“my mom always says when someone shows you who they are, believe them. I don’t want to be associated with someone that cruel”

It’s a Love/Skate Relationship by Carli J. Corson
Pub Date: January 28, 2025
Rating: 🌟🌟 🌟 🌟(4/5)
Spice: 🫑(0/5)

Review:
Charlie Porter is a hyper competitive hockey player. Alexa Goldstein is an ice princess. After a tough loss against her teams biggest rivals Charlie starts a fight in the lobby of the ice rink in their small Vermont town. A casualty of the fight is Frankie, Alexa’s doubles partner. He breaks his ankle and can no longer compete. Charlie is sentenced to work in the ice rink as punishment for the fight. While working off her debt to the Blizzard, Charlie overhears Alexa’s need for a strong practice partner while Frankie heals and she is up for the challenge.

I absolutely adored this story. It’s the perfect YA romance that’s totally age appropriate. It’s the type of story I wish existed when I was younger. Carli J. Corson knocked it out of the park. If this is her debut I can’t wait to see what else she writes. I really appreciate how she sprinkles casual Judaism into this story. It was totally unexpected but greatly appreciated. I would love Carli to write Geri Goldstein her own adult romance also maybe papa Porter.

If you like:
- Young Love
- Queer Love
- Enemies to Lovers
- Jewish Representation

QOTD: What is your favorite winter sport?

Thank you to Net Galley and Harper Collins for proving me with an eARC of this novel.

I received a complimentary copy from HarperCollins Children’s Books in exchange for my honest review. This doesn’t affect my thoughts about the book in any way.

I LOVE LESBIANS! Perfect for fans of How To Excavate a Heart, It’s A Love/Skate Relationship is a cozy, smalltown sapphic romcom between a figure skater and a hockey player sharing a rink after an incident that tied their lives together. Alexa and Mac’s love story is a novel that you’d come back to on rainy, cold days for comfort. This book has the aesthetic of those early 2000s romcom movies, with readers eating up the sweet cliché of every single moment they have shared together. The vibes gave off She’s The Man x Icebreaker (make it gay). The supporting characters were also quirky and cute whose dynamic with the MCs complimented the beauty of the tasteful slowburn the author went for.

I am encouraging everyone to read more sapphic novels in 2025 because you are definitely missing out on women falling in love <3 wuhluhwuh is so fun to read about!

“Alexa’s always been pretty, but this is the most beautiful she’s ever looked, and I forget I’m supposed to be breathing.”

Ok first, I love the cover! It's so cute, and it's what caught my attention in the first place. This was a such a cute high school romance. I love a good hockey player x figure skater romance, and it's sapphic?!? I love the tension and banter between Charlie and Alexa. Their relationship had a natural progression, and it was based in a pretty queer normative society. There is a bit of homophobia, but it's not the focus, and neither is coming out, which I love in queer romance. I like the balance between sports and romance. Plus, the friendship between Charlie, Jade and Emily and the friendship formed with Frankie was so cute! I really hope there is another book because I would love to see more of Frankie and his boyfriend. There were a bit of unrealistic sport elements, especially with how Charlie managed to turn into a figure skater that quickly. Also, I think the whole situation with Charlie's mother was brushed over wayyy too much. It definitely could've been written a bit better because I felt like there wasn't a resolution. However, Charlie and Alexa were so cute together and I loved their day in NYC and the panic date. I think Carli J. Corson has a lot of potential, and I'm excited to read her next book!

Thank you Netgalley and Carli J. Corson for an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Very fun but with terminology issues for anyone who actual played hockey that often took me out of the story

Would still recommend but I wish the folks involved in writing and editing knew a few more things about hockey.

It's a Love/Skate Relationship grabbed my attention immediately with the art style on the cover, the fun title, and the fact that it's not only a sapphic romance but sapphic SPORTS romance. I don't primarily read YA, but I requested this immediately because it's a book my younger self would have loved to read!

All of that said, I did enjoy this read more than I anticipated! There's actual thoughtful character flaws and growth on both sides of this enemies to lovers arc - I am a harsh critic of enemies to lovers in contemporary romance, often the "enemy" part is either too weak or too harsh to get past in any realistic way. I loved that Charlie's incident at the start of the book set them up as enemies, BUT she was immediately remorseful - and not just because there were consequences in her hockey career, but also because it impacted others.

Something I love about ice skating and sports romances generally, is the angle of trust - the enemies can't stay enemies AND be successful at the sport. Ice skating in particular with dangerous lifts and stunts becomes such a great tool for developing the relationship from enemies to friends to more, and I love it every time. It also helps you look past the fact that there's no way a hockey player could actually step in for an olympics-bound and championship-level skating partner, but it's all in good fun!

