Playing His Game

by Ashlyn Kane, Morgan James

He’s a scandal. He’s a role model. Together, they’re a headline.

When a candid photo of professional problem Mo - son of the Arizona Canyons' owner - and Adam, the league’s first openly drafted golden gay, hits the internet, it doesn’t spark rumors. It confirms them. According to everyone, they’ve been secretly together for years.

Mo is one scandal away from losing everything, including his family’s support. Captain Adam, Phoenix’s most eligible gay bachelor, has spent his entire career being careful, respectable, unmessy. Publicly denying Mo could have a negative impact on him and his team.

So they make a deal: fake it.

What starts as damage control turns into a full-time performance, public appearances, staged dates, late nights that feel a little too real. The more convincing they are, the safer they’ll be. But the closer they get, the harder it is to tell what’s real and what’s strategy. Because somewhere between the arguments, the chemistry, and the us-against-the-world pressure… they stop pretending. Too bad the rules of the game don’t leave room for catching feelings…

PRAISE FOR ASHLYN KANE AND MORGAN JAMES

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

307 pages, Kindle Edition

Expected publication August 10, 2026

About the author

Ashlyn Kane is a thirtysomething writer, editor, procrastinator, and dog mom. She likes cheese, puns, and hockey.

Reviews

[Kelly Kenyon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers and author for an advanced copy of Playing the Game by Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James.
This was a fun read. It follows MMCs, Moritz “Mo”and Adam. Adam plays for the NHL team that Mo’s parents own. They have butted heads for years. When tabloids mistake them as a couple they fake date to save the reputation of the team.
Mo is absolutely hilarious! I laughed out loud repeatedly. Adam is sweet and level headed. The miscommunications went on for longer than I liked but was happy with the ending.

This book definitely needs some editing. There are multiple errors but especially in the beginning. In the first chapter Mo is 15 years old, which is stated multiple times. He is also called an adult in that same chapter, which he is years away from. The following chapter says “3 years later” and Mo is now 24 years old. The next chapter its mentioned that Adam has played for the NHL for 8 years not 3.
3.75⭐️

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the best hockey romance I've read since the Game Changers series. It combines two of my favorite tropes, enemies to lovers and fake dating, into a super fun, heartfelt hockey romance.

Mo Du Pont and Adam Murphy have spent the last decade disliking each other. Mo is the unapologetically himself son of the team's owners, while Adam is the focused, reserved team captain. When a misunderstood tabloid photo threatens the team's reputation, Mo's publicity-obsessed parents push him and Adam into a fake relationship to avoid bad press.

The tension and yearning were absolutely top tier for me. The deeper Adam and Mo got into their fake relationship, and the more obvious it became that they were genuinely falling in love, the more invested I became. There was a lot of emotional depth in this book. It explored much more than the romance/spice, which isn’t super common in hockey romances (or at least compared to other series I've read). And the spice...the spice! The intimate scenes between Adam and Mo were perfection- equal parts emotional, tender, and hot.

If you enjoy queer hockey romances, this one is an absolute must-read. Thank you to NetGalley, Ashlyn Kane, and Morgan James for the advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

[Kirsten Cunneen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, this book to me was like a 3.5 star read. It took me a couple chapters to really get into the plot & to start falling for the characters, but once I got into it there was no stopping. I am also down for a fake dating turned real feelings kind of girl when it comes to books so this definitely did not disappoint. I really enjoyed Mo as a character and watching his growth throughout the book. He was so funny, blunt, and fully embraced being camp. Adam was reserved, a leader, and was pushing the boundaries with being the first out gay man in the league. I loved watching the two of their worlds collide. I would be remiss if I didn’t talk about how much I loved Jorts & Mads as side characters and how Jorts was really such a great friend to Adam. Sage was great too & I was a big fan of how they constantly called Mo out on his nonsense. Such a good story, so glad I got to read the ARC for this book!!

[Bethany Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you @boldwoodbooks for the digital copy to review! I always love reading books by @ashlynkanebooks and @author.morganjames and this one was no exception.

Adam and Mo were so incredibly easy for me to root for! Between the sassy and bossy Mo and the easy to blush and eager to please Adam, this book was tension filled, steamy, sexy, and so much freaking fun. I spent half of my time laughing and the other half gasping because of how sassy Mo was.

I loved that Mo dived right in to the fake dating scheme and Adam was along for the ride. OBVIOUSLY these two dummies caught feelings and it was the best thing ever. I particularly liked when Mo was protective and loving in a way that only he could be, and how Adam was enamored with him from the start.

Mo’s family was seriously awful and I hated them something fierce. His parents were just horrifically horrible people, and I loved that Adam was there to support him through it. Adam’s family was wonderful and loving and who wouldn’t laugh at Mo’s teasing??

I loved watching them fall in love. And everyone around them rooting for it. From Jorts (best hockey nickname ever??) to Maddison to Picks to the entire hockey fam, it was amazing.

Not only did I laugh and laugh during this book, but I cried. There are some parts toward the end that really hit home and these two *went through it* to be together. The grandest of gestures at the end had me sobbing into my pillow.

I love them I love them I love them and I want to see moreeeee in this universe. Still holding out for Picks and Hallsy to have a love story 👀👀👀

OBSESSED YES PLEASE SO GOOD.

[Demetri Papadimitropoulos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Captain Cardboard Meets a Weapon in Evening Wear
How “Playing His Game” Makes a Hockey Role Model, a Professional Scandal, and One Very Convenient Lie Surprisingly Well Matched
By Demetris Papadimitropoulos | July 29th, 2026

During the first encounter between Mo Du Pont and Adam Murphy, both are already being displayed as evidence of progress. Adam, eighteen and newly selected by the Arizona Canyons, has become the first openly gay player drafted into the league. Mo, fifteen and the son of the team’s owners, has been dressed for the occasion and pinned with a rainbow, as though his parents might accessorize their way into history. Adam speaks with the caution of a young man who senses that every sentence may be entered into evidence. Mo answers like someone looking for the nearest match.

Even then, Mo regards Adam’s decorum as fear with a tasteful tie. Adam sees Mo’s camp aggression, sexual jokes, and theatrical contempt as the tantrums of a rich boy protected from consequence. Years later, when a video catches an intoxicated Mo stumbling into Adam’s arms outside a bar, the internet decides they are either about to fight or have been secretly in love since the draft. The misreading offers Adam an escape from a story about violence and offers Mo an escape from one more parental reckoning. Romance is the more useful scandal.

