Sometimes the books that make me feel the most, that keep me enthralled and won’t let me go, are the ones I have the hardest time writing a review for. I think it’s because they are so amazing it seems wrong to try to put the way they make me feel into mere words. I’m finding this to be the case with Sawyer Bennett’s latest Cold Fury novel. I know what you’re thinking…this is a sports romance! I can’t help it, it is what it is.

After a one night stand, Stephanie and Lucas are faced with a huge life changing situation. In complete accord of how to deal with it they decide to become friends with benefits. Lucas comes from a home of love and acceptance while Stephanie has never seen what love looks like. Their differences in this area become more blatant as their relationship evolves into something deeper and definitely not casual.

I’ve read a lot of books where one of the characters was abused as a child, but I’ve seldom felt such a deep empathy for them as I did for Stephanie. The fact that she came from a wealthy home and was completely ignored her whole life just lodged a knot in my chest. She had spent her lifetime building a protective armor around her. In addition, she never had anyone to guide or direct her in life’s journey. Every decision she made was based on these facts.

Lucas was a great hero, well, until he did that one thing. He was laid back, fun, patient, kind and caring. Everything a woman would want. He was also the type of man that one day wanted it all. Love, wife, home, children. Everything. Unfortunately, Stephanie will not be able to be the person to help him achieve his dreams.

This is a fast paced, steamy read with the last portion being extremely angsty. The hero does a couple of things I took exception to but while that bothered me, it’s more than likely something about the heroine is going to bother you. The epilogue was not about this couple but sets us up for the next book, Van. And I cannot wait!

My honest review is for a special copy from NetGalley that I voluntarily read.

Dual POV
Safety Gang – not safe
Possible triggers – emotional neglect

I love sports romances, specifically hockey, and Sawyer Bennett's Cold Fury series never disappoints! Lucas is book 8 in the interconnected series and though it can be read as a stand alone, it would be best enjoyed if read in order since prior characters are mentioned or appear in the story.

I thought Lucas and Stephanie's relationship was both realistic and refreshing. Most stories have the hero as the closed off and commitment phobic character, but this time around it was the heroine. Stephanie definitely had some heavy baggage from her past, and my heart broke for her as the painful details emerged. Her hot and cold behavior sometimes gave me whiplash, but she was so fiercely independent and guarded that I both admired her grit and felt sad for her. It was such a stark contrast to the happy go lucky, wear my heart on my sleeve Lucas. He may have started the book off as a manwhore, but it quickly became apparent that there was much more to the new Cold Fury player. Sure he made some mistakes along the way, but so did Stephanie and that's what made their relationship so relatable. Their connection is undeniable though and I loved their playful banter and chemistry. Will it be enough though to navigate the unexpected turn of events and convince Stephanie to let down her walls and give them a real chance at love?

I'm excited that there's another Cold Fury book in the works, because mysterious Van has got me all kinds of curious! Add in my love for the Fournier family and the oldie but goodie best friend's little sister trope and I'm sold! Can't wait for more!

*I voluntarily read an advance reader copy of this book*

4 1/2 Stars! I love this Cold Fury series!

Lucas is Max Fournier's little brother and he follows in his big brother's footsteps at being a great hockey player. But while Max is a one woman man and has found his happily ever after, Lucas is all about fun and games and one night stands. He doesn't plan on settling down anytime soon. When he meets Stephanie, he has found his match as she is just like him ... looking for that one night stand and staying far away from relationships. But as luck would have it, the condom breaks and a month later Stephanie finds out she's pregnant. Lucas being the standup guy that he is, takes his responsibility seriously and supports Stephanie in any way she'll let him. Their attraction to one another is undeniable and soon they start a friends with benefits relationship. After all what can it hurt, she's already pregnant and neither one of them want a permanent relationship.

Their journey will make you laugh at their crazy antics, get hot flashes from the steamy scenes, and make you swoon at their unintentional tenderness. At first I got the impression that Lucas is not like his big brother Max at all, but it doesn't take long and you realize that Lucas is just as romantic as Max. As for Stephanie's parents ... I just wanted to shake them so they could wake up and see the beautiful thoughtful daughter they had, despite their behaviour. Now isn't that what a great book does ... make you feel!

