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New City #5
No Cure Required
Willow Morris lives with a disabling illness that’s changed her life, but events at home force her to make a break for a new life. Chadford promises so much for her, but a man, especially an intimidating one who reminds her of the past was the last thing she wanted.
Matt Denbridge has everything he needs but as a pansexual dominant, he struggles to connect with others. Meeting the vulnerable, sweet and beautiful Willow changes that, but she needs help and care, and he knows he's the one to give it to her.
When her past, and his ex catch up with them both, it threatens the delicate bond they have.
How can she reconcile her desire and submit to another man, and how can he convince her she’s safe?
Set in the fictional city of Chadford, it's a place for fresh starts and new adventures.
CONTENT WARNINGS: This book contains descriptions of coercive family behaviours and toxic relationships. Death. Infrequent moderate violence. Explicit BDSM sexual content, including restraints, anal, pain.
Written in UK English, the New City Series books are standalone novels that can be read in any order.
Matt Denbridge has everything he needs but as a pansexual dominant, he struggles to connect with others. Meeting the vulnerable, sweet and beautiful Willow changes that, but she needs help and care, and he knows he's the one to give it to her.
When her past, and his ex catch up with them both, it threatens the delicate bond they have.
How can she reconcile her desire and submit to another man, and how can he convince her she’s safe?
Set in the fictional city of Chadford, it's a place for fresh starts and new adventures.
CONTENT WARNINGS: This book contains descriptions of coercive family behaviours and toxic relationships. Death. Infrequent moderate violence. Explicit BDSM sexual content, including restraints, anal, pain.
Written in UK English, the New City Series books are standalone novels that can be read in any order.
- GenresRomance
424 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 11, 2019
3 people are currently reading
48 people want to read
About the author
Stefanie Simpson
24 books76 followersCoffee addled, twitter addicted, A disabled romance author based in the UK, Stefanie Simpson has written multiple contemporary romances as well as fantasy romance.
Most of her work contains angst, healing and conflict. Expect strong adult content and themes, language, explicit material, love and a HEA.
Most of her work contains angst, healing and conflict. Expect strong adult content and themes, language, explicit material, love and a HEA.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
December 4, 2019
To say I enjoyed reading this book would be to say that space is "pretty big" or that the Atlantic Ocean is "damp." Once I began reading No Cure Required, it was all I wanted to do. I stayed up too late before finally putting it down, and I snuck in reading time any time I wasn't completely occupied by something else (work, child, showering, etc.).
No Cure Required is a work of romance, but it's also a deep and unflinching work of character exploration, limitations, freedoms, and risks. We are treated to the inner workings of Willow's (the main character's) mind. The reader is given a stark, vivid image of the realities of disability and how it it is a very real and interwoven part of an identity that not enough abled individuals attempt to understand. They also don't always understand that while it is a part, it is not the entire person. There's no pandering to the needs of able-bodied individuals that seem to crave "inspirational" disabled people, but the demonstration of a person who is whole, who does not want pity, and who can very much fight her own battles. We also get to see the world of kink through her eyes, someone who was unfamiliar with the scene in general, and often misread or misinterpreted what might be going on. It invites the reader to learn without any judgement.
Then we have Matt, the individual who is more than willing and eager to get to know the mysterious, sometimes acidic but always attractive Willow. He admires her strength and her resilience, and finds himself drawn to her for them and, well, he's also very much attracted to her physically. Chemistry in many aspects is important! On top of that, he's caring, he longs to love and be loved, he's pan, and he's a dom. I'm confused as to how the author might make him more attractive (to me, at least).
The overarching plot and the characters around these two mains are also diverse, not only in heritage and beliefs, but also in their depth of development. Since this book is book 5 in the New City Series, I can only assume (hope? pray?) that some of them had been established in other stories. Clearly, I shall have to ready ALL OF IT to find out.
All-in-all, this was a really enjoyable read. It had kink, it had love, it had danger, and it had a loud-mouthed Aunt that I'm pretty sure will be me in a decade or two!
And as an aside, I thought how kink was represented was far more accurate than other descriptions, which seem to follow a money-grubbing, false formula in order to give wider audiences the shock of BDSM. This was a refreshing and healthy look into a world misunderstood by so many, and I'm appreciative to see this sort of depiction.
Were there some typos? Yes. Luckily, they weren't egregious enough (or at all, really) to break the flow of the writing, which was a steady, even paced romance (and yes, it had a good amount of steam) that I think I would recommend to anyone who enjoyed reading romance with a healthy amount of character development, disabled representation, lgbtq+ representation, well-written kink, and a very romantic (very realistic) Happily Ever After.
No Cure Required is a work of romance, but it's also a deep and unflinching work of character exploration, limitations, freedoms, and risks. We are treated to the inner workings of Willow's (the main character's) mind. The reader is given a stark, vivid image of the realities of disability and how it it is a very real and interwoven part of an identity that not enough abled individuals attempt to understand. They also don't always understand that while it is a part, it is not the entire person. There's no pandering to the needs of able-bodied individuals that seem to crave "inspirational" disabled people, but the demonstration of a person who is whole, who does not want pity, and who can very much fight her own battles. We also get to see the world of kink through her eyes, someone who was unfamiliar with the scene in general, and often misread or misinterpreted what might be going on. It invites the reader to learn without any judgement.