Mo’s parents, Orson and Claire Du Pont, summon them to a crisis meeting. They care less about what happened than about which version will travel best. A public altercation would suggest disorder inside the franchise. A relationship between their son and the team’s newly appointed captain might confirm the owners’ reputation for polished tolerance. Before anyone settles on a story, Mo blurts out that he and Adam are dating. Adam ratifies the lie. The lie is new. The performance is not.

Everything that follows belongs recognizably to fake-dating sports romance: strategic outings, soft launches, staged affection, a team fundraiser, a hostile family dinner, a Christmas visit, sex classified as practical, feelings classified as impossible. But the dates are more enjoyable than planned. A photograph provokes jealousy no publicist ordered. Touches rehearsed for cameras become easier without them. Online spectators excavate old images and read years of antagonism as repressed desire, a fandom performing unpaid narrative maintenance. The cover story then requires another appearance, another photograph, another weekend in which pretending begins to resemble preference.

The Adam reporters, executives, teammates, and young fans are permitted to see is considerate, controlled, responsible, and so accustomed to scrutiny that he keeps himself under surveillance even when alone. His teammates can drink too much, leave with strangers, brawl, or say something foolish and remain individuals. One lapse from Adam may become a test case for whether gay men belong in professional hockey. He has turned harmlessness into a profession. Captaincy suits him. He already spends his life anticipating collisions and quietly moving other bodies out of their path.

Rather than revealing that restraint as camouflage for a hidden libertine, Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James give Adam a harder problem: he is genuinely decent. He notices when a rookie needs an exit, when a woman outside a bar may need a cab, when a drunk man should not be left alone. He seldom makes anyone absorb his anger or accommodate his discomfort. Around Mo, though, his replies become quicker. He admits appetite. He occasionally permits himself to be the difficult person in the room.

In Mo, the novel chooses a protagonist too wealthy, abrasive, and complicit in his own disasters for easy victimhood. He is beautiful, politically outspoken, sexually assured, mechanically gifted, too often drunk, and regularly exhausting. His wit comes barbed and feathered, a weapon in evening wear. Years of parental management have taught him to provoke before he can be corrected and reject before he can be abandoned. Yet every drunken scene and gratuitous insult becomes usable ammunition for Orson and Claire. His rebellion frustrates their preferred image of him while helping them insist that he is incapable of directing his own life.

Privilege surrounds Mo in tangible form: the house, allowance, valuable cars, business degree, expected trust fund. None of those protections is imaginary. Neither is the revocation clause. Orson and Claire can withdraw money, housing, and inheritance whenever he ceases to reflect well on them, making dependence look like indulgence and obedience like gratitude. When they finally disown him, he still has assets, contacts, education, and a marketable skill. His fall is softened. The leash remains a leash even when it is made of very expensive leather.

Adam sees the money and calls it freedom. Mo sees Adam’s approval and calls it safety. Then Adam enters Mo’s garage. It is not a rich boy’s showroom but the only place where Mo’s value appears in finished work: a repaired brake line, a restored engine, a car made safer than he found it. Nothing there depends upon family prestige, and nothing needs a press release. Mo, meanwhile, begins noticing the effort behind Adam’s composure – the drink declined, the stranger refused, the sharp answer swallowed before anyone can call it threatening.

Prose carries the contrast into the alternating viewpoints. Mo’s close-third sections move in bursts of camp exaggeration, profanity, sexual innuendo, defensive mockery, and hurt flashing briefly through. He converts humiliation into theater before anyone else can locate the stage. Adam’s narration is steadier, cautious and self-revising, with a dry humor that seems faintly surprised to find itself present. Mo’s sentences lunge; Adam’s manage.

At the sentence level, however, Kane and James rarely leave an emotion alone after dramatizing it. A gesture lands, a line of dialogue exposes the wound, and the interior narration arrives to file the explanatory paperwork. Motives are often interpreted before a silence can become ambiguous. Many romance readers will welcome that clarity, but the strongest scenes do not need a chaperone. The book sometimes behaves like Adam at a team outing, hovering nearby in case meaning trips on the pavement.

Dialogue needs less supervision. Mo’s taunts allow him to stare directly at Adam while pretending not to care; Adam’s increasingly capable replies prove that “Captain Cardboard” is less blank than advertised. Their insults are a deniable way to keep looking. In bed they become more direct. They discuss consent, privacy, and physical preference with a frankness they cannot yet bring to love. Adam can offer pleasure without pretending it is purely selfless. Mo can relinquish control without expecting ridicule.

Inside Adam’s family home in New Brunswick, Mo begins wanting more than Adam. He wants repeated holidays, a bedroom he may return to, relatives who tease him because they expect him to remain in the room. He arrives braced for scrutiny and receives food, a guest bed, practical consideration, and the untidy traffic of people who assume affection will survive irritation. Then comes the discovery that unsettles him most: the Murphys do not merely love one another. They like one another. The distinction is almost comic in its obviousness and devastating in its implications.

Mo’s return to hockey is quieter but just as important. The sport has become inseparable in his mind from parental ambition, homophobia, his usefulness to the family brand, and the future he failed to inhabit. On a frozen pond, there are no contracts, owners, scouts, or duties to stand for progress. It becomes a game again. He skates. He competes. He enjoys himself. For a few hours, Adam’s world gives him back a version of his past that does not feel confiscated.

It is also what makes him flee. After tender sex, Adam begins imagining later Christmases; Mo announces that they should break up. He can now measure what losing Adam’s family would cost. The fear follows naturally from everything the novel has shown us. The timing follows romance convention more obediently. By then these men have discussed consent, privacy, sex, family, and mutual dislike with considerable competence. Love alone defeats their vocabulary. It arrives with the punctuality of a scheduled complication.

The final movement accelerates hard. Adam’s play deteriorates and a concussion leaves him dependent; Mo becomes his unlikely caretaker. The Du Ponts’ sale and expansion scheme comes into view, Mo is disinherited, and both men begin rebuilding before the story passes through reconciliation, playoff disappointment, relocation, therapy, and a prospective puppy. The concussion and family severance deserve more time than the crowded sequence permits. Recovery begins almost before the damage has finished arriving.

