Through the Dark

Westwood Academy #2

by Clara Nielsen

Figure skaters and hockey players shouldn’t mix… especially when the hockey player is my best friend’s triplet brother.

Figure skating is my life. I live and breathe it. So when I found out my all-girl’s school was merging with the boy’s school, I only had one does this mean we have to share the rink with them now?

Not exactly my idea of a good time.

Even if I was prepared to share the rink with the boys, I wasn’t ready to share more—not until I snuck into the rink for a midnight skate and found the hockey goalie Archer Rainn doing the same.

Who would have thought my best friend’s brother suffers from insomnia like me?

The long nights I used to dread become a sanctuary as Archer and I form a secret connection, bound by shared struggles and stolen moments beneath the moonlit rink.

But the closer we grow, the guiltier I feel… because I know my best friend would be horrified to know how I feel about her brother.

Can our hearts skate the thin line between secrecy and love, or will the lies create too big of a chasm between us?

Goalies Don’t Date Ice Princesses is a young adult, best friend's brother romance set at boarding school, where figure skating meets hockey, and hearts collide in unexpected ways. Lace up your skates and pick up this YA sports romance today.

Genres: Romance, Sports, Hockey Romance, Young Adult, Sports Romance, Contemporary, Clean Romance

About the author

Clara Nielsen writes sweet & swoony YA romances set in high school, all about shy girls and the boys who are head-over-heels for them. When she’s not busy writing, you’ll probably find her out on the lake, putting together the perfect playlist, or sipping on a chai latte while daydreaming about her next story.

Reviews

[SnarkyMoggie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this one a really good Young Adult book. I find that they can be very hard to find, but that may be due to having high standards. I don't think that because a book is for teenagers or younger twenties, that it shouldn't have good characters, an interesting plot and wrote well. The later appears to be really difficult to find.

I like how the author was very careful to talk about events and people and their own journeys into finding themselves within what would seem to be a simple story: a girl no longer sure what she wants. Threaded within it is mental health, perceptions of teenagers of themselves and of the people around them, and the scariness of the unknown. This is beautifully done, and I was cheering on everyone, even the ones perceived as not the nicest. While this person isn't exactly more likeable, at least the accusations and points they make felt real. I didn't expect her to do a complete 180 and become best friends with the FMC, or her siblings. She obviously had a path to take and I really hope her story is expanded upon in a further book.

I haven't mentioned much about the love story, and to be honest it's because I feel that it is do believable, so much of a first rush that the FMC doesn't even realise she has until much later on and how good the two are for each other. They each lean.on each other; they both make mistakes but they are honestly so good for each other. I wish I had that maturity and understanding at that age.

I would highly recommend this book. Please read it to remember what it's like to be a teenager again. All the chaos, the pain, the unknowing... How bloody scary it is.

[Izzy · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐

Goalies Don't Date Ice Princesses is such a fun and easy read! This cute and fluffy YA romance is very fast paced and great for when you feel like you need a happy little read!

While I did have a smile on my face throughout most of this book, I really struggled to connect with the characters. I personally felt like they lacked depth. But again, this is just how I felt while reading, so I 100% recommend you to try it for yourself!

Even though I did not understand the characters well, I thought that how they struggled and overcame their problems was very realistic and well written. I did find my self relating to the problems Bri faced within figure skating and found her very brave for how she handled the situation even though I would not do the same.

Also, the romance in this book was full of life and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Archer, the love interest, Bri had such a cute relationship and I truly did love them together. Moreover, I liked how perfect Archer and Bri were on the inside, even though, from an outsiders perspective, they were polar opposites.

So, this being said, when you are in the mood for a cute YA romance, I highly recommend this book!

[L · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 stars

[Eilidh Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Goalies Don't Date Ice Princesses by Clara Neilsen follows Bri who is a figure skater and struggles with Insomnia. When she goes for nightly skates she meets Archer, the goalie on the school hockey team and her best friend's brother. It discusses grief, mental health and what a sport can mean to you in a way that feels light, digestible and doesn't bring the tone of the story down. This is a young adult hockey romance and there is nothing in it that suggests it wasn't written with a teenage audience in mind.

