Spiral by Bal Khabra 🩰 🏒✨
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is the second book in the Off the Ice series, I absolutely loved Collide & I loved every minute of Spiral just as much!

I really loved seeing Eli & Sage’s communication throughout the story, and Eli’s acts of service put him high on my lists of book boyfriends!!
I love how Bal writes her characters & the dynamics between them - we see characters from Collide & get to see that found family in this book too 🥹🫶

I fear I’m now in my ballerina x hockey player romance era 😂 I can’t wait to get a physical copy of Spiral on my shelf 🩰
I definitely recommend this to any hockey romance lovers 🏒🫶🥲

Read this if you’re a fan of:
🩰 Ballerina x Hockey Player
🏒 Fake Dating
🩰 Roommates
🏒 Found Family
🩰 Friends to Lovers
🏒 Acts of Service

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I will admit I tend to avoid ice hockey romances these days but I ate up Collide so I when I saw Spiral I just had to read it and it did not disappoint.

One thing about me is I absolutely love a good fake dating book, there's just something about them that draws me in. Elias needs to change his image from the media and Sage is a struggling ballerina where her dream role is partly casted based on social media following so naturally they end of fake dating to help each other. I loved the instantly had chemisty these two had and how you could see them slowing falling in love with each other.

Eli is the most thoughtful man I've ever read about and is the standard. I loved seeing Sage achieve her childhood dream and seeing the struggles of being a ballerina. I loved seeing all of my favourite characters from Collide and how they adopted Sage into their group. Found Family hits every time.

Thank you to Netgally for the oppotuinity to read this as an arc!

Sprial comes out on January 28th and I recommend giving it a read!

ahhhh guys Miss Bal Khabra is literally such a QUEEN!!! I ate this book up and seriously had so much fun. I will admit, I think I liked ‘Collide’ a bit more but not by much. Sage and Eli were so so perfect!

Sage is a struggling ballerina and Eli is having his own problems on and off the ice so OF COURSE fake dating each other is the only way to solve both of their issues 🤭

Sage was literally sooo funny and witty and no matter how hard he tried Eli simply could not resist her charm 😭 Sage was also such a relatable character, always taking care of others and neglecting her needs but still working so hard to achieve her dreams. Eli my poor boy just had a string of bad luck on the ice and had some family issues that definitely affected his performance.

Yet, Sage helped him overcome his trauma and fears while he taught her how to let go and allow someone else to take care of HER!! It was all just so fricken sweet and cute and the writing is sooo good! And don’t even get my started on those “jealousy” scenes 🤭 no matter how many times I read it I will never get bored of the “we’re not really together but I’m jealous when you’re with someone else and I don’t know why” scenes 😭

Also Eli’s love language being “acts of service” 😍🤞 this man was just so incredibly thoughtful and considerate HE LITERALLY CHANGED THE LAYOUT OF HIS KITCHEN SO SHE COULD REACH THINGS and like he didn’t even think he just DID IT!!

Bal Khabra has quickly become a favourite author of mine and I’ve only read two of her books 😭

I wanted to love this one, I really did. The story was still captivating but I found the characters far too annoying that it actively took me out of the story.


I loved that so many of the characters from Collide were also in this book, although I wish we got more from them, they definitely fell into side character roles.


overall a fun sports romance, I just wanted more from the characters

Thank you to NetGalley, Bloomsbury and Bal Khabra for the early review copy of Spiral. I absolutely adored Collide when I read it back in 2023 and I was so excited to continue with the Off The Ice series.

2025 Read: #4
Series: Off The Ice #2
Rating: 4.75 ⭐
Releases: January 28th
What you can expect:
✨ ballerina x ice hockey player
✨ fake dating with rules
✨ slow burn

THE BLURB 📖
Elias Westbrook, a newly drafted hockey player for the Toronto Thunder, is facing the challenges of fame and media scrutiny. With a growing fan base and too many expectations on his shoulders, he’s struggling to make his first career goal. The tabloids are reporting on his every move, including which woman he was last seen with, but all he wants to do is escape the spotlight.

Enter from stage left Sage Beaumont, an aspiring ballerina with dreams of joining the Aurora Ballet Theatre, but her lack of popularity online leaves her at a major disadvantage for securing the lead role. When Sage finds herself with the perfect opportunity to make her dreams come true by fake dating Elias, she takes her shot.

Soon enough, the flimsy fake-dating rules they set in place fall away in the face of their sizzling connection. But before things spiral out of control, Sage and Elias will have to decide if they’re willing to take the leap together or if they'll call it quits.

