Three Is the Luckiest Number

by Catherine Cloud

Elliot Cowell spent his entire life training to become a superstar.

A prodigy on the ice, likely the future captain of his team, there’s no room for mistakes when it comes to Elliot’s career, but knowing all that didn’t keep him from falling in love with Blake Samuels. When they break up the day before they’re drafted, they go their separate ways and even though they both knew that they weren’t meant to last, forgetting each other is the hardest thing they’ve ever had to do.

While they drift further and further apart, their paths keep crossing on and off the ice and both Elliot and Blake have to admit to themselves that they aren’t as done with each other as they’re pretending to be.

Genres: Hockey, Sports, M M Romance, Romance, Contemporary, Sports Romance, Friends To Lovers

246 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 5, 2020

About the author

Catherine Cloud writes queer sports fiction with a lot of kissing and Golden Retrievers. Yes, there's actual hockey in the books. And, yes, all those Golden Retrievers are totally necessary.

Free stories and extras are available via Tumblr (thesameoldstreets.tumblr.com)

Impressum: https://linktr.ee/thesameoldstreets

Reviews

[☆ Todd · Rating 3 out of 5]

OMMF God! This story felt sooooooo long, even if I was kinda-sorta enjoying it. Mostly.

I think the biggest drawback for me was that the author's style was telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, one teeny smidge of showing, then right back to telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling, telling again.



So instead of it feeling like the story was unfolding organically, it was almost as if a narrator was simply reading off a series of events as they happened.

When it got to around 10 percent into the story and I found out that one MC had gotten a steady, years-long girlfriend, while the other MC had got a years-long fuck buddy, I'd honestly decided to DNF the book then and there. I'd had enough and was seriously heading to the exit.

Then since I actually did like both MC's, even if they hadn't truly had an honest-to-God conversation in YEARS, I decided to read "just one more chapter", which turned out to be me completely finishing the story.

I'll just say that the tendency toward telling vs. showing *never* changed over the course of the book and the story had very few truly humorous moments, so I can't tell you exactly why I ended up investing the time to complete this one.

And the story ended with them finally deciding to give their relationship another try and the teeny tiniest bit of coming out that I've read in a hockey story in yeaaaaaaars.

Yet, despite all of that, I strangely enjoyed enough of it to not regret taking the time to read it, so I'd rate it at around 3 stars, even though I suspect that a lot of my GR friends would most likely DNF it very early on.

[Snjez · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a lovely second chance romance. It's very slow-paced, quiet, and a bit sad at times. However, I loved the characters and I was fully invested in their story from the beginning to the end. There's a lot more telling than showing, which might bother me in some other books, but I think it works really well with this author's writing style.

Blake and Elliot are not together for most of the book, but I loved how their relationship developed. The only thing I wasn't happy about was Elliot's relationship with Natalie. I think that's her name. I had no problems with Noah, though. 😅 I've already read his book and I was really glad to see him in this one.

Another thing I loved about this story is that there are no smut scenes. They are mostly fade to black and it's more about their connection and how they feel when they are together.

I also loved their friendships with other team players. There are some wonderful side characters here and I think that the author did a really good job at showing how hard it is when players retire or get traded.

The ending fits the story, but I do wish it was more satisfying.

[Drache.... (Angelika) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reread 06/2025
I love this series SO much.
--------------------
Reread 11/2024
One of my favorite mm romance hockey books.
Beautiful.
-------------------
reread 03/2024
5 stars.
Love this still so much.
💜
----------
read 05/2023
I had loved Caught Off Guard and I'm slowly realising Catherine Cloud may become a favorite author for me... her writing style is amazing, in my eyes!

This book, similar to Caught Off Guard, has a quiet and steady feeling to it, but it's told in alterning pov.
The MCs had very distinct voices, though. There was never a doubt whose pov I was reading (although there wasn't even an indication to which pov the author was switching at each changing pov, as authors usually do).

This is not the average hockey mm romance with lots of sex.
It's so much more, though.

