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A review by cozycritiques
Face Offs & Cheap Shots by Eden Finley, Saxon James
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
5.0
”Beck boops me on the nose, and I jerk back out of his hold and get the hell away. He waits until the elevator doors are closing before he gets in the final word. Like usual. “May the best captain win.””
- Face Offs & Cheap Shots
Tropes: Sports Romance (Hockey), College Romance, Teammates, Enemies to Lovers, Opposites Attract, Queer Awakening
Representation: LGBQ+ (Gay, Pansexual)
Spice Scale: 🌶🌶🌶🌶
CW: Hazing, Underage Drinking, Coming Out, Misogyny
Enemies to lovers is one of those tropes that can be so difficult to do without making both characters utterly unlikeable or so that it’s hard to believe they could ever actually fall in love. However, this is probably one of the softest enemies to lovers stories I’ve ever read. Beck and Jacob’s rivalry in the beginning was executed perfectly, having the right amount of snark and witty banter without it being over the top. From the beginning, you could tell something was under the surface. Like Zach said, the sexual tension coming off of them was palpable, especially during the challenges the team set for them to compete for team captain. But that sexual tension quickly became so much more, and I couldn’t help grinning as Beck and Jacobs began falling for each other hard.
I am such a sucker for queer awakenings, and so the fact that this book had two made it that much better. They are both handled so well and so differently, which felt really authentic to the characters. Jacobs processing his previous possible queer feelings in the context of his growing feelings for Beck was a nice contrast to Beck’s sexual awakening, which was taken much more in stride.
This is slowly becoming my new favorite series. I loved Power Plays & Straight A’s, but Face Offs & Cheap Shots was even better. It was well-paced, spicier, and had more character development and growth, but it still captured the fluffy, low-stakes vibe of the first book I loved so much. It also set up the next book's plot, so I’m excited to see where that goes.
- Face Offs & Cheap Shots
Tropes: Sports Romance (Hockey), College Romance, Teammates, Enemies to Lovers, Opposites Attract, Queer Awakening
Representation: LGBQ+ (Gay, Pansexual)
Spice Scale: 🌶🌶🌶🌶
CW: Hazing, Underage Drinking, Coming Out, Misogyny
Enemies to lovers is one of those tropes that can be so difficult to do without making both characters utterly unlikeable or so that it’s hard to believe they could ever actually fall in love. However, this is probably one of the softest enemies to lovers stories I’ve ever read. Beck and Jacob’s rivalry in the beginning was executed perfectly, having the right amount of snark and witty banter without it being over the top. From the beginning, you could tell something was under the surface. Like Zach said, the sexual tension coming off of them was palpable, especially during the challenges the team set for them to compete for team captain. But that sexual tension quickly became so much more, and I couldn’t help grinning as Beck and Jacobs began falling for each other hard.
I am such a sucker for queer awakenings, and so the fact that this book had two made it that much better. They are both handled so well and so differently, which felt really authentic to the characters. Jacobs processing his previous possible queer feelings in the context of his growing feelings for Beck was a nice contrast to Beck’s sexual awakening, which was taken much more in stride.
This is slowly becoming my new favorite series. I loved Power Plays & Straight A’s, but Face Offs & Cheap Shots was even better. It was well-paced, spicier, and had more character development and growth, but it still captured the fluffy, low-stakes vibe of the first book I loved so much. It also set up the next book's plot, so I’m excited to see where that goes.
Content Warnings
Minor: Misogyny and Alcohol
Hazing, Underage Drinking, Coming Out