The blurb for this states SPICY… yeah, I think whoever wrote that hook needs to look up was “spicy” means, because Breaking the Ice is not it. That doesn’t mean it’s a bad book – far from it – but I’d expectations going in that weren’t fulfilled. Hence the rating.

I adored the premise when I was offered this book and that does pay off. It’s really sweet and I loved the juxtaposition of the tough hockey player inheriting a romance book shop. The sparks between the characters really flew as well.

I found Nick an adorable hero. Sam was okay, but the constant mention of her “chirping eggs” was overdone. I did get the impression she was more into Nick as daddy material rather than lover. That said, the slow burn was genuinely hot. Just not spicy levels of hot.

Andrews’ prose is fabulous, though. Breaking the Ice steams along with the right balance between description and action, and her characters are all very realistic. The setting is cosy – it’s a bookshop, after all – and I did like how Nick and Sam found comfort in each other after their recent losses.

My last thought is that the story ends somewhat abruptly. Either a little more in the last chapter or an epilogue would have finished it nicely. I don’t believe there’s a second book, but maybe?

Breaking the Ice by Amy Andrews

I received an advance review copy for free thanks to Rachel's Random Resources and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

NHL hot shot, Nick Hawkeye Hawke has 4 months to recuperate from a potentially career ending injury. All he has to do is take it easy and keep things low key. So, looking after his grandmother's beloved second hand romance bookshop and working very closely with the ruthlessly efficient Samantha Evans is just what he needs right? Wrong!

Career driven Sam has impulsively decided to swap her highly stressful corporate job for a slower pace in her favourite bookshop at the exact time her biological clock has started to tick. And she wants absolutely none of that. But when your boss is a hot hockey superstar and you can’t stop daydreaming of him being your baby daddy, forced proximity takes on a whole new meaning.

With temptation around every book shelf, Nick and Sam find themselves skating on thin ice until they put themselves firmly in the friend zone. But the more they try to resist their slow burn, the more they want each other. How long can they stay in the zone until one of them breaks the ice?

Previously published as Risky Business

My Opinion

Nick is running the family bookshop whilst he recovers from an injury that has threatened his NHL career. Samantha is taking a break from her corporate job. The chemistry is obvious from the beginning. My only issue with this book was that I would have liked an epilogue, but overall this was an enjoyable book. At less than 300 pages this was a relatively quick book to read.

This was my second book by Amy Andrews and both have been entertaining reads.

Rating 4/5

Another great Amy Andrews sports romance!

I love the previous books I’ve read by Andrews and she’s given us another excellent and unique one here - a devoted romance reader who leaves her toxic workplace to go work for the son of her beloved late romance bookstore owner, who takes over after her passing. Birdie’s is a local hot-spot for ladies of all ages, and Sam is a regular.

When Nick takes on running the shot while rehabbing from a hockey injury, no one quite knows what will happen to the store, least of all Sam, who up and leaves her high-powered job after one too many old-boys-club incidents can’t be overlooked. Nick and Sam have met over the years when he was home visiting, and the slight friendship becomes a whole lot more when in close proximity at the small store daily, and Sam has been looking at him differently now that her biological clock has started ticking, loudly.

A lot of fun and I definitely recommend it! If you’re a fan of hers, you’ll love it as. Much as I did with the fantastic banter and chemistry. If you haven’t read her before, you’re in for a treat!

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the early copy. This is my honest feedback.

After reading my last book, which was quite an intense WWII novel, I needed something completely different and this book provided that! After all, this is a funny, spicy sports hero, bookshop centred romance.
Sam is an ambitious career woman who is aiming to go even further up the chain - she is determined that the coveted corner office is going to be hers. She also suddenly has a ticking biological clock. She has gone from being a woman who had no interest in having children to being obsessed with the idea of meeting Mr Right and having babies...now.

The one person who she turns to to help her find the right guy is Nick. Nick is an injured NHL star who has been asked by his family to run his grandmother's beloved romance bookstore until he gets back to his hockey career. Sam is a big romance reader and she has long loved visiting Birdie's bookstore, so when Birdie passes away she is relieved that the store will still be operating, although she is concerned that Nick will make wholesale changes.

When Sam quits her job after her boss promotes his smarmy nephew, she finds herself working at the bookshop, alongside Nick. Sam is a bit curvy and Nick is a handsome professional athlete so she thinks that there's no way that he could possibly be interested in her. He also does not want kids, so he doesn't meet her brief. She therefore asks him to help set her up with blind dates to help find the man who does.

