Release Reviews: Thrown for a Loop: Sarina Bowen
Thrown For A Loop
Sarina Bowen
November 4, 2025
Fans suspect that the bad boy of hockey has a few skeletons in his closet. They have no idea he also has a sparkly bodysuit… #toepick!
When they met at figure skating camp ten years ago, Chase Merritt was a scrappy hockey player from the wrong part of town, and Zoe Carson was the up-and-coming ice princess. They fell in love faster than you can say triple toe loop, until Zoe makes a fateful error that ends up costing Chase dearly.
Almost a decade later, their fortunes are reversed. Chase is the MVP of the New York Legends hockey team, while Zoe—their new skating coach—has years’ worth of personal and professional bruises. It’s hard to face him again—all six feet and two hundred pounds of muscle and swagger.
And anger. Chase is in hot water with management, and refusing to work with Coach Zoe no matter how badly he needs to shore up his stride—and his image. Until a journalist digs up an old video of Zoe and Chase performing a skating program, and the internet goes wild.
Management seizes on the opportunity for a P.R. redemption, ordering Zoe and Chase to reprise their flashy routine.
Skating with him again—to a love song, of course—is pure agony. But it’s also Zoe’s only chance to unpack the truth of what really happened that night ten years ago. And to at least find forgiveness, if she can’t win back his heart.
Toe Pick! I always love stories about figure skaters and hockey players. And this one was really heartfelt and sweet. When Zoe and Chase first met, they were an Olympics-bound Ice Princess and a bad-boy hockey player. She was sheltered, focused, driven, and he shook up her life and added fun. And she is the girl he never forgot. But they both ended up heartbroken.
Now, nearly a decade later, they are back in Each other's presence. It’s interesting to see how their lives and circumstances have changed. And we gradually learn why in flashbacks. They’re both hurt and a bit angry with unresolved feelings. But in the present, he’s an NFL hockey player who’s struggling to get his game back. And she’s the new skating skills coach for his team who’s trying to get them to listen to her and see her value and earn a permanent position.
Now, nearly a decade later, they are back in Each other's presence. It’s interesting to see how their lives and circumstances have changed. And we gradually learn why in flashbacks. They’re both hurt and a bit angry with unresolved feelings. But in the present, he’s an NFL hockey player who’s struggling to get his game back. And she’s the new skating skills coach for his team who’s trying to get them to listen to her and see her value and earn a permanent position.
So they don’t have time for drama, but it seems they cannot avoid it. They have some things to navigate, but eventually they start to open up about the past and remember just how easily they can be in sync. They were each other‘s one that got away, and are starting to remember why.
This is a story of first love, lost love, and second chances in both love and careers. I really liked Zoe and Chase together and seeing all of their growth. The teammates and friends added depth, support, and humor. I’m excited about the next book in the series.
Chase Merritt and Zoe Carson met at a summer camp nearly 10 years before the present day. She was the figure skating daughter of the camp owner, while he was a hockey player who needed a summer job. They fell in love over the course of the summer, but were wrenched apart at the end and had 10 years of complete no contact.
Now, Zoe has been hired as the temporary skating coach of the NHL team Chase plays for. To say they have a rocky restart is an understatement. There is a lot for them to unpack to even be able to work together, but Zoe also has to prove herself to the team as the first female coach.
I loved the dualling timelines, watching them fall in love in the past while they faced each other for the first time since their hasty breakup all those years ago. There were a lot of unknowns about what happened at the end of their young love, and a lot they had to work through as they learned the truth from each other. But in addition to the past hurts, someone has it out for Zoe and odd things are happening that has her wondering who is out to get her.
This had me reminiscing about The Cutting Edge and though it’s only similarity is a hockey player/figure skate romance, I loved watching the opposite styles working together. I love the introduction to a new team for Sarina Bowen’s hockey world. There is a great mix of characters: jokesters, grumps, and everything in between. I look forward to the next book in the series.
Sarina Bowen is a #1 Amazon bestselling author, a 24-time USA Today bestseller, and a Wall Street Journal bestselling author of contemporary novels. Formerly a derivatives trader on Wall Street, Sarina graduated magna cum laude from Yale University with a BA in economics.
A New Englander whose Vermont ancestors cut timber and farmed the north country in the 1760s, Sarina is grateful for the invention of indoor plumbing and wi-fi during the intervening 250 years. She lives with her family on a few wooded acres in New Hampshire.
Sarina's books are published in more than 15 languages with twenty or so international publishers.
She is a sitting council member on the Authors Guild, with committee work in finance and advocacy.
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