This is the best book ever I’m not even joking the slow burn the romance everything is amazing it’s got a spice to it but it’s an amazing book!
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I was so upset that the cover was damaged! I bought it because the cover is just the cutest but it arrived looking like this :(
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— 3 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️ "I've waited my whole life for someone to tell me I'm worth it. Worth choosing, worth staying, worth loving. To tell me my dreams are attainable, and I wouldn't be another fallen star with no way back." 📖 𝐩𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 368 pages 👤 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: Bal Khabra 🏢 𝐩𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐫: Bloomsbury Publishing 📅 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞: 28 January 2025 What you can expect: — Contemporary Sports Romance — First Person X Dual POV — Fake Dating — Hockey Player X Ballerina — Forced Proximity — Found Family — Tension & Longing — Slow Burn Romance — Friends-To-Lovers — Unfiltered FMC — 'He Breaks His Rules For Her' 𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: Spiral is the second instalment in the Off the Ice series by author Bal Khabra which can be read as a standalone. This story was a breeze to read with its easy to digest pacing and tension filled character interactions. I can tell that Spiral was written was a lot of heart and intent which is consistent with the first instalment to the series, Collide, as we are reunited with Eli on his emotionally tumultuous journey towards love with the newly introduced Sage. I adore when a Romance book is easy to become enraptured with for a couple of hours without requiring too much critical thinking. There is no better feeling than cosying into your favourite reading spot with a hot drink and a blanket, and this book is the perfect story to get lost into. My only complaint about the pacing itself is how the outside factors that were a threat to the relationship being explored within this story were built up and alluded to be a genuine conflict... just for it to feel rushed and breezed over by the end. I would've loved to see these conflicts expanded upon and better explored as I feel this could have provided a great opportunity for character development and relationship exploration, but that's just a personal preference to my own taste and expectations. 𝐏𝐥𝐨𝐭: Spiral begins as our two main characters are faced with the harsh and difficult reality of their current life predicament. Sage is barely holding on as a struggling ballet dancer who desperately wants to be taken seriously for her skills and aspirations whilst struggling to make ends meets. Eli has achieved his lifelong dream and yet, Eli finds himself drowning as a highly publicised hockey rookie who has found himself faced with an inaccurate media presumption and the pressure that comes with being a public figure. I really enjoyed the use of a date auction being used to bring our two main characters together in an unconventional way and the role that Aiden played in bringing our couple together. Whilst the date itself was the typical awkward first encounter, I really felt like both character personalities shined through in this moment and provided me with a better understanding on what makes them tick. Fake Dating is a trope that can do no wrong in my opinion because I'm always excitedly waiting on the "does this seem fake to you" moment which leaves me squealing and feeling giddy. The plot of this story ensured our characters remained in close proximity for the majority of the book and I enjoyed the opportunity it provided to intimately know our characters and watch them better learn about each other. 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬: Sage was a beautifully raw and vulnerable character who wore her emotions on her sleeves like an open book. Her determination and resilience were admirable as she committed herself towards her ambition, refusing to accept anything less. Her quick wit provided a lot of humour throughout the dialogue which left me smiling and rooting for Sage to get the last word in. It broke my heart that despite this, Sage greatly struggles with confidence issues and feeling like she isn’t enough for the people in her life. As a caretaker at heart with absentee parents resulting in her shouldering more responsibility than she should have at her young age, Sage strives to put the needs of others well above her own at her own cost. All I wanted was to give that wonderful girl a pep talk to inspire confidence and and a long hug to show that it'll all be okay. Whilst being strong-headed and independent, there were moments of doubts seeded within Sage's mind during her interactions with Elias which left me feeling frustrated on her behalf. In my opinion, Sage deserved far more reassurance earlier in the story with less back and forth. The last thing she needed was the added stress and lack of confidence that came with being all in with a man who couldn't make up her mind, but overall I was really proud of Sage for being bold enough to stand by what she wanted and staying true to herself. Her loyalty is a great asset to her character, and overall I loved being able to follow this wonderful young woman from beginning to end. Elias was a main character and love interest which in all honestly... really frustrated me. A lot of my strife with my story lays with him and it's truly such a shame. As a character himself I did like Eli and getting to know him as the story progressed, albeit his development felt very slow and late to reveal answers. I really wish his interaction with the female "super fan" had been taken more seriously by his peers at the beginning of the story. That woman's behaviour was outright harassment with its predatory and dangerous nature considering she was stalking him and tricking her way into his hotel bedroom. Whilst nothing outright 'happened' per say... I personally don't agree with it being swept under the rug as a result. I really felt for Eli as a result of this interaction and his trust issues in general are completely understandable. However this deeply affected his treatment towards Sage, and I just wish we'd been given an opportunity to see Elias attend therapy and work through everything he has endured in a healthy and productive way. What I will say is I adored and respected his consistency in being a supportive friend and partner for Sage when it was required. His constant support of her career and refusal to let her give up on her dreams was everything, and I adored watching him climb his way towards 'number one supporter' status. I wish Eli's history was something that wasn't introduced so late and therefore could've been further explored as I believe this would've helped me, as a reader, better understand and connect with his character. I don't fault Elias for the flaws that I took issue with throughout the story... and instead I wish we saw his support system provide him with the necessary tools to prioritise his own mental health before encouraging him into a relationship I don't believe he was in the right mindset for. Elias deserved less judgement and ridicule from his superior figures, and more support overall. Marcus should have been a mentor and constant support of his player, and yet he refused to believe in and recognise Eli’s potential from the beginning. This was such a sore spot for me because I couldn’t actually fathom was his issue was because Elias was his responsibility. If you have a player under your wing who is clearly struggling… you do the best that you can to get to the root of that issue? Provide a safe space and open line of communication, not ridicule and belittle him based on an assumption you know very little about? Eli deserved a far better support system than the very limited one that he seemed to have, and honestly it just made me feel so bad for him. 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭: This is the key aspect that I believe cemented Spiral as "an enjoyable enough book that I liked but unfortunately didn't love" type of book. To summarise my thoughts early... I personally don't believe Elias and Sage were in the right place to pursue a serious romantic relationship. Both characters had a lot going on and I really wish this story had been a slow and steady friends to lovers tale which displayed our main characters seeking the necessary help for themselves during friendship, so that they could approach the prospect of their romantic development with maturity and assuredness. I enjoyed how openly Sage vocalised her desires despite how terrifying the prospect of rejection is, and how undeterred she was in the face of that rejection. I have nothing but respect for Eli's celibacy and his reasoning once that tragic tale was unveiled. However my main issue lies with how Eli himself approached this. I can understand wavering when you meet your perfect match and feeling emotional guilt over the idea of breaking your vow... however in my opinion Eli was wholly unfair with his actions towards Sage. He was very hot and cold in a way that I personally would've found inexcusable. Many of their interactions were pursued by Eli himself... just for him to push her away due to his celibacy. Poor Sage's confidence was practically on the floor every single time and I truly felt so bad for her. His mixed signals would be confusing for anybody and rather than just letting her go, Elias continued to initiate a hot and heavy kissing session and talk about just how much he wanted her. As a reader I myself felt like I was feeling emotional whiplash as a result, and as I've stated prior I honestly wish Eli had gotten therapy to address the root of his issues as opposed to essentially leading Sage on. Sage's confidence was close to non-existent and I actually found myself hoping and waiting for her to bravely walk away from their not-so-healthy dynamic. Whilst the ending was really sweet and I was relieved to see them happy in the end, the lack of build-up and healthy exploration left me unable to connect with their chemistry and root for them as a couple overall. 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬: Overall whilst I liked Spiral I unfortunately didn't love it. I adored Summer and Aiden in Collide and considered it one of my favourite romance reads in 2023, so I'm definitely gutted that I couldn't connect with Sage and Elias as strongly as I’d hoped that I would. I still adore Bal Khabra as an author and this serves as a reminder to me that you can love an author whilst unfortunately not connecting with all of their stories. I do believe many people will enjoy this book more than I have, and I am looking forward to reading future works by Khabra and hopefully connecting with those stories more.
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Highly recommend
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Oh my GOSH, I need a moment to pick my jaw up off the floor because wow—this book delivered! As a die-hard hockey romance fan (who’s also very particular and protective of the genre), I went into Spiral by Bah Khabra with high expectations and, much like Collide, it did anything but disappoint. I honestly don’t even know where to begin because there’s so much to love. This is a hockey player x ballerina romance with a fake dating trope, and oh my, the tension is absolutely palpable. The slow burn had me racing to turn every page, desperate for more. And the forced proximity only added to the angst! It was downright delicious and may or may not have left me staying up way too late. Both main characters had pretty tough pasts, and watching them slowly open up and find comfort in each other brought me so much joy. I loved how their relationship felt real and raw, with just the right balance of vulnerability and sweetness. The story also did a great job showing how hard it can be to stop being a people-pleaser and finally put yourself first—to feel like you’re worthy of being chosen and experiencing good things. The chemistry between these characters was so intense it had me staring at the page in total shock, wondering if I was actually reading what just happened. Their interactions were everything—funny, emotional, and sometimes so charged I couldn’t help but giggle or kick my feet like a freaking child. This book left me feeling all warm and fuzzy inside and already wishing I could read it the next one BECAUSE DYLAN here we come.
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This series has me in a chokehold. So easy to read (and get lost in). Perfect balance between spicy annd sweet. Loving every single character Bal Khabra conjures up! Can’t wait for Revolve!
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Before I start ranting about my thoughts on this book, I would like to say: Every eldest daughter needs a man like Elias Westbrook! This book is so sweet and fluffy—a sports romance filled with so many beautiful moments! A ballerina and a rookie NHL player—their own custom-made love story! Sage has the classic eldest daughter syndrome. She holds herself responsible for everything and everyone around her. But at the same time, she isn't soft with herself—in fact, she is hard on herself for so many reasons. Nobody in her life has ever made her a priority. So, color her blind when, one day, out of the blue, a fake date leads her straight to her soulmate, aka Elias (THE MAN YOU ARE). Elias is a famous hockey player who, for some reason, wasn't handling himself that well in life before fate led him to Sage. I would suggest you read it ASAP. The book is sweet, cute, and heartwarming. It has so many moments where you'll cry, laugh, and fall in love! Bringing different flowers for her, making sure to take her home when her apartment burned, bringing extra glue and crystals for her shoes in case she needed them, attending her shows no matter how busy he was, massaging her feet after a show because she was in pain— Hellooooo! Can't you see? The man is PERFECTION! There are so many more points I can't write here, but when you read it, you'll get it. So, if you ask me, go and read it. It’s highly recommended! It will give you all the warm and fuzzy feelings in your heart!
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Sage is a struggling ballerina who’s dream is to tour with the most prestigious ballet company as the leading role. When she finds out only people with big social media followings are getting the lead roles she comes up with a plan when she meets Elias at a hockey charity event. Elias is a pro hockey rookie who is struggling to get his first goal and stay out of the bad media eye. When Sage saves him from a auction date with a stalker she comes up with a plan to fake date each other so she can get more following on social media and launch her ballet career while also getting the media off Elias’s back and portraying him as a player. I liked how they both came from tough back grounds but still made something of themselves individually. Sage taking care of her younger brother and while also trying to follow her dreams after her druggy parents left them is inspiring. And Elias with hockey and his biological dad black mailing him and him being adopted. I also like how they adopted their own child at the end. I enjoyed this book but i also expected more from it. Good but not great like the first book was.
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🏒 pro hockey mmc 🩰 ballerina fmc 🏒 fake dating 🩰 found family 🌶️.5 I adored Collide and as a certified first book couple girl, I’m always nervous about book 2, but this was everything!! THE BANTER, THE PINING, THE FRIENDSHIP. It was so refreshing to have the FMC be the funny, lighthearted, joking character. Sage was the perfect dynamic of hardship, hard work, humor, and confidence. Seeing her fight for what she wanted in every aspect of her life, all while supporting her brother, was beautiful. Elias “Eli” was everything you want in a MMC. He was attentive, caring, cautious, and supportive. He always had Sage’s best interest at heart, even if it’s not what Sage wanted to hear from him. They honestly reminded me a little of my own parents, and were perfect examples of opposites attract as they balanced each other out so well. Icing on the cake was getting to see so much of my babies Summer and Aiden💖 Cannot WAIT for the next book!
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I feel this one could have been a novella . The story is ok. Nothing “wow” . Could be a novella instead .
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Sage and Eli are perfect for each other. They’ve both been through so much—things that made them fiercely independent and hesitant to trust. But together? They just work. They click.❤️ She calms him, believes in him even when he doubts himself, and fiercely protects him. And Eli? He takes care of Sage (even when she resists), while fully respecting her independence. He’s her biggest cheerleader, always reminding her she doesn’t have to do everything alone. They support each other’s dreams, lift each other up, and when they FINALLY get together? So. Freaking. Hot. 🔥 I loved that there wasn’t unnecessary drama between the MCs! And the Dalton crew? Always there, always showing up for Sage and Elias. For the first time, Sage (and her brother) have a real family, one that loves them unconditionally.
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