I had a very hard time picking a rating for this one; to round up or round down? We really need to be able to give partial stars. I ended up settling on 3-stars after rounding down, but I don’t feel like I’m being fair to this novel; this is the highest 3-star rating you can give!

This novel was fun, entertaining to read, and kept me engaged throughout. I will absolutely grab any future novels by this author and give them a go. There were a lot of great moments (although also some that fell flat) and some great banter. The underlying premise was fun and well thought out, although it could have been used to greater effect. This is a tricky compliment to make; there were some very good elements in this novel, but they could have been utilized better. The result was that it was a good story, but I can see how it could have been better.

Highlights:
-This was fun and easy to read. The structure of the plotline kept the novel moving forward and allowed the characters to be put into all sorts of entertaining situations. Their work on the TV segments felt very real and was certainly entertaining. This was a great way to showcase some clever writing by the author.
-I liked how their work on TV allowed for people to see moments that would have otherwise passed by and forced them to engage with it. I can absolutely believe that two people attracted/interested in each other would have subtle tells that would show up on camera. The fandom angle, resulting in shipping, and then forcing the characters to address their situation/relationship was very believable. It was cute!
-The characters had good, clear motivations, and the reader got a great sense of who they were and why they acted the way that they did. These characters were not one-dimensional.

Nitpicks:
-This novel suffered from a bit of telling instead of showing. There was a lot of referencing to “their history” or explaining why they will or won’t do things. It worked, but it could have been better.
-This entire novel depends on the main characters being utterly unable to communicate in any capacity. This makes for a weak and somewhat annoying story.
-The big conflict at the end of the novel. The characters acted so immature, silly, and out of character that I couldn’t find myself empathizing with them or caring about their situation. I understand why this situation could have been triggering for them, but the stakes and the responses didn’t match up. Nat’s response to not being chosen to do commentary was incredibly overboard considering she was brand new to the job and didn’t actually care about or plan on continuing (I know, inferiority complex and abandonment, but still)! Her reaction to Darcy taking the opportunity (in her CAREER, and her dream job) was terrible, and honestly if I was Darcy, I would have reacted much stronger to that giant red flag. The entire event could have been prevented or resolved with a single conversation (and it eventually was) so it ultimately didn’t do much for me. Even the characters themselves admitted right away that they over-reacted and that the conflict was dumb….yet that made it even more annoying as a reader.
-Their background conflict was also weak. I understand how it could have been hurtful at the time but once again the fact that they never had a single conversation about it afterwards is just silly. It makes sense that the eventual resolution is similarly quick and easy once they finally talked, but the result of this was that the entire conflict and resolution was underwhelming. The only thing standing in the way of their romance was a single conversation and the decision to give it a try; this results in very low tension and an anticlimactic resolution.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Banter - all of it
Second Chance Romance - absolutely
Women in mid-30's - yes more!
High Sexual Tension - all of it
Women in Professional Sports - 100%
Spice - oh yes
Ice Hockey USA and Canadian players - OMG MORE!
I loved these characters - even through the snark, they cared for each other. They built each other up, supported each other as others offended. I also loved these women parted ways after college to go onto successful careers - their rivalry on the ice a huge draw for fans, a connection over the years. They never got over each other yet still went on to have a life.
Just so well done - cannot wait for the next from this author!

This has a really cute plot! I enjoyed the video segments where Natalie and Darcy fail at an Olympic sport in funny and humiliating ways. I did roll my eyes when Natalie was worried about her body not looking good in a spandex ski suit. You’re a hockey player!! You guys objectively have, like, some of the best bodies in sports. I also thought the network leaning into the shipping for ratings was hilarious. You KNOW that happens in real life. Hockey RPF exists.

I loved the high jump catch/Dirty Dancing lift and then the resulting kiss scene. Ten out of ten.

Now onto the characters. I think Natalie was the more fully realized one. She was a believable rough-around-the-edges athlete, though (in my opinion) she was super immature. Professional athletes are very immature though, so it wasn’t too unbelievable for me.

Darcy kept complaining about how no one took her seriously and always assumed all of her success was from her dad (apparently LaCroix is a big Canadian hockey name in this book’s universe), but there’s never an example of this. I guess maybe towards the end with the job offer? I would’ve liked more characters making cracks about her father securing her a job at the network or pulling strings to get her on teams. The closest we get is Nat calling her hockey royalty, but she doesn’t imply that Darcy has no real talent, so it just seems more like banter/chirping than anything legitimately mean-spirited.

The third act miscommunication/breakup! Ugh, I always hate these in romances, and this was no exception. I get why Nat would be upset, but really, she doesn’t even want to be a TV commentator! She wants to be a coach! She knew this was just a temporary gig! Shouldn’t she be happy that Darcy (HER GIRLFRIEND) is getting her dream job? I think that her first day at her new job is more important than going on a date, but maybe I’m a heartless career climber too.

I did love the super corny hockey metaphor love confession. “The best games go to overtime.”

There were a few mentions of hockey fights, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen one in women’s hockey. I know there’s an occasional one…but it’s SUPER rare compared to the NHL. Women really don’t ever drop the gloves. If Natalie and Darcy were trying to punch each other every game, I think that would have led to serious suspension and career repercussions.

I had some issues with commas. I’ve been noticing this a lot with books lately. In this one, there was an inconsistent use of them to separate clauses and for apposite phrases. Sometimes there were too many commas and other times not enough, and there were also a few comma splices. I know that’s just an editing and maybe even a personal taste thing, but I’ve always obsessed over this type of punctuation grammar. I try to actually ignore commas while I read because of this, but when one jumps out at me, then every other one starts pinging in my brain and I have a hard time finishing the book.