Reading aloud to Adam, cooking for him, monitoring his symptoms, Mo has no way to make devotion look accidental. Sex, spectacle, jokes, and an audience have all been removed. Adam, who has built a life around anticipating everyone else’s needs, must accept a glass of water, a meal, a chapter read aloud. He cannot earn the help before receiving it.

Orson and Claire are persuasive mechanisms of leverage but thinner as parents. Their allowance, house, trust, and authority over Adam’s team make conditional love material. Their marketing of queer progress is easy to recognize. Their cruelty is also so dependable that Mo’s separation confirms what the reader has long known. A trace of tenderness, or even a convincing account of how they mistake possession for care, might have made his loyalty harder to dismiss and his departure more painful.

Plainly considered, Adam’s employment creates a problem the romance never quite absorbs. He captains a team owned by his supposed boyfriend’s parents. They direct the publicity, profit from the relationship’s wholesome glow, and use that glow while arranging their next franchise. The novel mentions league oversight, then lets the problem shrink into a matter for Audrey’s tablet. Could Adam meaningfully refuse his employers’ preferred story? What does consent look like when the people benefiting from an intimate fiction also control a player’s workplace? The book opens that door, glances through it, and returns to the couple.

One man falling, another catching him: the viral clip contains almost nothing, and the internet supplies the romance. The Du Ponts try to manage that interpretation and instead create the dates, touches, photographs, and shared time that make it true. This is crisis communications as romantic sorcery: issue the statement, schedule the appearances, repeat the message, and eventually the principals begin kissing without supervision. The conceit is comic, but its workings are exact. A story released for strategic reasons does not always remain obedient to its managers.

Underneath the hockey, money, scandal, and sexual chemistry, “Playing His Game” concerns the difficulty of recognizing love when support has always arrived with conditions. Mo does not mainly fear that Adam will never love him. He fears Adam will love him for a while, discover the cost, and withdraw. Adam fears that admitting need will turn the league’s reliable pioneer into one more problem requiring management. What they reach is less reassuring than a promise and more useful: someone who is free to leave may stay.

Like “Boyfriend Material” by Alexis Hall, “Playing His Game” pairs public mess with apparent respectability and uses a false romance to expose genuine needs. Like “Stars in Your Eyes” by Kacen Callender, it understands how queer men can be marketed as complementary types before being allowed the inconvenience of personhood. Kane and James prefer a warmer world of teammates, holiday kitchens, explicit pleasure, and reliable return. They leave the rink’s dimensions intact; their work is to make its familiar plays expose these particular men. More often than not, they do.

On its own terms, “Playing His Game” earns 78/100, corresponding to 3/5 stars. Its chemistry, character logic, and best scenes place it near the top of that range. Explanatory prose, flattened parents, a congested final movement, and an ownership conflict left mostly at the boards keep it there.

Still, the novel’s most convincing declaration of love does not arrive in a public kiss, a press statement, or an arena full of cameras. After the Du Ponts withdraw Mo’s house, allowance, and promised future, Sage’s family arrives with a truck. They have come to carry boxes. At the draft, a rainbow pin allowed Mo’s parents to display support without sacrificing anything. The truck costs time, effort, fuel, and a free afternoon. It has almost no glamour. That is why it matters. Care, “Playing His Game” finally understands, is not the image of someone catching you. It is who remains afterward to help you move.

[Shelley · Rating 3 out of 5]

ARC received from NetGalley and Boldwood Books in exchange for honest review.

⚡BLURB⚡
He’s a scandal. He’s a role model. Together, they’re a headline.
When a candid photo of professional problem Mo - son of the Arizona Canyons' owner - and Adam, the league’s first openly drafted golden gay, hits the internet, it doesn’t spark rumors. It confirms them. According to everyone, they’ve been secretly together for years.
Mo is one scandal away from losing everything, including his family’s support. Captain Adam, Phoenix’s most eligible gay bachelor, has spent his entire career being careful, respectable, unmessy. Publicly denying Mo could have a negative impact on him and his team.
So they make a deal: fake it.
What starts as damage control turns into a full-time performance, public appearances, staged dates, late nights that feel a little too real. The more convincing they are, the safer they’ll be. But the closer they get, the harder it is to tell what’s real and what’s strategy. Because somewhere between the arguments, the chemistry, and the us-against-the-world pressure… they stop pretending. Too bad the rules of the game don’t leave room for catching feelings…

⚡REVIEW⚡
I loved the blurb of this book, and thought I'd really enjoy it. Fake dating, banter, opposites attract, hockey romance - all tropes I love. And while this was an enjoyable read, I didn't love it as much as I'd hoped. If I had to point a finger at why, I think it would be the character of Mo. I just didn't click with him, didn't find him as likeable as I would have hoped. It wasn't until the final chapters that I started to find him redeemable. And it was such a shame, as Adam was an incredible character, nuanced and thoughtful, tuned in to Mo's personality and his needs at all times.

Adam is very much the straight-laced, sensible one of the two. As the league's first out and proud gay man, he is under a lot of pressure to get things right. The owners of his team have a gay son, Mo (Moritz), and for no clear reason there has been a tension between them for years. Mo is an absolute problem child for his parents, so when a candid photo of him and Adam is leaked to the press, his first thought is to suggest a fake relationship between him and Adam - knowing that if they play it right, Mo will reach the age for his trust fund to mature, and escape his vile parents forever. Adam surprisingly agrees, and they begin to get to know each other. They couldn't be further from each other in personality, but Mo intrigues Adam. Dubbed Captain Cardboard by Mo, Adam seems upright and defensive to him, but what Ioved about Adam is he instinctively knew when Mo needed something - be it a save from Mo's parents, a family Christmas like he has never had, time out when that became too much, or what he wanted in the bedroom. He is so tuned in, that when they inevitably end their fake relationship, he's so far in it's devastating. He also demonstrates that instinct with his hockey team, and his family. He is a gentle giant who pays close attention to those around him.

Mo Du Pont is an absolute nightmare. He is disillusioned (rightly so!) with his parents, who are utterly awful to him, but as their only son, there is a loyalty there that he finds hard to break. They are bankrolling his extravagant lifestyle, and in a year's time, he will come into his trust fund and be able to escape them. But when he and Adam are caught in what looks like a compromising position, he panics and invents a fake dating situation - something that pleases his parents immensely. Mo is the absolute opposite of Adam - he's camp, he's brash, he's obnoxious, and on paper it just shouldn't work. But Adam sees past his extra personality, and tries to show him the life he deserves. When faced with a loving, nurturing family, Mo is totally thrown, slipping into being over-camp. He initiates the third act breakup, and it takes interventions from multiple people for him to see that he truly loves Adam. It is at that point you finally see a soft side of Mo, and he feels more complete as a character. Until then he's all spite, over privileged and really just a brat, and it is hard to see how he and Adam can actually work.

