3.5 stars

As many have stated, the book could have benefited from having Spencer’s point of view rather than just Zeke’s. This was especially true the further I got into the book and saw that Spencer was just always going to be a grump who didn’t know how to express himself. It would have been nice to see into his mind and watch him get mentally flustered by the thought of Zeke or even saw him feel his bits of jealousy. By only seeing it through Zeke, it just felt lacking (especially the bartender scene that was just Spencer seeming like an ass then nothing).

The romance felt sudden and once they were in a relationship - without actually even vocalizing it being one - it felt strained. Spencer was still being very grumpy, but part of the fun of grumpy characters is you get to see them get softer with their sunshine. That wasn’t as prevalent here. The relationship itself felt quite sudden as we had the two of them being awkward around each other to suddenly just sexting out of the blue. From there, the pacing just felt off as they progressed.

Overall, the core of the story was not a bad one. The premise was fun and the few times Spencer was soft, it was cute between him and Zeke. I believe, with a bit more fleshing out and development, it would have gotten an even higher rating from me.

I was disappointed by the ending simply because there wasn’t any sort of epilogue. We don’t get to see if it pans out or how their relationship stands with a bit more time like one comes to expect from romance books. Instead, it’s simply a seemingly happy for that moment time and that’s what we are left with. Being optimistic, one can assume that the relationship is one that will last, but it’s nicer to actually see it. Still, I enjoy books with no third act breakups and this one did avoid all that drama - even if some tension could have been fun.

This was a decently cute queer romance between a professional hockey player who happens to be a single dad and his child’s teacher. Can’t say I was completely disappointed by it at all.

Thank you Netgalley and Carina Press for the ARC and for the chance to provide my review.

A fun, M/M hockey romance that sees a single dad star player falling for their child's teacher. Full of heart and heat, this is perfect for fans of authors like Sarina Bowen or Rachel Reid. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

My first foray into the infamous hockey romances. I had a lot more fun with this than I expected! It's not overly huge on sports nor on the grandeur of the rich and famous, but just enough to give it a fun flair. There aren't any big public coming outs or media fall outs, which I was caught off guard by, but came to appreciate. We don't need to agonize over coming out in every gay story. However, with the lack of what would have felt like an obvious third act conflict or anything similar, it does feel like a very abrupt ending. I was fine with it but I can see how many people would be disappointed by it. Overall, I still had a lot of fun reading this.

This was such a quick and fun read, very cute lighthearted!

This wasn’t the most high-brow book that I’ve read, and there wasn’t a lot of controversy or a slow-burn will they/won’t they to cause a lot of excitement and build up, but the characters are so lovable that you’re immediately rooting for them and tearing through the book.

It’s written a bit like a fanfic, with very casual writing style, but I found that it matched the overall tone of the book and I really enjoyed it. I did wish it would have been told in first-person narration, since the whole book was from one main perspective.

If you love hockey romances, elementary school teachers, and a snowy Philly setting, then this is a great book for you!

Lucky Bounce by Cait Nary

What could be better than a hot hockey romance? A secret child and a hot PE teacher as the love interest,  of course. Spencer McLeod is grumpy, but he loves his daughter and is trying to make her transition to Philly easier.  Freaking with all those changes while focusing on his hockey career requires balance and loss of help from family.  
Zeke is an openly gay PE teacher and maybe Spencer's number one fan.  But he's trying not to be too much and keep it professional.  But he's not able to resist the draw, and once he finally gets the ques right, he's ready for anything.

This was a nice mix of family dynamics,  hockey,  dealing with sexual orientation,  privacy and acceptance, combustible chemistry, and an adorably rambunctiou  kindergartener.

In the midst of the NHL season, what better time is there to read a hockey romance than now! I know we've been anticipating Cait Nary's next for months, and hopefully you have been too! After all, what can make you warmer and cosier on the inside than reading a hockey romance in the winter?

