Very cute. I loved how different they seemed on a surface level but how similar they truly were after all. There was a third act breakup, so if you’re not a fan I’d avoid that. But the resolution was great. It was nice to see a women do the grand gesture for once.

I am sad to report this was an almost complete miss for me. I know the author from her TikTok account, and I was truly looking forward to a hockey romance written by someone with first hand knowledge.

Unfortunately, while the hockey knowledge is top shelf, everything else really fell flat. I found the FMC insufferable: a real pick-me with some seriously questionable red flags masquerading as cool girl quirks. And our MMC is a doormat, who both doesn't deserve the way he's treated and also does, because why are you enabling this woman!!

It's also so much tell and barely any show. I think what has likely happened here is an influencer got a book deal based on her popularity on the app, and found herself in over her head a bit. I know there's a second book in her deal; I hope she gets more help with structure and editing on the next one.

The narrators were pros, they were just stuck with a tough assignment.

Two stars. Thanks to NetGally and the publisher for the ALC.

𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁: If you’re looking for a book with plenty of hockey and lots of representation this one’s for you. It was refreshing getting a unique twist on a hockey romance and it was exciting to see this from a debut author! Loved seeing real character with real issues, you felt the heart and soul in this one.

Jaylen just lost his last chance playing in the NHL, so he decides to hit the clubs before he flies home. But the next day he gets a call, due to a player having a scooter accident he gets a last minute 1 year contract to play for the Seattle Rainers. Jaylen now connects his good luck with the girl he spent last night with. He needs her now to stick around this season and continue to be his good luck charm.

Lucy is in a career slump, she wants to be a tattoo artist but hasn’t gotten her break yet. She just got elected by her boss to do a commission at the Rainers stadium, painting isn’t what she wants to do. But hoping this will give her a one up with her boss, she agrees. But after a hockey puck to the face she realizes the guy from last night is a hockey player and he’s here in Seattle.

To make things worst Jayden wants her to be his “lucky charm” whatever that means. So she strikes a deal with him. Lucy will be his lucky charm if he helps her with her tattoo portfolio. But helping Jayden get “lucky” is a lot more than what Lucy bargained for.

𝑭𝒂𝒗 𝑸𝒖𝒐𝒕𝒆: “Can I call you my lucky charm?” - Jaylen

𝑳𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒓𝒚 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒀𝒐𝒖’𝒍𝒍 𝑭𝒊𝒏𝒅:

* One Night Stand to Puck to Head to Friends to Lovers
* He Falls First & She’s His Lucky Charm
* Aspiring Tattoo Artist FMC
* Draft Bust NHL Player MMC
* Black Cat x Golden Retriever
* She’s Painting a Mural for the Rainers
* Close Proximity- Seattle, WA
* LGBTQIAP+ Rep 🏳️‍🌈
* Mental Health Rep
* Dual POV w/ Spice

💚💙🖤 💚💙🖤 💚💙🖤 💚💙🖤💚

Reading Journal Details
Book: Shoot Your Shot by Lexi LaFleur Brown
Format Read: Audiobook (~8 hours, 30 minutes long)
My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 of 5 stars)

Quick Take Review
Shoot Your Shot is a standout debut that immerses you in the authentic world of hockey while delivering a realistic, opposite-attract romance between the edgy, snarky Lucy and the sweet yet determined JJ. With thoughtful treatments of mental health, race, and LGBT issues, and top-notch narration, it's a compelling, addictive read despite a few underdeveloped secondary characters. Highly recommend!

Full Review
For a debut novel, Shoot Your Shot is a stellar hit that immediately caught my attention with its authentic portrayal of hockey—a rarity in the hockey romance genre, where the sport often plays a mere background role. Author Lexi LaFleur Brown excels at weaving the nitty-gritty details of equipment, rink time, and training into the narrative, making the hockey scenes feel genuine and immersive.

The romance between Lucy and Jaylen (affectionately known as JJ) is a standout element; Lucy's snarky, edgy personality and artistic soul, juxtaposed with JJ's sweet, humble determination in his hockey career, create a realistic and organic opposites-attract dynamic that evolves naturally throughout the narrative. Their relationship, enriched by the nuances of personal and professional struggles, is both engaging and heartfelt.