I do wish there was a bit more sensitivity around Alexa's relationship at the start of the book - the guys on the hockey team being awful people is one thing, but the framing of Alexa as straight feels silly. In this day and age (and even in MY day and age) teens know well enough to know that there's more to queerness than straight or gay - and that comphet is a thing -so the "don't fall for a straight girl" thing feels a bit outdated.

A small thing that I really loved - I loved the PWHL shoutout!! I hope this book brings much needed attention to the league, and I hope someone gets this book in front the Boston Fleet team. It's such an exciting time in womens hockey.

Overall I rated It's a Love/Skate Relationship 4 stars, it's a fun read and I can't wait to see more like it on the market!

🦇 It's a Love/Skate Relationship Book Review 🦇

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

❓ #QOTD What are your favorite winter sports OR what's the last enemies-to-lovers book you read?

🦇 Charlie Porter is a force to be reckoned with on and off the ice. After accidentally starting a brawl, she’s suspended from school, meaning no hockey this season—and no chance to play in front of college scouts. Alexa Goldstein’s pairs skating partner was hurt in the fight, and with only four months until their next competition, pickings for a replacement are slim. So she strikes a deal with Charlie—skate with her at the competition well enough to place, and her Olympian mother will use her formidable connections to get Charlie in front of scouts at D-1 schools, even without her team. Can the frostiness between them thaw long enough for them to realize they’ve found a partner for more than just skating?

💜 Get ready for smirk-worthy banter and sweet sass, a narrator who draws you in and keeps you page after page, and some serious character growth amongst an all-too-sweet romance. It's a Love/Skate Relationship by Carli J Corson absolutely SCORES as a debut. Let's break it down:
✨ Charlie "Charizard" Porter demands your attention (and respect) from page one. Her narration is so strong, unique, and blunt that she'll captivate and keep you to the very end. I do wish the other characters were more thoroughly developed (they're given about one character detail each, and good luck differentiating the hockey players) but I love the contrasts between Charlie and Alexa, how those differences melt away to make them such a strong pair. Charlie's character development is essential to the story; you'll root for her as new obstacles obstruct her path.
✨ The plot will seem vaguely familiar to fans of Icebreaker, but this book far exceeds it in terms of characters, pacing, and prose (yeah, I said it).
✨ This novel encapsulates the quintessential sweetness of first/young love. Watching Charlie and Alexa's animosity melt away to create a relationship of mutual trust is heart-warming. These two will have you kicking your feet; get ready for some heart-eyed sweetness.
✨ I'm annoyed by the bisexual erasure in this novel. Though it's likely unintended, Charlie (and her friends) so quickly deny the possibility that Alexa is queer, whether because she has a boyfriend at the start of the story or based on Alexa's personality. Though I don't expect Charlie to have a well-developed gaydar, I do expect some open-mindedness, especially since the queer community is about acceptance, not judgment. I adored Charlie's tendency to break stereotypical gender norms, which led me to expect more from her than blanketed assumptions.
✨ The story starts with a male dominate hockey game featuring a few female characters on the team. It's not until later in the book that we get more information on the team being co-ed, which was disappointing. However, I LOVE hearing that Alexa's mother "got the rule book changed so that a 'pair' is no longer defined as one male and one female skater," making them the first same-sex pairs couple (hells yes) and paving the way for other same-sex couples on the ice (potential sequel?!).
✨ Please, allow a female character to love literally ANY other artist. I haven't read a single book this year that's mentioned any other artists by name. It's exhausting, boring, and honestly makes every female character seem/sound identical.

🦇 Recommended for fans of Dahlia Adler and Rachael Lippincott or Icebreaker.

✨ The Vibes ✨
⛸ Sapphic/Queer (Lesbian & Bi Rep)
🏒 Tending to Wounds
⛸ Hockey Star/Ice Princess
🏒 Rivals to Partners/Friends to Lovers
⛸ Young Adult Romance
🏒 Witty Banter
⛸ Sports Romance
🏒 Debut Novel

🦇 Major thanks to the author @carlijcorson and publisher @harperteen for providing an ARC of this book via Netgalley. 🥰 This does not affect my opinion regarding the book. #itsaloveskaterelationship

💬 Quotes
❝ Seriously, our rivalry? I’m talking decades of grade-A, grass-fed, organic-as-hell beef. ❞
❝ Proving sexism is damn near impossible without making it sound like an excuse. ❞
❝ I catch a glimpse of her face— which is actually really pretty when she’s not firing death rays from her eyes like a scary, shrimpy Superman. ❞
❝ “Labels are unnecessary. You can be athletic and not be a jock. You can love reading and not be a nerd. You can wear black nail polish and not be a goth or whatever.” She taps my dark-painted thumbnail. “People love to categorize people in boxes with neat little labels. But humans are way more complex than that.” ❞
❝ “Always a beautiful thing when a woman bests a man in his own game.” ❞
❝ You’ve got a habit of making me break all my own rules.” ❞

Thank you @netgalley for my advanced reader's copy of It's a Love/ Skate Relationship by Carli Corson!