I received an ARC copy courtesy of Random House - Loveswept through NetGalley on exchange for a honest review

Lucas and Stephanie's story started with a hot one night hook up but evolved into a emotional sex filled, one in a life time romance with a fertile surprise. Stephanie brings a lot of childhood baggage into the relationship but Lucas is just the man to help her get past it. I enjoyed their story but it had an abrupt ending with the last chapter setting up the next book in the series.


I received a per-publication copy of this book from the publisher & NetGalley for review purposes.

I received an email from Loveswept giving me this arc as a thank-you for reading and reviewing some of the other books in the Cold Fury Hockey series and I was so so surprised and happy because I didn't even request it and it was just nice to receive it! I love this series so much and I'm very lucky to receive early copies for some of the books!

I loved this book, it was awesome! Lucas and Stephanie were great characters, even though Stephanie kinda got on my nerves a little bit, I understood where she was coming from and I liked seeing her development throughout the book. Lucas was such a caring and kind guy, he totally made me swoon! This also had one of my fave tropes so the whole book had me giddy!

I'm super excited for Van's book, I need it asap!!!!

Lucas Fournier has one thing in mind, and that is to play the best hockey and hopefully win the cup playing along side his brother. Attending a charity gala at a museum is not fun in his mind, but when he meets the sexy curator, Stephanie, his night starts looking up.
Stephanie loves the work she does at the museum and working the gala is special. Meeting famous hockey star Lucas, is a plus, going home with him, well that is just pleasure. Specially when it becomes the best sex of her life. However, when his condom rips, she doesn't take any chances and goes to her doctor the next day to take the morning after pill. Then she finds out she's pregnant.
Lucas has never forgotten the sexy curator and when he runs into her and she drops the pregnant bomb, he's speechless. When he tells her that he wants to be a part of her pregnancy and make sure that the baby is never in need for anything, at first Stephanie is against the idea, but how can she deny him when he's the father.
As they get to know each other, sparks fly and what starts out as friendship, becomes something else.
I loved this book. Sawyer Bennett is one of my favorite authors and I always look forward to reading her new releases!

A bit of a role reversal with Lucas and Stephanie. Yes they were both into the one night stand concept but friends with benefits was her idea. Lucas, ultimate fun guy with strong family background, wants much more than she offers. Stephanie, fiercely independent due to how she was raised, is struggling with the concept that someone can love her. It's truly sad and heartbreaking to read about her past and the walls she built. Love how Bennett manages to break down our preconceived ideas of hockey players, or any athlete, and give us real gentlemen. Her female characters are what make the story warm, funny and relatable. Always happy to get an advanced copy from Netgalley, my review was written voluntarily.

Sawyer Bennett's Cold Fury Hockey series has always been one of my favorites. Lucas, however, was not. I like the premise of the story and liked that Lucas was a stand up guy when Steph told him she was pregnant. He tried to let her know he cared over and over. Steph fell short for me. She could never grasp that people could care for her. I know she had a bad childhood but after he left I was surprised she never missed him enough to do anything about it. It was Lucas who had to go to her again and the 'I love you' from her just didn't ring true or at the very least felt rushed to wrap up the story.

I love Sawyer Bennett. I read all her books, well almost all her books....with the exception of the Wicked Series. I love the romance and the hockey. What I don't like and don't think is necessary is all the sex that is thrown around in novels and then called a book. Not once in this book was there any hockey. There wasn't a description of a hockey game or what goes on in a hockey game. It kind of disappointed me in ways. I loved this whole series, but sex, sex, and more sex doesn't make a plot. Yes, there was a twist and a shocker but I just didn't connect with the story like I hoped I would and I was soooo excited about it. Does that mean that I wouldn't recommend it? Nope. Because a lot of people love the authors books for that reason. It had some good plot points and nailed them but for me personally - I just skimmed over it. I liked seeing Max again and seeing some of the others. The grammar and punctuation were well-done. Don't get me wrong - this was well-written and it was a good book, but I'm just hoping for the author I saw in the for couple books!!

I was given an ARC copy from the publisher/author in exchange for an honest review. All opinions stated are my own and do not reflect anyone else's.

After a night of steamy sex with Stephanie, Lucas' life is about to change just when he was getting on the right track with his new hockey team Carolina Cold Fury. Unfortunately for Lucas, Stephanie has a lot of baggage from her past that gets in the way of things. In the end, love does conquer all.

