Mature, Magnificent, Master piece

This is only my second lesbian romance and it was so perfect! There is nothing quite like the love story of 2 mature, sorted women and Alexandria has beautifully captured this in her brilliant book! And strangely I found a way to put my own love story into words through this book.

/5

SYNOPSIS ->

After a disastrous blind date, Darcy Lowell is desperate to stop her well-meaning brother from playing matchmaker ever again. Love—and the inevitable heartbreak—is the last thing she wants. So she fibs and says her latest set up was a success. Darcy doesn’t expect her lie to bite her in the ass.

Elle Jones, one of the astrologers behind the popular Twitter account Oh My Stars, dreams of finding her soul mate. But she knows it is most assuredly not Darcy… a no-nonsense stick-in-the-mud, who is way too analytical, punctual, and skeptical for someone as free-spirited as Elle. When Darcy’s brother—and Elle’s new business partner—expresses how happy he is that they hit it off, Elle is baffled. Was Darcy on the same date? Because… awkward.

Darcy begs Elle to play along and she agrees to pretend they’re dating. But with a few conditions: Darcy must help Elle navigate her own overbearing family during the holidays and their arrangement expires on New Year’s Eve. The last thing they expect is to develop real feelings during a faux relationship. But maybe opposites can attract when true love is written in the stars?

REVIEW->

The Plot->

With a fake dating trope, the book does not follow any of the conventional paths a story like this would usually take. It is refreshing with Elle and Darcy actually being very communicative and not letting the cliché “misunderstanding” seep in. The turn of events that drew them close was crafted very lifelike, and I liked how I could easily get lost in the story. Darcy‘s brother Brendon plays a crucial supporting role in the story and his protectiveness while knowing boundaries is very respectable. This book has it all -> strong female friendships for both Darcy and Elle, self acceptance, standing up for yourself and a steamy romance to vie for!

The Writing ->

Alexandria brought Elle and Darcy to life wonderfully with her words. Peppered with excerpts from the characters’ text messages, the writing style is the major reason for the success of the story. The dialogs and thoughts were funny and to the point, keeping me totally engaged.

The Characters->

Elle and Darcy are perfect contrasts and yet they complement each other perfectly. Elle’s character was multi layered and spoke to me strongly. Her inner monologues reveal so much depth about her and essentially built the stability of her character. Darcy is the more complex one, wrestling with her inner demons and her ARC as she progresses from closed off and insecure to trusting and open was very well orchestrated.

Brandon‘s character doesn’t have much growth here, but her next book “Hang The Moon” is all about him and I can’t wait for it. The book ends on a bang with the great grand gesture and is an absolutely delightful treat.

This was my perfect holiday read and I highly highly encourage you to gift yourself this read.

Thank you Avon Books for gifting me a copy of this book.

Favorite quotes from the book->

“Darcy’s jaw tickled, her ability to tolerate bullshit slim, her ability to tolerate condescension worse.”

“Elle was the exception to so many rules it made her head spin.”

“Anticipation married to promise, satisfaction guaranteed, only a matter of time.”

“Elle wasn’t looking for easy. Elle wanted right.”