I’m…not exactly sure how to feel about this book. I devoured nearly half of it in a day. I loved it and couldn’t wait to see how everything would be resolved. Then I got to the last 10% and I kept thinking “How is this going to be wrapped up and feel satisfying at the same time?” It didn’t leave me feeling all warm and gooey inside like I hoped it would.

This isn’t a bad book per se. I guess I expected a lot more from the climax, with a lot of unresolved issues. I wanted more for these boys and in a way I felt cheated when I got to the end. So my thoughts overall? Depends on what you want out of this as a reader.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC. All thoughts and opinions on this book are my own.

I DEVOURED this book!! So indulgent even though there's heavier subject matter/themes. Definitely recommend for fans of Check, Please!

What happens when you’re at the spot to become a #1 NHL draft pick but you end up playing hockey in college with the ONE guy who could take your place? Nothing major, right? Maybe a couple of fistfights? Definitely no late night text sessions or sneaky links, right? Right?

Mickey James III is a college freshman with a family history of NHL history. He’s in line to become the #1 draft pick of the NHL and all he has in his way is one Jaysen Caulfield. The only problem? He’s just as hot as he is annoying and when pent up anger turns into something else, Mickey has to decide what’s more important, all the while battling everything else.

Okay, okay, okay. First of all, huge thanks to @netgalley for this one. Secondly, WHAT GAVE AL GRAZIADEI THE RIGHT TO STEAL MY HEART LIKE THAT?!!? I love this book so much. It absolutely stole my heart. If you’ve been around for a bit, you know I love All for the Game and pretty much all queer sports books, but it’s hard to reach the level that “The Foxhole Court”, “Carry On”, “Winter’s Orbit”, and “Red, White and Royal Blue” have reached in my head. BUT THIS HIT THAT.

Do I even need to continue?

Okay, all I’m gonna say is Mickey has my heart and soul. I LOVE this guy. It’s a queer, sports enemies-to-lovers and UGH is it done well. It’s slow burn, full of banter and just so, so, so well done. I will not take a single bad word against this book, thanks. :)

I love hockey (go Flyers!) and also loved this book! I read it all in one sitting and couldn't put it down. Thank you for the early look at this lovely book!

a YA M/M romance? Yes, please! I need more books like this for my classroom shelf. This book has all the angst and swoony moments that made me seriously say "awww" out loud a few times. I really loved the hockey rivalry aspect; it was a good, realistic rivalry and it didn't feel cheesy to me. This book really personifies that whole adage "there's a fine line between love and hate" and I absolutely enjoyed the ride watching it unfold. I think these stories are even more important these days and I can't wait to add it to my classroom bookshelf.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy.
I really liked the characters and the story! I think a lot of readers can relate to the main character Mickey. I loved this book but i gave it 4.5 stars because I felt the ending was a bit rushed.

This book was one I downloaded without meaning to, but I ended up enjoying it immensely and I fervently believe others will as well.

I really, really loved this older YA read. It's always fun to see college represented in YA, and this is no exception. This book takes a lot of serious topics like mental health, and sports-related discrimination, and examines them with care for the characters and the readers.

Fans of Check Please! or Running With Lions will love this alternative take on the Sports romance trope. Readers who love enemies to lovers will ADORE this take on the sports romance.

I think very highly of this book and can't wait to see it on our library shelf!

♡Representation♡
- Bisexual MC
- Black, gay love interest
- Lesbian, Polyam, and POC side characters
- Accurate portrayal of clinical depression

I hate hockey. It is the whitest sport around if someone tells me their favorite sport is hockey I think it's a red flag. That being said this book made me want to buy season pass tickets for the Sharks. Holy shit the imagery in this is amazing. The description of the games from the perspective of actually being on the ice really brought me into the world. This book could have easily bored me to tears but it actually made me invested in the lives of these hockey players, even if the protagonist was rich and white something I most definitely cannot relate to.
I appreciate the talk of race struggle and the acknowledgment of Mickey's privilege as a white, straight passing male. Jaysen says straight up that it is going to be hard for him to succeed in this world as a black man and Mickey understands this, he never tries to compare any of his struggles to that because that kind of struggle is not something that can be or should be argued.
My favorite part of this book was its depiction of depression how it feels to have it. I've struggled with depression for years and I related heavily with Mickey. One of my favorite scenes is when Mickey tells Jaysen about his depression it's just...HDIHDHUSUSUSUUJJUJUJUS so good.
Overall, this book is such a fun ride, the pacing is a little strange at the beginning and the end (BUT THE LAST LIKE 4 SENTENCES HIT DIFFERENT) and it drags a little bit but I definitely recommend this book. I'm a theatre kid and got invested in hockey. Enough said.

