If you are looking for a magical Christmas love story with a hint of sports and spice, then look no further. “It’s beginning to look a lot like Puck This” by Izzy Elliott hits all of the trademarks to make the perfect holiday Hallmark movie.
As for me, I was in search of a spark, something to wake up my love for the holidays. The year anniversary of my husband’s passing was fast approaching (Christmas Day), and I swore I wasn’t going to celebrate this year. However, I could feel that little part of me wanting so badly to love Christmas again. Not only that but I had found someone that was slowly bringing joy back into my life and I wanted to celebrate with him. He lives in a little Christmas town just like the MMC, so this story couldn’t have come at a better time.
But this hallmark love story follows a tall, dark and handsome Kodiak, who comes from a small Christmas village where his family legacy awaits him, but all he wants to do is escape to freedom. Being drafted into professional football gets him everything he wants, however there is one thing getting in his way, the sweltering heat in Arizona. Something about heat and polar bears don’t mix very well. Yes, that’s right, I said polar bears. Kodiak is a shape shifting polar bear, in fact the entire football team is made up of shifters.
Which adds another level to the spicy scenes I was not entirely prepared for, but also not complaining about. It is not full-blown shape shifter and human sexual contact, but it does contain knotting and if you don’t know what that is, I would advise googling at your own risk.
Then you have Anya Greene, the polar opposite of Kodiak. A human who grew up with parents that barely remembered they had a child and never celebrated Christmas a day in her life. Anya pours her heart and soul into hockey to avoid the pain of being alone and never expected that the one thing she could count on would let her down.
However, when she is passed over for the draft, she is stuck in a world where her team is moving on without her, she has no clue what her plan b is, and the holidays just add a touch of salt to the wound. That is until her world collides with Kodiaks in the most hilarious and unexpected way. I will leave that not so small detail for the readers to experience themselves.
This is a fated mate and found family trope romance and they fell quickly with no hesitation. Kodi is like a prince in a fairy tale with his romantic, protective nature and his small-town home and Christmas traditions with his family were the perfect cherry on top.
I love mate tropes, but I think dark romance and slow burns have ruined me when it comes to the instant connection and just accepting a mate bond like you didn’t just learn it existed and goes against the realm of reality. I like a book with banter and a little resistance when it comes to being told you are mated to one person for hundreds if not thousands of years.
While Izzy did an absolute remarkable job making a new, refreshing Hallmark love story that doesn’t seem too repetitive. I feel like adding that into the story would have pushed it over the top.
That is honestly my only complaint with this book. It hit every holiday vibe I was needing this season, and my only hope is that Izzy Elliot does not stop there. I would love to see another book or novella about what the future holds for Kodi and Anya and where his family legacy takes them.
Because this book hit all the vibes of a holiday romance with exceptional spice and kept me hooked even after the end, I am giving it five stars and five chili peppers for its open-door spice.
★★★★★
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ / 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
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