Thank you to Helena and the teams at Montlake, NetGalley, and SocialButterflyPR for the advance reader copy of A Secret for a Secret, the third standalone in the All In series.
Helena Hunting is the queen of hockey romance! So I was over the moon to see her write this hockey romance trope, the relationship blocked by team dynamics as the female love interest is someone’s daughter. In A Secret for a Secret’s case, Queenie is the general manager’s daughter, but that does not stop a beautiful relationship that blooms between her and the team’s goalie, Ryan Kingston.
Check out the Goodreads synopsis…
“From New York Times bestselling author Helena Hunting comes a new romance about trading secrets, breaking the rules, and playing for keeps.
My name is Ryan Kingston, and I’m a rule follower. I’ve never been in a fistfight. I always obey the speed limit. I don’t get drunk, and I definitely don’t pick up random women at bars.
Except the night I found out that my whole existence has been a lie.
I got drunk. And picked up a stranger.
Her name was Queenie, and she was everything I’m not: reckless, impulsive, and chaotic. We did shots and traded secrets. And ended up naked at my place.
She left me a thank-you note in the morning and her panties as a parting gift. But no way to contact her.
Six weeks later I’m sitting in the first official team meeting of the season, and there she is. I neglected to mention that I’m the goalie for Seattle’s NHL team.
And Queenie? Turns out she’s the general manager’s daughter.”
Check out my more detailed thoughts below…
- Characters: Queenie and Ryan Kingston are the main characters of A Secret for a Secret. I wanna start with the boy scout himself Ryan was adorable, sweet, and a breath of fresh air for the genre. The vast majority of the time when it comes to hockey romance it is the male player who is quite the hotheaded alpha. Ryan instead is a rule follower, who drives like he is always on a driving test. I am biased as a rule follower myself, I loved Ryan! While Queenie is the chaotic, artistic, lively opposite for Ryan to be attracted to. She is such a strong female lead, a girl all of us women won’t help but relate to in some way. Her insecurities are in line with many women and watching her self-esteem and confidence grow over the course of the story was heartwarming.
- Setting: Seattle is the setting for the story, as Ryan plays for the new Seattle franchise team and Queenie’s father is their general manager. I am a PNW girl so I have a soft spot in my heart for Seattle, I wish Helena would allow it to shine just a bit more outside of the fact it was raining frequently haha. What I love often about how Helena sets her books though is that they are surrounded by the team, in their homes, in the arena, in the box the WAGS watch the games from. I absolutely adore the close-up picture of these hockey player’s lives that she paints with the setting.
- Romance: Gotta love when that hookup becomes more right? What a fun trope to watch a beautiful romance bloom from. The depth that these two fell hard and fast for each other brought me to tears. To read from Queenie’s perspective leant a view on how a relationship can help you see the best in yourself and help you to appreciate your own worthiness. Maybe I connect with this a little too hard, I feel very similar in how my relationship strengthens me and has helped me with a range of insecurities from body image issues to being overly shy. For Ryan love allowed him to task risks, to go outside his comfort zone and to ultimately stand up for himself and what he most wants in life. His character development on this front was marvellous and the book delivers a sweet payoff for his arc pertaining to his more rebellious side. Queenie and Ryan bring out the best in each other and for as many times Queenie describes herself as a chaotic storm, a hurricane in Ryan’s life. Ryan counters that with simply displaying the nature of their relationship of one of jovial laughter and a trust that can hold even the darkest of secrets.
A Secret for a Secret receives five out of five stars.
You can pick up the story below…
Download your copy today or read for FREE in Kindle Unlimited!
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2PuergO
Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/SecretforSecret
Amazon Paperback: https://amzn.to/2PwTgec
Amazon Audio: https://amzn.to/2YYr8U2
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Thank you again to Helena Hunting, Montlake Romance, SocialButterflyPR, and Netgalley for the review opportunity. Thank you for reading and supporting my blog!
