As an NHL player, relationships haven’t been my thing. Shrouded in secrecy and speculation, they never last very long. But then that’s what happens when you require an NDA before the first date.Until Charlene. She’s like a firefly. She’s elusive, and if you catch her she’ll burn bright, but keeping her trapped dulls her fire and dims her beauty.I caught her. And as much as I might want to keep … might want to keep her, I’ll never put the lid on her jar. Not at the risk of losing her. So I’ve let her set the rules in our relationship.
But as long hidden secrets expose us both, I discover exactly how fragile Charlene is, and how much I need her.
We’re all broken. We’re all messed up. Some more than others. Me more than most.
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5 She’s Everything Stars!
Charlene Hoar is a 26 yr. old woman living in Chicago. She’s an accountant who works with famous hockey players managing their finances. Her boyfriend is Darren Westinghouse, the quiet, intense, gorgeous right wing for the NHL team in Chicago. They met through their mutual friends Violet & Alex, and have been together for two years. He has a commanding presence on and off the ice, and is known as one of the most mysterious men in the league for the way he values his privacy. He’s always respected her need for independence and given her whatever she wanted and needed, but lately things seem to be shifting between them.
Darren and Charlene have both been private about their pasts, and kept their relationship pretty casual. Darren has never wanted to push her too far and risk losing her, so he’s been patient, and let her set the rules. With the expansion draft coming up, there’s the possibility Darren could be traded at the end of the season. The future is uncertain, but the one thing Darren is sure of is his feelings for Charlene. He’s no longer content with the way things are. They both find it hard to trust, but he’s slowly realizing he might want more with her. As their relationship continues to transform hidden secrets are revealed that could destroy the fragile foundation they’ve been building. Will they risk it all and take a chance on love?
Pucked Love is the final book in the pucked series. It has the entire pucked family throughout the story, but focuses on Darren and Charlene’s romance. These two are fun, adventurous, and incredibly hot together. I laughed, swooned, and devoured this book! Helena Hunting outdid herself with Darren. He’s my absolute favorite! He’s the perfect amount of sexy and sweet rolled up into one heartbreakingly beautiful package that will completely steal your heart!
Till this day I was sure that my love for Lance Romance will be forever…. now I’m really struggeling here Ladies… Darren is so sinfully delicious… and Charlotte is so sweet… and THIS book is #PuckedFreakingPerfect.
I always thought that my Hunting’s love will last forever for Viola and Lance Romance, but…. I was VERY wrong. I was VERY right in one thing … Pucked Love assured me how amazing author Helena is, and how much power she has on my poor bookish heart… She stole it shamelessly, I still can’t decide how should I live now ?
Ladies and Gentelman be ready… or maybe I should say that You CAN’T be ready enough… PUCKED LOVE is EVERYTHING!!!! Helena will HIT You off the ground with Darren’s and Charlene story !!!! I needed a lot of time to think about WHAT should I write??? I’m feeling speachless, breathless….HELENA tell me, my dear, where did runaway my poor heart ??? We both didn’t want to see finally “the end” in front of my eyes…. For sure I’m not ready to say goodbye to Charlene and Darren, my new #PuckedCrush.
Charelene… her story was EVERYTHING what I didn’t expect. Yes, I was ready for something totally diferrent BUT ! what I find out about her makes me fall more in love with this sweet and complicated girl. I want to be her mother, I want to be her sister, I want to be her “Viola”… Hell… I would even fight with Darren if I had to because she’s just simply amazing. My heart would say a lot more things, what I want to write… but I can’t… I don’t want to take suprise, I want to everybody see how big alpha male could be PERFECT for HIS right woman… That’s why Darren is ideal for my sweet little Charelene. He knows exactly what she needs, he know exactly when he need to give her freedom, and when he should defend her with all strenght, which he’s got. Darren is compeletly opposite for other “Pucked” guys…. but that makes him uniqe, and perfect-Charelene-match.
In “the end” I tell You guys… Pucked Love is mega rollecoster ride, Helena knows very good how to make readers cry and laugh in the same time.
