Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin for the eARC.
This was okay. There wasn’t a whole lot going on, and I feel like it was mostly just trauma bonding, but the two main characters had no chemistry whatsoever. I normally like hockey romances, but I want more spice in them. There wasn’t much, and what there was wasn’t that good.
I really didn’t even like the two main characters. I vibed with Lucy at first but she quickly turned into someone that pissed me off.
There wasn’t too much back and forth and just overall a bit boring. It was just meh. I wanted to love it, but I didn’t, and it didn’t live up to the expectations I had of it.

3.5 stars

It’s no secret that I like hockey and reading hockey romance books, so when I saw that Lexi was publishing a book, I ran to Netgalley to apply for an ARC.

This was cute! I liked that hockey wasn’t an afterthought, and that it’s actually important to the plot. Things like positions, Stanley Cup playoffs, travel schedules, the wags… if it’s hockey-related, it’s probably in this book. I enjoyed Jaylen’s povs the most for that reason!

Lucy and Jaylen were sweet together, and there’s a lot of work done to carve out their backstories within the plot, but the narrative style made their relationship feel a little surface-level to me. Full transparency when I say that I’m not sure what could’ve been done differently to rectify that, but the prose just wasn’t my favorite.

Overall, a cute read!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC.

This was an interesting take on a hockey romance. Honestly I thought there would be more hockey. I do appreciate the diversity of the characters. Finding out the author was a hockey wag was also very intriguing.

This was cute, however, I unfortunately didn’t love it. This book follows our “black cat” aspiring tattoo artist FMC Lucy, she’s stagnant in her career and struggling to live life without being in meaningless relationships. Then we have our “golden retriever” former hockey star MMC Jaylen (JJ) who is down on his luck and not playing well. After being dropped from an NHL team JJ and Lucy find themselves hooking up, and that’s when JJ’s luck turns around.

The premise of this book sounded great! And there was representation, (Black MMC, bisexual FMC, gay & lesbian bestfriends) however, the characters felt very boiled down to stereotypes.. which was pretty disappointing.

I love a sports romance, I just didn’t really gel well with the characters and writing style of this story.

There were good parts, I liked the humor! These two were funny and did bounce off one another, and I enjoyed the way friendship showed up in this story as well!

Thank you so much Harlequin Trade Publishing, Canary Street Press, and NetGalley for an early copy!

I absolutely loved this book! From the New Girl reference to the adorable nerd bonding between Jaylen and Lucy this book had me giggling and kicking my feet the entire time. The balance between those moments and the very real exploration of mental health, self doubt, representation in a sport that historically hasn't been very diverse, and learning to heal made this book one I can't wait to read again. The premise of starting out as our worst selves has given me hope that maybe dating wouldn't be so bad if we all took that approach. I'm really hoping this becomes a series!

This was a fun debut hockey romance. The story starts with a one night stand that turns into a lucky superstition romance. Lucy and Jaylen are a lot of fun together.

I really liked Jaylen as a character and his growth in the story. He falls for Lucy first and I adored his attitude about her.

Lucy was a bit tougher to love for me. For such a tough cookie, she was way too dormant when it came to her career which is so far from her personality. I also didn't really buy that a hockey club would hire a tattoo artist to do a mural which is so far fetched.

Overall, it was fun and entertaining. Kristen DiMercuri and Jamal Roque did a good job with the narration.

Thank you @htp_hive @harlequin_audio for a copy of this.

I have been following Lexi on TikTok since before she announced her novel. Having a hockey romance written by someone who actually played hockey ruined other hockey romances for me in the best way. Can not wait to have a physical copy of this baby in my hands. Can not recommend her enough!

Shoot Your Shot by Lexi LaFleur Brown
Length: 252 pages
Source: NetGalley eARC
Publication date: March 11, 2025

Lucy Ross is a cranky, guarded artist who’s hoping to land a tattoo apprenticeship where she currently works. Jaylen Jones (JJ) is a sunshiny, somewhat naive NHL player who’s down on his luck (and himself) after he’s dropped from his contract. When they bump into each other on JJ’s last night in Seattle, a not-so-meet-cute turns into a one-night stand … which turns into a “puck luck” situationship … which turns into a relationship that neither of them expected. Unfortunately, the things they both want—and the work they need to put into themselves—might keep them apart.