There's a lot of hockey going on, and very very very subtly and slowly (and kind of late, too) there's a development of the second chance romance. It's hard to explain, but it was executed in a way that felt perfect to me.

I loved both MCs but Blake stole my heart. He was gruffy, didn't talk much, but felt really special to me.

I loved everything about this book (besides the fact that such situations exist, when love should be love and really nobody's business).

The author was breaking my heart with the unfairness and wrongness of her queer MCs having to hide themselves (their sexuality).

Can't wait to read Love And Other Inconveniences, it's about Noah!

5 stars.

[Evie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have made no secret of the fact that I love a second chance romance. I liken it to the emotional equivalent of the satisfaction you get when you press on a bruise. Like its pain, but its good pain cause you know you’re going to get a happy ending cause its in the design.

I don’t think of this as a traditional second chance romance because there was no big dramatic break up for them to tackle and overcome. It was a story of two young men who had found a friendship and connection with each other when they were juniors and when they get drafted into professional hockey teams, decide to put an end to their ‘relationship’ for the sake of their future careers, with neither really understanding the significance and impact of their connection at the time.

This was a sweet story of growing up, and friendships and of never really getting over a first love and I just really had a great time with it. Worth noting that this is a very low spice story, with almost all spice happening off page or mentioned in passing.

As with a lot of these stories which are set over a period of years both characters have relationships with other people, but if felt like a very organic portrayal of how life goes.

I actually really loved the slow burn of Blake and Elliot finding each other and reconnecting. The fact that despite them still being in the fall out of their argument, when Blake was going through one of the hardest days of his life, he could still turn to Elliot and rely on him to look after Evan and be there for him when he broke down tore my heart out and presented it to me on a little platter.

I mentioned in my progress, but this is the first story for a while I have read that has distracted me so much that I nearly missed my train station twice in one day and completely disregarded my bedtime to keep reading. Which is ironic cause its not a particularly high stakes story, it was just such an enjoyable read.

I found myself dying at Blake just collecting peoples crushes left and right with absolutely no intention to do so, bless him, lol as if it’s a surprise that a tall, dark, handsome, kind professional athlete with sleeve tattoos doesn’t have everyone throwing themselves at him lol.

I can see why when I read Coming in First Place, a lot of people were comparing it to Catherine Clouds works because there is a similar sort of vibe to the emotional heart of both books and I think that there would be a lot of cross over enjoyment.

Probably the only detractor for me was the random POV shifts that would happen periodically throughout the book. It would take me some time to orientate myself to who’s head I was in when the changes occurred, however by the end of the book I had gotten used to even that.

I will be definitely continuing through the back catalogue of Cloud’s though! I love finding a new author who’s writing style captures me.



Pre-read
Starting my first Catherine Cloud book ❤️ I have heard so many good things about this author.
Apparently reading in publishing order is the way to go, so where we are!

[Teal · Rating 2 out of 5]

** 1.5 stars **

A second-chance romance between professional hockey players? Bring it! Lots of GR reviewers loved this, and I expected to be one of them. But sadly, the writing did not work for me.

It consists of page after page of telling telling telling. A recitation of facts. This happened. That happened. Time passed. This almost happened, but didn’t. This other thing happened instead. Time passed. More things happened, first this, then that. Blah de blah blah blah. It felt flat, emotionless, drab, dreary. After a while it took on an almost droning quality.

I wasn’t surprised to learn the story was originally posted in installments on AO3; probably it had a better flow that way. Packaged as a novel, in one chunk, it seemed to consist of at least 50% unnecessary wordage. It should have been subjected to ruthless editing to make the transition into novel form.

The MCs sounded alike to me. The 3rd-person POV alternated between them, but they were indistinguishable. Imagine my surprise, when, at 43%, I realized they were intended to be a grumpy/sunshine pairing!

”I can’t see you being friends with a guy like Blake Samuels.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“Well, you’re all sunshine and he’s all… gloom and murder eyes.”

