Grace Reilly’s Wicked Serve earns a solid four stars for its engaging romance and well-crafted characters. The story revolves around Nikolai “Nik” and Isabelle “Izzy,” whose intense relationship is both thrilling and heartfelt. Nik’s obsession with Izzy adds depth to his character, and the evolution of their relationship is beautifully portrayed, with Izzy’s unwavering support helping Nik confront his troubled past.

The romance is undeniably steamy, and the chemistry between Nik and Izzy keeps the reader hooked. The book also excels with the scarred hero trope, blending emotional depth with engaging storytelling. Nik’s bond with Izzy and her brother, Cooper, adds richness to the narrative and showcases the book’s strength in exploring complex relationships.

However, the book’s pacing affects its impact, as the relationship between Nik and Izzy progresses quickly, with their initial meetings and hookups happening before the narrative begins. This makes it challenging to connect with their relationship early on. Despite this, Wicked Serve quickly becomes engrossing, and the balance of heavy themes with humor makes it an enjoyable and well-rounded read.

I really enjoyed the relationship between Isa and Nik. I enjoyed their sweet and spicy moments! I love how the series intertwines all the siblings without being overbearing and giving the main characters a chance to develop.

I’ve been anticipating this book for the longest time, and it didn’t disappoint! 💗

Grace really did her thing with this series, and I couldn’t express my love for the Callahan siblings enough. Their bond is everything to me, and I adore each and every one of their love stories so much!

Izzy & Nikolai had such a spicy and sweet connection. Their shared summer history helped me jump right into the story, and I was hooked! I loved the tension of how much they couldn’t stay away from each other and how they slowly became more of an integral part of the other’s lives. I really felt for them through their struggles, and the way they deeply cared for each other was everything to me 🥹 I also just loveddd the way that BOTH of them were athletes — it’s one of my favorite things to see in books!

Anyways, I adored Izzy & Nikolai’s story so much! It’s a bittersweet feeling to see one of my favorite sports romance series come to an end, but it was closed out in the best way so I can’t even complain 🤧 I love Grace and her writing so much, so I can’t wait for whatever else she comes up with next! 🫶

Thank you so much to Grace Reilly & NetGalley for an ARC of this book 💌

I loved this book so much!! Definitely my second favorite from the whole series!! I loved Nikolai so much, he was so pure and he deserved the whole world and more 🫶🏻 I love all the aspects of this book (especially the volleyball). This was such a down to earth and loving romance 🫶🏻🫶🏻

I absolutely loved “Wicked Serve” by Grace Reilly! This book is a fantastic blend of sports, romance, and heartfelt moments. Nikolai, the intense hockey defenseman, and Isabelle, the determined volleyball player, have such incredible chemistry. Their journey from a secret summer fling to a deeper, more complex relationship kept me hooked from start to finish.

The characters felt so real and relatable. I found myself rooting for them through every challenge and cheering for their victories. Grace Reilly’s writing is engaging and fast-paced, making it impossible to put the book down. The mix of sports action and romance is perfectly balanced, and the emotional depth of the story really resonated with me.

If you enjoy stories about love, family, and overcoming personal challenges, you’ll adore “Wicked Serve.” It’s a must-read for anyone who loves a good sports romance with well-developed characters and a compelling plot.

🏐 2 POV
🏒 Hockey
🏐 Volleyball
🏒 New Adult Sports Romance
🏐 Found Family
💋 Nickname
💙 He Falls First
☕🔥🔥🔥🔥 This Scorchin Hot with light kink and dirty talk

What would you do if your hot summer fling suddenly transfered to your college and was now playing hockey with his former rival who also happens to be your brother?

If Nikolai can find a way to open up and work through is past he might discover he has everything to live for.

Izzy is determined and will stop at nothing to get what she wants. Will she find a way to pave a path that isn't in the shadow of her siblings?

