There are a few reasons that this book and I were destined to meet.

1. I love hockey romances, specifically m/m hockey romances.
2. This book uses one of my favourite tropes: fake relationships. Catnip!
3. I was specifically on the hunt for books similar to ones that I’ve loved as I was heading for surgery and needed the comfort of the familiar but the excitement of something new. Distracting yourself is a fine art.

So that’s three ticks so far, but I have met many a book that, on the surface, should delight me body and soul, but falls short. Often this is because the story itself lacks emotional authenticity. It’s either a one-note source of (juvenile) conflict or remains superficial in terms of emotional depth. I am delighted to report that this book did, in fact, delight body and soul!

Let’s meet the love interests, shall we?

Brody Kellerman is a good hockey player, but not great. He’s good because he puts in the hard work. He plans. He thinks things through. He’s a thorough guy, but so kind with it. He also just had his heart broken and he’s a mess, but not as much of a mess as he thinks he should be. Perhaps that wasn’t the right relationship for him?

Seamus Camp Murray is an up-and-coming country singer. He’s charismatic when he is ‘on’ and awkward and unsure and charming in a different way when he drops that particular mask. He’s not been in a relationship before so he’s extra unsure of himself when it comes to love.

They meet at a mutual friend’s wedding. The chemistry is FIRE and they have a one night stand. Then they go their separate ways. Until they bump into each other at an event and the one night becomes two. But Seamus gets in his head and it’s a disaster. On that fateful night, they are filmed canoodling (love that word!) and it goes viral. They have both been outed. Their respective managers cook up the best possible response to this: a fake relationship. There’s a contract and everything.

The majority of this book tracks the evolution of their fake relationship. Now I love this trope, but this book offered me a different slant on things, one that felt a little more real. There’s some teasing, some banter, some light moments, but there is also heart-squeezingly real angst. For example, when Seamus freaks out during their second night together, he describes himself as ‘being drunk and melancholy and mean and weird’ and MY GOD did I feel that in my gut. I have felt that hellacious insecurity where every step forwards or backwards is a quagmire. You’re weird and awkward and your brain screams with anxiety and indecision and a YEARNING for something. While I didn’t love that it took Seamus a while to get over that particular mental roadblock, I loved seeing the small ways in which he would reach out for comfort. The bravery of a tendril of hope!

This leads me to my only real criticism of the book. The ‘bleak moment’ wasn’t there. Or perhaps the bleak moment was split up and spread out throughout the novel because there’s certainly enough emotional depth throughout. Regardless, I didn’t get that soul-cleansing moment where they finally break through their obstacles and that sweet rush of joy floods in. In this respect, this book offers a much quieter moment. While they break through their obstacles, it is a war of attrition rather than a great dam bursting.

Did I enjoy the first two books in this series? Yes. Will I be keeping an eye out for the next one? Absolutely yes! If like me, you enjoy m/m romance featuring ice hockey stars and you really need emotional depth in your HEA, then this book might be for you. Forced proximity can be such a rewarding trope and this book definitely delivers!