Elle Kennedy has done it again, this book had me squealing and giggling the entire way through. It did have it’s sad moments, but I thoroughly enjoyed every single second! Shane and Diana’s banter is off the charts, I love how they insult and wind each other up constantly.

Shane is a total fuck boy and Diana’s arch nemesis after sleeping with multiple members of her cheer squad and leaving them heartbroken to the point it distracts one girl causing her to injure herself.
When shane moves into Diana’s apartment complex her goal is to turn the other residents against him and it quickly works. I absolutely loved all the drama that took place at the HOA meetings!

Shane and Diana enter into a fake relationship when shane gets a visit from his ex and for Diana to send a message to her own ex. During their time fake dating, even though they swear nothing will come of it they both quickly develop feelings for each other, which they then make an agreement to become friends with benefits. Shane literally applies for the position 😂. This takes their relationship to the next step, releasing all that pent up sexual chemistry bubbling between them.

I loved seeing their relationship blossom and watching them accept that what they feel for each other is real and not just a ruse.
It’s also great getting to see all the guys/girls again. I already can’t wait for the next book in this series 🤩

Thank you net galley and little brown book group for a copy of This e-arc in exchange for my honest review

Second book from Campus diaries series. Great story about Diana and Shane.
She is a cheerleader and he is an ice hockey player. She doesn’t like him almost from the moment when they met. He for almost a year can’t forget about break up with his ex.
One day they became neighbours and all the story begins.
This book made me laugh so much. I truly love Diana’s character. But then I had to deal with sad moments which made me cry.
So many moments which I haven’t seen coming.
Definitely worth reading!

Amazing! I laughed, I cried and then laughed again! Perfect friends to lovers vibes with some fake dating sprinkled in there. The banter and spice between Diana and Shane was perfection 💕. The character depth and development was great, especially when dealing with some heavy topics.

I’ve always been a big Elle Kennedy fan and I think this is in my top 2 of books she’s ever written!

*Will publish my review on Goodreads on 2nd May*

The story really started in The Graham Effect where we saw Shane and Diana instantly disliked each.

Overall this felt realistic and dealt with some hard hitting topics which made the ending a whirlwind of emotion.

I liked Diana and Shane together, I think they made an obvious couple right from the off even if they did bicker. Although to be honest it was more banter than bickering.

Kennedy turned the heat up a little in this instalment too. The spice was definitely hotter with both friends with benefits and a kink coming into play.

One of the things I loved about this was absolutely the moral of the story. You shouldn’t need to change who you are deep down for a relationship. And I loved that they still had the same sarcastic attitude towards each other to the end.

If you like Kennedy’s other books then no doubt you will enjoy this one too. The only disappointment for me was that it couldn’t really be considered a next gen book. But, we did get glimpses of pre loved characters and hints of future stories to come. Personally I hope the next instalment is anyone’s but Larsen and/or Beckett’s.

Shane and Diana ❤️

🏡Diana Dixon is a student at Briar U. Her best friend is Gigi Graham, who’s recently married ice hockey player Luke Ryder. Luke’s best friend, Shane has moved into the apartment next door to Diana. She inherited her apartment from her aunt, and Shane is living in an apartment his parents bought for him, so neither is moving anytime soon.

🏒It’s a pity Diana LOATHES Shane. He’s made the moves on a few of her fellow cheerleaders, and her disdain for him is very clear.

❤️Soon though, being neighbours leads to being friends, fake dating and friends with benefits. Shane’s pretending Diana is his girlfriend to make his ex jealous, and Diana is pretending Shane is her boyfriend to get ex Percy at bay.

📚Unlike the second generation stories from Helena Hunting, Elle Kennedy’s second generation series has veered sideways to Gigi Graham’s best friend, with cameo’s from the Off Campus crowd.