OMG!! This book! I love Helena Hunting and all she writes, but the Pucked series holds a special place in my heart. It’s how I discovered Helena’s writing and I’ve come to love this family of crazy characters! The laughs never end and neither does the sweetness of all these super hunky hockey players that love all their women something fierce! Like all Pucked fans, I’ve been so curious about Darren and Charlene and have been waiting for this book for a couple years now. The wait was definitely worth it. We get answers to all our burning questions and get to understand these two. They’ve been dating since the beginning and I felt very invested in their happily ever after.
It’s always fun to catch up with the Pucked gang and see what everyone is up to. The Epilogue was perfect and we get a glimpse into this unconventional family’s futures. This book is everything you could want from Helena and from the Pucked series. I’m so sad it’s all come to an end, but finishing it with #darlene was the most perfect ending to one of the most entertaining series I’ve ever read! And boy oh boy, Helena sure can write the sexy times! Randy has always been my favorite but dare I say it, Darren sure did give him a run for his money!
Pucked Love was not the story I was expecting. Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoyed it, but I guess I was just expecting something different from Charlene and Darren.
I honestly felt sad for both characters throughout the book. They had such messed up childhoods which resulted in them being in a relationship where they felt like they couldn’t truly be themselves. My heart broke for them when they were second guessing each decision and doing things just to please each other and their friends. In the end, all of this is resolved and all is right in the Pucked world.
I loved how we were able to visit with all of the past characters and catch up on their lives. Even though this was not my favorite Pucked story, I still felt like it wrapped up the series perfectly.
-An ARC was generously provided in exchange for an honest review.-
The last book in the series and I must say Darren gave Randy a good run for no.1 spot as my favourite Pucked man. This is the only book that (almost) had me wanting to turn to audio because I didn’t think I’ll be able to wait this long to finally start reading it. And the wait was worth every second.
Darren was so clueless when Alex and Randy were giving him advise about his relationship with Charlene. Both Darren and Charlene are relationship-challenged and it was so fun to read how they were learning to be more open about their feelings.
This book was everything I wanted it to be. As much as I loved it I’m also sad that my favourite series has come to and end. Each of the couple’s has taken a piece of my heart and i feel I’m never gonna want it back. This book is as are all the others in one word – (Simply) AMAZING!!!
***Review copy requested and reviewed on behalf of OMGReads Blog***
Could the Puck series get any better? It sure does! Darren and Charlene are just MAGIC. Pucked Love makes you feel like you are coming home. The issues that these two are running from make them a perfect fit. It is all that you can imagine and so much more. The heat level is scorching hot. Darren has always seemed closed off, then we discover more as to why. It was not what I was expecting.
Pucked Love is a must read. You don’t need to read the previous books as this can be read as a standalone. But why would you want to do that when there are a few Hockey hunks you can meet? I do have to say Darren has become my favorite out of the bunch. #Darlene
Oh how I love this series! I am gonna admit, knowing this is the last, I cried a little. (And pray that maybe Ms. Hunting will give us peeks of this gang in the future)
Oh Darren and Charlene! I have waited forever for their story and it was soooo worth the wait!
Their relationship works for them, until it doesn’t. Reading about them navigating into a new coupledom was perfection. Their broken pieces fit together.
And oh holy hell, both Darren and Charlene’s past! Ms. Hunting really put me through the wringer!
I think Darren’s backstory surprised me the most! I would highly suggest sitting down when you are reading this, because it’s gonna knock you out! And just as surprising is Charlene’s! How these two became the people they are today is a testament to their inner strength!
And of course you get the humor, the laughter and the joy! You get to see all the past characters in this story! It’s like a mini family reunion and it’s was fabulous to see what everyone has been up to!
I am so glad that Darren and Charlene get their happy ending! I think they deserve it most of all!
Thank you for writing this Helena! You are amazing! The worlds you create are epically funny and epically real!
This is what you need to know about Pucked Love: it is perfection.
Darren and Charlene’s terribly flawed relationship is not one most of us strive to have, and yet it is perfect for them. Each hides truths from the other, just as they hide truths from themselves. As much as Darren enjoys the lack of emotional depth in his interactions with Charlene, he realizes that what he enjoys more are those moments when they connect with their feelings in addition to their naughty bits. The problem is that Charlene remains elusive.
