Overall, I liked it! Fun and easy to read. Sometimes I felt it was a bit slow, but overall enjoyable. The romance was cute.

The fact that I didn't like this one hit me a little bit hard. The author's words at the beginning were so powerful that I was absolutely sure I would end up liking it. Sadly when I started ended up seeing that the book was narrated in 3rd person. While I've read some 3rd person-narrated books, I just find it hard to connect with the characters.

I thought this was a cute book, but I didn’t love it as much as I hoped I would. I felt like the book was missing a lot of depth and the plot fell short. I felt like the book dragged on a little longer than necessary. I wasn’t a huge fan of the romance between Kenzie and Aiden, it didn’t feel real in my opinion. I know others loved it, so I recommend checking their reviews out as well!

DNF @ 30% - the writing style really wasn’t for me and the characters just weren’t relatable enough for me to really get into the story

This was my first book by Amanda. I loved this one. She was able to portray anxiety in such a realistic relatable way and I appreciate any author that she’d like on mental health and the importance of it.

Every Rule Worth Breaking by Amanda Chaperson was an enjoyable hockey romance. I love the setting taking place in Michigan. We need more Midwest settings for hockey romances. This romance between Mackenzie and Aiden was fun. I could feel their chemistry build in this fake dating sports romance. I appreciate how the characters navigated the topics of anxiety and grief throughout this story. If you need a new hockey romance to read, look no further!

Thank you, NetGalley and Amanda Chaperon, for this ARC.

It always takes me a little longer to get into a book with third-person narration but when I do I get completely sucked in. I loved the college setting. There was such great detail that I feel like I visited the campus. Just call me a Michigan State fan now. I really enjoyed getting to know Mackenzie and Aiden and loved seeing how their characters evolved personally and as a couple. I was 100% cheering for them. The banter was witty and the spice was spot on. The side characters were just as loveable and charming as the main characters. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

This was so cute and I really enjoyed it!!! This was my first book by this author and I’m really excited to read more!

This book really just took me for a ride. I loved the build up, the character development, and the writing. I would definitely read more from this author!

As a former Michigan State University athlete I love to see a romance set at my alma mater. Fun book. Good rep.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝙍𝙪𝙡𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙙𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙤𝙣, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙧𝙪𝙡𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙗𝙧𝙤𝙠𝙚𝙣.

📍 Read if you like:
• College Hockey
• Fake Dating
• Anxiety Rep
• Lovable Characters

I haven’t read too many sports romances, let alone hockey romances. I didn’t even know what this book was about before going into it. I was pulled in with that cover, and I’m so glad I ended up enjoying this book.

The writing style was fabulous and easy to get invested in. I wanted to keep reading it as it was so heartwarming and fun.

Mackenzie starts a sportswear brand with her brother but isn’t content anymore so goes back to college: Michigan State University. That’s where she meets Aiden at a bar. He’s dared to go on a date with her… and things go from there… *fake dating*

I loved the anxiety representation in this book, I think it was done so well with Kenzie’s character. I was also so excited reading about Aiden and his love for hockey.

There were so many references throughout the book about the college. At times it had me wishing I was experiencing the MSU campus experience.

This was such a surprise of a read. I wasn’t expecting to love it as much as I did, but the characters were just so wholesome to read about. I was rooting for them the whole time! The anxiety rep was also so good! I’ll definitely need to read more from this author and more hockey romances!

Thank you so much NetGalley and the author for the review copy in exchange for my honest review!

•𝗧𝗪/𝗖𝗪: Anxiety, panic attacks/disorders, grief, sexism

I’ll be honest. I did not expect this. From the description I was anticipating something cute and fairly fluffy, but there is DRAMA in this book and it kicked off right from the start. I guess that cartoon covers still fool me sometimes!

So, that said, maybe I wasn’t going in the right mindset going into this. Either way this unfortunately won’t be on my recommendation list. The writing itself was alright outside of a few fumbles that could be easily breezed past. What I really couldn’t get behind was the couple. Both characters were pretty stereotypical and cookie cutter. Even the dialogue fell into patterns I’ve seen and read before. The plot was overblown for the actual conflict and there just wasn’t enough that felt unique about this one to really stick with me.

