I absolutely adore the Hockey Ever After series! This third book is independent of the previous ones (there are some cameo appearances but no real plot crossover) but I’d still recommend you to read all of the books in the series, simply because they’re absolutely worth it! They are all such wonderful and sweet mm hockey rivals to lovers romances, with the perfect amount of steam and lovable characters with an absolutely sizzling chemistry!

In this third book, we get to meet the two hockey players Grady and Max, who are longtime rivals from different teams. Even though Grady is normally the quiet, sensible one, Max has a way of getting under his skin to make him see red and they have been in uncountable fights over the years. But when they hook up by accident, they have a surprisingly good time together. Soon they keep meeting up for more, with the fighting on the ice as foreplay…

I truly rooted for both Grady and Max, and I really appreciated the slow burn from loathing each other to slowly beginning to open up and getting to know each other with all their vulnerability and insecurities, and from there on letting the attraction take them even further. The enemies-to-lovers trope is my absolute favorite one, but lately I’ve read a lot of books where the enemies-part has been over way too fast and I’ve felt a bit deluded from the blurbs, but not here! Here, the trope was perfectly executed! I loved the witty banter, the burning attraction and the love/hate relationship. I read most of this book with a smile on my face, Grady and Max were just so adorable and fun together.

I also rooted for many of the secondary characters, with the supportive (but teasing) team mates and family members, and it was so wholesome to see glimpses of the characters from the first two books again.

All in all, this was such a heartwarming slowburn romance and a truly sweet and addictive reading experience!

Thank you to Gay Book Promotions for the free review copy and blog tour invitation! All opinions are my own and I am leaving my honest review voluntarily.

Rating:
4.5 stars rounding up to 5

Get your own copy:
Author links
Amazon

​Author info:
Ashlyn Kane
Morgan James

This was such an adorable, cute and heartwarming read dealing with first love, chronic depression and the perks and drawbacks of superpowers, all wrapped up in an amazingly realistic (yes, despite the superpower thing), honest and relatable way. I read it all with a smile and with so much happiness, sympathy and hope for the two main characters and their love story.

The story is set in high school and told in different POVs from the two main characters; the football star Caleb, who struggles with more than anyone could ever guess, and the supersmart misfit Adam, who is suffering from chronic depression and loneliness.

Caleb is generally quiet and kind, not the stereotype jock, but lately he’s been overwhelmed by anxiety and rage and somehow ended up in fights. When he’s forced to go to therapy, he finds out that there’s more to the world than he’d ever known and that not only are there people with superpowers (atypicals) but he’s one of them, being an empath who can feel everyone else’s feelings. The only person that makes him calm, whose feelings fits his own, is the quiet nerdy boy Adam.

​Adam on his side is struggling with his high school situation. He’s chronically depressed, not good at social interactions and gets bullied a lot. He’s also secretly crushing on Caleb, but would never dare to hope that he would even notice him, even less that his feelings could be reciprocated.

This might sound like a sad story, but I promise that it wasn’t! It was a story that made me happy, that gave me hope and all the fluffy warm feelings. I loved Caleb and Adam’s love story and how relatable it was with all the cringy parts, the doubts and miscommunications, and how Adam wasn’t magically cured from depression just by falling in love. Lauren Shippen really dealt with the depression aspect amazingly, never diminishing it but always describing it in a hopeful and real way, showing how Caleb couldn’t save Adam from the depression itself but easing it and joining him in the ocean of feelings and letting himself drown in Adam’s blue feelings until he was finding his way out of the water again. The connection between Caleb and Adam was simply beautiful and heartwarming!

It’s quite and intense and different book, but I adored it so much and all the feelings it gave me. I truly took the two main characters to my heart and rooted for their struggles and their romance. I haven’t listened to The Bright Sessions podcast, but I never felt like I missed anything from that to understand the story of the characters. But I definitely need to start listen to the podcast to get more of Caleb and Adam! They are amazing, supportive, kind and have such great humor, I loved their banter and sarcasm.

A minor thing was that the ending felt a bit rushed and open. I would have preferred to give more closure, but that’s just my personal preference.

All in all, this was a beautiful, heartwarming and wonderful read that I recommend for anyone who enjoys a story that makes you smile that is spiced with superpower, queer romance and flirting through playlists.

Rating:
5 stars

Get your own copy:
Author links

Author info:
Lauren Shippen