportunity to make her dreams come true by fake dating Elias, she takes her shot.

Soon enough, the flimsy fake-dating rules they set in place fall away in the face of their sizzling connection. But before things spiral out of control, Sage and Elias will have to decide if they\u2019re willing to take the leap together or if they’ll call it quits.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Links<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Bal Khabra personal website<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Publisher Penguin Random House Canada<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bal Khabra is a Canadian writer and romance enthusiast who creates characters with differing cultural backgrounds. This offers her an opportunity to slip in hints of her South Asian roots. Khabra is based in British Columbia. She discusses her experience … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"parent":16,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-19376","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/library.torontomu.ca\/asianheritage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/19376","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/library.torontomu.ca\/asianheritage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/library.torontomu.ca\/asianheritage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/library.torontomu.ca\/asianheritage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/library.torontomu.ca\/asianheritage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19376"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/library.torontomu.ca\/asianheritage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/19376\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21247,"href":"https:\/\/library.torontomu.ca\/asianheritage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/19376\/revisions\/21247"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/library.torontomu.ca\/asianheritage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/16"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/library.torontomu.ca\/asianheritage\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19376"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}