Although the supporting cast have quite minimal input, I thought that there were some standout characters. Mo's parents were truly horrendous. Jorts, Adam's teammate, is supportive and protective, particularly in the scenes after the breakup. Sage, Mo's best friend, is great fun, not afraid to put Mo in his place, and is non-binary, so that's some nice representation. Their family are also standouts in the scenes at the latter end of the book.

I really enjoyed the plot of this book. It had lots of things that I love - even a little bit of enemies-to-lovers, which I adore. I loved Adam's character - a big team player, carrying a lot of responsibility, safe, sensible, caring and thoughtful. But Mo really grated on me, I just couldn't connect with him, which was a shame. I was particularly glad that his character was redeemed towards the end, and the epilogue was lovely. So I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it as much as I'd hoped.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to review this book!

[Jine · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

The cover reminded me of heated rivalry so that’s what intrigued me at first but the story was totally different
This is an enemies to fake dating to lovers story! Adam and Mo met when they were teenagers and disliked each other immediately! Mo was the son of the owners of the team Adam is on and Adam was the first out gay player
When they see each other again at a bar Mo is drunk but Adam helps him get home the next day there’s a video where it looks like they are fighting so Mo is summoned by his a-hole parents and blurts out that him and Adam are dating and Adam goes along with it
Their fake dating situation starts off stiffly because they dislike each other but they slowly come around and actually get to know each other!
Mo starts to see Adam as more than just a stiff hockey player and Adam sees Mo as more than an arrogant rich boy
So when Mos parents ask them to dinner Mo is nervous because his parents are insufferable and he’s basically only talking to them until he can get his trust fund so he can open his own garage so he talks to Adam about the dos and donts
What Adam didn’t realize was how truly messed up his parents were they were going to leave Mo alone for Christmas so Adam invites him to go see his parents and family in Canada! When they get back from the dinner the line is crossed because both of them are so angry and frustrated at Mos parents they decide to take their fake relationship physical they agree that intimacy in this situation won’t hurt them because they don’t have feelings for each other!
Christmas is where it all goes sideways Mo has never had family that cares like Adam’s they accepted him and want him to be apart of their traditions but also Adam was staring to look at Mo differently he gave him kisses unprovoked and he got him the biggest tree because he wanted to protect him and he started to realize he wanted more from Mo he wanted it to be real so when he was about to say this Mo said they should break up! He framed it as he didn’t want to hurt his family but in reality he was protecting his heart so the next little bit was rough Adam tried to stay away when Mo texted for a booty call but couldn’t resist and when Adam got hurt on the ice he blurted out to his best friend how everything was fake so when Mo came over he wouldn’t let him see him but when his best friend had to go for hockey Mo snuck in but it was tense
When Mos parents wanted him to keep their breakup on the download he just thought it was for publicity not realizing they were selling the team so Adam thought Mo knew and was using him which caused Mo to go and finally FINALLY tell off his parents in which they cut him off and kicked him out
So when Adam’s best friends wife who he had became close with came to the garage to yell because he lied he explained everything about how he was trying to protect his heart and he just needed Adam to listen so the cutest thing the wife’s and partners do for their hockey players is stuff little messages in their gloves and Mo put in his that he deserved more than fake! Are you kidding me! They finally talked and finally confessed that they both wanted to be together!
I really enjoyed their banter so much and how much each one of them complimented the other
Mo really brought Adam out of his shell because he was very rigid he didn’t like touches or pda and he openly did it all with Mo!
I liked that they got their happy ending it took a lot because both were in their own way but in the end it was perfect

[JJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books, and the authors for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Playing His Game reminded me why fake dating is one of my favorite romance tropes! I love how this story brought our main characters together from the very beginning, giving us the chance to watch their relationship grow instead of waiting until the final chapters to see them as an actual couple.

The fact that Mo and Adam acknowledged the reality of their situation pretty early on felt very natural and very true to real life and to how relationships actually work. Yes, they were spending time together in the public eye because of PR reasons, but there was something very genuine and natural about them also finding their way to each other, even in a bit of a transactional way at the beginning. That made every step from pretending to dating to actually falling in love feel believable and organic.

You can tell how intense the pressure put on Adam to be the first "out gay" player in the league is. It's palpable through the page. You can almost see the gears turning in his brain through it all, and how being able to lean on Mo and his antics relieves that pressure so much. So even before they start getting close to each other, that opens the door to a different kind of closeness because that release and that relief is something Adam has never had before. It's also very sweet the way Mo lets him do that, lets him lean on him and decides to take the fall so many times. He's able to be there for Adam in the same way that Adam is there for him at other points in the story.

The pacing was stellar for me. I felt like the story flowed pretty effortlessly, and I was super surprised by the twist towards the end. It 100% caught me off guard, which doesn't usually happen to me since I'm always thinking about what's going to come next.

I think that between these two fools, there was, right from the beginning, this subtle and special feeling of *maybe it was always you*. From the moment Mo and Adam meet, it's obvious that they occupy far more space in each other's minds than either of them wants to admit. Looking back, that makes their journey towards each other feel inevitable.

The emotional heart of the book, apart from the relationship between Mo and Adam, was the contrast between each of their relationships with their families. Adam's family actually reminded me so much of my own, the kind of people who will gladly adopt anyone you bring home. And Mo's story absolutely broke my heart. I wanted to hug him and welcome him into my world as well, just like Adam did.

I'd be super interested in potential future stories inside of this universe. I feel like the supporting characters around Mo and Adam, and the community that comes together around them, created a really warm and welcoming world. I'd love to know if maybe there's more coming from these authors inside of this universe!

I had a lovely time with Playing His Game. It is definitely worth adding to your TBR before it releases on August 10!

[Sadie Glover · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5⭐️

If you love fake dating, opposites attract, hockey romance & found family, this one is definitely worth picking up.

Mo and Adam couldn’t be more different, but that’s exactly why they work. Mo is loud, unapologetically himself, and always the centre of attention, while Adam is quiet, reserved, and the definition of dependable. Watching Mo slowly pull Adam out of his shell while Adam gives Mo a safe place to just be without trying to change him was honestly my favourite part of the book.

