Stayed Up ‘Til 5 AM for Shane & Diana—and Zero Regrets

The Dixon Rule by Elle Kennedy

I had been bombarded with Instagram spoilers about how this book would wreck me emotionally, and guess what? They were absolutely right—I was a sobbing mess by the end.

Now, let me say, this one took me a little longer to warm up to than your usual Elle Kennedy novel. But trust me, it’s a “trust the process” kind of book. Did I devour it like I did with Gigi and Ryder’s story? Nope. But was it still worth the hype? Absolutely. A solid four-star read, no question. Shane and Diana? Total gems. Their banter? Chef’s kiss. Sure, there were a few parts where my attention wandered, but overall, it delivered.

And let’s talk about this line:"You have no idea how much I love you. It's almost pathetic. Never saw it coming, Dixon. But you're everything to me. I don't know when it happened, but it's true. You're the heartbeat of my days. You're the reason I look forward to tomorrow. I honestly never thought I’d find someone who understands me so completely.”

Yeah, that line? Had me clutching my chest like a melodramatic rom-com heroine.

The banter was on point from chapter one and somehow kept leveling up as the story went on. And those little cameos from the other characters? Absolute perfection. Ryder and Gigi stole the show with scenes like this:“RYDER: Me personally? Fuck no. But lemme ask the wife. If she wants to go, I’ll go. BECKETT: Wow. RYDER: Wow what? BECKETT: That woman owns you now. You realize that, right, mate? RYDER: Yes and?” Iconic.

The chemistry between Shane and Diana was off the charts from the start. And the running joke about booting Shane from the group? Gold. Pure gold.

Also, shoutout to the balance in this book. The romance, the spice, the emotional depth—it all blended perfectly. And the fact that there was no third-act breakup? Bless. Every time I thought, “Oh, here it comes,” the story went in a better direction.

The saying "Enemies to lovers and suddenly it's 3 a.m." because you can’t put it down? More like 5 a.m. for me. Once I hit the 70% mark, there was no stopping. Sure, a hectic work week kept me away at first, but the moment I had free time, I binged the rest in one night. Sleep? Who needs it when you have this book?

Now, I’m counting down the days until the third book drops. Bring it on!

Tropes:

•Hockey player x Cheerleader

•Summer Romance

•Dom/sub (👀)

•Frenemies with benefits

•Dual POV

•Enemies to Lovers

•Slow burn

•Hockey Romance

•Fake dating

•"Who did this to you"

•Reversed Grumpy x Sunshine

Trigger Warnings:

Domestic Abuse (on page), Gaslighting, cancer, assualt, grief and death of a parent.

Ratings: 4.5/5