I have read many books by Sawyer Bennett including the others in this series and this book definitely does not disappoint. It was a great read.

You know a series is brilliant when eight books in you drop everything you are reading to catch up with the hot stars of the Cold Fury series.
This is Lucas Fournier story and he is the newest addition to the team he is also Max's brother, he knows at some point he wants a loving family of his own but not yet he's still loving the life of a single hockey player.
Stephanie Frazier has no room in her life for relationships, well that was until she met Lucas and he started breaking down the walls she has put around herself.
Stephanie is hard character to like and it was only as the story unfolded and I found out why she was so guarded that I really turned my feelings around towards her. I loved how patient Lucas was when dealing with Stephanie, he cared about her and he was going to break that wall down brick by brick.
If you love sports romance and especially hockey this is a must read series, Sawyer Bennett certainly knows how to make you feel part of the Cold Fury gang, I believe book nine is going to be Van's story, now that will be real interesting after all he is so grumpy !!!!

Once again, in Lucas Ms. Bennett takes a fun premise, creates an intriguing story around it, and populates it with interesting, sympathetic, and authentic characters.
Like so many of her protagonists, Lucas was an imperfect but decent guy. You know from meeting his family that he might occasionally do something stupid, but that he will eventually do the right thing once he figures out what that is. And Stephanie was a strong, mostly self-confident, likeable woman - with a few issues that lead to complications. The development of this relationship was so believably written that it was a delight to read, As with many of her books, this story flows so seamlessly it was easy for me to slip into the scene, becoming an invisible observer of the action.
If I had to find a fault, I suppose it would be that I got a little weary of listening to Stephanie!s back and forth with herself about her issues and whether she could sustain a relationship because of them. But with that minor exception, this book contains the perfect blend of drama, humor, lust, romance, and family. If the author bases these characters on people she knows, I want to go to a party at her house!

I love all the Cold Fury men and Lucas is no exception. But...this book fell a little short for me. Stephanie was extremely annoying and there was no chemistry between the two. Her hangs up drove me insane, because Lucas couldn't be more perfect. But don't get me wrong, I LOVE reading Ms. Bennett's books and I still love this series, and am really looking forward for Van's book, because she left us hanging!!

I loved Sawyer Bennett’s Legal Affairs books so wanted to read more of hers. So when I got a chance to read her ARC of Lucas, I began reading the Carolina Cold Fury series. Now I am a hockey playoffs fan and I have gone to hockey games when our state had a team so I knew the basics, but wasn’t sure about reading a series about hockey .I could not get enough of these books. I was hooked. I read the books night and day working up to Lucas. Which brings me to the story of story of Lucas. The book, what can I say, was passionate and endearing. When Luc sets his eyes on the beautiful Stephanie Frazier, the night changes both their worlds.
Sawyer Bennett has great talent as a writer and shows her versatility with her various series. I can’t wait for her next book in the series!

5 star Review Lucas (Cold Fury Hockey #8) by Sawyer Bennett

This is book 8 in the series and another winner for Sawyer Bennett in my humble opinion. These books keep getting better and better. Each time I read a book I think there is no chance that he will become my favourite and yet Sawyer Bennett proves me wrong time and again.

I believe that I may well be in love with the Fournier family.This is Lucas Fournier and Stephanie Frazier’s story and what a complicated story it is.

Now that Lucas has joined his brother’s team the Carolina Cold Fury he is thrilled to be around his family. It is obvious that the Fournier family love and support each other , no matter what and this shines through in Lucas.

When a one night stand with Stephanie becomes complicated Lucas turns to his brother for advice. Not surprisingly his feelings are complicated by the fact that he is immensely attracted to Stephanie, despite her being determined to avoid him.

Lucas is determined to stand by her and do what is right and much to his shock, he finds himself “all in” whilst Stephanie struggles with building a relationship with Lucas. I did get frustrated with Stephanie as she was way more closed off that I felt Lucas deserved given the circumstances.

Although a stand alone, I do feel you would get more enjoyment if you were to read the series in order as many of our favourite couples make an appearance in Lucas. This series is to me a family and I loved catching up on the previous couples and seeing what is happening in their lives.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book through NetGalley from the publisher.