When Charlie the rising hockey star gets benched, she meets her foe-turned-begrudging ally in the form of Alexa: a fierce competitive figure skater. Without a way to skate on the team, Charlie finds herself in new territory, going for the gold in a completely different arena. Corson does a great job building just enough animosity between the two to revel in their growth and relationship development over the course of the book. I liked how supporting characters had lives of their own outside of the main relationship, and I also really liked how Mac was so supportive with Charlie and overall the non-toxic vibe of the men in her family. Petition for more Frankie and Cyn storylines in the future! If you're looking for a sweet sapphic romance, don't forget to pick this up when it comes out May 2025. Thank you again to NetGalley for the ARC!

I'll readily admit that The Cutting Edge is one of my favorite movies, so I was really looking forward to It's a Love/Skate Relationship. I fell in love with Alexa and Charlie falling in love, and the hockeu-player-turned-figure-skater was so well done. I also really appreciated how the book addressed how pairs skating doesn't always mean a man and woman, but rather two people skating together. I truly enjoyed this book, and I can picture so many students who would love it.

thank you to netgalley for the arc! OKAY FIRST OF ALL: THE COVER. i love them.

THIS WAS SO GOOD. just to be clear: if you care about the actual hockey/figure skating learning curve too much you may not enjoy this to the same extent. luckily i am able to suspend my disbelief to accept that yes, this hockey player who has never figure skated in her life can get that good in six months. just pretend coach geri (alexa's mom) is a magical wish-granting fairy and is just capable of training anyone that way. honestly if that was in the book i would have accepted it.

third act breakup is approximately seven pages out of four hundred (APPRECIATED) and also this is more "we're kind of snarky to each other to lovers" than "enemies to lovers." but then they apologize to each other so its fine.

mark this on your calendars guys i love sports and i love lesbians

thank you to @netgalley, @epicreads and @harpercollins for providing me with this eArc that i read in one sitting.

rating: 4.5/5

This book is cute, sweet, witty, hilarious. It is very descriptive and intense at times so you get all the feels of watching a game.

Charlie is a delight to follow as the main character and i truly cannot recall when did i ever like a coming of age story this much.

My favorite thing about this book (and any book that has this theme for the matter) is the ode to girlhood. In my very humble (and very true, mind you) opinion, female friendship is the most magical bond on earth. Charlie, Em & Jade remind me of my best friend and I in high school talking about all the random stuffs in the world, doing silly things, cleaning out closet at 2 in the morning, absolutely sobbing over new emotions and growing up together. It is really that nostalgic and refreshing feeling that hit home for me.

I absolutely adore the hockey player x figure skating trope, and to make it sapphic had this on my radar IMMEDIATELY! I will 100% recommend this like I do most YA I love to anyone who just wants to have a good time. Nothing absolutely mind blowing or life changing, but not every book has to be that way! This was just a great time & would act as a lovely palette cleanser.

like our main character, Charlie, this book started out a little rough around the edges. however, as Charlie grows and improves (both on the ice and off), Love/Skate Relationship takes a turn for the better. by the end, i found myself touched by Charlie and Alexa's story - a story about rolling with life's punches (no pun intended) and facing each new day head-on. it's a cute, heartwarming read that i found myself devouring in just one day, desperate to know the outcome of each competition.

in Love/Skate Relationship, the sapphic romance is sweet and the queer joy is palpable. pick this one up for a story that will melt your heart like an icicle in the sun ❄💕

omg I LOVED this book - I was giggly and excited the entire time. A sapphic, YA Hockey Player x Figure Skater romance?? YES PLEASE!!

I really liked the plot of Charlie having to fill in as a pairs figure skater while she can't play hockey and finding a romance with her skating partner and getting to see her develop as a person and athlete over the course of the school year. Seeing Charlie at critical competition moments throughout the book with the rivalry hockey game, skating sectionals, and skating nationals, really helps show how she grows throughout the book.

I thought the writing, especially when it came to the individual characters, was excellent. The characters all felt extremely well developed and each of their personalities really came through in the text and I just feel like that really helped immerse me in the story. Charlie is seriously hilarious, her dad jokes and puns are next level. And the banter between Charlie and Alexa?? Ugh, don't even get me started - it was *chef's kiss*. I love when the main characters have good chemistry and these two really had a lot of it. The side characters were also amazing- Charlie's friends, Alexa's original skating partner, Alexa's mom; each of them were so unique and well developed, everything just felt exactly right. I could definitely see this book being made into a teen film one day, it had the exact vibes for an adaptation.