Wait, what? We’re being *told* that Elliot is sunshiney, but I’d never been *shown* that. I would never have guessed. And Blake didn’t strike me as particularly grumpy, just sad and low-energy — exactly like Elliot. To me they weren’t Sunshine and Grumpy. They were Blah and Blah-er.

With so much telling, blocks of dialogue were few and far between. It actually took until 28% to hit a substantial chunk of dialogue — only to realize that it sounded “off.” Sure enough, conversations between the characters are weirdly unnatural. They don’t flow.

At the point where I quit, at 44%, one MC is in love with his girlfriend.



Seriously? So much for the whole “I’m pining over the guy I loved and lost” schtick, dude.

And of course I could be completely mistaken, but it looked like the author was going to engineer their eventual breakup by turning her into A Bitch.

Eventually the sheer tedium of the telling-telling-telling wore me down, and I had to bail. I couldn’t get interested in the fate of two MCs who were so dull. And identically dull at that. I didn’t care about them. I didn’t care if they got together. I didn’t care if they didn’t get together. I didn’t care if they got run over by a bus. I didn’t care if they got abducted by aliens. I didn’t care if they spontaneously combusted.

Detect a theme here?



This is definitely a minority opinion, so be sure to look at reviews other than mine.

[Kaje Harper · Rating 5 out of 5]

A story about how homophobia, especially in sports, damages young men in particular. Elliot and Blake were together, right up to the NHL draft, when they knew that not only would they be separated geographically on different teams, (barring an insane level of coincidence,) but they would come under media scrutiny where being gay or bi would be enough to tank a fledgling career. So they walked away from each other. By mutual agreement. Mostly, because the final decision was Elliot's, and Blake - knowing Elliot's potential to become a star - wasn't about to hold him back.

And time went on. They dated other people. Elliot who is bi found a woman he could almost feel about the way he felt about Blake. But that first love between them never really went away. Blake finds another gay man who makes him feel less alone. Readers met (or will meet, depending on your reading order) Noah in Love & Other Inconveniences - he's good for Blake, but he's not Elliot, and it's not the same. It's not enough. And eventually, Blake and Elliot come together again, and their hearts haven't forgotten what they felt, back when they were on the threshold of it all.

It's perhaps easy, from a position of privilege, to get irritated with Elliot. He's the one who made the choices, who decided the risks were too big. But it's important to remember that almost every gay and bi man in US major sports has made a similar choice. Even now, every major male American sport has perhaps one out current player, perhaps one past who came out before retirement, a few who came out afterward. Even the reveal of those brave pioneers has not been enough to make the dozens of closeted players out there feel safe enough to stand up. Those pressures are still there, and powerful, and still ruining lives. This book is a poignant, angsty, and eventually positive, reminder. The ending is warm and basically HEA, but there's still a long way to go.

[Alisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this is going to be one of my favorite books of the year. This is another author who's been writing on AO3 and then took a story and made it a debut book.

The story follows the course of two young men who are in a secret relationship but have made a deal that as soon as they're drafted in to the NHL they'll stop seeing each other. The book begins the night before the draft and follows them through the next seven years of their lives as they try to grow up and move on. Once they realize they're never moving on from each other they have to figure out how to be together.

The story is not filled with drama or angst and moves at it's own pace. Some of it was touching, some of it was funny, a lot of it was bittersweet. These guys fight hard for their relationship.

I thought it had a great sense of place. You can tell the author knows hockey and loves hockey and that added another wonderful layer for me. She doesn't gloss over how hard it is to be in professional sports while being gay and the end is not some super dramatic, unrealistic grand announcement of their love. She doesn't sugar coat the struggle they're going to have and I loved her for that.

There is a set up for the next book and I'm super excited about that one too.

[ancientreader · Rating 5 out of 5]

This pretty much ripped my heart out and put it back together.

It opens with the breakup: Blake and Elliot have been lovers during "juniors" (which I gather is the system in which you play hockey if you're in your late teens and shooting for the NHL, but since all I know about hockey is what I've picked up from reading Cloud's books and Ari Baran's Game Misconduct, I can't say for sure); they break up by mutual agreement just before the NHL draft, because they can't carry on a queer relationship and play professional hockey.

