Three women. One fall break. One night that changes everything.
WhenMaya, Lily, and Hanna find themselves at home for fall break, none of them expect to stumble into something unforgettably soul-stirring—and steamy. What starts as a single night of unexpected passion soon becomes something deeper, something that lingers long after the leaves have fallen.
As senior year unfolds, the three can’t shake what they found in each other. Between last-minute commitments, shifting dreams, and the pressure of what comes next, they chase the spark of that night. Together, they begin to fit in ways they never have before... anywhere or with anyone.
But letting go means trusting each other enough to fall.
Let Them Fall is a tender, open-door FFF polyamorous romance about self-discovery, found family, and the courage to love beyond expectation. For mature readers.
ARC REVIEW TIME BABY!! I really enjoyed this book, I feel like I am constantly looking for books like this but I can never find it. It was so good, I highly recommend reading it when it comes out this December!!!
I want to first say THANK YOU so much to the author for giving me the honor of reading her first full-length debut novel before publication in exchange for an honest review. I am so glad I could do this ARC review.
Let Them Fall by Simone Holiday (Fall Series Book One)
I give this debut full novel five stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The author Simone Holiday is a Black queer author, and that representation alone deserves celebration. The more I support minority authors, the more enriched I become as a reader.
Who I Am as a Reader:
I am a mental health therapist and have been one for over twenty years. It is impossible for me not to see characters through the lens of psychology.
I am also a forty-eight-year-old lesbian, white, cisgender woman in a monogamous marriage and on the brink of perimenopause. I love reading stories about women, about women’s love, and about finding happy endings.
Who This Book Is For:
This is a New Adult sapphic romance centered around a poly relationship with three women.
I think sapphic, bisexual, and pansexual women in their early twenties, especially those in poly relationships, will strongly relate to this story. It is diverse, emotionally rich, and unafraid to explore mental health, racial inequities, and sexuality with honesty and emotion.
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ but very well balanced with emotion and connection.
This is not a smut book. It is a story filled with emotional connection, exploration, expression, and love. The vibes are strong. The sexual content fits the story and feels natural to the relationships.
The women’s sexuality is explored in a safe and consensual way that makes sense for who they are.
Many people assume a poly romance means endless spice, but that is not what this story is. It is about three young women exploring and building a loving relationship together, and that is what impressed me most.
There are some small kinks mentioned, like a “good girl” dynamic, but it fits the characters and tone naturally. It never feels overdone or out of place.
Perspective as a Mature Reader:
When reading New Adult romance, which often features people around twenty two years old, I think it is important to remember how much this stage of life involves exploring sexuality and learning self expression.
As a forty eight year old woman, I kept that in mind while reading.
Just because a story does not represent me right now does not mean it is not valuable. In fact, I grow more as a person when I read stories that are different from my own life.
Honestly, I just kept thinking that I wish I was still as flexible as these young women! 😂😝
But truly, I loved how this book supports young women exploring and expressing their sexuality in safe and healthy ways. That is exactly what this story models.
✨ Poly romance with three women. There is not enough of this in sapphic fiction that is not focused only on spice.
✨ Bisexuality is represented with honesty and realism. The confusion, self discovery, and complexity of bisexual identity are shown with care.
✨ Pansexuality is also represented with depth and understanding.
✨ One character is Chinese American and her experience with conservative Christian parents is written in a way that feels completely authentic.
✨ Another character is biracial, and her struggles with identity and stereotypes are addressed directly. She shows both vulnerability and confidence.
✨ The third character is a soft masc white woman from a wealthy family that owns an orchard in Vermont. Her role as the logistical glue of the relationship makes sense, and her growth throughout the story ended up being my favorite part.
✨ Anxiety is portrayed perfectly. As a therapist, I can say this representation is incredibly accurate. The author clearly understands how anxiety operates in relationships, and it is woven in with so much compassion and realism.
The depiction of the poly relationship itself is one of the strongest I have read.
These women meet and grow together as a unit, and that kind of story is not shown often. In my work with poly families, I have noticed that relationships which begin as a group tend to be stronger and more balanced, and that is exactly what this story reflects.
The author includes all the elements of a healthy poly relationship:
✨ Open and honest communication
✨ Clear boundaries and rules
✨ Ongoing consent
✨ Mutual support and emotional safety
I was cheering out loud every time one of these themes appeared.
