very cute sports romance with a fun MMC and a cool FMC that feels great on all the little details. 5 stars. tysm for thea rc.

4 stars!! ⭐️ I’m obsessed with hockey romances and Lexi did such an amazing job with this book! I loved Jaylen 🥹

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

2.5 stars
This was a rare DNF for me, and I hate to say that! I'm a big fan of the author on social media, and I just didn't think her voice fully translated to the written word. I don't think that's necessarily her fault- I just think more work needs to be done to improve her writing structure and pacing.
I thought the bones of this were good though. The whole ensemble of characters was fun, and the author has a great sense of humor. And I can't say this enough -- it's SO refreshing to read a hockey romance from someone who ACTUALLY UNDERSTANDS HOCKEY. That's not me of course, but I know the author's heart is really in it.
That's why I'm rooting for her success in the future and her growth. I know she could be stellar if given the right team to help her succeed.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc.

This book was so great. I'm in my hockey romance era and this one didn't disappoint. It had laugh out loud funny moments. One part had me laughing so hard I had to cover my face so I wouldn't wake my kid up. It's the kind of scene from a book I'll never forget and will always make me laugh.
The character growth was good and I enjoyed reading the mental health aspects. This is definitely a book I'll recommend.

As someone who has called Seattle home these last ten years, I really enjoyed the portrayal of the city in the book. I love hockey and the evocative imagery made it easy to imagine this happening in my hometown. This book definitely makes Seattle feel like a character of its own, and I loved all the quirky details that made the city so recognizable and full of personality.

I loved that the story follows both Lucy’s strenuous relationship with her father and Jaylen’s mental health journey dealing with the death of his childhood friend. I feel like both these topics were dealt with tactfully in the narrative, but the development of Lucy and Jaylen’s relationship lacked chemistry and tension.

Halfway through the book, I hit a major slump, it feels like the story almost plateaus after Jaylen and Lucy fall into their friendship, and it was hard to pick it back up. I wanted to be invested in Lucy and Jaylen’s relationship, but it felt lackluster and repetitive.

In terms of Jaylen’s character, I definitely feel it was missing the nuances of race in sports and in society at large. Less than 3% of NHL players are Black, and according to recent census data, the population of Seattle is only 6% Black. As a person of colour who has lived in this area for ten years, I definitely think there was a lack of addressing this in the story that would have added depth and realistic nuance to the narrative.

Thank you to Netgalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and Lexi LaFleur Brown for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Three out of five stars.

Not my favorite, didn’t actually finish it. The story was interesting enough and I loveeeeee the author on social media, but the writing just didn’t stand up for me. A bit too millennial, maybe? I’m not sure what was off honestly, just that it didn’t work out for me.

I've loved Lexi LaFleur Brown from her tiktok content so I was SO excited to get approved for her arc and it was everything I was hoping for!! I love a romance and I love a hockey so Shoot Your Shot was right up my alley. For a debut novel, Lexi really brought her A game and delivered such a fun and realistic story with characters that feel like people I want to be friends with.

Lucy and Jaylen are interesting, multi-dimensional, flawed characters that bring out the best in each other and help each other grow throughout the story. Their stories as individuals and overcoming their own obstacles was just as important in my opinion as their romance together. Jaylen confronting his panic attacks and guilt head on, developing Cam's House with Maya's help, and being his most authentic self no matter what his team or the public think was such a strong positive message. Lucy's struggle with commitment issues coming full circle, her finally freeing herself from her father's dark cloud, and the strength of her platonic relationships hit close to home and made me connect with her easily. And the strong LGBTQIA+ representation is a big bonus!

While Shoot Your Shot is a fun hockey romance (with accurate and fun actual hockey info), it's also a great story of two characters finding safety and stability and working through their own mental health journeys. I highly recommend for anyone who loves a romcom sports romance!

This is a hockey romance with grumpy x sunshine trope. Jaylen thinks that Lucy is his good luck charm for this hockey season. I liked Jaylen better as a character and thought he was patient. Lucy was annoying at times. Jaylen's anxiety was written with care and very well, which I appreciated.

Shoot Your Shot by Lexi LaFleur Brown was a sweet, cute, romance that made me smile.
Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for a chance to read this ARC early.

DNF @ 10%

I was so bummed that I didn't enjoy this -- I love Lexi's tiktoks and was excited to read a hockey book by someone who knew what they were talking about! Unfortunately the writing style wasn't for me, it was a bit too choppy and telling rather than showing.

I think this will work for a majority of readers, especially those who Lexi has already reached through her social media!

This was cute! I'd say it's a fairly solid debut, but I didn't love it like I wanted to. This largely could've been a me problem!! I am not in a hockey romance mindset. But it was also a mix of the writing style and character/relationship development.

Individually, I ended up loving Jaylen and Lucy. Lucy took some time to grow on me but I loved Jaylen from the beginning. He was just so sweet! I didn't love the way Lucy treated him. They both did a lot of growing and I was so proud of both of them in the end. Even if the third act conflict really tested my patience with both of them.

As a couple, they were cute! I like them together but their relationship, on page, was very surface level. I don't feel like we got to see their relationship develop as much as we did with their individual stories. That was kind of a bummer.

