Breaking the Ice

I got this book as AcR from NetGalley and here is some my thoughts.

Author were new to me and like always with new-to-me authors, I was so curious to read. But I’ve to say, I didn’t like this book so much.
Mix with British English and American English got me ESL reader so confused.
Also hero was NHL player, but didn’t in the book there wasn’t that much of the hockey…
What I liked was body positivity and humor. Also all the side characters were so fun and made the story so fun.

Over all, there was good chemistry between the characters but the story was little odd and details weren’t so good.

2/5

Dear Amy Andrews,

Samantha Evans has not been interested in commitment and children of her own before now. She thought she’d never want kids. But recently, her “eggs have started cheeping” and suddenly, what Sam wants in her life has drastically changed. Up until now, she had been working her way up the corporate ladder and was aiming for that corner office and a partnership in a role involving high-powered finance. She works all the time and has little space in her life for relationships. She has pretty much stuck with arty types and younger guys who are not looking for commitment and who don’t mind if she doesn’t cook them dinner. But her ex-boyfriend is now engaged and the happy couple are expecting a baby and Sam’s eggs go into overdrive.

There were 109 uses of the word “eggs” in Breaking the Ice, and the story was told in 215 pages (including titles). It’s part of the humour and shtick of the book. For me, it was overdone. YMMV.

Sam has recently been forced to mentor horrible Ray, a relative of the boss. Ray is incompetent and creepy. When he is promoted above her, Sam hits her limit and quits, telling her boss to give her a call when Ray stuffs everything up and they want to beg her to come back to fix everything. She’s certain Ray will and they will. It’s just a matter of time.

Around the same time as this happens, her beloved friend, Birdie, passes away. Birdie owned the second hand romance bookshop over which Sam lives. Sam would stop in and spend time with Birdie often and they had a strong bond over their shared love of spicy romance novels.

After Birdie dies, Nick “Hawkeye” Hawke, Birdie’s grandson, comes to look after the store. He’s a 38 year-old pro-hockey veteran recovering from a torn ACL. He has four months until the start of the season and he’s hoping that he will be able to join the team for training camp. He thinks it unlikely he will be able to play straight away when he gets back to the team but he’s confident he will play next season. He’s determined to finish his career on his own terms.

Nick makes a few changes to the store – he adds a coffee machine and starts stocking Westerns as well (he’s later shocked to learn that these “action” books for men fit within the romance genre, having, as they do, a central love story with a HEA at the end. Sam, to her credit gets Nick reading all kinds of romance novels and he quickly becomes a convert). Nick needs to be away from the shop for a few hours each afternoon to attend physical therapy so he hires Sam to help him run it. She agrees on the basis that it’s temporary while she waits for Ray to epically screw up – something that is only a matter of time.

Nick and Sam spend a lot of time together of course and they have sparking chemistry but there are a few things keeping them apart. Number one, Sam does not believe it is possible for a curvy girl like her (she’s described as Nigella Lawson-like) to attract a gorgeous professional hockey player who has women falling at his feet. Nick has never lacked for feminine companionship and Sam just doesn’t see herself in that role. Also, Nick is leaving to return to Canada and his hockey team and, perhaps most importantly, Nick doesn’t want commitment or kids. He has six siblings and they have kids; he’s happy being the fun uncle. Sam wants to stay in Tetworth in her familiar environment. She wants a family. She’s not looking for a fling (and that would likely ruin their friendship and working relationship anyway). Her eggs are on a timer apparently. (She’s only 30 – which seemed to me to be very young to be so high on the corporate ladder but what do I know?).

Sam has decided she needs to change her dating demographic to find a likely candidate to marry and have children with. Someone older, someone who is looking to settle down and who wants children. Nick volunteers to set Sam up on blind dates with friends of his many brothers who fit the profile. The dates do not go well. Nick does find Sam’s retelling of them the next day pretty hilarious though.

