Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: The Ultimate Save
SERIES: Brooklyn Blades
AUTHOR: Felice Stevens
NARRATOR: Kale Williams
PUBLISHER: Good Man Press
LENGTH: 8 hours and 11 minutes
RELEASE DATE: April 4, 2026
BLURB:
Denis
I’m the best goalie in the league. Just ask me.
Yes, I have an ego the size of NYC. Maybe that’s why I’ve crashed and burned all my relationships. Love, like a hockey game, is a competition. And once I win, I’m ready for the next game, the next man.
Until I meet him. Sterling Forest. The arrogant, obnoxious news anchor who calls hockey players thugs on ice. He tempts me…intrigues me. Makes me want to kiss that scowl off his lips. I want him to burn for me. Instead Sterling is the one to set my heart on fire.
Sterling
I know nothing about hockey, and I’m happy to keep it that way. I’ve apologized for my remarks, but the insufferable Denis Bouvier isn’t satisfied. I even do the unthinkable and attend a hockey game. Okay, maybe it is more than brute force. But I can’t tell him he’s right.
Now he’s everywhere I go, and I hate that he fascinates me. I can’t escape his larger-than-life presence, and that sexy French accent. The more I push him away, the closer he pulls me in. And I’m afraid to admit I don’t want to let him go.
We’ve spent years running away from broken families and broken promises. But when life explodes around us, we’re running toward each other. And now that the unthinkable has happened, we need to find trust in each other and what our hearts are saying: love is the one thing that ultimately can save us.
REVIEW:
Note: This is the second book in this series and contains spoilers for the first book.
Denis Bouvier is the star goalie for the Brooklyn Blades. They’ve just won their second Cup in a row. His personal life is a mess! But he really wants to change that when he meets Sterling Forest
Sterling is the colleague of Denis’s old love’s new fiance, Adrian. He is a newscaster and Sterling is the anchor. He’s gorgeous and smart. He’s also an iceman and knows nothing about sports and certainly not hockey. He feels like sports are sort of beneath him? This of course sets Denis off.
When they end up and Rip and Adrian’s wedding, Sterling gets drunk and ends up staying over. He and Denis find themselves thrown together more times and Denis is determined to make Sterling acknowledge him.
Then they kiss. And something comes to life in Sterling – even though he thinks it’s a terrible idea. Seems like he can’t stay away from Denis though. They are fire and ice. But Sterling doesn’t do relationships. Hell, he doesn’t do friendship. Which is too bad since he has people who would like to be his friend.
Both men have serious trust issues. And as much as Sterling tries to put Denis off, Denis is not having it. He’s determined to find out who the real Sterling is. Not the pretty face on the news. What really makes him tick?
Both men get more than they bargain for though when those walls finally come down 😉
Oh man. This book is such a good follow up to The Ultimate Goal! I was prepared to really continue disliking Denis who is far from a good guy in the first book in this series. But it turned out that there was a lot more to Denis than the public party boy persona he displays. He’s a fierce competitor who works hard and plays harder. He has a reputation as a party boy that is no undeserved. But that life has become hollow for him. Sterling is his own pile of contradictions. Talk about a guy who is wound tight! He’s standoffish almost to the point of rude. He has let NO ONE in and he doesn’t ever plan to allow anyone to know his secret. He can also be a bit judgmental about athletes. Both come off as aloof, but they are hiding their tender hearts. Each man has been abandoned and so they have built these walls. At first, these guys are like oil and water – even though the attraction is pretty obvious. Denis pushes, Sterling evades. But when they share a kiss, well something happens to Sterling. He wants Denis more than he’s wanted anyone. When they finally let their walls come down after Denis figures out at least part of Sterling’s secret, it’s time for Denis to come clean too. And it seems that even Rip, who Denis lived with for years, didn’t know about Denis’s past. Sterling has literally lived his whole life without anyone really loving him. Given how he grew up, it’s understandable, but very sad. Honestly, both of these men need huge hugs! It takes them a bit to find their footing and they almost screw it up a couple of times, but Denis has learned from his past and he’s not about the let the best thing that’s ever happened to him walk away without fighting for him. I cheered when things started going their way and they were able to be themselves with each other and learned to trust that they finally had their person. Someone to have their back. Love them unconditionally. Understand their difficult pasts. I also adored their supporting cast – especially Denis’s old coach, Adrian and Rip and the rest of the Brooklyn Blades who had their backs when the media and others wanted to poke their noses in. Such a good love story!
Kale Williams in a French accent? Oooo-la-la! This audio is perfection! I loved Denis’s personality in this book. He grew so much and I loved how this performance really brought out how much Denis realized that his empty partying was not getting him what he wanted. I also loved how Sterling finally softened when he figured out he could trust Denis. They were so vulnerable with each other and I felt that in every chapter of this audio. C’est bon! Highly recommended.
RATING: 
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