Lucky Bounce is one for fans of low angst, soft and gentle romances and, as I said, the depths of winter that we're in are the perfect weather for it. And if you're a fan of tropes like single parent, friends to lovers, and oh no we accidentally started dating!, look no further!

So, let us know! Do you plan to read this one? Have you read it already, perhaps? What did you think?

Love these sporty LGBTQ+ stories! Hockey stories always great! The will they won’t theycute romance with a cute little girl and rescued dog! All good

This book was ok and it is an easy and quick read.
The premise sounded really fun and I was definitively craving more gay hockey romance but unfortunately the execution fell flat. There was barely any communication between the main characters to the point that I have no idea where their relationship stands. For some time they were barely talking and then suddenly starting having sex and it just felt like a huge jump without any relationship or character development. I understand that one of the MC, Spencer (hockey player) doesn't like talking but this took it seriously to an extreme and it was just all mumbling and implied feelings (no conversation of exclusivity, feelings, or what am I gonna tell my daughter now that I am dating his teacher?).
Zeke is the teacher and we only get his point of view and he is in his head a lot so that got confusion at times.
The end also felt very abrupt and like most of the action and themes wrapped up in the last 20% of the book which felt anti-climatic. The writing was also a little odd and at times I had difficulty figuring out how was talking or saying what.

Lucky Bounce is pretty much what I expected—a fun piece of escapist romance that didn't require much from me as the reader. It's one of those novels that is perfect for reading during travel or at the end of a long day when you want to be entertained and heartened despite distractions or low energy.

This is not a novel that is reinventing the genre or subtly criticizing social conventions. But it is quite a lot of fun, and sometimes that is exactly what this reader needs. This title will definitely be put into my rotation of romance recommendations.

Honestly? I'm 55% in and I am already 5 starring this book. I cannot put it down. The writing and humour is just so perfectly my vibe. The hockey is great. The MCs are great. Just.. do yourself a massive favour and hand over your credit card where ever you buy books on January 9th.

I really liked the first 75% of this book, it's a cute hockey romance where the hockey player has a daughter and falls in love with her teacher. It did feel a little too "grumpy meets sunshine" in that the hickey player barely says anything but grunting noises and the teacher is super bubbly 24/7. I would have liked to see a little more depth to both characters.

The last 25% of this book lost me, to the point I finished and thought that maybe I missed a few chapters. The ending was very abrupt and felt rushed. There wasn't any real conversation about the characters as to the status of their relationship and what the future held for them, it was just implied that they were together and that it's HAE. I think if the ending would have been more complete than I would have really enjoyed this book but I didn't like how it ended so suddenly.

I love it when an author’s got range. Cait Nary’s first book, SEASON’S CHANGE, proved she’s a past master at tension, while her third, LUCKY BOUNCE, shows she’s equally adept at romcoms. The first half is absolutely hilarious with the banter and the cuteness and the MOMENTS; the second settles into a still adorable and sweet but also a bit more serious look at how the characters go from, “Wow, I LIKE you,” to, “This is something we’re gonna work on together so it can be forever.” IT’S SO GOOD.

On top of that, it’s packed full of rescue dogs, family dynamics, sports talk, and intense, supportive friendships. If you’re after a low-angst romance about people who’re good to and for each other in really funny and affecting ways, you need to get LUCKY BOUNCE when it drops on January 9th.

I have mixed feelings about this book. Part of me loves the sweet and minimal drama of the story between Zeke and Spencer, but the other part of me is a bit frustrated in the storytelling as it didn't feel like we hit a climax on the story (the characters definitely hit climaxes).

