Hayden decides to do something out of the ordinary for herself and ends up picking a man up in a bar. Brody takes her up on her offer to have a one night stand and the two of them end up back at her place. The night is amazing, but Hayden isn't looking to have a long-term relationship. Brody on the other hand is looking for someone to settle down with and thinks Hayden might be right for him.

Besides the love story in the book, there's a mystery as to whether or not Hayden's father bribed the players on his hockey team to lose some games. One of his players is Brody. I enjoyed that part giving a little more meat to the story and not just the heat and fluff. Interesting to think this is actually the first book Kennedy actually wrote but only brought it forward now.

Overall it was a good story with lots of twists, heat and love!

Thank you, Harlequin - Romance and Net Galley, for the early re-release copy!

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Elle Kennedy delivers a winning goal with "Body Check," a steamy and captivating sports romance that hits all the right marks for fans of the genre. Set against the high-stakes world of professional hockey, this novel scores big with its sizzling chemistry, compelling characters, and pulse-pounding romance.

At the story's center is Corey Callahan, a fiercely independent sports reporter determined to prove herself in a male-dominated industry. When she's assigned to shadow the talented and enigmatic hockey star Reed Olson, sparks fly as they navigate the highs and lows of the game and their burgeoning attraction.

One of the standout aspects of "Body Check" is the electric chemistry between Corey and Reed. Their banter is witty, their tension palpable, and their connection undeniable, making for a romance that sizzles off the pages. Elle Kennedy excels at building anticipation and heat, keeping readers eagerly turning the pages to see where their relationship will lead.

Beyond the romance, "Body Check" offers an engaging glimpse into the world of professional hockey, complete with thrilling game scenes and behind-the-scenes drama. Elle Kennedy's attention to detail and authentic portrayal of the sport adds depth and richness to the story, immersing readers in the excitement and intensity of the game.

While the focus of the novel is primarily on Corey and Reed's romance, the supporting cast of characters adds depth and dimension to the story. From teammates to rivals to meddling family members, each character brings their own unique dynamics to the narrative, enhancing the overall experience.

"Body Check" is a winning combination of steamy romance and thrilling sports action that is sure to delight fans of the genre. With its compelling characters, sizzling chemistry, and pulse-pounding excitement, it's a must-read for anyone who loves a good love story set against the backdrop of the game.

LOVE Elle Kennedy but third person makes me want to cry and sadly this was third person. Still a beautiful book.

Sport romance, where the thing I least liked was the behavior of the two main characters, for whom the other person suddenly becomes important when they want nothing to do with them. I found that a little sad. But the plot is quite varied and somehow makes up for the fact that Brody and Hayden were not my favorites in the book, I prefer Trudi by far.

Sport romance, dove la cosa che meno mi é piaciuta é il comportamento dei due personaggi principali, per i quali l'altra persona diventa improvvisamente importante quando non vuole avere niente a che fare con loro. L'ho trovata un po' triste come cosa. Peró la trama é piuttosto varia e in qualche modo supplisce al fatto che Brody e Hayden non erano i miei preferiti nel libro, preferisco Trudi di gran lunga.

I received from the PUblisher a complimentary advanced digital review copy in exchange for a honest review.

First of all, love the cover change.
Second of all, love the tropes in this book! Coach's daughter, forbidden romance, sports romance, one-night stand, YES to all!
Third of all, love Elle Kennedy's easy to read writing style - it makes you feel like you aren't reading and what's better than that?
Fourth of all, love the relationship between our FMC Hayden and MMC Brody. I love when there's a bad boy who is just trying to prove themselves as worthy and shows the girl another side to him that no one usually sees.

After reading the Off-Campus series by Elle Kennedy, I was so excited to read more books by her. Thank you NetGalley, Harlequin, and Elle Kennedy for early access to Body Check!

A very sexy, very sweet and surprisingly emotional read!

I loved Hayden and Brody. Their chemistry was instant and I couldn’t get enough of Brody’s teasing arrogance! He is a man who knows who he is, what he wants and he won’t apologize for it, but Hayden makes him work for it and I LOVED it!

