Last Updated on May 6, 2024 by Natalie
Proathletes falling in love with our imperfect romance heroines is always a fun read. It brings on the what if that we all imagine once in awhile in our own lives. I’ve some some great hockey player romance novels that I want to share because they are just that awesome. These are fun books with strong stories, and witty characters that we can root for.
See what I did there? Check out the best hockey romance books I could find (so far)!
Table of Contents
Best hockey romance novels
I’ve really enjoyed the following hockey romance books – and they are all part of a series. They are in order and even though they are standalone, they are even better when read in order.
Want more sports? Check out these hot sports romances!
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The Pucked Series
As I’ve read through this series, I’ve come to the conclusion that they might be categorized as erotic romance – there’s certainly a lot going on in the sex department. If you’re looking for going at it like rabbits and some experimentation, it’s an excellent series! If you aren’t you may not care for the content, though it’s still an excellent series.
Pucked
SO EFFING Fun! When a book starts with a girl masturbatory scene, you know it’s going to be different. Violet lets her mouth say things without filtering sometimes. It’s sometimes funny and awesome and other times, it’s super embarrassing. However, this 22 year old woman is a lot of fun. Though she still wears superhero jammies and lives in her parents’ pool house, she comes across emotionally as older and more put together. She’s also witty. And comes up with crazy amazing insults for her step brother.
Alex is an incredibly hot hero – he’s polite in public and sizzling in the sack. He also regularly asks for permission. Consent is hot, so this was a welcome addition. It also didn’t come across at all as something that didn’t belong in the book. It fit. He’s open and caring and more like an actual person you’d want to date.
He does screw up, though. You know, as the characters always do.
I’m a big fan of this book and these characters. This is “go out right now and read it” romance book!
If you don’t like curse words, slang words for genitals, and super hot sex scenes, this isn’t the book for you. It’s well written, fun, and not tired trope. It’s a great read and I enjoyed it so much more than I expected.
Series: The Pucked, book 1
Theme: Pro-athlete (hockey), dating brother’s teammate
Steam Level: Yowza, it’s blistering hot! Like the burn I got yesterday on my stove
Pucked Up
by Helena Hunting
Miller “Buck” Butterson is back in the second book in The Pucked series by Helen Hunting. In the first book, we met Buck Butterson, Violet Hall’s stepbrother. He doesn’t come across as very smart, though he’s loyal to Violet. In Pucked Up, we get to meet the man himself. Everything we heard in the first book about him is true, but now he’s trying to clean up his act.
Sunshine “Sunny” Waters is Alex Waters younger sister and she is just as smitten with Miller and Miller is with her. But, Miller being a professional hockey player means that he’s constantly in the media and his reputation as a floozy is well documented. Will his past threaten his future with Sunny?
In this book, we really get into Miller’s brain, which helps us realize why he acts the way he does. He doesn’t always make the best decisions and he has a pretty good reason why – he’s dyslexic. His dyslexia is a small factor in why he occasionally gets into situations that look so bad. And he’s certainly not the idiot he seems to be in the first book. I’m rooting for Miller to grow up – can he? Can he win Sunny even with a media shitstorm always surrounding him?
Series: The Pucked, book 2
Theme: Pro-athlete (hockey), dating teammate’s sister
Steam Level: Yep, it’s hot and full of slang and curse words, especially those for genitalia
Pucked Over
by Helena Hunting
We are introduced to Randy Ballistic (Randy Balls – because Miller Butterson calls him Balls for some reason and not the reason you’d think) in the first book. He gets a bit more fleshed out in his appearances in Pucked Up. He’s a serial dater – but he jumps to Lily LeBlanc’s defense (also in the previous book) and things happen…
We meet Lily LeBlanc, best of friend of Sunny Waters and almost like another little sister to Alex Waters, also in Pucked Up. She’s feisty. We aren’t sure we like her, until we start actually getting to know her.
Since we did see her softer side in the previous book and her attraction to Randy Ballistic, yes, I absolutely wanted to read her story.
This series is so hot, but even so, it didn’t occur to me until this book that this series is might be considered erotic romance. This book might possibly take the cake for the number of sex scenes contained within – and yes, they do move the story along. It’s another well written entry in the Pucked series (which I’m clearly in love with).
Series: The Pucked, book 3
Theme: Pro-athlete (hockey), relationship between people who initially hate each other
Steam Level: SO MANY HOT SCENES, curse words and slang used
Forever Pucked
by Helena Hunting
Forever Pucked has us back again in Violet and Alex’s continuing story. This time, we learn why Violet gets hives whenever she talks about the wedding. However, she DOES want to marry him, so what’s the problem?
