🚨✨ If you haven't dived into Wicked Serve by Grace Reilly yet, you’re seriously missing out! This final book in the Beyond the Play series is a masterclass in sports romance with a spicy twist that'll leave you breathless. Nikolai and Isabelle’s story is the ultimate blend of forbidden love and fierce rivalry, with the added drama of familial tension and personal demons. The chemistry between them is electric, and the stakes couldn't be higher with Nikolai being the brother’s rival and all. Reilly’s knack for blending intense emotions, steamy scenes, and heartfelt moments is on full display here. If you're craving a book that'll make your heart race and keep you up all night, this is it. Seriously, this book is a total slam dunk! 🏒🔥📚

3.5 ⭐️
I thought this was such a cute read. I liked Nikolai!! I think i just wasn’t very into it as I thought I would. But overall it was good read!!

There is such a beautiful romance in this story. The plot was just beautiful. The characters are fantastic. I loved that both characters excelled in their own sport and had to find their self-worth together. Nikolai honestly is going to live rent-free in my head for a long time. He is an absolute gem of a book boyfriend. He is a Russian hockey player who whispers sweet and sexy Russian words in your ear. He was absolutely swoon-worthy.

Alright, I have to agree this was a cute read! I was giggling through the entirety of the book, the banters between the MCs were fire. Full RTC soon. Thankyou to Valentine PR, the Author, the Publisher for this amazing ARC!

✨️eARC Review✨️

5/5 ⭐️
3/5 🌶

*Wicked Serve is book 4 in the Beyond the Play series and is an interconnected standalone*

When Izzy spends the summer interning as a wedding planner in New York, she ends up in a summer FWB situation with her mentor's son, who is also her brother's hockey rival. While she's devastated that the fling is over, she's trying to win back her starting volleyball position to make her athletic family proud. Nikolai gets into trouble right into the start of the semester and is forced to transfer to McKee, his rival school. While he can't wait to see Izzy, he's not so excited about her brother. They can't fight their feelings and give into more secret flings, but will it end all over again when Nikolai can't escape his past?

This was my first Grace Reilly book, and I loved it! I was hoping to get through books 1-3 before this ARC and unfortunately wasn't able to, but I was able to follow the characters/history perfectly and can't wait to go back and read the rest! Without giving away spoilers, I loved so many things about this book, but my favorite being that there were so many emotions and deeper feelings involved than I thought there was going to be. I loved that Izzy and Nikolai really balanced each other out, and Izzy never gave up on him. I especially loved Izzy's family and how they welcomed Nikolai, especially Cooper, and the friendship they formed.

Tropes:
✔️ College Sporte Romance
✔️ Hockey Player MMC
✔️ Volleyball Player FMC
✔️ Grumpy/Sunshine
✔️ Brother's Rival
✔️ Friends With Benefits

This was a Fantastic book! The relationship was a he fall first trope and he had an amazing personality too. I will continue reading more of the authors books and would recommend to anyone who likes hockey romance.

Wicked Serve was my first book by Grace Reilly and I enjoyed reading Isabelle and Nikolai's story. The story did have some heavy themes to tackle such as childhood trauma and domestic violence but I think Grace wrote the story beautifully and really described Nik's panic attacks and inner turmoil well. All I have to say is Izzy and Nik def had a different college experience than I did. This book is STEAMY!!! For a majority of the book Izzy and Nik are sneaking around behind her family's back, especially Cooper who is Izzy's brother and Nik's teammate. What started out as a summer fling for these two ended up becoming so much more. Nik really did think of Isabelle as his sunshine and to see their story unfold was super sweet. I loved that Isabelle also grew closer to her siblings after feeling like the outsider/failure in her sports dominated family. The only thing I would say is 74 chapters plus an epilogue it seemed slightly long even though it's around 440 pages. This book did make me invested in Izzy's siblings and I can't wait to read the other three books in the series.

TW: childhood trauma, domestic violence, panic attacks

Many thanks to the author and publisher for the eARC of Wicked Serve in exchange for my honest review.

This series was one of the first sports romances I read when I restarted my reading journey. I’m so sad to say goodbye but I think this was a hit! Izzy and Nik are kind and loving. They get each other so deeply and that level of self awareness that allowed them to fix their insecurities to become a better unit together made them such a strong couple. The drama was interesting and the spice was there. Grace knows how to right a hot MMC. I love Izzy with her brothers and seeing James and Bec as parents makes me so happy.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5

📖arc book review!

wicked serve by grace reilly

📚s e r i e s: 4️⃣th book in the beyond the play series

🏡 s e t t i n g: mckee university - new york

💞t r o p e s:
•found family
•hockey romance
•he falls first
•brother's rival
•grumpy x sunshine

💬 t h o u g h t s: Thoroughly enjoyed this one! Nik and Izzy were such a fun couple. Izzy was all pink and sunshine, and Nik was hooked from the get-go 😍

This book…this book was quite the journey. It took me a solid two weeks to read it, which is clear indicator that I am struggling with a book. I will be 100% honest, I was bored. It started off well, but after the initial few chapters I was struggling to want to pick it up.

But, before I go there I want to highlight some of the things I think this book did really well. First, it’s part of a series but marketed as being able to read as a standalone…& this book is a perfect example of how to do that. Having not read any of the previous books, I didn’t feel like I was missing any information. I also thought (despite my feelings on certain characters) the relationship was healthy & didn’t involve any toxic elements that are more typical in college-aged romances. & above everything else, the relationship Nikolai has with himself, his journey to acknowledge the past & what he has gone through, his “I don’t need therapy” evolution…everything about that storyline was absolutely perfect & I would read an entire story just about Nik.

