This was my first Grace Reily book and truly enjoyed the story line and the writing. The storyline between Izzy and Nik didn't feel rushed at all (except I will admit the last chapter felt a bit rushed at the end). I felt like I got to know each character very well as individuals and as a couple which was very nice because we were also able to learn more about how their childhood was, adult college life and a little bit of their after college life.

At some points I did start to think maybe this relationship between Izzy and Nik won't actually work out maybe it's just a college fling especially after Nik left without saying much to Izzy - I started to think this was it maybe he's telling her he will be back but he was just saying it to avoid freaking her out. I was thrilled to see that he actually truly did love her and their relationship ended up working out at the end.

I was glad to see that although Nik was hurt in so many ways by his father and even though at some points he was going to let who his father is/was define him he was able to build up the courage to admit that he needed help and actually get the help that he needed to better himself as a person not just for himself in the moment but for his future as well. Nik truly sounded like the ideal guy to be with which made sense why Izzy fell so hard for him. It was also nice to see that Izzy ended up getting the best of all worlds! She got the wedding planning, the volleyball, her family and the perfect guy as well. Even though she was always more secure of herself Nik really did bring out the best in her.

“If she’s sunshine, i’m the guy who hopes it never starts raining.”

Wicked Serve follows the story of Isabelle and Nikolai, a pair who had a short-lived summer fling while she was working as an intern for his mother. After the summer ended, they thought they wouldn’t meet again. However, when Nikolai transferred to Izzy’s university, they faced each other once more and realized that the feelings they had pretended didn’t exist had not disappeared.
Isabelle Callahan is the youngest child in a family of overachievers. As the daughter of a former NFL star, the sister of another rising star, a future NHL player, and a talented chef, she has spent her entire life trying to prove she is worthy of being one of them. She is the most generous, supportive, and kind-hearted person in the world—so generous that I couldn’t help but love her. Her development throughout the chapters is noticeable, and I loved following her as she grew more confident in herself and discovered what she truly loves.
Nikolai Abney-Volkov is a dedicated hockey player on a mission to make his supposed last season the most memorable one possible. As the son of a former NHL and KHL player who left him with too much trauma, he is a kind, smart, and determined guy whose passion is in constant conflict with his deeper fears. He’s also been obsessed with Isabelle ever since he first saw her. His story is sad but satisfying to read, especially as he begins to talk about and deal with his past trauma. I also loved how he prioritized taking care of himself and his mental health to be a good man for Isabelle. His growth was evident and effective, making his journey a pleasure to read.
Izzy and Nik’s relationship began as cutesy and cliché as it could be during the summer. When they met again afterward, they realized that what they had promised to keep casual was never really casual at all. Their relationship developed beautifully, and their romance truly began to bloom once they decided to give in to the attraction they felt. They are so good and lovely together, always understanding and supporting each other, no matter what. I especially appreciate that there were no major miscommunication issues or distrust between them, and the angsty scenes were top-tier.
Wicked Serve was my first book by Grace Reilly, and I loved it! I suppose if I’d read the previous book in the series, I would’ve loved it even more, but still, this was a super cute and lighthearted read that I’d definitely recommend for sports romance lovers! Although there wasn’t really a need for it to be this long, I liked it too much to complain.
Thanks to Valentine PR and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

The character development was outstanding! I thoroughly enjoyed this read. One thing that particularly stood out to me compared to other hockey romances was the uniqueness of each character.

This was a quick and fun read. You get what you expect from this author. Fun, sexy, and sometimes cheesy. Overall this was entertaining and enjoyable.

Isabelle and Nikolai meet during a summer break
& hit it off right away. But when summer comes to
an end, so does the fling. Because nothing can
happen since Nik is Izzy's brothers biggest rival,
Right? 😈🤭

𝘐𝘧 𝘴𝘩𝘦’𝘴 𝘴𝘶𝘯𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘦, 𝘐’𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘶𝘺 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘴
𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙙𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙣, 𝙄 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄’𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙮𝙥𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙣.

I loved these too so much. The secret, sneaking around.
The ultimate swooniness from Nik. The spiceeee. But
most of all I love how open and honest they were. ZERO
miscommunication here. 🙌🏻 You could tell that through
everything, they genuinely care for each other and THAT
was everything.

This was a great conclusion to the series. I'm sad to see
it go, but I know that I will be back to visit them all again
soon. 🥹🤍

Cute book, but not super memorable. I wish there was a little more development in the characters. Felt like the spice was the main focus and not the relationship between the two main characters.

This is a college hockey romance not to be missed! It follows Izzy, and her brothers biggest rival Nikolai, While Izzy and Nik and a little secret past, they definitely bring the friends with benefits to the table. And excellent read that will have you swooning over these two!

Romance is one of my go-to genres. I always know that I can find one I will enjoy, especially if I don’t feel like reading much at all.

In Wicked Serve by Grace Reilly, Nikolai and Isabelle spend the summer together when she works for his mom. But they can’t be together because Nikolai and Izzy’s brother hate each other.
Then Nik transfers to Izzy’s college for his senior year and they find it hard to stay away from each other.

Nikolai plays hockey and Isabelle is a volleyball player so if sports romance is your favorite, definitely pick this one up. It is open door and I suggest you check triggers before diving in. I think this would be a great book for you if you enjoyed Elle Kennedy’s Off-Campus series.
Thank you to @avonbooks and @netgalley for a review copy.

Well done writing, and developed amazingly complex characters. Nik and Izzy were so well written, and I loved getting to know their story.
Great story, and continuation of this series, but can stand alone (I love those types of series).

When you have a summer fling with your brother’s rival but he ends up transferring to your college and becomes your brother’s teammate . . . buuuuuuuuut you can’t stay away from each other so you end up in a secret relationship 😏

Nik and Izzy’s story is the perfect balance of emotional and hot 🔥 the chemistry between these two is off. the. charts.

