I love hockey and I love romance, and most of all I love Jane Austen! So this combined all of my favorite reading in one. The only thing is, it’s such a stretch I really had to suspend my belief for most of this. It’s written as a contemporary romance with time travel, so it didn’t feel at all like a historical novel to me.

Lizzy and Tuck had lots of chemistry, and I appreciated how they got along immediately and were a team. The pace could have been a bit quicker, as parts of the middle dragged a bit. But overall a quick read and I hope there’s another one of these!

When I first started reading this book, I wasn't sure if I liked Tucker and I didn't expect to adore Tucker and Lizzy together either. Boy was I wrong.

Now look - my initial thoughts were that Tucker seemed a little airheaded and bland. For starters, who doesn't even know the name Jane Austen? Or Sense & Sensibility and Pride & Prejudice? I don't care if you don't read or those things don't interest you, those are generally required in some way shape or form for normal schooling right? I don't know, but it just seemed extremely far fetched. But what was also strange was how he seemed unknowing and pretty dense about a bunch of things but then suddenly came in with knowledge about "the butterfly effect". All that aside, Tucker's thoughts and care for Lizzy's independence truly endeared me to him. He definitely grew on me and it was actually really sweet seeing him learn all about regency life and essentially falling in love with it by the end of the book.

I love how developed the characters were, with hobbies and friends and genuine thoughts and feelings. Those things in a character really make a book for me. While we don't get a whole lot of Georgie, Jane, and Nora what we do get is enough for me to really like them and their side character roles.

No bodices were genuinely ripped as far as I know, but this was still a wonderful "bodice ripper" and I was not disappointed with the connection between Lizzy and Tucker. They were sweet and romantic with just the right amount of struggle (both internal and external). The build up of their romance created the perfect amount of tension for me and we also get several spicy scenes on top of that!

There was even some commentary on gender equality and the gender pay gap that was interesting comparing and contrasting between 200 years. Some may find that too heavy handed but I actually thought it was a good amount of analysis and it worked in the ponderings of someone trying to understand how things could be both different and similar after 200 years.

Overall I fell in love with this story in the end. There were definitely some plothole-ish parts and some things that may have been explained away too easily but I took it all in stride and just laughed it off in the end because I'm just happy we get an HEA for this delightful couple.

Thank you NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the ARC!

This book was not for me. I wanted to like it and thought the time travel troupe could be fun but it didn’t work for me. It felt too overwritten and everything felt off, like it was trying too hard.

First of all, I wasn’t expecting the alt universe/timeframe angle but I’m grateful I didn’t know about it beforehand because I likely would’ve passed on this wonderful, quirky book.

I showed up for the hockey romance and the Jane Austen references, but I stayed for the Brontë sisters and everything after: from the opening chat referring to Heathcliff as the inventor of the “situationship”, I was hooked.

Marriage averse Lizzy happens upon the very wet and out of place Tuck in a frigid pond. From his hulking size to his strange clothing, she’s taken aback initially, but being a fairly practical sort she decides to help him “blend in” (lol) until things can be sorted out. Of course they become close while attempting to correct their impossible situation, as much as they can within the confines of the time period.

What follows is funny, wry, sexy, and of course requires suspension of disbelief, but it’s absolutely worth it. I loved this book and I highly recommend it.

I was very lucky to have received an advance reader copy from the author and NetGalley, and I’m pleased to share my honest impressions.

Recommended: shockingly, yes
for a story that is just plain fun, for some open door sex scenes that are balanced with emotions and other connection, for little literary treats for we reader folk

Thoughts:
I saw this book and laughed derisively thinking, "good lord, those hockey romance books are really getting out of hand, what a stretch this one is!" ...But then I saw it again and I actually read the blurb and thought "well, maybe that could work." And then I saw it a third time... and I decided to try it. And you know what? IT DID WORK.

I assume this has just as much sex as recently-popular hockey romance books, but without as much having to listen to descriptions of hockey. I say this having never read one of the hockey romance books. xD But yes, there's a lot of sexual stuff in here, and at times I was feeling like it was a bit much, but they were easy enough to breeze through when I was a bit tired of it. Since it's a regency period novel, there's of course a lot of leaning in to the "virgin who knows nothing but is super into it" angle.

Now as for the main plot of this, there was enough to carry it along despite all that. It's pretty straightforward, and surprisingly successful. There were a lot of moments that made me chuckle, and I felt like I was in on the reference when I knew the tropes, locations, and so on that Tuck had to learn. It's simple and well executed. You get what it says on the tin. There are little tastes of regency life like rules of propriety, and unmarried women being clueless about sex, and social standing drama, and of course a ball. There are also some fun characters introduced that as a reader were a delight to encounter and gave me a little smile every time they showed up.

The time travel aspect was handled with a light touch. There was some discussion of "I shouldn't do too much that might affect the future" and honestly I'm glad for it because I wasn't coming to this for a time travel book. I came to it for a quirky premise romance story, with a bit of time travel as an element. I'm not looking for an Andy Weir or Blake Crouch novel, so I think this got just the right amount needed for what it was.

