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Verdict: A sweet, low-angst, closed-door enemies-to-lovers romance between a Canadian goalie and the American she blames for an Olympic loss — warm and well cast, but its long focus on Maisy’s search for a label and its lack of on-page heat leave many readers lukewarm.
Best for: Readers who want a gentle sapphic hockey romance with a queer awakening, lots of team found family and no explicit content.
Heat level: Fade to black (readers say all intimacy is off page)
Rating: ★★★★☆ (3.5/5 — a 3.77 Goodreads average across 433 ratings, with 29% at three stars, 3.7 on StoryGraph from 163 reviews, and 4.4 stars across 143 Amazon ratings)
Tropes: Enemies to friends to lovers, rivals turned teammates, US vs Canada, queer awakening, forced proximity, sports romance (pro hockey), series (Out on the Ice #2).
Unexpected Goals is Kelly Farmer’s 2021 contemporary lesbian romance from Carina Press, the second Out on the Ice book. Canadian goalie Maisy Goode has hated American forward Jen Donato since Jen scored the gold-medal goal against her in a play Maisy still calls dirty. Now Jen has signed with Maisy’s pro team, the Boston Ice.
It holds a 3.77 average across 433 Goodreads ratings, with 63% of them four or five stars, 3.7 on StoryGraph from 163 reviews, and 4.4 stars across 143 Amazon ratings.
What Is Unexpected Goals About?
The media loves the feud, and the team needs it to end. Forced to share a locker-room bench and a season, Maisy and Jen discover that what is between them is not only hostility. Banter becomes flirting, and flirting becomes more.
Complicating it: Maisy has always thought she was straight, and she is not sure what she is now. Jen is out and proud, patient, and needs to know Maisy is all in before the playoffs arrive.
What Works in This Hockey Romance
- Low angst: Readers say it is unusually gentle for enemies to lovers, with conflicts that make sense.
- Team and community: A big, queer, well-drawn supporting cast — and three dogs readers remembered.
- Growth: 90% of StoryGraph readers said the character development was strong; both leads learn to communicate better.
- The rivalry: Hockey fans enjoy the nod to real US-Canada relationships in the women’s game.
- Improvement: Several readers call it a step up from Farmer’s debut, with more hockey.
Book Synopsis
Maisy Goode is wary of Jen Donato and her aggressive play — she has been on the receiving end of it. Now they are on the same women’s pro team, and keeping her eyes off Jen is a struggle. Jen signed with the Boston Ice to win, and she is not letting a public clash with their goalie derail her.
The more time they spend together, the more they discover their feelings are not entirely hostile. As the playoffs near, the pressure on the team — and on the new couple — grows.
My Review
Farmer writes kindness well. Maisy and Jen are emotionally mature for sports-romance leads, the team feels like a real community, and the enemies-to-lovers arc is built on a genuine grievance rather than contrived misunderstandings. Readers who loved it describe it as a warm hug, and one says it finally rivalled her favourite hockey romance.
The most repeated criticism is Maisy’s identity storyline: several readers found her extended search for the right label grating, stale or the only thing that happens, and a 1.5-star reviewer said nothing else happens in 300 pages. The second is heat. The book is flirty, even “horny,” says one reader, but everything happens off page, and some felt that left the chemistry told rather than shown. A few also found the middle dragging and the prose over-explained.
My honest note: A good choice if you want sweet, closed-door hockey romance; look elsewhere for heat.
| Element | In Unexpected Goals |
|---|---|
| Central relationship | Maisy Goode (Canadian goalie) & Jen Donato (American forward) |
| Core tropes | Enemies to friends to lovers, rivals turned teammates, queer awakening |
| Setting | The Boston Ice, a fictional women’s pro hockey team |
| Heat level | Fade to black — all intimacy off page |
| Length | 337 pages; 10 h 11 min audiobook |
| Series | Out on the Ice #2 of 3 — happy ending, no third-act breakup reported |
| Content notes | Coming out and identity questioning; one reader flags covert fatphobia |
How Spicy Is Unexpected Goals?
It is not. Readers describe it as G-rated, with every intimate scene off the page, and I Heart SapphFic labels it fade to black. That suits readers who want closed door; others felt the tension was built and then left unpaid.
Content is gentle overall. One reader was uncomfortable with what she called covert fatphobia, possibly reflecting pro-athlete culture.
