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4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
This is a solid 4.5 read. I was wondering if I should round it up to 4 stars (the end dragged a tiny bit) or just go for 5 stars and the ending convinced me.
This was absolutely adorable and I needed this. Casey was adorable, I see how people can think he is too much, but I love this kind of no-filter, honest and energetic ball of fluff. I like how comfortable he is with himself. I related to Landon a bit too much, lol. Easily embarrassed, awkward around people and full of issues? My son, for real. Both of them have been adopted by the way.
The romance was so sweet, without too much angst (except the end, but it was resolved quickly enough). I love how Landon's boundaries when it comes to sex were respected and addressed. The communication on that aspect was super healthy in my opinion. And it's another aspect I relate to Landon a LOT, and it was so nice to see what I'd say is good demi rep in a romance. For Casey I love how the fact that he is "stupid" was addressed: there is not only one kind of intelligence, academics is just one of many, and Casey has a lot of social and emotional intelligence (as well as Hockey IQ!) that makes him absolutely loveable. They're both hilarious and fit each other so well.
« “I leave for a few weeks and now you can cook and clean?”
“Yup. I’m gonna be the best husband you’ve ever had.”
Every word of that sentence was ridiculous, but it still made Landon’s heart stop. “I know.” »
The romance developed at a nice pace, it was lovely to see them fall for each other, despite their differences. I saw people be bothered (personal opinions, all good!) by the book portraying Casey flirting and hooking up with people other than Landon in the first half and that didn't bother me and I'm happy the book went so far to show us that it's how Casey was, it's what he needed, as someone who gets lonely and needs people around.
The side cast was not the most prominent but still adorable too. I just really loved this, I am so in love with my two new sons, they were super soft and perfect for each other, a lovely soft romance <3
This was absolutely adorable and I needed this. Casey was adorable, I see how people can think he is too much, but I love this kind of no-filter, honest and energetic ball of fluff. I like how comfortable he is with himself. I related to Landon a bit too much, lol. Easily embarrassed, awkward around people and full of issues? My son, for real. Both of them have been adopted by the way.
The romance was so sweet, without too much angst (except the end, but it was resolved quickly enough). I love how Landon's boundaries when it comes to sex were respected and addressed. The communication on that aspect was super healthy in my opinion. And it's another aspect I relate to Landon a LOT, and it was so nice to see what I'd say is good demi rep in a romance. For Casey I love how the fact that he is "stupid" was addressed: there is not only one kind of intelligence, academics is just one of many, and Casey has a lot of social and emotional intelligence (as well as Hockey IQ!) that makes him absolutely loveable. They're both hilarious and fit each other so well.
“Yup. I’m gonna be the best husband you’ve ever had.”
Every word of that sentence was ridiculous, but it still made Landon’s heart stop. “I know.” »
The romance developed at a nice pace, it was lovely to see them fall for each other, despite their differences. I saw people be bothered (personal opinions, all good!) by the book portraying Casey flirting and hooking up with people other than Landon in the first half and that didn't bother me and I'm happy the book went so far to show us that it's how Casey was, it's what he needed, as someone who gets lonely and needs people around.
The side cast was not the most prominent but still adorable too. I just really loved this, I am so in love with my two new sons, they were super soft and perfect for each other, a lovely soft romance <3
This book was so cute!!! It had me squealing out loud in some parts, it was so adorable. I’m not going to say it has the grumpy/sunshine trope though, it’s more like lively and taciturn. They’re both freaking adorable and the pacing of the book was fantastic. 4.5 stars easy!!
When Landon Stackhouse is called up to the NHL to serve as the backup goalie he has finally gotten the chance to prove himself, but along the way he learns more about himself than just how to play hockey in the NHL. Casey Hicks is the teams jokester and a major people person, the complete opposite of Landon, but when Casey invited Landon to live in his giant house with him, these two complete opposites attract.
I have read many hockey romances over the year and absolutely love them, but this is my first MM hockey romance I have read and I did truly enjoy it. The characters were so likable and endearing and while there was a good amount of steamy moments between the two, there were even more sweet moments to help even everything out. Each of the main characters had their own issues that they needed to work through and I liked glow the author showed this, instead of making the characters near perfect with no flaws. My only complaint is that sometimes the characters harped on their flaws too much, this might sound contradictory to my last sentence. But in clarification, I enjoyed that they had flaws, just not how much they were emphasized. Anyway, I am always going to be a fan of hockey romances, with my preference being the male/female relationships, but I fully enjoyed this MM pairing. I highly recommend this sweet romance to anyone looking for a good romance read!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book!
I have read many hockey romances over the year and absolutely love them, but this is my first MM hockey romance I have read and I did truly enjoy it. The characters were so likable and endearing and while there was a good amount of steamy moments between the two, there were even more sweet moments to help even everything out. Each of the main characters had their own issues that they needed to work through and I liked glow the author showed this, instead of making the characters near perfect with no flaws. My only complaint is that sometimes the characters harped on their flaws too much, this might sound contradictory to my last sentence. But in clarification, I enjoyed that they had flaws, just not how much they were emphasized. Anyway, I am always going to be a fan of hockey romances, with my preference being the male/female relationships, but I fully enjoyed this MM pairing. I highly recommend this sweet romance to anyone looking for a good romance read!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book!
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
L O V E D this book. I love all of Rachel Reid's books, so this is not a surprise, but Time to Shine is different from the rest of her work--I found it lighter, in a way, because it doesn't grapple with a queerphobic NHL or linger on whether coming out would impact fans' perception of them or their teams. Everyone around Landon and Casey support them, so instead the tension comes through their characters and the difficulty of maintaining a relationship when both parties are at the whims of unpredictable careers.
I think my favorite thing about this book, though, was just how sweet it was. Casey is terrific to and for Landon. I like when romance novels are heavy on scenes that are just the two characters getting to know each other, and this is one of them: they spend most of their time in Casey's house, and they're just so sweet to each other. Made me want to hug the whole book. This is definitely one I'll be going back to when I'm in the mood for a reread.
Oh, the hockey's good too, if you're into that sort of thing.
I think my favorite thing about this book, though, was just how sweet it was. Casey is terrific to and for Landon. I like when romance novels are heavy on scenes that are just the two characters getting to know each other, and this is one of them: they spend most of their time in Casey's house, and they're just so sweet to each other. Made me want to hug the whole book. This is definitely one I'll be going back to when I'm in the mood for a reread.
Oh, the hockey's good too, if you're into that sort of thing.
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book was SO SWEET and I loved it so much!! I listened to the audiobook and really liked the narrator. I've never been a fan of sports romances, but I'll always give them a shot (pun not intended lol), and I'm glad I tried this hockey romance out because it was so so good. I listened to it in two days and didn't want to put it down!
It is set around the winter holidays but it isn't really a holiday book. I loved the two main characters, one was super shy/anxious/awkward, and the other was extroverted/talkative/lonely, so it was a great mix. Plus there are some lovely conversations in here about family and grief. And no homophobia from teammates and stuff too which I loved to see! And the spice was A+!!
It is set around the winter holidays but it isn't really a holiday book. I loved the two main characters, one was super shy/anxious/awkward, and the other was extroverted/talkative/lonely, so it was a great mix. Plus there are some lovely conversations in here about family and grief. And no homophobia from teammates and stuff too which I loved to see! And the spice was A+!!
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Loved it. Excellent writing, really great characters. Definitely Rachel Reid’s sweetest and fluffiest book so far. Some angst but not loads. Demi hero so relatively so burn but the pacing meant it didn’t feel drawn out.
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes