The Legend Next Door by Jesse H. Reign

The Legend Next Door is book 2 in the Totally Pucked series by Jesse H Reign and though it starts out on a somber note, the sun eventually shines again with the humor and banter between these MCs as we watch them stumble into love.

From the blurb:

I didn’t think hockey was the game for me…now I’m obsessed.

My new neighbor, Ben Stirling, is a beautiful, famous ex-player. A living NHL legend. A single dad with sad eyes and a smile I feel in my knees.

I’ve never met anyone like him. He’s what would you’d get if you squeezed masculinity through a sieve. He’s the grit. The pulp. The hard stuff that leaves a sweet taste in your mouth. On top of that, he’s kind and funny, and did I mention he’s the most beautiful man I’ve ever laid eyes on?

Obviously, he’s straight.

And obviously, that’s fine.

It’s not like I’m going to flirt with him. Or fall for him.

Jacqueleen the Reading Queen's review:

"𝐈𝐭'𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐬. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐬. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐦𝐞 𝐚𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐬 𝐦𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐬 𝐈'𝐯𝐞 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐦𝐲 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫.""

This book started out sad for me. I felt so bad for Ben having tragically lost not only his wife Liz, but also his hockey career in order to be home to care for their 6yo son Luca. Those were two major things Ben loved in his life, and both were ripped away from him seemingly at once. Caring for a grieving child while you yourself are lost in grief is not an easy feat. Doing that in the middle of a major move is even harder. I felt for Ben so much.

Jeremiah, or Jelly as he's sometimes called, was like a breath of fresh air for both Ben and Luca. I loved how it was Luca Jeremiah got to know first. Luca is a talker, as is Jeremiah, so the two of them got along famously. Watching how much those two came to care for one another was almost as lovely as watching Jerimiah and Ben do the same. Almost.

The romance portion was a slower burn. It was sweet seeing Ben and Jerimiah building a friendship connection. They never judged one another and often it was enough for them to know the other was there if they needed. And when we got to the steam? WHOA BABY LOOK OUT. We have a soft Dom on our hands people and like Jerimiah, those are my favorite type of Dom (to read about, just to be clear).

One of the funniest moments of this book for me was seeing the MCs from book 1 still acting like nosey old ladies with their window watching shenanigans. Or maybe it was Robbie explaining the pie. Either way it was fun seeing cameos from the first book and also meeting the MCs for book 3. T-Dog and Sev seen like they have quite the interesting dynamic going on and I'm excited to see how there love story goes.

The Legend Next Door is currently available as an e-book and paperback and can be read as part of your Kindle Unlimited Subscription