They way they communicate with each other needs a lot of work, yet it is perfect. He gets her a reading chair, she gets him “toys.” (How she comes to acquire those toys is an unexpected and HILARIOUS delight.) Charlene believes that the way to make Darren happy is to convince herself that she’s up for anything he might want, even if she has reservations. But at least she has ideas. Darren, bless him, is clueless. One of my favorite scenes is when Darren and Alex talk about what he wants from Charlene and how he might go about getting it. It turns out that big, aloof Darren has a heart.
The sexy times are PERFECTION. Helena Hunting knows just the right amount of detail to share, and she also knows how to use these scenes to further develop her characters. She shows you the increasing emotional intimacy between Darren and Charlene even as she treats you to some deliciously erotic moments.
There is so much more to Darren and Charlene than you expect to find out. As Helena Hunting reveals these details, she also lets you spend more time with Alex, Violet, Randy, Lily, Lance, Poppy, Miller, and Sunny, as well as some parents and pals. You will be there when some of your favorite characters receive beautiful news, and you will be there when their hearts get broken.
I love this book so much. Not because it’s perfect, but because Helena Hunting knows that Darren and Charlene deserve nothing less.
Pucked Love, the final book in the Pucked series, Helena has saved the mysterious Charlene and Darren couple for this last book. While the couple has been a thing (at times we weren’t sure if they were a couple or not given all the secrecy) since the first book, the mystery surrounding their relationship finally comes into focus after several long years.
We finally have answers to our questions; Are they really a couple? What’s with the pearls that never leave Charlene’s neck? Why all the secrecy? Why is Darren so intense?
I also had other burning questions on top of all the Darren and Charlene things, for instance; if this is the last book in the amazing, lovable, awesome Pucked series, then what is going to happen to everybody that I have already come to love from each and every book before? I know I don’t ask much. Seriously though, Helena had a lot to cover and only one book to cover it all in.
Let me tell you…Pucked Love was pucking perfection!!
Darren and Charlene are both broken. Broken in a way I’ve never read in a character before. Their two souls fit together in way that was meant to be and it was beautiful to read. This is the kind of book that reminds me of why I read and Darren is the kind of hero that is imperfectly perfect.
As sad as I am to see this series come to an end, this book does the Pucked world justice.
Soooo…..as I won’t answer and give away spoilers to all the burning questions I had going into this final book, I will let you discover them for yourself, I will however leave you with this brief synopsis…
For two years Darren allowed Charlene room to play by her rules, afraid to capture and hold his firefly knowing how skittish she really is. While most assumed their relationship hasn’t progressed further than it has because of him, well he didn’t care what people assumed, he only cared about Charlene and keeping her safe. He knew any push on his part only worked against his favor so he took what he could from her, which was everything. He would never admit it to her because he is afraid of losing the most precious person in his life, but she is everything he’s ever wanted.
Charlene is terrified of losing Darren. At the end of their season someone from the hockey team is going to be traded and it’s a very real possibility that it could be him. Charlene never meant to get attached, she always makes it a point to never get attached to anyone, but somehow in the past couple years she has. Not only to Darren, but to Violet, Lily, Sunny and even Poppy. Darren and Charlene haven’t made any formal commitments to one another or even moved in together, so why it’s bothering her she she doesn’t know, but the closer to the end of hockey season the more she fears losing Darren. What if he doesn’t feel the same and she ends up losing?
4.25 Stars
We’re back in the #PUCKED world!
Darren and Charlene.
We’ve obviously already met them and wondered about them in the previous books.
In the prologue we see how they had their first ‘date’. Charlene was supposed to sign an NDA about their relationship, but she didn’t want to. So they started dating without one.
And now two years later that might come back to haunt them. Because suddenly all the guys on the team know about their slightly kinky private life…. And both Charlene and Darren are extremely private about not only their sex lives, but also their pasts and their families.
eeeep – back with all those adorable and hilarious Pucked people!
I just love them!
Darren and Charlene are a bit different from them all though. They’re not as open and talkative and crazy happy. They both have secrets in their pasts that they don’t want to share with anyone. Not even with each other.