I’m a hockey fan, and it’s always disappointing when a book misses even the most basic factually correct information about the sport. That’s definitely not the case here, and the author’s knowledge shines through and helps carry part of the story. Those details and the mental-health representation were the strengths of the book.

That being said, I felt little overall interest in Lucy and Jaylen as a couple, and it was an effort to finish the book. I was almost halfway through before I felt any emotional tie to Lucy at all, and it was fleeting. Mostly, I found her unlikeable, which surprises me because I usually gel with bristly, black-cat characters. Jaylen was sweet but ultimately, he felt bland and too letter-perfect. I wanted to see more of the work they put into their self-growth and into each other.

Shoot Your Shot in general does way more telling than showing, which not only kept me from getting invested in these two but also left the book lacking depth. Instead, it felt weighed down with awkward, rushed sex scenes; heavy-handed jokes; and uneven pacing with abrupt scene changes and confusing conversations. Instead of showing me how Lucy is so cool, it told me she was cool 487 times (that’s an estimate). Instead of showing me JJ’s biggest regret, it told me at least a handful of times why he felt bad about his past. It would have been more impactful to see that played out on the page.

While the description of Shoot Your Shot checks off a lot of representation boxes (black MMC, bi FMC, lesbian bestie, gay bestie), the number of overdone queer tropes in the book is … uncomfortable. Not all lesbians drive a Subaru or date granola partners; not all gay men are dramatically loud or looking for the next easy hookup; and not all bisexuals are promiscuous or stuck in some kind of male-female love triangle. I read a lot of queer romance—way more than MF romance—and testify that an author can represent the community accurately without boiling the characters down to a stereotype.

Still curious?
🏒 Black cat/golden retriever energy
🎨 Opposites attract
🏒 Failed one-night stand
🎨 He falls first
🏒 Hockey superstitions

Final thoughts: While the execution is off, I love the premise of the book and the attention to detail surrounding hockey. CWs: anxiety, depression, panic attacks, alcoholism (parent), emotional abuse by parent, substance abuse (not MCs), fear of needles, queer stereotyping, minimal sexual content (4 short explicit scenes between MCs).

2 ⭐️
2 🌶️

— A

Thanks to Harlequin/Canary Street Press, Lexi LaFleur Brown, and NetGalley for an eARC of this book. All opinions are mine.

It was cute, I didn’t love it as much as I thought I would. I didn’t really like Lucy’s character. The writing style did make it hard to follow along at times.

This was so cute! Jaylen felt a little too golden retriever for my taste but the representation of mental health be portrayed was spot on! The way these two just fell into a seriously relationship felt very real as well!

Shoot Your Shot is a fun realistic hockey romance and a great debut for Lexi LaFleur Brown. Admittedly, I was excited to read Shoot Your Shot as I enjoy following Lexi on social media. Thank you Harlequin & NetGalley for the opportunity to read this eARC!

The structure and the pacing of the book was great. The style of writing drew me in immediately, the characters were relatable, and I found myself rooting for them all. I do wish the secondary character relationships were a bit more developed as they sometimes felt forced or rushed. It was a fun hockey romance read and I would 100% continue reading if it expanded into a full series.

There were a few factual things that unfortunately drew me out of the story. The first one I'll admit is a bit nitpicky, but the Buffalo hockey team being named the Buffalo Bisons threw my attention for multiple chapters. The Buffalo Bisons are the actual name of the Minor League Baseball team in Buffalo. The second was that Lucy was on the Seattle Great Wheel when she was seven, but is 25 currently. The Seattle Great Wheel opened in 2012. The everyday reader may not notice these details but as someone that grew up in Buffalo and lived in Seattle they jumped out to me.

Overall rating: 3.5 stars

well, its a book!

didn't enjoy this, nor did I hate it. I just failed to captivate me. I didn't find there was a foundation for their relationship, the characters had a backstory but lacked depth. i didn't like any of the characters, they were just kinda there.

thanks to netgalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Hockey Romances have become all the rage, but this was a nice change of pace from the macho dominant man in many of the books.

Jaylen (JJ or Jay) is a golden retriever hockey player and also one of the few Black men in hockey trying to find a long term contract when his playing hasn't been up to par. Lucy is an artist trying to break into tattooing and flying by the seat of her pants looking for home. There's a host of side characters as well that make this book an absolute delight of a read.

The Best things: Therapy is talked about and attended by both JJ and Lucy, honest conversations are had, and people admit their failings.

The spice is spicy and the hocky is icy hot!