Sometimes no matter what you do you can't out run those who seek to tear you down. If you are lucky you can find someone to help keep you afloat, stand with you, and face your struggles without fear.

This on and off the ice and court sports romance read has plenty of shenanigans, banter, and road blocks as two college kids find a way to demand the life they deserve on their own terms.

When I started reading this I didn't realize that this was the last book in a series but can be enjoyed as a standalone.

All thoughts and opinions are my own.

*sigh* Another immature rom-com that I try to give a chance and leave feeling like it’s way too young for me. When will I learn my lesson?

This book started out cute, but would. Not. End. It was unnecessarily long. There were so many side characters that I never quite remembered (or cared to remember) who exactly they were and what the relationships were. It got to the point where I didn’t care how the main characters ended up, I just wanted to be done.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC.

I loved seeing Nik and Izzy get themselves together, with a little bit of sneaking around and secrecy. Sweet story, following all the good tropes, with a happy ending!

🏒🏐 REVIEW 🏐🏒

The story of Izzy and Nikolai has been so good from start to finish.

What was a secret summer love affair for both of them, turns into something more that neither of them is willing to accept, when they both end this relationship the least they expected was to meet again a few months later, when he is transferred from his previous university to Izzy's.

They just need to meet again to fall for each other again, but now they will have to be much more careful that no one sees them, especially Izzy's brother who is now the captain of Nik's new Hockey team.

I'm going to start by saying how much I liked the development of both characters, how they both supported each other, the tension between them and honestly all the cute moments.

I really liked the representation of mental health and how it plays an important role in the personal and interpersonal development of our main characters.

It was a quick and entertaining read, there aren't many dramas and those that are there, are easily resolved.

The Epilogue was all I needed to give closure to this magnificent series. You don't know how hard it feels to say goodbye to another one of my favorite romance series.

If you haven't had the chance to read this series, I highly recommend it.

Thank Valentine PR & Grace Reilly for this ARC in exchanged of an honest review.

Thank you @authorgracereilly @netgalley @avonbooks @harpervoyagerus for the E-ARC.

- Sports Romance
- Hockey Player x Volleyball Player
- College Romance
- Brother’s Rival
- Secret Relationship

This has been such a fun series. I'm sad it's all wrapped up now. The Callahan siblings have been so amazing to connect with and see how they all develop together throughout the entire series. Watching their bond is pure sweetness and their love stories are the cutest.

This book focuses on Izzy and Nicolai. I loved the double dose of athletes for the main characters. Each having this strong passion. Nicolai's trauma was heartbreaking but seeing the caring side of Izzy come out and the way they meshed together was perfect. It's spicy and sweet with some sad moments mixed in. A great balance of the perfect love story for sure.

I was really looking forward to this book as I loved all the others in the series. This one just felt different. The writing seemed a bit forced and I couldn't connect with the characters as much. I really wanted to love it, but I kept picking it up and putting it down.

Loved this book so much! Such a great sports romance with so much chemistry between the characters!!

5 ✨

The end of an era for Beyond The Play series and what an amazing book and couple to finish off with. I have always been obsessed with Izzy in all of her brothers’ books so to finally get to read all about her and Nikolai was just such a treat. Their story was definitely filled with so many ups and downs and different turns I had to take a second coming over but gosh it turned out so beautifully and told one of my favorite love stories ever.

Nikolai Abney-Volkov, my new favorite book boyfriend. He has a very tough interior but is really such a marshmallow inside especially for his girl. He’s had a really tough and unspeakable childhood that no child should have and that has definitely been a big part of what defines him today. He’s very determined about not turning into his dad and having as little contact as possible with him. He truly loves hockey but is afraid of the possibility that it will make him look too much like his father. I do think personally that is not the case and him becoming a professional hockey player would more be like a win for him than a defeat. Isabelle Callahan is the girl you would love to have by your side as your best friend. She’s so loyal, sweet and always helpful. She has the biggest heart of them all and is a great sounding board for Nik in this book. The lengths she goes to is so inspiring and I just wanna be more like her in my life to be honest.

