Save Your Breath

A Fake Engagement Hockey Romance (Kings of the Ice)

De: Kandi Steiner

Narrado por: Talia Wilkerson Grove, Walker Williams, Hannah Chiclana

THIS JUST IN: HOCKEY BAD BOY AND POP STAR EXTRAORDINAIRE ENGAGED!

That was the headline we'd wanted. If only I’d known the cost to get it.

Aleksander Suter has been my best friend since high school—and the only man who’s ever been able to truly get under my skin. With his reputation for trouble and a smirk that could melt ice, he’s also the NHL’s favorite bad boy.

When my publicist’s plan to fix my image collides with his need to clean up his own, we find ourselves in a fake engagement that feels too real from the start.

Now, I’m releasing my new album, putting on a show for the paparazzi I usually try to dodge, and falling too fast for a man who never falls for anyone. Every stolen glance, every heated touch blurs the lines between us until I’m wondering where the lies end and the truth begins.

And when a hurricane traps us together in his high-rise condo, all my carefully built walls collapse, and resisting the pull between us becomes a losing game.

Suddenly, the stakes are higher than just headlines, and the risks feel more personal than ever.

But as our past resurfaces and old feelings reignite, I realize the biggest risk isn’t losing my career—it’s losing my heart to the one person I thought would never be mine.

Save Your Breath is book four in the Kings of the Ice series: a series of interconnected standalones following a team of professional hockey players and the women who bring them to their knees. They do not need to be listened to in order, but you will gain glimpses of future characters/couples in each book.

©2025 Kandi Steiner (P)2025 Kandi Steiner

Steamy slow burn with banter

4.5 stars. This was such a fun read that loosely reminded me of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s whirlwind romance. Pop star Mia and Aleks, her best friend from high school, have secretly been in love with each other since they were 16. Aleks believing he was never good enough, focuses his energy on his pro hockey career while Mia shoots to stardom. When a PR crisis emerges, they come together to fake date and get fake engaged, only it doesn’t feel so fake to either of them.

These two were so protective and sweet with one another, while also having the most hilarious banter. I loved their chemistry and love. I often wanted to shake them both just to talk to one another about their feelings but, their pride and fear got in the way. When Aleks does speak his truth, I swooned at his beautiful words. A great steamy slow-burn!

If you like audiobooks, be sure to check this one out as the narrators to a great job capturing the characters.

Totally Obsessed

THIS JUST IN: HOCKEY BAD BOY AND POP STAR EXTRAORDINAIRE ENGAGED!

I am completely obsessed with the Tampa Bay Ospreys and I love Aleks & Mia! They might just be tied for favorites! Their friendship is beautiful and their fake relationship turned everything is just amazing. I really enjoyed the evolution of their relationship. This author has blessed us with another great story 💜 It was made even better by this audio! I loved the listen!

the best slowburn!!

5 perfect stars!!! nothing hits better than a new favorite book from your favorite author🙂‍↕️ aleks & mia have my heart, i truly could not put this one down and had the best time following along with one of my new fave love stories. the audio was also FANTASTIC!! i love a duet narration and both narrators/production was perfect this book was literally music to my ears!!

here’s what i love:
🎤 i was instantly hooked from the beginning. childhood friends with unrequited love vibes who plan a fake engagement as a publicity stunt even though they both have real feelings, YES!!
💍 i really loved how we got to see glimpses
of their younger selves and what they were feeling back then
🎤 aleks my baby!! being in his head really hurt at times. you could tell how much pain he was going through but kandi (as always) portrayed all of the emotions perfectly
💍 i loved seeing mia stand up for her music and want to be the best she can be for her fans
🎤 aleks & mia understood each other in a way no one else could. they truly are soulmates through and through
💍 aleks picking out a ring mia would like so it could be a surprise!!
🎤 the effortless banter and natural tension/angst between them!!
💍 the mask night at the bar when they both just had so much fun and enjoyed each others company
🎤 all the hockey boys always have me smiling
💍 aleks speech during the engagement, pls mans is so love
🎤 THE PIANO SCENE!! CAN YOU HEAR ME SCREAMING
💍 i was yelling at these two to confess their feelings the whole book but i actually loved the slow burn and ate up all of the little crumbs we got
🎤 me jumping for joy at the confessions scene
💍 aleks & mia’s dads convo at the end really warmed my heart
🎤 the vibes in this book were just so perfect, literally no notes
💍 the audiobook was so amazing i LOVED the fmc narrator so much they both crushed it but the fmc stood out to me and just loved her production of mia’s character
🎤 loved seeing glimpses of G in this one she’s always so cute
💍 the epilogue omg carter baby i am SO excited for your book it’s going to be perfect!!

