Call the Shots was such a great book. There were so many twist and turns in the book that i was not prepared for. The love and support that Bear and June give to each other is defiantly top tear romance. You don't just get a slow burn, enemy's to lovers, you get golden retriever vibes, there is lots of drama and crazy ex's. To say the least i will be reading this book again and again it is that good!

Bree Hayden is back and this time, she's moved from football to ice hockey. Featuring characters we first met in her Even the Score series, this one features superstar PR intern June and new transfer hockey player Bear. The book is marketed as an enemies to lovers romance, and that is there, but this book is also about the broader hockey team (secondary characters get notable character arcs) and it feels as much about the slice of life of a hockey team coming together as a steamy romance between the main characters.

The book is also incredibly funny, and one of the few sports romances that actually made me laugh out loud. It is a long book, but think of it as an escape into the life of a found family and two people who fall in love through mutual respect and kindness. Thanks to Ink and Inc Publishing for the early copy. This is for fans of Elle Kennedy and Sarina Bowen.

Call the Shots by Bree Hayden is a delightful slowburn college hockey romance.
I really enjoyed these characters, fun story and swoony romance! I was so excited when I got an advanced readers copy. This book was so much fun to read. I didn't want to put it down.

I enjoyed this story enough to read it nonstop in my free time until I finished, roughly 12 hours total. But someone said "it's a little weird at times" and I agree. It's a great story where I couldn't wait for Xavier's demise, and rooted for the main characters. I loved that Bear had a little ~premature problem~ and how desperate he got around her.

I loved how they hated each other, but it too quickly turned to passion on his end, which is fine. I loved that she still hated him during their first few encounters. I loved all the backstory. I only wish I got more of the hockey team overcoming their problems, but I'm assuming that'll be future books!

2.5 ˖⁺‧✮

This book has a cute cover and premise but that’s probably it. I didn’t like the writing and the way this book was structured. everything felt very unemotional and robotic and i honestly was really confused about the half of the plot.

in more details: the book was pretty long and with these pages numbers i wished for more clean and detailed writing. because overall, the book felt so chaotic. something was happening and the next page everyone forgot about it. and then it kept happening. as a reader, i was confused most of the time. some plot lines had no sense. the leaks ? coach, hockey and family drama + so many stuff just kept happening and nothing was developed deep enough. i think the author should have chosen 2 plot lines and focus on them.

i didn’t feel the chemistry at all. both characters were a little annoying but also very boring. i understand the college times and wanting to experiment but they had nothing else to their personalities,

i really hoped this book would melt my heart, but unfortunately it’s just bad

Where do I even begin?

Bear's journey is the definition of a full character transformation. He goes from feeling isolated after his move—clashing with almost everyone on the team—to becoming a core member of the Gladiators, surrounded by people he can truly rely on. His growth is not only believable, it's beautifully written.

And then there's June. A total firecracker from start to finish. She's a bit of a hot mess at first, but impossible not to love—vibrant, chaotic, and so real.

The emotional depth builds slowly, with small, powerful moments throughout the book. But by the end? The dam breaks, and wow. It's intense, but all perfectly balanced by a satisfying HEA that soothes the heart.

Oh—and the spice? It slaps. No notes.

Bear and June’s enemies-to-lovers story is full of sparks, laughs, and growth. From clashing roommates to a couple who truly supports each other, their chemistry is undeniable: “It’s that once-in-a-lifetime love that makes you feel like you’re starting your life because I want my real life to start with you.” 🥹💚

The found family with the Gladiators adds so much energy—their loyalty, jokes, and chaotic camaraderie had me laughing out loud. June’s journey through heartbreak, self-discovery, and standing her ground is inspiring, while Bear’s flirty, protective side is impossible not to love.

The book is long and packed with side plots, which slows the pacing at times, but once the romance and drama hit, it’s impossible to put down.

If you enjoy messy, funny, and heartfelt college hockey romances with found family vibes, this one is a must-read 🤍🏒.

First, I want to give a thank you to Bree Hayden for the opportunity to read an eARC of Call the Shots. While this book didn’t fully work for me, there were moments I genuinely enjoyed. I love a good sports romance, but this one struggled to find its footing.

The story felt like it was trying to juggle too many tropes—sports romance, enemies-to-lovers, fake dating, smuttier elements—and in the end, none of them landed strongly. The writing itself came across as inconsistent: sometimes the dialogue between Bear (the MMC) and June (the FMC) read immature, other times overly adult, making it hard to connect with their chemistry. Their relationship lacked depth, and the reasons for their push-and-pull dynamic weren’t very convincing.

Plot-wise, the book often felt unfocused. The beginning was confusing, with unclear tension between the leads, and certain storylines (like Bear’s family or June’s ex-boyfriend) felt underdeveloped or unnecessary. The fake dating elements and the late-book misunderstanding both seemed forced, while the attempt at kinkier/steamier scenes didn’t quite land for me.

As a sports romance, it was also disappointing that the hockey team, the Gladiators, barely featured. There were no real updates or meaningful sports moments woven into the story, which left that whole angle feeling forgotten.

Overall, Call the Shots read like a book that wasn’t sure what it wanted to be. With tighter editing, clearer focus, and more fully developed characters, it could have been stronger. That said, I appreciated the chance to read it early, and I hope future installments in the series find more balance.

I love a good hockey romance and enemies to lovers trope, but this story felt like it was a bit all over the place. I enjoyed the banter between Bear and June in the beginning when they didn't like each other. An FMC that can give it back to the MMC is always entertaining. I also enjoyed that there was a good plot to this book, not just all about the hockey and romance. However, because there were so many characters it felt like there were also too many plots to this book. It was a bit hard to keep everything straight throughout the whole story. it seemed like there was too much filler throughout the story as well, I would have liked it if it was shorter. Some of the smaller plots with the background characters weren't necessary to the rest of the book and just made for such a long read. I also felt like the spice was placed at weird times in the story and also not enough of it at the same time. Those parts with Bear and June seemed to go from 0 to 100 so quick, there wasn't a lot of build up or tension in that department with the two of them. There were also times were Bear seemed like two completely different people. He was the typical jerk with June in the beginning, but then when he started to catch his feelings he was a complete softy. Normally that would be fine, but similar with the spice it went from one extreme to the other without much of a transition in the middle to get there.

This was a 3.5 for me. I liked it at most. It was entertaining. I loved the found family trope. I loved how they all come together here. But it was also unnecessarily long, and those parts also didn't help with the plot. I liked some of the smexy scenes but some of it also felt like they were trying to overdo it. Also the timeline and the way it qas told seemed a little off to me. But apart from all these, I liked it.
and thank you netgalley for this early copy:)

This book not only brings you a sweet love story, it tackles tough topics like stalking eating disorders and more. Bear and June doesn't have it easy on the road to love. They had to fight through family, friends and even themselves. I like this book because it wasn't all lovey dovey find your way to happiness. It tackled real obstacles along the way. The characters and struggles were relatable. You couldn't help but fall in love and root for June, Bear, King and more!

Arc Review, Thank you Netgalley and Bree Hayden!!

June Basil FMC 21yr: Dated mmc's step brother (Xavier) who cheated on her and kicked her out. Now has to work for my college's hockey team in exchange for free housing and live with mmc. Blonde hair and green eyes. Was homecoming Queen. Loves to garden. Rich family.
-Zariah - BFF. Twin brother is Elijah who is an annoying Golden retriever hockey player.
-Freddie Basil - father and loudest city council member.
-King - ex boyfriend. Football player. Quiet and kind. BFF. Jasmine is little sister. Fake dated for years to help her dad's political campaign.

Bear Moreau MMC: Grumpy hockey star. Hot tempered. Defenseman. Loner. Broody. Long brown hair and brown eyes. Gamer.
-Paisley - ex girlfriend. Leaked mmc's nudes with her brother Wade who was his former teammate.
-Family sucks

Mmc is having a celibate streak and only trusts fmc to sleep with.

Houston's college hockey team is full of outcasts and problematic hockey players no one wanted. All the school's money goes to football. The hockey stadium is a disaster and the coach is on vacay.

This is like a dysfunctional Ted Lasso, I love it.

I really like how short the chapters are. I keeps me reading more.

I enjoyed getting to know the hockey players. Elijah was a little stinker, but I love it 💩 Montoya is adorable 😍

I love that he took notes of their phone calls

"The Beaver Dam" 😂 I love that they all knew the hockey team!

I was grinning the entire time reading this that my cheeks hurt, I have so many highlighted parts that I loved or made me laugh.

Him naming the Okapi from the Zoo Tycoon game after June and providing her own rainforest enclosure with a waterfall 🤣

The author does pining so well. The couch cuddling scene ❤️ I also love how he demands kisses and is a total simp for June.

Also, the big talk about his dirty talk and we barely get any spicy scenes. Talking a big game and we barely get scraps...

Food disorder was well talked about. The only thing that bugged me about it is when she wanted to tell her friends, she didn't include the hockey team who she became close to. Are they not her friends? I understand the vulnerability of the situation and their friendship is all new, but it kind of left me bummed that she didn't consider them close enough to tell. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I didn't really care for her football friends besides Cleo and Miles so I could be bias.

This was a long and WILD wild ride, did I enjoy it? Yes.

I finished this book pretty quickly and truly had fun reading it. It felt like a soap opera and also felt like I was reading reality TV. If you love hockey romances, you won't be disappointed 🤗

I have a longer review on my romance io account that include blurred spoilers.

⭐⭐⭐⭐🌶️🌶️🌶️

⭐️⭐️⭐️.75 stars (rounded up)
🌶️🌶️.5 spice

What to Expect:
🏒Hockey Romance
🏒Enemies to Lovers
🏒Forced proximity
🏒Ex’s Stepbrother
🏒Found Family
🏒Eating Disorder Rep

Lovable characters in absolute spades! You won’t notice the pages flying by with all the amazing little side character moments and shenanigans.
I immediately need to read baby boi Montoya’s coming of age story (please tell me he has a book coming in this series, I would do bad things for it)

The chaotic start was kind of confusing with the fake relationship scenario not explained very well. I thought I’d mixed up names when the timelines of who she was dating were spoken about, but then it turns out one isn’t her actual boyfriend. Threw me for a loop at first…but then it really came good.

Just looking at the page count you’d think this book was going to drag but it absolutely did not, I really enjoyed the whole story. The banter was A+ and we looove grumpy little Bear 🫶 June was kind of annoying at times, but we can forgive that.

What is not forgivable is a character with the name King 🫠... weird character names I find mildly distracting to the reading experience and most I can get over, but I just cringed every time he was spoken about. Why did his name give me such an ick?! Is it me? Am I the problem?
Please tell me this is a surname as a first name situation! His mother was referred to as Mrs. King so we can only hope!!

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

This book was good, but it was all over the place. It started off with a forced “enemies” vibe. I felt like they weren’t truly enemies, but Bear was trying to dislike her for the sake of his step brother. June only didn’t like Bear because of how he was portrayed by his own family. (Screw them)

I felt like there were a bunch of plot jumps and I kept thinking that the situation with Xavier was just being covered with bandaids each time. I will say tho, Bree did a wonderful job with how she portrayed rich kids and how they are protected a lot in university (and the “real” world as well) when their parents are influential.

I get that June’s parents are also widely known and have a lot of influence as well, but I was a little thrown by how much she had specifically.

Bear transferred universities due to some personal issues at his previous school and to be honest, I don’t blame his reaction. I did like how much both June and Bear grew together and separately. I loved how obsessive he was and how he treated her. Especially when he found out about her personal issues.

There were plenty of times where I had no idea how their relationship would go but I’m super glad things worked out in the end.

I wish we had more backstory with Elijah and what happened after the incident with King. Maybe the next book will explain everything.

*
*

This was an ARC read and I’m happy to share my honest opinions

⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
🌶️🌶️/5
Release Date: September 2, 2025

A slow burn college hockey romance. June has hit rock bottom after her ex has made her lose her on campus housing and now she is sharing a dorm with her ex’s stepbrother. Bear is the hot tempered hockey player who hates everyone for no reason.

Personally I thought it is hard to follow sometimes. At times I felt like I was skipping parts and actually had to go back a few paragraphs a couple of times to make sure I didn’t miss something. The romance seemed random or rushed at times. With all that being said I enjoyed the story and the buildup of all the relationships. I loved getting to see how Bear and June grew and loved each other… when the story’s pacing slowed down to focus on them. I loved that Bear found family in the hockey team. I appreciated that Bear and June communicated and worked through problems/disagreements instead of breaking up.

Thank you to Net Galley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

#netgalley #romancebooks #kindlegirlie #bookstagram #readreadread #plantsandbooks

Good Reads Review- https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7820667363

4.25 Stars (why can't goodreads do fractions?!)

This is my first book by Bree Hayden but won't be my last. While the book took me a second to get into because I have not read her previous series which I believe lead into this one- once I got there I was hooked. Do not expect your typical "meet cute" or "enemies to lovers" hockey romance. In this book while Bear was a hockey player and the team were central characters it didn't have the same hockey focus- which for me was fine.

June our FMC is where this book shined. She has so much depth to her and when I saw a trope here was grumpy sunshine I immediately placed her in that box. While she is sunshine and everyone flocks to her she is actually hiding some very serious personal issues. Her friends and family have no idea but Bear picks up on them quickly. THIS is where the book just grabs your heartstrings. I love a possessive MMC but to show him helping her loving her through all her problems, issues and MESS was just a beautiful story. He protects her in a way where they shoulder their worries together. He makes her believe that she is capable and accountable. This is not your typical hockey romance rom com.

HEA approved.

Will Post to Amazon when Book is live.

Unfortunately I didn’t love this book as much as I wanted to. I gave it my best shot, but it wasn’t for me. I usually love hockey romances, but I felt like the story was very long and a little all over the place. There are some things I did enjoy however, like the banter and character growth of the MMC and FMC. The slow burn in this book was honestly good, there was just enough tension to keep you wanting more. Thank you NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book, I’m writing my review voluntarily.

This book was okay. It did have its funny and sweet parts but mostly I felt like it was all over the place and at times weird. It was also a lot longer than it needed to be, too drawn out. I did appreciate the character growth!

✅ For Fans of:
Hockey romance
Forced proximity
Enemies to lovers
Sports romance
College romance
Roommates
Fake dating
He falls first
His Fantasies
Eating Disorder Representation


✏️ Spoiler-Free ARC Review
This book is written like a movie but even better! Think college hockey drama movie but with more romance. I love the way the chapters end of mini cliffhangers but aren’t annoyingly obvious, but are genuine characters thoughts and direct to the plot.

Speaking of the plot, I loved it. It’s secrets, it’s personal, it’s revenge, it’s academic, it’s sports, it’s romance. The romantic parts are so real, I feel like they could happen in my own relationship and “how we fell in love” story.

It’s not a 5 since it felt like a very drawn out plot and doesn’t hit its stride until about 55%, so I wouldn’t likely read it again but I enjoyed it so much!

The side characters each have their own side stories and redemption arcs that only build up the main plot instead of distracting from it. Each hockey player’s personality is so well written that you can pick up on their individuality, that’s how fully formed they are.

Thank you to the author and Net Galley for the advanced copy! As always, my reviews are voluntary, my own, and honest.

thank you netgalley & Ink and Inc Publishing for the ARC.

i hated this so much. i DNF'd. they are both so mean to each other it's disgusting. there were no trigger warnings for an eating disorder or weight discussion. i didn't find it funny. the writing is very disjointed and choppy. we're introduced to a lot of characters and subplots which is hard to keep track of. also i know whatever his name is is seventeen but seventeen year olds don't act like that? didn't turn me on, no chemistry, not enough consent discussion. the main characters felt unreliable and sometimes i couldn't remember which pov i was in. there's no descriptions of their appearances until many chapters later. why is this five hundred fucking ninety pages??? no.