I am here for the banter and steamy times! More importantly I am here for the way their arrangement turned into a friendship. How their bond came naturally.

Another Kennedy hit in my eyes!

If there’s one thing Elle Kennedy knows how to do it’s write a hockey romance. The Off Campus Universe is one of my all time favorite series and I loved being back in a hockey universe similar to that. Unlike Off Campus this book takes place in the professional hockey world. You get to see characters with a bit more development and real world situations. I loved both Hayden and Brody in this story. Both of them were likable and had extreme chemistry with each other. I was rooting for their loves story the whole time. This book is very fast paced but that is what kept me engaged the whole time. I flew through the whole book in only a couple of hours. Elle Kennedy will always be an auto buy author for me especially when the story involves hockey.

I don't know if I've ever said this before, but I think the steam overwhelmed the romance for me! I wanted more conversation, more dialogue, more yearning. It felt too easy, which made it feel less rewarding when the steam finally happened. But I did enjoy it and would recommend it to friends.

Throw me in the penalty box because I'm gonna earn a major for any smutty hockey book. I flew threw this book faster than intermission in a tense game. The characters were so likeable and I can't wait to keep raising the Stanley Cup of hockey smut with every future story Elle Kennedy graces us with.

If you’re looking for a quick and spicy read, this one is for you. However, I felt like it was a bit too insta-love. Hayden and Brody went from 0-100 in what seemed like days. Despite having a few meaningful conversations their time together was solely focused on sex. Which don’t get me wrong, I like spice. I just felt like their relationship could have been built up a bit more.

What a delightful read. If you're in the mood for a hot, sports romance (hockey) then this is your read. The good girl professor and the bad boy hockey player with a one-night-stand that turns into something more. Their chemistry of the main characters smolders on the pages. I enjoyed the evolution of the characters to realizing they did need each other and not what they'd had in their pasts.
Now, there's a LOT of smexy in this book. Not for the person not seeking this. I have actually never read this series by the author, although I have enjoyed other series by her.
Now I'm happily going off to check out the rest of this series.

I read the original Body Check YEARS ago, and after reading this extended and updated version I'm thinking I may not have even read it at all. This book was so cute, Brody was book boyfriend perfection, and I felt like it paced really well. The story moved and flowed without getting stagnant or overwhelming. For less than 400 pages, there was a lot going on, but it was organized so well and overlapped perfectly. I really liked the writing style and the amount of content we got for a contemporary romance.

The story was a bit predictable. I think there was supposed to be a bit of shock factor with some of the plot lines, but I kind of had it figured out early on. I wanted a bit more intrigue and wonder as I was reading, but I really did enjoy the story for what it was. I really liked the characters a lot; Brody was swoony and the right amount of vulnerable. Hayden was strong and confident, with a super sweet side that I liked. I also liked how honest she was with herself and with those around her.

Overall, I enjoyed this book a lot. I would definitely recommend it to a cont. romance lover who likes a lower spice level. It would have been perfect with a bit of deliverable shock factor, but was still entertaining without it.

The book was a quick and enjoyable read, but I wished it delved more into the drama rather than focusing solely on its impact on the main characters' relationship. Unfortunately, I couldn't fully invest in Hayden and Brody, making it an okay but forgettable read

I was granted access to a digital ARC of Body Check through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I have read several of Kennedy's works and enjoyed them.

Hayden is a wealthy professor whose father owns a hockey team. She comes home to support him through a divorce and some pretty scandalous accusations. She also ends up hooking up with a man, Brody, who SURPRISE!, is a hockey player on her father's team.