definitely a top 5 kandi book for me!! i had the best time binging this one and it’s easily my new favorite in the series. there’s just something so effortless and special about aleks & mia’s relationship🫂🧡

Just say the thing!!!

Slow burns just drive me a little nuts. I love this book and these characters but like them I hate their thoughts and assumptions. I just wanted to shake them both and yell “just say what you really feel” for like half this book. I’m glad the ended up having the courage to tell each other the truth but it was almost too little too late. I love Kandi’s books and I love this one just as much as the others. Also, I don’t care what anyone says no one will convince me this isn’t a love letter to Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce and isn’t a fictionalized version of their love story. Overall, this book didn’t hit like the others, maybe because of the slow burn, but it still was a beautifully written love story.

Yes, it’s that good.

Prepare to swoon! This friends-to-lovers, grumpy/sunshine, always-been-you romance is a 10/10. New to me narrators, Talia Wilkerson Grove and Walker Williams absolutely CRUSHED it. I wasn’t sure at first but Walker Williams gravel just about killed me and when he spoke in Swiss German, I basically melted. Talia Grove’s narration hit every emotional note from self-doubt to teasing to bedroom and always sounded authentic. Her angst was perfection. As an unexpected bonus, the song in the piano scene was so so good!

Save Your Breath is a slow burn with a payoff that’s both broke my heart and set everything on fire. And while the burn is slow (65% or so), it’s also a fake relationship romance so there are lots of delicious, chemistry filled “staged” kisses and ridiculously romantic scenes that kept me more than happy to bask in the glow before ignition. I’ll admit, fake anything is like catnip to me, so I knew I was going to be sucked in. But I was blown away by the nakedly honest pull of Aleks’ story and the combined ache of the two of them. I found myself wishing I could step into the story to ease their pain and help them understand. It was angsty without being trite and it made every touch, kiss and glance that much more charged. The spice is seriously bossy and absolutely epic. The romance had me completely in my feels. The friendship between Mia and Aleks, their growth and willingness to sacrifice for each other, are spot on and make Save Your Breath one of my favorite listens of the year.

Meet Aleks. He’s growly. He’s hot. He plays hockey. And he’s been in love with Mia since he was 16. Swiss-German, Aleks’ foster mom sends him to billet with Mia’s family. And she’s seriously off-limits. Daddy says so. Mia is a singer/songwriter whose shy high school personality blooms into a pop star with charisma and poise, but she doesn’t get a lot of privacy and Aleks is fiercely protective of her. Her new album is releasing and an old boyfriend and his music reviewing friend seem to keep causing static and trying to taint her release. Aleks needs to clean up his bad boy, fighter vibe and Mia needs to look like she’s moved on and is above the fray. And a fake relationship is born. If you want to be swept off your feet by the grumpiest hockey player in the league, who has the softest spot for the girl he loves, this is your book. 100% recommend. 5 stars for performance and story. 3 peppers. Plus, that epilogue!!

Pop Star’s Good Girl & Hockey’s Bad Boy, Friends to Lovers, Slow Burn, Angsty Romance!