Both have had difficult childhoods, which is why they’re both a little complicated when it comes to relationships. But Darren is learning – he wants to spend his life with Charlene. But Charlene is still too scared. She doesn’t want to hope for something foreverish with Darren. He has to work really hard to convince her. And he does, in the most adorable ways.
I really loved reading this book. I loved seeing crazy Violet again and the others. But Darren and Charlene. They’re difficult to ‘read’. I couldn’t decide if I didn’t like them of if it was just all written a bit … heartless? I never really felt any real feelings for and from them in the beginning. Which could come from their weird pasts, but it could’ve been written a bit more emotional. We don’t really see how they fell in love – they’ve been ‘together’ for two years already. Ugh, I don’t even know what I want to say.
And Charlene. She’s so weirdly submissive with Darren. Again it has to do with her past, but I just didn’t love-love her. BUT – maybe I was just in a weird mood while reading this book. I really loved reading it. I just wanted a bit MORE! More emotions. More Charlene-is-in-love-with-Darren-and-we-actually-see-it. The poor guy is so in love with her and she seems so cold. But of course she’s not.. but still. Ugh!
I also wanted more sex! There’s SO much talk about sex and kink and whatnot, but the real explicit scenes are missing! Of course there IS sex in here, but not as much as there should’ve/could’ve been!
… it was a Pucked book, so I loved it. Just because you have to love these books. And I really loved Darren and Charlene. But maybe they should’ve gotten a book away from this series. Maybe D+C from the previous books should’ve gotten a funny, sweet and sexy final Pucked book and the D+C from this book could’ve gotten a complete standalone Dramance with more background and more falling in love and more drama and more sexiness! I would’ve SO loved that book too!
ANYWAY – Pucked Love wasn’t bad – I really adored all the people and the fun and exciting happenings. But it was just a bit too much of some things and a bit not enough of other things – if that makes any sense! But with the epilogue and everything, it was a realyl great final book in the Pucked series!
If you know me, you know I rarely pre-order and pre-pay for books. I just prefer to wait till they’re out. But this book was released as audio before physical book, and I decided I had to go ahead and pre-order it. I thought about saving it for my drive to Book Bonanza, since Helena Hunting was one of my MUST meet authors, but I couldn’t wait, and as soon as it was available, I had to start listening. Charlene and Darren have always just kind of been in the background of the other books in a way. In the way that Charlene was Violet’s best friend and she was dating Darren. Now, I love Violet, and her craziness. But let’s just say that Charlene and Darren have their own brand of crazy, sexy, you name it. As usual with one of Hunting’s books, I had a ton of notes that I made on Goodreads as I listened to this. At first I wasn’t sure if I was going to like Darren. But after he had a talk with Alex, and I realized that he just wasn’t really up on how to have a real relationship, I got to like him a lot more. I loved the stats that Charlene said he kept about their relationship. I loved hearing about where Charlene’s box of “I thought it would be fun, but I changed my mind” came from.
Charlene’s mom killed me. But then most of the parents in these stories are so funny. And then when the girls all went to the sex convention, OMG! I totally knew that Violet was going to have a “sword-fight” with the strap-on. I just knew it. Then Charlene’s background at The Harvest Co-op was one that I wasn’t sure just how bad it got. That was something that kept going throughout the story, and kept me on the edge waiting to hear just what had happened there. Darren’s family issues fit perfectly with Charlene’s, well, especially with her mother. I loved the bit about Charlene’s candy as well.
One funny thing about the story tied in perfectly to something the author said at a panel at Book Bonanza. She said that she has to actually sometimes get into the positions for the sex scenes to figure out how to write them. I was having trouble picturing the final scene in this book, so I told her that and we laughed and figured it out.
Amazing Audiobook!! I absolutely loved everything about this story!! Let me start by saying the narration was on point by both of these amazing narrators!! They really brought Darren and Charlene to life. Darren is simply the sweetest! He is such a good man despite his slightly broken pieces. I spent most of my time just swooning over him. I love Charlene! She is so strong yet so vulnerable and is clearly so affected by her past and once you hear about it you will certainly understand. Their 2 years together in what is a different kind of relationship really seems to work for both of them, until it doesn’t any more. Things change, feelings change and that will either set them free to be who they want to be as a couple or ruin them forever. Such an amazing story about, healing, trust and ultimately love; and how family can be those we love and surround ourselves with. Awesome to catch up with all the other couples from previous books!
