Do you love The Windy City Series, The Off Campus Series and Playing for Keeps Series? Then you will LOVE this one!
Are you like me and TOTALLY love a good ice hockey romance series? Say no more, I’ve got you!
Stephanie Archer knows how to write and get you instantly hooked and swooned by these fantastic guys. They’re protective, romantic, doing kind gestures and overcoming their, sometimes, macho image or player side and go all-in for their girl.
We have tropes like: friends to lovers, fake dating, fake marriage, work place romance and close proximity but also a lot of amazing banter (especially in Gloves Off!).
Lets dig into each of these books and tell you more about them, enjoy! =)
The Vancouver Storm Series
Jamie & Pippa
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️
~Tropes ~
- The hockey goalie
- Grumpy x sunshine
- They went to the same high school
- They secretly had a crush on each other
- Moves back home to take care of his mom
- Work place romance and close proximity
My thoughts:
Jamie is the star goalie who just moved back to Vancouver to take care of his mother who suffers from anxiety and depression since his dad passed away in a car accident about 10 years ago, but it hurt his mother badly. Enters Pippa, who now is his assistant who takes care of his dog Daisy when he’s not home and some other errands, but she’s also his high school crush and they haven’t seen each other in 8 years. Since they didn’t hang out or were in the same circles in HS (he was a jock and she was in music) they don’t know if they recognize each other. He’s a grump and has trouble letting people in but the sunshine of Pippa is starting to seep through more and more.
I loved this book so much, that they don’t know if they recognize each other and had crushes on each other! And I always enjoy a grunpy x sunshine romance and also when there is some family in the background that is important to their story. I loved how their romance developed and played out. It’s my second favorite book of the series.
Rory & Hazel
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️
~Tropes ~
- The offence star
- Ex tutor and student (in HS)
- He’s Jamie’s ex best friend and she’s Pippa’s older sister
- Cocky hockey player x athletic trainer
- Fake dating (to get back at her ex that also has joined the team)
- Has a dream of opening a body positive yoga studio
My thoughts:
Hazel has made the mistake before of dating a cocky ice hockey player and says ‘no more’. But when her ex is back in her city and on the team where she’s an athletic trainer, she wants to keep him at bay so she does something (kind crazy) and starts to (fake) date her “enemy” from high school – Rory. Rory turns out to have a softer side, just for her, and when he starts to do some small, but significant gestures, Hazel can’t help but to see this new side of Rory and fall for it. She’s his ‘fire breathing dragon’ and can’t keep himself to buy (ridiculously) expensive diamond dragons (and as a set so he can have one too at his bedside table and with him at the away games, aaww!). He becomes her biggest support and since they both have some trouble with their families, they become their biggest support for each other in that too.
Don’t you also love a reverted player, a hockey player that thinks he’s so great but then he gets put down to earth by the black cat of a woman? Yeah, me too! Rory and Hazel have banter and a tough exterior and a troubled inside. They both help each other in their life goals and to see the bigger picture and how to heal in the process. They’re so good to each other and you can’t help to fall in love with them too,
Hayden & Darcy
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️
~Tropes ~
- Best friends since college
- Were together with his best friend for 8 years – but not anymore
- He agrees to be her wingman
- He’s a known womanizer
- She wants to explore who she really is
- Hockeyplayer x computer nerd
- Secretly always been in love with her for 8 years
- Close proximity – lives together
My thoughts:
When Darcy ends her 8 year relationship with Kit, Hayden’s best friend since college (both hockey players), she wants to get into the dating pool, because she’s only been with Kit. Since Hayden is a known womanizer she wants him to teach him to get with guys. But he instantly gets jealous and offers himself for her to practice on. Yeah, he also had a crush on her since the first day they saw each other before class in college. It also helps that they already live together and spend a lot of time together. She’s on a journey to explore who she truly is and Hayden is a big part of that journey. She’s the smart computer nerd who does hockey analyzing in her spare time and makes some good suggestions to coach Ward and the team that eventually lands her a job with the team – a job that includes her some of her dreams and to be closer to Hayden.
In this you can’t help to swoon over the big and beautiful Hayden, one who always had his heart reserved for Darcy – they quiet and small girl he first met in college. Even though his friend got to her first they were inevitable. Hayden and Darcy have a special interest together – a fantasy series and when he gets her a special gift from their favorit series – you can’t help but fall a hundred times more for Hayden. He’s everything right for her and her biggest support to grow to a stronger and more confident woman.
Alexei & Georgia
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
~Tropes ~
- A gruffy defenceman
- Hockey player x team doctor
- Fake marriage/marriage of convenience
- Amazing banter!
- Enemies to lovers
- They don’t know who the other truly is
- Messages through flowers
- He donates 100k just to be her date
My thoughts:
Alexei is the grumpy hockey player and Georgia is the team doctor, both in need to marry someone out of convenience. He needs it for citizenship and she for her inheritance for 10 million dollars. They make a short appearance at city hall and makes woves to always hate each other, haha! She moves in in his big house and immediately they start to annoy each other – he throws out her shoes in the garbage and she brings a big crystal shaped like a p*nis. Yeah you get the concept of their early relationship. What they learn along the way is that they both had the totally wrong image of each other and when they see the true other side – they both fall deeply and help each other in the biggest way in life.
Totally my favorite book of the series (so far)! What striked me the most was the amazing banter, enemies to lovers and marriage of convenience – all smashed up in this funny and spicy book! They both start to yearn for each other and they are so adorable – a grumpy hockey player and a hell cat of a woman, LOVED IT!
Releases 3rd of February 2026!
When Coach Ward gets his own book!
He’s the injured and retired NHL player who now coaches the Vancouver team. He’s also a single dad and somehow ends up with the dive bar owner Jordan. We don’t have a blurb yet but a pretty cover and some info from the previous books in the series. Can’t wait to read the last bookk of this amazing ice hockey romance series!
This is also a series written by Stephanie Archer, I haven't read it yet but it's on my TBR <3
It's called The Queen's Cove Series