🔥It feels like the hockey theme is a bit more toned down in this story as well, with much more “life” happening. The enemies to lovers part of the story is well down, and I enjoyed seeing how this pair are at home, chilling with their reality series, thinking about their neighbours and family and getting over their previous relationships. There is a lot of sad reality here too, domestic violence and family dynamics. Diana and Shane are bold characters, spicing up their relationship at all opportunities. I was so excited to have received an ARC copy of this latest! ❤️

Read an eARC copy courtesy of Netgalley and the publisher
My rating 4.5/5 - ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️💫
Pub Date 14 May 2024

OMG. I have no chill when it comes to Elle Kennedy's books and was over the moon to be able to read this book in advance. The first book in the legacy series, Graham Effect, completely blew my socks off with Ryder and Gigi's story and I knew this wouldn't disappoint either. I have absolutely adored the Off Campus series, but the legacy series? Out of this world!!

This time around it's Diana and Shane's turn and boy have I been waiting to dig deeper into Mr.-I'm-totally-not-over-my-breakup-Shane. He is such a sweet guy at heart and perfectly paired with Diana's fiery personality. They both are a little (okay maybe more than a little) immature in the beginning, but that was half the fun! Their sweet and sexy banter, the revenge plots, the fake dating schenanigans, the ballroom dancing practices, the HOA meetings all just comes to show Ms. Kennedy can bang out a hilarious yet hot story about two idiots who are perfect to for each other.

And yet, that's not all. The story took a surprising curve into some dark topics which I won't get into detail to avoid spoilers. THAT CHAPTER though? It hits home so deep because I think it's a secret fear we all live with, and something that we all eventually face at some point but not something you can ever come to terms with and I respect that this dose of sad reality was included. It just enhanced the story, made it more real, and showed that everyone deals with rough times. But it's the people with you who get you through it.

As always, I just can't wait to read more books in the series and learn more about the other characters in this beautiful fictional world.

Special thanks to Little Brown Group UK and Netgalley for providing me an advance copy of the ebook in exchange for an honest review!

Yes, yes and yes - Off Campus & Briar U 2.0 but better.

Honestly adored Shane and Diana. Loved the swap of the usual Grumpy x Sunshine roles. Strong FMC and a MMC with emotional intelligence? Yes please.

There is was character development, fake dating, drama and emotions. The support they showed each other felt genuine and the transition of their fake relationship wasn’t forced into the storyline.

Liked the fact that the plot didn’t just have one high point but multiple moments which felt emotional and stressful at times.

Read trigger warnings, there are some scenes that might be too much for some readers but I have devoured the whole book in less than 24h.

And let’s not forget that the spice is chefs kiss.

I'm going to be honest here, I was a bit worried that I wouldn't like this that much mainly because of the foreshadowing in The Graham Effect. BUT I was so wrong. This book wasn't what I expected (thankfully), it was so much more and better!

I thought the Grahams were my only and all time faves by Elle Kennedy (even if I like the other books) but that's absolutely not the case. Diana and Shane are so, so amazing! Their banter is on a whole new level. AND THE SPICE! I was honestly surprised in the best way possible by how brave the author was for venturing into bit riskier waters in this one. With that said, check the TW just in case this isn't for you.

I laughed, I cried and I laughed a bit more. I feel like Elle has really raised the bar here. The banter was next level, so was the spice and so was the emotional development of the characters. This might very well be my favourite book by her.

Elle Kennedy never misses! I loved The Graham Effect and I knew I would love The Dixon Rule! Spoiler alert... I did! Kennedy's writing never fails to impress me.

Who loves a spin off series, next generation books? Well I certainly do. I feel bereft when a series I love finishes so when Elle Kennedy said we are getting more in the form of the Ice Hockey romances she created - and we are talking the Off Campus Series and Briar U I was super excited.

The Dixon Rule is the second book in the new series - The Campus Diaries, these book will be following the second generation from the previous series. The Dixon Rule follows Diana Dixon and Shane Lindley. Diana is super focused and works hard for everything she does, Shane is a Ice Hockey player who has been given everything by his parents. They know each other as their best friends Gigi Graham and Ryder are now together. I know some will be upset that this is not the second generation or the kids but trust me more pop up during the book and I am excited for more from all the characters, I am hoping Will and Beckett get the next book as I think that is going to be off the charts good.