Additionally, Brown tackles very serious topics—race, mental health, and the LGBT community—in a seamless, thoughtful manner, with the portrayal of mental health particularly resonant through JJ's struggles with anxiety and depression. The narration by Kristen DiMercurio and Jamal Roque further elevates the experience, bringing the characters to life and making it impossible to put the book down; I finished it in just a day.

While the debut is undeniably impressive, I do wish there were more in-depth details and character development for some of the secondary figures who play crucial roles in Lucy and JJ's lives. Nonetheless, for a hockey fan like me, finding a romance that nails the sport's authenticity, personal struggles, and important social themes in a nuanced way is a true delight. I'm excited to track Lexi LaFleur Brown's progress and future works!

I've loved Lexi LaFleur Brown from her tiktok content so I was SO excited to get approved for her arc and it was everything I was hoping for!! I love a romance and I love a hockey so Shoot Your Shot was right up my alley. For a debut novel, Lexi really brought her A game and delivered such a fun and realistic story with characters that feel like people I want to be friends with.

I really liked both of the narrators! They were the perfect voices to bring both Lucy and Jaylen to life. Lucy and Jaylen are interesting, multi-dimensional, flawed characters that bring out the best in each other and help each other grow throughout the story. Their stories as individuals and overcoming their own obstacles was just as important in my opinion as their romance together. Jaylen confronting his panic attacks and guilt head on, developing Cam's House with Maya's help, and being his most authentic self no matter what his team or the public think was such a strong positive message. Lucy's struggle with commitment issues coming full circle, her finally freeing herself from her father's dark cloud, and the strength of her platonic relationships hit close to home and made me connect with her easily. And the strong LGBTQIA+ representation is a big bonus!

While Shoot Your Shot is a fun hockey romance (with accurate and fun actual hockey info), it's also a great story of two characters finding safety and stability and working through their own mental health journeys. I highly recommend for anyone who loves a romcom sports romance!

***Four Stars***

I just LOVE a hockey romance. I also love how much actual hockey was played in this book. Lexi and Jaylen were such an adventure. Neither knew the other was what they needed until they fell into each other's way. I love Jaylen's mental health journey, I did find it shocking that he just went in for an appointment and the doctor diagnosed him and started prescribing meds. Is it really like that? That hasn't been my experience.

The only reason this isn't sitting at 5 stars is because I felt like some of the points were so over the top it became annoying.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harlequin Audio, and the author for the opportunity to listen to and review this book.

#ShootYourShot #LexiLaFleurBrown
#KristenDiMercurioNarrator #JamalRoqueNarrator
#HockeyRomance #NetGalley #HarlequinAudio
#SportsRomance #Audiobook #ALCReview
#ReadThisBook #ReadAllTheBooks #ALC2025

This is a great debut novel. I really enjoyed the story and I look forward to more from Lexi. I love that she had insight into how things work in the hockey world. I appreciated that both characters worked on themselves to be full well-rounded people. The LGBT+ representation was wonderful, it was perfect to show real life and real friendship connections.

I wanted to have a bit more of a connection to Lucy and Jaylan's relationship.

3.5/5
Definitely more correct hockey in this romance, as Lexi talks about in her TikTok’s. Some of the hockey terms weren’t explained so if you don’t know hockey might be hard to track that part of the story. Otherwise I enjoyed the story between Lucy & Jaylen.

jaylen jones, a superstitious hockey player, believes a one night stand with lucy is the key to his newfound luck when he secures a spot on the seattle rainiers. lucy, a black-cat, aspiring tattoo artist, reluctantly agrees to help him by sending good luck texts before each game, but their arrangement soon turns into sizzling chemistry, complicating their feelings as they both navigate emotions from their past, career struggles, and personal attachment.

this debut novel was an enjoyable read. the humor was a hit most of the time, though a few jokes did feel a little cringe. if you like rom-coms and sports romance, i'd recommend this book for you as it's a mashup of both with a little bit of spice.

the audiobook was engaging and easy to follow. i really liked that each point of view had its own narrator, and it was helpful that they spoke at similar paces, allowing me to maintain a consistent listening speed throughout the book. this may be a personal preference, but hearing jaylen’s narrator speak for lucy, especially during spicy scenes, really pulled me out of the story and ruined the moment. i’ve noticed this issue in other audiobooks with both male and female narrators, so if it doesn't usually bother you, you should be fine!

i loved seeing lucy and jaylen's individual growth and development, but i did wish for a bit more chemistry between them as a couple. while their conversations showed an undeniable connection, it would’ve been great to see more of that spark evolve. i especially appreciated the bisexual representation from lucy, which truly felt authentic. her best friends are also queer and their personalities added depth, humor, and realness to the story. i LOVE friends who want nothing but the best for their bestie!

it's clear that lexi genuinely understands hockey, which made jaylen's perspective refreshing and well-executed. it was a good backdrop for the romance, rather than just being there to fit the "sports romance" genre.

i would read from lexi again, for sure!

3.5

There was a lot about this story that I enjoyed. Lucy’s two best friends were a hoot. Jaylen Jones was a total golden retriever (shocker, Lucy is a black cat). I also really loved how unconventional Lucy’s job was for a hockey romance. I did find Lucy to be a bit cliche in terms of her black cat attitude. She does lighten up towards the end but I never really connected with her.

At one point she says something like “I’m not your manic pixie dream girl!” I thought it was really funny because she’s literally written as a manic pixie dream girl. Covered in tattoos, aspiring to be a tattoo artist, troubled past, just doing her own thing and doesn’t need a man to interfere. The spicy scenes also fell flat for me. They felt like they were added just as a marketing ploy; there wasn’t a lot of chemistry written into them.

That said the book kept me entertained from beginning to end and I’m glad I got a chance to read it. It had a lot of fun aspects to it and it made me laugh a few times. The secondary characters are where this book really shines; the hockey team and Lucy’s besties were my favorite.

NG doesn’t allow for half stars, but this one gets a 3.5/5 from me. Since this is below 4, I am going to withhold publicly reviewing until after the book’s release.

It was a really cute story and a sweet “meet cute”
Moment.
It kept me entertained throughout the story and I would definitely recommend this book if you want to read a cute romance

This was such a cute story with great representation! There are a couple reasons I gave 4 starts instead of 5; (1) I didn't FEEL the love when the words were said in the story, and I felt blindsided that we jumped to that point and remember thinking "love? already?". (2) I am a hockey romance fan, but know very little about the actual game so felt confused a couple of times when it game to hockey lingo.

I started following the author on TikTok after she shared her commentary when BookTok fans were sexually harassing professional hockey players and their families. I loved her smart thoughts on the intersections of fiction, reality, and culture and appreciated how she shared the humorous inside scoop on what it’s really like to be a hockey WAG. So I was really excited to learn she was writing her own hockey romance, and it was a pleasure to read.

I loved the messy yet deeply self-reflective main characters, Lucy and Jaylen. They were both hilarious and insightful, and it made for a truly enjoyable read! The audiobook was great - both narrators were fun to listen to, they fit the characters well, and I liked their pacing.

Thank you Harlequin Audio and Netgalley for the audio-ARC this book.

Shoot Your Shot by Lexi LaFleur Brown is a hockey romance. The story follows Jaylen, a hockey star trying to get a second chance in his career, and Lucy, an aspiring tattoo artist who abandoned her love of painting years ago. After a drunken hook up and a few chance encounters, Jaylen decides that Lucy is his good luck charm. His cinnamon roll personality combined with her prickly exterior creates some fun banter, friendship and eventual romance.

Overall, the book was just okay. There were definitely high points to the book, however overall it fell short for me. It seemed like the author was trying to hit on too many big topics such as mental health, racism, family trauma, alcohol abuse, adult bullying, negative self-thought, etc, that it did not feel like any topics were able to be meaningfully discussed. I pushed through because I really wanted to like the book (hockey romances are my absolute favorite!), but this one was just a miss for me.

The author seems to know a lot about hockey, which should be a given since it's a hockey romance book, but sadly it's not the case in a lot of other author's hockey books. so I loooove that being a hockey fan myself. I wasn't a huge fan of the FMC. I love grumpy / sunshine and reverse grumpy / sunshine but idk she was a bit too prickly and indecisive (?) for me. I also enjoyed all the representation and diversity that this book had. The couple had some really cute moments but I did spend a good amount of time annoyed at the characters... overall still an entertaining read and a good debut book!

I was really excited to get my hands on this book but it unfortunately fell pretty flat. I found Lexi through all her WAG and hockey content and I wanted to love this book but it’s just not for me.

I felt like Lucy was almost like a caricature of a manic pixie dream girl. Lucy came across as kinda mean at times and I found myself often getting annoyed with her and the choices she makes. Jaylen, while sweet, was just kinda boring. He was almost too good/perfect as an MC? As someone else who reviewed mentioned he felt almost flawless which made Lucy’s flaws feel more apparent. The dynamic between the two was fine, but I didn’t really connect with Lucy and that made me question the connection between them.

I also wasn’t super fond of the writing style. It felt a bit clunky and, while I did have a chuckle here and there by a well timed zinger, it was mostly unremarkable and just felt like it needed another round of editing to tweak and perfect.

That said, the actual hockey content was excellent! Lexi obviously knows her stuff and that really shined in this book! It definitely saved the day at times when I wanted to close the book.

I swapped between reading an eARC and listening to the audiobook for this novel. The audiobook was definitely more enjoyable and the narrators did an excellent job.

If you like extremely accurate hockey romances then I’d say give this a try!

Thanks very much to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ALC in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ALC. I was honored to be approved for it.

Briefly: This story wasn’t for me. It wasn’t all bad, and I could see some readers liking it. With better character development execution, it could have been quite good.

More details:
This story is about 2 twenty-five year olds who are total opposites. A one-night-stand turns to friends turned lovers. JJ, the MMC, is a hot, nice, lovable, rich, professional hockey player who, for some unknown reason, falls for an artsy but annoying, immature, insecure, insufferable, b1tchy, obnoxious girl.
Sorry, I just could not stand the FMC, Lacy. If this wasn’t an ACL, I would have stopped listening after the first 2-3 chapters. Her only redeeming quality was her painting a farewell gift to her boss before she leaves (but we never heard anything else about it so that went nowhere). Lacy may have been quite amusing if she was a side character, but she wasn’t. Another one of her qualities was that she was late to everything, yet apparently she’s a hypocrite too as she got annoyed when her dad was late. Her “come to Jesus moment” was unimpressive and anticlimactic.
Having said all that, I did see her more favorably when I was listening from JJ’s POV; if that was intentional from the author—making her seem better from his view and her seeming terrible from her POV because of her insecurities, it was genius, but I doubt that was intentional.
JJ was too good for her. Although he may be a little bit dim as he believes Lacy is self-confident…uh, where did he get that impression? She is the most insecure person in the book (I think. Hard to say since we didn’t really get to know anyone else in the book, which is fine by me b/c I like when the focus is on the MCs).
I didn’t feel any real attraction or chemistry between them.
Other than JJ, the only other 1.5 things I liked about the story was the hockey knowledge/sport aspect, and the inclusion. However, the inclusion only gets half credit because it also felt very “check off the boxes” (clinical), forced, overdone, stereotypical, and therefore, not genuine. (Actually, the whole story kind of felt clinical, like checking off boxes.)
I believe the book is supposed to be a rom-com, but it wasn’t funny. I didn’t laugh at all, which is disappointing because I love laughing. I really, really hated the cat self-cleaning scene.
As far as spice, there wasn’t much of it and the few scenes there were, were short. I’d give the amount of spice a 🌶️ 🌶️
Regarding character development, there was very little and the little bit there was unrealistic. His mental health issues were late in the book and felt like “go to doc, now everything ok” (that’s not how it works). The mental health rep felt very laissez-faire and unauthentic (another box to check off). And for Lacy’s development, her art self-doubt went from severe to non-existent in a couple of paragraphs.

Thank you Netgalley and Harlequin audio for the free alc. My opinions are being left voluntarily. I was entertained by this debut book. I wish we got to see a bit more of their relationship development. I look forward to reading what the author does next.

4.5/5☆

Thank you Netgalley and Lexi LaFleur Brown for the opportunity to listen to this ALC. I quite enjoyed this break from reality. It was a nice easy audiobook with good narration and an entertaining plot. I liked that this wasn't your typical college hockey romance, but instead was a pro athlete and an adult FMC. I liked the complexity of the FMC's family trauma and appreciated the secret cinnamon roll of a MMC. Overall a fun read.

I loved this story. It was lighthearted and sweet. There was a silliness to the relationship that I loved and connected to. I lvoed watching both the FMC and MMC grow and embrace their flaws and become better people. They support each other and help the other to face demons they have each been trying to avoid for years. The audiobook was done in dual narratation and both are great.