Tuesday, June 6, 2023

Review - - Beauty and the Bruiser

Beauty and the Bruiser
by Josie Blake
Philadelphia Tyrant Hockey - Book 1
Publisher: MJB Publications, LLC
Release Date: June 1, 2023
Reviewed by PJ


Nanny for a professional hockey player? Please. More like beauty for the beast.


The job is straightforward. Single dad Duke York needs a caretaker for his seven-year-old daughter during the hockey season, bonus if that person can help her with her school work. His team is rebuilding, and he plans to retire at the end of the year. This is his last chance to make a run at the cup. Right now, I have the time and the education to do this work.

Except there should be a disclaimer in the job description about Duke. He’s hot as sin, and the grizzled hockey veteran takes brooding to the next level. I need the cash, though, and the job offers housing as part of its compensation. Since I have nowhere to live—again—it’s the perfect situation. But I didn’t expect to find such a fascinating man under Duke’s gruff exterior, and the more I get to know the father and daughter duo, the more I risk losing my heart to them both.

My real life has never included any fairy-tale endings. But maybe this temporary job could be the beginning of all of our happily ever afters…

BEAUTY AND THE BRUISER is a full-length, sexy hockey romance with a happily ever after. If you like Beauty and the Beast vibes, a grumpy cinnamon roll single dad hero, and slow burn chemistry, you should try this first book in the Philadelphia Tyrant Hockey series!

The Philadelphia Tyrant books contain mild adult language and open-door sexual scenes/situations. Every story can be read as a standalone.

PJ's Thoughts:

What a sweet, heart-tugging, and deliciously steamy story. I love a grumpy-sunshine romance and that's definitely what we get with Duke and June. It's a slow burn with all the reasons why these two shouldn't get together front and center but the undercurrent of building desire that just won't go away. It was fun to watch them slowly become a team working together for Duke's daughter, then gradually add in friendship, and finally succumb to the deeper feelings growing between them.

Duke is such a good father, always putting Tabby's needs first. I loved the bond between them. I also enjoyed the bond that develops between June and Tabby. June is such a kind, hardworking, genuine person who wants only the best for those in her care and those she carries in her heart. Like a little girl who is struggling in school and a foster mother who gave June a home when she needed it and for whom June would give anything in return. 

Blake has filled this book with plenty of endearing moments, humor, emotional conflict, and sizzle. The chapters alternate between June and Duke, giving readers each person's inner thoughts and perspective. I especially enjoyed that personal view into each character. I felt as if I knew each of them equally, including their fears, desires, goals, joys, and sorrows. 

Beauty and the Bruiser launches Blake's Philadelphia Tyrant Hockey series. It's a fun, emotionally satisfying read that has me already looking forward to book two. 






2 comments:

  1. I am a hockey fan. Even though the Stars let me down big time in the playoffs, I may even look at another hockey game in the future. This sounds like such a fun book. To fall in love with a man and his daughter and to find happiness....what's not to really and truly love?

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  2. Beauty and the Beast is a favorite trope of mine. This sounds like one I will have to check out.

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