Nowhere to Hide: A college hockey romance

by Clara West

An emotional, banter-filled college hockey romance perfect for fans of Elle Kennedy, Sarina Bowen, and Liz Tomforde.

Sloane Avery came to Halden University with one disappear.

After a boy’s betrayal turned her life into public entertainment, she isn’t looking to stand out or get hurt again.

Then her bag bursts open on freshman move-in day, scattering her underwear at Rowan Hale’s feet.

So much for not being noticed…

Rowan is the steady heart of Halden hockey—the guy everyone leans on, but nobody ever thinks to hold up in return—and his kindness makes her forget her plan.

The closer they get, the more Sloane starts finding her voice again and the more Rowan learns he doesn’t have to carry everything alone.

But loving each other means risking the hurt they’re both trying to avoid, especially when Halden proves nowhere near as far from Sloane’s past as she’d hoped…

Nowhere to Hide is a college hockey romance about healing after betrayal, learning to ask for help, and discovering that the right person doesn’t just love the version of you the world gets to see—they love the one you’ve been trying to hide.

Inside you’ll

🌱 Heroine finds her voice

🛡️ The caretaker gets cared for

🩹 Hurt / comfort

🏒 Little sister’s roommate

💔 Wrong guy → right guy

🤫 Secrets and campus scandal

🏡 Found family

💕 Happily ever after (no cliffhanger)


Trigger References to intimate image-based public humiliation.

Genres: Sports Romance, Hockey

317 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 23, 2026

Reviews

[Whitney Livesay · Rating 2 out of 5]

The most infuriating book I’ve read in a long time. I only finished it because of my book reading goal.

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book! Clara West completely hooked me with this one, and I honestly didn’t want to put it down. Rowan and Sloane had such amazing chemistry, and I loved watching their relationship develop throughout the story. The banter, tension, and emotional moments had me completely invested!

I especially loved the hurt/comfort and found-family aspects of this story. There were so many moments that made my heart ache for Sloane, but I loved seeing her grow and become more confident throughout the book. Rowan was also such a caring and protective MMC, and I loved how supportive he was of her.

This was such an emotional, sweet, and swoony read, and I loved every minute of it! If you love college hockey, banter, hurt/comfort, protective MMCs, found family, and lots of chemistry, you need to add this one to your TBR!

[V · Rating 3.75 out of 5]

Usually, college romance is not for me. The characters are far too hormonal and angsty and there is often unnecessary drama that could be just solved with better communication.

This is also happening in this book, but I appreciated how deep it went into the psyche of both characters.

Rowan was a good guy, in a sea of hockey players who just jumps from bed to bed until they meet the _special_ FMC. Made this better.

[Naomi Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

First time reader

First time reading this author and was pleasantly surprised. I felt like I was holding my breath and when I finally exhaled it was beautiful. Rowan and Sloane gave me all the emotions.

[Happy Everyday · Rating 5 out of 5]

น่าจะเป็นเรื่องแนวมหาลัย+ฮอกกี้เรื่องแรกเลยมั้งที่มีฉากแข่งขันฮอกกี้(ฮา)

ชอบแก่นเรื่องของนักเขียนนะ สิ่งที่ทำพลาดไปอย่าให้มันมาใหญ่กว่าตัวเรา และชีวิตที่ดีไม่ได้แปลว่าชีวิตที่ไม่มีปัญหา เพราะมันมีแน่ๆ การพยายามแก้ก่อนที่มันจะเกิดไม่ได้ช่วยให้มันลดลงแต่จะทำให้เราเหนื่อยกว่าเดิม

[Kathy Hansen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was weird. I honestly didn’t love the writing but I got invested in the story. But I was really disappointed with the ending. I feel like both characters are really broken in an odd way. I wish there would have been a better wrap up for the story.