This book is written from Bri's point of view throughout which meant that for the first hundred or so pages I wasn't actually sure of what our main character's name was but I really enjoyed the writing style and being inside Bri's head. It didn't feel like a style I read a lot of so it made a nice change.

Our two lead characters are Bri and Archer but we do spend a decent percentage of the book with other characters as well, the most notable being Bri's best friend and Archer's triplet sister Adelynn (I think that's her name). I really enjoyed the dynamics between our characters and getting to know them all. I haven't read the first book in the series but I would definitely consider doing so after reading this one, even if only to see more of these characters.

I highly enjoyed the romance and how it developed. As this is a shorter book it did feel quite fast but I enjoyed that and the pace made it easy to fly through. Bri and Archer came to mean a lot to each other and I really liked how they gave each other support along with helping them through the tough bits.

This was a fun, enjoyable read that I had a great time with. I would definitely recommend it to YA romance fans, especially those looking for a clean hockey romance. As someone who has wanted to read a hockey romance but been put off by how spicy they apparently are I highly enjoyed this one and would appreciate recs for any like it.

Thank you Clara Neilsen for a free e-arc in exchange for an honest review. Goalies Don’t Date Ice Princesses was published January 12th 2024 and is available now.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute YA romance. Can be read as a stand-alone but I would say read the first book in the series if you can to get more understanding. The book was sweet and touched on the topic of dealing with performance-related stress anxiety and loss of a parent. On the shorter side but I didn’t feel that it cut any corners. This would make a great beach read and has the happy ending.

[Lamu]

does this man talk? i believe that the main characters in the first book saved it cause these 2 are so boring

[gadea · Rating 2 out of 5]

I mean it, GET HER AN EDITOR. The story was good, the writing was good, but this wasn’t exactly a good book. There were quite a few typos, and mistakes (like mentioning a fight before it happened). It could’ve been a seriously good story, but I couldn’t get into it as much as I wanted to because I was constantly finding errors.

Apart from these mistakes that could be easily solved with an editor and a proof reader, I had to force myself to finish the book (if it wasn’t for the reading challenge…) because the last 20% was life lesson after life lesson. Like, I get it. The book has a moral lesson. Fantastic! You don’t have to force it down my throat. Honestly, the whole not wanting to figure skate aspect gave the book a lot more depth, but it didn’t need eight different conversations with eight different people to make her be okay with it.

Also, why were they even dating? They had two conversations. That’s not enough to lay the groundwork for a relationship. They had like a connection because they both skated at night, but they didn’t really build on that. I feel like that part could have been a lot more fleshed out, because as it is it doesn’t seem realistic.

I’m going to read Avianna’s story because I’m curious, and hoping that she has fixed some of these mistakes, and also because my dad hasn’t bought me a book in like a week and this is on kindle unlimited.

[Rachael · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really sweet, quick YA read but please please Ms.Nielsen get an editor and a proof reader.
I lost count of the amount of words missing from sentences, and sometimes they weren't just connecting words, so the whole sentence was just disjointed.
*
*
*miniscule possible spoilers but didn't want to hide full review*
*
*
You could tell particular events had been added in afterwards such as, a fight being mentioned before it ever occurring.
Bri also says that she leaves the room to allow Archer to cry as he would never want her to see that, yet a few chapters previous, Archer had broken down in Bris arms.

There are more but these are the ones that stuck out to me and the missing words grated on me most, surely any ARC readers would have pointed these out too?

I'm going to read Avianna's book when i next need a palate cleanser but i don't much care for her character.

[Caitlinjoyful · Rating 1 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this book.

This book was really easy to read and quite cute and cheesy. The characters had sweet attributes to them.

