I'm a wife, mother, and author! Writing has always been a passion for me, and publishing my first series is a dream come true. I drink too much caffeine, never sleep, and my imagination is always churning out ideas. Eva and her men have been in my head for awhile, and I'm so glad to finally take you with me on this journey!
No Pucking Way is book one in the Rich Demons of Hockey duet by C.R. Jane and May Dawson. This is the first book I have read by either of these authors. This is a dark mafia, RH, hockey romance and I loved it. I will warn you that it does have a cliff hanger. But I waited until the second book was out and it is now available and waiting for me to start reading the minute I finish this review!
Five years ago Kennedy was hit by a car. Her injuries put her in a coma for a month and when she woke up she had no memory. She didn’t know anything about her past or what happened to her. Nothing. All she had was a gold necklace with the name Kennedy on it. So after she was eventually released, she made a life for herself, while constantly wandering the city, hoping something would spark something. It didn’t. Until the day she walked past the ice hockey arena. She felt pulled inside but she had no idea why. Just that it felt like home to her. So she applied for and got a job there. What she also found there were three sexy hockey players who keep looking at her like they know her. She doesn’t know them but they feel familiar to her. But then, someone else shows up at the arena, Greyson, a sexy tattooed man in a fancy suit and she feels pulled towards him too. But then the chaos begins when her three hockey players see him as well!
Sebastian, Carter and Jack, all NHL players for The Devils. I believe all of these characters are about twenty three years old. And Greyson, now a Mafia kingpin. All of these men have secrets they are keeping from Kennedy. In a way, they are all manipulating her even though in their hearts they all believe they are doing it for her, to protect her.
There isn’t a whole lot more that I can tell you. You just need to read this. In this book, we are getting to know the characters but I suspect the other book of this duet, Our Pucking Way, is going to be a crazy, wild ride! I felt so bad for Kennedy for what she’s been through. She was doing her best to make some sort of life for herself without knowing anything about herself. But now her life is in turmoil, and she can just feel like her memories are almost within her reach. Just not close enough. I am starting Our Pucking Way right now. I can’t wait to see what happens next!
“This thing between us was painful. It was intense with the power to destroy us all.”
Five years after waking up from a coma, Kennedy finds herself trying to slot together pieces of her past.
When she wanders into the arena where the Asheville Devils play, she immediately feels a sense of rightness. The felicity extends beyond the sights, sounds, and smells. The star players Sebastian, Carter, and Jack, all seem oddly familiar as well. As does their former teammate turned nemesis, Greyson.
There’s still a lot of story yet to come. But this is one you’ll want to experience for yourself. So, I’m going to keep this very vague. CR and May have crafted an incredibly interesting and unique story, weaving, not just hockey, but mafia, amnesia, second chance, and IT WORKS!! That’s woefully inadequate, actually. The story is intense and emotional. It’s twisty and spicy. In a word: unputdownable!! Readers will appreciate all the layers and that it’s so different from the formulaic stories that are commonplace.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Burn: 🔥🔥🔥🔥 Darkness: 🖤 Heat: 🌶️🌶️ Range of Emotions: 🥺😊🤔🫠😮 Ending: 🧗🏻♀️ {Cliffy} POV: 👫🏻 {Multiple}
🗂 Genre: Sports Romance
✨ Tropes: Alphahole, Boy Obsessed, Forced Proximity, Hidden Identity, Jealous/Possessive, Mafia/Bratva/Organized Crime, Manipulation, MINE!, Rich AF, Rich Boy/Poor Girl, Second Chance, Stalker, Tracking/Spying, Why Choose, Workplace
🏒 Dark Hockey Romance with a dash of mafia vibes 🏒 Why choose when you can have them all? I seriously want them all 🏒 Men with red flags (seriously, these guys are psychos) 🏒 Mutual Pinning 🏒 Close proximity 🏒 Amnesia trope that'll keep you guessing 🏒 OTT Possesive and obsessive men 🏒 Stalking 🏒 A hint of kidnapping (because why not?) 🏒 "Good girl" and praise kink
Thanks so much for the ARC. I didn't expect to get one, but I AM SO GLAD I DID.
