Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
Meh?
Okay so this book is about two guys (Riley and Cameron) who were best friends in high school and hooked up every Sunday for a few months. Both of them had rough home lives, though Cam had it much worse comparatively. And Riley caught feelings but Cam decided he needed to escape everything about his life, and instead of continuing to college with Riley as planned, packed up and moved across the country. Now three years later, Cam is back in Riley's life and on Riley's hockey team, where Riley is now the captain. And there are a lot of emotions in that as they do the whole second chance childhood best friends to enemies to lovers journey.
I don't know that I've ever said this about a book in my entire life, especially a contemporary romance, but this book would have been better as a single POV. Riley and Cam had such disparate memories of their history together (mostly because Cam's repression game was on point because it was easier) that it just made everything confusing. But Cam was the interesting one here in every way. Riley's emotional chapters never really went anywhere from hurt at the past but still horny asf for this first love who would dom him just the way he needed. Riley already knew everyone on the team, they didn't really do much with him being the captain, they didn't really do much with the whole starting story of him being the one to lose the championship for them last year, and everything about the future of their hockey careers could've been told from Cam's perspective too (and often was). If this book had been structured so the prologue was Riley's POV, give us the pain, give us the emotional upheaval, and then switch to Cam for the entire book, that would be so interesting. We would get his coming to the new team and meeting everyone, his interactions with Riley and his view of him and how he'd grown, having to really confront how deeply he'd hurt Riley in the past, the slow realization of everything building up again and confirming the things he was too afraid to confront when he was 18, like THAT'S THE STORY. And Riley's chapters didn't contribute enough for me to want his POV, we knew exactly where he stood.
That being said, I did like this book, certainly more than enough to continue in the series. I like Hall's writing style, the way he writes the spicy scenes for them, the next book is jock/nerd tutoring, like all systems are go. I just think the bones of the book would've been better served by a different structure.
Okay so this book is about two guys (Riley and Cameron) who were best friends in high school and hooked up every Sunday for a few months. Both of them had rough home lives, though Cam had it much worse comparatively. And Riley caught feelings but Cam decided he needed to escape everything about his life, and instead of continuing to college with Riley as planned, packed up and moved across the country. Now three years later, Cam is back in Riley's life and on Riley's hockey team, where Riley is now the captain. And there are a lot of emotions in that as they do the whole second chance childhood best friends to enemies to lovers journey.
I don't know that I've ever said this about a book in my entire life, especially a contemporary romance, but this book would have been better as a single POV. Riley and Cam had such disparate memories of their history together (mostly because Cam's repression game was on point because it was easier) that it just made everything confusing. But Cam was the interesting one here in every way. Riley's emotional chapters never really went anywhere from hurt at the past but still horny asf for this first love who would dom him just the way he needed. Riley already knew everyone on the team, they didn't really do much with him being the captain, they didn't really do much with the whole starting story of him being the one to lose the championship for them last year, and everything about the future of their hockey careers could've been told from Cam's perspective too (and often was). If this book had been structured so the prologue was Riley's POV, give us the pain, give us the emotional upheaval, and then switch to Cam for the entire book, that would be so interesting. We would get his coming to the new team and meeting everyone, his interactions with Riley and his view of him and how he'd grown, having to really confront how deeply he'd hurt Riley in the past, the slow realization of everything building up again and confirming the things he was too afraid to confront when he was 18, like THAT'S THE STORY. And Riley's chapters didn't contribute enough for me to want his POV, we knew exactly where he stood.
That being said, I did like this book, certainly more than enough to continue in the series. I like Hall's writing style, the way he writes the spicy scenes for them, the next book is jock/nerd tutoring, like all systems are go. I just think the bones of the book would've been better served by a different structure.
The way the two MCs did NOT communicate until the very end made this a very frustrating read.
Snarky banter, hate to love, rivals to lovers, little bit of hockey.
Count me in.
