Strictly Forbidden Intent

Mile High Romance #6

by Michele Lenard

Friends become enemies become lovers in this second-chance sports-themed romance by Michele Lenard.

Is love any less real when it’s illicit?

Sawyer – I thought my life was over when my mom moved us in with her boyfriend, the father of the hottest guy in school. I mean, could there be a worse scenario than being forced to live across the hall from the object of your first major crush? Turns out there is. Falling in love with him and revealing my emotional scars, only to have him use that as a blueprint to break my heart, was worse. As if once wasn’t enough, he’s back in my life, trying to do it again.

Wes – Senior year of high school, instead of living it up I pined away for the girl across the hall, who I absolutely couldn’t have. Aside from the fact that she was two years younger, she was my future stepsister. The ramifications were endless; disappointing our parents, being ridiculed at school, messing up my full ride to play ball in college. Did I mention she was my future stepsister? I knew it couldn’t work, but I tried anyway, and failed just as spectacularly as I predicted. It took eight years, but she's finally back in my life, and this time there's nothing to stop me from making her mine.

Strictly Forbidden Intent contains a wounded heroine, a jock with a sensitive side, a secret romance and a guaranteed HEA.

Genres: Second Chance, Sports Romance, Friends To Lovers, Enemies To Lovers, Contemporary Romance, Romance

297 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 1, 2022

About the author

Michele writes contemporary romance that is both sweet and steamy. Her goal is to make you fan your face as you wipe a tear from your eye. Several of her books have been named as finalists in the MARA Fiction From the Homeland contest. Her books are part of a series but there are no cliffhangers so each can be read as a standalone. When she isn't reading or writing she enjoys the outdoors, something that pops up in her books from time to time.

Reviews

[Minna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley, Victory Editing Co-Op, and Ms. Lenard for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book. An honest review was requested but not required.

Somehow from the brief description I thought this was a second-chance romance. And it WAS... but a significant portion of it was prior to the Big Misunderstanding/Major Fallout. Frankly, the high-school romance part was really, REALLY good. The secrecy, the sneaking around, that spark of sexual tension (that TRUCK RIDE). *fans self* I was TOTALLY on board for Sawyer and Wes.

Then everything went BOOM (this is not a spoiler. It's right on the book blurb). Frankly I thought Sawyer overreacted and then I thought she overreacted some more. Am I too old to be objective? She's seventeen. It's her FIRST relationship. Her boyfriend who is about to go to college and play a physically and mentally demanding sport and engage in mentally demanding education and who is about to have NO TIME says he wants to disengage a little so he can focus and instead of hearing him out, she goes ballistic and leaves the country for A DECADE. Yes. I call this overreacting.
And then she returns to be closer to family, and of course Wes has been pining for her ALL this time, and thus ensues the most extended and abject groveling session I have read in a long, long time.

That quasi-forbidden romance chemistry from the beginning never really seemed to come back. Frankly I thought Wes could do better.

The first part: solid A.
The second: begrudging C. Extended groveling isn't my jam. Overall, I had mixed feelings but since I really liked the beginning and the writing style, I would try another by this author.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC received from author

Wes and Sawyer met in their parents book Totally Inevitable Intent - A Steamy DIY Renovation Model. Wes wants to get know her better but she doesn't cause he's a football player. Sawyer hates football. It all works out with a little bit of patience and some love.

I want to know why his BFF was taking notes on their relationship. Is he secretly a romance novelist? Curious minds want to know.

[May · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strictly Forbidden Intent contains a wounded heroine, a jock with a sensitive side and a secret romance. Sawyer was two years younger and his stepsister. They fell for each other anyways but things didn't work out with all the obstacles. They met again 8 years later. and things start again...

This is the first time that I read anything by Michele Lenard. This book is sweet and steamy at the same time. Great dialogue with wonderfully sweet moments. It's an easy to read book with a terrific ending. A great wonderful read.

Thanks to the publisher for the ARC.

