Body Check: Un romance picante de hockey MM (Chicago Storm (Una serie de romance de hockey MM) nº 1)

Chicago Storm #1

by Piper Cross, Sofía María Torres (Translator)

Chicago Storm captain Luca Moretti may be the NHL’s golden boy, but off the ice, he’s living a lie.

Disciplined, stoic, and fiercely private, he's spent sixteen years building a fortress around his life to protect his legacy and his father’s approval. He has one rule. Never let the world see who he really is. The last thing he expects is for his carefully constructed defenses to be shattered by a rookie with a sunny smile and zero filter.

Rookie winger Theo Callahan lives his life out loud.

He’s everything Luca isn't—bold, open, and dangerously charming. He knows he should be intimidated by his grumpy captain, but he can’t stop looking for the man beneath the armor. He hasn't forgotten the electricity that sparked between them in the locker room, and the forbidden chemistry simmering during early-morning practices is becoming impossible to ignore.

Theo is more than happy to show Luca what life looks like without the mask.

Between stolen touches in equipment rooms and quiet moments away from the cameras, Luca is feeling a freedom he hasn’t experienced in a long time. But maintaining his perfect image has taken its toll on his soul, and a future with Theo may mean burning down the very legacy he spent a lifetime building.

Genres: M M Romance, Hockey, Sports, Sports Romance, LGBT, Contemporary, Romance

169 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 14, 2026

Reviews

[Brenyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

AI slop. Don’t even bother.

[Susi June · Rating 1 out of 5]

Edit: Didn't realize I gave 2 stars. I'm 99% sure it's ai so yeah, 1 star.

I don't even know where to start.
On the first few pages I had hope, it seemed like a great light hearted romance, it took a turn pretty quickly though.
I had so many issues with this book.

So many contradictions.

The writing was not great. The sentences were short, which made it quick to read but it was so repetitive and weird.

Sometimes it felt like both povs got written by different people, that didn't talk to each other.

It was very shallow.

There really wasn't any relationship or longing, there was some tension and then they were together 3 weeks off page.

We just don't see their relationship because it was just some angsty book about a captain that "can't" come out, even though everyone is very queer positive. The reason why is revealed way later and it's okay, what ever, I get it.

It didn't feel emotional to me. It just annoyed me.

Theo was a sweetheart that didn't deserve how Luca treated him.

The timing doesn't add up at all! The hockey season was like 3 months and off season 2 months? That's not how a year works.

Maybe I'm wrong but the injuries didn't seem researched at all. I don't think you can play hockey again in week after getting a concussion. And a separated shoulder doesn't seem like something that can heal in 6 weeks. But then he played games after a while and THEN it was mentioned months later that he is now cleared for contact again? What?

His coming out, puh-lease.
'I smiled back. On the ice. In front of eighteen thousand people and a dozen cameras. I don't care anymore.'
I smiled back? Congratulations on your courage? Didn't know it's gay when two men smile at each other.

His captains speech.
'"This championship doesn't belong to me," I continued. "It belongs to all of us"'
Uhm duh. Yes my dude, it's a teamsport. There is no I in team.

I guess it's a debut novel. Sometimes they feel like babies, like the author wrote them for a long time, till they finally got released. This one does not. It feels rushed and could definitely used an editor. I read a few reviews saying it feels like AI and I agree. Or I guess I agree, never read ai and don't want to but this book feels weird. It could have been a good book, it just needed more depths.

[Paige · Rating 1 out of 5]

Basic errors that even the most cursory of edits should have caught, the most egregious being that they play the conference semifinals, then the finals, then the semifinals again. Plus things like the hockey season only being a couple months long (if I counted the weeks right), flip flopping between Luca being closeted for 10 and 16 years, Theo being out for a minimum of six weeks with an injury then playing one handed maybe two weeks later, etc.

Strongly suspect AI was used.

