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ktdakotareads's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-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? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Death, Eating disorder, Car accident, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Grief
kateped's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
sad
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? It's complicated
2.75
that was the dumbest third act breakup i’ve ever read. even joshua jackson’s narration couldn’t save it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Eating disorder, Body shaming, Death of parent, and Death
niftyreads's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
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
4.0
Joshua Jackson (Pacey!!!!!! 😍) reads the male PoV of the audiobook and it is glorious. GLO-RI-OUS! Such a cute romance. A hockey player and former ballerina - I liked that storyline very much seeing them get over their own individual issues and come together. It also made me want to go camping to see the Northern Lights and I am totally a hotel girl!
Here’s my vote for Joshua Jackson to narrate more audiobooks 🙋🏻♀️
Here’s my vote for Joshua Jackson to narrate more audiobooks 🙋🏻♀️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Car accident, Death, Eating disorder, Body shaming, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, and Emotional abuse
grace33's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Death, Eating disorder, Grief, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Sexual content, Death of parent, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Car accident
kerosenelit's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-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? Yes
3.0
I picked this up primarily because the audiobook is narrated by Joshua Jackson (!!!) and Emily Ellet (whom I also love). And if you're planning to read this one, I highly suggest that format. The duet narration was wonderful.
I liked this overall, especially the tender unveiling of grief for a single dad, but I realized early on that I completely misunderstood the general premise of this story. Let me say, I really felt for Aurora and the immense pressure she experienced in ballet as a teenager. Her need to create an emotional escape in the form of letters to a fake boyfriend was so sad.
But when Aurora later crosses paths with Mike Martin—the actual man that initially inspired her fake boyfriend ruse—I thought it was a tad ridiculous that it served as a conflict within the romance. Why not just immediately tell him? The secrecy and overblown third-act drama as a result didn't make sense to me.
(heat level: a few open-door scenes, mild details)
I liked this overall, especially the tender unveiling of grief for a single dad, but I realized early on that I completely misunderstood the general premise of this story. Let me say, I really felt for Aurora and the immense pressure she experienced in ballet as a teenager. Her need to create an emotional escape in the form of letters to a fake boyfriend was so sad.
But when Aurora later crosses paths with Mike Martin—the actual man that initially inspired her fake boyfriend ruse—I thought it was a tad ridiculous that it served as a conflict within the romance. Why not just immediately tell him? The secrecy and overblown third-act drama as a result didn't make sense to me.
(heat level: a few open-door scenes, mild details)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Eating disorder, and Grief
author2223's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Eating disorder, Panic attacks/disorders, and Grief
Moderate: Death of parent
bibliomania_express's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
informative
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? It's complicated
4.0
Canadian Boyfriend by Jenny Holiday is a slow-burn romance between an ex-ballerina and a pro hockey player with a young daughter.
This book is about grief and healing and being kind to yourself. It's also about looking beneath the surface to understand people's motivations when they hurt you, and to acknowledge when you hurt other people. Rory has dealt with a lot of negativity. She battles disordered eating and anxiety, and she's never felt like anyone truly sees her. Mike is dealing with a secret he discovered about his wife after she died, but also trying to support his daughter, Olivia, through her grief.
While this book deals with heavy themes, I do love how much emphasis Holiday puts on therapy and having a good support system. For most of the book Aurora and Mike become a part of each other's support system. They leave space for talking through difficult things, but also don't push past each other's boundaries. There were lots of small moments that showed how much they cared about each other even before anything physical or romantic happens. This book also spans a lot of time, over a year of it, which I think suited their journey.
If I have one thing that annoyed me, it was that Holiday uses Mike's full name all the time in Rory's POV. It's always "Mike Martin" and rarely just "Mike". Which felt odd in conjunction with the fact that she was seeing him as a person and not "Mike Martin, hockey star". I would have liked if the narrative started using just his first name more the further into their relationship we got. It just felt clunky and my brain tripped over it again and again.
One final note: if you like your sports romance to have descriptions of games, this book isn't for you. Hockey itself is so rarely mention. I do think that suits the book, with Mike not liking to be called a star and seeing hockey more as his job. But it’s just something to note.
This book is about grief and healing and being kind to yourself. It's also about looking beneath the surface to understand people's motivations when they hurt you, and to acknowledge when you hurt other people. Rory has dealt with a lot of negativity. She battles disordered eating and anxiety, and she's never felt like anyone truly sees her. Mike is dealing with a secret he discovered about his wife after she died, but also trying to support his daughter, Olivia, through her grief.
While this book deals with heavy themes, I do love how much emphasis Holiday puts on therapy and having a good support system. For most of the book Aurora and Mike become a part of each other's support system. They leave space for talking through difficult things, but also don't push past each other's boundaries. There were lots of small moments that showed how much they cared about each other even before anything physical or romantic happens. This book also spans a lot of time, over a year of it, which I think suited their journey.
If I have one thing that annoyed me, it was that Holiday uses Mike's full name all the time in Rory's POV. It's always "Mike Martin" and rarely just "Mike". Which felt odd in conjunction with the fact that she was seeing him as a person and not "Mike Martin, hockey star". I would have liked if the narrative started using just his first name more the further into their relationship we got. It just felt clunky and my brain tripped over it again and again.
One final note: if you like your sports romance to have descriptions of games, this book isn't for you. Hockey itself is so rarely mention. I do think that suits the book, with Mike not liking to be called a star and seeing hockey more as his job. But it’s just something to note.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Body shaming, Eating disorder, and Grief
Minor: Car accident, Pregnancy, and Death of parent
jenar's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Would absolutely recommend the audio book version! Having Canadian Heartthrob Joshua Jackson reading for Mike was like listening to Pacey Witter all grown up. Absolutely lovely.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Eating disorder
Minor: Body shaming
readingonthefly's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Body shaming, and Car accident
Moderate: Sexual content, Death of parent, and Death
breathehopebooks's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
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? It's complicated
4.0
Super cute hockey romance that surprisingly had a lot of depth, handled multiple difficult topics well.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Eating disorder, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Body shaming and Car accident