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Excellent book. Like so good! There wasn't a moment that I got bored, annoyed or angry.
The pacing was excellent, weaving a perfect balance between the two POV's of Hunter and Bryce. There were no soggy or slow parts, everything worked together so brilliantly!
All of the characters were very well done, especially those of Bryce and Hunter, but even the secondary characters felt real and in your face.
I was a tiny bit sad to see the Seattle hockey team being portrayed as blood thirsty heathens, being from Seattle myself. However, I don't follow hockey, so they could be. I have no idea!
The relationship between Bryce and Hunter progressed really well, and it was totally believable. I felt their turmoil and joy.
Seriously, this is a beautiful story. I'm probably going to have to re-read it a few times because some of the prose is beyond wonderful.
The pacing was excellent, weaving a perfect balance between the two POV's of Hunter and Bryce. There were no soggy or slow parts, everything worked together so brilliantly!
All of the characters were very well done, especially those of Bryce and Hunter, but even the secondary characters felt real and in your face.
I was a tiny bit sad to see the Seattle hockey team being portrayed as blood thirsty heathens, being from Seattle myself. However, I don't follow hockey, so they could be. I have no idea!
The relationship between Bryce and Hunter progressed really well, and it was totally believable. I felt their turmoil and joy.
Seriously, this is a beautiful story. I'm probably going to have to re-read it a few times because some of the prose is beyond wonderful.
I didn't like this book very much. I get that Tal Bauer is exploring different themes and ways to write, but this book didn't read as one written by Talk Bauer. Or maybe it's because it really just wasn't my style. Is was übet romantic, dripping of sirup and flowery words. Zero angst. Zero hardcore hockey players. Nobe of the things that I like about hockey players and books. Just maple sirup all over.
I had to skim the last half of the book because I just couldn't stand it any more.
So please, Tal Bauer, don't do this to me again.
I had to skim the last half of the book because I just couldn't stand it any more.
So please, Tal Bauer, don't do this to me again.
challenging
emotional
funny
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:
No
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
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:
No
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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:
Yes
It all felt very fast, also, if you can‘t make sure that the French used in your book is correct, just don‘t use it because this hurt. Like translating „stop“ with „arrêt“ is incorrect. That‘s not the verb, that‘s the noun😭 Like I don‘t speak Québécois French, only French French but I am 99.9% sure that most of the mistakes here made are also mistakes in Québécois.
emotional
reflective
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:
No
I have very mixed and tangled feelings about this.
I appreciate the depth of emotion that Bryce and Hunter have for each other and I think that this author did a really good job of showing those in such a short time span, both because the edition at least was pretty short and because the plot itself doesnt go through a very big time span.
I appreciate that the twist at the end was a different take than I'm used to seeing. It's still the second most common "twist" so it's not reinventing the wheel or anything but I just liked that it was done this way withthe tracheostomy and feeding tube due to a puck to the neck rather than a broken leg or severe concussion . I like how the team rallies behind him after this and how they're so close. They are relationship dynamics are so sweet and I just really enjoyed that found family trope and how deeply the entire team feels about each other.
That being said I don't know if I am the exact demographic that this book is met for. I love my hockey romances but this one is very technical. I've seen that people say that this author is for people who are genuinely hockey fans and/or players and I think that definitely makes sense because I skipped nearly entire chapters that were just technical hockey play and I was so bored by it. Because of that, the pacing was kind of weird to me and there was about 30 pages in the middle of the book where I was genuinely considering dnf'ing because nothing interesting was happening, even the domestic fluff and showing of the relationship who wasn't enough to keep me engaged.
I also find that the way the author describes their relationship and has them talking to each other comes across unpleasantly for me. Some of the things that Bryce and Hunter say to each other are so dramatic and absolute that they came off as immature to me instead of deep or meaningful.
I appreciate the depth of emotion that Bryce and Hunter have for each other and I think that this author did a really good job of showing those in such a short time span, both because the edition at least was pretty short and because the plot itself doesnt go through a very big time span.
I appreciate that the twist at the end was a different take than I'm used to seeing. It's still the second most common "twist" so it's not reinventing the wheel or anything but I just liked that it was done this way with
That being said I don't know if I am the exact demographic that this book is met for. I love my hockey romances but this one is very technical. I've seen that people say that this author is for people who are genuinely hockey fans and/or players and I think that definitely makes sense because I skipped nearly entire chapters that were just technical hockey play and I was so bored by it. Because of that, the pacing was kind of weird to me and there was about 30 pages in the middle of the book where I was genuinely considering dnf'ing because nothing interesting was happening, even the domestic fluff and showing of the relationship who wasn't enough to keep me engaged.
I also find that the way the author describes their relationship and has them talking to each other comes across unpleasantly for me. Some of the things that Bryce and Hunter say to each other are so dramatic and absolute that they came off as immature to me instead of deep or meaningful.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail
emotional
funny
inspiring
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
♾️♾️♾️⭐
Primero voy a decir que este libro es pura perfección, Bryce y Hunter tienen mi corazón en sus manos y no quiero que me lo regresen. Esta historia es lo que yo llamo un ganar para mí porque lloré, reí y me enamoré de cada uno de los personajes.
Les cuento que sentí que estaba viendo un partido de hockey mientras leía este libro, todo está escrito de una manera que sentía cada emoción página tras página ¿y ese juego final? ✨ PERFECCIÓN ✨
Este par me gustó, como fueron descubriendo sus sentimientos, la pelea interna de Bryce con su orientación, Hunter siendo todo consciente y amable con él… en fin los AME.
Primero voy a decir que este libro es pura perfección, Bryce y Hunter tienen mi corazón en sus manos y no quiero que me lo regresen. Esta historia es lo que yo llamo un ganar para mí porque lloré, reí y me enamoré de cada uno de los personajes.
Les cuento que sentí que estaba viendo un partido de hockey mientras leía este libro, todo está escrito de una manera que sentía cada emoción página tras página ¿y ese juego final? ✨ PERFECCIÓN ✨
Este par me gustó, como fueron descubriendo sus sentimientos, la pelea interna de Bryce con su orientación, Hunter siendo todo consciente y amable con él… en fin los AME.
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated