I've never done this before but I'm going to now!@#$!

Ditto all your comments tuusannuuska below. Agree 100%, and couldn't have put it better, so I'm not going to try!

Thank you.

(Later, Aug 2023) I've since read this book 2 maybe 3 times - or listened to Cooper North read it I should say.

It is the most cheerful and delightful of the 6 books in the series. That doesn't mean that heroes don't go through plenty, especially Troy. Troy is gorgeous and soft-hearted and bewildered, and when he means ray of sunshine Harris, he's bewitched and bothered too!

Troy is a deeply closeted gay hockey player, fresh from a love affair that was distinctly lacking in sunshine, literally and figuratively. Compared with that, online media manager for the Ottawa hockey team Harris is a cuddly out-and-proud cutie.

It would seem like an imbalance - Troy with his hot looks, awesome talent and high income. But Harris has a loving family, a loving nature, the love of many dogs! and, importantly, a belief and joy in his own professional talents - I loved that.

This novel, #5 in the series, could possibly have the most un-angsty, romantic and fun interlude across all the series - when our heroes go to a resort for a short break and get pampered with the honeymooners spa package. ( )

Compared to the previous books, this was a lot slower burn. No one was having uncontrollable urges in the first chapter and the main characters actually got to know each other before falling in love and acting on their lust. The conflict was mainly about Troy's growth as a human being, and everything was in proportion. I also love the fact that there was very minimal miscommunication between the main characters.

Also, Ilya made a reappearance and I really liked him in this book. Also also, bonus points for the puppy.

Now, obviously this was a fantasy take on the hockey world. The bit about the league's attitude to sexual assault felt accurate, but the resolution and overall acceptance of gay players is the bit that's just not realistic at all in the current environment (unfortunately). However, who the hell reads m/m romance books for realism (especially when it's written by straight women?) The acceptance and the warm and fuzzies is what I'd like to see in the real world, so until it's the reality, I'll settle for reading about it in books. ( )

I appreciated that Troy was a bit of a coward, but I didn't really love the presentation of this book. The relationship didn't give me flutters & I found Troys journey more compelling and emotional. That's fine. But Harris was uncomplicated and ultimately really boring.

It's still compulsively readable ( )

Well this was a very squee worthy read, and I loved it. The romance between Troy and Harris was a lovely gradual build that worked so well for the story, and I really appreciated the fact that they didn’t need to come apart in order to prove their love like so many romances tend to do. I loved Troy’s work to be a better person, and the hockey league side story made me think a lot about sports and the problems within them. ( )

CW: mentions of past rape/sexual assault, disbelieving of victim’s accusations, mentions of homophobic slurs

I just waited one day after receiving this arc to finish it in a single sitting, because I couldn’t resist. And this was despite me not reading contemporaries at all during this pandemic - but how could I not pick up the next in my favorite hockey romance series when I knew it would make me smile.

This series has given me a lot of joy in the past and it was nothing this time around. Once I started reading, I just couldn’t put it down. It was funny, sweet, entertaining, even if slightly anxious at the beginning. I breezed through the whole thing, laughed and cried, and felt delighted at being in this world again. I won’t say the book was perfect though, but I guess I understood the choices the author made in her writing - she mentions she wrote the complete thing during the pandemic and I think thats why the bad things in this book are mostly at the periphery and seem inconsequential despite being very important issues. However, I did like that the author touched on toxic masculinity in the sporting world and also how teams and fans often rally behind the players when they are accused of misconduct, particularly by women; and it’s the victims who get slandered instead. It’s such an awful issue, but the author only touched lightly on it, which may feel performative for some readers.

However, the characters make up for any shortcomings because they are amazing. Troy is not easy to like immediately because we have seen him be an asshole before but also seen him be slightly conflicted, so I started off the book feeling contradictory about him. But I could quickly sympathize because he lost his love, his team, his fans, everything in a few days for finally standing up for the right thing after being wrong for a very long time. I was glad to see him realize his mistakes and be a better ally. He was well supported by Harris who is the sweetest ball of sunshine, and I loved the environment that he created for all the players of the team. They made for a great couple and I was so happy to see their level of understanding each other.

The best part of this series has always been the side characters and it was lovely to see some very supportive family members here who were delighted to see their sons find their perfect partner. But my heart is with all the past characters showing, right from the first book. It may not have been my favorite, but Scott Hunter has now become a lynchpin around whom this series revolves because he is the ultimate inspiration for most of the players and I so admire him for it. It was nice to see all the couples and realize they are doing well. But ofcourse, my love for Ilya will always remain special, and it was awesome to see him be a great leader and supportive friend, though I did miss Shane a lot.

To conclude, this was a super fun new installment in my favorite romance series and I’m glad the author was able to write such a sweet story during these hard times. You can’t give it a miss if you’ve read the previous books, and you should totally start from the beginning if you wanna try a highly entertaining and lovable sports romance series. Now I can just wait for The Long Game because Ilya and Shane will always be special and I can’t wait to read more of their story. ( )