Recent Reads: Deep End by Ali Hazelwood

Deep End by Ali Hazelwood

Publisher: Berkley 
Publication Date: February 4, 2025 

 

Format: Paperback
Source: Bought/ Own

Rating:


Goodreads Synopsis: 

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...

Review: 

~~TBR Pile Pull~~

In Deep End, competitive diver Scarlett Vandermeer is laser-focused on recovering from an injury, getting into med school, and avoiding any romantic distractions. Lukas Blomqvist, a world-champion swimmer and Stanford’s swim captain, is equally committed to discipline and Olympic dreams. When a shared secret pulls them into each other’s orbit, they agree to a no-strings fling—one that quickly gets complicated as real feelings begin to surface.

I really enjoyed the dynamic between Scarlett and Lukas—Ali Hazelwood knows how to build tension and chemistry, and the banter between these two was spot-on. One of the things I consistently appreciate in Hazelwood’s writing is her sharp, clever dialogue, and this book delivered on that front. While this story leans more into the world of student athletics than STEM, I liked that there were still nods to the academic side, keeping it in line with Hazelwood’s brand.

This book felt a little different from Hazelwood’s typical swoony romances—it had a solid pace, satisfying relationship build-up, and some nice character development. However, there were a few things that pulled me out of the story. Pen, the best friend, was overly involved in the relationship and mentioned far too often; it became distracting and a bit irritating. The kink element, while clearly central to the relationship, felt pretty tame and occasionally veered into cringey territory. I also found myself wanting more emotional depth from both leads. Still, the “he falls first” trope and engaging banter kept me hooked, and overall, I found it to be an enjoyable read.