The Game Changer Paperback – July 9, 2024

Pretty fun read. Loved the confidence of the FMC. The male lead was a total green flag. No relationship drama just family drama.

This was very cute! A cheesy, hallmark-y hockey romance with a little soap opera moment towards the end. It’s a quick read and perfect if you’re wanting a palette cleanser. It’s slow burn in the fake dating but when it becomes real then there’s lots of spice!Read this if you’re in the mood for…- brothers best friend/childhood best friends- fake dating for good publicity- baker x hockey player- teammate banter- dual pov- no third act break upThis was very easy to read! It jumps right into the story and is fully focused on their relationship with a couple other side plots/conflicts along the way. I think this is a standalone but I could see other stories about teammates as well!Here are a few of my favorite things…- the baking show bits are cute!- the epilogue is adorable! Love the full circle moments- I’m glad telling her brother they were actually together wasn’t dragged out and dramaticI wasn’t super attached to the characters so I’m not sure if this will be a on my frequently recommended list but I still enjoyed it!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/🌶️🌶️🌶️ It feels like a really long time since I gave a hockey romance the rating of five stars.. The best way to describe it is that this book was so wholesome. It was full of love, all kinds of love, and no unnecessary drama or miscommunication between our leads, Ian and Delilah. Everyone was mature, they all acted like adults, except for that terrible father of Ian. I especially loved how Delilah finally got to achieve those teenage dreams she was gushing about too, and yes, being an adult in my 30s, you do tend to look back on your teen years with fondness and wonder. I tend to do it too and reminisce sometimes when I see the youth around me growing up. So Delilah’s long lasting crush was finally fulfilled and it made me so happy for them to finally be together, despite all the social media problems they faced. Another favorite scene of mine was the panic attack and the way it was addressed, I thought it was done really well and I even cried a bit, it was intense. I highly recommend this if you’re looking for a mature hockey romance, brother’s best friend, friends to lovers, a sunshine fmc, a cinnamon roll mmc, fake dating, found family, self-love, friendship and family love, baking, cuddling, and a secret child. I didn’t realize it until I finished reading, but this was exactly the kind of hockey romance I’ve been waiting for in a long time.

3.75 starsThis book took a whole lotta tropes and just threw them against the page to see what stuck. We have brother’s best friend, fake dating, childhood crush, and on and on it goes. Though this story was cute, I didn’t get some of the drama. It seemed like there were almost too many details but some different exactly connect. Like the scandalous pictures that caused such backlash for Ian he was forced to transfer to another hockey team for 6 years. They sounded pretty tame considering some of the jokes and spice through the book. Also, why had Ian not interacted with players on other teams for those 6 years even though they were all actively playing?Overall, the romance was sweet. The spice was spicin’. But the drama was hole-y.

This was like a sweet, chill romance kind of like a Hallmark movie you’d absently watch when you can’t find anything & discover you actually enjoyed it.I liked Ian & Lila’s characters and their love story but there wasn’t really a big twist or drama that happened for me anyway. I kinda guessed what was going on & when things blew up, it didn’t feel like such a big deal. Nevertheless, it was a good read & I like how LF writes. Great palate cleanser book :)3.5⭐️3🌶️

The Game Changer was a fun, low stakes romance between two childhood friends who were immensely attracted to each other. You have your classic brothers best friend trope: long term pining FMC x MMC who spent most of his time oblivious to the crush, until suddenly he wakes up one day and realizes what’s been in front of him the whole time. Delilah and Ian had it bad for each other and it was a good time watching them figure out how to deal with it. It’s not often that we see a PR relationship romance (baking show host FMC x pro hockey player MMC) between two people who are already halfway gone for each other, and that made this all the more enjoyable!I also loved the side story relating to Ian’s past and how it all played out. If you’re looking for a quick read filled with humor, great spice, and characters who know exactly what they want from each other, then this is a perfect silly romance for you 🩷I’d highly recommend the audiobook for this one as well, the narrators did a great job!!! I finished this one in one sitting and loved every minute 💕

🏒 Hockey Player & Baker / TV Personality🧁 Friends to Lovers🏒 Brother’s Best Friend🧁 Fake Dating🏒 Dual POV🧁 Slow Burn🏒 Mutual PiningREVIEW: There is just something about the circumstances created in a fake dating romance — the so-called pretend intimacy, forced proximity and slow burn realization that the relationship isn’t so fake after all. This book has so many tropes that I love — hockey, fake dating, brother’s best friend, mutual pining?! Don’t mind if I do!This book is a true childhood friends to lovers story that has a nice mixture of mild angst, banter, drama and a few spicy scenes. I did feel that the FMC’s brother kind of stole the show in the chapters that he appeared and deserves his own book. Overall, I had a good time reading this book.