Audible version
It seems like we have been waiting forever for Darren and Charlene’s story, so I am glad that I do audio books, as I don’t know if I could wait another few months knowing the story is out here.
I adored #Darlene’s story. I knew theirs was going to be a complicated story from the snippets we had gotten in the previous books, and it was that. However it was also it was less complicated than I had imagined.
The story is sweet and sexy and heartfelt. I love that the rest of the Pucked ladies are a big part of Charlene’s story. They just had me laughing and wanting to be part of their group.
I have been reading the Pucked series since the first book came out, impatiently awaiting for each book to come out. however now it feels like it is all coming to an end, and I am not sure how I feel about it.
Please don’t end this on us Ms Hunting.
I will always want more.
All throughout Helena Hunting’s Pucked Series, she has provided small insights and brief details about who Charlene and Darren are as individuals and as a couple, and because of the limited information given, readers don’t really know these two characters very well. I mean…it’s clear that Charlene and Violet as well as Darren and Alex share incredible friendships and that they’ve both found a small group of friends who have become their family, but other than those facts and the random conversations that reveal a few more interesting tidbits, much about Charlene and Darren’s pasts and presents remain unknown, so heading into Pucked Love, I was beyond ready for Hunting to give me the dirt on both Charlene and Darren and gain so much needed information to fully picture exactly who these two characters are.
And BOY does Hunting give readers a complete character sketch of both of them, and despite the fact that I could have never imagined how messed up Charlene and Darren’s back stories would be or how their childhoods could singlehandedly be what’s preventing them from going ‘all-in’ with each other, Pucked Love delivers one amazing story that proves just how perfect Charlene and Darren are for one another and how their separate broken pieces fit so well when they are molded together.
My first piece of advice for readers heading into Charlene and Darren’s story is to not go into the story with any preconceived notions about them because regardless of what readers think they know about the hero and heroine, they’re not even close because what Hunting has provided readers with when it comes to Alex and Violet’s best friends only skims the surface of who these two characters are; the truth about them can only be provided through reading their story, told through their own perspective, and now that I’m finished with Pucked Love, I can unequivocally say that Charlene and Darren are right next to Violet and Alex as my favorite Pucked series characters.
Even though Charlene and Darren have been together for two years and have been friends with the other couples of the series for that time, both of them as well as all of their friends are more than aware of the fact that their relationship is not like the others, and while the opening scene of Pucked Love doesn’t bode well for Charlene’s friends’ counterparts’ views on Charlene and Darren’s connection, what they witnessed doesn’t shed the kind of the light on Charlene and Darren that the guys think it does, but it is the catalyst for the changes that begin to take place with these two extremely private and independent characters.
Darren Westinghouse is an intense and stoic man – one who prefers to live out of the spotlight and in a carefully constructed environment where he is in complete control. No one, not even Alex and especially Charlene, knows all of Darren’s sides because he only shows them what he wants them to see and anything that’s too personal, too messed up, or too extreme gets locked away in a place that he would much rather never dwell on again. But with the expansion draft, the playoffs, and a few unexpected encounters, Darren is going to need to bare all of his secrets and hope that once the truth is told that Charlene will still stand by him because even though he never truly acknowledged it, he loves Charlene with everything that he is and he refuses to give her up.
Once everything is laid out in the open, readers will understand just how amazing of a man Darren is and they’ll have a newfound respect for the man who lived through a messed up childhood that distorted his perception of everything associated with relationships and still managed to be a kick butt friend and hockey player and a more than giving and loving boyfriend even if his ways of showing it are rather unconventional.