However, I found that I struggled to enjoy the book for a few reasons.
The characters seemed to lack development and didn't grow much through the book.
Because they didn't have that development I couldn't find anything to grip onto and sympathise with.
The writing style wasn't for me.
There weren't many twists that weren't predictable. And sadly the ending felt a bit rushed.

I was quite sad I didn't enjoy this read as I went into it with high hopes.

[Autumn Pernell · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars. The first half of this book was miserable. Tell me how they were so into each other when they had literally only had like two conversations. 🤦🏾‍♀️

[Valerie Magnus · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Wish I Found this Book Sooner!

Oh my goodness, this book was amazing! I loved Bri and Archer so so much; they were so perfect for each other and so sweet.
But want I really want to talk about is how well this book tackled such an important topic for student athletes: what happens when an athlete realizes they don’t love the sport anymore?

Like Bri, I’ve been playing a sport (tennis) since I was really little, and like Bri I lost my love for the sport when I entered high school. Like Bri, I became so stressed about tennis that I couldn’t eat or sleep, and I went out everyday to practice, hoping it would make me feel better, but it never did. Like Bri, I felt trapped: I didn’t want to disappoint my parents or my coach by quitting, and I thought I couldn’t talk to anyone about how much I hated tennis because then I wouldn’t be able to finish out my senior year on the team.

I really wish I had found this book back in August at the start of my season, because I think it would have helped me so much. Ms Nielsen captures all the emotions of trying to force yourself to be something your not, of all the sacrifice and hiding and denying. This book does an amazing job of illustrating that there’s nothing shameful or wrong in admitting you don’t want to continue with the sport (or anything really) you’ve been doing for years. I have no words for how profound this books message was for me; realizing that I wasn’t alone in my feelings, seeing characters struggle with the exact same feelings I did…

If there is one thing you should take away from the book, it’s this quote: “Nobody who loves you would want you to suffer like this.” No one who loves you want you to be miserable, even if that means giving up something you’ve dedicated so much of your time towards.

When I decided to give up tennis a few months ago, my parents were incredibly supportive, because unlike Bri, I wasn’t at boarding school and they saw how miserable tennis made me. My only criticism with this book is that I wish Bri’s parents would have been as accepting initially as my parents. To anyone who is struggling to keep going on a path they hate, whether it’s a sport or other hobby, just remember that nobody would want you to put that thing over your mental health and happiness; quitting tennis was the best decision that I ever made, although I admit I did stick it out on the tennis team and finish my senior year season.

This book was amazing, with so much depth and such relatable characters. I cannot recommend it enough. Please do yourself a favor and read this book!

(I’m a high school senior using her mom’s account)

[Ayezu Tamarapreye Okoko · Rating 4 out of 5]

BOOK:-GOALIES DON'T DATE ICE PRINCESSES BY CLARA NIELSEN

BOOK REVIEWER -OKOKO AYEZU TAMARAPREYE

A High school poetic prose fiction on the character Bri and her colleagues Irina,Corrie,Blair amongst others.It looks at the lives of these former students of Sinclair Academy and now students in Westwood.Goalies don't date Ice Princesses as Go-lees-dow-t-de-t-Aye-Sea-Pre-In-Cess(with "t" for perfect and "de" for brother in ikwerre language pronounced as "broader " and "Aye" for "Yes" in exclamation or indication by voice vote);Archer the goalie practicing shooting (shoe-t-inn/in) and Bri being said to have shot(CHA-T) Blair (be-lay-air/err with lay for read as saying otherwise would encourage female genital mutilation) a look as they discussed, the duo being students of Westwood (Ware-st-WHO-di) as Goalies don't dare Ice Princesses;Coach Irina announcement of the competition with Bredstone Academy in December (Be -read/re-erred/aired-st-one/on-Aka-dem-me-e-in/inn-di-sea-Air'm/Err'm-ba with ba for "no" in hausa language or "them" in ikwerre language in Nigeria,Di for eat in effik and ibiblio,Aka for hand in Igbo and ikwerre language in Nigeria,St for striker in sports and saint in Christianity) as Goalies don't date Ice Princesses;Archer finding Bri's present at the dorm(door'm for "draw me" in ikwerre language in Nigeria and "my door in a mixture of English and ikwerre as Goalies don't date Ice Princesses;Narrator agreeing to be in company of Avianna(Ah-ve-ah-na with na for "go" in ikwerre language in Nigeria,Ah for open sound or operation earning,Ve for victory in abbreviation); Archer shot of a grateful dumb look as Goalies don't date Ice Princesses;Archer watching(war-sh-in the girls skate practices as Goalies don't date Ice Princesses!Archer Rainn trying to break the ice of silence between himself and narrator as Goalies don't date Ice Princesses; amongst other

