That was such a good read! I'm usually not a fan of horny college students in books, but this one I really, really enjoyed.

Given that, it was so hot and so smutty, yet pretty fun.

At the end I shed so many ACTUAL tears which doesn't happen to me often. For that I have to give a special applause to Ms. Kennedy!

What to expect:
- enemies to lovers
- fake dating
- hockey player MMC
- dancer FMC
- neighbors
- college setting
- friends with benefits
- dual pov
- super spicy

TW: domestic abuse (not between MCs of course), death of a parent, grief

Quick Summary: A sports romance drama

My Review: The Dixon Rule by Elle Kennedy is book #2 in the Campus Diaries series.

About the Book: A hockey hunk and a spitfire cheerleader go from rivalry to realness once they become neighbors. Not only do they help each other out of challenging situations, but they also learn what it means to trust. They explore together. They support each other. They discover what they can and cannot deal with alone. They realize what they are made of, in terms of strength and worth. They embrace the ideas and actions of love.

About the Characters: The leads in this novel had so much texture. They were shaped and affected by their circumstances and upbringing, both as individuals and as partners. I loved that we could see what they endured in the various seasons of life. It was easy to track the growth that occurred.

It was nice to see familiar characters from book one and to get updates on their lives. The story was set up in a way that allows readers to see obvious progression. Just enough hints and teasers were placed to keep readers coming back.

Memorable Scenes (coded, so as to avoid spoilers):

- Towel and Taunt

- Reputation and Revenge

- The HOA

- Thin Walls and a Balcony

- What the Heck?!

- Sway with Me

- Oh, No She Didn't!

- Look, But Don't Touch

- Serial...Cuteness

- Tears

About the Narration: Corvin King and Erin Mallon did a masterful job as narrators. Just as the main characters had chemistry, so to did they. It was easy to get caught up in the story and to picture what was happening. The excitement, tension, playfulness, and emotions were all there.

My Final Say: There were several hard hitting themes in this installment. Boundaries were definitely pushed on many fronts. This book had big emotions written all over it. It was incredibly humorous, while at the same time, it was very, very serious. I appreciated that the author did not shy away from talking about what many early adults face in college, on the dating scene, in existing relationships, and at home.

I would categorize this book as a mature NA read. It is, indeed, realistic, contemporary fiction.

Presented Concepts:

Family dynamics
Unhealthy/healthy communication
Parental expectations
Multicultural relationship
Biracial identity
Wake up/Break up engagements
Violence/Abuse/Assault
Stalking/Harassment
Anxiety (post trauma)
Voyeurism/KF/Trio play
Terminal illness

Presented Tropes:

Sports romance
Enemies to lovers
Close proximity
Fake dating
Friends with benefits

Other: Many may find some of the book's content to be triggering. I would advise potential readers to proceed with caution. Refer to any author and/or publisher notes on this work.

Rating: 4.5/5
Recommend: Yes
Audience: NA/A
Status: M
Level: 🚨
Series: Yes
Audiobook: Yes
Narration: +

Sincere appreciation is extended to the author, to the publisher (Dreamscape Select | Elle Kennedy Inc.), and to NetGalley. Thank you for the opportunity to review this title in exchange for an honest review. The words I have voluntarily shared are my own.

* Thanks for being brave enough and bold enough to write this incredibly entertaining and highly explosive story, Ms. Kennedy. Navigating the college years involves so much of what you wrote about. New adults, as you likely already know, experiment and experience more than they are sometimes equipped to deal with. Every situation is a part of their journey. You captured that. I'm glad you told this story in the way in which you did. Keep writing and representing. Salute!

Thank you Dreamscape Select | Elle Kennedy Inc. and NetGalley for this advance readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Dixon Rule is everything you expect from an Elle Kennedy novel. She masterfully weaves together a romance-filled banter, cute moments, and spice while addressing heavier topics, specifically domestic violence in The Dixon Rule. If you're a fan of forced proximity, fake dating, and sports romance this one is for you.

This couple RULES! The Dixon Rule by Elle Kennedy was a hilarious and heartfelt enemies-lovers new adult romance that I could not stop listening to. Diana and Shane’s fake dating and friends-with-benefits romance had many emotional layers to uncover. I swooned, blushed, and happily sighed as these two finally expressed their true feelings and fell hard for each other.

Erin Mallon and Corvin King performed this audiobook in dual narration. This was the first time I’d heard these two paired together, and both embodied Diana and Shane’s personas to the fullest. Erin shined bright in her performance of Diana. She captured Diana’s outspoken, passionate, and spirited personality making you feel every single emotion. (Yes, lady!) Corvin’s warm flirty, gravelly timbre complimented Shane’s playboy ways. He also added some vulnerability in his tone to showcase Shane’s sentimental side as well. Both narrators brought the steamy tension, longing, and heat with Diana and Shane’s undeniable attraction and chemistry.

Overall, I LOVED this book. If you are a fan of a college romance with a hot hunky hockey player, a fiercely feisty cheerleader, HOA meetings, community group chats, reality TV, ballroom dancing competitions, swimming pool games, fake dating, friends with benefits, kitchen counter spice, voyeurism, balcony steam, dedicated families, conniving exes, swoony love declarations, growing stronger together, and a HEA that will rule your heart, then you will love Diana and Shane’s romance. I always look forward to more from Elle Kennedy.

The Dixon Rule was such a fun listen. Diana and Shane’s enemies to lovers story was unexpectedly emotional and heartbreaking and their story gave me all the feels. From the fun, flirty banter and electric chemistry that they shared to the heartwrenching and angsty, emotions that each of them experience, these two were perfection together.

Erin Mallon and Corvin King narrated the audio and they had me completely mesmerized with their performances. Erin was fantastic as Diana, the smart mouthed cheerleader who was feisty and determined with a huge heart. Corvin was a new narrator to me and he was soo good. I fell in love with his portrayal of Shane and he conveyed all of the unexpected depth of emotions that Shane felt throughout the story to perfection. The Dixon Rule was another fantastic story in the Campus Diaries series and I cannot wait to see who’s next.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. The Dixon Rule is book 2 in the campus diaries series by Elle Kennedy. Shane and Diana are the main characters in book two. They’re forced into fake dating when Shane’s ex-girlfriend arrives in town with new boyfriend. Then again when Diana is trying to deal with her ex-boyfriend and his sudden move into their condo complex. The book features enemies to lovers, fake dating, hockey, cheer/dance, domestic violence and death of a parent.

Corvin King and Erin Mallon, the narrators did an incredible job at bringing the story to life! I became invested in the story and enjoyed every minute of it. I highly recommend this book, you won’t be disappointed. Looking forward to book 3 in the series!

4,5 ☆

Esperava zero deste livro, mas a autora entregou tudo. Depois do total fiasco que foi Graham Effect e Girl Abroad, fui com zero expectativas para este livro, e talvez tenha sido por isso que me surpreendeu imenso.
O livro aborda agressão e violência doméstica, por isso se este tema vos der trigger, talvez não seja o livro para vocês (aviso: esta agressão não é feita pelo Shane).
Aqui conhecemos a história do Shane e da Diana, que já em TGE se picavam imenso. Diana é uma cheerleader habituada a controlar tudo na sua vida, ainda que queira deixar de controlar a sua vida e viver de maneira mais descontraída. Shane é conhecido por ser o fuckboy que está com todas as cheerleaders da equipa da Diana, mas a verdade é que não é de todo assim. O Shane sofre devido ao fim de namoro com a sua ex, e a Diana quer fugir ao seu. Apesar de andarem sempre em picardias e parecer que a Diana detesta o Shane, os dois fazem um acordo de fingir que são namorados para conseguir escapar aos seus ex companheiros, no entanto o Shane acredita que podem tirar proveito deste acordo e fazer um acordo novo: serem amigos com benefícios. Podem imaginar que temos bastante spice neste livro e como assim, 9 inches? Isto é possível????
Adorei a história, tanto a nível de construção, como ao nível do desenvolvimento e crescimento dos personagens. Adorei que souberam crescer juntos e crescer sozinhos, amadurecerem. Dei por mim a chorar ao longo do livro, não estava nada à espera.
O livro aborda vários temas sensíveis tais como: ansiedade, agressão, luto, problemas com familiares e superação.

