Landish’s writing is both witty and super relatable, making it so easy to connect with the characters and their journeys. The chemistry between the leads? Absolutely electric! Their banter had me laughing out loud and grinning like a fool. 😆

The plot kept me on my toes with its twists and turns—I couldn’t flip the pages fast enough! If you love a fun mix of sports, romance, and humor, this one’s definitely for you. Highly recommend!

Thank you NetGalley, Montlake and Lauren Landish Bellefleur for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is the 2nd book in the Maple Creek series but can be read standalone.

Joy is a tough, ambitious sports reporter who takes her job and sports seriously. After being cheated on years ago by an athlete she has sworn off dating athletes.

Dalton is a semi professional hockey player and Shep’s (Joys older brother) best friend and teammate. He has a reputation for one night stands and has never wanted to commit to a relationship.

An unlikely encounter and some serious pregame superstition leads Joy and Dalton to get close and much to their surprise they enjoy spending time together.

Lauren Landish writes bold, sometimes vulgar (in a fun way) characters who have flaws but are relatable and have big hearts. I enjoyed this book, it was fast paced. The title and cover are slightly misleading in my opinion but not enough to take away from the book. Sure, the title has to do with the superstition - proposing a solution of sorts but the cover seems like it was created solely based on the title - not the actual book.

I’m crossing my fingers Shepherd and Rayleigh are the next book.

Tropes:
Professional athlete - hockey
Former player
Forbidden love
Brothers best friend
Miscommunication
He falls first/hard

Dual POV

3.0 STARS

The only thing that made me struggle with this story was having to be inside Dalton's head. I found myself skim reading his chapters a lot. I do have a personal gripe with dual POV in romance novels as I rarely ever think its done well.

Other than that, this was a perfectly good hockey romance! Loved the tropes and the overall vibe! Super easy and fun read for any sports romance lover!

I did not realise this was a series?? So I guess you can read them separately but now I'm excited to read 'I Do with You'.

The Pucking Proposal by Lauren Landish is a fun, steamy, and heartwarming sports romance. Joy, a sports reporter, and Dalton, a star hockey goalie, share an unexpected pregame ritual that turns into something more. Their chemistry is off the charts, and their playful banter makes the story even better.

Lauren Landish delivers a perfect mix of humor, romance, and emotion, making this a must-read for contemporary romance fans. The forbidden aspect of their relationship adds extra tension, and watching them fall in love is so satisfying. If you love sports romances with great characters, this one is for you!

The Pucking Proposal by Lauren Landish sounded like an empty net goal for me but ended up being more of a shot off the crossbar.

From the first chapter, Dalton and Joy are hot and heavy and immature. The lack of maturity in the first part of the book was difficult for me to get over. If it wasn’t an ARC, it might have been a DNF.

That said, both characters grow and mature throughout the story and the development and pacing is well done. I knew the the third act breakup was coming but it wasn’t quite what I expected, and I didn’t hate it like I usually do! Getting to the second half of the book was worth reading the first half.

I’d recommend this book if you love hockey romance, don’t mind a lack of maturity and lots of spice early on (and piercings).

The Pucking Proposal by Lauren Landish

Rating: 3.5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Spice: 3/5 🌶️🌶️🌶️

Thank you to Montlake, Netgalley, and the author for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Joy is a sports reporter that refuses to date an athlete. Dalton is a hockey player and her brother’s teammate. After an accidental run in, Dalton plays his best game in a while. When he realizes she’s his good luck charm, he proposes they have a pregame ritual. When they start the pre-game ritual, Joy and Dalton begin to know each other better and develop feelings. Joy still insists that she doesn’t date athletes after being cheated on. Dalton tries to get her to give him a chance.

This is the second book in the Maple Creek series but can be read as a standalone. This is an easy, fast-paced read full of spice, humor, and heart.

Overall, the MCs are a really great match, the supporting characters strengthen the story, and the more serious/emotional moments are pretty well written. A classic hockey love story that’s good for fans of sports romance!

Tropes:
- hockey player x sports reporter
- best friend’s sister
- secret relationship
- he falls first

Another fun hockey romance where I didn’t want to put it down!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my copy of this e-arc!

This is the second book in the series but could be read as a stand alone. I loved the first book so much I was excited to read this book however this book fell short for me. The title is The Pucking Proposal but there is no proposal or even fake dating. I felt like the connections between the two characters was just all based on physical chemistry and lacked an actual connection to each other.

A super fun hockey romance with a bit of forbidden in the mix, from teammate’s little sister as well as best friend’s little sister (that’s double the trouble). We could pretty much add in enemies to lovers, because sports reporter Joy Barlow, and hockey net-minder Dalton Days aren’t exactly the best of friends. So basically all my favourite genres come together to ensure that I’m going to love this story. And love it I do. Dalton is a player (in every sense of the word), and Joy doesn’t ’do’ athletes, ever! She’s been burned before. But they’re both willing to do whatever it takes to ensure the team wins, even if it goes against everything they believe in. It’s funny, cheeky, and whole lot of sexy, and it kept me highly entertained throughout.

