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paigephillips's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Eating disorder, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual assault, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Vomit
1jessicabearx's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
“I’d say she’s going to ruin all other women for me, but I don’t think about anyone but her. ”
If you love found family, and friendship groups you end up dying to be a part of, then this book is definitely for you. This book was the first time I'd properly experienced the found family trope and I can't describe the level of happiness it brought me! Especially JJ, that man has my absolute heart. These characters are not only hilarious (I'm talking eye wateringly funny) but stupidly romantic too? The sentences that came out of some of these boy's mouths, I was shocked (“Looking at her makes me want to be the funniest guy in the room, so I can be the one to make her laugh.” ...excuse me what do you mean?!) The characters are also mad fuckable but don't tell anyone.
This book has some serious spice (that taxi scene - GIRL.) which I wasn't fully prepared for going in but was definitely a fan. This did mean it took me longer to read though because I felt like I had to really be in the mood to appreciate certain chapters, and ended up not wanting to read them because I knew I had a spice scene coming up. I mean to some it up; “It’s not porn. It’s a romance book that happens to have a little bit of sex in it.”
Aaron is the worst in the world that boy needs to shut up. But apart from him this book is a dream.
If you love found family, and friendship groups you end up dying to be a part of, then this book is definitely for you. This book was the first time I'd properly experienced the found family trope and I can't describe the level of happiness it brought me! Especially JJ, that man has my absolute heart. These characters are not only hilarious (I'm talking eye wateringly funny) but stupidly romantic too? The sentences that came out of some of these boy's mouths, I was shocked (“Looking at her makes me want to be the funniest guy in the room, so I can be the one to make her laugh.” ...excuse me what do you mean?!) The characters are also mad fuckable but don't tell anyone.
This book has some serious spice (that taxi scene - GIRL.) which I wasn't fully prepared for going in but was definitely a fan. This did mean it took me longer to read though because I felt like I had to really be in the mood to appreciate certain chapters, and ended up not wanting to read them because I knew I had a spice scene coming up. I mean to some it up; “It’s not porn. It’s a romance book that happens to have a little bit of sex in it.”
Aaron is the worst in the world that boy needs to shut up. But apart from him this book is a dream.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Eating disorder, and Gaslighting
Minor: Pregnancy and Vomit
a_ford1's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Sexual content, Gaslighting, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death of parent, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Toxic friendship
moh_reads's review against another edition
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
It was fine. Writing was meh. Lots of telling, not showing. Characterization didn't feel consistent. FMC was unrealistically snotty towards the MMC in the beginning just for the sake of the author writing hate sex scenes. She was also hyper oblivious to the antagonist being abusive despite being her very therapeutized. First third dragged. I had to power through most of the book. There were some fourth wall breaking moments that really took me out of it.
Sex scenes were fine. FMC is able to orgasm just from penetration. The almost cartoony cover combined with how explicit some of the scenes were feels like a disaster waiting to happen (I'm just imagining a preteen picking this up at Target and paging though because it looks cute). Ending was super shifty consideringthey explicitly talked about her not wanting to get pregnant until she achieved some major career goals - felt like it really undermined how ambitious she was made out to be. Also getting pregnant after one time of throwing up the pill felt cheap.
Read only because a friend lent it to me and I felt obligated to finish it. Read the first 40 pages, put it down for about a month, then finished it in a laborious sitting. Extremely unlikely to read any of the author's other works.
Sex scenes were fine. FMC is able to orgasm just from penetration. The almost cartoony cover combined with how explicit some of the scenes were feels like a disaster waiting to happen (I'm just imagining a preteen picking this up at Target and paging though because it looks cute). Ending was super shifty considering
Read only because a friend lent it to me and I felt obligated to finish it. Read the first 40 pages, put it down for about a month, then finished it in a laborious sitting. Extremely unlikely to read any of the author's other works.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Sexual content, Alcohol, Pregnancy, Vomit, Body shaming, Eating disorder, and Toxic friendship
chanellohwell's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Vomit and Pregnancy
emcheym's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Too much sex, not enough plot, especially in the beginning of the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Alcohol, Pregnancy, Alcoholism, and Sexual content
sinaprst's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
honestly, just go read something on wattpad instead of spending money on this mess
things i liked:
- representation of positive therapy experiences
- healthy communication between the main characters
- one side character is in a wheelchair and the book does not make a big deal out of this
- the spice (mostly) didn`t cause me to throw up
things i disliked:
- there was literally no plot and half of the stuff that does happen coud have been left out, there is literally no reason for this to be OVER 400 PAGES LONG
- all side characters felt like cardbord cutouts, they all had like one personality trait and no depth at all
- same goes for the antagonist, who is just shitty for the sake of causing conflict in the main couples' relationship
- also, there are way to many side characters in the first place, most of them get introduced with a bunch of info dumped all over the place, do something that furthers Stassie and Nate`s relationship and then never show up again, it`s confusing, why even introduce them at all????????????????????? maybe, if we had like half the amount of characters, they could have an actual personality and depth instead of just being plot devices
- Anastasia`s nickname: "Stassie"
- they play Never Have I Ever, eventhough they are over the age of 14
