This TV show took the world by storm. Anyone and everyone was talking about it and frankly still are. Not only to escape the major FOMO, but to also appease my bestie Syd, I finally got around to reading this book.
I did watch the Show first (Against my will, kinda), mostly because my husband couldn’t wait for my books to arrive so I could read the first and second books in this series, which honestly was for the best because I am just now getting finished with my end of that bargain, sooner than I expected of myself so there’s that.
I am very excited to share this review with you all. I just hope I can put my thoughts into a cohesive review for you cause currently all I can think is “OHHHH That was cute!” and “Damn!”, Not much to those thoughts if you ask me. So here we go!
“He wanted to tell Shane that the closest he felt to home was when he was with him.”
Rachel Reid, Heated Rivalry
About The Book
Author: Rachel Reid
Publisher: Carina Press
Published Date: April 18th, 2023
Page Count: 372 Pages
Main Genre: Sports Romance
GoodReads Rating: 4.28
Format: Physical Book
Synopsis
Pro hockey star Shane Hollander isn’t just crazy talented, he’s got a spotless reputation. Hockey is his life. Now that he’s captain of the Montreal Voyageurs, he won’t let anything jeopardize that, especially the sexy Russian whose hard body keeps him awake at night.
Boston Bears captain Ilya Rozanov is everything Shane’s not. The self-proclaimed king of the ice, he’s as cocky as he is talented. No one can beat him—except Shane. They’ve made a career on their legendary rivalry, but when the skates come off, the heat between them is undeniable. When Ilya realizes he wants more than a few secret hookups, he knows he must walk away. The risk is too great.
As their attraction intensifies, they struggle to keep their relationship out of the public eye. If the truth comes out, it could ruin them both. But when their need for each other rivals their ambition on the ice, secrecy is no longer an option.
Synopsis from GoodReads
“Fuck you and your loon!” Ilya said. “Stupid Canadian wolf bird.”
Rachel Reid, Heated Rivalry
Rating
Review
I feel like giving this book a 4 star rating is a bit controversial. Most everyone who I have talked to about this book gave it a raving 5 stars. Maybe I would have as well if I hadn’t watched the TV Series first.
The TV Series in my opinion was a near perfect adaptation of the book which is rare to find. But the actors is what really made it perfect in my eyes. They really made this story come to life. And because I felt like it was a near perfect adaptation, while I was reading the book I just found myself wishing I was watching it instead of reading it.
The other thing going against this book for me is that I have just not been in a romance mood lately. I found myself skimming the spicy scenes more often than not so that I could get to the dialogue. This feels like a bookish Sin so I apologize for my behavior, but it just felt like their was a spicy scene every few pages and I was struggling to want to pick this book up at times because of it so skimming felt like a pretty good option to me. I probably read this at the wrong time for me to truly appreciate the book but I really did enjoy the dialogue and growth that these characters had outside of the spicy scenes.
Anytime Ilya spoke I was enraptured! Whenever her opened his mouth you didn’t know if you were going to get some kind of witty come back, a surprisingly sweet compliment or a shockingly deep revelation. He is for sure my favorite character in this series this far so getting to read his book felt like getting to know him on a personal level. I really adored how Ilya professed his sincerest thoughts in Russian to Shane so he could get those feelings out in the open without the risk of rejection or judgement. Ilya just has the purest soul and I am so glad that his character came into my life.
As for Shane’s character, I enjoyed how he seemed so opposite of Ilya. He is more soft spoken and cautious. Having this character dynamic at first was a bit jarring to me but it ultimately grew on me as the characters developed.
I may not have been drawn to Shane’s character as much as Ilya’s but I wouldn’t have wished for anyone else to be in his place. These two make an unlikely pair which made this story that much more enjoyable.
Ultimately I fell in love with them as a couple and I can’t wait to see where their story goes.
“Does it…does it feel like agony for you too?’
Rachel Reid, Heated Rivalry
Ilya started to nod, then stopped. He shook his head slowly instead.
‘Not anymore.”
QOTD: If you are a hockey fan, who is your favorite team?
World of Bai 