What I enjoyed:
- the relationship and domesticity of it all with Spencer as the sweetest single dad, and Addie and the search for a dog (!!)
- the secondary characters are so fun, like Jake, Quynh, Samar, and Franky... With all being so supportive of Spencer and Zeke in their own ways
- Zeke being true to himself and living authentically, even if he isn't sure about how he fits
- Spencer, in his quiet way of using actions to show his love for people
- the steam... Them together is magnificent

What I didn't love:
- it was hard to get to know Spencer, especially when he isn't vocal, to know why he's always almost smiling but not quite, but also his initial attraction to Zeke
- the pacing of the book could be better. At times it felt really long and I wasn't sure if we had hit a peak in the story or not... And then it felt like it ended too soon
- I'm not sure why but it seemed like a lot of the time you'd be expecting something big to happen but then nothing would. I do enjoy a low angst novel but for some reason there seemed to be a lot of set up to nothing.

Steam: 🔥🔥
Heart flutters: ❤️

Thank you to Cait Nary and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

I did not expect to enjoy this book as much as I did, but I just could not put it down! This book is a wonderfully cozy read where an elementary school gym teacher falls in love with a professional hockey player who happens to be the father of one of his students.

Now I've never seen a hockey game before, so I was not sure how I would feel jumping into the setting, but I was pleasantly surprised that I had no trouble following any of the sports plot points as it really only grazed the surface as the relationship between Zeke and Spencer, as well as Spencer getting a foothold on being a single father, really took the center stage. Zeke as a narrator came across so easy and personable it was really hard to not like him even when he frequently put his foot in his mouth.

Now I will say this book is not perfect. I definitely had to suspend some disbelief at the beginning of the book before getting to *the plot*, because even as an avid romance reader I can still roll my eyes as they just happen to be running into eachother over and over again before intentionally spending some time together. Spencer as a stoic love interest of few words for much of the book I think could have really benefitted from an additional POV for a few chapters, because as fun as it was to be inside Zeke's head, I was often wishing Spencer would vocalize more of his feelings or lean more into the hockey setting. I also felt like the book ended a little abruptly and wished there was an epilogue further into their relationship or something to tie the story up a little better.

Overall still a solid read and definitely one I'd reccomend cozying up to on a cold evening. I really fell enamored with this couple and appreciated reading a romance novel without a forced 3rd act conflict that also felt surprisingly grounded despite having a celebrity love interest.

Elementary school P.E. teacher Ezekiel (Zeke) Boehm can’t believe his eyes when his favorite pro hockey player walks into his classroom with his daughter in tow. It’s no big deal, he’s taught the children of famous people plenty of times - only, no one knows Spencer McLeod even has a daughter, oh and Zeke’s had a crush on Spencer since like forever. But still, he can totally play it cool. A task that gets harder and harder to do when Spencer starts showing up to school events and leaving tickets for his games for Zeke to use.
 
Next thing he knows. Zeke's being invited to team outings and hanging out alone with Spencer. Soon, it feels a whole lot like Spencer McLeod is his boyfriend. Only, Spencer isn’t totally out of the closet and is in a different financial stratosphere than Zeke - would a long-term relationship between the two ever work out? 
 
This was a cute read. The story was entirely from Zeke’s POV, and his head was a fun place to be. The narration style was unique - it felt very stream of consciousness, just kind of like rambling thoughts and observations. It made things feel like they were moving right along and was fun to read. I also felt like I got to know Zeke pretty well and I enjoyed his character. He was funny and charming and a good guy.

Spencer was harder to get a read on, I still don’t feel like I got to know him very well. I liked him but if Zeke was the sunshine here, Spencer was the grump. It was cute when Zeke would break through Spencer’s grumpiness, though. Somehow a half smile and a muttered “shut up” became charming coming from Spencer. Neither guy was into big showy romantic gestures or words, but it was still sweet seeing them fall for each other in their special way.
 
This story was super low angst like there’s virtually none. You get to just sit back and watch these two guys quietly fall in love. I would have loved to have seen an epilogue because I think things were just getting going for them by the story ended! But overall, this was still a fun and light read.

I'm a big fan of all of Cait Nary's books, so I was thrilled when I got the chance to read an ARC of this. And there's a lot to love here. Zeke and Spencer are both great MCs - it helps that Zeke is a teacher, not a fellow hockey player, as that helps to even further distinguish them. Sometimes I find in M/M hockey romances I can never tell the two MCs apart, but that is most definitely not the case here!