This book had me hooked from start to finish, and trust me, I didn't want it to end – talk about a page-turner! If you're a fan of 'Rich Demons of Darkwood' by May Dawson and CR Jane, this one's like its hockey-themed, slightly more subtle. I absolutely adore them with their writing. And can we talk about how hot AF these characters are?
Kennedy woke up in the hospital 5 years ago with no recollection of who she was and the only clue to her identity was a necklace with "Kennedy" on it. In need of a job, she's inexplicably drawn to a hockey rink. She began to feel weird that 3 of the hottest hockey players were watching her, but telling them they didn't know her until shit started to happen, and then they got involved. Oh my god, not only do you get these hockey players, but a mystery psycho mafia guy too!
We get a golden boy, Jack, who is also a dom! Sir yes sir. Carter. The tattooed broody captain of the hockey team. And Sebastian... well, I can't reveal too much, but trust me, you need to read it to find out. The mysterious Greyson. Lawd... sparkly peen, and he's unhinged too.
They don't exactly get along with each other, but the craziness of this book takes 'wild' to a whole new level. While the duet doesn't involve too many group activities, you'll soon discover how they'll make you drop to your knees and gasp for more. This book was an absolute blast, but a quick heads-up – do check for trigger warnings. It's a perfect match for fans of dark romance, hockey, and men who redefine 'complicated.
I need the second book sooooooooooooooon~ Cause I need moreeee of them!
I really didn’t love this as much as everyone else seems too, which is disappointing because the plot sounds so interesting. I only got up to 40% (I think it was - I stopped reading when he was taking her to Paris), so any revelations that happened after this point I’m not privy to.
⚠️Spoiler Alert⚠️
So all 4 guys knew her when she was younger and all seem to have had a relationship with her, before she got amnesia 5 years ago. When she first gets amnesia all the guys are aware, but don’t come forward to see her because they are ‘protecting her’. One of the guys is in the mafia, so it could be to do with that and maybe this affiliation caused the accident in the first place. Again, I didn’t finish so I’m speculating.
They are obviously staying away from her for a reason, but this fact seemed to annoy me more. There is going to be a justification for why in the book, which will make total sense, but I think my mind is made up about the guys.
She wakes up in a hospital room alone and has to restart her life without knowing that anyone loved her. She must have been absolutely terrified. She has to relearn what she likes and except for her new best friend, she is pretty much isolated. Even if I had to stay away from her, I don’t think I could leave it 5 YEARS. Send an anonymous note or something for Christ sake.
I think it’s the fact that they are making decisions about her life without including her, which really bugs me.
Possible unpopular opinion - Greyson is selfish and creepy. He pretends to meet her for the first time and takes her out on a date, where he correctly guesses all these foods which he thinks she will like (which he obviously already knows). I get how this could come across as trying to be kind and sly reintroducing her to her favourite thing, but to me it seems like a massive mind game. It’s like he’s playing with her to make her like him more. It just feels twisted.
Also if he is going to start dating her straight away after all this time, then he definitely didn’t have to wait 5 years.
I definitely have a different perspective on this book. All these points might make complete sense if I would have finished, but I really wasn’t enjoying it.
This book is a perfect example of how authors want to write a popular trope (in this case hockey), but don't understand anything about athletes, the sport or even how the arena is during a game. Basically, the authors thought "hey, let's take advantage of a trope and just wing it." If I could give negative stars for this book I would. First, the writing lacked depth, emotions and value. Second, the authors chose to describe torture yet they used the term "unalive" instead of kill. If the authors want to write in the world of dark romance they should use grown up words. Third, the book was published with missing words in sentences, incorrect punctuation, wrong words and formatting issues. And the biggest issue: the book is listed around 350 pages, yet it's actually 299 pages in length. The last 50ish pages are the prequel to this novel. Yes, the prequel is at the END of the book.