As all this is happening, that pesky chemistry sizzles more strongly between Nick and Sam. Nick is horrified to find that Sam’s sex life has been mostly ho-hum. She’s had orgasms but they’re not common for her. Mostly sex is “nice”. Nick offers to fix this problem for her. He gives her a 100% guarantee. She declines for the abovementioned reasons but she’s mighty tempted. After a series of bad dates and terrible “test kisses” with (almost) each one of said bad dates, Nick cannot take anymore and shows Sam what a real kiss should be. After that, it’s just a matter of time before there’s more.

Sam has an awesome older sister, Bec, who lives interstate with her husband and four children. Bec was a favourite for me. She gave Sam fantastic advice and was strongly in her corner at all times. Also, Bec was firmly team “bone Nick”.

I enjoyed the banter and interactions between Sam and Nick – they did have great chemistry and clearly belonged together. I understood Sam’s body image issues and I liked how Nick didn’t dismiss them, while finding her absolutely gorgeous. After a while, Sam believes him but it takes time for her to get there.

I didn’t quite relate to the suddenness of the shift in Sam’s thinking about children. It wasn’t the only abrupt change of heart in the book either and that made me a little twitchy.

There’s no third act breakup in Breaking the Ice but it does take a while for the external barriers to Sam and Nick’s relationship to work out happily.

I did disagree with this sentiment:

Loving someone meant wanting to see their eyes, their expressions, their laughter in the face of your child.

Lots of people don’t want children and that’s just fine.

The banter was fun but there were too many eggs for me and those, along with those quick decision-180s, did effect my final grade.

Grade: B-

Regards,
Kaetrin

Breaking the Ice is a hockey romance that focuses less on the sport (the mmc is out on a injury) and more on Nick taking on the responsibilities of his grandmother's second hand book store. When his neighbor comes by the store, he learns that Sam is between jobs and offers her one. The job is only temporary though, as Sam has her sights on getting her accountant job back in a couple of months after the nepotism, and thereby the sexism, wears off and they come crawling back for her. In the meantime, they decide to friend zone their relationship, this is, until they don't.

A lot goes on this book. Injured hockey player rehabbing. Accountant leaving the job where she's been training her boss's worthless nephew. Sudden management of a bookstore. Forced proximity. Biological clock ticking. Body and self-esteem issues. There are so many other things that would make this list longer. This seems like a long list but the author does a great job weaving it all together and Breaking the Ice is a great book for the most part.

There were some cringey scenes, awkward dialogue, and missed opportunities for growth and maturity. The first couple times we hear her eggs "talk" added an element of amusement but after a while, I was over the internal discussions with them. While I understand Sam's biological clock is ticking, the dates she goes on are disastrous. I wish she'd had a couple decent dates, at least. She deserved to have fun occasionally.

Overall, the book was entertaining. The characters may not have been 3 dimensional but they weren't boring or uninteresting. Sam seemed like a typical 30-year-old who comes to the abrupt realization that her corporate job is unfulfilling. She seems fun but has huge self-esteem issues. The continued bad dates don't help with that. Nick is resistant to fall for Sam in any capacity other than friends-with-bennies. She's planning kids and going back to her old job. He's not the family type and will be going back to his hockey team in a few weeks.

I enjoyed their banter, slow-burn chemistry, and compatibility. When they finally give in to their basic urges, we get a little bit of steam. This book has likable characters, descriptive world-building, and a fun story. I found Breaking the Ice to be a quick read that flows well, pulls you in, and keeps you engaged.

This book was fantastic, I loved it sooo much!!!
These 2 main characters (Nick and Samantha) were in each other lives for years, but just by walking past each other or by his grandma talking about him. But now he is taking over his grandma's bookstore after her passing (Birdie was an important person in so many people's lives and so was her bookstore). He needs an employee for when he goes to his physical therapy (rehab for his injury from hockey) and Sam just quit her job. There is so much more to this and you are gonna have to read the book for all the info but this is just temporary.
For me, this was a quick read and it held my attention.
The chemistry, flirting, bickering and blind dates were all great and soooo much fun to watch (read) BUT there is one annoying part to this book and it is mentioned a ton of times. Sam's chirping eggs, just wait til you get to them. I think it's a funny part that the author was trying to add but to me it was dumb. The first few mentions were ok and even kinda funny but it went to too long. But I still loved this book and was happy I read it.

