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• jay

  Finished May 27, 2025

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• julie ✨
  lightheartedMedium-paced

  Started October 31, 2023 · Finished November 8, 2023

  There were some things I really appreciated about this book, and others that I really didn't. First off, I liked that the author included parts of her heritage by making the female lead a woman of color; I rarely see nonwhite folks in hockey romances and I found it refreshing, even if I wish it played a larger role. I also liked that Aiden had a nontraditional family structure. Overall, the way families were handled in this book was different and fun. As for characterization... I didn't love either Summer or Aiden. While I did really like Aiden while I was reading (outside of one instance that I'll go into later), now that I've had some time to reflect, it never felt like he had any major flaws. He was the perfect level-headed hockey captain who did everything for others and nothing for himself; after a while, it got boring. On the other hand, Summer could be exhausting. Despite Aiden proving time and time again that his interest in her was genuine, she was very hot and cold about whether she liked him. She was quick to assume the worst in him and overly emotional (while pretending she wasn't) about everything. I will concede that this is realistic given her age, but it got kind of frustrating nevertheless. There were only three things that I didn't like in terms of plot: the existence of Donny, the carnival/benefit thing Summer put together, and the ex-machina at the end where Aiden's punishment is lifted for reasons. Every time Donny entered a scene, Summer was sure to start doubting herself and pulling away from Aiden. If this had only happened two or three times throughout the story, I wouldn't have minded so much. But because it happened about five times, the routine got old. The carnival thing that Summer put together also kind of made no sense to me; planning something on the scale described would have taken lots of time and money, none of which we ever actually see her handling. If the author wanted a carnival scene, she could have made it a campus or town event that Summer and Aiden just attended, not necessarily planned; if she wanted Summer to plan an event, we needed more clarity on what the event was, why she planned it, and how she pulled it off. As for the ending... I didn't like that Aiden took the blame for Summer breaking into her professor's office. First, it was predictable. Second, it crossed a line. Summer needed to face the consequences for her actions, and that's something she even acknowledged. Then, she did everything she could to try and get his suspension from the team lifted EXCEPT take accountability for her actions! And while this was annoying, I was almost okay with it because Aiden made that choice voluntarily. But then, out of the blue, he gets the call that his suspension has been lifted just in time for the big game, and we find out that Summer's dad pulled strings with the Dean to make it happen. AND SUMMER IS OKAY WITH THIS?? After she was angry with him for crossing boundaries earlier in the book (paying for her meal plan, trying to "buy her love," not being there for her in the way she wanted), I don't understand how she didn't see this similarly. Also, as someone who actually watches hockey, I couldn't stand that Aiden scored three goals, including the game winner in the final game. It was unrealistic in a way that felt shoehorned in to remind us how great a hockey player Aiden was. Despite the critiques, I did enjoy this book. The writing was pretty good; I liked Summer and Aiden's dynamic (once they actually committed to a relationship); I appreciated the minority representation. I thought it was a decent addition to the sports romance genre.

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