The FMC is TSTL and honestly, we don't get enough of the men's POV to really get to know them. The readers don't get to connect to anyone in the book. I was majorly disappointed in this book.
My little romance-heart just died a little. When you thought this sounded like the most amazing premise ever but it turns out not to be MM. 😭😭😭 (Don't ask why I thought it was)
Book, we could’ve been so good together. Damn you GR friend who put this on my radar!! 😭😭😭
Story: ⭐️⭐️/5 Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️/5 (this is based more on quantity than quality) Characters: 🫂/5
Tropes: 🏒 Amnesia 🏒 Hockey (well it takes place at a rink) 🏒 Mafia (supposedly) 🏒 RH (4 guys, 1 girl - no M/M) 🏒 He falls first (kinda) 🏒 Grumpy possessive MMC
So the premise of this story is that Kennedy has lost her memory after an accident. She has no idea who she is or has any memory of her life before. She somehow ends up being best friends with her nurse (er hello 1 NMC referral please) and gets back on her feet. Fast forward 5 years and she applies for a job at an ice hockey rink because it kinda looks familiar (clearly not because she’s lived near it for 5 years) and bumps into some of the teams players.
It honestly all goes a bit downhill from there for me. None of the main characters have enough individual personality traits for me to summarise them separately. The 3 devils players are pretty much interchangeable for me aside from the fact that Jack is blonde.
One of the things I really struggled with was the lack of back story. I understand that we’re supposed to be in the dark with Kennedy but I found it so difficult to bond with any of the characters without any context for their feelings. For someone who supposedly has no memory of these guys or her life before she seems to fall in love with them all awfully quickly and has no qualms about the fact she’s seeing 4 men at once. The whole thing just felt confused.
I think if we lost some of the smut (which is quite frankly about 50% of the story and most of it adds nothing at all to the plot) then the authors might have enough pages for us to actually understand what’s going on. This had all the makings and potential to be brilliant but it just fell flat for me. I wanted to like it, I really did.
I don’t think I’ll be reading the second book which considering the cliffhanger should bother me 🤷🏻♀️
I felt so bad for Kennedy because her men well 3 of them didn't fight for her they wanted to keep her safe and sound, and with that distance.. but one Greyson he was nope I'm keep looking for her no matter what so by far he's my fave guy in this why choose. He was looking for her for 5 years. So I was really on team Greyson since the others were keeping their distance until they saw Greyson with her. Then they tried to warn her.
I'm glad she didn't sorta listen she backtalked them. I loved that, but then they started to lie about a few things, lol. Like a random fire to keep her with them and not greyson.. sneaky men, I say, hahah. The spice was more focused on each guy no group scenes.. its wired seeming a why choose guys fight and are enemies.
Slowly but surely, those memories are coming back. And something happens once again.
No ow/om drama, no cheating, drama, sexy times, no virgins (there fangirls and catty woman but nothing else)
Slowinsta Push away from the H's MF Seperation 5 years Why choose Dubcon Manipulation Bc Tampering Memory loss Violence No condom Cliffhanger
I love a why choose. I especially love a hockey why choose, but I hated everything about this book. The FMC has the personality of stale white bread and the IQ to match. Every single MMC was just as insufferable as she was. The storyline was elementary at best and the spice didn’t even hit. I was so excited about this book but, just like my ex, it left me wholly unsatisfied.