Who Should Read This Book?
You’ll likely love it if: you want a clean, low-angst sapphic hockey romance with a queer awakening. It is on our sapphic hockey romance list.
You may want to skip it if: you want open-door heat, or identity-label storylines frustrate you.
In short: Sweet, kind and closed door — a pleasant, not memorable, read for many.
What Readers Are Actually Saying (September 2026)
On Goodreads the split is 20% five stars, 43% four, 29% three, 5% two and 1% one. On StoryGraph, 70% tag it lighthearted and 87% call it character-driven. The audiobook, narrated by Chelsea Stephens, was released in 2024.
Prefer audio? Listen to Unexpected Goals on Libro.fm — the audiobook shop that supports independent bookstores.
Why readers love it (according to the discourse): Low angst first. Second, the team and found family. Third, the rivalry turned romance. Fourth, emotionally mature leads.
What readers argue about and complain about: Maisy’s label search, above everything. Second, no on-page heat. Third, not enough hockey or plot. Fourth, a dragging middle.
The comparison worth making first: For the first book, read Out on the Ice. For a hotter sapphic hockey romance, try Pretty Pucked.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Unexpected Goals spicy?
No. Readers say all the intimacy happens off the page, and I Heart SapphFic lists it as fade to black. One reader found it flirty without ever delivering a sex scene.
Do you need to read Out on the Ice first?
Not strictly. Several readers read it as a standalone, but one found the opening third, which focuses on the wider team, confusing without book one.
Is Unexpected Goals enemies to lovers?
Enemies to friends to lovers. Maisy and Jen have a grudge dating back to an Olympic gold-medal game, and readers note it is unusually low angst for the trope.
Is Unexpected Goals on Kindle Unlimited?
Not at the time of writing — the Carina Press Kindle edition was listed at $6.99. The audiobook, narrated by Chelsea Stephens, runs 10 hours 11 minutes.
Is there a queer awakening in Unexpected Goals?
Yes. Maisy has always assumed she was straight, and her search for the right label is a major storyline — the part readers are most divided on.
If You Loved Unexpected Goals, Read These Next
Try Out on the Ice for the series opener, Unadulterated Something for a warm retired-captains hockey romance, or Pretty Pucked for more heat. For more, browse our sapphic hockey romance list, our sapphic sports romance hub, or the full Book Reviews archive.
The Bottom Line
Unexpected Goals sets out to be a sweet enemies-to-lovers hockey romance, and it is — kind, low angst and closed door. What holds it back is a repetitive identity arc and chemistry that stays off the page. Worth it if that is the romance you want. Check Unexpected Goals on Amazon →
The Eikna Overall Ranking
On the Eikna scale, Unexpected Goals ranks as a pleasant closed-door hockey romance — gentle, not gripping.
The Evidence Scorecard
Overall ★★★★☆ 3.5/5
- ✓ 3.77 average across 433 Goodreads ratings
- ✓ 29% of Goodreads ratings are three stars
- ✓ 3.7 on StoryGraph from 163 reviews
- ✓ 4.4 stars across 143 Amazon ratings
Romance ★★★☆☆ 3.4/5
- ✓ Enemies to friends to lovers
- ✓ Low angst
- ✓ Chemistry told not shown for some
- ✓ Sweet
Characters ★★★★☆ 3.7/5
- ✓ 90% strong development
- ✓ Emotionally mature leads
- ✓ Maisy grating for some
- ✓ Big queer cast
Writing ★★★☆☆ 3.3/5
- ✓ Smooth for fans
- ✓ Over-explained for some
- ✓ Dragging middle
- ✓ More hockey than book one
Emotional Impact ★★★☆☆ 3.3/5
- ✓ Tagged lighthearted by 70%
- ✓ Warm hug
- ✓ Moving ending for one
- ✓ Not memorable for others
Heat Level ★☆☆☆☆ 1/5
- ✓ Fade to black
- ✓ All intimacy off page
- ✓ Flirty tension
- ✓ Closed-door fans pleased
Ending ★★★★☆ 3.8/5
- ✓ Happy ending
- ✓ No third-act breakup reported
- ✓ Moving for one reader
- ✓ Series continues
Re-read Value ★★★☆☆ 3.2/5
- ✓ Audiobook available
- ✓ Not on Kindle Unlimited
- ✓ $6.99 Kindle price
- ✓ Plot fades for some
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