I've never watched a hockey game in my life, but I love books about hockey players. Because HOCKEY PLAYERS. No explanation required.

Scott Hunter is a closeted star hockey player, team captain, and a celebrity in New York. His team is having an amazing season, but he's not bringing his A game. One day, he stops by a smoothie shop and orders a blueberry concoction. The smoothie is good, but the guy who makes the smoothie is even better.

Kip is 25 and has an undergrad degree in history. He has no real direction and hates his menial job, but doesn't seem motivated to do much else. Kip is a cutie: sweet, snarky, and utterly obsessed with the hot hockey player who loves blueberry smoothies.

Scott and Kip jump into a relationship very quickly and have out-of-this-world chemistry. The conflict stems from Scott's unwillingness to come out. Kip doesn't push, not initially, but once Scott's team goes into the playoffs, he starts to feel like an accessory in Scott's life.

I became frustrated with both MCs as the story progressed: Scott adores Kip, but his fear of coming out makes Kip feel like a dirty secret. Kip, on the other hand, gives too much of himself without asking for anything in return, and when it becomes too much, he runs instead of sitting Scott down and talking.

I have to admit that the first half of Game Changer dragged a little for me. The MCs jump into bed almost immediately and never come up for air. I scream for steam, so it pains me to say this, but *whispers* there was perhaps too much sex in this story. At times, it felt like filler.

The story picked up in the second half, as I became more invested in the men's relationship, which doesn't exist in a vacuum. There's an actual world outside of Scott's bedroom.

The secondary characters are very well sketched, and the camaraderie Scott has with his team is heartwarming. I loved Scott's best friend Carter who teases relentlessly because he cares, as well as Kip's friends Elena and Maria, who are hilarious.

The angst is fairly minimal. At one point, Scott has to deal with a destructive teammate, but that story line didn't go anywhere. Kip's family is super supportive (Kip's dad for the win!), as are Scott's close friends.

Some readers might find Scott and Kip's interactions to be sugar-shock inducing, but I love that kind of stuff. Close-to-perfect relationships do exist in real life, and it's nice to see two well adjusted men who don't shy away from commitment.

Includes: banter, lots of dirty talk, a public kiss that changes everything, humor, and a hopeful HEA. I see the potential for a fun series and would definitely read another book by Rachel Reid in the future.

Athletes are know for their superstitions and when closeted Scott, a hockey player, finds himself having a great game on the ice he owes it all to the smoothie he had right before the game. But when he also catches the eye of the cute smoothie maker, Kip, the superstition takes on the life of its own. But will Scott come out of the closet and show the world that he is gay and in love? Or will the relationship stay behind closed doors like a dirty affair? With beautifully written characters and a heartwarming storyline that had me hooked from the opening pages this book should not be missed. This was my first book by this author but I can guarantee this will not be my last.

Seductive, passionate, and timely!

Game Changer is an engrossing, sensuous, sports romance that features the lonely, closeted Scott, and the handsome, fun-loving Kip as they engage in a love affair strife with issues of insecurities, hidden sexuality, and the stigma and stereotypical mentality surrounding professional sports.

The prose is fervent and sincere. The characters are well-drawn, vulnerable, and endearing. And the plot is an alluring tale full of explosive attraction, heartfelt emotion, friendship, family, acceptance, support, palpable chemistry, hockey, and love.

Overall, Game Changer is a provocative, heartwarming story about love, pure and simple, with no labels, no limits, and no regrets. It's a wonderful debut for Reid that is without a doubt one of my favourite MM novels of the year, and I can't wait to read what she comes up with next.