Can we also talk about the hockey team? I absolutely adored every single one of them. They’re one of those teams that feels like a real family, and I genuinely don’t think there was a character I disliked. And the WAGs changing their group name to the SAPs because of Adam? It was such a small detail, but it perfectly summed up the kind of friendship group they are. They had so much heart.

The fake dating storyline was always going to be a winner for me because it’s one of my favourite tropes, and this book absolutely delivered. The chemistry, the public appearances, the pretending-it’s-all-for-show while everyone else starts believing it… I ate it up.

The only reason this wasn’t a full five stars was the third-act breakup. I won’t spoil anything, but Adam’s reaction to one particular misunderstanding frustrated me. It felt like there was one very obvious piece of context that should’ve made him stop and think before jumping to conclusions, so I found myself wanting to shake him a little.

That said… bonus points to Jorts, who handled his best friend’s heartbreak exactly how a best friend should. He was supportive, loyal, and honestly one of my favourite side characters in the book.

Overall, this was a really sweet, heartfelt hockey romance with fantastic chemistry, a lovable cast, and enough fake-dating tension to keep me hooked from start to finish.

[Continuity · Rating 3 out of 5]

{2.5}

Unfortunately, this book just wasn’t for me. I am a huge sucker for the fake dating trope, but this one fell a bit flat. There wasn’t much of the typical fake dating. We didn’t get the pining while pretending, the feelings that begin to slowly blossom.

In general, this book just didn’t feel very romantic at all. The two characters only start to physically get together because they find each other attractive, but after their first time, we get a big jump cut in their relationship. Suddenly they both catch feelings and things are getting complicated? Why not show that instead of just telling?

The two characters also (in my opinion) don’t have any chemistry. It’s established that they don’t like each other, but there’s never a good reason, and for the most part it just seems like Mo attacking Adam constantly. It also seems as though they’re too different. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good opposites attract, but these two felt like water and oil; their differences seemed to constantly clash instead of bringing them together. Mo was materialistic where Adam wasn’t; Mo was touchy where Adam was touch-averse, etc. In general, I didn’t like the characters much; their personalities often seemed to change on a whim. While I could tolerate Adam, I thought Mo was pretty annoying to read from. I just didn’t gel with his personality, which is definitely a me thing, as many reviews talk about how much they love him.

Overall, my dislike definitely comes down to personal taste. Thank you, NetGalley, Boldword Press, and the authors for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Tags/Warnings
.
.
.
Tropes: Fake dating, size difference, hate to love
Triggers: Bad parents
Third act break-up: Yes
OM/OW: No. They both are big into hookup culture and never dated around much, but don’t get with anyone else while they’re together.

[Maxie · Rating 3 out of 5]

ARC Review
Mild Spoilers Ahead


This was a good, cute hockey romance. It didn’t blow me away, but it was nice.

It has a lot of tropes I usually enjoy, enemies to fake dating to lovers, opposites attract, found family, hockey team chaos, and that whole “pretending it’s fake until it very much is not” situation.


The setup was fun. I liked watching the fake dating slowly turn into real romance, especially once Mo starts seeing Adam as more than a rigid hockey player and Adam starts seeing Mo as more than a spoiled rich boy.


Adam was definitely my favorite of the two. I liked his quieter, steadier energy, and I enjoyed seeing him loosen up around Mo, especially with touch and affection. Mo had good moments, and his family situation added some emotional weight, but I couldn’t always connect with him. Sometimes his personality felt a little too much for me, and the chemistry between them was not always as strong as I would’ve liked.


The found family elements were probably the highlight. Adam’s family, the hockey team, especially Jorts brought a lot of warmth to the story. Those moments made the book feel sweeter and more enjoyable for me.


My main issue was that some emotional stuff felt rushed or told instead of shown, and the third act misunderstanding kind of frustrated me. Still, like I said at the beginning, it was a nice, sweet, enjoyable read with good banter and a solid happy ending.

Overall, good, not great, but definitely fun.

I have to say, I read an ARC copy, and there’s a lot of editing needed, especially timeline and age wise. For example, Mo is 15 in the prologue, then chapter 1 is supposed to take place three years later, but he is 21, and then all of a sudden he’s 24…It’s very confusing.
Anyway, thanks to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC.

[Dawn Serra · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid 3.75/5 stars (rounding up for Goodreads)

If you enjoy MM hockey romance, you'll enjoy Playing His Game by Morgan James and Ashlyn Kane. It's got enemies-to-lovers, fake boyfriend, entitled 1%ers you love to hate, bratty meets sunshine, and some fun spice. What's not to like?

You can see these two falling from miles away, and like most ding-dongs of the MM genre, it takes them awhile to realize their feelings. But thanks to the fake boyfriend storyline, they get to enjoy some hot spicy scenes long before the emotions start complicating things.

Mo's competency kink made me laugh, and I adored that bratty twink Mo is a badass mechanic who knows more about cars than sporty Adam and his hockey friends.

One of my favorite moments was when Mo brought his sharky sass to Adam's press scrum and absolutely obliterated the journalists who asked stupid questions. YES MO! I also loved the ways Captain Cardboard slowly revealed himself to be quietly funny and very sexy; he just needed the right motivation.

I also loved: "'Have you tried escargot before?' she asked conversationally, as Adam's soul left his body through his eye sockets. 'Uh, no.'" Mo's commentary made me cackle more than once.

But where I really fell was when Adam and Mo spent Christmas in Fredericton. The family, the toddler who loves cars, the way Adam constantly rescued Mo from this trauma response, and the meaningful moments of real connection that unfolded. I wanted so much more of that because it felt so good to wrap myself in that bubble of love and belonging. (Mo's "you didn't tell me there was a bigger model" - dead.)

Overall, this is a fun, funny little hockey romance that fans of the genre will savor.