This was a really good time and I look forward to reading more from Lexi LaFleu Brown.

Shoot Your Shot follows Lucy, who is frankly a hot mess, but she’s a likable hot mess. She jumps from relationship to relationship, doesn’t have a stable idea of what’s next in her career, and just wants to do her thing. That all changes when she meets Jaylen Jones, who, admittedly, she doesn’t recognize at first.

The two share a night of passion, and the next day, it seems like things are done. However, JJ gets a call that he’s headed to Seattle, where the two met. Since JJ got such good news after seeing Lucy, he’s determined to find her and make her his good luck charm. While that might seem a little strange, hockey players take these things very seriously.

At first, Lucy is pretty resistant, but she eventually agrees, and the two end up texting, spending time together, and finding ways to see each other. From the start, it’s clear JJ is very into Lucy, and she’s understandably scared. The thing I found most interesting about these two is the different traumas they had in their past and how they impacted their decision-making.

The way LaFleur Brown wrote these characters just felt so intensely real. I could imagine having a cup of coffee with either or both of these two. It was as if they could jump out of the book, and I’d be ready to hang out with them. Maybe that was just me, but I really loved JJ and Lucy as characters.

The only thing I didn’t absolutely love was the third-act conflict. Though it did make sense, it was a little frustrating how things played out. Either way, this was such a fun read and has me excited about what’s next from Lexi LaFleur Brown.

I had high hopes for this one but this just wasn’t it.the pacing was really awkward. The characters just didn’t feel fully developed. It didn’t even feel like the main characters had much time together before he was like I love you. HOW?! Ya’ll don’t know each other at all. The spicy scenes felt like they were over before they started. This had potential but it just was blah

I loved this book! I saw a lot of reviews saying it kinda gave wattpad fan fiction and honestly, what’s wrong with a little fun? Lexi did a great job of inserting her knowledge of hockey and what being with a hockey player is like + adding little quirks here and there. I’m super excited to be able to read this again when it comes out in stores!

I really wanted to love this book. A queer hockey romance with a bi FMC should have been right up my alley, but unfortunately, Shoot Your Shot just didn’t work for me.

The biggest issue was the writing style—it relied too much on telling instead of showing, making the story feel flat. The writing didn’t flow smoothly, and the characters felt more like a checklist of traits rather than fully developed people. The romance, which should have been the heart of the book, lacked the chemistry I was hoping for, and the intimacy scenes were awkward enough that I found myself skipping ahead.

I struggled to get through the ebook and ended up switching to the audiobook, which, thanks to the dual narration, was the best part of the experience. The narrators did their best to bring the story to life, and I credit them with getting me to the finish line.

Overall, while I appreciate what this book was trying to do, it just didn’t deliver for me. If you’re a die-hard fan of queer hockey romances, you might still want to give it a shot—but don’t be surprised if it misses the net.

As a lover of hockey romance novels, what a fun joy to read one written by the partner of an actual player! This was genuine, emotional, and so, so much fun to read. I fell in love with both characters instantly and their relationship. I can't wait for more from Lexi!

Thanks to Harlequin for this e-arc!

There is so much to like about Shoot Your Shot - broody, hurt Lucy and sweet, sunshiny, healing Jaylen, the good luck charm premise, an artist finding her passion again, (did I mention Jaylen?), and a lot of depth to these characters/verisimilitude to their worlds. The LGBTQIA+ rep was also a welcome and casual addition that made the world feel more well-rounded. I thought there was a lot of charm and chemistry - overall, the book was really fun to read! And I loved the way Lexi LaFleur Brown used her own hockey knowledge to make things feel more real.

That said, there were a few things that didn't work for me - mostly, they were little writing things and a little bit of the pacing/development of the actual romance; I wanted to see more of their journey coming together. I felt like we got a lot about their individual growth and I missed some more description of the relationship growing. That said, I think this is worth picking up and I will definitely pick up whatever Lexi puts out next!

Jaylen is a down on his luck NHL player who is desperate to save his career. Lucy is a serial dater and runs away from relationships and anything that may involve a commitment. When they run into each other both are not interested in a relationship, but Jaylen seems to find Lucy a lucky charm. Lucy and Jaylen eventually find themselves in a relationship, but an opportunity for Lucy comes and she has to make a decision.

It is a lighthearted and funny romance. It also has deeper themes of mental health and healing from a deep emotional turmoil. A great quick read with a happy ending.