✨ Publication date: August 6, 2024✨

Good Boy is a refresh and republish of the first book is the Wags series by Elle Kennedy and Sarina Bowen. This is a steamy sports romance series.

Jess Canning is in her mid twenties and is still trying to figure life out. She has started a few school programs and attempted a couple of career choices and can’t seem to find what works. She knows what doesn’t work though, seeing one of her brother’s best friends Blake again after their hook up a few months ago.

Blake Riley is your typical playboy. Star of the Toronto professional hockey team and no problem getting girls to hang off him. He just can’t quite get Jess Canning out of his mind. They only hooked up once but their chemistry was off the charts and he’s like to explore a friends with benefits deal with her.

When Jess is accepted to a Toronto University for Nursing, Blake and Jess start to see a bit more of each other. When Blake asks Jess to be his fake girlfriend to avoid his ex at an upcoming family party, they agree that fake dating and friends with benefits would work for them both.

What happens when the forever playboy wants to settle down and the girl looking for a steady long term relationship doesn’t see what’s right in front of her?

I liked this book. I’m a big Elle Kennedy fan but I had a tough time with Blake’s character. He grew on me a bit throughout the book but I still didn’t love his immaturity throughout the book. This is a 3 star for me.

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

#NetGalley #ellekennedy #sarinabowen #goodboy

Thank you #Netgalley for the copy

What a fun read! Already a fan of Elle Kennedy I was looking forward to this collaboration and new Wags series. Looking forward to the next! In this intro novel, we are introduced to Jess, a woman in her twenties trying to find her career. Meanwhile, we are also quickly introduced to Blake, her brothers best friend, a hilarious hockey player who is used to women fawning over him, but not Jess. Jess decides to go to nursing school, coincidently in the same town as her brother and Blake. In typical rom com style, we watch as Jess and Blake tease each other, one pushing the other away, etc. But ultimately they need each other in more ways than one, and we watch the relationship evolve and Jess eventually build in her confidence in school and life.

I love every book these two write. I really enjoyed this one! The frat boy talk was a little bit much for my taste, but overall, the book was cute and a good read that I really enjoyed. The banter was funny, and they had really great chemistry. Once Jess got to know Blake better, she saw what he was truly like, and I loved that.

Thank you netgalley and publisher for eARC!

This was a bit cheesy, but overall an enjoyable fluffy read. Would recommend to anybody who enjoys hockey romances with smut.

OMG this book! My cheeks hurt from smiling so much. This is my absolute favorite book by both of these authors. I want to read it again for the first time. I adored Blake and Jess, but especially Blake. His humor and fun-loving ways were so adorable. Go read this ... like seriously now.

3 stars. This book is a release of one of their older books with a new cover (which I really like) and it was a quick read. However, compared to other work by Elle Kennedy or any other hockey romance I feel like this one fell short and lacked depth. Also Blake just made me cringe way too hard and I can't tell if this was just sayings we used back in the day or if he really is that cringe lol. Also, I initially was excited for the dog element but I feel like that wasn't a central point in this book. I feel like this series and the covers (new and past) really marketed the dog element so I expected more. I'll read the next one to see if that opinion changes :) Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!

This brother's best friend, hockey romance was so fun. I loved Jess and Blake so much. They had previously hooked up but while Jess saw it as a one and done, Blake was set on winning her heart. And what better time to do that then at the wedding of Jess's brother where they are the maid of honor and best man. A quick, entertaining and funny read. Looking forward to the next book in the series.

I love Elle Kennedy but this one fell short for me.

This one lacked excitement and overall was really boring.
I did enjoy the relationship dynamics at times and there was definitely humor but nothing that grabbed my attention and kept me entertained.
I enjoyed Blake but most of the characters lacked depth and were just not enjoyable.

Seemed like the same ol' romance we've all seen and heard before.
I'll still read Elle Kennedy, this just wasn't my favorite.

I really wanted to like this one, it started off strong but then I quickly lost interest. I know Elle is the queen of hockey romance but they're all starting to blend together now. DNF @ 25%

WAGs is a sports romance series written by two of my favorite contemporary authors, Elle Kennedy and Sarina Bowen.

Jessica Canning has always felt that she's been the flighty one of her 5 siblings, never really fitting in with the different jobs she's had. She thought she had finally figured it out with a party planning career. She has spent months planning the perfect wedding for her brother Jamie and his fiance Wes's wedding (Him), but it's been terribly stressful and she's again thinking of calling this one a failure. She is feeling like she could turn to nursing as a career after she took care of her brother when he got sick. But this is the last straw, if she wants to be taken seriously she has to really prove herself. Blake Riley has had a thing for Jess since the day they both cared for her brother. He's the best man at Wesmie's wedding and it's the perfect time to rekindle the sexy times with Jess. Only she's stressed beyond belief and wants nothing to do with him.

