A review by originalbooknerd
The Knockout by Bella Matthews

emotional funny medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

πŸ’π’―π’½π‘’ π’¦π“ƒπ‘œπ’Έπ“€π‘œπ“Šπ“‰ – π’«π“π’Άπ“Žπ’Ύπ“ƒπ‘” π’―π‘œ 𝒲𝒾𝓃 3 -  π‘…π‘’π“‹π’Ύπ‘’π“ŒπŸ’ 
 
Author: Bella Matthews 
 
Couple: Grace Sinclair & Ares Wilder 
 
Tropes: hockey romance, one night stand to lovers, alpha male vibes, interconnected standalone, found family 
 
Review: The Knockout was a great continuation of the Playing To Win series and Ares is my favorite MMC so far. This book was full of surprises between Ares and Grace and Bella did a wonderful job with developing the storylines in this very large interconnected series! I enjoyed how This book included the timeline and ages of each character so we could put see the progression of growth in each couple. 
 
Ares Wilder was NOT what I expected! I loved how he was not the playboy we expected in this book but instead was devoted to Gracie right away. The friendship he and Grace had warm my heart since we could see his love of her in both POVs. The one thing that I was not a fan of was how poorly everyone treated Ares. I was very upset that Everly and Cross both put him down continually and never expected him to be serious about Grace. I can say that I loved how Grace’s brothers and Maddox were more accepting of Ares’ l love of her. 
 
Grace was not my favorite FMC. I think her story and character fit really well into what I expected her to be like but I wish she had more of a backbone sooner. The way she brushed Ares off and hid their relationship angered me since it only hurt him. I also did not like how she didn’t stand up for him. However, the growth she had towards the end helped a lot with my feelings towards her and I loved seeing her stand up to Everly and announce her love for him! 
 
Ares and Grace had a romance full of innuendo and dirty talk. Ares was a master of sweet nothings and naughty words. I loved how he broke her shell and brought out her inner deviant but also nurtured her and made her be the best versions of herself. This book drops too many hints at possible future couples and I am excited to see the rest of them fall! 
 
Rating: 8/10, oh Ares, you are scrumptious and oh so swoony!! 
 
 
Thank you to Bella for sending me this ARC!