I absolutely loved Kate Meader's Sweet Thing, giving it a full five stars! Lars, the hero, was incredibly endearing. The single dad x nanny trope is always a win in my book, but the added layers of an age gap and his profession as a hockey player made it even more compelling. Addy, the heroine, was simply delightful. Her sweet nature, coupled with her relatable shyness and comfort as a wallflower, truly captured my heart.

3.25 ⭐️ | Net Galley Review |

A fun, easy sports romance read. I enjoyed it! Nothing revolutionary or unpredictable but it was till a cute and fun read!

I am an absolute sucker for single dad x nanny but this was the ONE. I absolutely loved the age gap added into this. From the prologue I was hooked. I loved Adeline and Lars as characters alone and I also loved them as a couple which isn't something you find in a book all the time.

Lars' relationship with the Kershaw's was heartwarming. He went from having no one to having found this incredible family to be around. To see him overcome the traumas of his past and turn his life around for his daughter was immensely respectable. His relationship with Adeline was rocky for his newfound family but no one really chooses who they end up loving. Adeline was head strong and I loved seeing her turn into this whip strong, confident woman who took charge in her life. The way she stepped up for Lars and Mabel was commendable.

I truly adored this book and cannot wait to read more about the Kershaw's. Thank you NetGalley and Kate Meader for giving me a chance to read this arc!

✨single dad x nanny
✨age gap
✨best friends daughter
✨professional hockey

4/5 ⭐️ !
Happy publication day!!!
Thank you for this ARC, which was provided by Victory Editing, Kate Meader, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!
This book has so many tropes to choose from:
Single Dad x Nanny: ✅
Age Gap:✅
Hockey Player x Captain's Daughter: ✅
Long Time Crush: ✅
Found Family: ✅
This romance was so fun! The conflict of Lars and Adeline internally and learning how to become better than their circumstances in combination of their love story was so intertwined so well. This book should be on your radar if you are a fan of the Off the Ice series by Bal Khabra. Think constant hockey references , FMC becoming their own; on their own, and meaningful lessons. If you like hockey and DILF's, this is for you.

I'm a sucker for a hockey romance and for an age gap. So you know I am all about this book even before I cracked a page.
This is my first Kate Meader book but it will not be my last. It seems like her series interconnect and I'd love to start at the beginning.
What starts off as a crush turns into so much more. Following Lars and Adeline's story along. I wanted to hug them and shake them both at the same time.
Yell at Lars to get it together
Adeline's character is so sweet and I had such empathy for her. She's definitely sunshine.
If you love any of the following this book is for you
Age gap
Dads best friend
Nanny to lover
Angst

Favourite quotes
"Christ, I wanted to kiss every inch of her and find out where else she pinked up."

This was a sweet romance with a fun premise, I just wasn't keen on all of the drama of finding out about their relationship.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. I’m a sucker for a hockey romance novel and this one surpassed my expectations.
Adeline had a crush on her dad’s best friend and hockey teammate, Lars. Adeline left to travel the world with her friend Rosie, hoping the time away would end her little crush. The night she arrived back, Lars had a lady hand him a baby at the team bar and take off. After tests confirmed Mabel was his child, he needed a nanny. One he felt comfortable with here in steps Adeline. What started as a professional relationship soon turned into more. All that time together under one roof was bound to have defenses fall and Lars and Adeline gave in. Working through lying to his best friend and trying to be a good dad for Mabel, Lars caught real feelings for Adeline. She reciprocated those feelings despite everything.
Adeline needed to feel needed, wanted and that is what care taking for Mabel did for her. She felt like she found her place, a place she didn’t feel much in her own family. Stepping out of her comfort zone and demanding what she wanted and going for it was a wonderful transformation to watch. We never want to disappoint our family but sometimes you have to follow your heart. Lars grew , as Aurora said, as a person by channeling his energy into loving something so deeply. Mabel and then along the way, Adeline. Both character transformations too the whole book to come full circle.

Kate Meader did it again! the Rebel family keeps growing and I love them all. Lars & Adeline are sweet, connected, and full of doubt. The way they want to protect each other, build each other up, so good. I love the cameos too. I can't wait for Hatch's story. read this...but read all the Rebels. they are everything comfort & spice for me.

being a dad. With the help of his best friend, his wife, and their daughter, he slowly learned how to be a Dad and how rewarding a child can be.

