Hi there! Today I’m sharing a review for a brand-new M/M contemporary hockey romance from Rachel Reid. GAME CHANGER is the fourth book in her Game Changers series, which features two rival hockey players finding love with each other. All the books in the Game Changers series are standalone romances. Check out my reviews for GAME CHANGER, HEATED RIVALRY, TOUGH GUY, to catch up with other yummy stories.

About the book:
New York Admirals goalie Eric never thought his friends-with-benefits arrangement with much-younger Kyle would leave them both wanting more…

Veteran goaltender Eric Bennett has faced down some of the toughest shooters on the ice, but nothing prepared him for his latest challenge—life after hockey. It’s time to make some big changes, starting with finally dating men for the first time.

Graduate student Kyle Swift moved to New York nursing a broken heart. He’d sworn to find someone his own age to crush on (for once). Until he meets a gorgeous, distinguished silver fox hockey player. Despite their intense physical attraction, Kyle has no intention of getting emotionally involved. He’ll teach Eric a few tricks, have some mutually consensual fun, then walk away.

Eric is more than happy to learn anything Kyle brings to the table. And Kyle never expected their friends-with-benefits arrangement to leave him wanting more. Happily-ever-after might be staring them in the face, but it won’t happen if they’re too stubborn to come clean about their feelings.

Everything they both want is within reach… They just have to be brave enough to grab it.

My Review:
Eric Bennett is a tall, broad silver fox looking retirement from professional hockey in the face. He’s bisexual, but not really out, though he’s wanting to experiment with men for the first time ever. He’s a bit shy, and not really into the meat market approach to finding a partner. He has met Kyle, a young, sexy bartender, several times because he works at the same bar where Eric’s teammate’s new fiance, Kip, has been employed. Turns out that Kyle is a graduate student in ancient art and architecture, and Eric is an art connoisseur and collector. They seem to have more in common than a mutual friend, and that leads Kyle–who is always attracted to Mr. Wrong–to impulsively offer to teach Eric the ways and means of sexytimes with men.

Kyle has had a long-time crush on his friend, Kip, and seeing him happily engaged only spotlights Kyle’s loneliness. Kyle decide to really focus on his schooling, but he’s still more than willing to give sex lessons to Eric, and their chemistry could melt glaciers–let alone hockey rinks. They also get along out of the bedroom, with Kyle admiring and appreciative of Eric’s sense of style and his intelligence. Who knew Harvard graduated hockey gods? The more time they spend, the more they each begin to fall, but there’s a big age gap that unsettles Eric. And, he’s totally afraid he’s taking advantage of Kyle’s youth and winsomeness, especially when he learns of Kyle’s history of being used by older men.

Their happily ever after seems to be in jeopardy until Eric comes to his senses, realizing that losing Kyle to his own insecurities is not the way he should approach his new, and empty, life after hockey. It’s a very sweet reunion, and the sexytimes are fun and playful throughout. I loved the resolution here, and I look forward to more of these delicious hockey romances in the future.

Interested? You can find COMMON GOAL on Goodreads, Carina Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books and Kobo. I received a review copy via NetGalley.

About the Author:
Rachel Reid is the pen name of Rachelle Goguen. She chose it because it is much easier to say, spell and remember than Rachelle Goguen!

Rachel writes cute, romantic smut, mostly about hockey players.
Rachelle co-hosts a comic book podcast called Living Between Wednesdays.

Rachel/Rachelle lives in Nova Scotia, Canada. She has always lived there, and it’s looking like she probably always will. She has two boring degrees and two interesting kids.

The first two books in her Game Changers m/m hockey romance series, Game Changer and Heated Rivalry, are both available now from Carina Press. Book five is coming soon!

You can catch up with Ms. Reid on her website, Goodreads, and twitter.

Thanks for popping in and keep reading my friends!