Then we have Matt, the individual who is more than willing and eager to get to know the mysterious, sometimes acidic but always attractive Willow. He admires her strength and her resilience, and finds himself drawn to her for them and, well, he's also very much attracted to her physically. Chemistry in many aspects is important! On top of that, he's caring, he longs to love and be loved, he's pan, and he's a dom. I'm confused as to how the author might make him more attractive (to me, at least).
The overarching plot and the characters around these two mains are also diverse, not only in heritage and beliefs, but also in their depth of development. Since this book is book 5 in the New City Series, I can only assume (hope? pray?) that some of them had been established in other stories. Clearly, I shall have to ready ALL OF IT to find out.
All-in-all, this was a really enjoyable read. It had kink, it had love, it had danger, and it had a loud-mouthed Aunt that I'm pretty sure will be me in a decade or two!
And as an aside, I thought how kink was represented was far more accurate than other descriptions, which seem to follow a money-grubbing, false formula in order to give wider audiences the shock of BDSM. This was a refreshing and healthy look into a world misunderstood by so many, and I'm appreciative to see this sort of depiction.
Were there some typos? Yes. Luckily, they weren't egregious enough (or at all, really) to break the flow of the writing, which was a steady, even paced romance (and yes, it had a good amount of steam) that I think I would recommend to anyone who enjoyed reading romance with a healthy amount of character development, disabled representation, lgbtq+ representation, well-written kink, and a very romantic (very realistic) Happily Ever After.
February 21, 2019
When I say this book moved me, I mean it. "No Cure Required" is a compelling, emotional, and steamy love story between two people who have faced different hardships in their lives, but experience incredible bliss when they come together.
Willow is a disabled young woman who has been through an incredible trauma at the hands of people she trusted and loved. She moves to a new city for a fresh start and meets Matt, a security professional who happens to be friends with her housemates.
OMFG let me just stop for a minute to talk about Matt...he's tall, dark, handsome, ripped, strong, caring, protective...pretty much every attractive quality a person can possess. He's also pan, which I love. There aren't very many romances that feature a male lead who identifies as anything other than straight. It's refreshing to see something different in this book. Lucky Willow gets to be carried by him when they first meet (she's exhausted from a long journey and he offers to carry her to the car...I mean, SWOON!!!). It's one of my all-time favorite meet-cutes in a book :)
Both of them feel an intense attraction to the other, but as with every romance, there are rough patches to work out. Willow is struggling to establish a life of her own after years of suffering under a domineering family and partner. Matt is an established professional, confident, together, but has a problematic ex to deal with.
When these two finally get together, oh my word is it hot! Their sub-dom dynamic is one of the most well-done I've ever read. There's so much meaning behind the roles they assume in the bedroom with each other, and the author chronicles it beautifully.
I also love how the author drew from her own experience with disability when writing Willow's character. It's encouraging to read a main character who experiences many of the same issues that real people do.
I can't recommend this book enough! It's an emotional rollercoaster ride for sure, but with a payoff at the end that will leave you utterly satisfied :)
Willow is a disabled young woman who has been through an incredible trauma at the hands of people she trusted and loved. She moves to a new city for a fresh start and meets Matt, a security professional who happens to be friends with her housemates.
OMFG let me just stop for a minute to talk about Matt...he's tall, dark, handsome, ripped, strong, caring, protective...pretty much every attractive quality a person can possess. He's also pan, which I love. There aren't very many romances that feature a male lead who identifies as anything other than straight. It's refreshing to see something different in this book. Lucky Willow gets to be carried by him when they first meet (she's exhausted from a long journey and he offers to carry her to the car...I mean, SWOON!!!). It's one of my all-time favorite meet-cutes in a book :)
Both of them feel an intense attraction to the other, but as with every romance, there are rough patches to work out. Willow is struggling to establish a life of her own after years of suffering under a domineering family and partner. Matt is an established professional, confident, together, but has a problematic ex to deal with.
When these two finally get together, oh my word is it hot! Their sub-dom dynamic is one of the most well-done I've ever read. There's so much meaning behind the roles they assume in the bedroom with each other, and the author chronicles it beautifully.
I also love how the author drew from her own experience with disability when writing Willow's character. It's encouraging to read a main character who experiences many of the same issues that real people do.
I can't recommend this book enough! It's an emotional rollercoaster ride for sure, but with a payoff at the end that will leave you utterly satisfied :)
March 20, 2019
If I had to choose one book for you to read out of the entire series of standalone novels, it would be THIS ONE. I just finished re-reading No Cure Required and Matt is still my favorite book boyfriend of all time!
Willow is escaping a toxic past when she meets Matt, who is just the BEST. He’s sensitive, caring, and a big teddy bear of scary when he needs to be. He’s desperate for a relationship, someone to love and care for, and Willow craves the safety he can provide.