I had originally DNF'd this way back in the day when it was originally first published. I had a really hard time with how Jess treated Blake. She took him just as some dumb frat boy jock, and though his language was the definition of immature, he had the biggest heart ever. This time around I stuck through it and it only got better. There were so many sides to Blake and he just made me laugh so many times. Jess grew on me too especially after her stint in the kid's cancer ward. These two were great together, their chemistry was smoking and the spice was spectacular! Mama Riley was the quintessential hockey mom, I loved her so much and I thought it was very spot on that she would know about Molly's lies even though no one said anything to her.

Overall this was a very cute book and I'm glad I gave it another chance because I really do love this world Elle and Sarina created. Can't wait to read about Hailey and Eriksson! Thank you so much to Bloom Books for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

This was a cute and spicy hockey romance that I loved. Elle Kennedy never disappoints! Thank you for allowing me to read and review this ARC

I absolutely adored this story! I thought I'd find Blake to be a bit too corny, but he was just spunky and fun. I felt like this story was quick, but maybe I just couldn't stop reading it!, yet the character development was strong. It was a spicy read, but still had all the family feels.

Thank you to Netgalley, Bloom Books, Elle Kennedy and Sarina Bowen for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was and Absolute Blast to read. This rom-com follows Jess Canning, who is determined to prove herself by hosting her brother’s wedding, and Blake Riley, the charming and persistent hockey player who is the best man. Their chemistry is off the charts, and their banter is both hilarious and heartwarming.

Blake’s relentless pursuit of Jess is filled with laugh-out-loud moments, and his softer side makes him incredibly endearing. Jess’s journey to find her own path while dealing with Blake’s antics is both relatable and entertaining. The mix of humor, romance, and a touch of drama makes this book a perfect feel-good read.

If you love stories with lovable characters, witty dialogue, and plenty of laughs, “Good Boy” is a must-read. It’s a delightful escape that will leave you smiling from start to finish!

Thank you Sourcebooks/Bloom Books for the ARC!

If you’re looking for a fun, steamy, chemistry-filled romcom, this should be your pick! It’s got everything you could want: hockey romance, spicy, found family feels. I’d recommend reading the main series, Him/Us, before you dove in here though!

I didn't know until I started reading this, that this was a spin off from the Us series. I own that duology and maybe should have read it first, because mild (or perhaps not so mild considering) spoilers. But I didn't. And I'm glad I didn't stop. This was really damn good writing. The characters were relatable, if a little infuriating. I'm glad I didn't set this aside. If anything, it's only going to encourage me to read Us sooner.

Unfortunately, I DNF’ed this at around the 30% mark. I found the writing very juvenile and I didn’t enjoy the voice. Blake as a character was very annoying and I didn’t see myself enjoying this read, so I decided to put Good Boy down. I think a lot of romance, especially those who want a lot of sexual content, would like this - it just wasn’t for me.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bloom Books, and the author for sending me an early copy.

This book was really good. I think it focused more on the smut than maybe Elle Kennedys books normally do but I love the way she writes and this book was no exception. I loved the character development. I wish we had gotten more out of the characters but overall I enjoyed it.

Jess and Blake have a past, but they don't have a future, according to Jess. She is trying so hard to figure out what she wants to do in life and she doesn't need any more distractions. To her parents she is just floating by, trying on different things for size and nothing quite fitting. When she finally figures out what she wants to do, get into nursing school, it is cheaper in Canada and that means she's not only closer to her brother but also to Blake.
Blake is bound and determined to let Jess know that he is here for her, whatever she needs. He wants to get closer to her and he believes in her like no one else does. He just wants to show her that he doesn't think of her like everyone else does, and he is not going to stop until she sees that.
I liked that Blake was so persistent and fought for Jess even if she was prickly. We need more guys like Blake, willing to show us that he is there for us no matter what and shows up.
Thanks to Bloom, Netgalley and Sarina and Elle for an early copy.

Thank you Bloom books and NetGalley for letting me read and review this book by Elle Kennedy & Sarina Bowen.

Jess is hosting her brothers wedding when she realizes that wedding planning is nothing for her. She is also the maid of honor. The best man is Blake Riley, who is on the hockey team with Jess´s brother in law. He has had his eyes on her for a bit and now needs to convince her to be with him.

This book has it all, maid of honor - best man, "enemies"(not really though) to lovers, fake dating. Don´t tell my boyfriend but I might have a small crush on Blake Riley... I bet you will as well after reading this. I have had a smile plastered to my face for the last couple of days reading this. I highly recommend everyone reading this.

I rated this book 4 stars.

Good Boy is a surprisingly sweet hockey romance set in the universe of Elle Kennedy and Sarina Bowen’s beloved (by me and others) Him and Us universe! I honestly wasn’t sure how I would feel about this book, since I wasn’t a huge fan of the male lead, Blake, in Us. I read it because I loved the universe, and I’m really glad I did!

Blake is the ultimate golden retriever hero (which I assume inspired the name of the book). As a supporting character, he came across as one note, but he had SO MUCH more depth in this book. The same goes for Jess, whose story I found really touching.

Sarina and Elle just make magic together. I think Elle has a talent for dialogue and Sarina has a talent for story, and they really complement each other. This comes through in Good Boy. If you’re looking for a sweet and spicy hockey romance, I highly recommend!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me an eArc to read and review!