Right?

And Catherine Cloud ... keeps them apart. And keeps them apart. And keeps them apart. For years, during some of which they're not just not-lovers but actually alienated from each other. They have other relationships -- Blake has a friends-with-benefits thing with Noah Andersson from Love and Other Inconveniences; Elliot has a long-term live-in relationship with Natalie, a law student, whom he does genuinely love. They begin to reconnect for real only with the death of Blake's grandmother, who raised him (I debated putting that behind a spoiler tag, but honestly, it's not a Shocking Plot Twist), and even then their path back to each other is tentative and slow.

I loved the way Cloud handled this: the Blake and Elliot who become lovers again in their twenties may never quite have stopped loving each other, but they're both recognizably the same people and recognizably more mature, both braver and more realistic. The romance that rekindles is better, deeper, more interesting than the romance of two teenagers. They're together at the end, they properly belong together, and there's every reason to believe they'll remain together, but Cloud leaves them in a bittersweetly realistic place.

I remarked on the absence of Noah's perspective in Love and Other Inconveniences, and laughed when he turned up as Blake's Friend with Benefits. (It's actually obvious in L&OI, & shame on me for not remembering.) Although we still don't get Noah's direct POV, we do get his perspective on his relationship with Morgan -- of course, he speaks up for himself in L&OI, but his scenes there are all with Morgan, we never learn what he has to say to anyone else about it in Morgan's absence. Honestly, he takes responsibility for his own feelings to an almost painful degree.

Aside to Catherine Cloud: It's lowercase "subway" when you mean the NYC subway system and not the revolting sandwich chain. Also, we don't have "tickets," we have MetroCards (and now Omny, which is a corporate scam that will eventually replace MetroCards, but thankfully this book takes place before Omny was instituted). More important, however: I NEED CHARLIE'S STORY. WRITE CHARLIE'S STORY. WRITE CHARLIE'S STORY OR I MAY ACTUALLY DIE.

[Papie · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars
Loved the writing, the hockey, Blake, the secondary characters. Elliot was not my favourite.

[Nelly S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book kept coming up as a recommendation whenever I’d be looking for a new hockey romance. And I’m glad it lived up to the hype. It was a wonderful second chance, childhood best friends-to-lovers romance. Blake’s and Elliot’s story was written with a sensitivity and depth that distinguishes it from the standard hockey romance. Even though it’s short (250 pages), the characterization is great and the relationship is fully developed. Don’t expect much steam going into this; there’s only one sex scene and some kissing.

[Cyndi (hiatus) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading slump averted! I loved this book so much. After a recent series of not so great reads, this was a balm for my soul. I always favor stories that are as much about life as they are about love, and Elliot and Blake's story was exactly that. In my opinion, if you liked Between the Teeth, you'll probably like this book too. It's like its less steamy, less angsty cousin.

[Carly · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book so much more than I actually did. I wanted it to be a romance novel, and even though if you wanted to pretend something happens in this book, I guess it's a romance, but it hit none of the beats a romance novel is supposed to have. I've read the author's other works, which are released serially, and this type of story works better serially, because if there's no high-highs or low-lows in a 1,000 word chunk, it doesn't feel off, and if you're reading little chunks at a time spread out over weeks you never really notice that nothing is happening and you just enjoy each snippet for what it is. All at once, it felt like a long slog to me.

[ivy · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️ Cloud has a way of writing that makes you feel like a voyeur to the characters lives but also so involved with them at the same time. I leave every book she writes feeling attached to and missing the characters so much (side characters included).

Romantic scenes are not graphic but very tasteful. You get the idea of what’s happened/happening in the bedroom but not the step by step.

This was a slow burn, going through the careers and time of the MCs live while they play for the NHL on separate teams. They had a relationship in their youth that they gave up for their careers but stay in touch throughout the seven years trying to stay friends. It feels very realistic. It’s not a book to rush through or action packed and it is not your traditional MM romance formula. It’s heavy on the hockey but the longing for the relationship is felt throughout. So many butterflies whenever the MCs think about or interact with each other.