Their relationship is one of my favorites because it’s not only the good times that gets highlighted but also the hardships which is a reality in so many relationships, so it makes it a realistic reading experience. The love they share is true to see for anyone and the use of Russian in this book is both heartwarming and HOT. I’m obsessed with this series and also the fact that we got so many glimpses of the past couples and how their lives were going. Also the epilogue I’m crying, it was so wholesome and a great way to wrap up not only Izzy and Nik’s story but also the rest of the couples. I’m gonna miss these people SO much.

💕 What to expect:
— sports romance (hockey & volley)
— summer fling
— college romance
— brother’s teammate/riv
— second chance at love
— both of them are athletes
— grumpy/sunshine
— friends with beneffits
— spice talking in russian

Not my favorite of the series but definitely a good one! I love that we finally got the sister’s story!! Yay! I love that Nick is her brother’s hockey rival and enemy so of course, they have to end up together! All in all a good book but book #2 (the one with the hockey brother) is hands down my absolute favorite!!

I loved this book. It was brothers little sister. The banter and the plot was so good. I loved it I really enjoyed this book.

The moment there is a hockey romance out I automatically want to read it! I enjoyed the story but the chemistry wasn't there for me. I would have enjoyed more of a connection.

I received an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I have yet to read a Grace Reilly book I don’t like.
Nik and Izzy were delightfully swoony and their story progressed well. Sadly this book just wasn’t “it” for me. But honestly, nothing holds up to Sebs book so it’s not really a comparison.
The romance was good, the sports were good, the spice was good, the characters were good. To be honest, this book was perfectly good.

Well…

I do like hockey romances but this one missed the mark with me.
Too much spice and some of the spice was just uncomfortable. Overall it was repetitive with characters at times acting immature and then at other times too mature for their ages. It became unrealistic.

I think a lot of people will like this one if you love new adult. It just wasn’t my cup of tea

Some of the themes were really heavy so check the trigger warnings for sure.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this as an ARC.

I really love the way Grace Reilly writes - I’ve read 3/4 of this series now and I can’t wait to complete it.

This story about Izzy and Nik is literally so sweet no one could convince me otherwise. It was the exact kind of palate cleanser I needed in between high fantasy novels.

I loved how wholesome and sweet this book turned out to be. Nik really went above and beyond my expectations for Izzy - it’s even better that he was her brother’s rival. I was nervous about his relationship with his father and how that might affect Izzy, but I think it was well played out between the two of them. However, I was devastated by the choices near the end! I needed more!

Onto the third book now - a little out of order never hurt anyone, right?? 😉

I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.

Izzy Callahan is a star volleyball player, but after spending the summer in New York, working for a prestigious wedding planner, she wants more than just the game. However, she also wants the only boy she shouldn't have - though she did this summer - Nikolai Abney-Volkov. Nik is her brother Cooper's arch nemesis, and the two have come to blows more than once on the ice. But Nik is sweet, and the time they spent together this summer proves how made for each other they are. It was just a fling though, and they're off to different colleges, where they'll be enemies again, right? Wrong, as Nik takes the fall for a younger team mate, and the only hope he has to finish his degree, and play hockey, is by transferring to McKee, and joining Cooper's team. Seeing Izzy again is one of the hardest things he's ever done, but he's damaged, and he legacy his father left him haunts his every move.

I've found my favourite book in this series! Nik and Izzy were the couple, and it was both heart wrenching, and heartwarming to read their romance. They were so right for each other, and they fought to be together so much! I'm in awe with how utterly made for each other they were, and the moments when it was just them, being vulnerable and opening up about their pasts, were perfect. I was worried how Coop and Nik's animosity would play out, especially given their past, and Coop now being Nik's captain, but Grace wrote their development from enemies to best friends so well. The epilogue was the piece de resistance, and really tied the whole series together! I need Grace to write some more books, and stat!