Review by crispycritter - Defensive Hearts

Defensive Hearts by Alley Ciz

2.0

This book seems like it was based on a 10-second instagram reel (guy accidentally sees text he wasn't supposed to of girl in lingerie oOoOO what will happennnnn). Like those restaurants you see on Instagram that look swoon-worthy but end up being disappointing in real life, this book felt very smoke & mirrors.
This is not really a standalone. It felt like half the page space was spent in a group chat - my head hurt trying to determine which nickname corresponded to which character introduced in a previous book. Additional page space was spent talking with or about other couples I didn't have any emotional investment in. I understand callbacks to characters from books past, but there was too much here. It was distracting.
Putting *emojis* and *gifs* *like this* *in books* should be a war crime.
Another example of tropes for the marketing only. Seriously, at this point I'd love for the FTC to get involved and start filing some actions against trad and indie authors for misleading marketing. What does enemies to lovers even mean anymore? Is anything real?!?
'Strong female character' aka she put up with a toxic dude long enough for him to come around. Multiple times. Mr. Hot & Cold.
Suggesting one of the reasons you should be dating someone is because you like their dogs is not giving me confidence in the longevity of this relationship.

I enjoy hockey romance and feel like I set a pretty low bar for the hockey romance I read on KU. But this book was rough.