So I'm not a boy but I really felt like I was on the emotional and physical journey with Mickey. The author did a brilliant job of bringing us along so we could understand the complex feelings Mickey went through.
I am also not a hockey player. I know the basics. But I really was caught up in the team's comradery and pride as they progressed through the hockey season.
This was just a great book. I think you will enjoy it.

I don't know a lot about hockey or typically gravitate towards sports themed books, but I'd had some requests for more sports for my classroom library and decided to give this one a go. The character development and narrative voice in this story felt authentic and was easy to connect to. the plot was easy to follow and was overall enjoyable. I've definitely shared this title with some colleagues to keep an eye on!

A YA college hockey enemies to lovers m/m romance told with a diverse cast of BIPOC and queer characters.... sign me up!

Mickey is the son and grandson of NHL legends. College is nothing but a brief stop on the way to the NHL. Jaysen is his biggest rival and teammate. The outside world is more than happy to help them keep this rivalry going, but if they can't put their differences aside, the entire team will suffer.

The story is told from Mickey's point of view, and there were times I wished there was a dual narration. That said, his actions and emotions felt authentic for a 17 year old in his situation. His rage and resentment were palpable, and he didn't always make the best choices... so... yup that's why we have a whole book... room for growth.

As Mickey and Jaysen work things out... romance! It was a bit angsty (which I like) and really cute. I liked the flirting and did do some smilingggggg, but don't expect a sappy romance. This isn't that story. There's nothing explicit in this book, so no worries about that.

These teens tackle life as college students with the added pressure of a world that's always craving more from them. There were discussions about depression, both Mickey's and that of a teammate that I think were well represented here. There were discussions about homophobia in athletics. There were conversations about what happens if your plan A doesn't work out. What happens if you let everyone down? What happens if you let yourself down? Thennnnnn there's everyone else.... Mickey and Jaysen's are supported by a cast of diverse characters that provide fun, chaotic, funny, and heartwarming relationships from wild teammates to supermodel best friends to... really interesting siblings.

Overall, it wasn't perfect, but I really enjoyed the read. Why am I giving this 4 instead of 5 stars? The last few chapters through end of the book felt like a half-hearted effort to me.

For all you sports romance, rivals to lovers fans, this is your book.

I found this book to be an extremely sweet and easy read. I really liked all of the characters and friendships and the main relationship of course. There was a lot of discussion around mental health in this book Depression being the main thing which is always touch and go for me as someone who struggles with it, but I think it was done fairly well. I mean it didn’t make me want to close the book.

All in all this book was great, if you’re looking for an easy romance read that’s enjoyable, I would definitely recommend picking it up.

Icebreaker follows Mickey James III, the son of the hockey legend Mickey James Jr and grandson of hockey legend Mickey James, as he tries to cope with the pressure of that legacy on a new college hockey team with his biggest rival, Jaysen. I adored this book. It's on the border between YA and NA and I appreciated the older characters. It's filled with great banter, especially between the MC and his five older sisters, and has a lot of diversity across the board in it.

Featuring:
+An Italian-American bisexual disaster MC
+A goth poc love interest
+f/f and f/m biracial side couples
+f/m/m polyam side couple
+found family
+healthy ways of dealing with depression
+non-binary author

Overall, I really loved this and read it in two sittings. Couldn't put it down! Thank you to netgalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this! I think there we need more LGBTQIA+ Representation in the science fiction universe and it’s nice to see titles breaking into it. I would definitely recommend this book for purchase, and to patrons.

Adorable enemies to lovers.

A great demonstration of mental health and how the struggle makes you feel guilty for having it.

I almost wish there’d been a smidge more build up to the actual relationship but the story is still enjoyable.

It’s humorous, engaging, the characters are likable with a bit of growth. All in all a good read.

This was mostly fine? It's conceptually great but executed in a way that sometimes comes across sort of flat and lifeless, almost. The tension here is supposed to be internal, I think, but it's rendered in a way where I just don't understand enough about Mickey's internal life for that to feel like a full story. He resents his dad but the actual scope and reasoning for that resentment -- which is theoretically obvious! -- never really resonates. He identifies and copes with his depression and anxiety... Sort of? He befriends his teammates, but you never really feel like he gets to know them. He loves his sisters... though he doesn't seem actually attached to them. He gets involved with Jaysen -- rivals! supposedly! -- but all of that tension is also internal and either fumbling or opaque for no real reason.

