ARC Review: ‘The Pucking Coach’s Daughter’ by S. Massery
I received a complimentary copy of the book from the author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Pucking Coach's Daughter
by S. MasseryPublished by Self-Published on July 23, 2024
SubGenres: Dark Romance, New Adult and College Romance
Format: eArc
Pages: 526
Source: the author
Audience: 18+/Adult
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Trust no one.
I learn that the hard way after hockey star Carter Masters stabs me in the back and turns our rival school against me.
Suddenly, I’m Public Enemy Number One at Framingham State.
Just a year later, that’s exactly where I’m forced to enroll.
No one has forgotten what I did.
The anti-Sydney campaign is led by two gorgeous, psycho hockey players. Oliver Ruiz, captain. And Penn Walker, the devastating goalie.
They have me in their sights the moment I step foot on their campus. Where they lead, the rest of the students follow. They won’t stop until I’m gone and Carter’s team faces payback.
My only solace from the constant bullying comes from a blocked number that keeps texting me.
But as much as Oliver and Penn want to, they can’t drive me off completely. Because even at the worst moments, I know I’m not going anywhere.
After all, I’m their coach’s daughter.
After I finished The Pucking Coach’s Daughter, I had to hold off on typing up my review for a bit because I needed a few days to process it. This book was a highly anticipated release for me since I loved S. Massery’s Hockey Gods series and was excited for her to write a Why Choose Hockey Romance that was also a Bully Romance. S. Massery knows how to write a Bully Romance, and here is one reader who will devour these types of stories in one sitting. Plus, she was giving us an FMC that didn’t have to choose between three hockey players; yes, ma’am, sign me up.
I’m actually sad after finishing The Pucking Coach’s Daughter because I didn’t enjoy it as much as the Hockey Gods series. I did like some things about it, but not all. S. Massery ups the bullying in this book because the FMC is being bullied by several people in this book, and it’s all due to what she did in the beginning. She’s having to deal with the consequences of her actions. I liked getting to know each of the characters and how S. Massery gave us all their POVs, but I did notice that the FMC, Sydney, got more chapters than the guys did. The plot of the story and what Sydney was having to endure, being bullied by the rival school that she was now attending, which included two of the hockey guys, Oliver and Penn, messing with her, and then Carter (her ex-boyfriend), who was still not over her, and everything else she had to deal with, which included her mom missing, kept me engaged.
The steaminess was off the charts for this book, which is something I expected since it is a Why Choose storyline, and Sydney doesn’t have to choose between the guys. You’ll probably need a cold shower several times while reading the scenes between Sydney and her three hockey guys.
One of the issues I had with the book was how jumpy the storyline felt while reading it. It was all over the place that I found myself rereading scenes to see if I missed something. I was confused at times due to the inconsistency. The other issue, and this was a big one for me, was how Sydney just let people walk all over her, and she continued to let this happen, up until the very end, even after everything. She even had something happen to her that had her locked away for a week, where she wasn’t eating or anything, and her so-called friends didn’t check on her. One of the guys did the unthinkable and, in my opinion, the unforgivable, and I don’t think he groveled enough to win her back. The other two guys did some things, too, that were crazy, but not as much as this one did.
I may have also liked only two of the guys out of three, and it may have been due to the fact that I didn’t get enough of their POVs to really like all three guys. My favorite character in the whole book was actually Sydney’s father, who stepped up to help her out after she was kicked out of her other school. He was attempting to have a relationship with her after so long not having one due to her mother, which, by the way, was only mentioned a few times out of the book, while she was missing.
I think if Sydney had eventually fought back, especially toward the end of the book, then maybe I would have enjoyed it more. I did like Penn and Carter, even though they tended to be crazy at times, but they definitely won me over more than Oliver. I wish I had loved this book because it was one I couldn’t wait to read, especially since it was a Why Choose Hockey Romance. I love reading Why Choose books, and this was my first from S. Massery.
Overall, this book gets three stars from me, but just because I gave it a low rating doesn’t mean I won’t recommend it to other readers. If you enjoyed S. Massery’s Hockey Gods series, you should definitely check out this book. If you love reading Why Choose, this book should be added to your TBR, too.
Trope(s)/Element(s):
🏒Why Choose
🏒Sports/Hockey Romance
🏒Bully Romance
🏒Stalker Romance
🏒Coach’s Daughter
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About S. Massery
S. Massery is a dark romance author who loves injecting a good dose of suspense into her stories. She lives in Western Massachusetts with her dog, Alice.
Before adventuring into the world of writing, she went to college in Boston and held a wide variety of jobs--including working on a dude ranch in Wyoming (a personal highlight). She has a love affair with coffee and chocolate. When S. Massery isn't writing, she can be found devouring books, playing outside with her dog, or trying to make people smile.
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