I love a book with perfectly flawed characters and that’s exactly what Sawyer Bennett’s newest release, Lucas, gives readers. The 8th book in Bennett’s Cold Fury Hockey series, Lucas features the brother of goalie Max Fournier and Stephanie Frazier, the wild, red-haired woman he has a one-night stand with. These two characters come together in a blazing fit of chemistry with the notion that they’ll never see each other again. You know what they say about best laid plans…

Lucas is most definitely character-driven, the plot moving Lucas and Stephanie steadily towards their happily ever after. Throughout the story, we see two fairly immature people face the unexpected and do so with surprising strength, a whole lot of stubbornness and, sometimes, a bit of bad temper.

I honestly can’t say which I character I loved more. The title character, Lucas, starts the book as an immature but charming hockey player only concerned with getting the next woman into his bed. He’s new to the Cold Fury and wants desperately to win a Stanley Cup. He’s also a family man, who considers his older brother Max his best friend and talks to his mom before every hockey game. When Stephanie unexpectedly secures a permanent place in his life, he goes after what he wants with her with the same tenacity he does hockey. He’s sweet, he’s gentle, he commanding, and he gives her exactly what she needs. But, the immaturity doesn’t magically go away and that’s what I loved about him. He doesn’t become the perfect guy overnight and though I hated how he let his temper hurt Stephanie, I appreciated Lucas’s flaws.

Stephanie is one damaged woman. Deprived of love throughout her childhood and told over and over she’ll amount to nothing, she’s depended only on herself. She’s outgoing and fun to be around but She. Does. Not. Get. Involved. No friends, no romantic entanglements, no one that can hurt her. When she finds herself as an unexpected member of the Fournier family she has no idea what to do! For Stephanie it’s as if she’s entered an alternate universe that she wants to desperately live in, but has no idea how to allow herself to love this family or Lucas. Through the course of this book, Lucas breaks down her walls with help from his soon-to-be sister-in-law, Jules. I alternated between laughing and crying as Lucas and Stephanie fell in love. While it seemed as though Stephanie would never allow herself to let go, I could completely understand why she wouldn’t.

Together, Stephanie and Lucas are a great couple. They made me laugh so many times with their flirting! This is only my second Cold Fury novel, but I know that they’re going to be one of my favorite couples, even after I read the rest of the series. One of the things that really makes this book standout (and makes me want to read the rest) is the family of characters that Sawyer Bennett has created in it. Max and Jules play a prominent part of Lucas and Bennett uses them as strong, supportive characters rather than just as fillers. Max is there with a shoulder for Lucas to lean on and Jules is a wonderful first friend for Stephanie. One of my favorite parts of the book is a phone call between Lucas and his mom. As an older reader, this call hit me right in the heart as I easily imagined this conversation with my own son.

I couldn’t recommend this book more! Even if you’ve never read a single book in this series I can tell you it’s easily a standalone. 4.5 stars for Lucas. Heat level: 3.5

3.5 Stars!

❝Best. Hookup. Ever.❞

Lucas Fornier is the brother of Max. He came from a loving, supportive family. Lucas enjoyed being the center of attention, his world was full of friends and women. However, due to a past relationship where his girlfriend saw only dollar signs when she looked at him, one night stands were better than relationships. He loves hockey and is always up for a great time.  He hadn't been with the Cold Fury hockey team for long when he was invited to a benefit at a local museum. Counting down the minutes til he could leave the benefit, a redheaded beauty catches his attention. Not only is she gorgeous, she's funny and fun to be around.  But she's also every single guy's dream. She doesn't want a relationship, she just wants a great, one-night-stand!

Museum curator Stephanie Frazier has learned to navigate the world on her own.  She's strong-willed, a hard worker and single. She came from parents who treated her as if she was a burden. Never having been shown she was worthy of love, she learned to not trust anyone could love her for simply being her. She learned to live her life solely dependent upon herself. She enjoyed men, of the one-night-stand variety.

❝For someone who craved to just be noticed for so long and never got it, sex filled a big void for me. And the best thing about casual sex was that I could walk away if I wanted, because I found that I really wasn't prepared for something more than a brief fling. Anything else was too overwhelming.❞

A great pair right? Neither wants a long term commitment, both enjoy sex. What could go wrong?