”But now he’s right there in very tight jeans and a very tight black shirt, with his hair in a bun, and then there’s the eyes and the tattoos and it’s… a lot.”

The visuals……

I only wish the ending left me with a little more closure. It’s a real life happy, not storybook HEA.

If you have read Cloud books before, you know what to expect in writing style and tone. She is a consistent writer.

Nice to get glimpses of Noah in this book and looking forward now more than ever to reading his story in Love and Other Inconveniences.

[Rhode PVD · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked how this took its time. It felt like tubing down a slow, smooth river on a long, lazy summer afternoon. The angst is lowish as are the smexy details. The emphasis is on friendship- between teammates as well as the two leads.

Also yay, bisexuals are a thing. None of that creepy gay-for-you bullshit.

In an anxious world, this calm, friendly and long was what I needed to read. I’m only sorry we still have male sports where everyone’s so scared of coming out. It feels like a time warp and not a welcome one.

[Georgie-who-is-Sarah-Drew · Rating 2 out of 5]

Did I mention I'm an accountant? Yes, my fascination with figures brings all the boys to my yard (or 91.44 cm). Which means that when I read a book billed as a romance, and that book is (roughly) 97,889 words long, I'm thinking to myself, "I wonder what proportion of this book is dedicated to the tender development of the MCs' burgeoning relationship."

And sometimes, I actually work it out.

It's not often as low as 28.9%*, though. It's not often I read a book which is 70% reporting game statistics or MCs having cheerful sex with other people for years. It's not often I labour through to the last 0.5% for the HEA pay-off, and find it isn't there.

I'm not sure what this book is, but it isn't a romance.

*A grand total of just 28,359 words where MCs are talking to each other and/or in the same place. This includes group scenes.

[Mir · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was so hard to rate. SO HARD.

I adore this writing style. I love it so much. I love stories like this that span so, so many years. I found the story started off extremely strong, and didn’t fizzle out too much. I also found it very similar to Taylor Fitzpatrick’s You Could Make a Life, but without quite as endearing of main characters with obviously separate personalities. I have some big complaints that ended with my lower rating, but I don’t want it to seem like this is a bad book, because it’s not. It’s lovely, but the things that bothered me really bothered me because this book could’ve been so much better.

First off, the main characters’ voices were identical. I often was unsure of who’s head we were supposed to be in.

Second, there’s no sex scenes. Or at least, the one that was there was nearly fade to black. I don’t understand how I keep ending up reading romances without sex scenes. Personally, I find them pretty necessary, even in a story like this where the characters are clearly so madly in love. Their love for each other, especially from Blake, was popping off the pages. I love stories like that, but it feels unfinished without those scenes to me. At first, I thought the author was being kind by fading to black when the MCs had sex with other characters. Nope.

Third, the MCs are barely together the entire book. Finally, you think they’re going to get together! But no, they need TIME. To decide what they WANT. Which is fair, because being in a gay relationship while playing in the NHL is HUUUUGE and I don’t want to have books stop with the “Shoulder Check” (as a gay author’s blog recently described to me) where gay men have to be cautious because they are not fully accepted and are not always safe. I just would’ve hoped they would’ve made their decision much s sooner than ~97% into the book.

Fourth, the MCs are, and I haven’t done the math on this so don’t quote me, essentially in a relationship (ish) with other people for half the story! I appreciate a healthy dose of angst but good god. Reading some other reviews it seems this was released in episodes originally on AO3 which makes sense because this probably wouldn’t have been as awful that way.

The ending, well, it was so abrupt. And kind of sad. It was a HFN, with some painful thoughts. Now am I going to read her other books? Yes, of course. Noah was such a fucking delight I have to see how his story goes. I have to see if Elliot and Blake come out. I need to know. All the secondary characters in this story were so fantastic I need to know more about all of them. But I really the future books are a bit more explicit, etc.

