Slapshot

By: Rebecca Jenshak, Heart Eyes Press

Narrated by: Emma Wilder, John Lane

Length: 6 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's Summary

I’m banished to Vermont for a scandal that wasn’t my fault, and broke because my famous father cut me off. And did I mention my roommate stole my boyfriend? Yeah, I’m loving my Moo U experience. 

Now I need a job, because this gel manicure won’t upkeep itself. The only available option is the last one I’d ever want - a job as the hockey team’s equipment manager. My plan is to do the bare minimum, get paid, and find my way back into my father’s good graces. 

I will not get involved with a hockey player, no matter how hot. They’re cocky. And obnoxious. I know their type, and I’m not willing to risk getting hurt again. Until Lex Vonne glides into my life looking like sin on a stick. 

He thinks I’m a spoiled brat. 

I think he’s using me to get ahead. 

But the fire I feel when we’re together is like a slapshot to my heart....

©2021 Rebecca Jenshak (P)2021 Heart Eyes Press LLC

Fun and Sweet Sports Romance

Overall 4 stars
Performance 4.5 stars
Story 4 stars

This was such a fun and sweet sports romance. Rebecca Jenshak always manages to take my favorite tropes and twist them in just the perfect way making them wonderfully unique. Slapshot is book 2 in the world of True North Moo U series, but it can be enjoyed as a standalone.

I loved that Kaitlyn was a little older than Lex and that she was the more "famous" one. Things in Kaitlyn's past have left her wary and untrusting of others, and it was wonderful to see Lex break down her walls. He was such a sweetheart and so understanding. Kaitlyn did frustrate me at times, but I appreciated how she grew and matured through the course of the book.

The narration by John Lane and Emma Wilder was fantastic and their performances complemented each other very well. I had no trouble distinguishing between characters and both gave playful and emotional performances.

Many secondary characters are introduced and make appearances throughout Slapshot. Several characters already have books in the works (I can't wait for Paxton's story), and I'm hoping this isn't the last time we see Kaitlyn's friend, Vivian. I'm excited to read more from the Moo U series!

Steamy and Emotional Hockey Perfection

I loved this book! The Moo U series is outstanding and the audiobooks are fantastic. I loved Emma Wilder and John Lane’s performance, they did an extraordinary job with this story. It flows, and it’s so well done that it’s almost impossible to stop listening.

Emma Wilder is outstanding as Kaitlyn, she was perfect. And John Lane’s voice was perfect for Lex. His voice is raspy and deep enough to make him sexy but not too much to make it too old. And their voices go very well together. I can see myself listening to them over and over again. This audiobook is perfection!

Slapshot by Rebecca Jenshak is the second book in the Moo U series, written by multiple authors and inspired by Sarina Bowen’s True North series. It is a standalone though, so you don’t have to read any other books to fully enjoy this story.

I loved everything about Slapshot. It’s college hockey at its best. It’s beautifully written, the story flows naturally, and the characters are endearing. It’s funny, sweet, and steamy. It is low angst, but it has so much emotional depth. Rebecca Jenshak is a very talented writer, and she did an amazing job with Kaitlyn’s story. There are two sides to every story after all, right?

First of all, Lex Vonne is dreamy. He’s a freshman and the team’s rookie. He’s driven and focused, a serious hockey player determined to prove himself. He’s hot and charming, and he has a great sense of humor. Like I said, he’s dreamy. Definitely book boyfriend material.

And then there’s Kaitlyn Dalager. She’s been exiled to Vermont by her father after being kicked out of her fancy New York school. She’s a junior living in the dorms. A dorm she shares with her ex-boyfriend’s new girlfriend. And now she needs to find a job because her father cut her off. She’s definitely not enjoying her new life so far.

There’s so much more to Kaitlyn than meets the eye. She’s smart and snarky. She’s has trust issues and a gigantic chip on her shoulder. She’s deeply unhappy, until Lex skates into her life. His easy charm and sweetness manage to crack her armor. I loved how their relationship starts. The banter, the pranks, the playfulness of it. They’re so fun together. But there’s an emotional turmoil inside her that she’ll need to deal with or risk losing her best chance at happiness.

Slapshot is a great addition to the Moo U series and the World of True North. You get a glimpse of Vino and Veritas, the inclusive bookstore slash wine bar in Burlington, and get a bit more acquainted with the other hockey players on the team. I seriously cannot wait for more!

Love it!

How have I not read a Rebecca Jenshak book before this?
Are they all this amazing?

Slapshot is one of those feel good, light, fun romance stories.

I. Just. Seriously? This was good. I enjoyed the banter, the chase, the chemistry. I am always a sucker for a hot hockey guy and the woman who brings him to his knees.

And if you're really feeling frisky, do the audiobook. The narrators NAIL THIS STORY.
Do it.
You know you want to.

PERFECT

This is such an awesome & amazingly well written book, I’m still in awe. The chemistry is so sweet and off the charts.
The author had me laughing like a lunatic, sitting on the edge and cheering loudly for the team, as well as having a cheesy smile on my face cause I couldn’t help myself!

I can only say the narrators absolutely nailed this book!

Great college sports romance from Rebecca Jenshak

Absolutely loved this college sports romance from Rebecca Jenshak!

The Moo U series is part of the World of True North universe created by Sarina Bowen. If you've read Sarina Bowen's Heartland, then you'll recognize Kaitlyn as the roommate of Chastity and the ex-girlfriend of Dylan. I had my doubts going in about Kaitlyn being redeemable, but what I've learned is that I can definitely trust Rebecca Jenshak to make a complex character utterly lovable.