I honestly loved this book. We had the enemies to lovers vibe along with fake dating, he falls first and so many more. They are the funniest couple and it reminded me of the original series which makes me want to go back and reread them all again. They snipe at each other but it is done which such witty banter that you can't help but giggle along to the sarcasm. You can't help but fall in love with these two new characters adding into the Ice Hockey family and it was just being back home. The spice in this book was off the charts and it didn't have any of the cringe sayings or words that I hate when reading a romance.

I am not going to lie it did make me cry towards the end, not in a bad way but due to one of the strong themes in the book (loss of a parent) it honestly I felt was written so well and I am not too ashamed to say I might have cried. So hats off to you Elle Kennedy.

There are some strong themes in this book including assault, stalking, death of a parent, mention of cancer, gaslighting. So please check further trigger warnings for this book.

TW: Stalking and physical abuse from ex-boyfriend. Parental death.

It seems I can devour Elle Kennedy books in a short amount of time every time. I love her writing and storytelling, it's so straight-forward to follow and get involved in.

The Dixon Rule follows Diana and Shane's relationship that evolves through several different tropes including: enemies to lovers, friends with benefits, slow burn, fake dating, hockey romance. Their development is great and the spicy scenes are spiiiiiicy. There are kinks I've not yet come across in a New Adult book.

All in all, a really good read mixed in with some serious topics that are handled brilliantly by both author and characters.

This book had my husband looking at me in concern when I was crying! What a great read which ticked so many boxes for me!
+Fake lovers/enemies to lovers +witty banter +character depth and deep story plot +that great enjoyment of reading a good book
I shan't spoil with any details as this book needs to just be read and enjoyed.
Defintely for fans of chick lit, college romance,spicy scenes

we all know I love a Briar U boy and this was no exception Shane and Diana were everything ❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

the fake dating, frenemies to lovers was so well written as always with Elle Kennedy books she just knows how to do all the tropes so well!

some of the plot was a little dramatic but I still really enjoyed it and I defo think this is one of her spiciest books yet! 😮‍💨

love love love <3

thank you to NetGalley and Little Brown for the ARC of the next instalment in my favourite series 💞

The Dixon Rule is the second book in Elle Kennedy’s Campus Diaries series, which is also set within the world of Off Campus and Briar U. This can definitely be read as a standalone, though would be enjoyed even more by those who have read the prior books. It is an absolutely brilliant contemporary romance that also packs some serious emotional punches.

I’ll make a note here that there are some CWs to consider with this one including domestic violence, anxiety and death of a loved one. All are dealt with care within the novel.

The Dixon Rule is a brilliant enemies to lovers, forced proximity, fake dating gem of a novel. Diana and Shane know each other through their, now married, best friends but they don’t particularly get along. Then Shane has the audacity to move into her apartment block. But with Shane’s ex comes back into the picture and Diana struggles to get her ex to realise that they’re definitely not getting back together, they hatch a plan to fake date one another. But as the tension between them sizzles and fake dating turns to friends with benefits they soon realise there might be more between them.

There is so much to love about this one we’ve got:
📣 a brilliant FMC who is confident and hilarious
🏒 a cocky, handsome MMC with a hidden heart of gold
📣 brilliant snarky banter
🏒 slow burn enemies to lovers that gets very steamy
📣 great chemistry between the MCs with some sizzling tension - especially noticeable whilst they’re rehearsing for the dance competition
🏒 a sports romance that has hockey and cheerleading
📣 great supporting cast in the wider friendship group
🏒 this is also a romance with some really heavy moments and I’ll be honest made me cry (ALOT). I had guessed the twist near the end but it didn’t make it any less devastating. Kennedy deals with these heavy issues with great care, but get the tissues ready still.

Overall I’d highly recommend this one and can’t wait to go back and read Kennedy’s Off Campus series.

The Dixon Rule is the second book in the Campus Diaries series by Elle Kennedy. While it can technically be read as standalone this series features the second generation of her most well known series Off-Campus. I’d highly recommend checking out that series first and it will make this one much more enjoyable.