[Marthea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rany, powinnam coś napisać, bo książkę skończyłam już w niedzielę późnym wieczorem (no dobra, w nocy z niedzieli na poniedziałek 😜), ale tak trudno mi się zebrać - i to nie dlatego, że książka była zła (wręcz przeciwnie), tylko dlatego, że jestem już w 1/3 następnej historii Catherine Cloud 😁

Po pierwsze - jeżeli ktokolwiek się za to zabierze kiedyś, to NAJPIERW trzeba przeczytać właśnie ten tom - jako pierwszy. Popełniłam strategiczny błąd i przeczytałam jako pierwszą książkę tej autorki Love & Other Inconveniences, co było błędem. Bo Noah, który jest jednym z MC w "Love...", tutaj jest mocnym drugoplanowym bohaterem. I pokazuje, że jest dobrym, uczciwym i godnym szacunku facetem, przed którym można tylko ściągać czapki z głów. I któremu potem można tylko kibicować 💙

Po drugie - to świetna książka. Młodzieńcza pierwsza miłość - choć żaden z głównych bohaterów by tego tak nie nazwał. Przynajmniej wtedy. Lata, przez które nas autorka prowadzi, to przyjaźń i pierwsza miłość; trudny wybór między miłością i karierą; przyjaźń, która przygasa; przyjaźń, która się odradza; miłość, która cały czas gdzieś tam się tli i w końcu rozkwita, bo nie było jak już się przed nią bronić... Piękne pokazanie uczucia, które nigdy tak naprawdę nie wygasło - przeżyło innych partnerów, wybór kariery, złość na siebie, brak kontaktu... Wszystko cicho, spokojnie, niepostrzeżenie - jak w Love & Other Inconveniences 💙

Po trzecie - książki tej autorki, wg mnie, są ABSOLUTNIE niedocenione. Ale to pewnie dlatego, że bohaterami są ludzie, a nie seks 😜

I pewnie mogłabym pisać, i pisać, ale Adrian Bradley's Best Mistake mnie wzywa 😁

[Arta reads at night · Rating 5 out of 5]

5⭐️
So much denial and pining in denial. But also, so much tenderness.

I just love the way this author crafts her books.
This slow progression, gentle time skipping that feels just right. The tactful way the author lets boys be boys and then lets them to grow up. Slowly, painfully, earnestly unfurl into the adults who can admit their feelings to themselves and to each other.
Secondary characters are absolutely awesome too 💗

[Bekka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rounded up to five because – although I was so anxious in the last ten percent because of not being quite sure how it would end and the final five percent being somewhat rushed for me – I loved this.
The writing, the romance, the pining, the loneliness, the smiles, the future I see for them so very clearly - this is a romance even though, maybe even because, it hurts! Beautifully written and although I don't understand hockey I felt like this author very clearly did. Cannot wait to try out the other books by Catherine Cloud (I spotted Noah has a story! yay!) and maybe a bonus epilogue somewhere... :D

Quotes

"He just can't call and say something that sounds too much like I miss you. It's been a year. How does this still hurt?" (p. 19)

"Everything is going well. His grandma adopts a ginormous orange kitten and the next time Blake is on the same ice as Elliot, he almost wants to skate to the center line and wave him over to tell him, but then he remembers that Elliot didn't reply to his text and the beginning of the season, which either means that Elliot changed his number and didn't tell Blake, or Elliot saw his text and decided not to reply. Either way, Elliot has made it pretty clear that he doesn't want to talk to him. Okay, so, the hockey part of his life is going well." (p. 96)

Oh goodness, these sadbois™ kept breaking my heart.

"...after games he's usually not in the mood to play masterchef, but he wants to hang out with Blake. So he tells Blake there's a restaurant he wants to try and then spends an hour finding a restaurant he actually does want to try." (p. 178)

"Elliot kisses him before he pulls on his coat, then kisses him again before he buttons it, then kisses him one more time before Blake leaves, gently squeezing Elliot's hand before he goes. Three kisses, because three has always been his lucky number, and when he was seventeen there was nothing as lucky as kissing Blake Samuels." (p. 228)

"'Do you need both your hands?' Elliot asks. Blake snorts. 'What?' 'Can I borrow one?' Elliot asks, which is, admittedly, a very strange way of asking someone to hold your hand, but Blake doesn't comment on it, just takes one hand off the wheel and holds it out to Elliot, and Elliot takes it with both his hands, lacing their fingers together." (p. 295)

Okay, I'll stop now.