[Jocelynereadsromance · Rating 5 out of 5]

With this book we see a very highly anticipated couple get their HEA. Michele Lenard has spent the last few books lightly teasing this couple and I found this book to be perfectly delightful. Lenard perfectly balances the start of this "forbidden" romance and then time jumps to their second chance. Lenard's writing is well paced, easily readable and engaging, her character's fully realized, and wonderfully charged with sweetness, angst and heart.

This romance between Wes and Sawyer is one that has been building and bubbling during their parents romances. I loved watching these two teenager, turned step siblings battle with their attraction, learn the joys and sorrows of first love, and learn to understand growth and truth. Wes is an absolute cinnamon roll, he is so kind and open and really fights hard for his relationship with Sawyer. Wes is patient and understanding at every step of the way when it comes to Sawyer, he knows when to take a step back or when to push a little harder. I really love that Wes truly sees Sawyer and her needs. Sawyer is strong, independent and at times closed off. But when she is with Wes, she is her true self. I love that these two are able to establish a beautiful foundation of understanding and trust, sadly Sawyer is shaped by her past and she has a really hard time always staying truthful to herself and seeing and understanding someone's intensions. This leads to our mid plot breakup but it provides the perfect story structure for Lenard to place their falling in love and then their rediscovery of their love. The chemistry between these two is on fire and their romance is definitely steamy, Lenard does a great job of balancing this through out the novel making moments of their romance so sweetly endearing as well as perfectly angsty.

This novel was the perfect wrap up of this delightful series. I have truly enjoyed stepping into Michele's world and have love watching her craft grow and strengthen. This book is the perfect cherry on top of this sweet and charming series, and it is definitely my favorite in the bunch. I would definitely highly recommend checking out this entire series, it is the perfect escape if you are looking for romances that are light and full of heart.

Thank you so much to Michele Lenard for providing me with an eARC, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Judith Miguel · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounding 4.
The first thing I’m going to say is that I enjoyed this book.
Sawyer thought her life was over when her mom moved them in with her boyfriend, the father of the hottest guy in school. Falling in love with him and getting her heart broken was not on the equation. Until it was.
Wes has been pinning away for the girl across the hall, who he absolutely couldn’t have. Aside from the fact that she is two years younger, she is his future stepsister. He knew it couldn’t work, but he tried anyway, and failed spectacularly. It took eight years, but she's finally back in his life, and this time there's nothing to stop him from making her mine.
I have mixt feelings about this story. I really like Wes. He’s smart, loyal and knows his feelings right from the start. Sawyer, on the other hand, seemed childish and selfish to me. I can understand her hesitation at sixteen, but not at twenty-four. Personally, I think he loved her a lot more than she did. But together they were really great and the sex scenes were pretty steamy.
I love that it struggles with social boundaries and believes and I really enjoyed the family dynamics.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is book five in The Mile High Romance Series : A Second Chance and it is Sawyer and Wes story and omg This is definitely my favourite book of the whole series. What do you do when your mom falls in love with a man and you call in love with your step brother and then everything falls apart leaving you both heartbroken, well that is what happened to Sawyer and Wes leaving them both empty and not able to trust. Eight year's later and they meet again and the chemistry and love between them is still as strong as ever but with everything that has happened in the past will this be there second chance or is there too much water under the bridge for them to make it work and have a happy ending. Omg I absolutely loved this book and I couldn't put it down as it was a real page turner and so emotional that I cried with everything that they had both gone through and it was so addictive and I can't wait to read more books in the future. Michele Lenard is an amazing author and writer and the depth of her story's are what makes you want to read more of her books.

I Voluntarily Reviewed a Copy of This Book.

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a second chance romance between two people who's parents are married. It's a bit of a taboo romance, the taboo isn't much of an issue for the characters as I would have expected. It's very positive.
I really don't like the miscommunication trope and it was the driving factor for the dispute here. There was also an 8-years later gap and I felt like the Sawyer didn't mature much at all. I wanted more character growth for both Sawyer and Wes. I would have loved to see Sawyer end up in a career she is just as passionate about as Wes is towards football.
I do like how everyone around them was so supportive and loving, making the main characters their worst enemy. This writing was done well and it was very easy to read.

**Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing an eArc for an honest review.

[Kim Mote · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, it stuck with me days after I finished it. This is the first I've read by Michele, and it probably wont be the last. The plot has been done before but the way she did the story line put a perfect twist on it. Sawyer a girl whose father is a football star but not so much a father has always felt like she was second best in his life. Wes her new step brother is on track for pro football who she happens to be in love with also end up putting her second. Sawyer and Wes have a good love story but football always comes between them. They lose each other over it but when things bring them back can Sawyer forgive Wes and can Wes get her to see his life is more than football. Honest review in exchange for ARC

[Slick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Is it wrong that while I loved the idea of them I didn’t want them to end up together. That first betrayal 8 years ago was too much for me and finding out my father was behind it and the person who broke my heart was living the life with my family while I was miserable? I could not handle it.
I would not be able to forgive either of the men in my life for making idiotic decisions for me behind my back and hiding the truth of the matter for nearly a decade after the fact especially when he saw how much it affected me and how I suffered as a result.

It was a great book and they both stayed celibate for 8 long years, no cheating or ow drama

[Slynn Bookster · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not your typical second chance friends to lovers sports romance. Starts out as a teenage friends to lovers and turns into an adult enemies to lovers that spans years. The family **** was amazing and the MMC **** was very lovable. I struggled a little with the FMC ** the second half of the book because she was stubbornly angry despite all explanations and attempts from everybody to make things better. The steam was a 🌶️🌶️🌶️ and the build up to it was a ***. The friends were a ** little underdeveloped but since the story didn't really involve them that much it was okay. Overall I give this book a 4.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley for the earc of this book!

I read the synopsis and that's what had me hooked however, sadly it fell short.

I found Sawyer to be really immature and petty even when she had grown up and Wes was too sweet to be messed around like that in my opinion.

There are alot of repetitive sequences in this book and it just wasn't the best for me.

Overall a 3 star from me... I read this in about 2hours and I probably, sadly won't pick up any of the others in the books. I was unaware this was part of a series but it works as a standalone.

[Amanda Aggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excuse me while I fan myself because this book is HOT!!!!! But it's also emotional too. I was so happy to see Sawyer get her love story and like that the book was split in two (one half in high school and the other as adults). Wes is just....I can't even put into words how much this man stole my heart! If you're looking for a steamy book to pull on your heart strings, this is it!!

[Maria Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very quick and sexy read. Love the characters and writing style.
It wasn't chalked full of smut and still had its sweet moments. Very nice balance.

[Joannak · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok. So i like stories that have the forbidden element but i felt that the story needed something more. Some scenes were left to the imagination so i couldnt see how the characters connected in thr first place.

[Aldara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was read thanks to NetGalley


TW: Stepbrothers relationship


I liked the book, I just think that the characters just needed a litte bit of grow up, there was a moment when it felt that the time hasn't gone by them which it did so just that prevent me liked it more.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this on Radish. I liked the story, but it really needs an editor. The missing words and misplaced punctuation marks took me out of the story quite a bit. I did appreciate seeing the author’s notes on certain chapters, but I can’t get over those writing mistakes.

[Aria Harlow · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick, easy, cute and sexy read. I really liked the writing, the characters were well developed and the storyline was good. An enjoyable read.

[Becca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ending felt rushed

[Coco.V]

🎁 Books 4 & 5 in the Series are FREE on Amazon today (3/19/2023)! 🎁

[everything.kate.reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved having another look at the threads that twist the overall series together. Sawyer and Wes had a dynamic road to HEA, and I loved the non traditional roles and routes it took. The series can be read together or as an independent book, however, to me I would miss too many things as a standalone.
Read the series….you’re going to love it.