The Graham effect was about 2nd gen kids from the off campus series so I was a little dubious about a book that didn't follow that same idea but I absolutely loved it. The relationship between Shane and Diana was amazing, the tension was there right from the start. Instead of the just involving hockey it was amazing to see that dance played a part. The dance lessons between Shane and Diana really demonstrated the tension between these two characters. There were times that I would giggle and laugh out loud. Overall it was hard-core elle kennedy book, I love her writing and of course all her characters are so unique. At times I did think it was a little too Steamy but it did help the relationship develop.

Tropes include:
- Fake dating
- Sports romance
- Overcoming trauma
- Steamy 🌶🌶🌶🌶
- New adult romance
- Forced proximity

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book, all thoughts are my own.

ARC Review

5⭐️

Tropes~Enemies to lovers , forced proximity, fake dating, hockey romance

✨ The score and the Deal have always been my favourites but the Dixon rule has taken over, this is the best Elle Kennedy book I have read. The writing was incredible and took you through so many emotions and the plot was fun and interesting.

✨ Shane and Diana were great they clearly didn’t get along well at first but the tension was insane and I freaking loved the slow burn between them!! Their banter had me laughing so much and they were both just such strong fun characters on their own and together. The plot twist nearly broke me at the end but it was so great to see them get their happy ending!!

✨ I love all the side characters again and it’s so fun seeing the guys as parents now😂 we got introduced to Blake in this book and I already can’t wait to read about her and any future books in this series.

I would like to start by saying a huge thank you to NetGalley for my first ever arc, I’m not lying when I tell you I screamed with excitement over the acceptance email! Also this is my first ever actual book review so please be gentle!

I love every single book I’ve have read by Elle Kennedy, she is an incredible author and I am very excited to see what’s next!

This book made me laugh out loud “You have the ass of a marble statue” !
It made me cry multiple times, Percy is the worst person to exist inside an Elle Kennedy book! I love the fact the you meet so many people in The Graham Effect and they are still mentioned frequently throughout The Dixon Rule. I loved following all there relationships!

I have to admit I am desperate for a book on Will and Becks ‘relationship’, I feel like they would be the cutest couple ever!

Firstly, I just want to say thank you so much to NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read this arc. All thoughts are my own!

I was really excited for this one and I really enjoyed this book, even more than the first in this series thanks to the captivating development of our characters.

This book starts with cheerleader Diana Dixon, our outspoken fc who is who lives in an apartment building where her enemy and hockey player Shane Lindley moves in right next door. Naturally, she sets him some ground rules to survive the apartments which mostly means he will stay out of her way as much as humanely possible.

However, Shane is strung up on his ex-girlfriend despite his player status while Diana’s ex-boyfriend is refusing to take the hint so they pretend to be dating for their own agendas. Shane also agrees to help Diana with her dance competition when her partner pulls out last minute. They bicker fiercely and get under each other’s skin but the chemistry in undeniable with their flirty banter especially as they begin to explore the perimeters of what their fake relationship.

I much preferred this book to the first in this series, I just loved the build up from the rival to lovers trope, the spice was spicy and I just fell in love with the both of them. Diana is continuously hilarious while Shane keeps his wit to him. I will say this book is also heavier than it’s first with themes of physical abuse, anxiety/mental health and family loss so please look up the TW’s first. I will say these themes provided much more depth to the story overall.

This book also has me on edge between Will and Beckett. I need a book with them ASAP !!!

Overall, I love Diana and Shane so much and the way their hate transformed into them falling for one another alongside the witty banter that continues throughout the story. I miss them already.

This was a solid 4-star read.

I would say that it was a little clunky to start with trying to set the scene and the characters but I could forgive that once it got going.

The forced proximity and fake relationship trope is very well done and the comedy between Shane and Diana is hilarious when you add in the highly amusing condo they’re living in!

I felt the danger or threat of the ex-boyfriend got lost for quite a large chunk in the middle but then it did come back in spectacular fashion and was dealt with nicely. I could’ve used a little more just to put me more on edge as a reader.

Overall this was a really great read and so glad our couple, however unlikely, found their HEA!!

A fun and steamy campus romance, this is a brilliant read with well-rounded characters, an actual plot, and PLENTY of spice - it explores some really interesting sexual themes, too, rather than being raunchy for the sake of it. A thoroughly enjoyable read!