[Tippy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love me an Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James hockey romo, and this was no exception. The story itself was good and well done. Enemies-to-lovers + Fake dating = Sign me up. I love that Mo, an absolute brat of a twink, had such a super masculine interest and that it wasn't used as a gimmick. He genuinely loved working on cars and he used that skill. Adam was...slightly less interesting to me. I think his was of dealing with being the first out player was handled fine but I'm not so sure that I bought into his apparent touch aversion since we don't actually see much of it. I think that could have been a great aspect to explore further. But Mo and Adam worked well as a couple and they helped each other grow in ways that don't think they acknowledge. My main issue, and the reason this only get 3 stars, is that the book needs some serious editing. There is quite a bit of inconsistency in the timeline and ages of the MCs. We are first introduced to them when Adam is drafted, Mo is 15 and Adam is 18. There is a time jump of 3 years later. and then suddenly it's stated that Adam has been in the NHL for 8 years. And Mo goes from being 21 to 24. There is nothing to suggest that there has been a time jump beyond the initial 3 years that is stated. It was very confusing. There are also some spelling/grammatical errors and at least one sentence were the word "deck" was mistakenly used instead of "dick". Also, towards the end of the book there is an entire paragraph that repeats itself. I think if there is some good editing for the actual release date then then could easily become a 3 1/2 or 4 star book.

[Elysha Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Playing His Game is has Adam, the first openly drafted gay hockey player on the Arizona Canyons, and Mo, the son of the team’s owners forced into a fake relationship after a picture goes viral.

So I really ended up liking Mo! In the first few chapter he seemed very superficial and just like a rich guy. But I really liked that he genuinely loved working on cars and through that and other aspects he got a lot of character depth as well as growth. He was also super funny throughout the book.

Adam is very sweet and introverted which I really liked. I just wish his character had been developed a bit more, rather then just openly gay hockey player. I really loved seeing him with his family though as well.

Overall the chemistry between Mo and Adam was good and definitely hot. I did find the miscommunication went on for an extended period of time, and could have been resolved sooner. I did enjoy the big gesture from Mo at the end.

I will say I felt like I was missing something throughout the book with Mo and Adam’s history. You kept getting told about previous bad interactions that everyone in the world had seen but there’s really only two on page. I wish there had been a bit more flashbacks to that time. It also just felt a bit off that the owner’s son and a player on the team had this much beef between them. There were also a few timeline mistakes at the beginning that did make it in confusing.

A good MM hockey book with fake dating and enemies to lovers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Moritz 'Mo' Du Pont is a poor little rich guy. His absentee parents own the Arizona Canyons, an ice hockey team, and they have wilfully used his being gay to show how liberal they are, particularly when signing Adam Murphy the league's first openly gay player. While Mo embraces his inner queen and loves to camp it up, Adam is the opposite, even when he dyed his hair rainbow for pride it was muted colours. Mo nicknames Adam Captain Cardboard for looking like a superhero and always parroting the party line. For his part, Adam thinks Mo looks down on him. Every time they meet the animosity is palpable.

One night while out with them team celebrating a victory, Adam runs into Mo, very drunk, who blames Adam for Mo's friends going off clubbing with Adam's teammates instead of staying and celebrating Mo's birthday. In his drunken anger Mo stumbles and falls into Adam. The next day the internet is full of pictures of the two of them in what looks like an embrace. Called into his parents' office Mo panics and says they are dating ... surprisingly Adam backs him in the lie. Now the two of them must publish a statement and suffer a series of cute curated dates to help restore the team's reputation.

This is catnip I tell ya. Hot ice hockey players, opposites attract, enemies to love. fake dating? Just take all my money. And THIS DID NOT DISAPPOINT. I loved Mo and I loved Adam. I loved a cute Christmas. Also, there were kittens.

I haven't read anything by these authors before but I would definitely read more.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.

[Cecilia · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

This was cute and had a lot of potential! I love fake dating and I really liked how well these characters complemented each other. I do think Mo’s character was given a lot more depth than Adam’s, though. I understood the motivations behind Mo’s actions, but Adam’s weren’t explored nearly as much, so I never felt as connected to him. I really liked his character so I wish we got a little more from him!

There were a few inconsistencies throughout the story, like Mo’s age, but they weren’t distracting enough to take me out of the book. I also wish we had gotten more sweet romantic moments between the two of them. The physical chemistry was definitely there and I liked the way their relationship developed but it felt more like a friendship than a romance at times. The chemistry was a little too platonic for my liking.

I also wasn’t a huge fan of how Mo’s character was written. At times he felt a little too much like a caricature and leaned into stereotypes in a way that didn’t really work for me. Sometimes that doesn’t bother me as much, especially when it’s written by a gay man, but as far as I know neither author identifies that way, so it stood out more than I would’ve liked.

Overall, I still enjoyed this and thought it was a really cute story. I think with a little more editing and stronger character development it could’ve been even better. Either way, I’ll definitely keep an eye out for future books from these authors.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Lily · Rating 1 out of 5]

ARC provided by publisher:

DNF at 10%.

Sometimes a book gives you the ick before the story even starts, and unfortunately that was the case here.

The dedications immediately rubbed me the wrong way. Both authors, right off the bat, gave off ick vibes about the romance they were writing: one joking about a partner preferring a “man book” over a romance, and the other expressing shame about writing romance at all. Maybe they were intended as jokes, but they landed as dismissive of the very craft the book is asking me to value, and honestly, pretty misogynistic.

The cover also felt very clearly designed to mimic the new mass market game changers illustrated covers. Smells like cashing in on a trend…

So I’m already starting from a first impression from hell, and unfortunately the early story choices didn’t pull me back in. a MC is introduced at 15, yet the narration refers to him as an adult, and then after a three year time skip he’s 24. Are you even paying attention?

There were also details that made him feel more like a mood board than a person. He goes to an “Antifa rally” and is from a wealthy family called the Du Ponts. Holy shorthand batman.

The fake dating premise was probably executed in the worst way i’ve ever seen ever. The setup relies on leaning into a domestic violence situation rather than simply a bar fight between two men. Neither option is great, but you choose to fake date so that it’s DV?!?!??

At only 10%, I’m already spending more time questioning the choices being made than getting invested in the characters or story, so I’m calling it here.

[ChristineReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sooo I accidentally read two fake dating books back to back. I clearly like this trop. Mo and Adam have known each other for years, Mo's parents own the hockey team that Adam is plays on. Not only that but every time Adam and Mo have crossed paths over the past several years they automatically bicker and fight with each other. When a picture of the two of them could threaten Mo's parents business deals and Adam's reputation the two pretend to date.

What starts off as a pretty contentious relationship starts blooming into a friendship, and the two slowly interweave their lives together. Brought closer by a disastrous dinner with Mo's parents the two spend even more time together and start to find they actually like one another. But both are scared, this started as something fake with no strings and a planned break up. They have to face each other and their fears if they want to make it real.

