"The Game Changer" by Lana Ferguson is a delightful romance novel that will leave you with a smile on your face. The story follows Ian Chase, a professional hockey player whose very public breakup threatens not only his career but also his team's image. When his best friend's little sister Delilah Baker proposes a collaboration between her baking show and the team to boost ratings, Ian is surprised to find himself drawn to her.

Delilah has had a crush on Ian for over a decade, and despite their initial awkwardness, the two quickly find themselves growing closer as they work together. As they play up their relationship for the sake of good press, the line between what's real and what's for show begins to blur, and they must decide whether to take a chance on each other or risk losing everything.

Lana Ferguson has created a charming and engaging story with well-developed characters and a plot that keeps you turning the pages. The romance between Ian and Delilah is sweet and realistic, and readers will find themselves rooting for them as they navigate the challenges of their relationship. The supporting cast of characters adds depth and humor to the story, making it a joy to read from beginning to end.

Overall, "The Game Changer" is a delightful romance novel that will appeal to fans of sports romance and feel-good stories. Lana Ferguson has crafted a heartwarming and entertaining novel that will leave you wanting more.

3/5 ★
Childhood best friends to lovers, brother's bestfriend/teammate, and fake dating all in one sports romance book?? Yes, please!

I was so excited when I was notified for this book, but it fell a bit flat for me even though I liked it. The seemingly constant nicknames were slightly cringe and felt a bit forced, but their relationship ultimately was solid once they got together. It was refreshing to have characters that trust each other and don't let a silly miscommunication break them up not long after they get together.

This book seemed to be lacking something that kept me drawn in the whole time--I picked it up and put it down several times throughout the read, which is why I'm giving it 3★

(Side note, do I smell a book 2 coming with Jack and Abby?? 👀)

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the arc!

This was... fine. Just fine. I didn't find the characters memorable at all, and although I could feel their chemistry, the plot just felt forced.

Actual rating is 3.5 stars, but I rounded up as the story telling was exceptional.

Delilah Baker is an adorable local network celebrity baker known as the ‘darling of baking.’ Her older brother, Jack, is a player for the Boston Druids. His friend, and bestie, is Ian Chase, a local boy who accepted a trade up to a Canadian team, but now is back to play for his hometown. Delilah, Jack and Ian all grew up together and Delilah has had a crush on him since forever. Ian has always thought of her as a kid, but coming back and meeting her after all the years apart is changing his mind. Delilah is pulling out a lot of stops to make sure that happens.

Luck would have it the Delilah’s network ratings have dropped, and she is in need of a good PR campaign. Her producer arranges for a player from the Druids to guest star in an effort to up their ratings. Enter Ian, because he needs good PR after the not-so-true scandal that he left in his wake upon moving further north. Coming back after going to his ex’s wedding has somehow stirred up more negative press. Online gossip mill was hard at work when it came to him and his ex, and they just won’t let it go. After some sparks fly on screen and off their PR teams ‘encourage’ them to spend more time together to give the masses something else to speculate and gossip about. Something positive, like a possible relationship….

So, what did I think?

For the most part this book met all my expectations. I absolutely loved their banter. It felt natural and fun. The support characters were awesome AND the ending was a fresh, non-cliché ending that I could fully get behind. Loved it! Jack was my favorite support character and I am secretly hoping the author will give Jack his own story in the future!

It has quite a bit of spice, including a scene in one of the team’s shower stalls. I have to admit, some of the spice wasn’t quite to my personal taste. Spice in a 'public' space is not my thing. Nor spanking, which I grew up with as a form of punishment. But Delilah really enjoyed it all and I am confident the majority of readers will really enjoy the spicy bits too. So long as you like dirty talk, don’t mind some light spanking, and can tolerate one scene basically taking place in a public space with people near by.