Feel free to shred my use of commas in this review. I have brought that upon myself.

This was such a cute read and about something I never would have thought of! A fun plot that kept me wanting to read more. A must read if you love undeniable chemistry for sure!

A sapphic hockey romance? Sign me up. This was an interesting mix of second chance and rivals to lovers tropes

Darcy left hockey on her own terms, after 4 Olympic medals (3 gold, 1 silver) for the Canadian national team. She has been working 3 years at Wake Up USA to break into the TV business (trying to work her own way int the world without trading on her more famous hockey dad’s name). Natalie has had success on the US national team (1 gold, 3 silver Olympic medals) but just found out she was cut from the team for the upcoming Olympics in Switzerland. As she is contemplating going home with her tail between her legs, bruised ego and all, she gets a call from Wake Up USA asking her to come in for a screen test to co-host part of their coverage from the games with Darcy.

To say that Darcy and Natalie have history and deep seeded issues from said history would be an understatement. They never dealt with their unfortunate demise in college and instead spent the intervening decade+ as bitter rivals, storing up their hurt and embarrassment. When they find themselves thrown together to co-host a silly segment for the Olympics, they are both determined to use this opportunity for their own gains, but are unsure about having to do it together. Their banter is more fighting at the beginning but loses some of its bite as they soften towards each other.

I think the brightest part of the book were the silly segments - two wold class athletes trying other winter Olympic sports and doing poorly, showcasing how hard the sports really are. It was during these segments that the MCs started softening towards each other, and their competitive natures really shone during these.

The way the MCs finally got together felt a little out of character for both of them, but it wound up mostly working and I was rooting for them.

Thank you to NetGally and Harlequin Publishing for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I really loved the setup and plot of this book but unfortunately it didn’t hit for me. The chemistry wasn’t there and while it was fun, I just didn’t fully root for them by the end, even though I wanted to.

As a women’s hockey fan, I was curious about and terrified of this book. The setup is somewhat cookie-cutter: Darcy is a retired Canadian hockey player with multiple gold medals and Nat is a recently retired American hockey player with one gold medal. They were rivals who fought on the ice and hated each other but also had <I>something</I> going on when they were on the same team in university.

The problem is that so much of this book depends on buying into the chemistry and it didn’t land for me. The USA/Canadian rivalry used to be something special. It was intense, chaotic, and messy. I think sports have changed recently, not quite a softening nor necessarily a negative, but the intensity stays on the ice and doesn’t really carry over. This book wants to be based in a universe where players hate each other and it doesn’t waver, and that hatred burns so brightly that it transforms into something else entirely. I think my issue is that the hatred didn’t come first. The dual timelines didn’t work for me either. In one, they’re both retired and in their 30s, working on a morning TV show for an American broadcast during the Olympics and in the other, Nat is a freshman and Darcy is the senior Captain of a university team. The contrast didn’t add anything and their hatred for each other felt very put on. I could understand why they might hate each other or want to pretend to hate each other, but I never really bought into the emotion of it. They didn’t have chemistry in either section, but it relies on the past to ~prove they have chemistry and falls flat.

The writing lends itself to tell not show, making sure that every little hint is impossible to miss. It’s a common complaint I have with f/f romance novels, but it still reads really juvenile. Both characters are in their 30s in the second timeline sections, but it doesn’t feel like it. It really leans into “chirping” but most of them sound like insults a 13-year-old boy in house league would come up with. It’s a romance, so I know not to expect any sort of real complexity of being an adult, but everything was so simplified that it ended up being boring. Darcy worrying about her NHL famous father being the reason everyone else provides for her success felt overblown and didn’t tie well into Natalie teasing her for being a “princess” and “hockey royalty” but also being the one person to confirm that she knows Darcy did work hard and ~deserves~ her success.

The plot career-wise didn’t really make sense to me and I know part of it is required for the drama of their developing relationship, but it also was so illogical and unrealistic that I didn’t care about the outcome at all. Natalie’s reaction didn’t add up for me when she said her career goals were different than Darcy’s. There were smaller details that I found weird: so many references to Canadian stereotypes (“Did you just tell me I was good? I didn’t think Canadians were allowed to compliment us. I thought they’d come swooping in and take away your Timbits.”), Natalie forgetting the names of players who were her literal teammates weeks ago when she was their /captain/ at one point, and every single one of Natalie’s reactions in the last quarter of the book.

The first half of this book was readable, but the last section when Natalie throws a fit ruined the rest of it for me. It was inexplicable and a weird overreaction that I entirely lost interest in their relationship.

After being cut from the US team, hockey player Natalie Carpenter needs a job.

Meanwhile former Canadian player Darcy LaCroix is trying to break into network TV when her boss suggests a TV segment starring her and her rival Natalie.

Who is ALSO her ex.

(Wouldn't Natalie not have companies calling to ask her to be a spokesman for stuff? I mean, yes women's hockey isn't as big as men's, but the captain of a gold medal team would get offers. Seems weird.
It does get addressed but... )

Short chapters are a bit annoying.

There is a third act breakup, but at least it doesn't feel random and out of character.

The book does a good job of showing them moving from bitter exes back to falling in love. The characters work, and I liked most of the extended cast too.

4 out of 5 stars.

Was really rooting for this one, but then there was a fatphobic joke so I had to DNF. Better luck next time.

This is such a cute romance novel I couldn't put it down. I loved the story and the characters. It was a great read and I think the dynamic between them was great and I loved it. The pacing was good and so was the character's relationship growth and dynamic.

Readable and pleasant, with great details. Felt thoughtful and grounded—certainly not a requirement for romance, but so many are overwritten that it feels notable. I’ll be recommending this!