Day River Dingoes Book 1: Jaded by Lex Easton

 

Day River Dingoes Book 1

Hockey prodigy Nat Taylor should’ve followed his father and brother to the NHL, but a dream-shattering mistake cost him his career. Now at thirty-five, he's desperate to give his teenage daughter a better life while struggling to hold onto his job as a Zamboni driver for the failing Day River Dingoes. But when a spicy meet-cute with the Dingoes’ new captain sparks something far hotter than friendship, Nat finds himself worrying about more than just his daughter’s college fund.

Captain Olli James has one goal—make it to the NHL. His rocky mental health has thrown his otherwise promising career into question, but saving the sinking Dingoes could be his ticket to the big leagues. However, a certain moody, broody bad-boi Zamboni driver might prove distracting … Especially when Nat turns out to be the secret star of a gritty underground league called the Ice Out—the town's favorite new hockey phenomenon.

It’s no wonder the locals prefer the illicit fight-club hockey over their home team. The Dingoes are a rotating door of players passing through on their way to something better. Olli’s no different. An outsider won’t save the Dingoes, or Nat’s livelihood. But maybe together, Nat and Olli can unite the town and the team—make the Dingoes matter again. It might give Olli a reason to stay and Nat a new dream worth fighting for.

JADED is a gritty MM hockey romance and the first book in the Day River Dingoes series. Expect slow burn, grumpy x sunshine, friends to lovers, mental health rep, plenty of hurt/comfort, some funny banter, and lots of bonding over emo poetry and metal music.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/231217815-jaded

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My Review: 4/5 Stars

Nat Taylor is a hockey prodigy who should have followed his dad and brother’s footsteps to the NHL. But growing up with that weight on one’s shoulders isn’t easy. And it led to mistakes that eventually cost him any chance of a future like that. Now, many years later, all he wants is to give his teenager a chance to get out of their hometown and a better future than he ever had. Nat has been stuck in this limbo of figuring out his future. He holds on to hockey as close as he can because it’s part of him but he just can’t seem to figure out what to do. But when Olli James arrives in Day River as the new captain on the minor league team, things start to change. Olli has always wanted to make it to the NHL but battling anxiety and depression has always stirred up some issues on the ice when it came to some bad days. But being in Day River isn’t what he expected. And meeting Nat was definitely not on radar. Olli gets inspired to help this team more than ever. The community has long lost their belief in them and it’s time to change that. He has a lot of ideas and with Nat by his side, they may just pull it off. I loved Olli and Nat’s story! There was so much going on with these two, together and apart. And I loved that they were able to help one another in ways neither expected. They were able to build this friendship that turned into so much more. While also helping their community at the same time. A really great story overall and I can’t wait to see more from this series!

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.