We follow Sam as she goes on date after date, with Nick watching on wondering why she doesn't see how attractive she is. And when Sam and Nick do give into their attraction, the chemistry leaps off the page.

I loved that Nick and Sam were able to share their reading with each other. Whilst Sam is a diehard romance reader with a penchant for pirate romance, Nick loves Westerns and they challenge each other to read each other's preferred authors.

My favourite of the secondary characters was definitely Sam's straight talking sister who often called Sam out on her shortsightedness when it comes to her life, and definitely when it comes to Nick.

Whilst I thought that this book was a lot of fun and I liked it a lot, there was one aspect that was overdone for me and that was Sam's eggs, as in her reproductive system. They were described as being mutinous, as cheeping, noisy, talking and recalcitrant, and that is just in the first chapter. Whilst it was fun at first, by the end of the book it was too much.

These spicier, sports romance are a little out of my current reading zones, but I will be happy to read more of these from Amy Andrews, not least of all because she is an Aussie author. This book was previously released under the title Risky Business. I will be interested to see if her next release is another re-release or if it will be something new.

.I am sharing this review with the New Release Challenge hosted by The Chocolate Lady's Book Reviews and the Bookish Books Reading Challenge hosted at Bloggin' Bout Books. Be sure to check out other stops on the tour shown below. Thanks to the publisher, Netgalley and Rachel's Random Resources for the review copy.

Rating 3.5/5

From the very beginning, Nick and Sam have undeniable chemistry that lights up the page. Although they’re drawn to each other right away, the slow-burn tension keeps things simmering, and that build-up makes their connection even more satisfying in the end.

Nick is such a sweetheart—supportive, kind, and so wonderfully body-positive. His gentle encouragement really helps Sam open up, and it’s heartwarming to watch him help her work through her insecurities. Sam’s journey has some over-the-top moments (the constant "egg" talk had its cringey parts), but once you settle into the story, it becomes a fun, steamy, and feel-good romance.

The ending felt a little abrupt, and an epilogue would have added a nice, tied-up conclusion. Still, Breaking the Ice is a memorable and enjoyable read that’s sure to please romance fans!

Samantha Evans has hit a wall with the progression of her career. All that’s left is to become a partner and secure a corner office and a sleek sportscar. Her life is leaning towards boring as she works long hours and spends her free time reading and visiting her local bookshop. Birdie, the bookshop owner, sounded like a real treasure, but she didn’t make it into the story, as news of her death was featured in the opening pages. Her passing made way for the arrival of her NHL star grandson, Nick.
I felt drawn to Samantha as her determination at work was enviable. Having spent a few years working in marketing, I am well aware of how challenging it is as a career, but I am equally aware of the ticking of a woman’s body clock; perhaps not to the degree of hearing my eggs cheering, but I completely understood. Naturally, Samantha was looking for a forever guy and not just an occasional hook-up. With that in mind, she agrees with Nick that he should help her by arranging blind dates with friends of some of his brothers. This led to a series of comedic moments that ultimately produced a tension between Samantha and Nick that couldn’t be ignored.
Nick was the typical All-American sports star, and I am more than familiar with his type. He has his pick of women and can always find a date. His secret love of reading and willingness to tackle a new genre while introducing Samantha to cowboy stories was refreshing. I loved his willingness to be vulnerable and yet professional.
I shall leave that there for fear of including any spoilers, but I can promise a real treat to any readers. I stayed up ridiculously late with this one as I just needed to see how it would turn out, although I pretty much knew where it was going. A solid five stars from me, and I will seek out more from this author.

Breaking the Ice

I got this book as AcR from NetGalley and here is some my thoughts.

Author were new to me and like always with new-to-me authors, I was so curious to read. But I’ve to say, I didn’t like this book so much.
Mix with British English and American English got me ESL reader so confused.
Also hero was NHL player, but didn’t in the book there wasn’t that much of the hockey…
What I liked was body positivity and humor. Also all the side characters were so fun and made the story so fun.

Over all, there was good chemistry between the characters but the story was little odd and details weren’t so good.