I gave this book the benefit of the doubt after they have a meet-cute, she doesn't really appear interested and then he hounds her for a date. Partially because he wants one, partially because he was dared by his hockey team. He calls her Bunny, as in Puck Bunny, which is not really the nicest nickname and she grew up around hockey players and has likely heard it in dozens of unflattering ways. And again, she is not the one pursuing him.

I considered DNFing the book when she asked if that line works on all the girls and he makes a comment that none of them are as smart as she is. But, the final one for me was when he was having an emotional conversation about the death of his father and casually drops in a "hope he's getting raped in prison every day" joke. Can we not? I called it at this point.

I hate to do this to an indie author and I'm not putting stars on my review on Goodreads to hurt the average but this was not it.

Thank you to Netgalley for a copy in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are my own.

⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️
𝗞𝗨 𝗥𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲

“I promise you, bunny, I will also be a safe place for you.”

This was a cute and fun romance set in college. FMC Kenzie steps out of her family's comfort zone and goes back to college. She immediately meets hot shot Aidan, who against her rules of dating a hockey player, sweeps her off her feet. The story was nicely paced, and nothing felt rushed as we got to know our two main characters.

I wish the characters had been a bit more developed as they had these wonderful emotionally mature conversations (there was no miscommunication trope in this one), but Kenzie acted immaturely. She has anxiety and her portrayal and struggle on the page was refreshing, but it almost seemed like she created her own problems.

At first Aidan was coming off a bit too arrogant for me, but he did start to grow on me towards the end. Every chapter he’s calling himself good looking or she’s calling him hot. Got it, he’s incredibly good looking. At the root though he was a strong character who wore his heart on his sleeve, and showed up for the people he cared for. He was sweet and tender towards Kenzie, and dedicated to his team.

I actually really loved Aidan’s friend Jack. He was a lovable side character, and a supportive friend. I’m hoping this was a great intro to him so perhaps we’ll see more of him in another book?

Read if you like
🏒Hockey romance
🏒Fake dating
🏒Dual POV
🏒No third act break up
🏒Witty banter
🏒Playboy to boyfriend

Thank you to Amanda Chaperon, Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op, and NetGalley for the eArc in exchange for this review.

Kenzie is 23 and the co-owner of a successful sportswear brand with her brother, the famous hockey player Brent Jean. After dropping out of New York University (NYU) several years earlier after struggling with anxiety, Kenzie is interested in having the full college experience and decides to attend Michigan State University (MSU). Here she meets Aiden, a star hockey player facing down a ten-game suspension after streaking through campus on a dare. Kenzie is reluctant to date a hockey player and Aiden is afraid of letting anyone get in the way of his commitment to his sport. Will the two be able to overcome their hesitations and find their HAE? Obviously, yes.

I liked this one but definitely didn't love it. As a Michigan native who attend The University of Michigan, I enjoyed all of the hyperlocal references, like Briarwood Mall and Ricks. If I hadn't attended a Michigan college, I might have found these references a little unnecessary. For example, the author referred, by name, to the dining hall stations in MSU's dining hall. I also couldn't stand that the main character's nickname in this book was "Bunny", in reference to puck bunny. The book also felt like it was missing some depth - their reasons for not dating weren't very hard to overcome and they didn't seem to really do any work to overcome them. I enjoyed reading this, and it would be a great autumn read, but I wouldn't go out of my way to read it again.

Thanks so much to Amanda Chaperon and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for this ARC. Every Rule Worth Breaking is available now and is free on KU!

This was my first book by Amanda Chaperon and I absolutely loved it! The imagery used allowed me to visualize the college setting and relate it back to my own experiences in college. Kenzie was a beautifully written character who's anxiety allowed for mental health representation to be present in the novel in a very realistic manner. Aiden was wonderful and it was fantastic watching him help Kenzie and treat her so sweetly. This may have been my first book by Amanda but it sure won't be the last. I cannot wait to see what she has in store for us.

Special thanks to Amanda Chaperon for providing me an ARC copy to share my honest review.