The pacing made perfect sense. It begins with how they met, how they connected, and how they stayed in touch, allowing the story to develop naturally.
Each woman is given her own depth and individuality. That is a difficult thing to achieve with three main characters, but it was done beautifully. I have read fantasy novels that did not handle character development this well.
The writing style is modern, accessible, and easy to follow. Since this was an ARC, there were small editing issues, but that is completely normal. The author has mentioned that final edits are being made before publication.
I loved all three women equally, which says a lot about the author’s skill. Each one felt real and emotionally layered. The growth of their relationship into a true family was touching.
By the end, it became more than attraction. It became about found family, trust, and choosing love every day.
As a therapist, I found myself thinking how real this felt. It was like reading about an actual client family growing together in therapy.
I also want to remind readers to be mindful about judging this story without understanding poly relationships. Polyamory is still one of the least accepted relationship types in our culture, but this story portrays it as valid, beautiful, and healthy. That deserves appreciation and respect.
There was a situation involving two of the women’s mothers that did not feel completely resolved, but since the cover says “Book One,” I am hopeful that will be explored more in the next book.
I cannot wait to see where this young family goes next!
Let Them Fall is everything I want to see more of in sapphic fiction. It is diverse, emotional, honest, and filled with realistic love.
Simone Holiday has written a debut that is powerful and heartfelt. I am grateful that I had the chance to read it early, and I will absolutely be reading whatever comes next in this series. ✨
When this book popped up on my Instagram I just had to put my name down for an ARC! - and I'm really glad I did!
As an author myself, I was a bit nervous about being an ARC reader, but I will say that I have created an author friendly rating system which works for me, and I always keep in mind with anything I read (and write!) reviews are for readers!!!
So for me, a 5 star read is one I would 100% reread. It's gotta be something which completely blows me away. It's for when the characters have me laughing out loud, or sobbing hysterically, or even just making me gasp and have to read on!
4 stars, I give a lil more wiggle room - I enjoyed it but wouldn't re-read. The characters are well-written though I may or may not fully connect with them or their story. I felt compelled to read on at parts, but I could put it down if I wanted to.
3 stars (would not post publicly) I thought it was just ok. I could read on, or I could put it down and walk away.
2 stars (would not post publicly) It was pretty bad, but not offensive.
1 star (would not post publicly) I genuinely wish I could unread it. It makes me mad/it's offensive/there's some sort of twist or something happens right at the end which ruins EVERYTHING.
This story definitely falls into the "4 Star" category!!
There was ample representation, and decent character development for all three MCs. The spicy scenes didn't seem overdone or undercooked! I mostly could remember whose head I was in after being given the named chapter heading - though sometimes I got confused with the secondary characters/parents etc and whose dynamics belonged to whom! (but that could just be a me thing!) I liked the nicknames and the banter! I liked that it wasn't all sunshine and roses (but it also had plenty of that too!) ... and overall I think this is a fabulous debut, and I wish the author all the best!!!
To the author, thank you again for letting me read your story!!!
I did enjoy this book. It took a little time getting into, but once I got into it, I was set. I do felt it was a little rushed at the end. Overall, a very good book, I can't wait for more in the series for sure.
I was hoping to love this book so much as it’s queer and is the first book I’ve read about a polyamorous relationship, which is so exciting! However, the book started to fall flat for me from the first few chapters.
Of course, every poly dynamic is formed differently and while this dynamic starts with sex between people who have literally just met, it would have been really nice to see these 3 women genuinely get to know each other. A lot of their early interactions were sex-filled, which is fine but then led to me feeling like their relationship was based only on sex instead a true, deep connection independent from their sex lives with one another. I think what also didn’t help was the fact that we only really see these characters when they’re altogether (they’re in a long distance relationship for majority of the book), so we don’t get to truly see how they interact when that distance is there. Having chapters where they’re not all together maybe would’ve given us more chapters to get to know them better or the characters themselves getting to know each other better instead of us as readers being told what each of their qualities are. To be honest, I haven’t really seen anyone else mention this in their reviews so this may just be a personal gripe of mine but I believe it’s still worth mentioning.
That aside, the representation of different identities felt nice - particularly one character’s navigation through the internal and external acceptance of her bisexuality was interesting to see.