MY THOUGHTS 💭
✨ This book was fantastic, I really enjoyed collide but I think this one was even better!
✨ I loved Elias and Sage, they’ve both got a lot of pressure on them but they’re doing their best for the people who need them/the people around them
✨ Everything they did made the other person better and I kind of loved it
✨ I wasn’t expecting any of their secrets
✨ I loved seeing the characters from Collide again after such a long time

Spiral by Bal Khabra (Off the Ice series - Book 2)
Releases on 28 Jan 2025

I really wanted to love this book. Collide set the bar so high being one of my top five romances in 2024 - I couldn’t put it down, the banter was fantastic and the spice was perfect. Spiral for me just missed the mark. Fake dating can be hit or miss. And maybe it’s the cynic in me but our girl pushed the fake dating so that she could get followers on social media and he could get paparazzi off his back in order to focus on hockey. Yes, it’s more than that but I wasn’t feeling it.

I was ok with Collide being similar to Icebreaker, I even liked Collide more than Icebreaker because of the character development and cultural references. But I expected more from Spiral.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ Book was okay, probably better as an audio.

Thanks @bloomsburypublishing for the gifted ARC. Bring on book three!

This was a cute read. If you love your hockey/sports romance you will love this one.

We follow Sage an aspiring ballerina who has had a hard upbringing - she cares for her younger brother as her parents are out of the picture. She is always putting everyone above herself.
Along comes Eli - a hockey star (though he is yet to prove himself to his team!), who is labelled as a playboy.
This is a fake dating romance read, which of course leads to some sizzling chemistry.

In the beginning of the book I did find Sage's character to be too much (my personal opinion as an introvert!), and hard to handle, but her personality did soften towards the end of the book and was easier for me to get my head around.

Eli's character was Mr Prince Charming which was very sweet.

Overall a good YA spicy read for me.

When NHL and Ballet Collide (excuse the pun) - MAGIC.

Am I a sucker for a pretty cartoon character cover? At least half of my bookshelf says yes. And when the book itself is as satisfying as the cover, I'm a happy reader.

I LOVED this book. Super cute and features my fave romance trope of ALL TIME - fake dating. Combine with forced proximity, a bit of found family and oh yeah, Sports Romance - guys, I am in heaven.

And when I say all I wanted was for the fake to evaporate, man, its the truth.

So funny, sweet and fun. Wish I could read it again, and hoping we get more of this from Bal Khabra!

I think I’ve discovered my new favourite hockey romance! This book was adorable. I really liked our two main characters. Sage is an independent and resilient ballerina who has been trying to secure a role in her dream production, Swan Lake. Elias Westbrook is a reserved hockey player for Toronto Thunder, who is struggling to score his first goal since getting drafted to the NHL and coping with harassment from the media.

When Sage is rejected from her ballet audition not for her performance, but for having a low social media following, fate leads her to Elias and they strike a deal to fake date in exchange for the media leaving Elias alone and Sage’s social media presence to grow. As they spend more time together, feelings develop and the fake dating rules they agreed upon become harder to follow.

Elias was the absolute sweetest! He bought Sage a new bouquet every week so she could discover her favourite flower, baked her favourite birthday cake from scratch and brought spare glue and crystals to her ballet performance incase hers fell off.

They had great chemistry and it was so precious when Sage dedicated her birthday wish to Elias getting his first goal. The epilogue was perfect and had me tearing up. If you enjoy sports romance, fake dating, forced proximity and found family you need to read Spiral!

Review by billiebooks_

Spiral by Bal Khabara
Second book for collide

“And the girl wonders why I buy her fu**king flowers, I’d empty an entire shop just so she could decide on her favourite”.

Do you need another NHL book boyfriend? Because id love to introduce Elias…
Elias is a rookie in the NHL, formerly known as the NHL’s play boy. Elias is desperate to score his first goal and prove his worth to both himself and his new team, though it’s not all it seems and he needs help to play down the paparazzi and give himself a better image, striving to make his adoptive parents proud, his sworn off love and is focusing on his career.

Sage is a ballerina, a full time carer to her younger brother in boarding school, sage is determined to land the leading role in swan lake and needs help to get her name out in the socials!
This is a slow burn, sizzling chemistry, intimate book which you will fall in-love with.

Tropes -
• slow burn
• family devotion
• career driven
• fake dating
• interracial couple
Dual POV! 🫶🏻

Books to compare - icebreaker by Hannah grace
The deal by elkenedy

ARC Review

Thank you Netgalley and Bloomsbury ANZ for the ARC!