2/5

Dear Amy Andrews,

Samantha Evans has not been interested in commitment and children of her own before now. She thought she’d never want kids. But recently, her “eggs have started cheeping” and suddenly, what Sam wants in her life has drastically changed. Up until now, she had been working her way up the corporate ladder and was aiming for that corner office and a partnership in a role involving high-powered finance. She works all the time and has little space in her life for relationships. She has pretty much stuck with arty types and younger guys who are not looking for commitment and who don’t mind if she doesn’t cook them dinner. But her ex-boyfriend is now engaged and the happy couple are expecting a baby and Sam’s eggs go into overdrive.

There were 109 uses of the word “eggs” in Breaking the Ice, and the story was told in 215 pages (including titles). It’s part of the humour and shtick of the book. For me, it was overdone. YMMV.

Sam has recently been forced to mentor horrible Ray, a relative of the boss. Ray is incompetent and creepy. When he is promoted above her, Sam hits her limit and quits, telling her boss to give her a call when Ray stuffs everything up and they want to beg her to come back to fix everything. She’s certain Ray will and they will. It’s just a matter of time.

Around the same time as this happens, her beloved friend, Birdie, passes away. Birdie owned the second hand romance bookshop over which Sam lives. Sam would stop in and spend time with Birdie often and they had a strong bond over their shared love of spicy romance novels.

After Birdie dies, Nick “Hawkeye” Hawke, Birdie’s grandson, comes to look after the store. He’s a 38 year-old pro-hockey veteran recovering from a torn ACL. He has four months until the start of the season and he’s hoping that he will be able to join the team for training camp. He thinks it unlikely he will be able to play straight away when he gets back to the team but he’s confident he will play next season. He’s determined to finish his career on his own terms.

Nick makes a few changes to the store – he adds a coffee machine and starts stocking Westerns as well (he’s later shocked to learn that these “action” books for men fit within the romance genre, having, as they do, a central love story with a HEA at the end. Sam, to her credit gets Nick reading all kinds of romance novels and he quickly becomes a convert). Nick needs to be away from the shop for a few hours each afternoon to attend physical therapy so he hires Sam to help him run it. She agrees on the basis that it’s temporary while she waits for Ray to epically screw up – something that is only a matter of time.

Nick and Sam spend a lot of time together of course and they have sparking chemistry but there are a few things keeping them apart. Number one, Sam does not believe it is possible for a curvy girl like her (she’s described as Nigella Lawson-like) to attract a gorgeous professional hockey player who has women falling at his feet. Nick has never lacked for feminine companionship and Sam just doesn’t see herself in that role. Also, Nick is leaving to return to Canada and his hockey team and, perhaps most importantly, Nick doesn’t want commitment or kids. He has six siblings and they have kids; he’s happy being the fun uncle. Sam wants to stay in Tetworth in her familiar environment. She wants a family. She’s not looking for a fling (and that would likely ruin their friendship and working relationship anyway). Her eggs are on a timer apparently. (She’s only 30 – which seemed to me to be very young to be so high on the corporate ladder but what do I know?).

Sam has decided she needs to change her dating demographic to find a likely candidate to marry and have children with. Someone older, someone who is looking to settle down and who wants children. Nick volunteers to set Sam up on blind dates with friends of his many brothers who fit the profile. The dates do not go well. Nick does find Sam’s retelling of them the next day pretty hilarious though.

As all this is happening, that pesky chemistry sizzles more strongly between Nick and Sam. Nick is horrified to find that Sam’s sex life has been mostly ho-hum. She’s had orgasms but they’re not common for her. Mostly sex is “nice”. Nick offers to fix this problem for her. He gives her a 100% guarantee. She declines for the abovementioned reasons but she’s mighty tempted. After a series of bad dates and terrible “test kisses” with (almost) each one of said bad dates, Nick cannot take anymore and shows Sam what a real kiss should be. After that, it’s just a matter of time before there’s more.

Sam has an awesome older sister, Bec, who lives interstate with her husband and four children. Bec was a favourite for me. She gave Sam fantastic advice and was strongly in her corner at all times. Also, Bec was firmly team “bone Nick”.

I enjoyed the banter and interactions between Sam and Nick – they did have great chemistry and clearly belonged together. I understood Sam’s body image issues and I liked how Nick didn’t dismiss them, while finding her absolutely gorgeous. After a while, Sam believes him but it takes time for her to get there.

I didn’t quite relate to the suddenness of the shift in Sam’s thinking about children. It wasn’t the only abrupt change of heart in the book either and that made me a little twitchy.