NSFW infos:
- Two men from the ages of eighteen to twenty-four. One bisexual, one gay, both closeted. Basically fade to black.

[Rox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three kisses, because three has always been his lucky number, and when he was seventeen there was nothing as lucky as kissing Blake Samuels.

The yearning!!! I could absolutely not put this one down.
I definitely think fans of Taylor Fitzpatrick will love this and would wholeheartedly recommend.
The hockey was prominent and a large focus and I swear I felt some of those losses. I loved Elliot and Blake as main characters and their journeys, separately and together. Wonderful side characters.

Cannot wait to see more from this author!

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded down because I enjoyed it less than Love and Other Inconveniences. I liked the premise of this story a lot - two hockey players have a thing as teenagers but allow the real world to pull them apart, life goes on but they can never quite shake the other, and eventually find their way back to each other again. I liked the characters, especially the cats, liked that we get a dual POV. But the big problem with this book is that there's a lot of telling, things are just told to us without stopping in the scene, big events and important moments are just sentences that pass by. I felt like the MCs spent way too little time together on-page for a book of this length. It could have been an amazing story, much more immediate and visceral if Cloud had spent a bit more time showing us things rather than this endless narration. I didn't dislike it at all, but do feel a little cheated.

[Gillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

I think this will be a comfort read in years to come. It’s a slow-paced, low heat love story that doesn’t break your heart or fill it with angst: it just cradles it gently. And I don’t know about anyone else, but my heart can use a lot of cradling these days and this book was enormously comforting.

[Ele · Rating 4 out of 5]

*4.5 stars*

I don't think this author is for everyone but her work is definitely growing on me. It makes sense that she's also on ao3, her books remind me so much of You Could Make a Life. I just wish we got more solid endings.

[Tare · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rating - 4.5 Stars

This was my first Catherine Cloud and I was living my best life. The hockey content, the details 👌 My Canadian ass was living her best life.

Blake and Elliot are childhood friends/teammates. They had a “relationship” when they were younger that had an unspoken expiration date of the day they got drafted into the NHL.

This book follows their careers and their lives as they try to move on. They chose their careers (because we all know that unfortunately the NHL is not exactly a place you willingly want to be out in even in 2024) but ultimately they were each others’ first love and the one that is hard to forget. This is a slow burn as they navigate their breakup, then spend years apart, being with other people, etc. and finally reconnecting as friends and then more.

I absolutely adored the side characters. I am not going to lie - Mattie and Blake’s relationship made me tear up a couple times. The plot revolving around Blake’s grandma really made me super emotional too.

The only reason this isn’t a 5 star completely is that the ending felt rushed and while it is realistic with their professions and the still ongoing homophobia in the NHL we only got a HFN for these two (very reminiscent of the ending of Heated Rivalry) and I could've at least used a smooshy epilogue of them vacationing or something - being grossly happy in a few years down the road.

I also wouldn’t have said no to some smut here but that doesn’t deter me from enjoying a book - just would have been nice. I had to really use my imagination lol.

I can’t wait to read more by Catherine Cloud and I already have Noah’s book downloaded and on my TBR for January.

[clear skies · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really love finding these indie authors.

Again, my favourite trope has to be sports in MM books. This one is more of a coming of age book (which I have come to avoid as an adult).

Elliott and Blake have known each other since they were teenagers. Both knew that hockey was to be there whole lives. So they make a pack once they’re drafted their teen romance comes to an end. They cannot and will not risk their careers for a relationship.

The thing is both of them spend years knowing that they are and have always been in love with each other.

This book spans years and we see both men grow within their careers, friendships, teams and relationships. However, they’re never far from each other as well. The book shows you both men’s lives without each other rather than with each other. They are both in the NHL and in the prime of their careers, so for them the hostile environment for gay or bisexual athletes is not worth coming out.

