Farewell—for now.
Greetings, Enchanted Ones!
Try not to get too teary-eyed, but this is my last post. At least for the time being. I am about to enjoy 18 days of pure bliss (no homework to turn in), and then I’m off to practicum! By the end of the year, I’ll have my Masters and my K-12 library license. Woohoo! No more school! Until I have to get my MLIS….sigh. Anyways! Today I will be talking about Icebreaker, by A.L. Graziadei, which is the book I chose to read, as well as a series I have started. If you want to hear about Icebreaker, or about my TBR for the next 18 days, stay tuned!
My lovely 16-year-old brother has been giving me input throughout this course when it came to YA. He suggested this title, and a few others which made it onto my YA booklist for my final project in this class. I figured if I have the advantage of having a teen reader in my life, it would be a waste to not use it. This is how I received the recommendation.
<—————-
I didn’t expect to love this book, but I did. I now know better, because my brother has great taste, and he’s just as picky as I am. I love hearing about the books he hated almost as much as the books he loves. Almost.
As someone who hasn’t yet watched or read Heated Rivalry I had no expectations or ideas about what a hockey romance would look like. I thought that sports romances weren’t really my thing, but not only did this book prove me wrong, but it got me set on a sports romance kick. More on that later. Here’s the summary of the book provided by Goodreads:
Seventeen-year-old Mickey James III is a college freshman, a brother to five sisters, and a hockey legacy. With a father and a grandfather who have gone down in NHL history, Mickey is almost guaranteed the league's top draft spot. The only person standing in his way is Jaysen Caulfield, a contender for the #1 spot and Mickey's infuriating (and infuriatingly attractive) teammate. When rivalry turns to something more, Mickey will have to decide what he really wants, and what he's willing to risk for it. This is a story about falling in love, finding your team (on and off the ice), and choosing your own path.
I genuinely don’t want to say too much, because I really loved this book, and don’t want to give spoilers. But it’s such a sweet romance. Enemies-to-lovers or rivals-to-lovers is a hit or miss for me, and it all depends on application. Graziadei has it down to a science. Not only is the tension between the boys captivating, but I loved the whole ensemble. They did a great job of spotlighting the leads, while also having compelling side characters that actually breathed life into the story, rather than just sitting there and existing just to exist. There are also great themes of mental health/mental health management, social and familiar pressure, and reconciliation, and they were all handled with great care. I genuinely loved this book, and I started it on the 4th, and it was done by the 5th. My biggest problem with it is that I wish it was longer. But also, sometimes it’s good to quit while you’re ahead. Selfishly, I wish there was more, though. For a debut author, Graziadei killed it. I will definitely be watching them for future releases.
Now, about my sports romance kick…
Fence (2018-2024) by C.S. Pacat. Published through Boom! Box
My fiancé is a trained fencer (nationally ranked #59 in long sword and #169 in sabre), and he’s incredibly dedicated. So, I mostly picked up this series as a joke, but…I’m obsessed with it. I’m currently on volume three, reading bits in between homework. I’ve not quite hit the romance bit yet, because it’s rivals-to-lovers (as most sport romances seem to go), but I’ve loved it so far. Not going to lie, it’s so much fun to walk up to my fiancé and ask about the actual fencing techniques, and if they’re accurate. So far he’s approved, which bodes well! It’s cute, it’s fun, and there’s actual accurate fencing (at least the bits that I’ve shown my fiancé, can’t claim everything in the series is accurate), and it’s funny! There’s also great representation in this. It’s fast-paced, beautifully illustrated, and from what I’ve seen online, teens love it too!
The Fast Track (2026) by Angelica Cheng
I talked about this book a few weeks ago during romance week, but now I actually get to read it. I can’t say my opinion on it yet, I’m only a few chapters in (and Fence has successfully distracted me…) but I like the concept of a F3 racer romance. I don’t have a racer fiancé to bounce scenes off of, so Fence has been winning for the time being. But I actually picked this book up at my local Barnes and Noble during week 10, so it’s been staring me down for awhile now. Once I devour all the volumes of Fence, I will be continuing this one, and I have high hopes.
No fancy graphics this week, apologies! I have to say, while I am very excited to take a break, I have greatly enjoyed my time in this class. It has actually made me fall in love with YA again. It had been awhile since I had given it a second glance, mainly sticking to middle grade and children’s literature because I typically work with a younger population, and then also adult. I had begun to believe that YA wasn’t for me anymore, and while that’s certainly true of some titles, it couldn’t be further from the truth with others. But I could say the same of all books, no matter the reading level. I am happy to be back to reading and enjoying YA, and after this class and creating my booklist, I have a long list of books I want to read.
With all that being said, it’s time for me to bid you all farewell once more. For now, at least. Who knows? Blogging may be in my near future. I have enjoyed it greatly, and I hope you did as well. So, my dear Enchanted Ones—take care.
Sincerely,
The Keeper of the Enchanted Library