Adorei, esperava zero e entregou muito mesmo. Ouvi em audiobook e fiquei mesmo feliz por o ter feito, quero desde já agradecer à netgalley pela cedência do audiobook porque tornou a experiência mil vezes melhor, a voz do narrador que faz de Shane? Oh deus… derreti.

Quero ainda fazer um pequeno à parte. Por isso tenham atenção porque pode ser spoiler. No primeiro livro conhecemos um pouco da “amizade” do Beckett e do Will e no final deste audiobook está uma cena bonus que não está no ebook, e não sei se está no livro físico, que é sobre o Beckett e o Will a falarem. Estará a autora a dar pistas de um possível romance? Berrei e preciso de respostas!

I really enjoyed the book, it was wholesome in the way that it might break your heart but also give you hope for the future, as the characters endure hardships and learn to support and love each other. The narrators did an amazing job, would definitely recommend you give it a listen!

A steamy romance that quickly has you hooked I love crossover characters. Elle Kennedy is a way with writing captivating sports romcom. Easy to recommend. Great addition to the series.

**Audiobook Review**

I’m so excited that I was able to listen to the audiobook version of this story. “The Dixon Rule” is a laugh out loud, steamy and emotional college hockey romance that pulled me in from the beginning.

It’s summer and Diana Dixon is a busy college student. Two full time jobs, rehearsing for a ballroom competition and an ex that won’t quit. And the cherry on top is when Shane Lindley. Shane is a hockey player at Briar U and broke up with his long time girlfriend last year and is ready to be a boyfriend again. And when a shot to make his ex jealous, he asks Diana to be his fake girlfriend. And Shane is able to repay the fake boyfriend favor when Diana’s ex keeps coming around trying to win her back. The two are constantly pushing each other’s buttons but there’s something more underneath that starts to surface as they get to know each other.

The way I’m still thinking about Shane and Diana is crazy. I was hooked from the beginning and I couldn’t stop listening. Diana is caring, smart and oh so feisty. She doesn’t take anyone’s nonsense and isn’t afraid to speak her mind. Instant girl crush here. Shane had me swooning with his charisma and I loved how he wasn’t afraid to push Diana’s buttons back. The two were instant flames and just got hotter as each chapter went on. The teasing, the banter, the pushing of the buttons had me laughing so much with their antics. Diana might have started out being annoyed with Shane but he broke down her walls and became her friend first and foremost. He became the rock she needed as she did for him during both of their hardest times during this book. I laugh a lot but also shed some tears during the story. Elle knocked it out of the park with an amazing, well rounded story. And those steamy scenes… had me panting more than once. The spice was spicy. I’m so proud of the way these two characters developed through the story and I’m going to counting down the days until the next book.

Corvin King and Erin Mallon were amazing as Shane and Diana. Corvin is a new to me narrator and I loved his smooth, deep voice. He brought all the fun and raw emotions that Shane went through perfectly. You can never go wrong with listening to Erin bring any character to life. Her performance was spunky, fun and emotional for everything that Diana went through during this book.

Corvin King could talk in my ear forever and I think I’d be happy. Seriously? His voice is the perfect mix of raspy and smooth (I don’t care if that doesn’t make sense—it’s beautiful!) and Erin Mallon brought all that is Diana Dixon to life with flare.

Seriously, the narrators were perfect!!

Expect ⬇️
Enemies to Lovers
Hockey/Cheerleading/Competitive Dancing
Fake Dating
Friends With Benefits
Epic Banter
Slow Burn to High Spice

Shane and Diana have all the chemistry. From fighting to f*cking, these two always have sparks flying. I loved their banter. I loved how their friendship developed and watched their loyalties and priorities shift.