I devoured Spiral in just 24 hours because I simply couldn’t put it down. The story completely captivated me from the first page to the last. One of my favourite aspects was the way the author beautifully developed the found family dynamic. It added so much warmth and emotional depth to the book, making the relationships between the characters feel genuine and heartfelt.

Highly recommend!

If you loved Collide, you’ll definitely enjoy Spiral! This book sucked me in from the start. Elias is a rookie hockey player, dealing with fame, pressure, and the spotlight—while Sage is a ballerina fighting for her big break. When they agree to fake date for some PR, sparks fly, and things quickly go from fake to very real.

I loved how their chemistry builds, and the emotional stakes feel high, but it’s also fun and steamy. Both characters are so easy to root for, and I couldn’t put it down until I knew how it all ended.

If you’re into fake dating, sports romance, and a slow burn that builds, Spiral is a must-read!

“Let’s go home,” she whispers into the crook of my neck. I nod, but she doesn’t know that I’m already there.

This book exceeded all of my expectations, the love between Elias and Sage is so pure and beautiful, their story is truly so special.

Elias is a rookie in his first year playing in the NHL, desperate to score his first goal and prove himself. What the world sees? A play boy with a new flavour every week. Who Elias truly is? A thoughtful and kind man who’s trying to make his adoptive parents proud and move past his mistakes.

Sage is a strong woman, who’s had to become the caretaker of her teenage brother due to their neglectful parents, the only constant adult in her life being her uncle, who also happens to coach Elias’ hockey team. She’s an aspiring ballerina who’s not sure if she’s good enough, lucky Elias is there to remind her of how amazing she is.

What starts off as fake to help them both in their careers, quickly turns into something much much more. I love how supportive they are of one another, their humour and of course the spice - however this one is such a slow burn!

I enjoyed this book a lot more than collide and adored the character development and the found family in this book.

Tropes
Fake dating
Grumpy x sunshine
One bed
Forced proximity
Slow burn
Found family

Spiral by Bal Khabra
Sports Romance
Overview: A well known Debut Ice Hockey Player meets a perfect Ballerina and fake date to support his social image, whilst it starts off fake, the intimacy and happiness they share when together quickly changes the 'fake dating' to real - real quick!!

Tropes:
Fake Dating
Slow Burn
Sports/ Dancing - Career dedication
Family Devotion



Summary:
Elias a well known ice hockey debut player who gets a name for himself of being a "player" on and off the field. Elias needs help with his social image to cool down the paparazzi
Sage is a Ballerina who is also a full time carer for her brother who is in school. Her uncle works for the NHL. Sage is determined to get her lead role in Swan Lake. Sage needs help with getting noticed so que in the fake dating trope!! This is a Slow burn!! the tension is so real and builds over time. They quickly keep 'showing up' for each other and builds this foundation of friendship that grows to physical later. I felt so invested in their relationship growth as well as their career growth.

I absolutely loved Spiral—it was a 4-star read for me! This book took everything I enjoyed from the first in the series (Collide) and improved on it in every way. The relationship between the main characters was truly captivating. What stood out the most was the intimacy they shared—not just physical, but emotional and mental as well. Their bond was built on friendship first, and it made their connection feel so much more authentic and meaningful. Watching their relationship evolve was such a rewarding experience and kept me glued to the pages

Comparison:
While Collide was a solid start to the series, Spiral took it to the next level. The pacing was smoother, the chemistry more palpable, and the stakes felt higher. There was a real depth to the characters and their personal growth, which kept me engaged from start to finish. If you like The Deal by Elle Kennedy, Icebreaker by Hannah Cowan this is for you!.

Conclusion:
Spiral is everything you want in a sports romance: emotional depth, strong chemistry, and an authentic slow-burn romance. The balance between their personal growth and relationship development made it a thoroughly satisfying read.

Recommendation:
Highly Recommend!!!
If you love sports romance with emotional depth and slow-burn intimacy, Spiral is definitely a must-read. The dynamic between the couple was everything, and I found myself rooting for them the entire way through. Highly recommend this one if you're a fan of heartfelt, character-driven romances with just the right amount of steam!

Spiral - @balkhabra (arc)

4 ⭐️

Elias is a struggling ice hockey player who is plagued by the media and paparazzi. Sage is a working ballerina, pining for the lead role in Swan Lake. He needs some reprieve from the scrutiny of the media (i.e. having a certain someone on his arm will calm things down) and she needs a boost in her social media status to get noticed by the production company. Solution? Fake dating. What could possibly go wrong?