Again, we have our massively inappropriate Violet, our sexy as heck Alex, drama, and more drama of a different nature. It’s a great story – with consent like crazy (totally sexy), caring for others, and great character development.
And SO MANY HOT scenes. WOW!
Though, I did realize that I’m closer to the ages of the moms in the story. *Sigh*. Still amazing. Go read this series.
Series: The Pucked, book 4
Theme: Pro-athlete (hockey), injury, wedding worries
Steam Level: SO MANY HOT SCENES, curse words and slang use
Pucked Under
by Helena Hunting
Our focus returns to Randy Ballistic and Lily LeBlanc, who are now living together in Chicago. We know so much already about Lily, but not as much about Randy Ballistic. We are also introduced to Randy Ballistic Sr. And he’s a jerk.
I really love that the author wrote these sequels and we get to see even more of our beloved characters. Again, this book is a solid storyline in an incredible series. A series that is worth reading – it’s like a soap opera. A soap opera in a well written book series. This series also has so much sex and unexpected steaminess!
Pucked Off
by Helena Hunting
Lance Romero aka Lance Romance is first introduced in the second book. He’s a player of epic proportions and the media says he likes to have two ladies at once. Yikes.
This book starts off so dark, detailing parental abuse and also significant other abuse. However, as Helena Hunting is an excellent author, I was hooked even though I expected a bit lighter fare. It’s absolutely the darkest of the seven books and it’s oh-so-good. I fell in a little in love with Lance and Poppy. And finally, there’s a plot line where one character LISTENS TO THE OTHER AND DOESN’T DO SOMETHING STUPID and it’s still entertaining and gripping, without the unnecessary drama caused by a misunderstanding or not listening to each other.
So refreshing.
I mean, everyone absolutely needs a bunch of therapy… and even that is resolved thoughtfully. Even though the themes from the beginning are intense and not something I normally choose to read, this might possibly be close to the top of my list of favorites.
Pucked Love
by Helena Hunting
We met both Charlene and Darren in the very first book and it took until the end of the series to be able to read their story. From the other books, we get the impression that their relationship is kind of weird and maybe a LOT kinky. While their relationship is unusual, it’s not at all what I expected it to be.
Pucked Love continues to throw out the crazy curve balls we’ve come to expect from this series. We may also have the most romantic proposal in the history of fictional romantic proposals, too.
I know that I have gushed so much about each book and I will continue by singing the praises for the final book in the series. The series is well written, a bit crazy, and a whole lot of awesome. I haven’t been able to put the books down and when I’m finished with one, I get the nervous shakes until I start the next one. This is the soap opera of romance that I needed in my life. Just maybe, you do, too!
Pucks & Penalties: Pucked Series Deleted Scenes and Outtakes
by Helena Hunting
An addition to the series: deleted scenes and outtakes from each book!
Ice Knights series
Parental Guidance
by Avery Flynn
Caleb Stuckey massively messed up. He’s featured in a viral video with his teammates, who are acting like… well, like spoiled, jerky hockey players. Even though he didn’t actually say anything rude in said video, he should’ve shut it down. Now, he’s in a PR mess.
He didn’t think it could get any worse, then his mom walked into his meeting with his PR manager, Lucy Kavanaugh (featured in Avery Flynn’s book Muffintop). His mom proposes a PR stunt – let her take over Caleb’s dating life by choosing his next date. And instead of being private, Caleb, his mother, his date-to-be and her father, will all go on TV to discuss the 5 dates.
Zara Ambrose is a workaholic. Growing up with a father who always invested in the next best thing or bought a round of drinks for all of his friends (and strangers) at the local pubs, didn’t always leave enough money to cover the bills. The uncertainty of her childhood hit her hard. Her father loves her, she doesn’t doubt that, but that doesn’t change her workaholic attendances. Between Zara’s best friend, her father, and a bottle of tequila, she agrees to create a profile and go on 5 dates with one person.
Zara and Caleb agree to 5 dates and 5 dates only – to appease their families. When sparks fly, can these two move beyond the expectations of others and be true to themselves?
Avery Flynn has delivered another hot story with a sexy leading man (professional hockey player). Fake dating between two people who should absolutely be together is one of my favorite tropes of romance novels. This book has wonderful characters and each has depth. Caleb has secrets to balance out his incredible, pro-athlete life, making him vulnerable and appealing. I really enjoyed this well written book.