I really enjoyed the snarkiness of Mo's character and how much we see Adam open up. I think this book does a great job of exploring how these two support each other. I think some of the miscommunications could have been avoided but understand their place in the story.

Overall, I enjoyed this, is was a fun, lighthearted (for the most part) read. It you are looking for an enjoyable romance I would recommend this one! Thank you to the publisher for providing an advanced readers copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

3.75 Stars

[Brady · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Boldwood Books and Netgalley for this eARC, these opinions are my own. A super cute hockey romance! Mo has known Adam since he was 15 and Adam was drafted to Mo’s parent’s Hockey team. Adam was the first openly gay player drafted into the NHL and Mo’s parents loved playing the part of gay-friendly and supportive. People had been talking about the two of them ever since, even with few years age difference. But Mo and Adam had never really gotten along. Adam was too strait laced for Mo, and Mo was too wild (and a little bit too much for Adam). Though they both found the other attractive. Then one night at a bar they run into each other and share insults as they would usually do but the moment is caught on camera and suddenly the press are asking was this romantic or were they fighting. Mo already on thin ice with his hateful parents, just needs to last a few more months before his trust fund kicks in so he can’t be on their bad side. Adam can’t afford for anyone to think he’s violent. So when Mo says they are dating and it was a romantic moment, Adam agrees. The two proceed to fake date to save their images and Mo’s money. Only how will this work when neither likes the other? And what happens if they start to feel something real? Charming and funny! Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James write a heartwarming, sweet, and spicy sports romance that will leave you swooning!

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to the authors for the ARC via Netgalley.

Adam Murphy, NHL hockey player for the Arizona Canyons. and Moritz ‘Mo’ Du Pont, camp twink and the GM’s son, meet on draft night when Adam is 18 and Mo just 15. They dislike each other for reasons I couldn’t really understand (it seems to boil down to: Mo hates all hockey players, and the story only really works if Adam also doesn’t like Mo.) Anyway, on a night out 9? (The timeline at the beginning seems a bit unclear) years later they bump into each other and are photographed outside a bar. They’re not doing anything remotely interesting or scandalous, but for some reason because of this photo Mo feels the need to pretend to his parents and their PR person that he and Adam are dating (no idea why!) They fake date (which seems awfully like just dating to me), then decide that they should have sex with each other while (fake) dating … you can guess the rest. It’s all quite contrived and it’s been done better before. I normally really like Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James’s books, and I normally love a hockey romance, but this wasn’t for me. It was okay, but just okay. I wasn’t really enjoying it as much as I thought I would and was glad when it was over and I could move onto something else.

[Evelyn Bella (there WILL be spoilers) · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's getting ridiculous how implausible I always find the reasons for these MCs to pretend to date but keep reading the books and enjoying them anyway.

I must confess that after the first few chapters, I fully expected to dislike Mo as much as I did Baby. Instead, I ended up really liking him and all his chaos.

Maybe his backstory did too good a job of explaining why he's the way he is that I never held it against him.

And I loved Adam, too. Mr. No PDA and 'I hate surprise touches so maybe just don't' turning into very much Mr. I'm going to kiss my man in public and I don't care who sees it.

Bonus points for how little hockey there was in this. As someone who enjoys hockey romance strictly for ambience and not for the sport itself, it struck a good balance.

That said, I felt like the ending was a little rushed and I wish I'd gotten to see them more as a real couple.

Especially because it's one of those rare stories where I don't end up feeling personally wronged by one MC on behalf of the other, so it would have been nice to experience their happiness a little more alongside them.

Seeing them fall in love was good but I wanted more of them being in love and if that makes me greedy then so be it.

[Josie Bookstagram · Rating 3 out of 5]

(3.5 ⭐)

“Turns out it’s a lot easier to care about things that aren’t hockey when I have things that aren’t hockey to care about.” 🏒

This was a really cute MM hockey romance and I had a lovely time reading it. Mo and Adam's fake dating storyline was exactly the sort of romance I enjoy and I loved watching all the pretending slowly turn into something real. They balanced each other so well and it was super cute seeing Adam show Mo what unconditional love, genuine family and real happiness could look like. Mo deserved that more than he probably realised.

I did have a couple of niggles. The random use of overly complicated words (that didn't always mean what I think the authors thought they meant) being shoehorned in, pulled me out of the story because they felt a bit forced. Then of course the dreaded third-act break-up made an appearance too. That will pretty much always cost a book a star with me because I just don't enjoy that trope.

Putting those things aside though, this was still a fun, sweet romance with plenty of banter, great chemistry and characters I couldn't help but root for.

Tropes & Themes
🏒 Hockey Romance
🌈 MM Romance
💖 Fake Dating
🤍 Found Family
🏳️‍⚧️ Non-Binary Representation
💔 Third-Act Break-Up

[Melanie Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Playing His Game by Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James

​Quick Snapshot
• ​Tropes: Fake Dating, Hockey Romance, Grumpy/Sunshine
• ​Rating: 3.5/ 5
​
The Story
​When a viral photo forces NHL captain Adam (the league's first openly drafted gay player) and Mo (the team owner's chaotic, camp, out-gay son) into a fake relationship for damage control, a strict strategy turns into real feelings.

​The Pros
• ​Fantastic Chemistry: The polar-opposite dynamic yields sharp banter, great humor, and undeniable heat.
• ​Character Growth: Mo’s personal development and his introduction to Adam’s healthy, loving family circle are deeply heartwarming.
• ​Great Support System: Standout side characters like Jorts and Sage steal scenes and keep the main characters grounded.

​The Cons
• ​Pacing: The miscommunication trope stretches on a bit longer than necessary - and I really don't like this trope 😒
• ​Expectation Check: It leans less on an intense sports rivalry and more on forced-proximity teamwork.
​
Closing thoughts
​A fun, witty, and heartwarming hockey romance that delivers on the fake-dating trope with a swoon-worthy grand gesture finale. Highly recommended for fans of sports romance and character-driven growth

[Holly Lammas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley for sending me this book as an e-ARC 🥰

Mo's life seems to be a series of media scandals just meshed together. Adam is the first openly gay ice hockey player to be drafted, who feels like he has a certain image to maintain. The two of them have been active enemies since they met, however after some potentially damaging footage goes online of a little spat, they decide that fake-dating will be the perfect answer for damage control! Will they be able to get through the arrangement to fake break up once the dust has settled, or will they realise that actually the relationship has started feeling much less fake as the time goes on?!