[Axalia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Théo (22) et Luca (30) avec un Culomètre à 👨‍❤️‍💋‍👨🍆

- Une bonne surprise. J'avais peur que ce soit une daube, mais à part quelques problèmes de traduction entre le vous/tu, cela reste une romance assez basique dans le monde du hockey.
- On a tous les codes d'un homme gay et sportif dans le placard, qui va devoir faire un choix quand la nouvelle recrue arrive et chamboule tout ce qu'il a construit durant des années.
- Il a des mots assez durs avec le jeune homme, ça m'a fait beaucoup de peine de le voir choisir la raison et de se renfermer dans la peur.
- Par contre, c'est fou comme Théo se blesse hyper souvent dans le récit, le pauvre homme !
- Si vous aimez ce genre de romance sportive, ce premier tome sera fait pour vous !

[Toni · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick Read

Kindle EBook Read
151 Pages
MM Hockey Romance
Grumpy Sunshine
Forbidden
Age Gap (8 Years)
Forced Proximity
Teammates (Captain x Rookie)
Closeted MMC
Hurt/Comfort
Low Spice (Fade to black mostly)

This read more like a novella but was still short and fun. It addressed a lot of the same issues present today and represented in similar Hockey books. It was clearly written and the characters were likable but the book wasn't that deep that i was emotionally invested. Not a bad read.

[Majo · Rating 3 out of 5]

No fue lo que me esperaba, la verdad. Pensé que sería un libro de romance corto y ligero, para pasar el rato... Pero no. Se centra más en el drama de la pareja protagonista y en el temor de uno de ellos de salir del closet. Si bien el tema es tratado con seriedad, si me pareció que fue todo muy apresurado. Si el libro fuera más largo, creo que la autora podría haber profundizado más en la psique de Luca y su relación con The. Porque se nota que entiende bien a los personajes y su dinámica, pero se quedo corta con la cantidad de páginas y tuvo apresurar el clímax y la resolución de la historia.
Buen libro a pesar de todo.

[Monzerrad · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a solid hockey romance with a strong emotional core, but some elements held it back from being a higher rating for me.

Luca’s internal struggle is clearly the heart of the story, and while I appreciated the depth of his conflict, there was quite a bit of repetition surrounding what he can’t and won’t do. At times, it felt like his actions were constantly circling the same fears, which slowed the pacing and made certain moments feel drawn out.

Theo is such a lovable character—his sunshine energy and genuine care for Luca really shine—but I didn’t feel like he was as fully developed as he could’ve been. I found myself wishing we had more of his point of view to better understand his motivations and inner world beyond how he shows up for Luca.

That said, I genuinely enjoyed Luca and Theo together. Their chemistry is undeniable, and the quiet, stolen moments between them were some of my favorite parts of the book. The themes of identity, legacy, and choosing happiness over expectation are meaningful and thoughtfully explored.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read with characters I cared about, even if it didn’t completely hit the emotional depth I was hoping for. Fans of hockey romance and grumpy/sunshine dynamics will still find plenty to like here.

[Catherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Other reviewers have commented that this novella is AI slop. I don't have any definitive proof of that, but the number of inconsistencies, hockey errors that any fan (or author with research skills) would know, and repeated phrases/details - even sometimes just a page or two apart - DO lend some credence to the accusation.

But I'm also irritated about the creator using a "Spicy Gumpy Sunshine" subtitle on the story to maximize SEO when not a single romance reader I know would ever consider vague descriptions and fade-to-black as "spicy." And sex at centre ice? Puh-lease.

[Avid Reader123 · Rating 3 out of 5]

dual pov angsty romance

This is a different book than what I had anticipated. A lot repetition on “cants” and “wonts” behind Luca’s actions. Doesn’t seem to jive with the immediate inclusivity of the entire team, team organization, NHL, etc. at the end of the story. While Theo is one of the main characters, he most definitely less developed of the two. Mainly closed door romance.

[Hannah May · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5

I started this book because I was absolutely obsessed with the second book. This book was so much fun. It was good seeing how their relationship happened. I love how supportive the team is no matter what. I didn’t know what to expect going into this book as I didn’t read the blurb and was just going off what happened in book 2. I can say that if more books come out in this series, I will be continue as I love this team

[*_Valerio_* · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5
It was what I expected, your average gay romance and I have nothing to complain about, up with the gays and heated rivalry I guess.

