Older, married, and straight, Scarlet has been Neera’s forbidden crush for years. Now single and out, she is still breathtaking and still Neera’s mom best friend. Will she always be off limits?
Heartbroken. Jobless. Forced to move back home. This Christmas came with all sorts of gifts Neera didn’t want. At least her impossible, teenage crush on her mom’s best friend is a thing of the past. Right?
Wrong.
The moment Neera lays eyes on Scarlet again, her old feelings burst to the surface. Scarlett is still the same golden-haired goddess who robbed Neera of her breath years ago. And she’s just as married - and straight.
Or is she?
Finally free from her unhappy marriage, Scarlet is done hiding. She’s gay. And eager to embrace it. What she isn’t prepared for is the hurricane that tears through her life – and heart - Neera. She’s nothing like Scarlet remembers. Gone is the rebellious teen. In her place is a gorgeous woman with killer-curves and a smile that lights up the world.
She’s everything Scarlet wants. And she’s off limits. Until Neera makes the first move, and the chemistry between the two is impossible to resist.
Can Neera convince Scarlet to love again? Can Scarlet overcome her fears? Or will the taboo of their forbidden romance tear them apart forever?
Alexa Woods is a romance author living a quaint life in Massachusetts. After a lifetime of creating stories in her head, Alexa decided to write them down and share them with her readers. Her novels are about strong and fascinating women finding their happily ever afters.
When she's not writing, she is an avid reader of romance books or spending time with her family, her troublemaking dog, and her sphinx cat that surely thinks he's a dog, too
Subscribe to Alexa’s newsletter for news, exclusive content, freebies, and sneak peeks! http://eepurl.com/hfEEHf
It wasn’t an exceptional story and all that, but it was an enjoyable age gap romance and a nice way to spend the afternoon. Neera and Scarlet have an amazing chemistry and I love how they handled everything and how communicative they always were with each other and how they never tried to hide their relationship from Neera’s mom who’s also Scarlet’s best friend. It was a bit tricky for them to navigate those waters, but I’m glad everything turned out well in the end 🥰
I did not review this at first, because it needed to sink in for a moment to get a clear idea what to say.
In actual fact I want to change my rating to five stars for the following reasons. This book puts the finger on so many bigotries, I can hardly cope.
As a transgender woman I would have been subjected to the general conscription in Germany, had I not become a conscientious objector, which was hard enough in itself. For my service I opted for the Red Cross Ambulance Service in Hamburg, which means I went through a training similar to that of Neera, with the difference, that at the age of nineteen I actually was in charge of peoples lives in my ambulance, something that only may happen to an emergeny room nurse in a dire emergency, when no more doctors are available.
Any woman trained and experienced like Neera, I swear, is more mature through her experiences than any other woman twice her age or more! Been there, done that.
The next thing? Which "normal" heterosexual parents would think it strange, if their 23 year old daughter confessed to ave fallen in love with a 38 year old man, even if he was their recently divorced neighbour? Nobody would comment negatively on that, so why, if the lady in question is lesbian and in love with a fifteen years older woman? Bigotry at its finest, I say.
Even if I did not like other of this authors works, this is a courageous and valid effort to describe something controversial but at the same time absolutely natural. For that alone I am willing to give five stars, but I also very much enjoyed the perfectly credible romance between Neera and Scarlet a lot.
“I’ve tried not to love you and I’ve failed. I failed the first day I realized what it was, and I failed all the other days after.”
This was almost a DNF, but not for any big reason? I just didn't like the writing and the characters had almost no chemistry and I was given no compelling reason to root for this romance. It's an age gap, mother's best friend romance, which I don't think I've read before, but I like age gaps and I was 100% on board with the idea and willing to be convinced. It just wasn't very convincing! Neera has been in love with Scarlet, her mother's high school bff, since she was young. After being away for the past five years, she moves back home to find out that Scarlet is recently divorced and newly out. Scarlet, meanwhile, is mildly horrified to find herself seeing her friend's daughter in a new light, but they have this supposedly electric connection that can't be ignored.
My first problem was that, again, I didn't really believe in their attraction or romance, not the way it was written. For Neera, it felt like a crush that she was blowing out of proportion, and for Scarlet, it felt so so sudden and unexplained. I didn't mind the taboo-ness of it (that's why I picked it up) but there was no spark or intensity. I also didn't like the writing very much, other than a few lines here and there. Especially the dialogue; both Neera and Scarlet had the habit of making long speeches/pronouncements that were supposedly profound, but it just made me think, 'no one talks like that.' It was hot and the conflict wasn't handled quite as predictably as I expected, but in general this lacked the good development and romantic spark that would have made me really like it. I really like the IDEA of it, the forbidden nature, a long held crush that you can't get rid of no matter how you try, and how that matures into love but... the execution didn't nail it.
