Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - The Long Game

Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

The Long Game by Rachel Reid

25 reviews

levilore_'s review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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? Yes

5.0

This was such a great ending to the series. I was hoping we got some more resolution on Ilya and Shane and I was not disappointed.

As usual, the serious topics were dealt with so well and I really appreciated how

Ilya wasn't magically fixed once he started going to therapy. The author really took care to explore what therapy is actually like and not make it a magical fix for everyone's issues.

I loved that we actually saw so much of the love between Ilya and Shane which was not something we had seen a lot of before this book. The domestic scenes were so cute and seeing how mushy Ilya is was just amazing. I already believed that they were in love but this book gave actual evidence that they are perfect for each other.

Once again, the book ended on a really inspiring and hopeful note for how hockey could change for the better. I really appreciated that throughout the series. It made me really happy that in this fictional world, people were standing together against the toxic culture of sports.

This book just tied up the series perfectly and filled in all the questions I had about Shane and Ilya. A great ending to a great series.

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crystalmackey's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful reflective 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

5.0

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haileeraye's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective tense slow-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

5.0

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pierrereads's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny relaxing sad 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

4.0

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ginalee52's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful 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

5.0

I am so glad I picked up this book! I am usually hesitant to read a sequel to a romance book, but this was just as good as the first! I love Shane and Ilya so much, and seeing how they grow individually and together was beautiful. I think the mental health was handled really well by showing that being in a relationship does not cure all like people like to romanticize. There was a specific focus on growing relationships outside of the romantic one.
That being said, the romance was amazing, there were times that I had to pause because those two were being way to cute and lovey. I love these two and will happily read more as long as they are hapy and together.

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lauraelovesbooks's review against another edition

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emotional 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

4.75

A beautiful end to Shane and Ilya’s story and it was so rewarding to see these two get their hard-won HEA

I’ll admit that it did drag in spots but the emotional payoff was definitely worth it. I also loved the mental health representation and how things aren’t magically fixed by being in a relationship or when life is generally going well

For anyone wondering if they need to read the whole series before reading this book, I read only Heated Rivalry and the Long Game and did not feel lost at all. The universe, side characters, and hockey teams are all easy to follow. I’m sure it is even more rewarding to read the series in order, but I’m impatient and not sad that I could read Shane and Ilya’s full story all at once

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zoiejanelle's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective tense fast-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

3.0

i read this book for the first time last year. it is straight up pornography, but focuses way more on character this time around.
i was disappointed in how the plot was centered around coming out. i don’t think this sequel was necessary, but i would read anything about ilya rozanov. i would read his grocery list. his team roster. the ingredients in his antidepressants.
yes i would read this book again. no i will not be taking questions.

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reniareads's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective 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

5.0

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evaorange's review against another edition

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emotional sad 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? Yes

4.75

I would read 7 more books about these two.

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silver_lining_in_a_book's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful relaxing sad tense 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

4.25

Kiss me, Ilya wanted to say. Kiss me and hold me in front of all these people. Pull me onstage and do it. I don’t care anymore. Please. I’m dying. “Nothing,” Ilya said, and stepped away. “Nothing.”

This book cover, unfortunately, is not at all representative of how difficult some parts of this book were to read, particularly in the first half of the book. I was expecting to just have a tonne of fun as I did with the first part of Ilya and Shane's love story, but instead, I was greeted with depictions of untreated depression, undiagnosed (and not discussed) orthorexia, and Ilya's heartbreaking and under-appreciated sacrifices for Shane's sake. Many of the discussions in this book were so important, but I found them to be so mentally draining at times.

However, after slightly struggling through the first part of the book, I finally found myself sinking into the story and I couldn't stop reading it. Shane's behaviour in this sequel slightly disappointed me - he didn't quite feel like the same person at times and I thought he was really taking Ilya for granted - but he did get better throughout this novel. Ilya, on the other hand, has to be one of my favourite characters. I absolutely loved him because of how relatable he was to me. His emotions and actions felt very realistic and true to his character; I appreciated the depiction of his mental health struggles and how well he understood his own emotions, and my heart absolutely went out to him.

Overall, I think this was a really great book and it must be one of the best follow-ups to an enemies-to-lovers romance that I have ever read. It didn't feel like Reid was forcing any unnecessary conflict into the book, but there were still lots of high stakes and emotions throughout!

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