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dark
emotional
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I can’t quite decide how I feel about this book. It was darker and grittier than I expected, and the whole underground illegal hockey/fight club thing was a surprise. Both main characters also had really dark stories. But the love story interwoven with that was really sweet - both the romance between the MCs and the love of family/found family.
The set-up of the minor hockey system was completely not from real life, which kind of annoys me even when there’s a disclosure of “fudging it to make a good story”. I’ve never heard it called “Zam” or “cut” the ice before either but maybe that is slang in some places? The actual hockey game descriptions were pretty good though.
I found the writing to be a bit overly flowery / forced poetry at first but as the characters were fleshed out in the story it began to make more sense and fit a bit better.
There is some pretty graphic depictions of depression so if that’s a trigger for you then take care. There are also lots of bad choices around alcohol, drugs, and fighting.
I was given an ARC of this book from GRR. This is my honest and voluntary review.
The set-up of the minor hockey system was completely not from real life, which kind of annoys me even when there’s a disclosure of “fudging it to make a good story”. I’ve never heard it called “Zam” or “cut” the ice before either but maybe that is slang in some places? The actual hockey game descriptions were pretty good though.
I found the writing to be a bit overly flowery / forced poetry at first but as the characters were fleshed out in the story it began to make more sense and fit a bit better.
There is some pretty graphic depictions of depression so if that’s a trigger for you then take care. There are also lots of bad choices around alcohol, drugs, and fighting.
I was given an ARC of this book from GRR. This is my honest and voluntary review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Violence
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: Drug use, Death of parent, Abandonment