So, definitely not like, a bad book. But I didn't like it much.
I enjoyed this story. Neera was moving back home across country after a break up with her girlfriend. She had been gone for a couple of years, but she found she was still strongly attracted to her mother's best friend. Scarlet had recently gotten a divorce and come out as a lesbian, so Neera took that as a sign that they were meant to be. They had great chemistry together, but there was a lot of *we shouldn't do this* throughout the story on Scarlet's side. Fortunately everything worked out in the end. It was a good story overall.
1.5 stars. I liked the concept of this one and there were enough cute moments that an extra half star is warranted but it felt like it was rushed to completion or maybe just didn’t get the attention it deserved from the author.
My biggest issue with this story is how poorly it handles conflict. It creates this platform for the antagonistic characters to be cartoonishly awful to one of the main characters, accept no responsibility for their own behaviour, exhibit no character development or emotional growth and instead of participating equally in repair of this relationship conflict, fully expect the target of their vitriol to do 100% of the bridge building. Scarlett is basically an anxious doormat for everyone but her taboo girlfriend to abuse freely while she people pleases as much as she can in the hope that her bullies will forgive her for…existing? Loving women? I get that her best friend’s daughter is the taboo here but there’s never a single moment where someone apologises or even recognises that they acted poorly which makes the reconciliation feels forced and unsatisfying as well as setting a subtle undertone to the whole book that leaves a bad aftertaste.
The way the story fits together feels unrefined like it was a conceptual piece that was hammered out in a day and never got a much needed editing. The pacing and story structure felt haphazard and there were many story elements that competed for the same role almost like the author had several ideas for each and didn’t end up actually picking what should stay and what should be cut so it all kind of floats around together.
The dialogue in this story consists almost entirely of very unrealistic exposition and dramatic speeches. There’s some really terrible exposition in here too. Imagine if someone explained an interaction to you, that you’d not only been part of but actually had with that very same person. It’s so bad.
Overall it was a bit of a slog to get through and a read that squandered the cute romance potential of the concept while giving off mild men-writing-women vibes. If I didn’t have difficulty leaving books unfinished it would have been a DNF.
I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about this particular romantic trope. I’ve been best friends with my best friend since we’ve been twelve years old. I have two daughters and she has one of each. I wondered if I would be ok with my best friend dating one of my daughters. I am not sure. But I think as much as she loves me, then there would be no way that their relationship wouldn’t be for keeps, forever. That’s a big risk and big ask for temporarily dating or whatever.
What I loved most is that while filled with some scrumptious sex scenes, more importantly it was filled with deep and intense conversations and discussions. It’s rarer to find books with this much heartfelt and very wonderful and meaningful conversations taking place. It helped get to the core and depth of feelings. I understood what Scarlet and Neera both were thinking. I am also grateful that it was told from both perspectives. I always love those.
And Scarlet was quite the talker and I loved her take charge in the bedroom persona.
When it was revealed that for more than 7 years that Neera had been in love with Scarlet and when Scarlet first saw Neera again after about five years of absence and really “noticed” her, I knew it was over for the both of them. It catapulted the inevitable to come to fruition. It was their natural conclusion. And the talking and helping each other in the process made this all the more beautiful.
This story will stay with me forever and I will reread this beautiful love affair for years to come.
Disclaimer: I have a cold and I've taken so many medications I might not be in my right mind. Bear with.
Objectively, this is not a great story. This was a guilty pleasure - something I enjoyed even though I am aware of its glaring problems. Here's the thing, as a former youth who loved older women I've got an inherent bias for age-gap romance. Now I'm an older woman that is "age appropriate" for older women and I still love them.
So, with my dirty bias hanging out there, one of the things I liked about this story is the fight scene all readers will know is coming if they read the synopsis. It's simultaneously sad and funny, and it felt like an accurate portrayal of the situation. The author does a good job providing an emotional landscape throughout the journey and it is the strongest element.
My criticisms - and I'm beginning to feel like a broken record player while writing reviews - are editing, spelling, grammar, sentence structure, and pacing. These are the bones of a story, but it needed more meat for the romance to gain depth. It often feels like scenes don't transition in a natural way.
Still, Woods put words to paper and I stuck around until the end. So, it's good enough for some light reading, but just barely. If age-gap romances aren't something you enjoy, you're better off investing your eyes in something else.