I’ve always been intrigued by the close relationship that Charlene and Violet share. They seem like polar opposites but they’re each other’s constant and that will never change. Charlene’s childhood was just as jacked up as Darren’s but on opposite ends, and once Charlene’s truths are told/revealed, it’s more than clear as to why Charlene thrives on stability and independence and prefers to move forward with constancy, which means she doesn’t handle change well nor does she want to talk about her feelings or be vulnerable around anyone. The perception people have when it comes to Charlene is important to her; she doesn’t want to be seen as weird or different, even though that’s exactly who she is, and while there’s nothing wrong with Charlene, she cannot handle anyone knowing about her past because she’s afraid it will leave her with no-one and nothing.
I have to admit that Charlene’s hesitancies and refusal to change the dynamics of her relationship with Darren frustrated me way more than the backwards steps that Darren took, but that doesn’t mean I don’t understand why Charlene was so afraid; it’s just that Darren was more than trying and I just really wanted them both to see themselves as worthy of the other.
Hunting’s Pucked series is not just about the love between a couple; it’s also about the bond that is formed amongst friends, and in Pucked Love, it’s clear that the friendships that Darren has with his teammates and his small group of friends as well as the connection Charlene has with the women who she considers her tribe are crucial to their lives and responsible for helping both Darren and Charlene to see what they could have with each other if they’d only allow everyone in.
I absolutely LOVED EVERYTHING about Pucked Love! The thoughtful and sexy storyline, the strong friendships, the laugh out loud situations, the heartfelt moments, and the unique insights into who Charlene and Darren were and are. Sebastian York and Stella Bloom were perfect narrators for the story; they perfectly capture the hero and heroine’s idiosyncrasies and the mind games they have with themselves due to everything that has happened to them in their life.
The Pucked series is one of my favorite sports romance series of all time, and it’s due to Hunting’s storytelling, the way she crafts her characters, and her ability to create storylines that are full of steam, sass, and scandalous moments;)
5+ Poison Apples
That’s it my friends. That is the end of the Pucked series and I loooved it so much. To finally get inside of Darren and Charlene’s head in Pucked Love was thrilling, unexpected and a wild ride. Darren and Charlene are both so broken and I hadn’t even realized it in the past novels. I thought that they just had a kinky sex life right along with their best friends.
Darren was so unexpectedly sweet, his genuine ignorance on what a ‘normal’ relationship should look like broke my heart while simultaneously had me falling in love with him. Watching him learn from his friends, because you can see him yearning to have what they do but not know how to achieve it was heartbreaking for me.
I also felt so sorry for Charlene, her family is honestly bat shit crazy. No freaking joke. On top of that like Darren, she started to desire what her friends have, but at the same time is scared to be tied down and needs her freedom. But I could easily relate to her isolated feeling, when all of your friends are in a certain type of relationship that you don’t have.
I melted for Darren, this man is sweet without realizing it, he is the perfect yin to Charlene’s yang. On top of that Pucked Love was filled with curve balls that I NEVER would have predicted. I was thrown for a loop and felt like I had been gut punched right along with Charlene. I feel like I’m making the entire story sound sad. Trust me, it’s not. There are moment’s of anxiety inducing fear for Darren and Charlene, but we still have Violet and the rest of the crew to bring the comedy to break up the tension.
I have completely and utterly enjoyed the journey we were taken on with this group of characters. I don’t know if there is another group of characters that feel more like friends than this group that I have enjoyed spending time with over the past couple of years.
My impatience made Pucked Love my first ever audio book and I loved every single second of it.
I feel like I have been waiting for Darren and Charlene’s story for forever. Their book was the perfect balance of sweet romance, intense heat, and sometimes heartbreaking angst. There is so much more to these two than meets the eye. I thought Lance was going to go down as my favorite Pucked man of all time but I think he may have to share the throne with Darren!!
I adore Darren and Charlene, in fact I adore the whole ‘Pucked’ family. Always great to catch up with them all, and Pucked Love gave me the chance to do just that whilst enjoying another hilarious sexy Helena Hunting read. After 2 years together it seems that Darren and Charlene know little about each other (except how to bring each other to orgasm). All that’s about to change when friends and family start sticking their nose where it’s not wanted. It’s the end of their privacy as they’ve known and loved it, this of course makes for another fantastic Pucked story full of sex, drama and of course hockey. Wonderful writing and narration, because of course I’m too impatient to wait for the written word. A must for all Pucked fans.