No Cure Required is an enthralling tale of love and trust between two well-rounded characters I deeply care about. As an abled body person, this is an eye-opener, a window into the life of a disabled character I can empathize with, even if I can’t relate with every sensitive issue in this own voices tale.
Thank you, Stefanie, for sharing this with me and your readers. It will forever be a favorite of mine, one I will greedily read over and over. We need more books like this one!
Willow is escaping a toxic past when she meets Matt, who is just the BEST. He’s sensitive, caring, and a big teddy bear of scary when he needs to be. He’s desperate for a relationship, someone to love and care for, and Willow craves the safety he can provide.
No Cure Required is an enthralling tale of love and trust between two well-rounded characters I deeply care about. As an abled body person, this is an eye-opener, a window into the life of a disabled character I can empathize with, even if I can’t relate with every sensitive issue in this own voices tale.
Thank you, Stefanie, for sharing this with me and your readers. It will forever be a favorite of mine, one I will greedily read over and over. We need more books like this one!
April 15, 2019
I wanted to like this one. I really did. A heroine with fibro, a biracial pan Dom hero who wants to protect and take care of her -- what's not to love?
But frankly I was disappointed, bored, and mostly just underwhelmed by it all.
The book truly needed some stronger editing, IMO, not just for things like proofreading but for pacing and development as well. This story dragged on and on and though technically some shit happened a few times, it still just felt like 400 pages of absolutely nothing. It was almost painful to get through, it was so slow/uninteresting to me. I really should have just DNFed but I have a harder time DNFing when there's not some huge, glaring reason (problematic, harmful, etc.) so that's my fault for continuing even knowing that the book was never going to improve (for me).
I'm not entirely sure how I felt about the kink aspect, either, but that's not my expertise to chime in on. It's not BAD kink rep, at least not compared to some truly heinous examples I've read before. But it didn't feel quite right, either? IDK, it just left me feeling a bit uncomfortable in the end.
But frankly I was disappointed, bored, and mostly just underwhelmed by it all.
The book truly needed some stronger editing, IMO, not just for things like proofreading but for pacing and development as well. This story dragged on and on and though technically some shit happened a few times, it still just felt like 400 pages of absolutely nothing. It was almost painful to get through, it was so slow/uninteresting to me. I really should have just DNFed but I have a harder time DNFing when there's not some huge, glaring reason (problematic, harmful, etc.) so that's my fault for continuing even knowing that the book was never going to improve (for me).
I'm not entirely sure how I felt about the kink aspect, either, but that's not my expertise to chime in on. It's not BAD kink rep, at least not compared to some truly heinous examples I've read before. But it didn't feel quite right, either? IDK, it just left me feeling a bit uncomfortable in the end.
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March 19, 2019Content Warnings
I want to think more on this, before I review.
I want to think more on this, before I review.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 20, 2019
Amazing!
This book is beautifully written, and draws on many emotions! I recommend this book who loves solid romance ~ from the moment you start reading, you won't put it down!
This book is beautifully written, and draws on many emotions! I recommend this book who loves solid romance ~ from the moment you start reading, you won't put it down!
March 12, 2019
I love this series so much and this latest release is no exception. This novel delivers on everything I love about Simpson's writings:
- diverse cast of engaging and heartwarming characters
- intense emotional relationships/bonds built of respect and mutual consent
- loving, supportive female friendships
- strong female MCs rebuilding their lives on their own terms
- sex positivity!
- lots of playful banter and steamy sex scenes!
(This is a standalone novel and you don't need to have read the previous stories to enjoy BUT I WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND THEM.)
- diverse cast of engaging and heartwarming characters
- intense emotional relationships/bonds built of respect and mutual consent
- loving, supportive female friendships
- strong female MCs rebuilding their lives on their own terms
- sex positivity!
- lots of playful banter and steamy sex scenes!
(This is a standalone novel and you don't need to have read the previous stories to enjoy BUT I WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND THEM.)
June 27, 2020
Refreshing protagonist, feel good story
I admit, I've not read many books featuring a differently-abled character, though that's mostly my failing. I loved Willow and really felt close to her throughout the story. She's so strong and stubborn, determined to be independent. Experiencing the world from her point of view was refreshing and informative. It's a lovely, feel-good story. Oh, and kinky :)
I admit, I've not read many books featuring a differently-abled character, though that's mostly my failing. I loved Willow and really felt close to her throughout the story. She's so strong and stubborn, determined to be independent. Experiencing the world from her point of view was refreshing and informative. It's a lovely, feel-good story. Oh, and kinky :)
October 13, 2019
Do not recommend
November 12, 2019
Interesting to read a romance with this kind of heroine and hero together. Bit slow in places but I thought it worked for the story.
February 13, 2021
Chronic illness representation
I’ve enjoyed the whole series so far, but this book was special to me . Thanks to the author for the open and authentic depiction of living and falling in love while chronically ill.
I’ve enjoyed the whole series so far, but this book was special to me . Thanks to the author for the open and authentic depiction of living and falling in love while chronically ill.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews