⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ “Confidence is showing up, and trying, and not giving up because deep in your heart you know who you are and what you’re capable of.” - Deep End, Ali Hazelwood I loved this book. I loved the characters, I loved their flaws, I loved the vulnerability. I have read many Ali Hazelwood books and have always enjoyed her writing style. She is so cohesive in always writing about science based romance novels and I do enjoy that I know what I am getting into when I pick up one of her books (Bride aside.. iykyk). I preordered this book and could not wait until it made it to my front door step. My first reaction when I opened my package was love, love, love the sprayed edges that look like pool water. Already obsessed before I even cracked that baby open. Of all the characters, Scarlett was the most flawed and it almost felt like a privilege to know more about her past than any other character (until Lukas, obvi). But it was like being another character in the story where she shared her heart with the reader and trusted the reader would keep her secrets for her. She only shared information about herself with others when she felt comfortable. I thought she had wonderful growth by the end of the novel. Lukas is this brawny, chiseled, Olympic swimmer and I thought Ali did a great job of portraying a man who is so in control of everything in his life and so sure of what he wants through Lukas. I loved that Lukas gave Vandy everything she needed and gave her a safe space to be her most authentic self. He also got more comfortable as the story went on. My friend and I read this at the same time and she also devoured this book. I love Ali’s books and would recommend this. One thing about this book that really doesn’t detract from my rating but something I did keep in mind is that this book was prefaced to be a kinky book about a sort-of-kind-of BDSM relationship. When they shared their list of kinks, I was expecting a lot more but that seemed to be about the extent of it. I am excited to see what Ali Hazelwood writes next as she dives deeper (pun absolutely intended) into this genre, but this slightly missed the mark if this was the kink intended to be explored in this book. I still stand with my five stars because I would not only recommend it to other people but I would also read again. ⭐My Review Checklist: ***Spoilers*** ✅Character development Scarlett does quite a bit in this book. I felt her anxiety about being in class, I felt her frustrations with her dives, I felt like I was in the room listening to her talk about her therapy sessions. She wanted to get better at diving, she wanted to pass her classes, she wanted to have her own needs met beyond her abusive past. As soon as Penelope drunkenly told her now ex and her dive partner to have sex with each other, I knew this was going to be interesting. Penelope basically spoke the plot line into existence and then never left. She helped motivate the FMC and MMC to get together. This was an interesting one because also Penelope was part of their lives pretty deeply for the remainder of the story. Other motivations that Scarlett and Lukas have to really engage with one another is they found that they were highly sexually compatible and wanted to explore that desire. All the characters were highly involved with each other, and sometimes a little too involved in each other's lives. I did find it odd how involved Pen was still with Lukas and Scarlett’s emotional life even after their break up but something that did stick out to me that I do recognize is that in collegiate sports as well as other sports, you get weirdly close and sort of up in each other’s business. I think about all the stories about victory villages during the Olympics as well as playing years and years of competitive soccer. We had to share buses with the boys for away trips a lot and there were really no boundaries. So although it seems weird and toxic, this type of behavior for these characters does not seem far off. ✅Atmosphere Scarlett and Penelope definitely had emotions for sure but Lukas seemed a bit like stone but I assume that is the personality and emotional range that Ali Hazelwood was going for. Lukas is supposed to be this hardened Olympic athlete with a very cold European demeanor. I think that Scarlett brought out more emotions from Lukas as the story went on. The location was a collegiate swim team on a prestigious college campus. This helped with the diving storyline as well as provided ample areas for plot points to take place. I love Ali Hazelwood’s writing. I have yet to find a book of hers that I did not like. This book is no exception, I could feel the typical Ali Hazelwood writing throughout. ✅Plot I was engaged throughout the entirety of the story. I felt at a few points there were some lulls but they were short lived and not enough to pull me out of the story. The story was easy to follow and highly engaging. The characters had depth and integrated well with each other. The pace was easy to follow and kept me engaged from start to finish. ✅Engagement ✅Would recommend

This definitely made me #whet If you decide to go for it, I think it should be me WHAT TO EXPECT: ✨ soft bdsm content ✨ other woman drama ✨ Family trauma ✨ Gen Z cliches ✨ tension & yearning ✨He falls first ✨ academics and sports combined ✨ more detailed spice ✨ 3rd act drama Quick Thoughts: I am an Ali Hazelwood fan for the yearning, and this delivered that. Is it my favorite of hers? No. Do I think it deserves the current hype it's getting? Yes absolutely. It's a bit messy with OW drama in it, but I actually LOVE that. Bring on messy drama. I loved: Light Plot The main “plot” is the relationship which I will talk about, but the secondary plot is Scarlett and her dive trauma. I found it so interesting the way Ali weaved the trauma into the plot with Scarlett’s perfection history fitting in with her family history and her preferences in bed. I thought it was a brilliant way to explore the depth of a character without stating it directly. Scarlett I loved the more depth Scarlett was given compared to other Ali Hazelwood girls. I think Scarlett had so many layers with her family, personality, preferences and insecurities. I think Ali did a great job of weaving those together throughout the book and explored each one. Banter I previously was not a fan of how Ali wrote banter in books. I found myself liking her more recent works, and this matches with those vibes. Ali explored a more dry sense of humor and more blunt personalities which I found I enjoyed a bit more. She still has some of her “cringe” gen Z vibes to her work (even though I know she's not gen z), but I didn't find it too much for me. Lukas The star of the show. Lukas. This was deserved, and he might take the ranking of my favorite Ali Hazelwood man. Oops. I enjoyed his blunt personality, the way he cared and showed it. I think his dedication towards Scarlett was showcased immediately, instead of a more slowburn which I enjoyed. He wasn't as complex as Scarlett, but I do think enough of his personality and trauma was explored for him to feel fully flushed out. Relationship I really enjoy Ali exploring relationships that start off as sex. I find it can be more realistic to the current world, but also allows the elements of different pieces of relationship to be explored more. I think Lukas and Scarlett’s relationship explored how sexual compatibility can be important for growth of emotional compatibility, and also how sexual compatibility can be important for success of relationships. Ali did a great job of growing the emotional relationship along side. The things I disliked Pen I know this is WILD because I genuinely enjoyed the drama that was brought on by the messiness of Pen’s relationship to both Lukas and Scarlett. What I didn't like about Pen was her inability to have boundaries towards both Lukas and Scarlett. One could argue that Lukas and Scarlett needed to create the boundaries first, however I think Pen should have had more natural boundaries. The sleepover? The touching? The meets? All boundaries that Pen overstepped and she knew she overstepped. The 3rd act I expected, however I wish the groveling aspect was more. It was disappointing to see Scarlett be a pushover to Pen. Distance/Pacing Lukas and Scarlett spent a lot of time apart and not speaking. It added a lot of length to the book and slowed the pacing, for the couple to spend so much time apart. I do think this hinders some of my love for the book and dropped it down a bit. Overall, I enjoy the direction that Ali’s books have been going into. I think I would love some bonus material from her actual exploring some of the BDSM content more. Current Ali Rankings Check & Mate Love Theoretically Bride Deep End Two Can Play Not in Love Love Hypothesis

Oh my! I'm not lying when I say I smiled and blushed throughout almost the whole thing. This was my first Ali Hazelwood book--and Deep End was totally unexpected! 🔥I'm very much into what this book is. I love seeing this type of dynamic (power exchange) in spicy romance novels, there is a lot of trust and vulnerability involved. Scarlett opened up to Lukas, and he saw her, he took charge--respecting her, understanding her needs and wants on a deeper level. He also felt liberated and seen. The chemistry was electric. And Lukas... You just have to meet him. He was the star of the show. The way he just understood her and remembered small things was everything. So many precious moments! -competitive college diver x swimmer -ptsd rep -friends with benefits -he falls first and falls hard ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5 🤎 "The only time wasted is time we are apart."

Producto llegó antes de tiempo y en buen estado.

Ali Hazelwood never misses, and Deep End is no exception. I was hooked from the very first page, the chemistry between the characters is electric, and the banter is just perfect. Hazelwood does such a great job of blending smart, complex female leads with heartfelt romance and just the right amount of spice. The pacing was great, and I genuinely didn’t want it to end. If you love contemporary romance with clever writing and characters you can root for, this one’s a must-read. One of my favorites from her so far!

4.75🌟I gobbled this up! Ali Hazelwood is def a new fav contemporary author for me! I loved the dom/sub dynamic between the MCs and I adore an academic setting. Learning abour diving was also super cool! The spice was deliciously toe curling! Will be a top contemporary read of 2025 for me!

Ali Hazelwood has a unique ability to write romance about relatable nerds. I loved these characters, with all their beauty and flaws. I laughed out loud multiple times, and as someone with a STEM career who was a student athlete, this book hit so very hard. Gobbled this up in a day, what more can I say?