Hockey Is My Boyfriend: Part One

By Melanie Ting

Synopsis

When ice meets heat….

Kelly Tanaka dreams of playing hockey for a top university team and even winning a scholarship. To achieve that, she’ll need to focus hard on her sport. She doesn’t need any distractions—but then a handsome blond hockey player skates into her life.

Phil Davidson is tall, dark, and irritated. He’s been Kelly’s best friend since they laced up skates together as kids. Now he wants to force a substitution and become her boyfriend.

So, it’s up to Kelly to sort through all her new emotions and decide what’s right.

Hockey Is My Boyfriend, Part One, is a funny and passionate journey into first love. This is the first book in a trilogy that follows Kelly as she stickhandles her way through life and love. Part Two takes place during university. Part Three is Kelly’s life after graduation.

Review

HOCKEY IS MY BOYFRIEND: PART ONE is my first novel from Melanie Ting. Why did I read it? Because it’s about hockey. I LOVE HOCKEY!!!

I don’t know when this book was originally written, but the story takes place in 2002 and 2003. We meet Kelly Tanaka, the only girl on her hockey team and last of the tomboys in grade 10. She doesn’t date and has no interest in boys other than if they play good hockey. Enter Phil Davidson, who has been her friend for years and has been waiting to make his move on Kelly. When he takes a chance and kisses her, she doesn’t have a clue what to do. She’s very honest with him when she tells him she simply has no interest in dating, but as soon as she does, he’ll be the first guy she dates. Phil seems to accept this really well.

But what’s a horny teenaged boy to do when about a week later an older girl comes on to him? He has sex and loses his virginity of course, and so begins Phil’s journey of having sex with as many girls as he can while he’s waiting for Kelly.

Fast forward 18 months and on a dare, Kelly (now in grade 12) is forced to try and get a date with fellow hockey player Nicklas Ericcson. They kiss, it’s electric and Kelly decide to give dating a go. Phil hears about this and is extremely upset that Kelly went back on her word. But hey, he wasn’t exactly waiting for her so why should he be upset right?

Kelly eventually realises how selfish Nicklas really is (especially in their few sexual encounters) and ends up with Phil. She makes him wait a while because she’s worried she’ll be just another notch in his bedpost. She finally gives him her virginity and they spend the next few months going at it like energiser bunnies. But all good things must come to an end and the book ends with Kelly and Phil declaring their love for each other, but breaking up badly before leaving for separate colleges.

I didn’t realise at the time that this was part one of a trilogy and that the book would end in a cliffhanger (of sorts). Thankfully part 2 is already out and I have finished the book today, but I’ll have to wait a few months for part 3 to come out. Note to self: read the fine print.

My main complaint about the book was some of the language used by the characters. The boys always called breasts “tits”. I don’t recall them using any other words to describe that body part. Part 2 was exactly the same. I also found Kelly’s use of the word “cock” a little unrealistic. I just can’t picture a 17yo girl, seeing an erection for the first time, calling it a cock.

Despite this book being aimed at the younger audience, I liked it because it wasn’t overfilled with teenaged drama. There was some, but I’ve read some YA books that are nothing but drama and it gets old real fast. Thankfully this book seemed to have just the right amount. In fact, it sometimes had a grownup feel to it.