PUCKED 
by Helena Hunting
Published by Helena Hunting on May 3rd 2015
Genres: Romance, Contemporary, Romantic Comedy
Pages: 380
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With a famous NHL player for a stepbrother, Violet Hall is well acquainted with the playboy reputation of many a hockey star. So she isn’t interested in legendary team captain Alex Waters or his pretty, beat-up face and rock-hard six-pack abs. When Alex inadvertently obliterates Violet’s misapprehension regarding the inferior intellect of hockey players, he becomes much more than just a hot body with the face to match.
Suffering from a complete lapse in judgment, Violet discovers just how good Alex is with the hockey stick in his pants. Violet believes her night of orgasmic magic with Alex is just that: one night. But Alex starts to call. And text. And email and send extravagant—and quirky—gifts. Suddenly, he's too difficult to ignore, and nearly impossible not to like.
The problem is, the media portrays Alex as a total player, and Violet doesn’t want to be part of the game.
Review of Pucked
Pucked is the first standalone novel in the Pucked series by New York Times bestselling author Helena Hunting. The story follows Violet Hall, a young woman who distrusts hockey players due to a prior misjudgment of character, as well as her NHL step-brothers philandering ways. After being coaxed to attend one of her step-brothers games with his new team, Violet comes face-to-face with the team captain, Alex Waters. And while he intrigues her, Violet hesitates due to her ingrained mistrust. Alex, being his charming and patient self, slowly wears down her resistance and Violet and Alex find themselves enjoying a spontaneous and unforgettable experience together. Unfortunately, the next morning Violet second guesses her actions, makes a stealthy escape, and convinces herself that that momentary lapse of judgement will not be repeated.
Alex Waters has other ideas. For Alex, Violet is quirky, unique, and witty. She’s the girl who pulls a book out during a hockey game and refuses to chase after him despite his fame and wealth. She’s also into wearing spider-man pajamas (first protagonist I read in a romance novel that does that). Intrigued by her, Alex starts to text her, call her, and finds ways in which they can be in each other’s company. He even sends her cute little gifts (my favorite was the stuffed beaver wearing his jersey! Haha!)- all these completely send Violet into an ambivalent state about her feelings for the hockey team captain. It doesn’t help that the media portrays him as a playboy- and that a lot of his team members are the same way. Violet is definitely a unique character! In fact, I completely adored her and admired Alex for being so patient with her! Violet had me busting out into laughter numerous times throughout the story. The way she approaches situations is amusing and refreshing. She doesn’t hold back and is forthright and honest (almost to a fault). And Alex…he is superb book boyfriend material! He’s charming, persistent, patient, and amusing in his own way (though he did disappoint me at one point in the novel. A lot.).
The story was riddled with laugh-out-loud moments, witty dialogue, intense passionate scenes, and enough chemistry to burn through the pages! I enjoyed getting to know not only Violet and Alex, but Violet’s step-brother Miller “Buck” Butterson as well. Violet and Buck’s dialogue also kept me chuckling (though I did think she was a little harsh with him a few times). It was also interesting to see how different Alex’s family was from Violet’s- one was cool and aloof, and the other was vibrant and warm (which also made for an amusing read once both sides met). Pucked was a surprising gem as I am not a huge fan of romance novels involving sports (despite my love of hockey!).
Will I read Pucked again? Heck yes!
FIVE stars for Pucked!