Overall, it didn't totally work for me but I would still say to give it a shot. Especially if you love hockey romance. There were a few funny one liners that had me laughing out loud and while it dealt with some heavier topics, the book did not feel heavy.

jaylen jones, a superstitious hockey player, believes a one night stand with lucy is the key to his newfound luck when he secures a spot on the seattle rainiers. lucy, a black-cat, aspiring tattoo artist, reluctantly agrees to help him by sending good luck texts before each game, but their arrangement soon turns into sizzling chemistry, complicating their feelings as they both navigate emotions from their past, career struggles, and personal attachment.

this debut novel was an enjoyable read. the humor was a hit most of the time, though a few jokes did feel a little cringe. if you like rom-coms and sports romance, i'd recommend this book for you as it's a mashup of both with a little bit of spice.

i loved seeing lucy and jaylen's individual growth and development, but i did wish for a bit more chemistry between them as a couple. while their conversations showed an undeniable connection, it would’ve been great to see more of that spark evolve. i especially appreciated the bisexual representation from lucy, which truly felt authentic. her best friends are also queer and their personalities added depth, humor, and realness to the story. i LOVE friends who want nothing but the best for their bestie!

it's clear that lexi genuinely understands hockey, which made jaylen's perspective refreshing and well-executed. it was a good backdrop for the romance, rather than just being there to fit the "sports romance" genre.

i would read from lexi again, for sure!

3.5

I started following the author on TikTok after she shared her commentary when BookTok fans were sexually harassing professional hockey players and their families. I loved her smart thoughts on the intersections of fiction, reality, and culture and appreciated how she shared the humorous inside scoop on what it’s really like to be a hockey WAG. So I was really excited to learn she was writing her own hockey romance, and it was a pleasure to read.

I loved the messy yet deeply self-reflective main characters, Lucy and Jaylen. They were both hilarious and insightful, and it made for a truly enjoyable read!

I love Lexi from her Tiktoks (she seems like such a kind, cool person!) so I was really excited to get this. The story has a lot of potential but the writing style just isn't for me (and that's ok!) I have no doubt that the more she writes the better she's going to get and I'm rooting for her success! Appreciate the ARC and can't wait to see what comes next.

I absolutely adored this book I’m totally into the whole opposites attract trope with the dark character vs sunshine character.

Love the bi representation you don’t see it very often especially done well so I really appreciate that and I could not put this book down.

Love love love it and highly recommend it thank you netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing | Canary Street Press

*Shoot Your Shot* by Lexi LaFleur Brown is a fun, flirty romance with plenty of heart. The story centers around a charming and determined main character who takes a chance on love, even when things feel uncertain. Brown's writing is light and easy to get into, with great chemistry between the leads that keeps you hooked. There’s a nice mix of humor, romance, and personal growth throughout, making it an enjoyable and quick read. If you're looking for a feel-good romance with some laughs and a dash of drama, this one's a great pick!

I have some thoughts! One of the best things about this book was the comedy. There were moments where I was laughing so hard I felt like it would become a comfort book for me but ultimately that didn’t happen because I didn’t really find anything else that appealing. I loved the representation! I think the author did a great Job with that but other than that it just felt “okay”. I didn’t feel overly invested in the couple, I didn’t feel giddy over their romance. And eventually, the fmc got me so angry I wanted to throw my kindle away. The third act break up had me fuming because it was just so stupid and I think it could be a personal thing. I may just be so over third act break ups (I definitely am) but the way she was heaving really upset me. I can acknowledge that she obviously had reasons for behaving the way she did because of the people who used to be in her life but the mmc literally never gave her a reason to stress or worry and was literally obsessed with her and making her happy so I don’t think she should have treated him the way she did. With the way it ended I’m hoping she was able to pay for some therapy as well. Overall I was gonna give it 3 stars because the comedy really brought it up for me but the ending just brought it down to 2.75
The side characters were also hilarious. No notes for them.
Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the advanced copy!

I've been looking forward to this one and I had a good time. The way that they came together just felt so natural and I loved the progression of their relationship. I really loved when they had been dating for a month and Lucy just had no idea. She's so fun.

I received an arc through netgalley.

I was really excited to get my hands on this book but it unfortunately fell pretty flat. I found Lexi through all her WAG and hockey content and I wanted to love this book but it’s just not for me.

I felt like Lucy was almost like a caricature of a manic pixie dream girl. Lucy came across as kinda mean at times and I found myself often getting annoyed with her and the choices she makes. Jaylen, while sweet, was just kinda boring. He was almost too good/perfect as an MC? As someone else who reviewed mentioned he felt almost flawless which made Lucy’s flaws feel more apparent. The dynamic between the two was fine, but I didn’t really connect with Lucy and that made me question the connection between them.

I also wasn’t super fond of the writing style. It felt a bit clunky and, while I did have a chuckle here and there by a well timed zinger, it was mostly unremarkable and just felt like it needed another round of editing to tweak and perfect.

That said, the actual hockey content was excellent! Lexi obviously knows her stuff and that really shined in this book! It definitely saved the day at times when I wanted to close the book.

If you like extremely accurate hockey romances then I’d say give this a try!

Thanks very much to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review!

DNF at 8% - I usually push myself to read at least 25% but the writing style just wasn't for me - too much "pick me"/ "not like other girls" energy from our FMC and i just didn't vibe with the writing.