College romance isn’t always my fav but this was so well written and surprisingly mature given the MCs ages. We saw real growth in both MCs — and I love to see therapy and trauma healing in stories, especially when they’re written realistically (which Grace nailed in Nik’s story arc).

Highly recommend if you like:
🏐secret/forbidden relationship
🏒grumpy sunshine
🏐he falls first
🏒brother’s rival/brother’s teammate
🏐sneaking around
🏒college romance
🏐sports romance
🏒hockey/volleyball romance
🏐mental health rep

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
🌶️🌶️🌶️

This is my second book by this author and she is definitely one of my new go-tos for sports romance. I loved this story, loved that both characters were athletes and we got a great mix of forbidden romance, brother’s rival and lots of spice! Would definitely recommend Grace’s books for a fun read!

Thank you to @NetGalley and @Avon and Harper Voyager for the ARC. Grace Reilly has become one of my favorite authors. Wicked Serve was such a fun romance and a family becoming whole. There's talks of domestic abuse, so check trigger warnings, but this book shows the healing process after the fact. This series is a must read.

Grace does it again!!

Nikolai is such a great character with a complex backstory and at some points I just wanted to give him a good hug! Isabelle handled the things she had to deal with with such grace and alot better then I would’ve dealt with things!

I feel like I could go on and on about this book and never run out of good things to say!

Wicked Serve is part of a series and it can be read as a standalone, but i think it probably misses out on a lot of charm and nostalgia by not reading within the context. I did not enjoy this. I love a sports romance but this one just did not hit for me. The characters for over 50% of the story seem to only rely on their chemistry and physical relationship but nothing deeper than that. I was very bored and just ended up skipping to the end to see how it comes together. I am sorry, it just was not for me.

If you’ve liked Grace Reiley’s other books, you’ll like Wicked Serve. While I really enjoyed the rest of the Callahan’s books, there was something more vulnerable about Izzy (and Nik) that made this one stand out. There’s a lot more depth to them than I expected, especially with his past. While I enjoyed it, I was a bit surprised by how long it was. At 400ish pages, I do feel that there were some things that could have been cut for the sake of pacing and just general length.

This book started out really strong but slowed down and then felt really long and I started to get bored at some spots. It picked back up at the end so I am glad I finished it!

The connection of the characters felt a little forced so maybe that was part of it for me. Overall, I’ve enjoyed her books so I’ll continue reading this author!

Izzy and Nikolai have been hiding their summer fling from their family, as Nikolai is a big hockey rival of Izzy's brother. When he finds himself transferring to her college they have to decide whether to continue their fun or to try to stay away from each other.

This was a fun romance read, especially for anyone who enjoys hockey or other sports! It didn't contain any of the tropes that annoy me (like miscommunication!), but instead featured a pretty healthy relationship where the characters were really understanding of each other and supportive. Writing about mental health and undoing childhood trauma was done very well. This paired with a lot of open door scenes and a plot that was interesting enough to keep me invested. This is the fourth book in the series, so sometimes it was hard to keep up with all of the side characters who had been featured in earlier books. But it was still easy to read this without having read the others. I really enjoyed the Russian language included and thought the characters were well written! Seeing such a close-knit and supportive family was great as well. Plus there are koalas, and who doesn't enjoy a book with those?

I recommend this to anyone who likes sports romance books. It's a bit of a brooding/sunshine mix in a great way. I would definitely read more by Grace Reilly and may go back and read the prior books in the series. There are a few Trigger Warnings for domestic abuse (not between the two MCs) and trauma. Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for the ARC in exchange for my opinions!

3.5 stars rounded up

Wicked Serve serves up (ba dum hiss) a spicy new adult romance that has healthy relationships with a focus on clear consent and mental health rep.

The plot is quite good. I found it interesting and it flows well. The pacing is good as well, a nice medium. It leans more on characters than plot, I think.

Dialogue is great. It felt natural and I laughed a few times. The characters are strong, well developed and fully fleshed out.

I loved that the author makes the characters verbally consent to anything spicy, to ensure they're truly consenting. On top of that, the MMC tells the FMC on more than 1 occasion that she can change her mind at any time and it's 100% OK, won't change his feelings at all.

I feel like the book was a little longer than it needed to be, and the FMC's love of pink got a bit repetitive. I didn't love the way the FMC pushed the MMC to talk about his past. Other than that, the relationships in this book are good to great examples of healthy relationships with appropriate boundaries - I love that about this book.

It had more spice than I expected, but I felt like those scenes were well written and realistic. There's one scene (ch 49) in particular that was especially 🥵. The amount of spice doesn't impact my rating.

While the characters are college aged, I feel like they're more responsible than is typical for the majority of people that age. Not a positive or negative, just something I noticed.

This is the 4th (and final) book in the Beyond The Play series, but can be read as a standalone. I haven't read any of the previous books and don't feel like anything was missing.

Overall, it's a great, fun, spicy read and I really enjoyed it.

If you enjoy new adult, spicy, and/or sports romance, give this one a try. If you like Wildfire, Pucking Around, or The Dixon Rule - you would probably enjoy Wicked Serve.

Please check the author's site for CWs/TWs.

I really enjoyed this book ! Author delivered amazing storytelling that was filled with emotions and great action. I’’ve read it in one sitting, Must read alert for author’s fans.

Thank you to the author, publisher and @netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

As a former volleyball player, I was so looking forward to reading this! I love it when something I love is in one of my books and fairly accurately represented to boot!

Yes, this has its flaws, but it flew by and I was entertained. Could it have been shorter? Absolutely. But it was still a fun read.