[Shayla Riley · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Fear is natural, It means you care. But don’t let it consume you. Use it as fuel, as motivation to push yourself even harder.”

Figure skaters and hockey players shouldn’t mix…

Figure skating is Bri’s life. She has lived and breathed it since she was small. So when she finds out her all-girl’s school is merging with the all-boy’s school, she wonders if they will have to share the rink for practices.

Not exactly Bri’s idea of a good time. Even if she was prepared to share the rink with the boys, Bri isn’t ready to share more—until she sneaks into the rink for a midnight skate and finds the hockey goalie Archer Rainn doing the same.

The long nights Bri used to dread become a sanctuary as Archer and she form a secret connection, bound by shared struggles and stolen moments beneath the moonlit rink.

But the closer they grow, the guiltier Bri feels because she knows her best friend would be horrified to know how Bri feels about her brother…

This is book two in the Westwood Academy Series! It is a YA sweet quick-read romance that can be read as a stand alone but, I would suggest reading book one first to give you more understanding to this sweet series. It is a clean romance that also touches on deeper issues, including the loss of a parent.

@bookish.clarasage has done a good job of portraying the emotions of each character and makes them feel relatable. Their vulnerability and struggles are things we all struggle with at one time or another in real life. The ending is a great Segway to lead tobook three in this series. Thank you for my sweet copy. This is a book worth the read!

“I’ll always believe in you, No matter what challenges lie ahead, we’ll face them together.”

[Moni · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 out of 5 stars

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review. This is book 2 in the Westwood Academy Series and can be read as a standalone. The book's blurb gives you an idea of what to expect, though be aware the story deals with grief. Goalies Don't Date Ice Princesses is told through Bri's pov and is a sweet sports romance.

With the new changes to the school and the pressure of competing, Bri is struggling. Not only is her insomnia bad, but it's becoming difficult for her to remember the joy that skating brought her. When she's not in practice and is skating alone for fun, she's able to get some peace - especially once her and Archer become close. Though he's her best friend's brother, he' always been distant and kept to himself. Spending time together on the ice helps to thaw him and makes it natural for them to become friends.

It took them a while to reach a point where they saw each other as friends so their romance was a slow burn. Though it took some time for them to become friendly, I liked how they were able to feel comfortable with each other and open up about the things they kept from others. They became each other's safe space. Their romance is a clean one consisting of descriptive kisses and no cursing but some choice words for more sensitive readers. Aside from the romance, I liked reading about the concerns they both had and how they dealt with them. I wish we would've gotten Archer's pov but I did like seeing him through Bri's pov. Overall, I enjoyed their story and am looking forward to the next installment in the series.

[Book Nerdy 2020 · Rating 2 out of 5]

GOALIES DON'T DATE ICE PRINCESSES By Clara Nielsen

Figure skating is my life. I live and breathe it. So when I found out my all-girl’s school was merging with the boy’s school, I only had one does this mean we have to share the rink with them now?
Not exactly my idea of a good time.
Even if I was prepared to share the rink with the boys, I wasn’t ready to share more—not until I snuck into the rink for a midnight skate and found the hockey goalie Archer Rainn doing the same.
Who would have thought my best friend’s brother suffers from insomnia like me?
The long nights I used to dread become a sanctuary as Archer and I form a secret connection, bound by shared struggles and stolen moments beneath the moonlit rink.
But the closer we grow, the guiltier I feel… because I know my best friend would be horrified to know how I feel about her brother.
Can our hearts skate the thin line between secrecy and love, or will the lies create too big of a chasm between us?