There’s no third act breakup in Breaking the Ice but it does take a while for the external barriers to Sam and Nick’s relationship to work out happily.

I did disagree with this sentiment:

Loving someone meant wanting to see their eyes, their expressions, their laughter in the face of your child.

Lots of people don’t want children and that’s just fine.

The banter was fun but there were too many eggs for me and those, along with those quick decision-180s, did effect my final grade.

Grade: B-

Regards,
Kaetrin

Breaking the Ice is a hockey romance that focuses less on the sport (the mmc is out on a injury) and more on Nick taking on the responsibilities of his grandmother's second hand book store. When his neighbor comes by the store, he learns that Sam is between jobs and offers her one. The job is only temporary though, as Sam has her sights on getting her accountant job back in a couple of months after the nepotism, and thereby the sexism, wears off and they come crawling back for her. In the meantime, they decide to friend zone their relationship, this is, until they don't.

A lot goes on this book. Injured hockey player rehabbing. Accountant leaving the job where she's been training her boss's worthless nephew. Sudden management of a bookstore. Forced proximity. Biological clock ticking. Body and self-esteem issues. There are so many other things that would make this list longer. This seems like a long list but the author does a great job weaving it all together and Breaking the Ice is a great book for the most part.

There were some cringey scenes, awkward dialogue, and missed opportunities for growth and maturity. The first couple times we hear her eggs "talk" added an element of amusement but after a while, I was over the internal discussions with them. While I understand Sam's biological clock is ticking, the dates she goes on are disastrous. I wish she'd had a couple decent dates, at least. She deserved to have fun occasionally.

Overall, the book was entertaining. The characters may not have been 3 dimensional but they weren't boring or uninteresting. Sam seemed like a typical 30-year-old who comes to the abrupt realization that her corporate job is unfulfilling. She seems fun but has huge self-esteem issues. The continued bad dates don't help with that. Nick is resistant to fall for Sam in any capacity other than friends-with-bennies. She's planning kids and going back to her old job. He's not the family type and will be going back to his hockey team in a few weeks.

I enjoyed their banter, slow-burn chemistry, and compatibility. When they finally give in to their basic urges, we get a little bit of steam. This book has likable characters, descriptive world-building, and a fun story. I found Breaking the Ice to be a quick read that flows well, pulls you in, and keeps you engaged.

This book was fantastic, I loved it sooo much!!!
These 2 main characters (Nick and Samantha) were in each other lives for years, but just by walking past each other or by his grandma talking about him. But now he is taking over his grandma's bookstore after her passing (Birdie was an important person in so many people's lives and so was her bookstore). He needs an employee for when he goes to his physical therapy (rehab for his injury from hockey) and Sam just quit her job. There is so much more to this and you are gonna have to read the book for all the info but this is just temporary.
For me, this was a quick read and it held my attention.
The chemistry, flirting, bickering and blind dates were all great and soooo much fun to watch (read) BUT there is one annoying part to this book and it is mentioned a ton of times. Sam's chirping eggs, just wait til you get to them. I think it's a funny part that the author was trying to add but to me it was dumb. The first few mentions were ok and even kinda funny but it went to too long. But I still loved this book and was happy I read it.

This was a fun set up; i loved the injured hockey player taking over his grandma's bookstore. Sam and Nick had good chemistry, but the tone of the humor in this romcom did not work for me. It felt a little shallow and juvenile and I couldn't handle the personification of her eggs. I didn't feel like either character was particularly well-developed and I wanted to know both of them in a deeper way! That said, it was a fast read and had some genuinely fun antics!

This was a good book, the first of hers I read and I could really sense that I may like more or her books. Thanks for letting me read this book.

Sam has always focused on her career to the exclusion of everything. When she sees the promotion she craves slipping away to a lesser candidate, she critically looks at her life and wonders if other things are more important. The death of a good friend, the loss of her life focus, and a chance meeting alter her immediate career path. Working in her late friend's bookshop is therapeutic, but working with Nick, a successful Ice hockey player, is not. I like the slow-burn chemistry and eventual passionate romance between Sam and Nick, the story's contemporary relevance and the bookshop setting. However, the romance doesn't feature much sport besides Nick being a hockey player. Sam is a complex character who frustrates the reader at times. I enjoyed the ending, which believably reflects the couple's emotional journey.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

Well written, full of wonderful tension, and shenanigans; this story follows Sam who was just forced out of her corporate job that she has dedicated every waking moment of her life to. Her faithful friend and owner of the used bookstore in her building just passed away and in her place is her grandson the beauty hockey playing god. Hawk is here on a leave from the NHL because of an injury and is running his grandmother's used romance bookstore. In a moment of genius he offers her a job but now they are forced to work closely together and see much more of eachother.
This book features a plus size female main character who struggles to see past the internalized diat culture and beauty standards that are forced on women. This subject matter was handled delicately.