[Mireya · Rating 2 out of 5]

2'5

Cumple su principal función de entretener, pero la cantidad de errores que tiene como si nadie hubiera revisado nada es increíble 😭

[Remi Perez · Rating 1 out of 5]

Worst book ive ever read but it was free and needed a book to read at the gym. Lowkey 0 stars if thats possible.

[Ramona Vestida De Seda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Una historia bonita pero es IA...

[Stephen Victor · Rating 1 out of 5]

AI slop. The cover even shows the signs. Avoid

[Lily · Rating 1 out of 5]

Okay, I usually try really hard to not be disrespectful to the author, and I also read a few other reviews saying this was on the author's first books, so I will give them a little grace. However, a few reviews mentioned this book could've been written with AI, and I need to investigate that a little more, but as Hudson Williams once said "f*ck AI. F*ck it to death" and to that we say amen.

I just...for so much of the plot was stuck wondering HOW. How in the world did these two teammates kiss and now they're in love? And declaring their love and boyfriend status (of which they had never even talked about together prior to that) to their whole team right before a huge game. Like, I beg your pardon??? THAT was the time you picked to tell them??? And the whole 'ive been lying to you for 10 years' is as Trixie Mattel would say is 'tired' because mans didn't lie specifically, everyone of the team just thought he was straight by default and he never corrected them 🤷‍♀️ He also didn't feel comfortable doing so prior to that moment so, again, it wasn't 'lying'. Not to be too vulgar, but that s*x did not seem like anything life changing enough to have you be doing all that a few days after. It was giving very middle school/ high school crush, like your first crush and how you're so infatuated with them so quickly, that kind of thing, not a romance between two grown adult.

I very much struggled to finish this book, and while I certainly would not have finished it if it were longer, I just needed the book to feel less rushed. So much happens off page and I really did not get to feel that tension between them or any chemistry. Literally none.

Update: upon further inspection, I checked out the publishing house used by this author and there's only like 4 authors listed that they are the publisher for? That seems very small to me, and there's no AI statement on their website like how other publishers have. This author also has no social media and the only people I was able to find on social media promoting this book were individual personal accounts. Promoting a book is HUGE and for an author to not have a social media presence, especially as a romance author, is VERY weird and unusual. Like not being able to contact this author except through their publishing house (in the little 'contact the author' section) is odd. You would think, especially as a new author, that they would want to post online and be able to interact with readers and fans. And something pointed out on Reddit was that there was only like 3 months between the publishing of this book and the second book. ONLY THREE MONTHS? Even like 6 months would be pushing it, but with everything I'm like 99% convinced this is AI.

[Bookaholic Lu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Body Check mi ha fatto arrabbiare. È uno di quei libri che ti mandano fuori di testa perché da una parte hai scene emotivamente altissime, dall’altra refusi, errori e dettagli che non tornano e ti buttano fuori dalla storia proprio quando dovrebbe tenerti stretta. E la cosa peggiore è che non si compensano: più il libro riesce a colpirti, più diventa impossibile ignorare tutto il resto, perché è evidente che sarebbe bastato davvero poco, uno sguardo in più, un editing più attento, anche solo un beta reader, per trasformarlo in qualcosa di memorabile.
Luca Moretti è il capitano degli Chicago Storm, chiuso dentro una versione di sé costruita mattone su mattone nel corso di sedici anni: controllato, intoccabile, convinto che la vulnerabilità sia una debolezza che non può permettersi. Theo Callahan è il suo opposto in tutto… rookie, apertamente bisex, solare, capace di leggere Luca come fosse un libro scritto solo per lui, senza che Luca possa fare nulla per impedirlo. Ed è proprio questo riconoscimento silenzioso il cuore della storia: essere visti da qualcuno quando hai fatto di tutto per renderti invisibile è la cosa più terrificante e liberatoria che possa capitare.
Piper Cross costruisce l'arco emotivo di Luca con una mano sorprendentemente sicura. La sua paura non viene semplificata né giustificata, ma mostrata in tutta la sua complessità, con radici precise che affondano nell'adolescenza e nel peso di un padre che gli ha insegnato che nascondersi era l'unico modo per sopravvivere. E Theo paga il prezzo di quella paura in modo credibile e doloroso… ci sono momenti in cui lo senti vacillare, avvicinarsi pericolosamente all'idea di adottare la stessa bugia come strategia di sopravvivenza, e quei momenti fanno malissimo.
Il coming out nello spogliatoio, la conferenza stampa, il messaggio al padre bloccato subito dopo, la proposta sul ghiaccio dove è iniziato tutto… quando questo libro colpisce, colpisce davvero. ✨ Ed è proprio per questo che il resto fa così male.
Il tabellone dei playoff è un mistero quantistico: partite che esistono e non esistono, serie che non avanzano, gare che si moltiplicano… una stagione intera brucia in poche settimane, una scena cruciale appare duplicata come se due bozze fossero finite in stampa insieme, i tempi narrativi si riavvolgono senza preavviso e una spalla lussata con rischio chirurgico guarisce in tempo per la Stanley Cup. Piper Cross scrive con il cuore e con un orologio rotto. 😄
Il materiale emotivo era lì, solido e vero, e meritava una cura che non ha ricevuto. È la frustrazione di chi ha visto qualcosa di bellissimo trattato con troppa leggerezza.
Voto: 3,5 stelle. Più di una lettura semplicemente piacevole, ma con troppi inciampi per arrivare dove avrebbe meritato. 💞

