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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
I love this book so fucking much. There are a few cringe scenes in here, but it is honestly such a fun and honest read, in my opinion. I would read this over and over again if I could.
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
The end stretched out way too long. Had to skip a couple of chapters where people were just lying for. Was pretty good otherwise. I could have probably given it 4 stars if it only had the boring chapters or the lying chapters, but with both I can’t give it more than a 3.
A little long, but I loooved how protective Chase was with Bailey. Spice was a little mid, but was still nice! I liked the ex's rival trope and the found family aspect.
4/5 this was a cuter hockey romance. The spice level, personally, was on the lower end. I would say this would make a good book maybe for a younger, beginner romance reader!
it was a hockey romance. that it was.
(i hate giving books low star ratings but ive definitely read better ones)
(i hate giving books low star ratings but ive definitely read better ones)
went on for wayyyyyyy too long and the climax literally came out of left field ?? very random
Booorrring. When this book finally got good it lasted like 5 seconds. I give it 2 stars only because I’ve read worse
I truly wanted to like this book so badly – it has all the elements that would normally have me obsessing over this book.
Here is what I loved:
Hockey romance – I really appreciated the writing, getting into more details of hockey and I greatly appreciated that.
Ex’s biggest rival – not a trope I have read very often but absolutely loved. I also really appreciate that Chase is the “enforcer” of the team. I feel like hockey romances don’t often feature that dynamic and I love his energy.
After a horribly toxic, cheating, manipulative ex – finding love, confidence, and trust in another man. Also the exploration of her sexuality. It was extremely healing and beautiful.
I felt myself skipping over multiple chapters – I felt so guilty for doing so because I’ve never done this with a book but there was just so much writing, but I think this book could have easily been cut in half. There was so much filler that was not necessary. If we cut like 400-500 pages, this probably would be 3 stars for me.
Here is what I loved:
Hockey romance – I really appreciated the writing, getting into more details of hockey and I greatly appreciated that.
Ex’s biggest rival – not a trope I have read very often but absolutely loved. I also really appreciate that Chase is the “enforcer” of the team. I feel like hockey romances don’t often feature that dynamic and I love his energy.
After a horribly toxic, cheating, manipulative ex – finding love, confidence, and trust in another man. Also the exploration of her sexuality. It was extremely healing and beautiful.
I felt myself skipping over multiple chapters – I felt so guilty for doing so because I’ve never done this with a book but there was just so much writing, but I think this book could have easily been cut in half. There was so much filler that was not necessary. If we cut like 400-500 pages, this probably would be 3 stars for me.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
There are many great aspects to this book that I enjoyed. Bailey is actually a huge fan of hockey and knows so much about the sport and players stats that’s really impressive. The book is really sex-positive with encouragement to try new things so both parties have pleasure. The plot with the revenge porn was interesting and I’m glad it had its own spin, but it happened rather fast, was convenient for a 3rd act breakup, and resolved quickly too. I like that Chase was protective, but it did get to be too much. I believe there were too many tropes or plot points trying to be hit in a single book that they just fell flat. This book needed 150-200 pages cut to be a more compelling read. Bailey doesn’t have much personality besides being a journalism major, being insecure, and liking hockey. The insecurity went too far - it just wasn’t realistic. While it was sex positive, going from not getting pleasure with one partner to nearly instantaneous pleasure with another - again not realistic and while the attempt was there, it ended up being disappointing. I can’t even fully express how stupid the team rivalry was - no two schools within 20(?) minutes of each other are so insane that their student bodies don’t mix. Or that they would be call “traitors” for being friendly with the other team. Then we have just how mean all the Bulldogs are. So stupid. Then Luke was just too much especially since there was already the plot point with Shiv’s ex. There were so many unresolved issues that could’ve been focused on (Chase being traumatized by his dads death and apparently Bailey’s dad died prior to one of the epilogue chapters?) rather than just throwing all the plot points on the board. The constant nicknames (James, baby) felt excessive and for all of this and the intensity of their feelings to hit in a matter of 3ish months? This book was trying to do too much and it fell flat. There is so much potential but it needs to have really serious editing to cut back and make the actual plot and characters shine. 2.75⭐️, 3🌶