While the spice wasn't quite for me, I know a lot of people will absolutely devour it! The romance storyline itself is super duper cute and the ending was absolutely refreshing because it isn't the standard romance cliché of "a misunderstanding driving a wedge." I don't want to ruin it, so you'll just have to read it yourself, but I did love it!

I'm absolutely adoring sports romances and I absolutely LOVE hockey, so this one really SCORED BIG in my book. I thought it was a super cute story and I can see my patrons loving it too!

Wasn't for me. Felt way too insta-lovey, and the whole "my brother will be mad" thing was drawn out for so long. All the side characters felt like caricatures rather than developed parts of the story. Overall disappointing!

This was cute, cute, cute! I really enjoyed reading this story and the main characters as well.I loved Delilah and Ian together! This is for those who love fake dating, friends to lovers and brother's best friend plots.

thank you to netgalley & berkley for an arc copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
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ੈ♡˳ rating: 3/5

ੈ♡˳ thoughts:
having previously read many books by lana, i decided to try her arc and give it a try. give your girl a steamy hockey romance and i am good to go. this book is perfect for someone who loves a story without third-act breakups or the miscommunication trope. however, it fell a little flat for me. the story was interesting enough, brother’s best friend, was super streamy at times when it needed to be. however, i felt like the characters were super boring. they had chemistry, but barely any. the conversations were a little boring between the two of them and the best character was her brother jack who wasn’t even though he wasn’t even a main character. i felt myself flipping through the story towards th end because i wanted to finish it but i wasn’t invested anymore. also, another thing that bothered me was the continuous reference to the fact that he used to see her as a kid but he didn’t anymore. like even two pages before they had sex he was thinking about her when she was younger. not my cup of tea, but i know that the girlies are going to eat this book up.


ੈ♡˳ tropes:
ꕥ best friends to lovers
ꕥ stuck together
ꕥ brother’s best friend


◡̈ ◡̈ ◡̈

Lana Ferguson enters the land of hockey romance with this brother's best friend/fake dating novel. When the media makes Ian Chase out to be the bad guy, the PR team needs a quick fix. Delilah Baker needs more viewers on her baking show and Ian needs media to see him in a positive light, so the two strike a deal to meet both of their needs. Delilah also happens to be the sister of Ian's best friend and teammate. As the two begin to spend time together the lines between fake and real relationships become a little blurry. This was a very enjoyable read with fun characters and a cute storyline. With notable spice this novel is a quick and easy romance read.

dnf at 40%
I really tried but I hated this one even though I liked the nanny. The characters especially the fmc were super annoying and cringy and the plot just felt dumb and cheesy. I tried my best but I don't want to continue if I know I won't like it. The writing also felt very bland and I couldn't get through it.

A 4/5 stars sports romance.

The Game Changer has all my favorite sports romance tropes wrapped up into one story! Little sister of the teammate AND a fake relationship to help both of their images? Sign me up. This was a very cute story. I've never read a book by Lana Ferguson before and I really enjoyed her writing style. The book went by quick, wasn't overly corny like many sports romance can be, and had just the right amount of fun and romance. I'd definitely read another one of her books and this really got me in the mood for more sports romances!

It's a yes from me! The Game Changer is my favorite read by Lana Ferguson!

This childhood friends to lovers story is sweet, spicy, and has just the right amount of tension. The main characters, Lila and Ian, have clear chemistry as both friends -and- romantic partners. I loved their independence, how they each had their careers and friends. Their own back stories, with just the right amount of overlap with Ian being Lila's brother's best friend when they were kids. And then when they come together as adults, everything between them expands in joy, humor, and shenanigans. Lila and Ian's tension and connection is palpable and I thoroughly enjoyed their... spicy dynamic. Everything with them felt honest and real.

Jake, Lila's brother, is also a star of the show. That man made my stomach hurt from laughter and I love him dearly.