At the time of reading, the book needs A LOT of proofing and editing as there are typos galore and this made the reading experience a lot less enjoyable for me - though I hope these will be fixed by the release date!
TW: Sexual Content, (Minor Mentions of:) Infidelity, Biphobia
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Thank you to the author, Simone Holiday for the ARC!
I am not going to lie, it took a while for me to get into the book. I felt like all the women were doing were hooking up. But as I got more through the story, I realized it was kind of like world building. The author was building their relationship. I imagine it is hard to do with three love interests vs two. So yes, it was a slow start and I will be honest, it didn’t pick up until around the 60% mark, but it got a LOT better!
It is hard to build up three MCs and give them depth. I believe the author was able to do this, but I would have liked a little more. The story did get better once the throuple was established. I did find myself wanting to know what happened next in their story and that kept me reading.
I feel like the ending was pretty quick and it felt incomplete. All of a sudden, it was over. Let Them Fall was a good story that ultimately had a lot of potential but I feel like it feel flat. I appreciated the commentary and outlook on race and being an adoptee. That is important and not talked about enough. This was also an ARC, so mistakes in editing were to be expected. I would definitely recommend a few more revisions.
Overall, Let Them Fall kept me interested but wanting more.
Let Them Fall follows Maya, whose parents have just gone through a divorce; Lily, the unofficial poster child for queerness in her hometown; and Hanna, a baby bi who knows exactly what she wants. The three of them come together one night, though Hanna and Lily already share a bit of history, and from that moment on, their relationship grows into something none of them ever expected.
This story is incredibly character-driven, and the representation throughout is genuinely impeccable. We get lesbian, pansexual, bisexual, and polyamorous representation, alongside Asian and Black rep as well. All three main characters feel real and raw as we watch them navigate their identities and figure out how those pieces fit together within their polycule.
Lily ended up being my favorite for a lot of reasons, but mainly because of how strong she is without even realizing it.
The story is fast-paced and easy to follow, making it a really enjoyable read. If you’re looking for cute sapphic representation, this book delivers — not a man in sight. There’s a small amount of angst in the form of jealousy, but it’s handled in a healthy, non-toxic way, which is always refreshing.
I really do recommend this book if you like character driven stories.
This was my first sapphic poly book, and it did not disappoint.
This story holds so much depth within its pages. Black biracial identity, adoption, polyamory, bisexuality/pansexuality representation, and more. I fell in love with all three FMCs for different reasons, and they were each well developed. I was thoroughly impressed by the author’s ability to tackle discussions of serious topics while also creating a sweet, soft love story between three multi-faceted women.
I will definitely be checking out more from this author in the future!
Some of my favorite quotes:
“In a small town that liked to think of itself as liberal, differences were exchanged as social currency. You were allowed to have just one depending on what it was, how interesting it made you, how edgy.”
“Now, can we get to the copious amounts of gay sex? You know, as a big fuck you to the current status of the Sunshine State?”
“This didn’t come from something ugly, I am in love, it’s really beautiful. I need you to understand that.”
“Mom, I am a Black, queer woman in a country that loves to remind me it doesn’t care. Shouldn’t I be holding onto all of the love and positivity I can? Life is too short not to.”
First, Simone, thank you for bringing this story to life. What a subject to tackle with such grace and truth. I love that we had to walk through the difficult with the characters. Each one had very distinct personalities and situations. There voices weren't always decipherable but personalities did shine through. I did find it weird the language they used being in their early 20s. They felt more mature like in their 30s/40s than young adults. For instance, a 20 something worried about back pain with no prior issues-no ma'am. It felt like a YA story written for a mature audience. Also a few of the social issues felt under researched. Harvard has quite a few black student organisations and a nice population of black and brown students, so I found it interesting that in 4 years Maya had not found her group. The same with geography. NE americans don't use "y'all". Also, quite a few editing issues.
Overall, the story itself was well done and fleshed out. It was those smaller things that made parts of the story unbelievable to me.
I received an ARC copy-thank you, Simone!
can't wait to read the other books in this series.
I was interested in this book because it is not a relationship structure I know anything about and I have found that sapphic writers approach these types of story lines in a compassionate manner, which I am huge appreciative of; and this book was no exception.
