The Graham Effect by Elle Kennedy
1st in the Campus Diaries series. Contemporary new adult, HFN romance. Spinoff of prior series.
Gigi Graham wants nothing more than to be known for her own accomplishments instead of her father’s. She’s on the list of potential recruiting for a national hockey team and she’s working on qualifying for the Olympics.
Luke Ryder has been drafted to be a co-captain when program cuts forced two hockey teams to be merged a cut in half. The teams used to be competitors but now need to blend and work together as one team.
Gigi and Luke agree to train together and help each other with their game. Gigi also agrees to talk up Luke to her father, who can up influence Luke’s career. They practice and can’t ignore the sizzling lust. Soon their time together is more than just hockey.

Enemies to lovers and lots of complications. Gigi and Luke spark and shine together. It’s fun. It’s steamy hot. Some family dynamics. Some hard truths. A fantastic game from Chapter 1 all the way to the heart thrilling epilogue.
No dull spots. Just plain sexy fun. On to book 2. ( )

For all the hoopla and hype, this is just an average story that emphasized certain points ad nauseam while excessively glossing over others. The MCs were enjoyable but their relationship growth was uneven. The tenor of most relationships and encounters here was rather sexist.

P.S.
WHO even calls women “chicks” anymore? Seriously considering dropping the review down to 2 stars for that grievous sin.
You know what? 2 stars it is. ( )

The Graham Effect. Door: Elle Kennedy.

Oh my god, wat een boek! Elle Kennedy slaat de bal nooit mis (ondanks haar moordend schrijftempo) maar The Graham Effect is echt buitengewoon goed. Helemaal terug The Deal-energie: geweldig!

Love Books bracht de Engelstalige versie nu al op de markt voor de lezers en fans in België en Nederland, zodat we niet nog een paar maanden moeten wachten op de vertaling. Geweldig goed idee, dank jullie wel daarvoor!

479 pagina’s lang zat ik in de wereld van Gigi & Ryder en ik genoot van elke seconde. Gigi kennen jullie beter bij haar achternaam, want jawel: het is Gigi Graham - als in de dochter van Garrett en Hannah (uit The Deal) - ! Hoe cool is dat!? Gigi is, net als haar vader, buitengewoon goed in ijshockey; dat feministische detail maakt het verhaal voor mij extra goed.

Ryder & Gigi zijn beiden stoer, sexy, hot én lief: ideale hoofdpersonen die je direct in je hart sluit. En het feit dat we een inkijkje krijgen in het latere leven van Graham, Hannah en de ganse bende van toen is een zéér leuk extraatje.

Het verhaal is spannend, romantisch, bijwijlen grappig en hot as hell! De seksscènes zijn zo geil. De plottwists doen je naar adem happen; pagina na pagina blijf je als een verslaafde aan de bladzijden gekleefd!

Koop dit boek, verslind het en eindig jubelend in extase en vol goesting naar de rest van deze serie. Dankzij Elle Kennedy begon mijn leesjaar 2024 geweldig (hot)! ( )

Oh man, I DEVOURED this book. To say it was good was an understatement, when an author knows how to captivate a reader with quirky comments, spicy scenes, and overall great writing. It really just makes my heart happy. I read 5-10 books a week and when I tell you I read this book in just a few hours, I wish I took more time to read it. It was so fun and had me smiling the whole time.

I probably should have read her other series first, but I'm sold on Elle as an author after this book and I'm immediatly going back and reading the rest of her books! ( )

I loved this book! Garrett Graham was a stand-out character for me in the Off-Campus series so I couldn’t wait to get my hands on a book featuring his daughter, Gigi. While this book kicks off the new Campus Diaries series, I had a lot of fun seeing my favorite characters from the Off-Campus series make an appearance in this book. This book would work well as a stand-alone but I think that readers of the other books set in this world may get just a bit more out of the novel.

Gigi and Ryder were fantastic together and I loved the fact that they had hockey in common. Gigi and Ryder were both excellent in the sport and understood each other’s dedication and were able to help one another. I thought that they had wonderful chemistry together and there was enough spice to keep things very interesting. I loved the humor that was worked into the story and found myself laughing out loud more than once while listening to this story which rarely happens.

CJ Bloom and Teddy Hamilton did an amazing job of bringing this story to life. I thought that both of the narrators were able to add just the right amount of emotion to their reading to take the book to the next level. The humor of the story really shined during the performance which added a lot to the experience for me. I loved every moment of this audiobook and found it very hard to set aside. I am certain that the narration added to my overall enjoyment of this delightful novel.

I would highly recommend this book to others. I have realized that I have a soft spot for hockey romances and the humor in this story took my enjoyment to the next level. I cannot wait to read more of this entertaining series! ( )