Adeline was Theo's daughter who had a teenage crush on Lars and was extremely embarrassed when he found out. After graduation, Adeline and her best friend decided to backpack across Europe and Asia for several months. During this time she tried to forget her crush and experience new things and people. After a scare, Adeline came home with her own secret trauma. The night she came home was also the night Lars found out he was a father. Sweet Adeline came to his rescue and helped him with Mabel that night along with her parents.

Faced with a decision, Lars was either going to have to take emergency leave from the team or find a last minute live in nanny who could start immediately. He knew that he could rely on Theo's family for help but didn't want to burden them. Theo had suggested Adeline, but Adeline wasn't sold on the idea until after hearing how Lars taking time off would affect her father and what could be his final season. Adeline reluctantly agreed to be a temporary nanny until a suitable one could be found to prevent the team from losing one of their best defenseman.

Over the course of the season no nanny was found and Lars and Adeline became closer, starting as friends, then fantasy partners, and then they fave in to their chemistry and began a relationship. They kept their additional benefits a secret from everyone even though a few suspected. Lars treated Adeline as an adult woman though her family still treated her like a child who needed protection from the outside world. Adeline often hide her true feelings and wants around them because if this. She felt immense guilt when something she said or did adversely affected them. Even though Kars hated keeping their relationship a secret, he knew that if it came out he would either lose her or everything he worked hard for including his best friend.

Fate stepped in and their secret was revealed and Lars' fear was right. He lost everything except Mabel and his job. His fear of opening his heart to love came true and his relationship with his teammates suffered. Adeline felt so guilty for ruining her Dad's friendship and for negatively affecting his team. She felt lost without the pair that stole her heart. She knew she was young but they were part of her family and worth fighting for.

Adeline and Lars found home in each other and trusted each other with secrets they hadn’t shared with anyone else. That kind of trust and faith in another person is rare and should be cherished. Trauma can cause a person to only rely on themselves so truly trusting someone else with precious cargo or emotional baggage can be extremely difficult. Starting with a foundation of friendship and mutual respect is key and they build a strong foundation. Sure like every relationship there will be hurdles but these two have faced worse. I loved watching Lars and Adeline's story unfold. It had the laughter, the tears, the drama, the fights, and all the feels along with the spice.

Thank you to Kate Meader and Netgallery for the ARC and the opportunity to review this amazing book.

For all the girls who've crushed on hot guys, more specifically hot older guys, and even more specifically hot older hockey guys - this one's for you! Of course you always want what you can't have, but what if you could have it? I'm a sucker for a hockey romance and this did not disappoint! Kate wrote a great FMC transforming from a timid girl to a strong woman while also showing its never too late for a man to work on becoming a better version of himself. What a perfect pair. The storyline kept my attention all the way through as I kept rooting for their HEA.

My rating system:
5=will read again
4=recommend to everyone
3=recommend to anyone liking that particular writing style/trope
2=do not recommend
1=DNF

Oh my! Lars may just be my new favorite book boyfriend! I'm such a fan of the Chicago Rebels series and this continues as the next generation of Rebels. Adeline, (Super Glutes daughter) is front and center in this one! I loved this book. As always Kate had a way that you just don't want to put it down. Lar's is sexy and sweet and you see a whole new side of him from what you know about him. I love the beginning of new series, you get to meet new characters, and your mind starts to wonder about each of them. I really loved every part of this first book in the next generation of Chicago Rebels. If the first one is any indication, buckle up it's going to be a fun ride!!

I'm a big fan of hockey romance and have enjoyed other books by this author in the past. I'm not always a fan of age gap relationships, but this one wasn't too big of a gap and their personalities seemed to fit well. While this book has some characters from other books by this author, the story stands alone. I did enjoy the book a little more though as it felt a little like visiting old friends. The story was a quick pace and the characters were likable. I found this to be a fun read that was a perfect escape. I look forward to more from the author with this team. I received an advance copy from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

I've met this author at an Aussie signing and purchased some books but this is the first time I've actually read her. How silly of me to have missed out, I'm a fan now.
This book was a fun read with wonderful characters.
Lars is a hockey player with a low self worth thanks to a loser father. Now he finds himself a single dad, in love with a taboo woman being the daughter of his friend. Now it's complicated and messy.
I couldn't put this book down and loved every moment.