3.5 stars. Part of the issue with this story is the way it is told so that you follow Kennedy as she meets men from her past but due to her amnesia doesn’t truly remember them. The reader is kept in the dark just as Kennedy is. Great, I get it. However, as the reader not knowing the history between these characters their physical connections don’t make any sense whatsoever because it was only “told” to me and not “showed.” The only relationship that makes sense is with Greyson since she spent time getting to know him again. I will read the next in the duet because it finally appears we will get some answers. I think this book could have been executed a bit better with the amnesia trope.
this wow i miss the person i was before i read this. massive waste of my time. what did i even just read ?? the hockey aspect of this : it sometimes takes place at the rink. the mmcs are hockey (and ex) players. that's it. and the whole mafia thing??? unnecessary. none of the characters were well developped, the spice was average, the plot was really weak and the explanations and writing was pretty shit. and kennedy??? do you have any self preservation instincts ??? why do they even like you ????
**I received an ARC of this book from the authors in exchange for my honest review**
“Did his lips touch this body that’s only supposed to belong to me?”
Kennedy wakes up from a coma to find no one has tried to claim her. With no memories, Kennedy lives the next five years trying to make new memories. When she applies for a job at the ice skating stadium she sees three hockey players Carter, Sebastian and Jack. For the first time in years she feels something but the guys don't want anything to do with her. Until she goes on a date with Grayson...
"I was older and wiser, and I was going to be so fucking good to her that I would never, ever lose her again."
One of my favorite RH series is Rich Demons of Darkwood. So I was super excited when I saw the same authors were writing a new "Rich Demons of...Series"! These authors know how to write a strong and feisty heroine. Even when the guys are acting foolish Kennedy never lets them walk over her! As for the guys, they each are the perfect Alpha, possessive, obsessive and holding their red flags high! BUT Grayson is my fave so far!!
I cannot wait for book two! There is also a prequel abput Kennedy and her boys as teenagers before her amnesia that I am so excited for! This book is fun yet sexy and has a bit of mystery basically everything you want in a story! A Must Read!
(I generally go for dark haired guys but have you seen the guy on the cover?!? I think I may like blonds after all!)
Wow! That’s how you start a duet! I went into this book thinking it was a stand alone and I was pleasantly surprised that I get two books for this group. I love Kennedy and all of her guys. This does end on a cliffhanger, so be ready for that. I can’t wait to see how Greyson, Sebastian, Jack and Carter put their differences aside and come together for their girl. I’m so ready for book 2!!
I cannot wait to read the second book and see what is in store for these characters. These walking red flag boyfriends although they have a touch her and die vibe lol.
No Pucking Way, book one in the Rich Demons of Hockey duet- My rating is 3.5 stars.
This is a why choose, dark hockey romance with some mafia, mystery and heavy spice mixed in!
Some of the tropes you’ll find: Dark Romance Hockey Romance Why choose Multiple POV Good girl Mafia Touch her and die Amnesia Rivals And more…
Despite C.R. Jane being known for her dark hockey romances, this is actually the first book I’ve ever read by her or May Dawson. I was sucked into the story right from the get go!
This story takes place five years after Kennedy is involved in an accident and wakes up with amnesia. She had no memory of what happened to her or of her life prior to waking up. She had to find a way to begin new life and hope that her memory would eventually come back. Kennedy ends up working at a rink where an NHL team practices and has their home games. She is drawn to three of their team members, Carter, Sebastian and Jack, they feel familiar to her but she doesn’t know why. While at the rink she also meets Grayson and he winds up asking her on a date. The next thing you know, Kennedy has four men vying for her attention and doing whatever they can to keep her away from each other…but why???
This story has an interesting plot and the mystery of who Kennedy really is, kept me invested in the story for the entire duration of the book. There is a rivalry between the three hockey teammates and Grayson. Each of the MMC’s have issues with control and possessiveness although it seemed like Jack was the least afflicted by this toxic trait. There weren’t a lot of support characters, which was fine because having four MMC’s gave me a lot to focus on. Kennedy does have a best friend named Carrie who was just over the top. I feel like there could have been a lot more back story on the men and more character development overall. We aren’t really given enough information so all the boys’ motives are questionable. There were times during this book that everything just felt all over the place. The spice is heavy and I do mean HEAVY. The cliffhanger was a bit anti-climatic, for me.
This book left me with all kinds of questions that I need answers to. I’m eagerly waiting for book two to be released. Overall, this was a decent read.
I received an advance reader copy and am leaving my review voluntarily.
lol, I didn’t realize this was a duet when I started, but nothing could ever convince to read the next one.
This was so bad in so many levels, and not necessarily because of the characters because I actually didn’t mind them in principle, except possibly for our heroine. She’s so dumb it’s not even funny. 🤦🏻♀️
There’s no backstory, no plot progression, no chemistry, no plausible reason why Kennedy, 5 years after a near death accident that left her with amnesia, shouldn’t find it fucking STRANGE, that FOUR men who she’s barely shared more than a sentence with are obsessed with her. She hooks up with everyone of them and not under the guise that she *thinks* they know about her past, she literally thinks they are strangers and is now basically in love and so willing to just jump into a RH situation? 😂She doesn’t even know her last name and they haven’t exchanged phone numbers. 🙄
I get that Jake, Sebastian and Carter know their past, but she doesn’t and I didn’t either, cause NOTHING was shared outside of a few flashbacks to HS, that really did nothing. And I loved my obsessed Heroes but these guys were a little much, considering they’ve haven’t been in contact with her for 5 years and now all of a sudden will die without her? It was like I read 300 pages of nothing because I felt no connection.
Greyson was the small bright spot because there seemed to be at least some effort by these authors to give some context around him and his intentions and felt like he and Kennedy spent time building something. He’s most certainly unhinged, but I was into it. 😏
“Do you promise not to kidnap me” “No,” he said shortly. “I’m never going to promise that.”
I realize I’ve said “nothing” a lot, but that really sums up this book.
*Reverse Harem *Contemporary *Multi-PoV *Hockey *Mafia *Amnesia *Rivals *Red Flags *established harem (4) *1/2 Bloody Brilliant! Everything these authors have written together has been a 5* read and this one is no different 😃 Our FMC Kennedy suffers from amnesia after she was knocked done by a car and feels incredibly lonely after years her memories haven’t returned and no one showed up for her 😩 yet she feels a presence in her life and boy does he take it over - Greyson is the biggest walking red flag 🙈 yet it’s clear his world is centred around Kennedy! It’s just that world comes with some serious risks 😖 then her encounter at the hockey rink brings her into contact with Carter, the absolute alphahole willing to anything to protect her, Sebastian the playful guy whose always in her corner; Jack the golden boy with a dark possessive side! 🥰She gets a sense of familiarity with each of these men…and it continues to grow the more time they’re “forced” together 😅 and yikes they have some some hawt times too 🔥🔥 It’s clear they have a history between them…especially with the way Greyson and the Hockey three are gunning for each other 😳😳 Kennedy is such a strong FMC, she’s tenacious and isn’t afraid to stand up for herself against these obsessive men 😆 It also becomes apparent that there might be more to Kennedys accident and that danger hasn’t gone away 😳 it’s such a gripping read because you’re desperate to know their history together alongside this threat! 😧
I am actually feeling ambivalent while typing out this review.
I want to say that I did enjoy this book - while I was perusing the words on all the pages. I did... BUT.
There was something about this that did not give me all the feels that I thought I would get while anticipating the release of said book.
Don't get me wrong - I will be reading the next book in the series because I'm no quitter and I need to know what happens to Kennedy and her tattooed totally unhinged harem of hotties. But I can't add this to my all time favourites shelf. I just don't want to disrespect all my favourites that are sitting cozily together there already.
With that being said... No Pucking Way - it's not you, it's me!