I have to start by saying I feel I was perhaps in the wrong age bracket for this book, I feel its more suited to 30 & under. The premise is good and I think a younger audience will definitely find it more relatable and enjoyable.

I thoroughly enjoyed Breaking the Ice even though I was a bit disappointed that there was no sports content as I'd anticipated there would.

Despite that, the relationship between Samantha and Nick is gorgeous and their story is really sweet.

For the reader, the writing is on the wall as they head in to their 'bargain' but the realisation between the characters takes longer.

In the interim, we are treated to some humorous scenes as well as some intriguing characters.

All in all Breaking the Ice is a lovely way to spend a few hours on an autumn afternoon.

I enjoyed this book about an injured hockey player and an expert accounting executive. She was in burnout and she'd had to prop up her boss' nephew who just didn't get it.

Nick kept his grandmother's used bookstore open and hired Samantha while she was on "sabbatical." He was very attracted to Sam's generous body and he admired her personality. But she was on a mission to meet someone and to get pregnant. He planned to go back to his team and he certainly didn't want to have babies.

But slowly, finally, they decided to have sex while he was still there. And each fell in love, but kept that fact to themselves.

It's a fun book and I enjoyed reading it. There is some sex in the book so it's not for everyone.

This book unfortunately didn’t hold my interest. It’s well-written, but there’s very little actual romance in it. There’s a bit of flirtation, but the story almost entirely focuses on the heroine’s bad dates and lack of physical intimacy as she attempts to find a husband she can have babies with. DNF.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC.

Breaking the Ice by Amy Andrews is a sweet sports romance that takes place in a bookshop. If you are a frequent reader of Ms. Andrews, know that this is not as spicy as her books usually are.

Sam is distressed when she starts hearing her biological clock ticking and her eggs chirping at her. Meanwhile, her never ending corporate job has become so much more stressful thanks to an inept underling relative of her boss who is out for her job. Admitting to her boss that she is hearing voices in her head pushing her to start a family, he forces her to take time off. Then her favorite bookstore owner, Birdie, dies. NHL star Nick "Hawkeye" Hawke is recovering from a career-threatening injury when his grandmother dies and his family asks him to manage her cozy romance bookshop. Learning that his neighbor just left her high-stress corporate job for a slower pace and has knowledge about the store, he hires her to help him out with the store. Despite their efforts to stay in the friend zone, their undeniable chemistry and slow-burn attraction become impossible to ignore. After getting to know each other Sam confides in Nick about her chirping eggs and the shortage of the correct demographic men to help potentially hatch those eggs. Nick helps Sam with some blind dates, dates that turn out hysterical. As the lines blur and they become friends, what they both thought they wanted changes Sometimes it takes a birthday, vodka, and a whole pack of Oreo’s to admit what they really want and what they want their future to look like.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.
#BreakingtheIce #NetGalley #BoldwoodBooks

I truly struggled to get through this book and was left pretty disappointed. I liked the premise of the book, but the writing fell flat, and the story was drawn out.

Breaking the Ice is a hockey romance centered around two characters in their 30s running a bookshop together. After years of working overtime and dating terrible men, she gets fired and decides to have a baby when her eggs start cheeping. Nick is a pro hockey player who gets injured and ends up running his grandmother's book store after she passes. The two end up working together not only at the store but to secure a man to give Samantha a baby.

The majority of the book was both characters going on dates with other people. Both of them wanted each other but refused to act on it. They didn't get together until roughly 90% in and then they let it fizzle out just 5% later. Both MCs then go out with other people again.

I found the characters to be frustrating and quite immature even though they were in their 30s. Any time anything romantic happened between Samantha and Nick, the next day she would either pretend it didn't happen or avoid him for days. And for a book that advertised as body positive, both MCs were incredibly judgmental of any other persons appearance.

Thank you to Netgalley and BoldWood for the ARC.