The biggest disservice to this book is that, frankly, every character that isn't Mickey is more compelling. This story should probably be about Jaysen, about being a black player in a very white sport with aspirations for the NHL but also beyond it, but instead we get a kind of rote mention but Mickey never even gets near the idea that perhaps he continues to hold the likely first draft spot because race is playing a factor. It's right there and there's never even a conversation about it?

I also thought the ending was a cop-out. The emotional resolution with Mickey's dad was fine, but the draft... Like... Come on.

Also, please, can we stop meta-referencing fan fiction in everything? Fan fiction is great! Transformative works are important! It doesn't need to show up in published fiction in 99.9% of situations!

Anyway! Despite my complaints, I did enjoy quite a bit of this -- flirting! team bonding! a college experience so foreign to me as to sound alien! -- and it was an easy, quick read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan for the eARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for the earc in exchange for my honest review!

I just. Really, really enjoyed this. I tore through it, super excited to see what would happen next. I love the real way Mickey's depression was portrayed and how *hard* it is when you're just unbearably sad and don't know why. His struggles with school really hit for me, too. It wasn't that I didn't want to do the work, but that I *couldn't* and oh boy, did I tear up a few times because I got it. It felt super personal for this reason, and I was so invested in the story.

Also, the kind of enemies to lovers thing? Perfection. The teasing and bickering and TENSION were so, so good. So good. Mickey and James were real and dumb and super cute and I adore them. Also, I know less than nothing about hockey but I was INVESTED in these games and their stats like I had any clue what was going on. Invested.

The story and the romance are absolutely lovely, but the real star here for me is the way Mickey's struggle with his depression is captured- real and honest and not preachy or wrapped up in a pretty bow by the end of the story.

I really loved this and I can't wait to force it on everyone I know.

God Level YA romance. Thats my first thought. I will be buying this and forcing everyone I know to read it too.

Mickey James III has spent his whole life preparing to follow in his father and grandfather's footsteps as the first draft pick in the NHL. He's given up so much of his childhood and his life... for a goal he isn't even sure he wants to achieve. Freshman year of college, and he's on the same team as the biggest threat to his first pick spot, Jaysen.

This book has so much in it that I loved so deeply. First and foremost, the romance is amazing and sweet and walks such a perfect enemies-to-lovers kind of line. Its glorious and I want to read Icebreaker for the first time again and again. This book also includes rep for all kinds of different, beautiful relationships in so many ways. The deep platonic friendship that two of Mickey's team mates shares is so heartwarming, and the broader team dynamic that emerges is well imagined too. In addition to that, one of Mickey's sisters is in a poly relationship, another is in a sapphic relationship and all of it was just so god damn nice I wanted to cry from that alone.

While the romance was amazing and beautiful and this book was filled with so much love in so many ways, the thing that pushed it over the edge for me was the heartbreakingly real and candid way that Graziadei describes depression and Mickey's struggle with it, as well as his roommate's struggle. Showing mental illness on paper is so important and I think Icebreakers did such a nice job of capturing depression in Mickey.

All in all, I'm in love.

When it comes right down to it, hockey is one of the most garbage-can sports currently operating any sort of national league. The racism, homophobia, and culture of permitted, condoned, or excused violence on and off the ice makes being anywhere hockey-adjacent a risk factor to either yourself or the people around you.

And it's my favorite sport.

Graziadei takes all the looming menace of striving for something that wants to eat you alive (and maybe already has) and stuffs it deep inside the veneer of college athletics and the much, much deeper substance of living under the weight of expectation while simultaneously buried under the smothering blanket that is depression.

Did I mention that this is a love story?

Jaysen and Mickey are full of the pettiness and palm-sweat that comes with being A Teen With A Crush, and each has a different way of expressioning their dedication to the sport they play. It's funny, sweet, and at times comically cringe-worthy to watch these two fumble their way past rivals, unsteadily arrive at friends, and think about taking the leap into something more.

Final thought: I love the fact that Jaysen is unapologetically and vocally Black, and his awareness of the precariousness of being Black, gay, and playing hockey is heart breaking in its relevance. Two of the top three NHL draft picks are people of color (more about Alex Nakamura, please), which is an unfortunately mind-boggling thought in today's reality. The team at Hartland is a vision of what could be if hockey was truly for everyone, and it's a future worth striving for.

Final, FINAL Thought: The Sabres? Really?