The resolution was a question I was asking the whole time of "why don't they just do this" so I'm glad they finally got there. However it also made all the heartbreak and conflict feel unnecessary for a while too when I'm sitting here like, isn't there an easy solution to this problem? Oh well! In the end I enjoyed the story and it was just the experience I expected it to be. It sounded like a very weird combo but actually ended up really fun!

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon for a free advanced copy. This is my honest review.

Puck and Prejudice by Lia Riley

Rating: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 2/5 🌶️🌶️

Thank you to HarperCollins, Avon Books, Netgalley, and Lia Riley for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Reading Puck and Prejudice was SO much fun! As someone who thoroughly enjoys historical romance, it was awesome reading a regency romance/hockey romance crossover. The unique spin was amazing and I am absolutely here for it.

When I first read the synopsis for this one, I wasn’t sure how the time travel element would fit into the story, but it was absolutely perfect! Such a sweet, heartwarming, thoughtful read with some spice throughout.

I really liked the author’s writing style and I adored the relationship between Tuck and Lizzy. The pacing of the story, banter between the MCs, and the supporting characters were all so good! Overall, I would definitely recommend this book if you’re looking for a unique romance read and like fun, intriguing, time-travel romances. 🩷

Tropes:
- Marriage of convenience
- Only one bed
- Time travel
- Regency romance
- Hockey romance

I actually enjoyed this story more than I thought I would! I was apprehensive because I have been let down in the past, but it was a cute, easy, and interesting read. Tucker ended up being more charming than I initially thought he would be. The time travel was explained well enough without getting too deep or technical for such a light read, in my opinion. Overall, I give it a 3.75 star rating!

Genre: romance
England, present day and 1812

Tucker Taylor, starting goalie for the Regals, gets transported back in time to 1812 while visiting his sister in Bath, England. This lands him in the company of Lizzy Wooddash, who happens to be a dear friend of Jane Austen. Deciding that for the sake of her reputation, Lizzy needs to marry Tuck, they travel to Gretna Green for an elopement of convenience. They make a deal that he'll go back to his time if they can figure out a way, and that she'll have the freedom of widowhood.

This book was never going to be a masterpiece, but it sure is fun and I enjoyed the heck out of reading it. We’ll allow “romance reasons” for Lizzy’s full acceptance that the man who has walked into her life is a time traveler. It’s full of references to Pride & Prejudice, and features Jane Austen herself, and you don’t need to have read or watched P&P to read this. The target audience (other than exactly me) is probably contemporary romance readers who enjoy hockey romance and maybe period dramas but not necessarily who read a lot of historical romance. It has a contemporary feel, which fits the general tone of the book well. There’s just a little bit of hockey, as most of the book is set in 1812.

If you go into reading this with expectations of a good time and nothing serious, you’ll enjoy the heck out of it, too.

3.5 stars! Thank you to NetGalley, Avon Books, and Harper Voyager for this advanced copy! You can pick up Puck and Prejudice on November 12, 2024.

I enjoyed this cute, historical/contemporary romance! The idea is definitely original, even if the time-travel logic was a bit wonky. It was a fun, breezy read full of delicious tension and spice, and a fairly sweet romance. I really loved Lizzy's character and her quest to live her own life on her terms. Seeing her open up to Tucker was really sweet and showcased the vulnerability she doesn't let just anyone see. Tucker's character was... a bit more one-dimensional, in my opinion. We see lots of conversations about his illness, and his tumultuous relationship with his parents, but not a ton of growth from that. It would've been interesting to see a bit more from him.

All in all though, a fun historical hockey romance if you love marriage of convenience, fake dating, and forced proximity!

Aw, this book is super cute! A total fairy tale, complete with time travel, lodestones, and a wizened elder. And hockey. And smut. And it was awesome!

Hockey player travels to regency england is such a brilliant concept and SO camp. I never realized i needed a hockey romance / historical romance crossover, but I am here for it.

“Puck and Prejudice” by Lia Riley
Light, Fun with some Sizzle, too
A truly fun read that kept me turning the pages on my e-reader.. I could have lived without the detailed sizzle scenes, but I have become adept at zipping past those pages. Happy Reading ! !

I received an advanced copy for review.

If you’re searching for a light, funny read with a bit of an odd concept and you also happen to like Austen and hockey romance this book will work for you. It took me a bit to get into, but I enjoyed the second half with our MCs getting to know each other. I think if you’re a big Austen fan, you’ll really enjoy seeing quotes from her books peppered throughout.

3.5⭐️

Thanks to Netgalley and Avon/ Harper Voyager for the arc!

Solid 4 star read. I'm not going to lie, Initially.... I was skeptical. My impulse control got the best of me and I requested this. Immediately had regrets, What did I get myself into? Y'all. I opened this on my Kindle and was hooked. The writing was SO GOOD. The story was so interesting. I loved all of the characters. Absolutely hated her family. HENry can pound sand, preferably without Olivia as he doesn't deserve THAT dowry.