I loved both of their characters and what they had to overcome and how they did it together. They made me all hot and bothered and they even made me cry 😆

I could have done without the mention of every character ever written from previous books by the author 🥴 (I know some people love cameos… a couple are fine but this was a lot)

Overall I loved the book, the characters, the story and the narration. There are some heavy topics that can be found under content warnings.

**SPOILERS BELOW**
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The issue of consent around Will made me a little uncomfortable. I don’t like how that was handled. I saw it coming a mile off but would have preferred a conversation to his space being invaded while he slept and it almost… forced on him? 😬

Elle Kennedy never misses.
I loved Chad and Diana's story. The enemies to lovers, the tension, the banter that Kennedy is a master of.
I really enjoyed that both characters had a lot of personal growth, but stayed true to themselves.
I was not prepared for how emotional I would get. I am not a person who cries in books and found myself in tears not once but twice!
Check your triggers, because this one packs an emotional punch.
I listened to the audiobook and finished it in two days. Both narrators were excellent. I really enjoyed their performances.
I hope I don't have to wait long for Will and Beckett's book!

Read this if you like:
•hockey romance
•dance competition
•fake dating
•enemies to lovers

This book was SO GOOD. And the hilarious HOA meetings had me CACKLING. I love Diana and Shane. This also touches on heavier topics too but done with so much care. Thank you Dreamscape Media for the ALC

The way that I am obsessed with this series and Elle’s writing is unmatched. I swear she just gets better and better. This book had me in EVERY single one of my feels. Diana and Shane were absolute dirty perfection and I loved every single second of it. I was sweating, squealing, giggling, sobbing, cackling, you name it, I experienced it. This book was absolutely EVERYTHING. Seeing all the cameos from all of my favorites just makes me so giddy with happiness. Briar hockey has always had my whole heart and this is no exception. Infinite stars!

The Dixon Rule audiobook is one of my favorite of the year. It was crammed with so much. It felt like the story just kept going with no end in sight, but I didn’t mind. I hung on every word the narrators spoke. They did a great job portraying Diana and Shane.

The book is full of fun and engaging banter. It packs a lot of emotion. Paying attention to subtle cues in the story, I guessed the twists that Kennedy was foreshadowing, but that didn’t make them anymore shocking or heart wrenching. Some tough subjects were handled in a respectful way. This was the fun read/listen I expected, but with a lot of substance.

Diana and Shane are at the center of this cheerleader x hockey story. There is fake dating, dual POV, enemies to lovers, and more. I loved the banter between Diana and Shane, and could feel the tension. They make a deal to help other out in order to solve their problems. They get more than they bargained for and end up being there for each other when life takes some hard turns.

I love how Kennedy was able to take me through a range of emotions during this book and I’m looking forward to the next in the series. Thanks NetGalley and Dreamscape Select for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I haven’t listened to a book rammed with so much emotion and entertainment in a long while. The banter. The chemistry. The tension. The character development. The SPICE. Genuinely one of the hottest books I have read. The kitchen scene was — intense (especially on audio). And now lives rent-free in my head. I eagerly swallowed every single word in the 13 hours/500+ pages. Written and narrated to near perfection. Not one scene or interaction without purpose. No miscommunication or third act breakup with proper attention given to treatment and healing after trauma. And trauma there is (check trigger warnings). This was raw and real AF. Yet equally hilarious.

I truly admire the openness and vulnerability around intimacy and relationships in this generational family of friends. Nothing is taboo at Briar U. I absolutely love how Elle is stringing the development of Will & Beckett through this series. Patience is a virtue. I honestly hope they aren’t next, because I would not have appreciated MMF before this and want to be begging for it when their time comes. I seriously might have a new book kink.

Now I'm off to join my HOA.

I was so excited to listen to this audiobook because I enjoyed The Graham Effect. The narrators, Erin Mallon and Corvin King, did a great job of capturing Diana and Shane's characters throughout the story. I really liked listening to their voices embody the characters.