I just loved how much imagination Ms. Meader brought to this story. Some of the events are certainly fictional things I've read before, but somehow they seem new and different in this novel. It starts with the creative names: not just the main characters Lars and Adeline, but other characters too. As a group they felt real-life random to me, and the occasional Finnish endearment was just the icing on the name list cake. The scene of the arrival of Lars' surprise baby was just perfect. And the mayhem goes on from there, with Adeline stepping in to help with infant Mabel (another great name!) and thus spending all kinds of time in Lars' orbit. I appreciated the back and forth communication and decision making that was a main feature of the whole story - ideas get brainstormed, discussed, and decisions made just like real life. Ms. Meader had my attention right on the spot, as if I was listening and seeing it all happen. I am really looking forward to reading the rest of this series as it is published.

I was given an ARC and volunteered to write a review.

I overall enjoyed this book! I LUV a good age gap/nanny trope. I loved the fmc's sass and that she was able to put Lars in his place. I think if you're a fan of Lauren Blakely then this could be a great read for you!

Loved revisiting Theo Kershaw and his family now that they’re all grown up. Sweet Thing is Adeline’s story and how her years long crush on her dad’s teammate comes to a head as she helps Lars navigate his life as an unexpected father. I enjoyed reading this book and am looking forward to the next book in the series.

Age gap hockey romance!
I have to be honest, I was sceptical about this age gap romance. That being said, this was exceptionally written. You can feel the stress Lars feels when he gets his surprise that only adds to his baggage he already carries. Thankfully he has a found family who rallies and supports him including Adeline. Adeline has her own fears that she refuses to share with her family. They do get their HEA! I don't want to give away the story. It was an excellent read and I would recommend it.

This is book one of the Chicago Players. This is a nanny, single dad, age gap, hockey romance. This story is well written and will draw you into the characters emotions. You feel all their angst and love. This review is based on an early review copy I was sent by the publisher, but this didn't affect the content of my review that I am voluntarily providing.

Thank you Kate Meader and NetGally for the arc of Sweet Thing!

Sweet Thing is a surprise single dad/nanny hockey romance with an age gap. This is the first book in the Chicago Players series!

Lars gets the surprise of his life when a woman (he kinda recognizes) dumps a baby on his lap and leaves him to take care of his baby girl. He learns he is actually the biological dad and makes the decision to set up and be a father. The only issue is that he doesn’t know anything about babies or how to take care of a baby. Enters: Adeline. Adeline is the daughter of Lars’s teammate and closest friend, Theo Kershaw, and she also had a crush on Lars. When Lars is in need of help taking care of baby Mabel, The Kershaw’s step up, and Adeline becomes Mabel’s full time nanny, until they can find a professional one.

I enjoyed the development of Lars and Adeline’s relationship. I loved how easily they connected and how their chemistry was both calming and tension filled. It was fun how they truly tried to avoid their attraction to each other, but couldn’t resist each other! Some scenes had me giggling and kicking my feet- so sweet and thrilling!

“Maybe there’s room for another bright star in the night sky.”

I also enjoyed how both Lars and Adeline developed as characters. Lars was struggling with not becoming his dad, and grew so much with learning how to take care of Mabel and connecting with her. He also learned a lot and grew a lot with Adeline as a role model. Adeline grew the most. She found her voice and realized her worth, as part of her family and also as a woman. I really enjoyed her development!

What I didn’t really enjoyed that much was the third act break up. I generally don’t like those in any books, so that’s just my preference. I also didn’t like Adeline’s parents when they eventually learn about Lars and Adeline’s romance. I just felt like they dealt with that information wrongly and made unnecessary assumptions and made a split between Adeline and Lars.

I also had issues with some confusion regarding Lars. It’s made clear that Lars is Finnish, but it’s also made references or indications, that he has Scandinavian heritage. I understood it as saying Lars Nyqvist is Finnish and therefore a Scandinavian. Which is wrong. Finland is not part of Scandinavia, but is part of what’s considered the Nordic countries. Scandinavia is in regard to the three countries Norway, Sweden and Denmark. I hope this is further looked at before publication.

” “I love our chats,” he said, before dropping a light kiss on my lips. “I love our time together.” My eyes stung, and I tried my best to hold it together. “So do I.” “

Overall, this was a sweet romance with a hint of spice. Would recommend this to readers who enjoy sweet hockey romances, age gap (13 years) and enjoy the single dad/nanny trope!

Oh wow! This is my first read of Kate’s books and where on earth have they been hiding?! I absolutely LOVED Adeline and Lars! Adeline’s spunky, take back her power attitude and Lars’ protective, sexy and dirty mouth made this one a complete page turner! Throw in a very overprotective father of Adeline and hilarious siblings, and this one is a winner! I can’t wait to go back and read the rest of the Rebels books and am sooo looking forward to the next one to figure out Hatch and what is happening there!! Great read!