Review: Shenanigans by Sarina Bowen (Brooklyn Bruisers #9; Brooklyn #6)

March 13, 2022

Note: An advance reader copy (ARC) was provided by the author.

What do you get when you have two professional hockey players, more whiskey than was meant to be consumed, and souvenir shopping that ends up with drunken vow swapping and a gaudy engagement ring to boot, all of this happening in Vegas? You get Shenanigans, the newest novel in Sarina Bowen's Brooklyn Bruisers hockey romance series. We've got Cornelius Harmon Drake III and Charlotte Fern Higgins, aka Neil and Charli, as our main characters. Both are in their twenties and play for Brooklyn's pro hockey teams--he with the Bruisers, she with the Bombshells--but they come from very different worlds. He was born into a life of money and privilege while she grew up knowing how to scrimp and save and to rely on no one else but herself. Their friendship is an unlikely one, and their marriage was a surprise, but going their separate ways should be inevitable. Shouldn't it?

Who would have ever thought that Vegas shenanigans and Brooklyn shenanigans could lead to true love and a happily-ever-after? Of course, getting there had its ups and downs, but Neil and Charli certainly made the journey quite entertaining. These two had the whole banter thing down, and while they already had an established friendship of sorts, I liked seeing them learning to trust each other and becoming the other's strongest ally. It was also interesting to see Neil and Charli handle the dynamics in their respective families, especially because there was such dysfunction on both sides. I did enjoy glimpses of the rest of the Bruisers and Bombshells, players and executives in the organization alike, and I'm already curious to see who may be next in the Brooklyn Bruisers series. But for now, I shall relish all that Neil and Charli goodness and all their fun-filled Shenanigans. Five stars!

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Read my reviews for the Brooklyn Bruisers series: