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4.09 AVERAGE
4.09 AVERAGE
funny
lighthearted
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
medium-paced
challenging
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
dark
emotional
lighthearted
slow-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
I enjoyed this but my god it is way too long. Not like, 20-30 pages, more 75–100. There’s a lot of repetition (I can’t believe he even likes me, Isaac’s “terrible” French, and so. much. foreshadowing of Julien’s Tragic Backstory, which to be fair really is bad).
It’s hard to keep the poor feeling well paced when they’re an established couple by 30% and by 65% have said I love you and met each other’s families. Also, as many other reviews mentioned, this has s surprise D/s relationship and Isaac is a sexual prodigy, considering his limited experience.
About 30% of the end is dealing with Julien’s history, which itself felt oddly paced because there was so much buildup then justpoof, Travis is out of the league , and the last 5% fast forwarding through the next few months to the summer.
Despite all that, this was super readable and enjoyable, and I really liked the characters, including the side characters of Elias, Nikki, and Marie. It makes me wonder if it would have had tougher editing were it not on KU…but it was engaging enough to keep me going instead of DNF, although I see why people did.
It’s hard to keep the poor feeling well paced when they’re an established couple by 30% and by 65% have said I love you and met each other’s families. Also, as many other reviews mentioned, this has s surprise D/s relationship and Isaac is a sexual prodigy, considering his limited experience.
About 30% of the end is dealing with Julien’s history, which itself felt oddly paced because there was so much buildup then just
Despite all that, this was super readable and enjoyable, and I really liked the characters, including the side characters of Elias, Nikki, and Marie. It makes me wonder if it would have had tougher editing were it not on KU…but it was engaging enough to keep me going instead of DNF, although I see why people did.
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I wanted to like this but there were just a few things that rubbed me the wrong way.
First, the relationship between Julien, Elias, and Nikolai. All of them (and other teammates) mention that they aren't sure at different times if they're dating, who is dating who, etc. To complicate matters further, Nikki and Julie slept together to "heal" Julien's trauma after his abusive relationship as a rookie . . . ick - especially because it's obvious as hell that Elias loves Nikki.
Connected to this, while I do think the connection between Julien and Isaac was palpable, it felt almost like commonplace or something. Like they liked each other but they could have liked other people just as much or something. Julien has a very wild sexual history while it's hammered home again and again that Isaac is essentially a virgin (even though he isn't). They jump right into BDSM dynamics too and while Isaac says that Julien is the best he's ever had, Julien just says it's the best he's had in awhile. Whoo (I guess 🙄)! But what really got my goat was when Julien forgot Isaac's birthday! Like he knew about it, they're dating, and he forgot and didn't even have a present. I could have forgiven the date forgetting due to his stress and airplane phobia, but how did he have nothing prepared ahead of time? Boo! Isaac deserved better.
Some of the inclusivity and intervention of progressive social/sexual politics was a bit heavy-handed. For example, while I do think Julien needed to go to therapy, they never actually show this and instead just tell and proselytize about why it would be theoretically important in this type of situation. Similarly, there was a lot of repetition around the value of communication in real relationships. Good, but I don't need to read about it 100 times. Instead, I wished they would have shown the couple working through different actual issues instead of just having the same discussions about sex and boundaries every chapter.
It was also slow as fuck and nothing really happens except the pair get together (almost immediately), tell the team and their families, come out to the world, and reveal another player of being a sexual abuser/groomer. I wanted more.
First, the relationship between Julien, Elias, and Nikolai. All of them (and other teammates) mention that they aren't sure at different times if they're dating, who is dating who, etc. To complicate matters further, Nikki and Julie slept together to "heal" Julien's trauma after his abusive relationship as a rookie . . . ick - especially because it's obvious as hell that Elias loves Nikki.
Connected to this, while I do think the connection between Julien and Isaac was palpable, it felt almost like commonplace or something. Like they liked each other but they could have liked other people just as much or something. Julien has a very wild sexual history while it's hammered home again and again that Isaac is essentially a virgin (even though he isn't). They jump right into BDSM dynamics too and while Isaac says that Julien is the best he's ever had, Julien just says it's the best he's had in awhile. Whoo (I guess 🙄)! But what really got my goat was when Julien forgot Isaac's birthday! Like he knew about it, they're dating, and he forgot and didn't even have a present. I could have forgiven the date forgetting due to his stress and airplane phobia, but how did he have nothing prepared ahead of time? Boo! Isaac deserved better.
Some of the inclusivity and intervention of progressive social/sexual politics was a bit heavy-handed. For example, while I do think Julien needed to go to therapy, they never actually show this and instead just tell and proselytize about why it would be theoretically important in this type of situation. Similarly, there was a lot of repetition around the value of communication in real relationships. Good, but I don't need to read about it 100 times. Instead, I wished they would have shown the couple working through different actual issues instead of just having the same discussions about sex and boundaries every chapter.
It was also slow as fuck and nothing really happens except the pair get together (almost immediately), tell the team and their families, come out to the world, and reveal another player of being a sexual abuser/groomer. I wanted more.
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
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:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
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:
Complicated
I wasn’t sure whether to write a review for this book, but I made a promise to myself to always try to explain my reaction to books I rate three stars or less. Partly for the benefit of other readers, but also as a personal reminder months or years from now when I’m struggling to recall my thoughts and feelings.
In the past, I’ve enjoyed books written by both of these authors, so you can imagine my surprise to find myself not as enamored with this one as I’d hoped. I love hockey romance. I enjoy heavy, emotional storylines. So why was this one not really working for me?
Let me start by saying the hockey portions are fantastic. The action on the ice and attention to detail made those sections some of my favorite of the story. Some sports romances don’t do the heavy lifting to make sure it feels authentic to game, and I appreciate the effort that went into making this one genuine.
Similarly, the difficult content dealing with emotional abuse and trauma was well done. Is the entire plot telegraphed from early in the book? Yes, but that doesn’t make it any less compelling or impactful as it plays out on the page. The build up, conflict and resolution was riveting, and I found myself flying through that portion of the story.
Where I struggled overall was my anticipation of a slow burn romance with tension and chemistry between teammates that was in reality more of a spontaneous bonfire complete with role reversal. Their connection is immediate, and it ramps up quickly. Not far into the story, I reached a point where I thought maybe I misunderstood who Isaac and Julien were supposed to be. I’m in favor of discovering unknown character depths and contradicting stereotypes, but there were aspects of each I couldn't reconcile with the guys introduced in the beginning.
Feeling a little unmoored about Isaac and Julien’s relationship overall definitely made me hyperaware of other aspects that didn’t work for me. I’ll admit some of it is personal preference; there were parts that seemed unnecessarily detailed or repetitive. Rinse. Repeat. I’m not usually thrown out of the story in situations like that, and there were times when I was distracted by details that should have been inconsequential. One example: at risk of spoiling anything, there’s a scene where they’re off to grab lunch and decide to order room service instead. On the way to the hotel they’re interrupted, and when they finally arrive, they end up in an intimate moment. They never eat. No one ever mentions that they don’t - it’s just forgotten. Probably by everyone but me.
I’m happy for the many readers who seem to be enjoying this story. It’s not bad per se, I feel like maybe it’s trying to do too much. I’m very intrigued by the relationship between Nikki and Elias, so I will definitely be giving the second book a try. I’m hopeful that will be a better experience.
In the past, I’ve enjoyed books written by both of these authors, so you can imagine my surprise to find myself not as enamored with this one as I’d hoped. I love hockey romance. I enjoy heavy, emotional storylines. So why was this one not really working for me?
Let me start by saying the hockey portions are fantastic. The action on the ice and attention to detail made those sections some of my favorite of the story. Some sports romances don’t do the heavy lifting to make sure it feels authentic to game, and I appreciate the effort that went into making this one genuine.
Similarly, the difficult content dealing with emotional abuse and trauma was well done. Is the entire plot telegraphed from early in the book? Yes, but that doesn’t make it any less compelling or impactful as it plays out on the page. The build up, conflict and resolution was riveting, and I found myself flying through that portion of the story.
Where I struggled overall was my anticipation of a slow burn romance with tension and chemistry between teammates that was in reality more of a spontaneous bonfire complete with role reversal. Their connection is immediate, and it ramps up quickly. Not far into the story, I reached a point where I thought maybe I misunderstood who Isaac and Julien were supposed to be. I’m in favor of discovering unknown character depths and contradicting stereotypes, but there were aspects of each I couldn't reconcile with the guys introduced in the beginning.
Feeling a little unmoored about Isaac and Julien’s relationship overall definitely made me hyperaware of other aspects that didn’t work for me. I’ll admit some of it is personal preference; there were parts that seemed unnecessarily detailed or repetitive. Rinse. Repeat. I’m not usually thrown out of the story in situations like that, and there were times when I was distracted by details that should have been inconsequential. One example: at risk of spoiling anything, there’s a scene where they’re off to grab lunch and decide to order room service instead. On the way to the hotel they’re interrupted, and when they finally arrive, they end up in an intimate moment. They never eat. No one ever mentions that they don’t - it’s just forgotten. Probably by everyone but me.
I’m happy for the many readers who seem to be enjoying this story. It’s not bad per se, I feel like maybe it’s trying to do too much. I’m very intrigued by the relationship between Nikki and Elias, so I will definitely be giving the second book a try. I’m hopeful that will be a better experience.
emotional
hopeful
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
m/m hockey romance with some BSDSM elements and a lot of angst.
This really, really worked for me, even though some of it requires a suspension of disbelief. I’m not sure the instant connection between the h/h really makes sense. Same with their sexual dynamic. But I went with it because I really connected emotionally with the characters.
The romance is lovely but in a lot of ways this is the story of Julien starting to recover from a terrible past relationship and to speak out against his horrible, abusive ex. As a trauma survivor, his journey really resonated with me.
Like a lot of other mm hockey romances, it seems to take place in some alt NHL where there are out gay male players and it’s NBD.
This really, really worked for me, even though some of it requires a suspension of disbelief. I’m not sure the instant connection between the h/h really makes sense. Same with their sexual dynamic. But I went with it because I really connected emotionally with the characters.
The romance is lovely but in a lot of ways this is the story of Julien starting to recover from a terrible past relationship and to speak out against his horrible, abusive ex. As a trauma survivor, his journey really resonated with me.
Like a lot of other mm hockey romances, it seems to take place in some alt NHL where there are out gay male players and it’s NBD.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Sexual assault
Minor: Blood
sexual assault (in the past), abusive relationship (in the past), bad behavior by an asshole ex (a little on page). PTSD and a really bad trauma reaction on page.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced