Kristie J’s review of Mr. Hockey (Hellion Angels, Book 1) by Lia Riley
Contemporary Romance published by Avon Impulse 11 Jul 17
Sybil tweeted a few months ago about this book. The cover was great and when I read the outline, it sounded good. So I pre-ordered it. It came in a few days ago, and, even though it’s a lot more baseball weather than hockey, I figured I’d read it anyway
I’ve read some other books by this author and liked them and liked this one too. Although he’s a hockey hero about town, Jed West is a lot more down to earth than one might expect. Sure, he sowed his wild oats earlier – what hot athlete who is admired and wanted by young women wouldn’t, but he’s past that now and is more of a regular guy who doesn’t take what’s offered all the time.
Breezy is a great heroine. She’s a librarian and I shall have to recommend this book to a certain librarian who is known to be known as Super and her avatar has said heroine wearing a cape. One of the cutest scenes comes near the beginning when Breezy is wearing a “super” costume and because it’s old and rather worn and she may have put on a few pounds – well, accidents happen. But it’s ever so much worse when it happens in front of a hockey player you happen to think is the best thing going. One who graces all kinds of paraphernalia. One who you happen to have a full size cut out of in your bedroom. You see, Breezy is a super fan of Jed. They come face to face when Breezy’s sister asks if he would make a guest appearance at a children’s library event. This is when said costume malfunction happens, and the way Jed handles it makes the reader fall in love with him.
The book starts out hilarious and had me laughing in a few spots, but then it settles down to a more serious bent. Jed has decisions about his health he has to make and Breezy has mother issues, because her mother has always made her feel inferior to her older sister. While I appreciate the more solemn turn the book took, I miss the funnier parts from the first half and would have liked to see more of those kinds of scenes carried forward. But that’s the only downside in an otherwise very enjoyable book. Thanks, Sybil, for the tweet. I like this one and I think other readers who enjoy a good sports romance will too.
Grade: B
Summary:
Jed West is Mr. Hockey. The captain of the NHL’s latest winning team, the Denver Hellions—and the hottest player on the ice—at least according to every magazine. .and Breezy Angel. Breezy has been drooling over Jed at games for years, and he plays a starring role in her most toe-curling fantasies. But dirty dreams don’t come true, right?
Then Jed saunters through the doors of her library, a last minute special guest for a summer reading event, and not only is he drop dead gorgeous up close, his personality is straight up swoon-worthy. He even comes to the rescue when she has an R-rated “Super Book Worm” costume malfunction. But when he mistakenly assumes she’s more into books than pucks, she’s too flustered to correct his mistake. And then comes a big kiss, followed by a teensy-tiny problem. Jed’s dating policy is simple: Never date a fan.
So what’s a fangirl going to have to do to convince her ultimate crush that he’s become less of a perfect fantasy, and more like the perfect man. . .for her?
No excerpt available.