The overall plot is focused on both the MCs and their families, and I love that there was no third act breakup. The "it's always been you" vibes were perfect and I was so invested in the story, even without major drama in Lila and Ian's relationship. Is there still drama? Oh yes. But readers will never have to doubt how much Lila and Ian care for one another. This was so refreshing, and again: honest and real.

In summary: fun, sweet, hilarious, and full of fantastic tropes done very well.

Read if you like: childhood friends to lovers, hockey romance, it's always been you, brother's best friend/best friend's sister, family drama, celebrity-ish romance, PR stunts, and fake dating-adjacent pr stunts.

**Thank you to Lana Ferguson, Berkley, and NetGalley for an ARC of The Game Changer and the opportunity to leave my honest, voluntary review!!**

I can always count on Lana Ferguson’s novels for a good, lighthearted time!

I enjoyed her take on writing a sports romance with also some baking 🧁 elements. Lilah and Ian are childhood friends turn to lovers and it was done in a very cute way but I would have preferred there be more of a buildup after they reunited. My favorite character was Jack who is Lilah’s brother and also Ian’s best friend. He had one liners in this book that had me laughing so hard out loud. I would love if he had his own book, it would be hilarious!

The only reason that my rating wasn’t higher is because at times, some of the scenes felt really cheesy that it was a bit cringy. Overall, I did really enjoy this book and will definitely read more of Lana Fergusons books!

3.25 ⭐️

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️.5

I received an early copy from NetGalley.

🏒Hockey Romance
🧁Fake Dating
🏒 brothers best friend/best friend sister
🧁 Childhood Crush
🏒 Secrets
🧁Spicy
🏒Slow Burn
🧁She takes Control
🏒Friends to Lovers


I was actually very surprised by this book because I never really read books where the woman praises the man and where she is a little bit more dominant than him. Also, the Male main character surprised me in this book as well. He does some things that I was not expecting I was expecting this book to be really fluffy , but it is very spicy. I did like the drum in here because there is a secret that’s being kept throughout the book I kind of had a feeling about what it actually was.
So we have our female main character named Delilah or he calls her Lilah and we have our main character Ian, but she calls him cupcake. Ian is coming back to his hometown to play for the team. Ian has a bad image in the media. A plan of fake dating for PR happens because she needs ratings for her baking show that she has due to her number being down. Things start to become more real as they spend time with each other. There is lots of spice. Particularly there is a shower scene that had me giggling and a cleanup-scene that really sent me. Overall I enjoyed this book. I do not think I have read a book by this author. I’m almost positive I haven’t. I feel like this is my first book by her. I would definitely read more by this author.

Wow oh wow was this a cute and fun read!! Lana has done it again, creating characters and immersive worlds that simultaneously feel like a warm hug and a parade of chaos (in a good way). I really loved both Ian and Lila and how they perfectly balanced each other out--especially in Ian's case! What a sweetheart of a man.

This had all of the sweetness and angst of unrequited childhood love and all of the spiciness and will-they-won't-they vibes of a fake dating situationship. I loved their "meet cute" or rather the reason they get thrown together again as adults and how obvious their chemistry is to everyone with eyes. Overall I really loved this book! Definitely on the sweeter scale for Lana but still a fantastic read!

This book was pretty good! The characters were adorable, but I sometimes felt they lacked depth. All in all, a decent and light read. Thanks to Berkley and NetGalley for this ARC!

Lana Ferguson, you have done it again! She’s a writer that never disappoints. I mean, come on! We have a fake dating, brother’s best friend hockey romance… How can it get any better?

Ian Chase is a professional hockey player. He’s played for the Calgary Wolverines for the last six years but is ready to go back to the Boston Druids. He’s under intense media scrutiny and needs to fix his image. Delilah Baker is the star of her very own baking show¬– Whisk-y Business. Unfortunately, the show is suffering low ratings and engagement. She’s at risk of losing it all. A PR move for Ian has him appearing on Delilah’s show. It goes so well that a PR, fake dating plan ensues. They’re helping each other out. Delilah may have had a little (BIG) crush on him when they were younger, but Ian never looked at her that way. They can keep things simple and fake date, right?


