Let me just say you can really tell this is an early piece by Kennedy that was reworked to sell again in her height of popularity and TikTok today. This feels like such a weird choice because I think she is better than this now.

I really enjoyed this one.

I loved the story of Hayden and her dad. Learning about the challenges they had when she was young and watching their relationship evolve and grow now that she is an adult. Who doesn't love a forbidden/my bosses daughter romance?

As I read this book I couldn’t get over the fact that Elle Kennedy wrote it. It feels nothing like her. It’s super clunky and not a super believable romance.

I did a little research and found this is one of her first books that she recently “rewrote” sections of in order to traditionally publish it.

This was not at all for me and while I don’t usually write negative reviews here I wanted to save you in case it’s on your tbr.

This book was not my favorite elle kennedy books. It wasn’t necessarily bad it just felt very “lackluster”. The characters were not my favorite and i couldn’t really relate to the FMC.

I appreciate this books for being where Elle Kennedy began when it comes to hockey romance, and can see how much she’s grown when we compare this book to her Briar U universe. Unfortunately, I did not love this book like I have her others. My main issue was the plot and the books main conflict. I did however like most of Hayden and Brody’s relationship.

Body Check is a re-release from Elle Kennedy. While it has the familiar hockey background, you can definitely tell that it’s from her earlier work. I liked Hayden and Brody. Their chemistry sizzles and I liked the role reversal with Hayden wanting one night and Brody pursuing the relationship. The connection between them is tested by the fact that Brody plays hockey for Hayden’s father and the team is going through a game fixing scandal. Hayden’s relationship with her father annoyed me for reasons I never quite got to the bottom of. Maybe it was just that she was an intelligent woman that couldn’t see how her father was using her. Overall, it was a quick, extra-spicy read that made me appreciate how far Kennedy has come with her writing.

Thank you to NetGalley Harlequin and Elle Kennedy for an advanced reader copy (eARC) in exchange for an honest review.

Since I’ve been slowly getting into all of Elle Kennedy’s hockey romance books, I figured I needed to read the one that started it all. So here I am.

And it was exactly what I was expecting: hot, tall hockey players, slimy scandals, and sooo much spice. Can’t say I was thrilled about the fact that the FMC was basically in a relationship while she was “on a break” with her boyfriend who lived across the country, but technically she wasn’t cheating? I don’t know.

Spice was 3.5-4/5 🌶️🌶️🌶️

(Thank you, Harlequin Books and NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.)

A very fun early hockey romance by Kennedy, full of all the usual banter, spice, and campus vibes. A very fun easy romance read!

Elle Kennedy is queen of the hockey romances and she hits again with this one! Spicy, yes! The pining and tension between these two is great!

✨ Publication date: May 21, 2024✨

Body Check is a refresh and reprint by Elle Kennedy. This author is the queen of spicy hockey romance so I knew it was going to be good!

Hayden Houston hates hockey and hockey players. After a childhood following her father around the country based on his hockey schedule both as a coach and owner, Hayden swore off anything to do with the sport.

Hayden is back in Chicago to support her dad as he goes through a nasty divorce. She’s stuck in a rut sexually and just recently took a break from her professor boyfriend who wants to take things slow.

Hayden goes to a bar with her best friend and decides a one night stand with the sexy guy at the pool table is just what she needs. Brody Croft lights her fire and they spend an incredible night together.

Brody is mitten with the sexy professor that took him home for the night. So smitten, he wants more than one night. Determined to get Hayden to see him while she’s in town, she gives him the cold shoulder when she realizes he’s a hockey player on her dad’s team.

Can the professor and hockey star find a way to get over their differences? Their chemistry is off the charts but is it enough to build a life together?

This was pretty good. It’s definitely one of her earlier works and she has honed her craft over the years. The sex is as hot as you would expect but I would have liked some more character development. This is a solid 3.5 stars for me!

#NetGalley #ellekennedy #bodycheck

Reading anything by Elle Kennedy is a no brainer. She’s one of my favorites. This story was everything I wanted from her- chemistry, great dialogue and a storyline that kept me hooked.

I don’t think this book was for me. I enjoyed the hockey and most of the relationship between Hayden and Brody. I liked that even though we don’t get a lot of it we know they have good conversations and that he’s interested in her art world even though he lives in the hockey world.
However there was soo much infidelity in this book and I hated that. I mean her dad is a cheater, her step-mother is a cheater, she’s “on break” from a relationship but having a fling with Brody without telling the other dude which to me is cheating if you didn’t discuss an open break (guess what they didn’t).
I also really did not appreciate how her dad’s alcoholism was handled. Either handle something like that correctly or just don’t include it. There was already the cheating via paying players to throw games aspect, him being an alcoholic wasn’t necessary and frankly took up valuable space in an HQ book.
She still remains a must read and auto buy author and I’m glad I read the Off Campus series first!

Basically I live for Elle Kennedy sports romance - she is, after all, the fairy godmother of hockey romance! So I was excited to dive into Body Check- a revisited/updated version of one of her earlier works. And it was a fun, spicy, and super consumable romance. One that all begins with a once night stand that turns into something so much more.

I really enjoyed both Hayden and Brody- and I loved how hard Brody falls and how their chemistry from the first spicy encounter evolves into something more complex. Elle certainly delivers on the spice, but I also enjoyed watching these two circle each other and try to work through their evolving feelings. They were loads of fun....and hella sexy.

The story started strong for me, and I really loved our couple, I just felt the external conflict felt a big extra, and I wished we'd had more focus on the couple's progression. And the ending did feel a bit rushed. Also, spoiler alert, if you were team Rachel in the "Ross-Rachel where they on a break" conundrum, you might also not love Hayden's fooling around with Brody. (to be fair, this break is a bit more defined, so it didn't bother me). But lordy was Brody just the dreamiest.

If you like
🔥hockey romance
🔥one stand to more
🔥owner's daughter
🔥spice

I love hockey romances but I just couldn't get into this one. This book confirmed that Elle Kennedy is not the author for me. But anyone else who loves Hockey rom coms will love this one. For me it's her writing style and the way she writes her heroines.

Spicy, lovable characters, cute romances, and an interesting plot. I sat down and read this in a few hours and really enjoyed it!

This is a good book for people who are looking for something spicy. The characters are very physical. I wouldn't recommend this book to people who are looking for something with a bit more story. Hayden and Brody's connection doesn't really make sense, but maybe because you don't see the feelings play out so much, just the physical stuff is shown. Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Feature for this ARC!

Overall, the book was good.

But I didn’t love it. I loved the main characters dynamic and relationship. I liked the storyline and the plot. But unfortunately, it was just a little too sexy heavy for me. Every single chapter felt like it had a sex scene, and I don’t really feel like that is realistic or necessary with storyline.

WHY DOES ELLE KENNEDY MAKE ME FALL IN LOVE WITH ALL HER CHARACTERS? I hope she never stops writing sports romance because I swear, she is one of my go to authors when I know I want a 5 star sports romance book. I loved this book so much.

New York Times bestselling author of the Briar U series Elle Kennedy’s first hockey romance, Body Check, is now released in an expanded version, with both new and enhanced scenes by the author!

This was a short, spicy hockey romance. I appreciated the stereotypical gender expectations being reversed. That she was the one not wanting a relationship and he was the one trying to convince her. Th e characters were likeable and the story line was fine. Over a pretty ok novel.