✨ "What I feel for her is bigger than the whole sky. The whole f*cking planet. You could go all the way to outer space and there still wouldn't be enough ways to show her how much I adore her." ✨
SOME SPOILER-FREE THOUGHTS: Fair warning, you will fall in love with the DC Stars if you read this and you will immediately want more from them! I always love supporting authors on new series beginnings, but boy oh boy is it hard for me to not be reading the second book right now. All that aside, I loved everything about this book. It is truly what my little feminist hockey romance dreams are made of and I couldn't have asked for a better beginning, middle, and end for Emmy and Mav!
Author: chelsea curto
Finished: june 17, 2024
Reading Method: e-book
Star Rating: 5/5 ⭐
Spice Rating: 5/5 🌶️
What To Expect:
✨ Hockey Romance
✨ Iconic Meet Cute
✨ Teammates to Lovers
✨ Friends with Benefits
✨ He Falls First
✨ Secret Relationship
✨ First Female NFL Player
✨ Golden Retriever Hockey Captain
✨ Spicy
✨ On the Ice Fighting
✨ Dual POV
✨ No Third Act Breakup
✨ Happily Ever After
SPOILERS IN
3...
2...
1...
✨ "The man picked up one of my romance novels, flopped on my bed, and told me he was learning how to be the perfect boyfriend by reading my books." ✨
I DO NOT HAVE WORDS FOR HOW MUCH JOY THIS BOOK BROUGHT ME!
Like, truly, this review could either be one sentence long or page and pages of me repeating the same thing over and over: HOCKEY ROMANCE BOOK BESTIES...READ THIS NOW!
My thoughts are literally all jumbled together from the pure bliss I felt reading this book and I have no idea how to actually go about this review, so I'm just going to give a shout out to our favorite classic rom com plot points and why Face Off deserves to be one of the top hockey romances of all time.
🏒 Meet Cute
From the second Emerson and Maverick meet, you know exactly how their relationship is going to go. He is a determined flirt who is majorly infatuated with her from the beginning and she's a bit of a ball buster who loves that she holds an edge of power over her captain. She knows who he is, he doesn't even know what she's capable of and then she shows him exactly why she's the first woman in the NFL by kicking his butt on the ice point blank.
🏒 Sexual Tension / Banter
As a reader, I was just screaming for them to get together because their chemistry was OFF THE CHARTS! The classic teammate banter was elevated to one-hundred between them with the sexual tension lying underneath the surface ready to pounce.
🏒 Breaking the Slow Burn
The away game that broke the camels back... Mav coming to Emmy's room, driven by pure adrenaline, not actually knowing what he wanted but knowing he had to be near her because he couldn't stand to be away from her was already top notch. But then they finally gave into the physical desire for each other and it was HOT, HOT, HOT!
🏒 Secret Romance
Their one time agreement undoubtedly unfolds into so much more and my heart fluttered with every second they were together (and even most of the seconds they were apart and missing each other). What I loved most about this was that they kept it a secret for themselves rather than because it was forbidden for them to be together. It added a level of heart that made me so giddy.
🏒 The Fall
Let's be honest—even though he says he didn't know until her dad brought it up—Mav fell in love on day one. The second he saw Emmy he was done for. No question! But Emmy had more layers of armor over her heart and it was really beautiful to see her open up to as their relationship grew. It might have started as a physical bond in their minds, but they were so perfect for each other they were completely destined for love.
🏒 No Third Act Breakup
I said what I said. No third act breakup! Our characters have developed enough at each other's sides that by the time comes where they are being pulled apart, they have no choice but to stay together because they literally can't imagine being away from each other for short periods of time, let alone a full breakup. We love!
🏒 Happily Ever After
All the feels! No notes!
🏒 Teasing Other Characters
While the book very much only focuses on Emmy and Mav's relationship, we definitely got a sneak peek at what's to come for the other DC Stars. From Hudson's committed nature to Reid's social media enemy to Liam's clear adoration for Piper and so much more, I can't wait to see what Curto has in store for the rest of the team and friends!
Everyone should read this book, but it's especially perfect for anyone who loves a playboy with a secret golden retriever personality who falls in love at first sight without realizing it only to repeatedly prove himself as one of the best book boyfriends of all time as well as anyone who loves the idea of a woman becoming an instant legend by entering a completely male dominated field while being embraced by her team instead of patronized.
Just go get Face Off by Chelsea Curto right now!! It's on KU, but I'm definitely buying a physical copy so I can just re-read it whenever I want. I recommend you do the same!
All My Love,
Jane-Anne
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