ESPN:
"BookTok" is a commonly used TikTok hashtag by content creators who want to discuss, review or promote books. A subset of that community focuses on hockey romance novels, with some users fixating on actual NHL players as proxies for fictional characters.
...
Last winter, the Kraken's social media team embraced the hockey BookTok community's interest in their players. The Kraken changed their TikTok bio to "Mostly BookTok" and began publishing videos that targeted that audience. Some featured players like Wennberg and defenseman Vince Dunn walking in slow motion before games while wearing business suits, with captions like "when you accidentally become a BookTok account and now that's all you can post."
...
Alex Wennberg published his own statement a few days later, citing backlash that his wife had received for "speaking up about sexual harassment on TikTok" in her comments. He noted "vile comments" on Felicia Wennberg's Instagram, including on photos of their 2-year-old son.
...
as of Monday, the Kraken had archived any media that referenced BookTok, removing images and videos from all public social media feeds.
I think Felicia Wennberg is an amazing woman and I hope you guys take some time to read what she has to say and reflect on how some of the things you say publicly make actual people feel pic.twitter.com/9f05uwOqbN
— Nicole (@NicoleCutmore) July 28, 2023
Here's a long tiktok about the matter by an author of hockey-themed romance novels including "Pucking Around" ("a spicy ‘why choose’ hockey romance") and "Pucking Wild" (a spicy MF reverse age gap hockey romance)--she says it's about the common problem of abstraction, where celebrities stop being perceived as genuine humans:
@emilyrathbooks I’ve turned off the duet/stitch function and comments so this statement can simply be exactly as it is. I love my reader community and I love and respect the wonderful hockey community I’ve fostered with teams around the world. Let’s all treat others with respect and kindness ❤️ #emilyverse #emilyrathbooks #jacksonvillerays #jacksonvilleraysseries #puckingaround #sportsromance #hockeyromance #hockeytok ♬ original sound - Dr. Emily Rath | Author