Kenzie Jean is the sister of big name hockey star Brent Jean - because of that, she doesn’t date hockey players.

Aiden Fuller is a star hockey player. Who doesn’t “date” and doesn’t do relationships. And he wants Kenzie.

I wanted to like this book because the premise of Kenzie going back to college to find herself and figure out what she wants to do felt perfect. But the plot fell short after that and parts of the book just seemed to drag on longer than necessary.

I also felt a lot of Jekyll and Hyde with Aiden - his incessant texting her after she said no. He seemed very controlling at times. But then he seemed very sweet and caring. I felt so much whiplash from his demeanor for how quickly he changed.

I appreciated the mental health rep but I didn’t see or feel the presence of Kenzie’s anxiety. I felt a little let down about that.

Overall - 3 stars because it left me feeling meh but some parts had me feeling hopeful for a good book.

Thank you to Netgalley & the author for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Kenzie is ready for a change and decides to leave the company she and her older brother created to return to college.   She struggles with severe anxiety, so this is a big step for her moving forward.  She steps out of her comfort zone and meets Aiden at a bar.  She is ready to give him a chance until she realizes he's a hockey player and walks away.  Her brother is a professional hockey player and she has established one rule, "don't date one" and Aiden is the personification of why she avoids hockey players.  This playboy isn’t ready to give up.  A dare gone wrong and pressure from her brother results in the pair agreeing to a fake dating relationship.

I love hockey romance and college romance books, and combining these into college hockey romance had me excited to pick this one up. This is the third book within this world but can be read as a standalone. I have the other two books but haven’t read them yet, my excitement had me starting this one. The three books are closely linked together, but I was able to read this one without feeling like I was missing anything and can confidently go back and read the other two books without any spoilers.  This is something I prefer when reading a series of standalones.

There was a lot of authenticity to the story, from the setting to the characters’ struggles.  Both Aiden and Kenzie have conflicts and vulnerabilities, and the representation was remarkable.  This one had an abundance of cute and sweet mixed in within a layered plot.  The characters have obstacles to overcome, doubts, and moments when you think things will fall apart.  Both characters are well developed and the progression of their relationship and the obstacles they overcome felt natural and nothing felt too cheesy.

With plenty of chemistry right from the start, witty and fun banter, a fantastic group of supporting characters, and lots of hockey this one hooked me right from the start and kept me until the end.

I really enjoyed this cute college romance that took place at Michigan State University! It was a quick and easy read for me. In the book, Kenzie is heading back to finish up her degree at MSU after taking a two-year break to work alongside her brother at their successful activewear company. While at school, Kenzie is looking to have the whole college experience and rediscover herself along the way. Out at a bar one night, she meets Aiden, the star player of the Spartan hockey team, who she has instant chemistry with. The only problem is that she made a vow to herself that she would never date a hockey player. Is Aiden worth breaking the rules for?

I thought the author did an excellent job describing MSU's campus and representing mental health. I found the main characters to be frustrating at time, but overall likable! This is the first book that I have read from this author and the first in a new series. After reading, I found out that the storylines of some of the supporting characters were featured in her other books. This book could 100% be read as a standalone, but it also explains why I felt like I was missing pieces of their story along the way. One thing I did not particularly care for was the overprotectiveness of Kenzie's brother. I felt like it was over the top and toxic. The story could have done without it. Overall though, it was a light, fun read with a little bit of steam, and I look forward to checking out other books by Amanda!

Thank you to NetGalley and Victory Editing for allowing me to read an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Rating: 4 stars ⭐️

Tropes:
fake dating 💋
college hockey romance 🏒

I really enjoyed reading this book and the characters were so enjoyable! ✨

This story starts with Mackenzie Jean. She started a sportswear brand with her famous brother Brent but wasn’t happy with her job anymore. Kenzie decided to go back to college and that’s when she met Aiden in a bar. His friends dared him to go on a date with her and he just couldn’t say no. When she needs his help, they start an agreement that benefits them both.. ✨

I loved the open conversation about anxiety and grief in this book.

Thank you to Netgalley, Amanda Chaperon and the publisher for providing me with this copy. All opinions are my own.