Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Keira and Dan were high school sweethearts. They both thought they would find someone else but have never forgotten each other. Dan comes back into town for a charity hockey game and the sparks still fly between them.

Fans of small town romance, second chances, hockey romances, and kissing only will enjoy this one!

If you like hockey, small towns, clean, wholesome, second chance romance, you’ll like the story. Keira and Dan were high school sweethearts, when Dan received a scholarship to Yale, clear across the country, and Keira was going to the University of Washington, they broke up. 10 years later, Dan comes back to Maple Falls for a charity hockey fundraiser. When he’s had time to come home to visit family he keeps his eyes out for Keira, but never seems to find her. But this time he’s here for a while and he’s determined he’s going to find her, because she is his one true love.
This is a really sweet romance. There’s really no drama just two people reuniting and figuring out if they have a future together. There are many cute tender moments, embarrassing moments and fun moments. It is a cozy afternoon read. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Thanks to Netgalley, I received this as an ARC. This rom-com was as sweet as the maple syrup that flows in the ficitional small town setting. What makes a second chance romance for high school sweethearts who never truly moved on even better? An mmc, who is a complete cinnamon roll and an fmc, who is a perfect bookish girl. While this story did have some inaccuracies regarding how the NHL works, sometimes you just have to throw those details out the window and just enjoy some romance while drinking a psl and dreaming of hockey. This is a perfect read if you're looking for something quick (this is less than 200 pages), are new to the fan favorite hockey romance subgenre, or if you're looking for something to read that you won't be afraid to have your kiddos read over your shoulder (no spice, all sweetness). So, grab a sweater (when it finally cools down), your fall beverage of choice, and this read, and get ready to smile at all of the maple syrupy sweetness.

Kate O’Keeffe will never disappoint me with her cute and adorable closed door romances. But this time she’s made me even happier by adding hockey into the mix!

Keira
What do you do when your NHL superstar ex skates back into your small town? Drop to the ground and hide behind the bleachers, hoping he doesn’t see you. But Lady Luck must be in a bad mood today because Dan spots me, my hood over my eyes, pretending I’m not there.
Dan
I want Keira back. End of story.

This is the second in the Love on Thin Ice series and while it can be read as a stand alone, I really enjoyed revisiting the small town and characters of Maple Falls. This is perfect for fall season with a fall festival and farmer markets being at the front of the plot. I absolutely loved Keira and Dan and was rooting for them all the way!

This one will make you believe in love and happily ever afters! I highly recommend

3.5⭐
Sweet 🧁, not spicy 🌶️

This is a cute, quick read. Kierra and Dan were high school sweethearts who parted ways for Dan to pursue his NFL career. It's an easy to read, cozy, small town romance. It's paced well for the length, but I do find that I wish this series had been fleshed out a little more. Regardless, they've been fun reads so far!!!

✨Second Chance Romance
✨Hockey 🏒
✨Small Town
✨Clean Romance 🧼

Is it predictable? Absolutely. But it's a fun read with good vibes.

Thank you, NetGalley for the eBook to read and review. 💕

I hate giving low star reviews and try to be really fair because I know that just because a book isn’t for me doesn’t mean others won’t enjoy it. However, I just cannot give this book a higher rating. The writing is fine and the setting was nice-since I’m reading this at the beginning of September it got me really excited for fall weather and food. However, this book needed to be more developed. I read it in about 2 hours, so that tells me it’s short. It was almost like a novella, and it read like one to me. The characters had no depth, the plot didn’t really develop. The third act breakup lasted about one page and was solved with just a quick declaration of love that had already been made. There was no substance, which was disappointing because it seemed at the beginning like it was set up to be better. There was no tension, no problem to solve, hardly any time the characters even spent together, and no real reason for them to be in love with each other at all. Like I said, I hate being harsh with reviews, and I was surprised to see how many positive ones there were for this book. I just think it needed to be extended so that we could actually get invested and have a reward at the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this arc!

This was such a good book. I really enjoyed it. More than I thought I would. I loved the writing style. This book had me hooked from page one. This is a first for me by this author but will not be my last!!

I received an arc from NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.

This was a light hearted second chance romance set in a small town with Professional Hockey players. Quick and easy read with Fall vibes and down to Earth characters.

✅ General Fiction/Romance
✅ Small Town Vibes
✅ Quick and Easy Read
✅ Hockey Romance
✅ Second Chance Romance

Loved the characters in this town and looking forward to reading Emmy’s story.

