First, I knew I loved Monty Jay but after this, I’m OBSESSED!

I have no clue where to begin. The fucking roller coaster that this book took me through. The fucking story and fucking hurt and healing that happens throughout this book is fucking magical.

Monty’s writing is lyrical in this book. This story definitely isn’t a smooth ride, there are so many bumps, so many frustrating and mistake both main characters make but their whole journey for me was everything. From the first moment B kisses Vallie had me fucking kicking my legs screaming, to their rollercoaster of a trying to deal with their relationship and their hurt, I was hooked! Don’t get me wrong, B made me so angry some time when he struggled with committing, the hurt he put Valor through, but his absolutely and utter love for her was always there, always present.

“You, Valor Sullivan, are what magic is made off” - LIKE COME ON!!! *swoon*


One things though is, I want more of Riggs. Her emotional moment within this books, woah, it deserves more. It NEEDS more and god so I hope we get it. I loved her and hurt for her all the same, even with the small amount we got of her. A powerful reminder that mental health is so important and there is no shame in struggling with mental health disorders.

This book was absolutely beautiful. My top read of the year so far.

Hockey romance? Check. Gorgeous cover? Check. I requested this one from NetGalley so fast, and I'm so glad I did! This story completely surprised me with how much emotion it brought out of me. I'm a huge fan of a strong, independent female main character, so Valor was right up my alley, especially since she's a fellow hockey player like Bishop. I really enjoyed seeing Valor and Bishop's relationship evolve over time, with chapters marking their ages. It took me a little bit to warm up to their romance, but once I did, I was completely invested and so happy they got their happily ever after. Plus, the friendship between Valor and Riggs was just perfect.

Benjamin Sands and Amy Hall did a great job narrating this audiobook in dual narration. They did a great job of portraying these characters. I could feel the emotions and their portrayal of the characters hooked me from start to finish.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an ALC of this audiobook. I voluntarily read it and gave an honest review.

An age gap, dad's best friend romance that didn't give me the ick?? I am just as shocked. I was hooked from the first chapter. Bishop is Vallie's best friend's little girl. They met when she was 10, but it wasn't creepy; they are at different stages of life, clearly, but they seem to understand one another on another level. We see has time progresses, how their 8 year age gap isn't something of lust but built on affection and started just a really deep friendship. This was really emotional and beautiful! props to the narrators for not making this another weird age gap romance.

I’ve really enjoyed Monty Jay’s writing in the past, so I was excited to dive into this one. Unfortunately, it didn’t work for me the way I’d hoped, though I think it may still land with other readers who enjoy angsty, poetic sports romances with a darker edge. Think "A Love Letter to Whiskey" but make it forbidden, age-gap, hockey romance.

What worked for me:
• This is definitely a true sports romance. Both characters live and breathe hockey, and it’s woven meaningfully into the story rather than just being window dressing.
• The internal dialogue of the characters can have poetic quality and goes get deep into a character’s head and feelings.
• There are moments of emotional heaviness near the end, including a reveal I didn’t see coming, that had real impact.
• If you enjoyed A Love Letter to Whiskey, this has a similar “years-spanning obsession, aching desire, bad timing” energy, but with hockey and an age gap twist.
• The audiobook narrators did a great job. The sound quality was great and their voices fit the characters really well.

Where it fell short for me:
• The narrative style leaned too heavily on reflection. The first several chapters (and much of the book) felt like the characters were recounting events to me rather than letting me experience them in real time, which created distance.
• The romance jumped ahead in ways that felt abrupt. Bishop went from just barely noticing Valor’s crush to acting on it almost instantly, without the build-up I wanted.
• Valor feels very young for much of the book, which is realistic for her age but made the age gap romance uncomfortable at times. The dynamic leaned more into teenage yearning than a balanced adult relationship.
• Every single character seemed to carry a tragic backstory (e.g., abuse, neglect, loss, troubled family relationships, mental health, alcoholism) and after a while it became overwhelming rather than grounding the story or making it gritty.
• The “girl hate” dynamics didn’t work for me. There’s a repeated framing of Valor as “not like other girls,” which felt outdated.
• A lot of the middle felt weighed down by repetitive inner monologues. I wanted to see the characters spending more time together on the page rather than thinking endlessly about each other.
• Finally, some of the late-book traumas didn’t get the space they deserved. At least one felt more like a plot device to force the romance forward than an event the characters were allowed to process and deal with meaningfully.
In the end, while I didn’t connect with this story, I can see it working for readers who love angst-heavy, slow-burning obsession, darker backstories, and sports romance where the sport truly matters. It’s not one I’ll personally revisit, but Monty Jay’s talent is clear, and I know this book will find the right audience.

Okay this was not my average hockey romance novel and that’s something I loved about it. The ending was something I wasn’t expecting but it was a perfect way to end the story. The narrators did a great job and I’m obsessed with the female narrator!

3.75/5

I was close to DNFing in the beginning and if it wasn't for Bishop's POV in the beginning saying he thought of Valor as a sister I would have. So with that said this is taboo, he is much older and was in her life since she was a kid.

This book is heavy on the trigger warnings, suicide, sexual abuse, alcohol and drugs. Please be aware that there is an attempted suicide mid book. Protect your peace if that is not for you, do not read this. If you can handle it, then it is an emotional scene and worth reading.

This is no ordinary hockey romance, this has a lot of real life situations and it made the book better. I love that our FMC is also a hockey player who is a rising star. We need more books with female athletes. And for that I will always recommend this book.

Spice: 1.5/5
Dual POV

Age Gap (8 years)
Dad's Friends / Teammate
Virgin FMC
Secret Dating
Second Chance

I received an advance review copy audio version. Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media, for the opportunity to listen to this book. Benjamin Sands and Amy Hall did an amazing job narrating this audiobook.

This is a very fun HEA read. Valley and Bishop struggle with trusting in love due to childhood issues. They grow in themselves and together over years to be able to have a healthy trusting relationship. The character build is good and the characters are so loveable. The plot is good and held my interest to the end. About halfway through the book, the time jumps begin to feel rushed and don't flow as well, but it is still a great read. I listened to it on audio and the narrators are great! They really brought the characters to life for me.

What I enjoyed about the audiobook was the narrators, they were excellent. I also thought the overall writing style was good and the story would've been good had Valor been an adult when when they met but they met and she was like a kid sister to Bishop at the beginning of the story. Then he suddenly found her sexually attractive when she was 17 yrs old and that was gross to me and I just do not like that. I'm fine with age gaps in books but not when they're done like this in a book. What I really disliked in the book to the point of wishing I had DNFd the book is the fact that Bishop met Valor as a young child and viewed her as like a kid sister and then suddenly when she was 17 he found her sexually attractive and they had their first sexual interaction. Had they met once she was a fully grown adult I would've been completely done with the book and enjoyed it but the way it was written was creepy to me.

Thank you Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for the chance to listen to this Audiobook. 1st time author to me! If there is one thing I love most in audiobooks is a good Hockey Romance! Amy Hall my queen narrator and Benjamin Sands were the best Option for this Narration if I do say so myself! Because Bishop and Valor were the it, the 8-year age gap and him being her dad's best friend and teammate well made it a bit forbidden but nothing to Crazy! Man, I loved this Family even with all the crazy dynamics and so on, they all belonged and I Loved it!

This is an age gap hockey romance full of emotions and the story of forbidden love. Both narrators do a great job with the audiobook. The problem for me wasn't the 8 year age gap it was the fact that they met when the fmc was 10 years old and the mmc played a active role in her life as an uncle type figure. They kissed when she was 17 years old everything else was after she turned 18.
The first almost 30% of the book is snapshots of the fmc from 10-17. I would have rather had more of the grown up love story and less of the little girl pining after the grown up.

Thank you NetGalley, Monty Jay, Dreamscape media for a copy of this book.

“I believe that you were made for me. I believe that whatever created us, took a piece of my soul and placed it in you. I believe that the spaces in me are spots that you felt and the sun always shine a little brighter when I wake up next to you. I’ve known that have loved you before. I will love you in this life and I will love in the next after. It’s always us”.”Letting go doesn’t means loving any less” Valor and Bisgop’s life are intertwined in ways they can’t imagine and their love will conquer everything. Potent, full of emotions and feeling. The audiobook with Benjamin Sands and Amy Hall is great. Thanks to NetGalley for the ALC copy. This is my honest review.

Love & Hockey was my first read/listen by Monty Jay, and was all around a good time. I'm a sucker for age gaps and sports romances, and was a big fan!

5…. Five stars! FIVE!!!

I did NOT want this book to end. I devoured this!!! I started it and didn’t sleep until I finished it. Everything..,, this book give everything!! Drama, spice, romance, freaking PLOT TWIST, suspense, heartache, EVERYTHING!!!! I honestly wanted more from the end…. Not that I didn’t get the closure needed but I wanted to live it out instead of a summarized chapter. I loved watching the relationship between Valor and Bishop. I do wish things would’ve waited to happen when she was 18 vs 17 because that made it a little weird. The part when we find out who Ana really is freaking blew my mind. I sat here and tried to figure out if I had missed something because what the actual….. my god such good writing. This is going down as one of my favorites!

4 ⭐
2 🌶️
18+

🖤 M/F
🖤 Both MC's are Hockey Players
🖤 Age gap (8 years 8 months to be exact)
🖤 Forbidden Love
🖤 Dad's friend/teammate

Valor is raised by her single father, who brings her to his hockey games, where she meets Bishop her dad's new teammate, at this time Valor or Vallie as Bishop calls her is only 10 or 11 and Bishop is 18. This book is taboo, so check Trigger Warnings, they first kiss when she is only around 17, but nothing more until after 18. This book was my first by this author and I really enjoyed the story, and even the twists. I will definitely continue with this series. I got an Advanced Listener copy thank you to Netgalley for that for an honest review. This is Dual narration and I enjoyed both of the narrators!

3.25 stars!
This was a good time. I had issues with some of the characters choices, but I wasn’t bored and found myself very invested in the story. The age gap is not going to be for everyone. In fact I almost dnf’d it over it but I’m glad I stuck with it.

I’ve never read Monty Jay but if this is there debut, I’m excited to read more! I see the potential.

The narration was really good! The duet style really brought it to life.

Wow, this book had my emotions all over the place. This was not at all what I was expecting. It was so much more.

Remember to please check the trigger warnings because this book does address serious issues.

This is not your average fluffy sports romance, It's so much more! Vallie and Bishop truly are each others Sun. Love like Valor and Bishops is the kind that endures, that heels broken pieces and makes each other complete.
Tropes we loved: 🩷
✨ Both hockey players
✨ Forced proximity
✨ Forbidden
✨ Age gap
✨ Father’s friend & teammate
✨ Found family

This one will hit you right in the feels… and stay there. 🏒💖 @author.montyjay @netgalley #LoveHockey #netgalley #netgalleyreads Thank you @netgalley and @dreamscape_media

opinions are all my own!

Thank you NetGalley for the audiobook arc. When I first started listening to the book I 100% thought that I got an incorrect file. This book is a lot darker than I thought the hockey romance was going to be. Dou me check the trigger list before diving in. They met when she’s was 10 and had a crush on him from day one. I’m not one to yuck anyone’s yum and they do wait for legal age to do anything but still sends grooming vibes. They have an on and off again forbidden vibes just due to he not thinking her dad would approve of their relationship plus both of their childhoods left them scared and hard to move on with healthy relationships. They are off and on again until they final both realize that they cannot live without the other no matter how hard they try to let the other one go.


Check your triggers cause this has a suicide attempt by one of the character

Love & Hockey by Monty Jay is an age-gap, forbidden romance. Bishop is a hockey star who puts everything he has to give into hockey. Valor has been raised by a single dad hockey star and loves hockey. Well that and Bishop, who happens to be 8 years older and her dads best friend. Narration was performed by Benjamin Sands and Amy Hall. This book was quite slow moving for me and I struggled to become engaged, with the writing seeming just lackluster and repetitive. Unfortunately, this was a DNF for me.

Thank you Netgalley, Dreamscape Media, and the author for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

I blindly requested this on NetGalley because I love Monty Jay’s Hollow Boys series. I did not realize this was her debut with a bit of a taboo age gap dynamic. The prologue was very intriguing, and I was excited to get into this.

Valor is a hockey player with a famous hockey-playing dad. She meets Bishop when she’s 10 and he’s 18. She crushes on him and has a touch of hero worship. The second she turns 18, things change between them.

This book was very middle of the road for me. I liked Valor and her relationships with her dad and her bestie, Riggs(I can’t wait for her story because my heart is broken for her).

I found myself a little annoyed by Bishop to be honest. He should’ve never gotten involved with Valor until he was sure of what he wanted. He was 26, and she was an 18-year-old virgin. It felt a bit like he was stringing her along, she was so young and it just felt icky. He didn't grovel nearly enough imo.

Sometimes the way other women were talked about in the book was tinged with misogyny. I definitely didn’t love that.
There was also a bit of repetition, and the dialogue could veer into cringe territory at times.

I will be continuing this series. I'm intrigued by Riggs and I do enjoy Monty's other books.

ALC review

🏒Both hockey players
🏒Forbidden
🏒Age gap (8 years)
🏒Second chance
*Check trigger warnings


🎧Dual narration
🎙️Narrators: Amy Hall and Benjamin Sands

Audiobook notes:
At 42%, I realized I could hear the male narrator take a huff of breath before he started almost every sentence. Once I noticed it, it made me a bit insane. It did not last the entire book, thankfully, but just something worth noting. Everything else about the audiobook was great.

Sorry but not for me.
DNF at 20%
She was too young! I love age gap but not when they are so young