This is the 4th book that I have read by Alexa Woods and found each to be very enjoyable. What I like most about each, is that they are not imitations of each other with different names, settings and locations. So many romance authors find a successful formula and stick with it for far too long. This is and age gap romance that does not test one’s imagination. The characters deal with the problems created by emotions that are not uncommon to coming out and first serious relationships. I sometimes get out off when the younger character comes off as far more mature than the older character she is pursuing. Neera, the younger character sometimes spouts wisdom far beyond her age, but it is the result of a very bight and truly romantic character whose maturity actually comes off as believable. One last comment. I think this story gives great attention and appreciation to the bonds and obligations which true friendship requires. This was a truly endearing story. 🌹🌹🌹
3 stars. The writing really hindered this which is unfortunate because I was all in with the plot and the characters. This is a mom’s best friend romance which I love but it never reaches its full potential.
Neera has been in love with her mom’s best friend, Scarlett, for years. Scarlett is recently divorced from her asshole ex husband and has come out as a lesbian. She’s never looked at Neera like that but once Neera moves back home to her mother’s house Scarlett notices her for the first time. I really liked their chemistry a lot and I found both characters to be likable. Neera goes for what she wants whereas Scarlett is a lot more timid and tends to hold back. They balanced each other out really well. I liked the sexual tension between them and there were some really good sex scenes. I also appreciate that once everything is revealed to Neera’s mother that there’s no third act breakup.
The ending was corny as hell but I mean that in a good way. It’s cheesy. Overall, I liked the plot and the characters but the execution needed work.
Ok, this one took me a little while to wrap my head around. Generally I love the age gap and the best friends mom trope, and I think in general, I'd be fine with the mom's friend trope. I think what got me was how many times they actually referenced that Scarlett was there when she was born and she watched her grow up and remembered things about her as a young child that kept me from being all in for this one. I did also feel like it could have been a little longer to become more developed. I felt like everything kind of happened quickly and things just skipped ahead a little fast for my liking. I did enjoy it, but just wasn't a favorite of mine. I will try out more of her books in the future.
Neera had her heart broken, her supposed girlfriend was caught pleasuring someone who was not Neera. Arriving home Neera found that the person she left home to forget is now single. One problem, that person, Scarlet was 15 years older than her. Needs is a nurse and trained as a ER nurse. Able to make quick decisions and smooth a child finger. Circumstances presented themselves where Needs tells Scarlet how she really feels toward her. Unfortunately Scarlet is Neera mom bff. Enjoy the tale of feelings at first of betrayal, disappointment and ultimately acceptance, we hope.
I love Alexa Woods writing. This book was no exception. Neera and her ever lasting love for Scarlet. Scarlet and her realization that the young girl she watched grow, that left five years ago came back a stunning woman. And the most amazing, supporting and loving Mom on this planet. Great read about loving who you love.
I've read a lot of books of this genre. Most are short and focus on the love scenes more than the emotional aspect of the characters. This book was totally different. It focused on the love two people have for each other and what they are willing to go through to keep it and to keep each other. This author is awesome!
This was an interesting "take" on the age gap style stories......nothing like daughter falling for Mum's bestie to set the cat amongst the pigeons but I like that the youngest managed the communication is such a mature and "modern day" way........and in the end that communication proved priceless! A great read.
Authenticity comes even later in life of you give yourself permission to be. This story depicts the many layers of true emotion, friendship and a love that deserves a happily ever after.
Sometimes in life your one and only is someone unexpected. Doesn't mean they are not the right one for you, just not the one thought it might be. This is a sweet story with a little angst and an HEA. Well done!
I have read this book twice because I enjoyed the age gap story. I loved the closeness of the "family" of characters. There was humor and angst with in the poignant moments. A good read on a long rainy day for me with all the feels.
“If you love a person, everything is harder. If you care, everything is harder. If you have a spark, everything is harder. You could get hurt. But being afraid isn’t a legitimate reason to not do something. That’s being a coward. Cowards suck more.”
Heroine: 23 year old Neera James Heroine: 38 year old Scarlet Hunter
Okay. True story. Neera was wise beyond her years. I truly enjoyed her dialogue throughout. She knew what she wanted and wasn’t award to fight for it. I understand Scarlet’s reservations. The only issue I had with this book was the last bit. It didn’t unfold how I felt it should. Stalled a bit on me. I would have liked an epilogue to show a bit into the future too.
Cliffhanger – no (stand alone) POV - Neera & Scarlet
Enjoyed this book to pieces. It is sweet, sincere, sexy hot off the charts in spots, angry-making, tear and sniffle inducing, and it has the happy ending one hopes for from a romance. I think it would make a great movie.
this had so much promise but the ex’s drama is something that completely takes me out of the story. still curious to read other books from this author tho!
I look fwd to another of your reads , I found this one delightful, the ending was a bit boring, wanted them have 1 last sexy blowout but maybe next time.
The detail of the scenes in this book are amazing. I also liked the complicated emotions in it. It's a very good book and one I highly suggest to read!