He took her for granted…

Dan was callous with his high school girlfriend, Kiera “Kiki.” He’s been no saint and he’s taken full advantage of the fact he’s a pretty boy hockey player. Did he redeem himself? Not really. Zero groveling and he certainly didn’t work for it.

Kiera was great. She deserved better.

I cannot recommend this book. I almost DNFed the book at 82% but pushed through. As someone who is a self proclaimed feminist, and a basic hockey fan, this book is cringy, too fast paced, and does not paint women in a good light. The timeline of this book does not make any sense. According to Dan, the hockey season hadn’t started up when this book started and yet it was snowing during one of the scenes when he was back home? Even if this started in early September, before the official hockey season started (though the season would have started with practices and such), then how was it fall and snowing during this book. Additionally, how would a NHL team be okay with their captain being away for part of the season, even if he is injured and not playing. It doesn’t make sense. Now Kierra was a terrible FMC. Ya’ll are in your late 20’s and acting like you’re teenagers. You break up with him instead of TALKING with him about the future? Be so for real right now. Additionally, how she talks about other women in this book, is not it. “They look more like they belong in a Hugh Hefner nightclub than at a hockey after game party.” Like that’s such a terrible thing to think about other women. Also, you’re both in your late 20’s and keep thinking “he’s a jock and I’m a nerd,” is so cringy. Lastly, when the journalist kept probing Dan about Kierra, its becomes very obvious that the author hasn’t spent much time watching hockey or interviews. These journalists do not have a single care about who the NHL player is dating.

The Rebound Play is book two in the Love on Thin Ice series by Kate O'Keeffe.
A sweet second chance love story about a jock and a nerd who gets a second chance in this small town romance.
Keira and Dan were just amazing.
I loved everything about this book. The writing, the characters and the storytelling was just incredible.
This book was fun, light, and easy going.

Thank You NetGalley and Xpresso Book Tours/Wild Lime Books for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

This was a did not finish for me. The redundancy in the writing was really annoying for me as a reader. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc ebook in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Hockey, ex back in small town, spending extra time together...... all lead us to The Rebound Play by Kate O'Keeffe. It was a fun and quick book to read about second chance and family.
Thank you netgalley for The Rebound Play by Kate O'Keeffe

this was such a sweet second chance romance! i absolutely loved these two, they never stopped loving each other even all these years later. i love how their story progressed, low angst with the sweetest HEA

This was such a sweet story! I enjoyed it - it felt like getting a little snapshot of the character's lives. It doesn't delve too deep into their story, but I don't feel like it had to. It was really nice to be able to sit down and read this in one go, and I finished the book feeling warm and fuzzy inside!

Thank you Xpresso Book Tours and NetGalley for the ARC of this book, and the opportunity to give my thoughts on it.

Yes yes yes. This is a cute quick read that makes you smile. Loved the characters. It is a sweet closed door romance that makes you fall in love with small towns, single moms, second chances and hockey.

Former high school couple Dan and Kiki reconnect when he comes into town for a charity match and they realize that they still love each other ten years later.
Overall I’d say this is a great waiting room book. It’s sweet but very predictable. It’s totally clean, the most spicy thing that happens is kissing. It’s not a bad read, but it didn’t really pull me in. The townsfolk of Maple Falls seem nice, and there are lots of opportunities for standalone companion books.

If you are looking for a closed door small town second chance romance. I would highly recommend this book!

I needed this. I needed a sweet, quick read to fill my heart with joy. I loved the second chance story line with mutual pining.

I received an ARC from NetGalley & Wild Lime Books. The Rebound Play by Kate O’Keeffee is a story about a second chance romance. Dan & Keira were high school sweethearts when life took them on different paths. Dan had his hockey career in the NHL and Keira after completing college in Seattle returned to their small town to take care of her sick sister and her kids. When Dan returns to Maple Falls a cute meet leads to a second chance at happily ever after.
This book is a light wholesome fluffy quick read. I thought the map at the start of the book was pretty and I already plan to read all the books in the series. The author did a very good job of enticing us with the possible love stories waiting to happen. Possibly my favourite part of the book was when they meet for the first time after all these years - it was really adorable and funny and not so awkward that I was cringing with second hand embarrassment.

I liked the concept of the story but felt the story and the characters didn’t get a chance to develop a lot. I could easily see this book being stretched out another 5-10 chapters. The “obstacle” they faced really didn’t get a chance to expand before a solution and declarations of love were thrown out which was kind of a let down.
Overall I gave this book 3 stars. ⭐️⭐️⭐️.