Tropes:
~Enemies to Lovers
~Forced Proximity
~Hockey Player x Figure Skater
~Opposites Attract


"I came here to be a Zamboni."
"What?"
"Y'know...Smooth things over?"

In my dreams, I go viral for sinking a sick trick shot or delivering a brilliant body check. Instead, I’m Hockey Rocky—but, like, the one where he blows the big match at the end.

rating: 4.25★

ok this was actually so cute omg.

charlie and alexa had great banter and chemistry from the start, and i felt like the way their relationship progressed felt really natural.

i agree there's some suspension of disbelief w the sports aspect, but do i care? no. lmao. there's enough info as well to really give you a feel for what's going on, but not so much it overwhelms you or the story.

there were a few things i wish got circled back to, but overall this was such a fun romance read, i was rooting hard for these two. shoutout to charlie having such a cool little friend group and the positive parental figures in here.

also, charlie is also such a hoot. not to be completely locked tomb brainrotted but there's definitely some gideon nav vibes going on there for me.

“Well, you know what they say about girls with big feet.”
“Big egos?”

“You’re too big to be a ballerina.”
My arms cross over my chest. “Yeah? Well you’re too small to ride the really fun roller coasters.”

“Are you ready to hora?”
I frown. “What did you just call me?”

an honest arc review ♡

This had me from the start! This is a YA Cutting Edge and make it Sapphic, and I loved everything about it.

Charlie gets suspended from playing hockey for the season after a public fight, but she gets the opportunity to figure skate in the meantime to make up her debt. Too bad her partner can't stand her.

I loved Charlie and all the people who care about her. This was a fun story with lots of emphasis on skating. The pages flew by in the best ways. I love the emphasis on therapy being a support tool for addressing issues. Absolutely recommend for teens who enjoy sports romances!

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read and review.

A very cute young-adult sapphic romance. Though I wasn't as engaged as an adult, I do think that I would've loved this as a kid. This is the kind of book I will happily recommend to young adult readers with my whole chest. Not only that, but it's for those fans of skating movies from Disney Channel– Ice Princess, Go Figure. If you wished Ice Princess was sapphic, this is the book for you.

Were you, like me, obsessed with the movies Go Figure and Ice Princess when you were younger? Do you wish to read a book like those movies, but sapphic? If so, this is the perfect book for you.

This book was literally everything I could have ever wanted in a book, it was absolutely perfect.

The relationship developed so naturally and beautifully and I absolutely loved that there was no internalized homophobia from Alexa throughout the book. Her falling for Charlie was unexpected to her but it didn't sent her into a crisis or cause her to have doubts which was a nice change of pace from other stories. I'm not the biggest fab of sports romances but the hocky and figure skating in this was absolutely fascinating and at times, had me at the edge of my seat. I love that the characters are flawed and complex, it made them so much more realistic. All in all, I loved this. I want to read it all over again!

Also, that six months later? I would love a second book!!

Hockey, figure skating and sapphic enemies to lovers? Count me in this is exactly what I’ve been looking for. I genuinely loved this book, it was perfectly paced and filled with action, suspense, humor and cute moments. The romance was adorable and I loved the mix of hockey and figure skating with scenes that make you feel as though you were on the ice with the characters. I don’t know too much about figure skating but as a hockey player myself I would say it felt a little unrealistic how fast Charlie picked up jumps? I truly loved the characters and their dynamic from start to end. Charlie was super passionate about both hockey and figure skating and Alexa seemed to match that ambition. Overall an amazing and easy read definitely recommend :)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me access to the ARC and allowing me to read this book ahead of time!

This was a new take on the hockey player/figure skater romance that proves that if you've read one, you haven't read them all. I found this story fun and refreshing and it was great to read a skate romance for a YA lgbtq+ audience.

The main character, Charlie, was very flawed, yet likable. Between fights, over confidence, bad grades, and a short temper, it would seem it'd be easy to write her off, but she's complex and has many redeeming qualities.

I don't know if Corson skates, or just did her research, but I enjoyed the skating scenes and appreciated that training and skating were included so thoroughly in the story.

It's a Love/Skate Relationship was a fun, sweet and charming sapphic sports romance. This book felt like coming home after school on a Friday and getting cozy to watch the newest made for tv romcom - in the best way.

Charlie and Alexa had good chemistry, and I especially enjoyed Alexa as a character. I only wish to have been able to enjoy parts of the story from her POV.

I usually get bored with the sports bits of sports romance (lol) but I actually really enjoyed all of the figure skating scenes in this! I also really enjoyed learning about Charlies struggles with her mom, as I think that bit offers clarity as to why Charlie sometimes pushes herself harder than she should.

I will definitely check out what Carli J. Corson has to offer in the future!