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing!

God!! This book! I laughed. I cried. I laughed some more. And I smiled my arse off at the end. Piper Cross is wonderful at telling this genre of story. I am definitely adding Piper to my search settings.
Theo and Luca are so beautiful together. They were meant to be with each other. “The fates” caused Theo to, literally, run into Luca. The part about being scared to death over people finding out is written so honestly that my heart clenched every time Luca let his fears win. It’s real and scary as feck. You wonder if anyone will still be there when all is said and done. My father is exactly the same as Luca’s. Poor guy. 🫤
I hope that Luca & Theo appear in book number two as supporting characters. Maybe one of the team gets up to something at their wedding and that’s where the story for book two gets started. 🤞
I enjoyed this so much that I sincerely hope that this becomes a 3 or 4! (or more!!) book series about The Chicago Storm.

[Pixie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story follows a hockey captain, Luca, and a rookie, Theo, he's assigned to mentor. Theo is a bundle of sunshine who refuses to hide who he is from anyone, whereas Luca is his polar opposite. Closed off, single minded, and so deep in the closet one might wonder if he even knows who he is anymore. Luca feels an intense draw to the rookie, but fights it tooth and nail, until he finally snaps and gives into the temptation. There was a lot of drama and intensity in this book. Piper Cross does a good job of showing how much hiding can impact someone. Living authentically can be so hard, especially if your authentic self could jeopardize a career that you worked so hard to achieve. I was heartbroken for these two men. Luca had a growth arc to be proud of, and Theo showed what it really meant to forgive.

[ANGEL ALBERTO · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tal vez 2.5⭐

Me entretuvo, y está bien para pasar el rato, aunque realmente faltó desarrollo en trama y personajes. En momentos, no creía la historia ni el "amor" que se profesaban los personajes. Todo sucedió muy rápido.

Otro punto es que a mí en lo personal no me gusta el insta love, y eso fue lo que sucedió aquí. Aún así, el libro es atrapante y se leé en una sentada. Una de los cosas buenas que podría resaltar; logra reflejar bien el miedo que muchas personas de la comunidad sentimos al "salir del closet" , también las dudas y ese constante pensar al "que dirán"

Es un libro para pasar el rato, con todo y sus fallos en la traducción. Me atrapó y se me hizo interesante, pero hasta ahí.

Por cierto, una escena más picante no hubiese estado mal JSJSJSJ

PD: hay partes que parecen hechas por IA

[Jenny Matthews · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cute idea but rushed

So the premise was good but the execution wasn't. Calling it a spicy romance is a bit of a stretch, 1 mid spicy scene, the rest were more closed door scenes.
There was A LOT of repetitive conversations and internal dialog. At first I thought when jumping POV we were also going back and revisiting the prior scene in the new POV the way the dialog repeated but then events were different.
The idea had a lot of potential but it was rushed, not just the relationship itself but the whole timeline. Hockey has one of the longest seasons, especially if make it to playoffs but they went from a month or 2 into the season, a breakup, then all of a sudden it was playoffs. Made it seem like playoffs happened like a week after the breakup scene but in real life there would have been many weeks till playoffs.

