Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: Thin Ice
SERIES: The Elmwood Stories
AUTHOR: Lane Hayes
NARRATOR: Nick J. Russo
PUBLISHER: Self-published
LENGTH: 7 hrs and 37 mins
RELEASE DATE: May 31, 2024
BLURB:
The hunky dad, the hockey coach, and a new start….
Bryson:
Elmwood isn’t good for my love life. Hey, I’m a positive person and I have nothing but wonderful things to say about small town living, but I haven’t had a date in years. That’s fine. My son is and always has been my number one focus.
Except now he’s grown and gone. And its lonely.
Okay, yes, the new hockey coach is hot and single, but he’s off limits. Smitty’s trouble with a capital T, and his baggage might outweigh mine. Besides, we said nothing would happen after that night. It was a one-time, never to be repeated deal.
At least that’s what I thought.
Smitty:
Am I sad about retiring from pro hockey? Honestly, no. I cant remember the last time I wasn’t in pain. My body needs a rest, but I can’t go home. Everything has changed there, and I need a distraction. Stat.
So Elmwood.
Look, we all know I won’t last a whole season of coaching high school kids, but stepping in till they find a better candidate is a good temporary plan. And Bryson’s here.
There’s something about the hot dad with the sunny smile and bad dad jokes that makes me feel alive again. I’m not in the market for forever. Been there, done that. I’ve risked my body, but I’m not giving my heart away again. I know thin ice when I see it.
Or do I?
Thin Ice is an MM bisexual, small town romance featuring a silver fox dad, the new hockey coach, and a fresh start on solid ground.
REVIEW:
Note: This is the fourth book in this series. There are major spoilers for the previous books. If you don’t care about spoilers, it can work as a standalone just fine. I recommend the whole series though – particularly the audios 😉
OMG! I loved this latest Elmwood story 🙂
Bryson is the sweetest! He’s a bit self-sacrificing and his wildchild background and substance abuse issues keep him hanging on tight to his rigid schedules and ways. Smitty’s background is a bit different. His mother is a drunk and just uses him for an ATM. His brother has his own life and is leaving things to Smitty. I loved Smitty’s best friend Jimmy. Bryson’s best friend is really his ex-wife, but she’s not around much and he’s spent so much time focusing on making sure that his son Jake doesn’t suffer from the same neglect that he did with his parents that put him on his hard-partying ways. Bryson is buttoned up pretty much all the time and he’s done everything he can to ingratiate himself with the townspeople. He doesn’t want to rock the boat of his life in Elmwood. But Smitty completely upends his life He’s not willing to just let things go with Bryson. Smitty really likes the man. He’s not been this interested in anyone in a long time. His own marriage ended in divorce and he’s sad about that and he’s also not over the facts that led to that divorce which he eventually shares with Bryson.
One thing they both agree on though is that whatever they are doing has to be on the DL. Smitty has just retired from professional hockey and oh yeah, he’s not out. Bryson doesn’t want his son to know that he’s hooking up with his hockey nemesis. Neither of them want a three ring circus in Elmwood since Jake is an up and comer and yet another queer retired hockey player moving to Elmwood would make waves. They agree to keep things casual and it’s just a bit of fun. Until it isn’t of course and Bryson catches feelings. He doesn’t know what to do about it and he won’t jeopardize his nice compartmentalized life or his relationship with his son. It takes a wise friend to help him see the light 😉
This story was delightful! I loved seeing our usual cast of characters here and some new ones. Smitty is a good guy and I loved the scenes with him coaching the teenagers. Bryson is a standup guy but he’s stuck in dad mode. His priority has been Jake for years and he’s having a hard time realizing that he does have his own life. He’s worried things will go wrong. Smitty is a much more laidback guy. He wants to come out, but he’s not quite ready. He also doesn’t want Bryson to do anything to jeopardize his relationship with Jake who professes to hate Smitty 😉 The reason why is absolutely adorable! JC, Riley, Ivan and the other couples from the past stories play their parts here too – whether it’s to encourage Smitty to stay or recognize Bryson’s struggle to allow himself to have something that is his own – not tied to being Jake’s dad or Elmwood’s real estate guru. I loved their banter. Their story was believable and I enjoyed the push/pull of their romance.
Nick J. Russo is one of my absolute favorite narrators. He does his usual stellar job here. I really appreciated the continuity of the character voices from previous books in the series. JC is a particular favorite. I loved his salty Jake performance 🙂 Another winner from this duo who keep supplying us with these special small town hockey romances and happily ever afters in quirky Elmwood. Recommended.
RATING: 
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