I liked the parts of the story where they were practicing together for the dance competition. I liked the hockey parts of the story too.

The book really fell flat for me because I didn't care for Shane or Diana. I think that they were both very one-dimensional, and I wasn't invested in them as a couple or as individuals. I think that the book should be more specific with the content and trigger warnings. I felt unprepared for parts of the story that were deeply upsetting. I expected a lighthearted story, and it isn't what I got. The book gets very dark at some points.

I thought that some of the parts of the story gave me the ick as well. I didn't like some of the descriptions, and I had some issues with consent and behavior. I didn't like Shane's ex and how she still had a hold on Shane's feelings. When he turns his back on Diana and goes to talk to his ex, I felt like I was completely uninterested in Shane and Diana's relationship.

I am looking forward to book 3 in the series because I love Will and Beckett. I hope that they get the story that they deserve.

Thanks to Dreamscape Select for an ALC of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley, Dreamscape Select, Bloom Books & Elle Kennedy for the audio ARC of The Dixon Rule in exchange for an honest review.

I was OBSESSED with The Graham Effect & elated when I was approved for The Dixon Rule!

Elle Kennedy has become my latest obsession & for good reason. The Dixon Rule continues on with the Briar story following GiGi's best friend Diana Dixon who is cheer captain at Briar. She also has "a lot going on at the moment." Cheer, a dance competition, multiple jobs & a slimy, stalker ex. She has little time to deal with anything else, but she is forced to do just that once the fuck boy Shane Lindley moves into her apartment complex. The last thing she wants to deal with is the guy who has gone through nearly her entire cheer squad and tossed them to the side leaving them each broken hearted and unable to focus on cheer. Shane is smoking hot & not quite the fuck boy he's thought to be. He only hooked up with a few girls after an awful long term relationship came to an ed. He's ready to settle down with the right person. Diana & Shane find themselves in a situation where they can both be beneficial to each other with Diana pretending to be Shane's girlfriend when his ex & her new boyfriend come to visit; and with Shane pretending to be Diana's boyfriend for a few months after her stalker ex just temporarily moved into the same apartment complex. We all know how fake dating goes, right?

This book was SIZZLING! As much as Diana tried to fight her attraction to Shane, it was inevitable & their chemistry was off the charts! Shane was such a dream MMC. He was so loving, caring & attentive to Diana & when he found out about a certain physical altercation she was involved in, which dampened her usual fierce & confident personality, it was all he could do to not murder the person responsible. Diana was a fiery FMC who felt very realistic. Her personality & how it changed after an awful event & her reasonings for staying quiet were what I imagine a lot of college girls feel when in the same situation.

I listened to this audiobook it one sitting & was sad when it was over. I can't wait for the next installment with The Charlie Method!

4.5 Stars - Rounded to 5

Elle Kennedy books never disappoint but the plot twists at the end really made this one for me. So much character development in such a short period of time so I wish we’d have hit that point sooner and followed the characters journeys through it in more detail. Overall this book was fun and love the nods to the original series as well! The spice was hot and with fun side character stories, it had it all and didn’t feel nearly as long as the book really was.

Thank you Elle Kennedy, NetGalley and Dreamscape Select for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley, Elle Kennedy and Unabridged Audio for this audio ARC! I'll start with the narration - I thought the narrator that performed Diana Dixon's part was really fantastic and believable and I enjoyed her performance overall, but the narration for the role of Shane didn't do it for me. At times he just sounded so stale to me, I just couldn't get into his voice as much. It was performed well but his actual voice just didn't do much for my personal preference. That said, I thought his actual character was great. I enjoyed this book, and was actually pretty fascinated by the openness of the characters in terms of accepting each other's preferences (I don't remember this being the case when I was in college). I appreciated the inclusion of DV as a sub-topic and think that Shane's character handled Diana's situation with grace and respect and Diana's response to the incidents was authentic. Overall, this was a good 2nd book in the series!