Strengths:
- it was beautifully spicy (I'd expect no less from Kennedy)
- I appreciate that Hayden has her own money (or family money anyway) and an established career as a university professor; so many of these sports romances have dirt poor, student debt, art student/worker woman main characters that end up with an uberwealthy star athlete making professional athlete money and it always feels really unequal

Weaknesses:
- the marketing materials for this, indicate that this is an earlier work for Kennedy: "Elle Kennedy's first hockey romance, Body Check, is now released in an expanded version, with both new and enhanced scenes by the author"
- you can really feel that this is an early piece of writing
- I felt like the dialogue was really awkward and stunted; none of these characters speak like humans and I often found myself skipping past the dialogue because it was so unnatural to read in full
- the characters seem really flat, especially Hayden's father (he felt especially cartoonish)
- none of the other side characters stand out
- the plot is silly and the father's alcoholism is treated totally unrealistically

Opportunities:
- there are many opportunities for revisions here to strengthen some of the characters and humanize the dialogue to bring this work more on par with her ~2020 works (like The Graham Effect was not like this at all...)

Threats:
- it's hard, because this is clearly an early work, so it's come before a lot of other hockey romances and isn't as strong of a work as things that have come after it on the market
- like, if you are a completionist and want to read all of Kennedy, for sure read this

Overall, it was a fun silly read. A perfect way to take a break and escape from the chaos of life. But I won't be purchasing a copy to keep in my collection and re-read.

3/5 stars, closer to a 2/5 than a 4/5.

This did everything that I was looking for and enjoyed the romantic comedy element perfectly. It uses the Hockey element that I was hoping for from the romance comedy elements, it was realistic and glad I was able to read this. Elle Kennedy does a great job in writing this and left me wanting more.

i love elle and this was a quick easy read. its a short romance with some spice. its got good pacing and perfect for a little weekend read.

Man do I love Elle Kennedy’s books. I love a good hockey romance, and this book did not disappoint! It was such a cute and fast read and I never wanted it to end. The romance and chemistry between Hayden and Brody was *chef’s kiss*. The spicy scenes throughout this book were executed so well and I appreciate that while it was a hockey romance, there really wasn’t too much hockey. It’s refreshing to have a love interest actually hate the sport lol. Overall, this book was written so well and everything flowed together well and felt cohesive, plus who doesn’t love a good happily ever after.

I am sucker for a hockey romance but good and spicy hockey romance is my catnip.

This book was originally released in 2009 and is being re-released this year. I had no idea that this was Elle Kennedy's first hockey romance because it's well paced and soo addicting.

Brody Croft and Hayden Houston have great chemistry and banter. The team bribery drama and her father's divorce are the perfect subplot for the story and I loved the mystery of whether the rumors were true.

Thank you #Netgalley & #Harlequin - Romance for an ARC of this book.

I love Elle Kennedy! My first love of hockey romances began with her! The Deal was my first sports romance and after that series, I became a hockey fan 😉

I knew when I saw this book and discovered that it was another hockey romance by the queen herself, I just had to read it!

I did see where this was one of her first books (before the Deal) and it’s being republished with new material and a new cover.

I really enjoyed this one, Elle Kennedy’s writing is so good. She does such a good job of writing complex and relatable characters. I really liked Brody & Hayden. I liked their banter and how they really flowed well together as characters. I thought the story line progressed well and it wasn’t overly drawn out, like some romances tend to be.

I really liked the ending and the epilogue. Kennedy did seem to leave it open ended where it could become a series and the next book be about Darcy or it could really end with Hayden and Brody. If she wrote a book about Darcy, I’d definitely read it as Darcy was a super fun and lively character.

All in all this book was a solid 4 stars for me. I thoroughly enjoyed it and loved being back in a Elle Kennedy hockey romance world ❤️

Hayden decides to have one night with a stranger at a bar, but he turns out to be a hockey player on the team Hayden’s father owns. After one night with Hayden, Brody can’t stay away even when there is enough drama his team is currently facing.

The pacing of Hayden and Brody’s relationship left something to be desired. Their one night was never just one night and they were immediately hooking up again after. There wasn’t any building tension between them. I was hoping for more moments between them that showed why they fell in love beyond their physical chemistry.

The intimacy scenes were hot and well written. I appreciated that there was a plot line beyond just the somewhat forbidden factor of their hookup.