What I really loved about this book was getting Lucas's and Stephanie's POVs. It made Lucas that much more endearing. Lucas really is a great guy! Getting Stephanie's POV helped to understand her reactions a little more. She was not written as a likable character because she's standoffish from the start. But that is her character, not a flaw in the writing.

I have enjoyed this series and Lucas was no exception. While it wasn't a 5-star read, I did like it. It was just slow for me in parts and the internal dialogue dragged down the pacing.

Something Sawyer Bennett does really well is she makes you want to read the next book in the series. That Epilogue! OMG! I hope Van lives up to it!

<i>Did you know it's statistically impossible for a professional hockey player not to get laid if he feels like it? Why would I ever give that up?</i>

I've said it before (see review for <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1839554136">MAX</a>, see again review for <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1963905954">ROMAN</a>) but this time I mean it. I'm done with the <i>Cold Fury Hockey</i> series. What I remember as being a really great, fun, sexy, enjoyable, sports romance series has really taken a sharp downward turn that immediately coincided with terrible cover-style changes. Coincidence? I think not.

<i>[..] I'm not afraid of fucking anything except perhaps intimacy and love.</i>

LUCAS features two leads I didn't care for; one from a wealthy but neglectful home who prides herself on independence and yet contradicts herself constantly regarding her feelings and her lack of them, and who, upon her epiphany towards the self-titled character, didn't inspire any relief in me for finally coming to terms with things. I just rolled my eyes. 'nough said. The other, Lucas, well.. he was both the kind of guy who would give you the shirt off his back if you needed it (aww) and yet would also throw childish temper tantrums (not so aww). Any good in him was often being negated by his other actions. But Stephanie was definitely, in my opinion, the worst of the two offenders.

<i>Just because I totally freaked out on him and we're no longer together doesn't mean I don't still care for him.</i> <-- after telling him she had no feelings. I wish I was making this up, kiddies.

If the leads weren't bad enough, we have a minefield of questionable dialogue, poorly executed emotional scenes and even more immature or frustrating/annoying secondary characters -- though I did like seeing Max and Jules & co in the background -- and I just, overwhelmingly, felt like this story had been produced in a rather half-assed manner with little effort.

<i>A knock at the door startles me and I know it's Luc, not because I don't have any family or friends who would come knocking**, but because I have an internal buzzing*** that just occurred and my body knows it's him.</i>

** except even at twentyfive percent we already know enough to know she has no family or friends who would come knocking so I don't understand the point of this.
*** I can only sigh.

But even Max, and the briefest mention of Garrett, are not enough to redeem this read (which is probably a meh two-star worthy book but I just can't even award it that much considering all my complaints) or stick with a series I've questioned continuing for over two books now. And knowing it's Simone and Van who are next just solidifies my resolve. Thanks for the fun early on in the series, Bennett. But we are definitely now parting ways. This is me consciously uncoupling from your books.

Also, shoutout to all the book buddies who held my hand through this read. I sent you enough screenshots that you should definitely add this one to your 'read' pile and count it towards your GR goal.

1.5 "Bennett, we are never ever ever getting back together" stars

I would like to thank Netgalley and Loveswept for gifting me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sigh… nothing better than a hockey romance. I have read a few of the other books in this series but not them all but it was very easy to pick up and not be lost. I love that you can read these as standalones. I would recommend reading them all and I have some catching up to do myself on this series.

Stephanie is a hard case. I wasn’t sure if I liked her in the beginning and I find myself “yelling” at her throughout the book to let her guard down. As the story continued and I learned more of her story I could understand the reason she is cold and distant and it helped me to warm to her.

Lucas was the typical, playboy, not looking for a relationship hockey player. So already he is doomed to fall in love. Once he decides what he wants he is all in and goes after what he wants and that includes Stephanie.

The two main characters were up and down to me. Sometimes I was drawn to them and sometimes they irritated the heck out of me. Sometimes I like them together and sometimes I wanted them to hang this relationship up. It was like when the relationship was good it was really good and when it was bad it was ugly.

All in all it was a good, fast read. Loved the ending – yes it is a HEA. I’m really excited for Van’s book that is up next. I’m rooting for Simone!!

Unfortunately I couldn't get into this one. I had a hard time connecting with the characters and because of that I couldn't get into the story. I appreciate the review copy, but because I was unable to finish the book, I will not be reviewing.