Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐✩ (4.5/5)

Hello my friends! I recently finished Unsteady by Peyton Corinne and I had to come share this one with you, this novel completely swept me off my feet. If you love your sports romances with depth, complicated characters, and a bit of spice this romance is one you’ll want to add this to your TBR list immediately.

I first came across this book from someone reading it at my local Silent Book Club event and I knew I needed to add it to my list. From the very beginning, I was hooked by Sadie and Rhys. Sadie is the kind of heroine who grabs your attention and never lets go. She’s blunt, fiercely independent, and juggling more than most people twice her age; multiple jobs, a figure skating scholarship, and caring for her younger brothers and her alcoholic father, and to top it all off an absent mother. Her tough exterior is a shield, but Peyton Corinne lets us see through the cracks, to her vulnerability, and the deep love she has for her family. She knows she doesn’t have time to add in helping this hockey player, but she sees him in a way not many others do and despite not having the time and bandwidth to help him, she is drawn to him anyway. Watching Sadie fight for her brothers and herself, and even Rhys, even when the world seems determined to knock her down, made me root for her every step of the way. I was on team Sadie from the start.

Then there’s our hockey player with a heart of gold. Rhys is the captain of the hockey team, but beneath that golden boy surface is a young man grappling with the aftermath of a devastating concussion and the kind of trauma that doesn’t just disappear. He is trying to work his way back to the sport he loves and be the captain his team needs while dealing with his trauma. What I loved most about Rhys is how he’s always there for Sadie, not in a way that he tries to fix her, but in a way that says, “I see you. I’m here, however you need me.” Even when Sadie pushes him away, Rhys gives her space, but he never truly leaves. His journey through his own pain and PTSD felt so authentic and raw, and Corinne’s writing made his struggles hit home in a way that felt both honest and deeply moving.

The magic of Unsteady is in the way these two come together. Both Sadie and Rhys are strong on their own, but when they’re together, it’s like the world finally makes sense for them. Their chemistry is undeniable, and while there are plenty of spicy moments (yes, the heat is real!), what stands out is how seamlessly those scenes are woven into the story. The romance never overshadows the characters’ growth or the very real issues they’re facing. If anything, it makes their healing feel all the more earned.

I also have to shout out the mental health representation in this book. Peyton Corinne doesn’t shy away from the hard stuff, the panic attacks, trauma, the weight of family responsibility, she handles it all with so much care and grace. I found myself moved by the way both Sadie and Rhys learned to lean on each other without losing themselves along the way.

I’m going to say some very spoiler things in the next paragraph-

Stop reading the rest of this paragraph if you don’t want to know the spoilers my friends. Ok, if you’re still reading, I had one tiny quibble, and it’s that I wanted even more time with these characters. The book ends and I just wanted a little bit more of their story, maybe a little more of Sadie’s skating and last year of school or Rhys’s journey to the NHL and how they navigated that, or how Rhys parents come to adopt the kids, but maybe that’s just me being greedy. From start to finish, I was rooting for them to find their happy ending, and when they finally did, it felt so well-deserved, I just wanted more.

So, my friends, if you’re looking for a hockey romance that’s a great story with a bit of spice, with characters you’ll be thinking about long after you turn the last page, Unsteady is the book you’ll want to add to your TBR. I can’t wait to read Peyton Corinnes next book in this series Unloved. If you read this book let me know what you thought below, or tell me if you’ll be picking up this one for yourself.

Until next time my friends, happy reading!