Anyhow, Zeke is great - he's so upbeat and charming and also totally open to go at Spencer's pace even as he's gobsmacked that Spencer is even into him. Spencer definitely is a more internal character, but I forgave a lot of his emotional baggage as he was dealing with a lot! And I didn't mind the secret kid - she was present but not an overwhelming part of the book, which I appreciated.

My main issue is just that I wished the characters were a little older. Mid-20s is young to be shouldering everything they were, and I tend to enjoy romance books more when the characters are in their 30s+. But that's more of a mes issue and not an issue for everyone. It's also a bit of an abrupt ending, but I tend to extrapolate HEA from underwritten HFNs.

Four stars. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC>

*3.5

Spencer and Zeke are cute but I wanted more. We didn't even actually hear them say I love you. The book could be greatly improved if it was dual pov. It could have delved a bit more into Spencers head and gotten to know Addie better. The ending also seemed very abrupt. I at least need an epilogue.

I received an arc through netgalley.

Lucky Bounce was such a cute MM hockey romance that leaned on the grumpy-sunshine trope. I loved that Zeke and Spencer were such extreme opposites and that they seemed to just get each other’s idiosyncrasies. I loved how their friends kept nudging them together while they both got the courage to go after what each wanted. I absolutely loved Frankie and Jake, their besties, and Spencer’s adorable daughter. Where this story shines, is in the dialogue. Zeke word vomits and Spencer is a man of few words, but I fell for them both and their relationship through their conversations. They are such guys!

Zeke is used to having kids of celebrities in his class but when one of his favorite hockey players who he happens to swoon over, shows up with a kid he never knew about, he is shocked. When Spencer tells him he’s volunteering in his daughter’s class, Zeke can’t help but offer to help the grump when he can see he’s in over his head. As they spend more time together, Zeke’s crush just grows. Is it too much to hope that Spencer’s constant blushing might mean he feels the same too?

Even though it was written in third person and told only from Zeke’s POV, I felt I knew both characters well. I enjoyed the book even though I usually prefer dual POV and first person narration. The pacing of the story was perfect and I cozied in and binge read this story. My only wish for this story is that it had a little more conflict to forge the characters together. They communicate which is amazing, but they move past the few issues they have quickly. In this book’s world where there aren’t many out and proud active NFL athletes, the author barely touches on Spencer in the public eye and nothing with the media. I love when characters band together to weather a storm. Overall, this was a cute story with a lot of heart – the perfect way to end a holiday weekend.

For me, this book was just ok. It had good parts and bad parts and overall wasn’t my favorite hockey romance. The first half was not a good start to a romance since I didn’t get any chemistry between Spencer and Zeke and all the attraction felt very one sided. It doesn’t help that most of this half was filled with Zeke’s internal monologue and a handful of scenes between both of them, none of which gave me any indication that Spencer had feelings for Zeke. But once they were together, I think they worked well. They are opposites in some ways and they balanced each other out. They’re a good pair even if it didn’t seem like that at first.

Overall, this was just an okay hockey romance.

Read if you like…
•hockey romance
•mlm
•single dad
•opposites attract

I wanted to like this one so much. I loved the synopsis. MM, hockey, teacher with the jock. But it just fell flat for me. It’s also written in one POV third person which just makes a story seem so impersonal to me.

Zeke is a hockey fanatic and I loved how he was Spencer’s daughter's teacher. The two started out simple with meeting at a school event and slowly became friends. But then they were somewhat thrown into a relationship without any build up. The spicy scenes were okay but kind of basic. There was hardly any angst and no tension or drama. There wasn’t a lot of character development which is sad to me because I wanted so much more out of these char characters. And the way it ended at an abrupt stop was so confusing. No conclusion to anything, not that there was a whole lot to start with, and no epilogue. It could have been such a cute story if it was told in at least in first POV all from one character’s perspective.