I got very invested in the characters. I genuinely sympathized with Dalton’s fear of not being called up to the NHL and was rooting for him to be. I loved Joy’s ambition in her career and her passion for working in a male-dominated field. The premise was different and definitely amusing. The tropes work well together. I especially love the fact that she is a sports journalist and he is a hockey player because I think it creates an interesting relationship. The book was too fast-paced in my opinion, which made me wish that certain scenes were developed more.

There are two things that I can always expect from a Lauren Landish book: humor and spice. This book is no exception.

Joy & Dalton’s meet-cute is as ridiculous as it is hilarious and sets the tone for the entire book. I love a sassy, take no prisoners FMC, and Joy Barlowe is exactly that. Dalton Days is her match in every way. Watching the relationship between these two unfold was entertaining. There’s a lot of spice in this book, but it’s well-written and fits seamlessly into the plot.

I must say, it was an exhilarating experience from start to finish! The story revolves around the world of hockey, blending romance and humor in a way that keeps you engaged throughout. The characters are well-developed, each with their own unique quirks and backstories that add depth to the narrative.

Landish's writing style is both witty and relatable, making it easy to connect with the characters and their journeys. The chemistry between the leads is electric, and their banter is filled with laugh-out-loud moments that had me grinning from ear to ear. The plot twists and turns kept me on my toes, and I found myself eagerly turning the pages to see what would happen next. This is a delightful read that combines sports, romance, and humor in a way that fans of the genre will love. I highly recommend it.

I really enjoyed this follow up book in the Maple Creek series. I loved Joy’s sassiness. She & Dalton had great chemistry. Can’t wait for another book.

This wasn't MY perfect romance, but it WILL be someone's - the spice-to-plot ratio was more skewed towards spice, and I couldn't quite find the love for the domineering confidence/arrogance of the MMC.

HOWEVER the plot was fun, it was a quick read, and if you're looking for High Spice Hockey you should check it out.

I just finished The Pucking Proposal and I really enjoyed this book. So much, that I just went online and downloaded the first book in the series! This book follows Dalton and Joy on their journey to a HEA and they take us along for the fun ride. I really loved Dalton, who makes a really good book boyfriend. Does he make a few mistakes, yes, but he is the more stable of our two characters in this book. Joy has a lot of baggage, but at least she is honest with Dalton about the baggage, so he knows he has his work cutout for him. I'm thrilled to give this book 5 stars. It has been a while since I've read a 5 star book, so thank you Lauren Landish and NetGalley for this advanced copy!

Landish clearly knows how to write a hot hockey romance. This would be an easy 3 chilli peppers- spicy no PIV scenes and when it gets there it is pure steam. However, I wanted more spicy scenes from Joy's POV, to show her inner wrestle with passion and love.
I loved how Joy recognised her past relationships shouldn't define her future but I wanted more development of that.
In no way would I call this a slow-burn, however their love was just that. Like most romances , it took time for characters to realise they were in love but I felt that it helped to add to the passion in the last quarter of the novel.

Tropes used:
Secret relationship/forbidden- the brother told his team mates not to mess with his sister
Brother's bestfriend
No strings- at first
Grumpy/sunshine.

I can't wait to find out who ends up with Shep in the third book.


I received a complimentary copy of this book from #netgalley , thank you. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The synopsis of this book intrigued me, I like the premise, but this was not for me.

I felt absolutely zero chemistry between Joy and Dalton, which really just made the story unbelievable. The stream was fine, but if I had to read one more time how big he was I was going to throw my kindle. We get it, he’s huge…let’s move on.

Not sure this author is for me.

This was an excellent book!! I enjoyed the character development as well as how the plot was developed throughout the story. The author was able to to do a good job with all aspects of the story. I would recommend to others.

A sports reporter and a hockey player get up close and personal in an outrageously sexy romantic comedy.

I loved this!!! It was a perfect first read of the year for me with it's mix of heavy spice but also fluffiness between the two main characters. It was so fun and I basically read it all in one sitting. I love a hockey romance and this is a good one!!! I wish I read the first one before but love that it can still be read as a standalone.

I rated this 3.5 stars as I feel there could be some development within the characters, at the beginning it felt very instant and like there was no slow burn vibes.

Calling all hockey romcom fans, this one is for you! Such a fun read with witty banter and enjoyable characters. I've come to really enjoy Lauren's writing and her romcom spice. It's a fun read about a sports reporter and the hockey player getting their HEA with some bumps along the way!