The book is written well and I pretty much read it in one go. It takes some skill to make a book romantic when the leads aren’t actually in a romantic relationship. It’s a very star crossed lover feeling (another genre I am not a fan off).

I didn’t like the end. I don’t like open ended stories, I don’t like the abruptness of the end. I think I’ve read way too many MM books that this might just be my spoilt nature of getting an ending. I don’t think the majority will have an issue with it, but I felt like as a reader I was owed “more” that that end. It’s a pretty long book, but again this might just me wanting something over what was actually needed for the story.

Overall, good book and a nice addition to the genre.

[Rynn Yumako · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was kinda hoping that this book was going to be just as amazing as Love & Other Inconveniences. And guess what? IT WAS. Thank God for that, I really needed this.

I loved this book just as much as that one - this is a not a series, but it still takes place in the same universe and many characters from that book make an appearance in this one (Noah and Morgan, my babies :))))

I still know almost nothing about hockey, but this author writes hockey scenes so well, I feel like I'm there, and I've never had an issue with getting bored with any of it. And let's be honest, there's a lot of hockey here. Like a ton. And that's great :)

Everything was just so beautifully done, and even though for about the first half of the book, the MCs weren't even speaking to each other, I never lost hope that they would find each other again. They matured and changed so much throughout the book (seven years! holy balls!) and I loved reading about every step they took along the way.

Lovely read, definitely rereading these books again sometime in the future!

[Terri · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unexpectedly, all the mentions of Twitter in this three year old book made me sad. Billionaires ruin everything.

Overall, this was adequate.

There is too much hockey. The author improved this formula greatly in subsequent novels, I'm happy to report, along with pacing and differentiating characters. That was a serious issue for me in this novel--these two MC's were so similar I could not tell them apart without names. They get a little different by the end, but for this to be a good story, it needs one heck of an edit. It apparently started out as A03 fic, chapters released over time. That explains the issues but not why it didn't get a better edit before the novel release. Additionally, I wished there was more than a single blank line and the first paragraph-zero indent to indicate a change in scene, because that did not help.

But, the last scene in chapter 7 is one of the best 'nope, can't tell the truth' scenes I've read, and I've read many. Also, the girlfriend is handled well. I was pleased with that. And, I enjoyed where it ends. It felt more realistic than many romances, without being too iffy or too goopy. You can tell the author has the chops to do better work, and she has.

[X · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel like I have to caveat this by saying I’m giving it a lower 4 stars then Love and Other Inconveniences - I found it slower to get started and the characterizations to be less distinct, although fwiw I think it’s probably also just personal preference because I prefer Morgan and Noah to Blake and Elliot in both of these two books haha.

I enjoyed this is as a second chance romance with no time jumps/flashbacks - you get all the stuff in between. I find that monotony of daily life thing very soothing.

And I really like the ending-in-the-middle thing both of these books have going on. It’s great! The flip in terms of which one was expected to have success and which one actually does, and the choice to basically not “resolve” that, was great as well.

[Jax · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is done in a weird removed monotonous voice. And I was completely taken by surprise when a friend tells Elliot he’s “the happiest, sunshiniest person I know”. What?? From what I could tell he’s glum and serious and totally focused on hockey. Then the same friend questions Elliot’s friendship with Blake because “you’re all sunshine and he’s all…gloom and murder eyes”. Again, what?? If anything I thought Elliot was the grouch. Then the payoff at the end was not enough after all the time apart.

[G_occasionally_reads (semihiatus because ugh life) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Blake and Elliot together are wholesome 😍

🏒 sports romance (hockey dah)
❄️ second chance romance
🏒 lovers-to-friends-to-lovers (sorta)
❄️ found family
🏒 dual POV (third person)
❄️ steam: 🧖🏼‍♂️🧖🏼‍♂️ (limited)
🏒 it’s sad how Elliot treated Natalie as a placeholder (although he did try) and sadder that I did not care much 😵‍💫