😊What i liked -

✔ Sports/Best Friends Brother/Young Adult.
✔ The FMC and MMC were both sweet characters.
✔ A few places it did manage to make me smile and sad.
✔It was quite a cheesy read. (if you are into cheesiness)

🤔What could have been better -

✔ I did not see any chemistry between the MC's.
✔ I struggled to finish the book. I kept loosing interest.

📚Who Should read :

Begginers
Romance Lover
Best Friends Brother Romance


📈My Rating : 2/5


Thank you,Clara Nielsen, for a copy.

[C.Y. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was just a sweet book of young love. I love how she interweaves her series together. Sometimes I felt like I was having a déjà vu moment until I realized Bri’s and Asher’s story is taking place at the same time as Adelynn’s and Jasper’s story.

This story takes you on emotional roller coaster. You get almost the behind-the-scenes glimpse at what pressure an athlete might have on his/her life. It’s so easy to look at them and be jealous of their talent, but with that talent can come anxiety and loss of joy for the sport they loved.

It’s been a long time since I’ve been the age of these characters, but as a teacher, I have worked with so many students this age. This makes me want to be the kind of teacher like Mr. Jamison is to his students. He was able to detect when something was wrong with them, and then guide them through it. I don’t think this book was as light as the first one in the series, but it does show that when you have a strong support system sometimes things will work out for you. But no matter what, you should be kind to everybody because you don’t know what they’re going through in their life.

I received an advanced copy of this book for free, and I’m leaving my review voluntarily.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a cute YA sports and best friend’s brother romance. I enjoyed it. The romance was sweet and lovely. The tender care and support was so nice. There was also focus on both main characters needing to figure out the balance between loving their respective sports and it taking over their lives. When Bri’s girls’ boarding school merged with a boys’ boarding school, the figure skaters and hockey players had to share the rink. “It was well known among figure skaters that hockey players didn’t respect our sport.” Bri, a figure skater, and Archer, her best friend’s triplet brother and a hockey goalie, shared a similar habit of sneaking in late night ice time. As they spent more time together, feelings grew. It appears that this story overlaps with the first book in the series and there seems to be significant carryover, however it reads well as a standalone. This story contains elements of the death of a parent, grief, accident, athletic pressure to perform. This is a clean story with no harsh language.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Charmi Zielinski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to Book Sirens for a ARC of this book

I really loved this quick read by Clara Nielsen, a cute YA love story about an ice skater and hockey player falling in love (who doesn’t love this). You got to see the main characters relationship build over time, their trust and love coming together before your eyes. The book did feel really quick, I don’t know if that was the intention but at approx 200 pages the book only took me a few hours to read. There was room for more fleshing out in the story.

I felt like we didn’t really get to know the MMC very well until after she’d fallen for him( since for a lot of it he didn’t speak much) who while you saw them falling for eachother you didn’t get to feel it.

There was one part that confused me while reading, the MMC broke down on a hallway after an altercation. Then a few chapters after the FMC states she hadn’t seen the MMC cry before. I felt a slight confusion when reading the lines thinking I might have misread the first part.

Overall a good YA with some sweet kisses and lots of internal monologue.