If you love a steamy, slow burn, sports romance that’s easy to read - look no further !!

Elias and Sage were perfectly matched for each other - Sage’s chaotic, loud and confident energy perfectly complimented Elias’ calm and centred personality. The vulnerability between Elias and Sage was so beautiful to read about and seeing them becoming each others safe space overtime was beyond wholesome. It felt like their relationship development throughout the book was authentic and natural. Even though they were fake dating, there is definitely immediate chemistry from the beginning between both characters.

The tension, the angst and the SLOW BURN MY GOD !! I ate up every single part of it !! Also the possessiveness that came from Elias?? And the MOUTH on that boy ?? Was not expecting that and some.. other … items from him at all !

There were also some complex and dark family themes involved with Sage’s family. The oldest sister struggles are true and real in Sage’s narrative (some that hurt just a little bit too much). Bal really did the found family trope well in this book. Also Elias being the “acts of service” man to the oldest daughter?? YES. PLEASE.

Read this if you like;
- Slow burn
- Forced proximity
- Fake dating
- Shy mmc
-Found family
-Hockey player x Ballerina

Thanks so much to @netgalley for this arc!!

✨My overall for this book is giving “if he wanted to, he would!” ELIAS is 😍

🏒Elias cops some bad media attention and needs to fix his image for his rookie year.
💐Then enter Sage who needs to gain social media traction to be relevant enough to get an audition for her dream ballet.
🧨Mix these two together and you have a fake dating deal between the pair that takes off!

😇 Favourite moments:
-She bids on him at an auction for a date 🫶🏻
-he YouTube’s her ballet moves to make sure she did them properly so he could praise her
-he brings extra glitter glue for her stage makeup because she once had a bad experience
- smiley face pancakes 🥞

These two just work! It feels like a real relationship on the pages and was a great overall read.

🩰Fake Dating
⛸️Hockey Player
🩰Ballerina
⛸️Dual POV
🩰Roommates
⛸️Found Family

Rated ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Spiral by Bal Khabra – 3.5 stars (rounding up to 4!)

First off, a massive thank you to Bal Khabra, the publishers, and NetGalley for the ARC! I’m so grateful to have had the chance to dive into this one early.

Let’s start with the cover because WOW—it’s absolutely stunning! The purple tones and the characters? Perfection. This is 100% one of those books I’ll be picking up a physical copy of, purely to have it on my shelf. Obsessed is an understatement.

Now onto the story! I really enjoyed Spiral. It had great chemistry between Sage and Elias, solid banter, and an engaging plot that kept me turning the pages. There weren’t any cringy or weird moments that made me want to DNF it, which is always a win in my book. Sage? Loved her. She was so driven, ambitious, and focused on her goals, with or without Elias (but let’s be real, he was a nice bonus).

Elias, though… I have mixed feelings. I didn’t find him quite as loveable as Aiden from Collide (who set the bar ridiculously high). I just wish his backstory and motives had been explored a bit more to make him more relatable.

Also, the ending felt a bit rushed for me. The ballet drama was SUCH a great addition—I loved how it was developed—but I would have loved a bit more time spent on those last few chapters to fully wrap things up.

All that said, I’d still recommend Spiral to anyone who’s into hockey romances or loved Collide. It didn’t hit quite as hard for me, but it was still a solid read!

A great read, there was so much emotion between Elias and Sage. Both of them have a lot on their plate and begin fake dating. I loved getting to see their relationship develop and them realise their feelings for one another.

ELI WESTBROOK, THE GOLDEN RETRIEVER THAT YOU ARE.

I couldn't put this book down. Eli was the most thoughtful man I have ever read about, I wanted more. How he cared for Sage just melted my heart; their banter was everything. Both Sage and Eli deserved the world and I'm glad the found a bit of it in each other. This book will be one of the best romance books of 2025 and will be a book I won't stop thinking about.

I need an Eli and I need him right now,

OMG OMG OMG

Elias and Sage you are my new favourite hockey couple!!! This book was such an enjoyable and fun read. I giggled and kicked my feet so much. The found family was so incredible.

The character development and the to MCs growing together was written so beautifully. There is nothing I love more than a funny, little bit spicy, and easy romance.

I highly recommend this to any ice hockey fans 🫶

Thank you to Netgalley, Bal Khabra and Bloomsbury publishing for this ARC