Let me say that Jorts is the actual best 😂 mads and Sage too, very much enjoyed all of those background characters 😍
I really enjoyed this book once it got going! A super easy read that feels really cosy at points 🥰 Adams family are just so heartwarming I love them! And Mo's character development to realising how his relationships can be, both family and relationship wise! And also realising he deserves better than the scraps of 'love' his parents have been throwing him!
A few editing tweaks needed here and there, and there are a few very long chapters which I personally struggle with! However on the whole, a real lovely read 😍

[Tristan Keegan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Morgan James and Ashlyn Kane have yet to disappoint me when it comes to hockey romance, and Playing His Game was exactly what I was hoping it would be.

From the very beginning, I was invested in these characters. The rivalry between them made for a fun setup, but what really kept me reading was watching their relationship evolve. The fake-dating trope was handled in a way that felt natural, and I loved seeing the trust and understanding between them grow over the course of the story.

The hockey setting was another highlight. It never felt like it was there just for the sake of the romance—it was woven into the story in a way that made the characters and their lives feel authentic.

If you're a fan of hockey romances with rivals-to-lovers energy, fake dating, and a relationship that develops at a satisfying pace, I definitely recommend picking this one up.

Overall, this was a really enjoyable read and another reminder of why Morgan James and Ashlyn Kane are one of my favorite writing duos for sports romance.

A strong 4 stars from me!
Thank you to the authors and publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Brina.readz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood Publishing for an advanced readers copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I went into this book hoping it would help with my Heated Rivalry withdrawals and get me out of a little reading slump and luckily it helped with both!

Mo and Adams story was fun to follow and difficult to put down! I loved their little moments together and was very entertained even though it felt like there wasn't too much happening towards the middle of the book. Their interactions very witty and hilarious (thanks to Mo) but also ended up having a lot of depth. Mos' story especially gave me all the feels and I loved seeing his bestie Sage show up for him throughout his difficult family dynamics!

I do have to say I was confused about the timeline in the beginning when the book jumped from Mo being 15 to 3 years later and then suddenly being 24. But I am sure that is something editing can fix so it doesn't take away from Mo and Adams first interactions.

Additionally I would have loved to see more of those to highlight why them (fake) dating was so weird to their friends because I didn't feel too much animosity or tension within the book tbh.

[This.Girl.Readss · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am always a fan of a good hockey romance, make it enemies to lovers and I’ll devour it. That’s exactly what we get here and it was so good! Adam, captain of the Canyons, is straight-laced, kind of uptight, and was the first openly gay player in the NHL. Mo, is the outspoken, loud and sometimes confrontational son of the owners of the Canyons. Mo and Adam have a strong dislike of each other and often find themselves arguing whenever their paths cross. When they are unexpectedly faced with some bad publicity together, they decide to tell everyone they’re dating to avoid the bad press. And as it happens with fake relationships, these two find themselves liking the other more than expected.

I had so much fun reading about their dates and then still bickering at one another but now for fun. Their Christmas getaway had me laughing out loud so many times. It was probably my favorite part of the story. There was plenty of spicy times, some emotional moments and lots of banter! I do wish we had gotten a little more of them in the end, once they were settled into their relationship for real. But otherwise, it was such a fun and enjoyable read. I can’t wait to read whatever comes next!

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fake dating the guy who has been a pain in your behind for 8 years was not something Adam Murphy was expecting in his first year as the captain of Arizona Canyons.
Moritz (Mo) Du Pont was not expecting to have a brand new boyfriend after a disastrous birthday celebration that ended in another scandal.

Two guys that cannot be more different. Adam, the squeaky clean "Captain Cardboard", and Mo, the bratty (not that kind of brat) heir who loves car engines and wheel alignment more than rich people.
Two different guys who start spending more time together and realize that maybe things are not the way they expected.

Antipathy changes to understanding. Understanding to attraction. Attraction to stronger feelings neither one is ready to deal with...


I previously enjoyed the Hockey Ever After Series by these two authors but I feel they stepped up with this story in a way I was not prepared for.
The characters are well-defined, the banter made me chuckle and the story went in a different why than I was expecting it to go.


Thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for providing an eARC for an honest review!

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another solid hockey romance from Ashlyn and Morgan! Adam (the captain) and Mo (the owner's son) have spent the last decade clashing every time they see each other. When one of these clashes is caught on video and goes viral, but it looks more... intimate... they agree to fake date so that Mo doesn't get cut off and Adam doesn't make the team look bad and piss off his bosses.

I thought the relationship between Mo and his parents was really interesting and well done. The control and narcissism! Oof!!! There is sooooo much for him to unpack in therapy. Also, there's so much loneliness hidden away inside of him. I did think Adam's motivations and feelings (outside of his relationship with Mo) could have been developed more, though you do get the bones of it (pressure about being the first out player drafted and lots of media scrutiny).

I really liked Mo and Adam's relationship with each other. The banter was good, and you could see how the two of them helped each other a lot - when Adam felt put on the spot and tense, Mo dialed up the charm and drew attention away; when Mo was overwhelmed and stressed, Adam pulled him away to cool down. Their chemistry was excellent. And there was that one specific thing (which was also in Textbook Defense, IYKYK) that was very 🔥🔥🥵.

(I received a free advanced review copy from the publisher/NetGalley.)

[Keturah Sergeant · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe 3.5⭐️ there were parts that felt a bit jumpy and conflicts were pretty oversimplified. It is never fully explained why they had conflict to begin with so their dynamic is slow to take off, nor is it really clarified why on MC has a problem with hockey players, especially since he used to play and he doesn't empathise with the other MC's inability to play without being defined by his sexuality, so it's not about having experienced discrimination or pain for his sexuality? Outside of the plot holes... This was an enjoyable fake dating enemies to lovers story, with some angst, a lot of emotional constipation, and a dash of sports and cars.

There were sweet moments, the pacing of the relationship was mostly well done, shifting from awkward pretence to boundary settings to friendship to attraction to love. It worked well. I liked the side friendships and the healthy family dynamics (on one MC's side, the other's is the source of at least 70% of the aforementioned angst) with moments of support, reality checks, plotting and comfort.

An easy read with sweet moments, some flaws in character and plot building but an enjoyable read.