- Stassie and Nate do "the no-pants dance", as Nate would say, while he is dressed up as Gru from Despicable Me
- they go to third base in an Uber, with all of their friends present in the front seats
- the hockeyplayers` group chat is called "PUCKBUNNIES"
- Stassies petname for Nate is "bub"
- the epiloguein which Nate gets Stassie accidentally pregnant at the age of like 23, eventhough the book discussed previously how Stassie never wants to get pregant but instead adopt AFTER a successful ice skating career
now, just for fun, some of quotes that that made me want to either cringe or throw up:
things i liked:
- representation of positive therapy experiences
- healthy communication between the main characters
- one side character is in a wheelchair and the book does not make a big deal out of this
- the spice (mostly) didn`t cause me to throw up
things i disliked:
- there was literally no plot and half of the stuff that does happen coud have been left out, there is literally no reason for this to be OVER 400 PAGES LONG
- all side characters felt like cardbord cutouts, they all had like one personality trait and no depth at all
- same goes for the antagonist, who is just shitty for the sake of causing conflict in the main couples' relationship
- also, there are way to many side characters in the first place, most of them get introduced with a bunch of info dumped all over the place, do something that furthers Stassie and Nate`s relationship and then never show up again, it`s confusing, why even introduce them at all????????????????????? maybe, if we had like half the amount of characters, they could have an actual personality and depth instead of just being plot devices
- Anastasia`s nickname: "Stassie"
- they play Never Have I Ever, eventhough they are over the age of 14
- Stassie and Nate do "the no-pants dance", as Nate would say, while he is dressed up as Gru from Despicable Me
- they go to third base in an Uber, with all of their friends present in the front seats
- the hockeyplayers` group chat is called "PUCKBUNNIES"
- Stassies petname for Nate is "bub"
- the epilogue
now, just for fun, some of quotes that that made me want to either cringe or throw up:
Nate keeps sliding [the pucks] in so easily, just like he did with your kitty cat. (p. 97)
Let him puck your mouth, Stassie (p. 97)
Is this what being dicknotized feels like? (p. 146)
That shit is making my vagina scream and I`m not sure she`s ready for the consequences of being a horny little slut... again. (p. 149)
Even my ovaries are screaming (p. 166)
I think he was concentrating on not accidentally poking me with his penis. (p. 204)
suddenly it`s Niagara Falls between my legs. (p. 205)
"If I say it`s a hockey stick, will you play with it?" (p. 205)
"Wanna do the no-pants dance with me?" (p. 244)
"[...] my balls are super toasty." (p. 300)
My nipples pebble under the heat of his glare. (p. 397)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Sexual content, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Mental illness, Pregnancy, and Sexual assault
dolphinchick93's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, and Body shaming
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Dysphoria, Classism, Sexism, Vomit, Drug use, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Minor: Pregnancy, Death of parent, Infidelity, and Violence
thebooseller's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
A fun, light read, but one that isn't as good as its successor (Wildfire)
Full disclosure: I read the books out of order because I liked the cover of Wildfire more. Oops. But that was the better book, though Icebreaker isn't bad.
If you're looking for plot, this ain't it. There are some plot points, but this is almost entirely character driven—and smut driven.
If I were Hannah's editor, I'd have recommended cutting Ryan or Henry. Aaron made sense, even if he was the. worst. But Ryan and Henry blended together, and their friendship dynamics were a touch too romantic/intimate for what was needed. (Like, there was some weird moment between Anastasia and Henry in the last 25% that felt very.....like it should have been between Stas and Nathan? I dunno.)
Nathan is cute and, respectfully, deserves better than Anastasia. She says she's been in therapy for years. As someone who's been in therapy since she was 12, I can attest to the fact that there's no way Stas has done years' worth of meaningful therapy work. She has a level of emotional immaturity that was offputting, and her blind trust in Aaron felt unfounded.
Also, for people worried about the pregnancy trope: It is my least favorite. Let's get that out of the way. But it also happens in the epilogue, so at least it isn't an essential plot point! (Though tbh the way it happened???? Sus.) There are decidedly way too many heavyhanded allusions to the inevitability of Stas's pregnancy, though.
Full disclosure: I read the books out of order because I liked the cover of Wildfire more. Oops. But that was the better book, though Icebreaker isn't bad.
If you're looking for plot, this ain't it. There are some plot points, but this is almost entirely character driven—and smut driven.
If I were Hannah's editor, I'd have recommended cutting Ryan or Henry. Aaron made sense, even if he was the. worst. But Ryan and Henry blended together, and their friendship dynamics were a touch too romantic/intimate for what was needed. (Like, there was some weird moment between Anastasia and Henry in the last 25% that felt very.....like it should have been between Stas and Nathan? I dunno.)
Nathan is cute and, respectfully, deserves better than Anastasia. She says she's been in therapy for years. As someone who's been in therapy since she was 12, I can attest to the fact that there's no way Stas has done years' worth of meaningful therapy work. She has a level of emotional immaturity that was offputting, and her blind trust in Aaron felt unfounded.
Also, for people worried about the pregnancy trope: It is my least favorite. Let's get that out of the way. But it also happens in the epilogue, so at least it isn't an essential plot point! (Though tbh the way it happened???? Sus.) There are decidedly way too many heavyhanded allusions to the inevitability of Stas's pregnancy, though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic friendship and Eating disorder
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Pregnancy
carsons1996's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Even if you're not a sports romance reader, this book has a little bit of everything for every kind if reader. The ending is kind of corny, but I expected nothing less from a fluff book like this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Eating disorder, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Gaslighting, Alcohol, Vomit, and Bullying
Minor: Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Violence, and Body shaming