Title: Deep End
Author: Ali Hazelwood, narrated by Therese Plummer and Ben Holtzmuller.
Length: 13 hours, 46 minutes audio. 477 pages paperback.
Genre: Sports romance, Contemporary romance,
Is this book part of a series? This is a stand alone book, but it does have a few cameos from characters from other books. You can absolutely read this without reading The Love Hypothesis…. but you should read it anyway.
I discovered this book via… the author’s Instagram
Publish Date: February 4th 2025
Summary courtesy of Goodreads:
A competitive diver and an ace swimmer jump into forbidden waters in this steamy college romance from the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis.
Scarlett Vandermeer is swimming upstream. A Junior at Stanford and a student-athlete who specializes in platform diving, Scarlett prefers to keep her head down, concentrating on getting into med school and on recovering from the injury that almost ended her career. She has no time for relationships—at least, that’s what she tells herself.
Swim captain, world champion, all-around aquatics golden boy, Lukas Blomqvist thrives on discipline. It’s how he wins gold medals and breaks records: complete focus, with every stroke. On the surface, Lukas and Scarlett have nothing in common. Until a well-guarded secret slips out, and everything changes.
So they start an arrangement. And as the pressure leading to the Olympics heats up, so does their relationship. It was supposed to be just a temporary, mutually satisfying fling. But when staying away from Lukas becomes impossible, Scarlett realizes that her heart might be treading into dangerous water…
My Thoughts:
Be advised, there will be spoilers ahead.
I finished this book over a week ago and have been trying to decide how I feel about it. If it was any other author I would say it’s fabulous- five stars, would recommend… and it is. But it’s missing some of the magic of her other stem romances. (While listed as sports romance there is a project they are working on and the Scarlet’s major to take into account, so still a stem romance as well.) It was interesting, had good characters, and the interactions between Lukas and Scarlet when nothing else was trying to get in the way was fire. I love that the author has been branching out- giving us YA romance, paranormal romance, and now sports romance with a touch of kink. I have honestly loved every book I have ever read of theirs, just… some more than others; meaning that even though this is at the bottom list for Hazelwood, it’s still there. Even taking into consideration the small issues I had with the book, this was a five star read for me. I loved it, I have already driven my bestie nuts about it, and I have bought two copies- audiobook and paperback because it is beautiful.
Let’s talk about what worked- Scarlet was a wonderful character and I loved how Lukas gravitated towards her, noticed her. The scenes where he was explaining how she “never noticed him” or the fact that several guys tried to get close to her- not accusatory, but stating facts, was everything. The little things that he noticed, and the way she would shy away from other men but move toward him without ever realizing- literally putting him in between her and another man, this was just charming. I loved that he saw her, that he wanted everything explained, and that he admired her inteligence as much as everything else. For her part, she wasn’t ready for everything, not at first, but I got to watch her grow. To see her gain confidence. Plus, the chemistry was pretty hot.
The things that did not work for me? They all revolve around the “other love interest”. Pen, Lukas’ ex, broke up with him. She unveiled their secrets. She wanted them together- sexually at least, because their kinks alligned… All the while Penn is keeping the breakup a secret and making Lukas do the same. Our girls throwing down red flags like confetti and we’re all… okay with this? I hated how Scarlet handled this, yes, but I hated how Lukas handled it more. I mean, the ex isn’t going to keep trying crap if he sets clear boundaries with her, not for long anyway. So there it is, the drama that is Penn detracted from the story and was honestly the only issue I had with the book. Again, I still loved the book. I have a soft spot for Lukas who watches and sees everything. He wants Scarlet so badly, but on her terms. Every step he makes, he’s trying to match her speed and make her comfortable. He is just so sweet while also being very domineering. Seeing all the facets of his character was amazing. My one complaint is that while we see Scarlet growing, we don’t really see Lukas doing the same.
Still, this was interesting, sexy and just a fabulous book. I would definitely recommend it. As far as adult content goes there’s violence including some consensual acts during intimacy. Power play kink. There’s also alchohol use, language, and bullying as well as discussion of past trauma and loss. It is definitely geared toward adults, maybe new adults.
I think I want to end this with a list of the books I have read of Hazelwood’s in order of preference, if this one isn’t your cup of tea one of these might be.
- 1. The Love Hypothesis
- 2. Love, Theoretically
- 3. Bride (paranormal)
- 4. Check & Mate (YA/ NA)
- 5. Love On the Brain
- 6. Loathe to Love You
- 7. Deep End
I have not read her other books, but they are on my TBR. Have you read any of these? What are your thoughts?
Happy reading!
Gwen