4.75 ⭐️
2 🔥
Slow Burn Romance
Hockey’s Bad Boy
Pop Star’s Good Girl
Forced Proximity
Fake Dating/Engagement
Childhood Friends to Lovers
Opposites Attract
Unrequited Love (or so they think)
Fantastic on Audio! 🎧
These two were so perfect for each other! This book was so angsty & the burn was slow!! Mia & Alek have been best friends and have both carried deeper feelings for one another since their high school years. But things are complicated. Alek came to America to have a shot at the NFL, and he was taken in by Mia’s family. But Alek has a rough background that has made him feel less than & he struggles with his mental health. Years later, after they have both achieved their dream jobs, they decide to fake date with hopes to improve their image and careers. We all know how that story goes! 😉 I also loved all the cameos with the characters from previous books in this series and Red Zone Rivals!! This is book 4 of Kings of the Ice series, but can be read as a complete standalone. Also, if you like audio books, you need to listen to this one!! Kandi has included a song that is performed on the audiobook!

Thank you Kandi Steiner for the ARC & ALC!

So Good!!!!

I was able to listen to this book and the narrators did a phenomenal job! Had me feeling like I was right there in the book!!!!
Kandi has this series getting better and better!
Mia is a pop star singer who is trying to show the world that she isn’t still hung up over her ex from what the tabloids are saying. So she decides to get fake engaged to her best friend.
Aleks is in trouble with his job because he can’t seem to stop fighting off the ice.
His agent thinks that it would be a good idea for him to have this fake engagement to help better his reputation.
Oh my how I love a fake relationship book! Aleks and Mia have secretly like each other since they were teenagers and it was never the right moment and thoughts that they feelings wouldn’t be reciprocated. Loved, loved, loved this book!!!!!

Music to my ears!

How far would you go to get someone off your back? And would you drag your childhood crush/house guest into this plan?
If you are a famous pop star Mia Love (AKA Mia Conaway)…then a fake engagement and yep, you would.

This Hockey Player/famous singer romance was one of my favorite fake “REAL-ATIONSHIPS”, fake engagement reads to date! I am not a huge fan of this trope, but this is not only one of my favorite reads this year, but also one of my favorites from this author, Kandi Steiner. I FELT THIS BOOK!

Aleksander Suter, NHL goalie, remembers Mia as a younger girl, while he was boarding with her family and she was jotting lyrics down in a notebook. This is also when he had to fight off feelings he had for her, but never let go of. When he agrees to this agreement, he just wanted to do whatever he could to be close to her and heal her pain…not realizing it may turn into more pain for both of them.

I loved the characters and the honest-to-goodness heartbreak I felt while reading Save Your Breath. The tears I cried while reading this and the genuine love I felt…I just cannot recommend this enough! I just also have to add…this is one of the absolute BEST proposals I have ever read!!!

**Audio book**
Talia Wilkerson Grove and Walker Williams were great to listen to. They were great narrators for this book and I loved the extra level they brought to the characters.

Another excellent book from Kandi Steiner!

This one was worth the wait.

Aleks & Mia were everything I wanted them to be and more. If there is something you should know about Kandi's writing it's that she is going to make you FEEL every single thing her characters are. Save Your Breath was no exception. I not only read this one with my eyes, but I was lucky enough to receive an early listen to the audio & whoa....Talia Wilkerson Grove & Walker Williams really brought these two characters to life.

Definitely a 5 star read & definitely a contender for my top reads of 2025 already. ;)

Perfection!! And the chills from that beautiful love song... 🫠

"For a split second, we were both eighteen again. She was begging me to kiss her. I was begging her not to let me."

NGL, I spilled lots of tears while reading this book. Sometimes sad tears, sometimes happy tears. It is very much a slow burn, and an emotional journey of acceptance, growth and hope.

Mia and Aleks are best friends. They share a past and very special, emotional moments. They can read each other like no one else ever could. They are bound to one another in many different ways, through shared secrets and experiences.

They are true soulmates, never quite able to get close to others, always missing something when life forces them apart.

There is nothing more beautiful than watching these 2, who quietly pined for one another since the day they met, finally accept and admit their feelings 🫶


The 🎧audiobook🎧 narration for this is absolutely breathtaking and a must. The narrators are both spectacular!! Mia also sings a song in it, an ACTUAL SONG sang by a professional singer, and it gave me chills!! I legit sobbed 🥹 lol.

I highly recommend this audiobook, I promise you won't regret it 🫠❤️