My two biggest issues with this book came from the pacing/length…& Izzy. Starting with the former, this was entirely too long. There were multiple times I said out loud “nothing is actually happening.” About half way through I was really considering not finishing this. But halfway was over 200 pages & I was not letting that go to waste. I am glad I finished it. I think the last 20% or so was really strong & increased my enjoyment of the book overall (& rating). But I am still frustrated that I had to get through 300+ pages before I got there. Some serious cuts could have really helped the pacing & momentum, which would have made for a much different reading experience. My second issue, Izzy…well I just could have done without her altogether. She was immature & really felt like she was inventing problems just to have them. This story could have been a beautiful coming of age story for Nikolai. I loved the moments we had in his head. Just could have done without her.

I think another element that would have really helped, would have been to have more of their summer romance other than just the prologue, or have flashbacks throughout. I never really felt the chemistry between Izzy & Nikolai, but I think that’s because a lot more happened during that summer than we ever see, or really ever hear about. We are just told they are infatuated with each other & are supposed to go with it.

Bottom Line: eh…the epilogue was sweet. If you’ve read the rest of the Beyond the Play series I’m sure it is worth it to finish it & see where all of the characters end up. I loved Nik’s storyline with his past & learning to acknowledge his trauma & how to work past that. But I wasn’t rooting for the relationship & did not care for Izzy’s character. Also felt there were a lot of plot holes with her volleyball storyline(s). Prior to reading this I was really excited to read the rest of this series, but at this point I am not sure I will.

absolutely loved this cute story about a girl who doesn’t believe in herself in the slightest meeting a boy just as insecure, if not more than she is, both dealing with their own demons side by side. loved how the author accurately represented anxiety and trauma and did it justice. on another note, the SPICE 🥵 really love me some sports romance books and reallllly enjoyed all the pop culture references and humor. thank you net galley for this arc!!

I really wanted to love this book, but unfortunately it was not for me :( I had a hard time getting into the book and felt like there was too much fluff and not enough plot driving the story. Hoping that the next Grace Reilly book is more up my alley!

Cute story with forbidden love and brother's enemy as the main tropes. However, even though the main characters had issues with fear of failing, panic attacks and dealing with childhood trauma, they still seemed more two-dimensional than fully developed. Also, it needs some judicious editing. It really starts to drag in the second half. I still definitely recommend it, just with a few reservations. Quite spicy.
3.5⭐ rounding up

Can I be cheesy for a second? Wicked Serve was WICKED GOOD! I don’t say that lightly. I have read many and I do mean many hockey romances. So, I know my stuff.

Wicked Serve was everything I needed it to be. Brother’s rival doesn’t always hit, but this one did. Sometimes authors depend on the “we shouldn’t do this” mentality, but that’s not the case here. This book was cute and spicy.

I loved this books! I would give it a solid 4.5⭐️ This story I felt was perfect to wrap up this series. I think I would rank this book tied with second for my favorites of the series! (Breakaway #1🫶🏻) I loved the dynamic of Izzy’s and Niko’s relationship. It was so refreshing to watch them grow together and support each other. I personally don’t think their was a 3rd act break up which I appreciate! I can’t even remember how many times I cried reading this book 🥹 I definitely recommend! Also the spice was also sooo good but like not unrealistic and in your face which was just *chefs kiss* 💋

Grace Reilly knows how to write a sports romance. While Elle Kennedy will always be my queen of hockey romance, Grace Reilly is my next choice. And I love that she writes about other sports as well. This book was a cute yet spicy romance that I really enjoyed. It had one of my favorite tropes, which is force proximity, and I loved that is was dual POV so we got both Isabelle and Nicolai's view. I think this is the last in the series, but I hope she starts a new series with similar vibes!

Loved it! The author writes sports romance so well and it always makes me want more! Niko and Izzy were amazing!

I love sports romances! Nikolai and Isabel were great characters even though the stubbornness got to me a few times!

4⭐️ 2🌶️

Some Tropes:
🏒 Possessive MMC
🏐 Brother’s Teammate
🏒 He Falls First
🏐 Emotional Scars

🚨 SPOILERS AHEAD 🚨

Pros:

It was nice to pick up a book that didn’t have a wild scene where the couple split because of someone else’s opinion. Very refreshing!

I have been in love with this series since the first book and waited, impatiently (lol), for this book to release. I always loved Izzy in the other books and wanted so badly for her to get the love story she deserved 💜

Cons:

It was a little slow at parts, but the story didn’t lapse and the order of events in the book set up a great mental visual.

I was angry for Nikolai before I even realized what happened to him and his mom. I wish the backstory was revealed a touch sooner to give the characters more time for resolution and growth vice waiting so close to the end.

My Opinion:

This book, just like the rest in the series, were totally worth the read, worth the wait, and worth the late nights I spent up not wanting to put the book down 😂

It took me awhile to finish because life and work got in the way, but I was so happy with the ending 🥹

We’re back in the Callahan’s world; this time with our favorite girl, Izzy! Izzy and Nik spent a whole summer cozying up and getting to know each other, but when the school year came to be, Nik left without a word, thinking that would be easier for the both of them. In an unfortunate (fortunate?) turn of events, Nik had to transfer to McKee and play hockey with Izzy’s brother. Silly, sexy, and secretive activities ensue.

This was such a fun read, and I am so thankful to @gracereilly and @valentinepr for sharing this ARC with me!