Heated Rivalry

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Synopsis

Nothing interferes with Shane Hollander’s game—definitely not the sexy rival he loves to hate.

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 source: The StoryGraph

Review

Genre(s): Contemporary Romance, LBGTQ+
HB&W Rating: 4 stars | 5 flames
View on StoryGraph, Goodreads
Buy on Barnes & Noble, Amazon

This has been on my radar due to its popularity and that it was adapted to the screen, so when I saw the audio was available on Hoopla, I hit that download button to see what the buzz was about. The timing was perfect for it to be my pick for the June prompt for our book challenge, too, so win-win!

I really enjoyed this book. Ilya is definitely kind of a jerk but one of those teddy bear on the inside types. Okay, maybe that’s stretching it a bit but we definitely get to see his gooey center. He plays the bad boy with a heart of gold very well. Shane is boy-next-door sweet, kind, and innocent. I loved their dynamic and the bantering between them. I especially loved how considerate Ilya was of Shane’s inexperience.

There isn’t much plot, and other than a couple of brief encounters with some side characters, the story doesn’t veer from our two MCs much. The majority of the tension is around the gay Russian / gay hockey player taboo and the impossibility of their relationship amidst the huge rivalry the press built around them. But while this was definitely 5 very hot flames and more spice than plot, the tension and angst was palpable. The ending was a little rushed, I felt, but satisfying.

If I had a complaint, it is more about the audiobook narration over the actual story. This narrator’s portrayal of Ilya felt very flat. The accent he affected for him was one dimensional and just repeated the same intonations over and over and over again. I also noticed several instances where it seemed like he got their “voices” mixed up for the lines he was reading. These problems weren’t persistent through the whole book, but frequent enough to grate on me. Still, it didn’t stop my enjoyment of the book overall.

All in all, an enjoyable story. I laughed out loud so much with this one, which is always a big win in my book. Now to see how the adaptation compares!

Until next time,

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