[Ali · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book though a sweet ya it does deal with some heavier topics such as death and the pressures of family and school. Book one followed the first triplet Adelynn and this book follows her brother archer and her best friend . In beginning there was some backstory from the first book that I found repetitive and unnecessary. Bri adelynns best friend is a figure skater and her brother is on the hockey team so they both have the love of the ice. Bri has trouble sleeping likes to skate at night and runs into archer one night over time they become close and start dating in secret . They have always had this hidden connection but now they are free to explore it . I love seeing the sweet stages of first love . Bri is there to support archer when tragedy strikes and maybe a new path will be opened for both of them .
Thank you to the author giving me this book in exchange for an honest review

[Najat_ Bookshelf · Rating 3 out of 5]

Arc Review: haven't delved into YA literature in quite some time, but this book was a pleasant surprise! It turned out to be the perfect "in-between" read, you know, when you're not quite sure what to pick up next. The story had just the right balance of lightness and a medium pace, keeping me engaged without overwhelming me. However, I couldn't help but wish for one thing - the inclusion of the Male Main Character's point of view. It would have added an entirely new layer to the story, allowing us to delve deeper into his struggles, particularly in regards to grief, and explore some key scenes from his perspective. Don't get me wrong, the book was still enjoyable, but that extra insight would have been incredible. Overall, it was a good book that kept me entertained and provided the break I needed from my typical reading choices.

[Tanisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book as an eARC from Booksirens and this review is based on my own opinion.

Goalies Don't Date Ice Princesses is the second book in the Westwood Academy series but can be read as a standalone and after reading this I will surely put the first one on my tbr.

When I read the plot before applying for the eARC I got some Icebreaker vibes but I was pleasantly suprised that this book was very different.
As a 27 year old I still enjoy reading YA books and I'm not sure if it was the story itself or the writing style but it felt as if this book was written for a bit younger YA crowd, regardless of that I still liked reading it.

It's a fast paced comfort read, perfect for an afternoon with a blanket and a cup of thea.

I would recommend this book if you're into:
slow burn, secretly dating best friends brother, figure skater/hockey player romance.

[Lesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is book 2 in the Westwood Academy series and having recently read and loved book 1, it was a no-brainer for me to want to read Goalies Don't Date Ice Princesses!

I'd already met Bri and Archer through his sister Adelynn but it was so good to get to know them both apart from there and watch their interactions and their friendship grow. I love how each of them found solace with each other in the quiet times they spent alone at the rink and how supportive they were to each other, even out within the eyes of their peers.

I am a hockey romance girl at heart and while typically my hockey romances are aimed at a more mature audience, this YA hockey romance didn't disappoint! I am looking forward to more in the Westwood Academy series!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Rebecca Love · Rating 4 out of 5]

Goalies don't date ice princesses

3.5 ⭐️

One of my favourite movies when I was younger was go figure, I've loved the figure skating/ ice hockey dynamic ever since.

I think the idea of them skating at night to regain their love for it was really sweet and a great way for them to connect. I just wish we got to see them interact more before talking about falling for each other started. Again, the potential was there, but the page count put constraints on the development.

I really liked the storyline of bri finding her way with the pressure of competing vs. her love of the sport. It was done well and ended as I hoped it would.

I received an advance review copy of this book, and this review represents my honest opinion. Thank you to Clara Nielsen and the publisher for the opportunity to read the book.

[Candace Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

✨ Spoilers ✨

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞/𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫:

Goalies Don't Date Ice Princesses - Clara Neilsen

𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠:

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

𝐌𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬:

- Archer
- Bri

𝐐𝐮𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬:

𝐒𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬:

Bri and Archers school merge into one. After nights of skating together they start to fall but can Bri really date her best friends brother?

𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬:

This was a first time read from this author for me. I did not read the first in this series, but I definitely will go back and pick that one up. This was a sweet and swoon worthy story. The characters had such great growth. The mental health aspect of it was written beautifully. I loved the friendship connections along with the family. The sweet little moments of this book made me melt. The face mask were my favorite. The plot of this story was enjoyable. The story leaves us with Avianna's POV and I'm excited for her story. This story didn't have any spice in it but it made up for it with it's swoon factor.

𝐓𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬:

• Figure skater/Hockey player
• Best friends brother
• Mental health rep
• Swoon worthy moments
• Hea

𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐞:

🌶️/5

[L. M. Ransom · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third book I've read by the author, and wow - this one is definitely my favorite. Everything about it drew me in, from the courage both MCs showed to the sweet, blossoming romance between them.