Series: The Ice Knights, Book 1
Themes: Pro-athlete, Fake dating
Steam level: Hot, heavy sexual language used
Awk-weird
Tess Gardner has been awk-weird for as long as she can remember. Constantly shuffled between family members, all of whom treat her like a burden, her defense mechanism is to spout off facts at random. This leads her to be standing awkwardly near a table of hockey players playing trivia.
Cole Phillips notices the woman in the corner. She’s answering every trivia question in their game. And she’s always correct. Even though Cole has been in love with Marti Peppers for as long as he can remember, they’ve always been on-again-off-again. This time, they are off. And they’ve been off longer than Cole liked.
He invited Tess to join their game. And it leads to a one night stand. Or it would’ve been one night… Until Tess discovers that she’s pregnant with Cole’s baby.
Blowing other surprise pregnancy books out of the water, Awk-weird is a gift to the sub genre. Tess is definitely awk-weird and adorable. Cole is super dreamy. We want them to win – on the ice and off!
Series: The Ice Knights, Book 2
Themes: Surprise pregnancy
Steam level: Hot, heavy sexual language used
Loud Mouth
by Avery Flynn
Ian Petrov, an Ice Knights hockey player, needs to escape the headlines. He just found out that his best friend and teammate, Alex Christensen, is his secret half brother. He didn’t find out from Alex, who knew it. Instead, he found out with the rest of the world, from a hockey-dedicated blog. He heads to a remote cabin for a little time out. Without media.
Shelby Blanton loves hockey. She loves it so much that she has a blog dedicated to the Ice Knights professional hockey team. However, she blabbed a secret about Ian Petrov… something he didn’t know and yes, he’s holding it against her.
When Shelby and Ian end up snowed in at the same cabin together, will sparks fly?
Spoiler alert: Yes. Sparks literally fly and of course, figuratively, too.
Series: The Ice Knights, Book 3
Themes: Snowed in together, people who hate each other in the beginning
Steam level: Hot, heavy sexual language used
Appies Hockey Romance
Romancing the Grump: A Sweet Hockey Romcom
by Jenny Proctor
Summer Callahan is starting her new job as the legal counsel for a hockey team, the Appies. Though they play in the minor leagues in hockey, they play in the big leagues on social media. Summer has her work cut out for her helping the players and team navigate brand deals. But first, she’s got to get a handle on her crush on the team grump, Nathan Sanders.
Where do I start with this one? This story is clean (though the heat between the characters is fantastic) and it hits everything I like in a story. There is tension and awkwardness; their are nosy, slightly meddling friends; and enough backstory that you can’t help but love our slightly damaged hero and heroine. This is book 2 in the series and I happened to read it first. I can’t wait to get back and read the rest of the series!
Series: Appies Hockey Romance, Book 2
Themes: Coworker romance (sort of), denial of feelings, great friendship development
Steam level: Clean, no sex, but the kissing is exceptional
Misadventures
Misadventures with a Rookie
by Toni Aleo
Gus “The Bus” Persson is in his rookie season and he’s super cocky. Seriously, he starts out as super arrogant and cocky, but do keep reading . In the beginning, he’s going to rub a lot of people and not in the way we wanted to be rubbed when we are reading romance that’s bordering on erotic. I found him mostly endearing from the start, since we get to see inside his head. Anyway, he lays eyes on a hot ice girl and she’s glaring at him. Did he pee in her wheaties?
Then, we meet Bo St. James, the ice girl in question, and all around hard worker. She knows rookie’s type – cocky, arrogant, god’s gift to women, love ’em and leave ’em, and she’s completely uninterested. Nope. Been there, done that, and it isn’t going to happen again.
Through a lot of bumps and bruises (literally!), we learn a lot about these two characters. Will their attraction be enough to overcome their pasts?
I liked this book and Aleo’s other contribution to the Misadventures series (Misadventures with a Manny, which isn’t about hockey), but once I started reading her stuff outside of this series, I was disappointed. Read this one instead!
Series: Misadventures, series order not applicable
Theme: Pro-athlete (hockey), enemies-to-lovers
Steam Level: Steam level borders on erotic
Read more about the Misadventures series here!
⇒Want more romance? Check out these hot romance reads!
Best Hockey Romance Books Conclusion
If you’re looking for romance novels about hockey players and great hockey romance book series, both series above are great to read as a standalone or the whole series. Every book listed here (that I’ve read, not the ones I merely mention as part of the series) are absolutely worth reading, especially if pro-hockey players are one of your favorites. They definitely make me want to throw on a pair of skates again!
What are your favorite hockey romance books? The best feedback comes from readers! Please leave your comments and suggestions. I just may read your suggestion and add a review. Thank you!
Originally published on April 8, 2020.