[Kara McCall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Delightful Read

The story of this book is beautiful. It shows the struggle of how society puts pressure on people who are different and the strength it takes to overcome fear. I did feel the timeline was off,. As a hockey fan, the amount of time from the start of training camp to the championship game for the cup, was too short. There were some inconsistencies with how events occurred and I felt lost and confused as a result. I feel the author writes beautifully and can keep the reader entertained. If you are looking for a quick read, I recommend this standalone.

[Yesi Ovando · Rating 1 out of 5]

No puedo con esta historia. El tipo es un cobarde que se contradice toooodo el tiempo, en una línea dice si y a la siguiente está tomando la decisión contraria. Y Theo es un tonto migajero que no se tiene ningún respeto por sí mismo.

El romance surgió de la nada, puedo entender que es una historia corta PERO la autora pasa de contarnos la historia de estos dos… solo lo menciona 🤦🏻‍♀️ y luego nos pasamos el resto del libro leyendo como se extrañan, lo conectados q estaban y yo estaba todo el rato 🤔 pensando que quizás me había saltado algunas páginas.


En fin que no puedo con estos dos…

[Carrie · Rating 1 out of 5]

There’s a lot to unpack with this series. The characters and the plots are great but they need more depth. The writing of the books actually gets better as the series goes on but the writing is confusing at times and repetitive. It’s hard to work out who’s actually talking. These characters deserved better. so much happens off page that the reader really needs to read and I don’t read for spice but these books are far from the spicy they claim to be. Im glad i read the next two books in the series because the characters and the story are worth it but the books really do need an editor and more substance to them. so much happens off page they go from barely tolerating each other to being in love in the turn of the page.

[indibookdumps · Rating 2 out of 5]

this book just felt rushed tbh (it was only 150pages) but like it was just too rushed and felt everything happened to quickly. like it would of been way better longer and actually building up that connection and relationship.

it was annoying how theo kept bringing up how he was just a secret hookup all the time (after there problems were worked out) and luca would say sorry then theo would be like noo it's fine... well maybe stop bringing it up then??

[Philip · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hi everyone. I'm from Australia, and - 1. we don't have ice hockey, and 2. we don't have ice (like at all), and 3. I think we would outlaw the game anyway.

So I read this love story without the "ice hockey technicalities" and - instead, concentrated on the characters, which I thought well-developed, and realistic IMHO. Love works in strange ways, and this story did resonate with me. Congratulations Piper. Looking for more on Luca and Theo's journey.

[Ammandareadsdark]

Cute Short Story

Even though this books was less than 200 pages it was a fully realized story beautifully written. There were parts that I thought were rushed a little bit that had me wishing it was longer, but for the most part I do not feel like I missed out on anything. This was definitely more of a fade to black story which honestly I didn't mind. Definitely a good quick cute book to read

[Anna Beck · Rating 4 out of 5]

“What you’ve got here, that’s worth living for”-Princess Bride

This book demonstrated fear and fear mongering well. It gave the reader the sense of what some people truly feel about being their authentic selves and what they hide. Luka was a perfectly put together hot mess grump. Theo was a chaotic ray of sunshine. They were well written, emotional characters that you couldn’t help but adore and cheer for.

[Miranda Bickford · Rating 3 out of 5]

Body Check has SUCH good bones for what I believe is Piper’s debut! it’s missing some of the meat of the story like more details on the mmc’s time together and more looks into their lives off the ice and friendships with their teammates. Overall I really enjoyed it and can’t wait to see more from Piper!

[Marie MARIONETTE · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short novel so a bit fast pace but not rushed.
Theo came into Luca’s life and turned it upside down.

The 3rd act breakup hurts (bc Theo is precious and deserves everything) and still gets to you even though it is again a fast pace book.

My favorite moment?
Lucas saying to his teammates « if He will forgive me » & Theo is actually standing behind him answering « He will forgive you ».