Bri is an ice skater. Archer is a hockey goalie. And of course, those two sports do not mix. Or do they? Bri and Archer's romance is slow to start, and she is the only one who gets to see the softer side of him. I loved their secret romance, and how gentle he was with her. They were both supportive of one another's goals and helped each other through the tough things they had to deal with, all while growing closer.

One of my favorite scenes is something I won't mention because it could be considered spoiler-ish, but WOW. You go, Archer!!! No one talks to or looks at your girl that way!!

Absolutely loved it.
Was given a review ARC by the author :-)

[Marissa Busk · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always love a sweet YA romance about new love. This book gives all those feels and addresses some deeper issues that teens might face.

Bri is a figure skater at the Westwood Boarding School.
This is the first year that the boarding schools have had coed classes so her team has to share the ice rink with the hockey team.

Bri rooms with her best friend who is a triplet. Her brother Archer is a hockey player at the school.
Bri suffers from insomnia so she sneaks in to the ice rink for night skates. The peace she feels skating by herself without the pressure of being on the team helps her to relax enough to sleep. Now that Westwood is coed she finds she is not the only one that enjoys a night skate. Archer, the hockey team goalie, also enjoys getting out on the ice and skating around without having to worry about being the goalie.

Since Archer's sister is Bri's best friend the two have known each other for years, but were always at different schools and therefore never really talked. As they share the ice rink they get to know each better.
This book addresses grief, stress, and mental health. I felt the author did a good job bringing those aspects into the story and handled them well while also weaving in a love story.

I enjoyed this book! I am going to go back and read the first in the series, Quarterbacks Don't Date Nerdy Girls.
And I'm going to need the Soccer one ASAP!

[kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️ rounded

“I was falling for Archer Rainn.
My best friend’s brother.
I was so incredibly screwed.”

You know I eat that concept up. And I know a lot of us do.

For those of you girlies who are in your athlete romance eras and want another quick read, check out this book!

Despite this being a short book, it was hard for me to get attached to the characters since I knew we wouldn’t be getting to know them as well as other similar novels. If I had an audiobook, I would’ve appreciated it and Archer’s stupidly cringe nicknames more. They seemed really interesting with their personal issues and potential romance.

Thank you, BookSirens, for the ARC!

[Reader-pops (Taylor’s version) · Rating 3 out of 5]

-3 stars ⭐️

I think it was a cute high school closed door romance. Definitely a slow burn. Once I hit the 40 to 50% mark I kept reading to finish. I enjoyed it since it had my favorite tropes, best friend’s and sibling and sports romance. Hockey-figure skater. I did really like the character development of Bri from doing what everyone expects of her to the end of the book.
Favorite quote “ you can’t be your best in every area of your life and that doesn’t mean you give up, but it means you have to choose - what’s important to you. Not to anyone else who’s pulling you every which way, but to you. What makes yourself feel alive and helps you move forward - you fight for that. Even when it feels impossible.”

[Miri]

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Goalies don’t date ice princesses was a cute YA book. While it did have some trigger warnings, I enjoyed the writing and the characters.

Bri and Archer are “enemies”. When the all boys school merges together with the all girls school, the hockey team and figure skating team need to share the rink.

Bri has a hard time sleeping and sneaks into the rink at night where she runs into Archer. I like their banter and how real the characters are made out to be. I read the first book in the series and I would read more if there was a continuation.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a sweet college sports romance that discusses expectations, self-worth and love. Bri has loved figure skating her whole life but after moving schools things just aren’t working the same. Archer feels like the world is on his shoulders when he’s on the ice, making sure he protects the goal for his team and his father’s memory.

Together they begin to enjoy skating again as they enjoy being together but falling in love with your best friends brother is always more complicated than you think. Will the pressures of the outside world push them closer together or pull them further apart?

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.