No Pucking Way by CR Jane & May Dawson is the First book in the Rich Demons of Hockey Series. This starts the story of Kennedy, Greyson, Sebastian, Jack and Carter. Kennedy wakes up with no memories and only a necklace with Kennedy on it. Kennedy is drawn to the Hockey ring when she starts to look for a job and to start her life. This book does end setting us up for the next installment... I can't wait.
Okay y’all, I seriously almost threw my kindle because ughhh these hockey alphas grated on my last nerve lol. Yeah I admit they are hot and they do have redeeming qualities but heck wow. Their girl, Kennedy, has amnesia after an accident five years ago and her memories have still not returned. She is sweet and unbelievably naive (since she’s basically five). Four men who “love” her from five years before are all giant protective obsessive alphas. She knows they are the key to unraveling her memories, but until they put their differences aside she feels like she’s losing it.
I can’t wait to uncover all the secrets they have kept hidden from her in book 2!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ “You’re going to come for me again. You’re going to come so many fucking times tonight that you black out. And then I’ll probably still make you come. When you wake up tomorrow, you’re going to know that You. Are. Mine!”
I devoured this book! It was a one-sitting, stay-up-all-night read that left me dying for more (yes, I forgot this was book one in a series and was absolutely blindsided by that cliffhanger). It’s an excellent blending of hockey and mafia tropes with some amnesia and best friends to rivals thrown in.
If possessive MMCs with an armful of red flags are your kryptonite, you will fall in love with these men. Why settle for one OTT J/P man when you can have four? A bit of light kidnapping never hurt anyone, right? And everyone needs to be stalked by an obsessed male, for their safety, of course.
Medium burn and spicy with loads of good girls, possessive application of cum, and “mine”.
Back to the cliffhanger… I was not prepared. I do not know how I will make it until March.
Genre: Hockey and Mafia Romance Tropes/Features: Dark themes, hockey and mafia, best friends turned rivals, friends to lovers, OTT J/P, amnesia, mutual pining, secrets, light kidnapping, obsession, touch her and die, stalking, “Good Girl” Narrator: Multiple 1st Person POV Relationship Type: Why Choose – MFMMM, medium burn, spicy Book Type/Ending: Rich Demons of Hockey Book 1, cliffhanger ending TW/CW: Available in book
The premise of the book was interesting? Amnesia? => Sign me up BUUUT dnf at 41% Changing the baby pills with sugar pills. no, no, no, no. NO. Absolutely no. And as if that wasn't enough, Greyson has an orgasm in the room where she sleeps without her consent of him being there.
Loved the concept at the base of this book (amnesia), but I couldn't stand the main character unfortunately! She was obnoxious and boring, maybe in the second book she will be more interesting
I had some major issues with this book that started and ended with the main FMC and the three stooges who justify leaving the “love of their lives” for 5 years to just fend for herself the whole story.
The issue I didn’t have? Greyson. He’s the best part of this book, hands down. And the reason why I’m giving it three stars 😬. I’d read every book in this series just for him, but since we only get one more I definitely wouldn’t mind actually liking the other four characters by the end, because at the moment, I just don’t. At all. Their reasoning was weak, the fmc acted dickmatized way too quick and overlooked way too many things, and I just couldn’t stand Jack, Carter or Seb who now all of a sudden decide to show up for her, ONLY because of Greyson.
Get ready for this cowrite from May Dawson and CR Jane. More red flag guys we have come to know and love from CR Jane but this time instead of MF. We will add more and make it a Reverse Harem. In this our FMC was in an accident and has awoken from a coma with amnesia. The only thing she knows is her first name due to luckily having an item that she was wearing. She go on building a new life and we get to five years later after she’s awoken from the coma. Still trying to figure out who she is, and what her life was before the coma. I really don’t wanna say more about it because I think you should read it and find out what happens by yourself. And be aware this will leave you on a cliffhanger!!
With any C.R. Jane novel, there is a suspension of disbelief necessary to read it because everything is absolutely ridiculous. This book is no exception, just roll with it.