I loved everything about this story! Lana Ferguson knows how to write the perfect novel. The moment I picked this book up, I could not put it down. I was addicted! One of my favorite things about this story was all the bantering between the characters. Ian and Lilah have undeniable chemistry. The pages sizzled from the first moment they saw each other again. Everything about their love story was perfection. I’m a sucker for a hockey player so when you put a big, mean hockey player in a pink apron making pastries… COME ON! The visual alone is drool worthy. The Game Changer had me in my feels. I went through every single emotion reading this book. Seeing Lilah bond so fast with all of the important people in Ian’s life and seeing how their relationship developed was so fun to read. You know a writer does a fantastic job when the secondary characters affect you as much as the main characters. Hint: I need Jack’s book! I adore him!

I can’t wait to purchase The Game Changer when it is released. I will be adding it to my bookshelf because this is a book I will reread again and again!

This was a major cringe-fest for me. So much so that I DNF'd at like 75% through! I did not care about the characters or their romance at all, and honestly got the creeps by how much he called her "kid", "little", "best friend's sister", until he saw how big her boobs had gotten. And if I were him, I'd have been creeped out by her and how obsessed she was. It was very much a kind of insta-love on his part, insomuch as within like a week of seeing her again, where before he had only seen her as a "little kid", he was down bad and for life.

Also, got a bit peeved about the way ADHD is presented here. The character with it is presented as immature and reckless and told to "take his meds".

I don't think I'll be trying this author again.

Thanks for the ARC and may this be a better book for others than it was for me!

Neither Ian nor Delilah are in the best place right now.

Ian's returning to Boston after a several years' stint playing professional hockey in Canada, after having to flee Boston (and his team) due to a supposed cheating scandal that he still won't speak about publicly. Delilah is dealing with the very real possibility that her cable baking show, Whisk-y Business, could be cancelled. Until Delilah throws out a wild idea: bring Ian, her brother's best friend (and her lifelong crush), onto the show. Having Ian on Whisk-y Business will drive a new audience to the show, and will hopefully clean up Ian's image. But the chemistry that they have in the episode is verrrry real, so much so that their PR teams suggest a fake dating scheme to boost ratings and public opinion.

What could go wrong?

It's no secret that I'm a major Lana Ferguson fan, and THE GAME CHANGER, her upcoming release, is no exception. She gives us everything we could want in a steamy brother's-best-friend, friends to lovers, cinnamon roll and sunshine tale while also weaving in her signature humor. I found myself cackling often while reading this book.

While not nearly as emotionally heavy, it did give me the some of the same feelings as STARS IN YOUR EYES by Kacen Callender did, particularly in its handling of this very real-world occurrence of the general public assuming that they know, and can say, everything about anyone in the public eye. TMZ can post anything that they want and run with it, even if it's the farthest thing from the truth--just the easiest assumption to make. Unfortunately, the easiest assumption to make isn't always correct--and believing (and voicing) the worst of people, celebrity or not, can have lasting impacts on them, those around them, and can hurt so many more people than a keyboard warrior's "target." 

Delilah's brother, Jack, is the comedic relief we always love to cringe at, even when he's ruining a moment, and he's the big brother everyone wishes they had. Lana has also, once again, killed off the FMC's parents in favor of a quirky old lady role model and while that should honestly make me sad for Delilah, I LIVE for a Lana Ferguson old lady. There's just nothing like her!

I seriously have no notes, I loved every part of this book, and I'm already dying for her next release!

This was quick, fun, and steamy! It’s been awhile since ai’ve read a hockey romance and though it wasn’t one of my favorites, I had a good time. Ian and Lila were cute together, though their feelings came on super fast (at least Ian’s I guess) and I could’ve done with a few less Cupcakes.