This was a fun set up; i loved the injured hockey player taking over his grandma's bookstore. Sam and Nick had good chemistry, but the tone of the humor in this romcom did not work for me. It felt a little shallow and juvenile and I couldn't handle the personification of her eggs. I didn't feel like either character was particularly well-developed and I wanted to know both of them in a deeper way! That said, it was a fast read and had some genuinely fun antics!

This was a good book, the first of hers I read and I could really sense that I may like more or her books. Thanks for letting me read this book.

Sam has always focused on her career to the exclusion of everything. When she sees the promotion she craves slipping away to a lesser candidate, she critically looks at her life and wonders if other things are more important. The death of a good friend, the loss of her life focus, and a chance meeting alter her immediate career path. Working in her late friend's bookshop is therapeutic, but working with Nick, a successful Ice hockey player, is not. I like the slow-burn chemistry and eventual passionate romance between Sam and Nick, the story's contemporary relevance and the bookshop setting. However, the romance doesn't feature much sport besides Nick being a hockey player. Sam is a complex character who frustrates the reader at times. I enjoyed the ending, which believably reflects the couple's emotional journey.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

Well written, full of wonderful tension, and shenanigans; this story follows Sam who was just forced out of her corporate job that she has dedicated every waking moment of her life to. Her faithful friend and owner of the used bookstore in her building just passed away and in her place is her grandson the beauty hockey playing god. Hawk is here on a leave from the NHL because of an injury and is running his grandmother's used romance bookstore. In a moment of genius he offers her a job but now they are forced to work closely together and see much more of eachother.
This book features a plus size female main character who struggles to see past the internalized diat culture and beauty standards that are forced on women. This subject matter was handled delicately.

I have to start by saying I feel I was perhaps in the wrong age bracket for this book, I feel its more suited to 30 & under. The premise is good and I think a younger audience will definitely find it more relatable and enjoyable.

I thoroughly enjoyed Breaking the Ice even though I was a bit disappointed that there was no sports content as I'd anticipated there would.

Despite that, the relationship between Samantha and Nick is gorgeous and their story is really sweet.

For the reader, the writing is on the wall as they head in to their 'bargain' but the realisation between the characters takes longer.

In the interim, we are treated to some humorous scenes as well as some intriguing characters.

All in all Breaking the Ice is a lovely way to spend a few hours on an autumn afternoon.

I enjoyed this book about an injured hockey player and an expert accounting executive. She was in burnout and she'd had to prop up her boss' nephew who just didn't get it.

Nick kept his grandmother's used bookstore open and hired Samantha while she was on "sabbatical." He was very attracted to Sam's generous body and he admired her personality. But she was on a mission to meet someone and to get pregnant. He planned to go back to his team and he certainly didn't want to have babies.

But slowly, finally, they decided to have sex while he was still there. And each fell in love, but kept that fact to themselves.

It's a fun book and I enjoyed reading it. There is some sex in the book so it's not for everyone.

This book unfortunately didn’t hold my interest. It’s well-written, but there’s very little actual romance in it. There’s a bit of flirtation, but the story almost entirely focuses on the heroine’s bad dates and lack of physical intimacy as she attempts to find a husband she can have babies with. DNF.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC.

Breaking the Ice by Amy Andrews is a sweet sports romance that takes place in a bookshop. If you are a frequent reader of Ms. Andrews, know that this is not as spicy as her books usually are.