Add in hot boys and a second chance romance trope. I’m dead.
Count me in.
Add in hot boys and a second chance romance trope. I’m dead.
Riley and Cam were best friends, teammates and lovers. When Cameron decides that leaving Riley behind and ruining their plans is the way to go, Riley shuts his heart down and gets angry. Furious. But he isn’t just mad. No. He’s heartbroken. When Cam shows up at Riley’s college and joins his team, the hate is dialled up and these two former flames need to get their skates sharpened or they’ll be blowing tires all over the place.
Hayden’s first book in this new series was super hot, emotional and so well-done. Kudos, Hayden!!
Hayden’s first book in this new series was super hot, emotional and so well-done. Kudos, Hayden!!
emotional
tense
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
Determined to get drafted by the end of the season, Riley has one last chance to lead Northwood U’s Arctic Titans to the cup. Building upon three years of razor-sharp focus and hard-won respect, Riley wants the year to run perfectly. But when his former lover—the best friend who broke his heart and abandoned him to go to college across the country—joins the team, everything is thrown off balance. Fighting at every turn, Riley and Cameron are nemeses trapped on the same team, but Cameron’s aggressive, dominant, and possessive nature is a lure Riley can’t resist, and one locker room encounter is all it takes to destroy their resolve. They both know there’s no future for them—their ambitions to reach the NHL have left only ruin and heartbreak in their wake. Yet neither Riley nor Cameron can resist the other’s pull, and every private moment they share makes them wonder what they’re truly fighting for: their careers or each other.
Despite covering some deeply emotional themes of trauma and abandonment and the angst-heavy tone especially in the first half, Crossing Blades finds a solid balance between the weight of the heavier aspects and more positive themes of self-discovery, acceptance, and personal growth. MMCs Riley’s and Cameron’s steamy, tense romance is complemented by strong character development and an engaging cast of supporting characters that bring a light-heartedness to their story and the setting. A great introduction to the broader Northwood U series, I’m excited to continue the journey with Northwood U’s players in book two, Scoring the Keeper.
“You will always be my number one. Everything else will come after that.”
When you find a new book that hits all your points..this was it!
The tension...
The spice...
All the feels...
It was all so good in this and written so good that I didn't want to put this book down.
I was pulled in from the beginning and had the "oh no" moment cause I knew it was coming.
The heartbreak and pain from Riley was palpable and jumped off the page to me, maybe because teenage love can hurt like that. It also lingers and festers and most times not in a good way.
Riley & Cam were so toxic in the beginning towards each other that it completely built their story for me. That thin line between hate & love is as thin as thread as they say and these two toed it constantly until it finally broke.
Childhood crushes or teenage loves never really go away really. They are always there and Riley & Cam are a perfect example of that. I could honestly tell you my two right now since I still remember.
If you are looking for a Friends to lovers to enemies to lovers again this is the book for you. I can't wait to see what the other books have in store and whose story comes next.
When you find a new book that hits all your points..this was it!
The tension...
The spice...
All the feels...
It was all so good in this and written so good that I didn't want to put this book down.
I was pulled in from the beginning and had the "oh no" moment cause I knew it was coming.
The heartbreak and pain from Riley was palpable and jumped off the page to me, maybe because teenage love can hurt like that. It also lingers and festers and most times not in a good way.
Riley & Cam were so toxic in the beginning towards each other that it completely built their story for me. That thin line between hate & love is as thin as thread as they say and these two toed it constantly until it finally broke.
Childhood crushes or teenage loves never really go away really. They are always there and Riley & Cam are a perfect example of that. I could honestly tell you my two right now since I still remember.
If you are looking for a Friends to lovers to enemies to lovers again this is the book for you. I can't wait to see what the other books have in store and whose story comes next.
I noticed very clearly that this book was written by a man. Which was very interesting on one side because I learnt a few things. But it also made the story not as emotional and well developed as I prefer :) But I had fun listening to it