I had always thought that a polygamous relation would leave one person (at least) feeling left out, however this book addressed the issue well and showed that as long as everyone approaches situations with love and kindness, that anything can be talked through, and, whatever happens, will be the best out come for you.
This is a lovely, sexy, thoughtful, and though proving story. I can not wait to see where the inter connecting stories go, and I assume (I say hopefully) that we will be treated, in these stories, to updates on all the characters we have already met and fallen in love with.
Thank you Ms Holiday for the chance to read this ARC. This book was a joy to read and explore. I am looking forward to the next instalment, when you are ready (I read every word, including the acknowledgements and Instagram updates).
This is a really good spicy, poly, sapphic book by a debut author!
I really enjoyed this book! It starts off with a one night stand between Maya, Hanna and Lily and then follows their relationship develop!
I loved that each of the women got their own POV chapters as it allows you to see each of their perspectives and their history! Each character has their own history that contributes to the story and the relationship. The author doesn’t shy away from this either.
I love how the author acknowledges that triad relationships are not easy and shows the characters talking about the relationship and the dynamics to make it work. It’s nice to see this and to not just hand wave this aspect of a poly relationship.
I also love the diversity representation in this book! It was very well done!
I can’t wait to read more by Simone Holiday!
Thank you to the author for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Lately, I have been reading a lot of MM books, mostly because it’s hard for me to find some really good FF/FFF books. But this one did not disappoint. When it popped up on my insta and reading the little blurb I was instantly intrigued. Not only did this book hit all my sapphic-loving happy places, but it also brought some DIVERSITY, and some polyamory in there. This story was so real, and I loved the way the characters developed throughout the story. Each of the girls, Maya, Lily, and Hanna all have their own things theyre working through, but I really enjoyed how one night allows them to build into something sooo cute! I’m excited to see what else this series brings.
Lily, Hanna, and Maya will capture your hearts while they fall in love with each other. As they navigate their Senior year of college, their new found feelings, their families, and what it means to not only be polyamorous but in a close polycule, they find solace in each other and what they are building together. Set between Boston, an orchard in Vermont, and other New England areas, you will feel the cozy vibes of the scenery. This book has so much to offer! Totes recommend giving it a shot! Fall in love with Lillth, Hanna Banana and Papaya Maya in this found family story. 3.5/5 🌶
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I came into this expecting smut (which is absolutely okay, I love smut!) but it has a surprising amount of depth and the author does a lot of delving into the dynamics between each of the women and the way they fit together, I love it.
I especially loved the exploration of identity for both Maya and Hanna.
Thanks so much for writing this, we don’t have enough poly F/F books in the world
This was the perfect sapphic poly pallette cleanser after two pretty heavy books and I fell in love with these 3 baddasses who navigate this new love and won’t let anyone tell them how to while they figure it out. And the twist at the end I need book 2!
Let Them Fall is a why choose sapphic romance. Maya, Lily and Hanna happen to be in the same place during their Fall break. After seizing a very unexpected opportunity, the trio decides to continue hooking up whenever they can get together. Over time they realize that they want more from each other even if that means facing the judgement of their small town and families. I was super excited to get this ARC but honestly, this one was kind of a flop for me. I was bored for most of the book. I did like the representation in the book whether it be race or sexual orientation. I did appreciate that each of the main characters had a different experience coming out. In terms of spice, I felt like there were so many spicy scenes but they were brief and the scenes were super vague. Graphic spice scenes are not necessary in my opinion but it didn’t make sense to me to have SO many moments where they got together just to glaze over it. The romance in general didn’t really give me the feels. I think it was a decent effort but it just fell flat for me.
Let Them Fall by Simone Holiday is a sapphic polyamory romance that follows three young women as they navigate love, trust, and identity within a newly forming triad. I received an ARC and was genuinely excited about the premise — the queer representation is meaningful, and it’s a dynamic I don’t often see explored in romance reads.
While I appreciated the concept and the emotional themes, the story moved a bit slowly for me, and I struggled to stay fully engaged. The third-person POV, especially spread across three female characters, occasionally made it hard to track perspectives, which in turn made it difficult to form the deeper character connection I typically look for in my reads.
Overall, this was a 3.5-star read — a thoughtful premise with strong potential.