Stephanie Archer: The Fake Out

This is the second book in Stephanie Archer’s Vancouver Storm series and while you don’t need to read the first book, Behind the Net, to read this book I highly recommend reading it as it is a great book.

Stephanie Archer is back with the Vancouver Storm team and this time one woman will do everything in her power to avoid her Toxic Ex:

What is the best way to get back at a horrible Ex? Why fake date another guy on his team that he hates. Rory has sworn off all hockey players, but when her ex is traded to the team that she works for she convinces one of the other teammates, and a guy she used to go to school with, to pretend to be her boyfriend to try to keep her Ex away. But while fake dating Rory, Hazel sees another side of him and how much he cares and how much pressure has been put on him to succeed as a hockey player. As more time passes Hazel begins to wonder if something that started out as fake can actually be real.

After reading and loving Behind the Net by Archer late last year I was really excited to read The Fake Out, and while I enjoyed the book, I did not find myself invested in this one as I did the first. This one was much more of a slow burn that the first book and i found that there were big gaps in time when Rory was on the road and while they kept in touch on the road we don't get all the interactions in that time. So often we don’t really have their relationship moving forward as fast as maybe i wanted it too, as there are several chapter that start with, A few weeks later....

One of my favourite parts of the books was the on the road interactions while the team was playing away games. Not only were they funny but spicey too at times. I don’t think i have read a contemporary romance book that took this into consideration when people are away (though to be fair this is not a genre i read in often). It is much more than just phone sex now, with video chat straight from the phone. Plus the pictures and eventually videos they shared with each other, very now.

I love all the body positive that Archer made sure to have in this book, very much about loving oneself for who the are and what they look like and recognizing that everyone is on a journey and those journeys are not going to look the same. I found this aspect was weaved really well into the story with what Hazel is trying to achieve in both her personal and professional life.

This book kind of has a fake dating troupe to it, but you can tell that he has fallen for her right away and it is totally not fake to him at all. With all the gifts he buys her, the tiny little dragon is my favourite, and how he treats Hazel whether they are out in public or not, the fake dating troupe falls off fast. Rory is a pretty awesome book boyfriend. Hazel on the other hand, it was hard with her at times. She has just generalized all hockey players as assholes and fights and I mean fights hard at every turn for her growing feelings for Rory. There are times when you just want to tell her to give her head a shake and appreciate what is right in front of her.

I love that Archer doesn't so the third act breakup in the books i have read by her so far, she actually has her characters communicate like normal people would and not getting blown up over some small thing.

I know that Hazel's ex is an asshole, but i do wonder the reason behind it, and I actually would like to see him get his own story have someone take him out of his asshole ways, maybe the Blonde he was seen with during the community skate night. I am interested where she takes the next book in the series, which features another hockey player from the Storm team.

I did enjoy this book, especially Rory and getting tidbits of how Pippa and Jamie are doing. I also like how the book felt fresh in the dating scene and even the hockey romance scene. For sure one to check out.

Enjoy!!!!

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