Hat Trick Review — Is It Worth Reading?

Verdict: A long, heartfelt hockey romance between the NHL’s first female head coach and a guarded New York defence lawyer, with exciting game scenes and a sensitive treatment of domestic abuse — but its 471 pages are slow and repetitive for some readers.

Best for: Readers who want lots of pro hockey, a career-driven pairing and a romance about healing after abuse.

Heat level: Not rated (no formal rating; readers describe on-page love scenes)

Rating: ★★★★☆ (3.9/5 — a 4.21 Goodreads average across 198 ratings and 4.11 on StoryGraph from 24 reviews)

Tropes: Coach and non-athlete, workaholic heroine, trailblazing woman in a men’s league, healing from abuse, slow trust, standalone, HEA.

Hat Trick is a 2021 contemporary lesbian romance from Affinity Rainbow Publications, K.L. Gallagher’s debut co-written with Ali Spooner. Janelle Leblanc is the first female head coach in NHL history, fighting whispers that she was hired as a publicity stunt. Alex Hawthorne is a New York criminal defence attorney within reach of senior partner.

It holds a 4.21 average across 198 Goodreads ratings, with 79% of them four or five stars, 4.11 on StoryGraph from 24 reviews, and 4.6 stars across 238 Amazon ratings.

What Is Hat Trick About?

Alex has sacrificed a lot to get close to the top of one of New York’s most formidable white-collar criminal defence firms, and she cannot afford distractions — least of all a dark-eyed hockey coach who can rock a power suit. After a traumatic past relationship, she keeps things casual.

Janelle channelled her passion into coaching after a devastating end to her playing career, and has reached the pinnacle of the sport. She needs to keep her focus on the ice to prove the doubters wrong, not on a curly-haired attorney. Once the spark is lit, their chemistry is impossible to ignore — but can Janelle break down Alex’s walls?

What Makes This Hockey Romance Work

Game scenes: Readers call them exciting and true to form, and non-fans found them easy to follow.
Abuse handled with care: Several reviewers praise how Alex’s history of domestic violence is woven into the story.
Chemistry: Readers feel the attraction between Alex and Janelle from their first eye contact.
A trailblazing heroine: Janelle’s fight to be taken seriously as the league’s first female head coach gives the book stakes beyond romance.
Seamless co-writing: One reader could not tell where one author ended and the other began.

Book Synopsis

Alexandra “Alex” Hawthorne is on the fast track to the top of one of the most formidable white-collar criminal defence law firms in New York. She can ill afford any distractions — not now, when she is so close to making senior partner, and not after all she has sacrificed.

After a devastating end to her playing career, Janelle Leblanc became the first female head coach in NHL history, yet she hears whispers that she was hired as nothing more than a publicity stunt. Once the spark is lit between them, their chemistry is impossible to ignore. Can Janelle break down Alex’s walls, or will Alex’s past heartache be too much to overcome?

My Review

Both women arrive with walls built by tragedy: Janelle lost the playing career she had worked toward since childhood, and Alex survived a partner whose jealousy became dangerous. The book gives both histories room, and readers who love it praise the redemption and closure each character finds. The hockey is plentiful, and even readers who don’t follow the sport found the games riveting.

The length is the main problem. Even a 4-star reviewer said it lagged in places, and 2-star reviewers found it slow, repetitive and heavy on early info-dumps about the characters’ pasts, with dialogue that felt overly formal and some editorial errors. One reader was bothered that people close to Alex keep urging her to remove her scar. Another did not finish, put off by early inner thoughts that were almost all sexual and by a driver’s “damn foreigner” remark.

My honest note: If you want a big, immersive pro-hockey romance with emotional depth, this delivers. If you prefer tight pacing, it may test you.

Element	In Hat Trick
Central relationship	Janelle Leblanc (NHL head coach) & Alex Hawthorne (criminal defence attorney)
Core tropes	Coach and non-athlete, woman in a men’s league, healing from abuse
Setting	New York and the NHL
Heat level	Not formally rated — on-page love scenes per readers
Length	471 pages (Kindle)
Series	Standalone — HEA
Content notes	Past domestic violence, career-ending tragedy, misogyny

How Spicy Is Hat Trick?

Neither romance.io nor StoryGraph has a heat rating for it. Readers describe the love scenes as beautiful and the encounters as hot, and one early reader felt the leads’ thoughts about each other were sexual from the very start.

The heaviest material is Alex’s past: a jealous partner whose behaviour became physically abusive. Readers also note Janelle’s career-ending tragedy, and romance.io readers tag misogyny, which fits her fight for respect as a female coach.

Who Should Read This Book?

You’ll likely love it if: you want a long pro-hockey romance with emotional weight and a guaranteed HEA. It is on our sapphic hockey romance list.

You may want to skip it if: you want a short read, or domestic violence is a hard no.

In short: An emotional, hockey-rich romance that would be even better a little shorter.

What Readers Are Actually Saying (September 2026)

This is a small-press book with a modest readership, and a web search surfaced no Reddit threads. On Goodreads the split is 46% five stars, 33% four, 15% three, 4% two and under 1% one. On StoryGraph it averages 4.11 from 24 reviews. Amazon lists an audiobook, but we could not find it on Libro.fm.

Why readers love it (according to the discourse): The hockey first. Second, the careful treatment of abuse. Third, the chemistry. Fourth, the characters’ redemption and closure.

What readers argue about and complain about: Slow pacing and length, above everything. Second, repetition and info-dumps. Third, formal dialogue and editing errors.

The comparison worth making first: For another trailblazing female coach in a men’s league, try A Shot at Love. For a coach carrying grief onto an Olympic stage, Delay of Game is shorter.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a lot of hockey in Hat Trick?

Yes. Janelle coaches an NHL team, and readers — including several who are not hockey fans — say the game scenes are exciting and easy to follow.

How spicy is Hat Trick?

We could not find a formal heat rating. Readers mention beautiful love scenes and “hot encounters”, so expect sex on the page.

Does Hat Trick deal with abuse?

Yes. Alex is recovering from a past relationship with a jealous, physically abusive partner. Readers say the subject is handled with skill.

Is Hat Trick on Kindle Unlimited?

Not at the time of writing — the Kindle edition was listed for purchase at $8.99. Amazon also lists an audiobook.

Does Hat Trick have a happy ending?

Yes. Readers describe it as a very HEA.

If You Loved Hat Trick, Read These Next

Try A Shot at Love for another woman coaching in a men’s pro league, Delay of Game for an Olympic head coach’s second chance, or Playmaker for pro-league rivals. For more, browse our sapphic hockey romance list, the sapphic sports romance hub, or the full Book Reviews archive.

The Bottom Line

Hat Trick sets out to pair a groundbreaking NHL coach with a woman healing from abuse, and readers say it handles both the hockey and the trauma well, with real chemistry and a happy ending. What holds it back is length: at 471 pages it drags and repeats itself for a vocal minority. For hockey romance fans with patience, it is worth it. Check Hat Trick on Amazon →