Red-Haired Ash Reads

Shane Hollander of the Montreal Voyageurs and Ilya Rozanov of the Boston Bears have been rivals since they first joined the league. What no one knows is that they have also been hooking up since then too, even though they kind of hate each other. But as the years pass, these two realize they both want more and have fallen for each other. 

I will admit, I read this because of the hype around the series right now. I was apprehensive starting this because I don’t usually enjoy the hyped books and I also knew this was a rivals to lovers story, which isn’t my favorite usually. While I liked this book overall, I did have issues with it. 

This book spans 10 years and basically goes over their hockey careers, their hookups, and eventually the growing feelings for each other. I didn’t really love the first half of this book because it was just constant hookups with no feeling between these two and constant one upping each other on the ice. I don’t enjoy dick measuring contests and the first half of this really felt like that’s all this was. I also don’t enjoy just hookups. I read romance for the connection between two people and to see them actually start to work on a future together, not just having a good time. The second half of this book was much better for me because that is when they finally both admit they have feelings and start to take steps to have an actual relationship. 

My other issue, which is another personal one, is that I don’t enjoy it when the main characters have relationships with other people. Yes, I know for the majority of this book they were just a rivals-to-benefits situation but I still personally don’t enjoy it in my romance. I do understand that with Shane it allowed him to solidify that he was gay, but I still didn’t like it. 

Ilya and Shane were two very different characters. Shane is calm, kind, and shy. Ilya is a shitstarter who likes to cause chaos, especially on the ice. I personally liked Shane more in this but also found him to be a bit forgettable as a character.  Ilya was a bit annoying and a jerk, which made me not really like him for the majority of the book. I liked him more at the end when he actually opens up and shows more emotion. 

After everything I heard about this couple, I will admit I am disappointed, especially after loving the first book so much. There was still a lot of emotion in this but I just wasn’t really seeing the love being built between these two when they spent so much of their time not together, not talking, and really hating on each other. So while in the end I did like this story, I didn’t love it but I still plan on reading the next book. 

TW: homomisia; fear of being outed and coming out; parent with Alzheimer’s; death of a parent; references to suicide of a parent and depression; medical injury; 

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Previous books and reviews for the series:

1. Game Changer