Sam is distressed when she starts hearing her biological clock ticking and her eggs chirping at her. Meanwhile, her never ending corporate job has become so much more stressful thanks to an inept underling relative of her boss who is out for her job. Admitting to her boss that she is hearing voices in her head pushing her to start a family, he forces her to take time off. Then her favorite bookstore owner, Birdie, dies. NHL star Nick "Hawkeye" Hawke is recovering from a career-threatening injury when his grandmother dies and his family asks him to manage her cozy romance bookshop. Learning that his neighbor just left her high-stress corporate job for a slower pace and has knowledge about the store, he hires her to help him out with the store. Despite their efforts to stay in the friend zone, their undeniable chemistry and slow-burn attraction become impossible to ignore. After getting to know each other Sam confides in Nick about her chirping eggs and the shortage of the correct demographic men to help potentially hatch those eggs. Nick helps Sam with some blind dates, dates that turn out hysterical. As the lines blur and they become friends, what they both thought they wanted changes Sometimes it takes a birthday, vodka, and a whole pack of Oreo’s to admit what they really want and what they want their future to look like.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.
#BreakingtheIce #NetGalley #BoldwoodBooks

I truly struggled to get through this book and was left pretty disappointed. I liked the premise of the book, but the writing fell flat, and the story was drawn out.

Breaking the Ice is a hockey romance centered around two characters in their 30s running a bookshop together. After years of working overtime and dating terrible men, she gets fired and decides to have a baby when her eggs start cheeping. Nick is a pro hockey player who gets injured and ends up running his grandmother's book store after she passes. The two end up working together not only at the store but to secure a man to give Samantha a baby.

The majority of the book was both characters going on dates with other people. Both of them wanted each other but refused to act on it. They didn't get together until roughly 90% in and then they let it fizzle out just 5% later. Both MCs then go out with other people again.

I found the characters to be frustrating and quite immature even though they were in their 30s. Any time anything romantic happened between Samantha and Nick, the next day she would either pretend it didn't happen or avoid him for days. And for a book that advertised as body positive, both MCs were incredibly judgmental of any other persons appearance.

Thank you to Netgalley and BoldWood for the ARC.

While there were a few things that i enjoyed in the book, unfortunately for the most of it, the writing made it hard for me to like it as a whole. It had a lot of potential but the execution didn't match.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

1.5 stars. Unfortunately this book didn't work for me. On paper these tropes would be my cup of tea but I didn't really like the execution. I found Sam very immature and her eggs were mentioned way too many times in the book. I also didn't really feel the chemistry between Sam and Nick.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Samantha has a clear plan for her life until her biological clock starts ticking and her work rival undermines her. Now, while she is waiting for the rival to implode, she is working at her favorite bookstore and looking for Mr. Right. That would be fine, but the store's new owner is a huge distraction. She has had a crush on him for a while. He doesn't want kids and will be heading back to his NHL team soon, so he is not Mr. Right. He does become a good friend, in spite of the pesky chemistry between them. Feelings start to be caught on both sides, but they cling to their plans. Can Sam's meddling older sister spare them the impending heartbreak?
This book has a ton of tension and delicious banter like all of this author's books. You can see the sparks shooting off the page. Sam is a realistic character because she has an ongoing love/hate relationship with her body that makes it difficult for her to trust. Nick develops a plan to help her with that, and it is both lovely and hot. I couldn't put this book down because I enjoyed the characters so much.

Breaking the Ice is definitely a slow burn romance, and although typically I adore this type of book.... I did find myself struggling to get into this story unfortunately.

Thank you Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book. These opinions are completely my own.


Sadly, I was not able to get passed 25 pages for this title as I really really disliked Samantha. I also did not enjoy the constant egg talk. Her "baby crazy eggs" were mentioned in what seemed like every page and it was tiresome.

I didn't really enjoy the last book i read by this author but wanted to give her another chance.

In this book, Nick and Samantha are brought together, working at the bookstore of a relative of his and friend of hers. Sam, having recently taken a leave of absence from her job, is on a one track path...to motherhood. Nick initially offers but since the two have started to beco.e friends, they opt for him to set her up on blind dates instead, before realizing maybe they are what's best for each other.

The character development was messy, the FMC's obsession with her "whining eggs" got to be insufferable by the third mention (and it was mentioned multiple times a chapter) the interludes at the beginning of each chapter didn't really make sense or fit, and they were in a different font and I was unclear what the author was trying to convey by this.

All in all, with more character depth, smoother transitions and chemistry between the MCs, this could have been a story i would have loved but ultimately this author i think is not for me.


Thank you Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC in exchange for my review!