Penelope Douglas’ adult romance novel has been optioned by Canada’s Crave streaming service for a TV series after the breakout success of its Heated Rivalry gay romancer adaptation.

Released in 2024, Five Brothers follows one woman who learns the secrets of the five Jaeger brothers: Macon, Army, Iron, Dallas, and Trace. “Five Brothers was such an immersive writing experience for me with a cast of characters I connected to immediately. I can’t wait to see these men brought to life,” Douglas said in a statement.

Crave parent Bell Media plans to develop the book as a multi-season TV series after successfully adapting Rachel Reid’s Heated Rivalry book into a gay hockey TV drama that was also sold to HBO Max in the U.S. market.

“Heated Rivalry proved there is global appetite for sexy, sophisticated, and mainstream romance stories. With complex lead characters, a boundary-pushing story, and a built-in audience, we’re excited to develop Crave’s next big swing in the romance genre,” Carlyn Klebuc, general manager, original programming at Bell Media, said in a statement.

Heated Rivalry is set to return to television screens for a second season in 2027, with series creator Jacob Tierney and executive producer Brendan Brady on board to produce. The show focuses on two rival professional players — Canada-born Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) of the fictitious Montreal Metros and Russia-born Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie) of the fictitious Boston Raiders — as they navigate a near-decade-long situantionship-turned-relationship.

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