I feel like I have to make a confession before we go further. I've never read Pride and Prejudice. Of course, I know who Jane Austen is and I know OF P&P, I've just... not read it or watched any of the movies. So I feel I may have missed nuances and Easter eggs alluding to P&P? Unsure. I loved it.

I could not wait to get to the end. I wanted to know so badly how they worked it out. I knew Tuck would never leave his sister behind, but I knew he wasn't going to be able to leave Lizzy behind either? I loved how it ended.

Biggest con for me? The cover. Tuck is a hockey player, but he is a GOALIE. Tuck in the cover is not a goalie. He's not wearing the right pads, the right stick, or skates. I don't think the casual romance reader will recognize it, but as a massive hockey fan, it threw me off.

This was one of the most unique and fun premises I have ever read! I almost didn’t expect it to work. Luckily, I was wrong and the story was amazing!

This was a fun Jane Austen/time-traveling rom-com. I wasn’t sure what to make of it at first but I was drawn in by Lizzy and Tuck. Good spicy scenes and fun moments. I enjoyed going back in time with Tuck. You did get to meet a famous author.

I received an arc from netgalley and the publisher.

I love Jane Austen, hockey romance, and time travel, but somehow, this book was still not for me. I went into reading Puck & Prejudice thinking it would be a delightful blast from start to finish, but it was...fine. Overall, I was bored, so so bored. Nothing about the characters or romance captured my interest. I'm not sure how a book with such a fun and bonkers premise ended up being such a slog, but it was.

Listen. I LOVE Pride and Prejudice. I LOVE hockey (Go Flyers!). I LOVE time travel books.

I did not love this. As soon as I looked at the cover and then read that the MMC was supposed to be a goalie, I knew this wasn't going to be good. If we can't even get the cover art to match the character description, there's a huge problem. No mask, no pads, no glove, wrong stick--how did that get past the number of quality checks it did without anyone noticing?

Secondly, there is absolutely no reason he's a hockey player other than to cash in on the hockey romance money and to write incredibly bad hockey adjacent dialogue. I'm not sure the author has ever even watched a single hockey game, let alone knows anything about hockey culture and players. His nickname for her is POCKET ROCKET. POCKET. ROCKET. I just...I don't know what else to say. You could remove the fact that he's a hockey player from this book and absolutely nothing changes--so why?? Why did we try to make it part of the story if it had absolutely no impact on anything?

I also couldn't get over how chill everyone was over the time travel bit? Like, Tuck basically says "So yeah, I'm from 200 years in the future" and Lizzy goes "Oh, okay. Let's find a way to get you back." Literally 2 pages about it and that was the end of that. And don't get me started on the insta-love. They don't know each other at all, there is no on page relationship development outside of Lizzy thinking he's hot and Tuck thinking it's cool that she has ideas as a woman. These are some of the flattest characters I've ever read.

The plot was...fine. Pretty normal "let's find a way to get you back home" bit. But the ending made me extra annoyed (potential spoiler below)

Lizzy spends the whole book saying she wants to be free and wants to be on her own and she doesn't want to be married and tied down. And in the end she chooses to "have it all" and split her time between both time periods. I'm sorry?? What is with authors spending entire books or series creating women who want to be alone and want things out of life beyond marriage and kids just to have them go "oh, just kidding" for the mediocre MMC they fall for? I hate it. I understand that Romance has to have an HEA, but this was not the way to do it. It was noncommittal and trashed an entire character for the sake of a mediocre man. Sigh.

I think if this had been written as the Jane Austen retelling that the author clearly WANTED to write, there is potential. But trying to make this a hockey and time travel romance on top of it just caused everything to be....not good. It doesn't matter if you're a hockey fan, Jane Austen fan, or both--you're not going to like this.

I think the premise was super strong, so much in fact is why I read it so long after not having a good time. Despite beating cancer and playing professional hockey Tucker is just not interesting. He's a nice guy but there's not much else to say. Lizzy has no mobility through society but I wonder if it's because of when she was born or her total lack of agency. She wants but does very little. The story has the air of quirk and comedy but both fall flat.

The whole concept of this book is bonkers, but it was a ton of fun to read.

The idea of a modern day US hockey player finding himself coming out of a pond in 1812 England was too intriguing to pass up, and I have no regrets. Let it be clearly stated that this is not a hockey book, nor is it any kind of Pride & Prejudice retelling—though Jane Austen is one of Lizzy’s friends, which adds another fun element to the book.

Lizzy is a progressive-minded woman in a time where women were expected to be anything but. She has no desire to wed for status and simply wants to be free to choose the kind of life she wants to live. I admired her ability to remain firm in her beliefs despite the horrible treatment she received from her family.

Tuck was a big ol’ sweetheart in every time. He was kind and observant. He saw all the best in all of Lizzy and let her know it. He was straightforward and chivalrous with her, though he knew when and how to let loose with his control as soon as Lizzy knew what she wanted.

I spent most of the book wondering how these two could possibly find their HEA, who would have to give up the life they knew to be together, and how it would work out in the end. I’m happy to report, spoiler-free, that they do get that HEA in a way that was satisfying to me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.