Iced!: A Novel

by Judith Alguire

Follows the ups and downs of a professional women's ice hockey team, the Toronto Teddies Hockey Club, as they work to be taken seriously by skeptical fans and team owners

Genres: LGBT, Lesbian Fiction, Fiction

203 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1995

About the author

Judith Alguire is a Kingston, Ontario writer, whose novels include Pleasantly Dead, The Pumpkin Murders, A Most Unpleasant Wedding, and Peril at the Pleasant, all of which are part of the continuing Rudley Mystery series. Her short stories, articles, and essays have appeared in such publications as The Malahat Review and Harrowsmith, and she is a past member of the editorial board of the Kingston Whig-Standard. A graduate of Queen’s University, she has recently retired from nursing.

Reviews

[Nairne Holtz]

In Canada’s first (and only) lesbian hockey novel, protagonist Alison Gutherie, a former hockey star, accepts a coaching position with a Toronto team playing in the premier season of Canada’s first women’s professional hockey league where she learns coaching the team to peak performance on the ice is a simpler task than helping them cope with the many issues in their personal lives. Issues that include a stalker ex-husband, coming out, substance abuse, and inter-team romances and rivalries. Another challenge is the lackluster franchise owner, who regards the team as a stepping-stone for his own ambitions. Then there’s Alison’s attractions to a coach on the opposing team and a troubled member of her own team. Iced addresses issues of gender equality, sexism, and homophobia in sports with intelligence while also satisfying readers with no interest in hockey or team sports (that would be me!) who enjoy a realistic lesbian love story.

[Danie]

Eh... too much fact, not enough whimsey or flow. (And I'm usually wicked easy on Lezfics, so... :))