Kaitlyn has transferred to Moo U after getting kicked out of her last school. She has a complex relationship with her dad, a famous NFL player and Moo U legend, who has cut her off financially, and has never really been supportive of her wild-child antics. She needs a job ASAP, and begrudgingly becomes the hockey team equipment manager. That's where she runs into Lex, who instantly befuddles her. Lex, for his part, is more than a little unsure of himself and his hockey skills. To say they start off on the wrong foot is a bit of an understatement, but little by little, Lex breaks through the barriers that Kaitlyn has, and the two of them are simply a great couple together. Kaitlyn helps build Lex's confidence in his hockey game, and Lex helps build up Kaitlyn's self esteem, which has taken repeated hits over the last few years.

Both of these characters are so much deeper than what they appear to be on paper. They're both a little bit shattered, but not broken, they're both a little bit scared, but still determined. And they complement each other in such a truly pure way that makes you want this college love to last.

The audio is narrated by Emma Wilder and John Lane, and they are both great at capturing the anxiety, the exhilaration, the passion, of young love. They give these complicated characters a lot of heart.

Slapshot really scored!

Slapshot really scored! I was so excited when one of my favorite authors, Sarina Bowen, announced all the books in her World of True North and even more excited that one series, Moo U, would be hockey related! Rebecca Jenshak was a new-to-me author, but seeing that her specialty was sports romance, I figured it would be a safe bet that I'd enjoy Slapshot, her offering in Moo U. I'm a big fan of the female narrator, Emma Wilder, and now that I've had the pleasure of listening to John Lane's performance, he can count me as a fan too. Slapshot was just all-around amazing. It had well developed characters, great banter, and smoking chemistry. Lex made me swoon hard and I loved the chase. Feisty Kaitlyn has so many barriers up, and I loved Lex's patience as he knocked them all down. Looking forward to more Moo U!

It’s official, I’m obsessed with Moo U.

It's official, I'm obsessed with Moo U. Rebecca Jenshak absolutely killed it in this second book in the new series from Sarina Bowen's World of True North. And the narrators of the audiobook? Perfection. Perfection to the point of seeking out other books they've each narrated for my next audiobook listens.

If you read Bowen's Heartland, you probably hated Kaitlyn like I did, so Jenshak had her work set out for her in making Kaitlyn likable and the heroine of her own story, but she did a phenomenal job. Kaitlyn starts off as your stereotypical entitled rich girl - kicked out of her last school and exiled to Vermont, cut off from daddy's money, and unfit (or unwilling) to work most of the jobs the college job placement program has available. But throughout the novel, her growth and willingness to embrace hockey, a sport she pretends to despise thanks to her tumultuous relationship with her hockey royalty dad, and the hockey players around her as she takes on her new job as the hockey team's equipment manager really softened my heart towards her. And her relationship with Lex, a hockey hero you can't help but adore, sealed the deal. The way they support each other through their hardships made them an absolutely swoony couple for me and ultimately made this my first five star book of the year.

I was graciously provided an audio ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 hockey hottie stars

Just as the new NHL season is ramping up, so is my reading of my hockey hotties.

I loved that this second installment of the Moo U series focuses more on the hockey side of the things, more than that farm side (don't get me wrong, I love all the Vermonty-farmy stuff, but the hockey has my heart 💜)

Lex is just all kinds of swoony. How any girl can resist him is beyond me. And our girl Kaitlyn tries.

And lord, did she try me! More and more as I read, I wanted to pull her aside ad tell her to pull her to remove head from sphincter! Sheesh, she frustrated me, and I was yelling at my reader for Lex to run, run away!

But as much as I wanted him to run, I needed them to get their HEA.

I loved seeing more of the hockey players, and there are more than a couple that I need to see more of in my future.

Great narration by Wilder and Lane (Lane is a new to me narrator and one I will listen to more),

Really good book

This is book 2 it’s great really enjoyed it. The narration is awesome Emma Wilder is great as always

NA goodness!

Gonna be honest here, when I read college romance I want to be that young again, when you're on the cusp of adulthood but still have the bonus of being young and don't know better. Enough rambling, let's talk shop.

STORY

I loved everything about Slapshot. Kaitlyn has been burned in the past by guys using her to get to know her famous hockey star dad. So she has no reason to believe that Lex Vonne, aspiring team member of the Moo U hockey team is any different. Lex, however, is one of the good guys and he'd jump through hoops, walk through fire and climb her impenetrable walls to make Kaitlyn see how desperately he is falling for her. Kaitlyn sure is hard to convince and her trust doesn't come easily but you know once she gives it, Lex will feel like a million bucks.

Their romance was adorable. Their banter was sweet, their chemistry on fire. You get all the goodness that comes with college romance, the awesome sidekicks, some fun times with the rest of the hockey team and the prospect of more books to come in this awesome world. And btw. if you feel that the name Kaitlyn rings a bell? She's Dylan's girlfriend in Heartland and not gonna lie, I hated her in that book. I didn't think I could ever love her but damn, I did! And now I want to re-read Heartland and see if I can see her with different eyes.

Rebecca Jenshak is becoming a go-to name for NA sports romance and her stories don't need to fear comparison with the big names. If you love Sara Ney, Elle Kennedy or Sarina Bowen's stories (duh!) you'll fall in love with these characters.

NARRATION
And if you don't mind some blushing get the audiobook. Emma Wilder and John Lane's narration is sizzling eargasm goodness. I'm no stranger to Emma Wilder, who always delivers but John Lane? OMG. I don't even care what he reads, he can make chemistry formulas sound sexy.

BOTTOM LINE
I recommend this feel-good story with lovable characters whole-heartedly, whether you read or you listen to it.