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Forbidden French
Once upon a time, Emmett Mercier was the golden boy of St. John’s Boarding School. The crown prince of his father’s vast business empire, unapologetically attractive…oh, and fluent in French.
At school, I kept a picture of him hidden beneath my pillow, a tiny token of my adolescent infatuation, but I might as well have been worshiping a distant demigod. He was hardly aware of my existence. I was far too young, and he was far too consequential—until one day we found ourselves alone together in the dark library and struck up a friendship…of sorts.
But in the years since leaving St. John’s, I’ve no longer bothered yearning for Emmett. What a useless dream. I would have gone crazy trying to keep up with his jet-setting life. Which Parisian hotel is he calling home now? Is there some new lithe model draping herself across his lap today?
My negligence comes back to bite me. I’m ill-prepared the day he strides into my art gallery. There’s only a mere trace of the boy I once knew. Self-assured, handsome, intoxicating—Emmett is more man than I can handle.
There’s no room for him in my gilded cage. My life is planned to a T. From where I go to how I dress, it all depends on the calculated whims of my grandmother. Soon, I’ll even dutifully walk down the aisle toward a man of her choosing.
Emmett can’t stand my obedience. Now that we’ve rekindled our friendship, he’s intent on unearthing my heart’s true motives.
And therein lies the problem: I was doing just fine without him, but now that he’s rattling the bars of my cage, I’m forced to acknowledge the truth.
Once upon a time, Emmett Mercier was all I wanted. The midnight wanderings, the whispered nothings, the unbearable longing—they etched indelible marks on my soul. Even now, after all these years, my heart is only fluent in one language.
Forbidden French.
At school, I kept a picture of him hidden beneath my pillow, a tiny token of my adolescent infatuation, but I might as well have been worshiping a distant demigod. He was hardly aware of my existence. I was far too young, and he was far too consequential—until one day we found ourselves alone together in the dark library and struck up a friendship…of sorts.
But in the years since leaving St. John’s, I’ve no longer bothered yearning for Emmett. What a useless dream. I would have gone crazy trying to keep up with his jet-setting life. Which Parisian hotel is he calling home now? Is there some new lithe model draping herself across his lap today?
My negligence comes back to bite me. I’m ill-prepared the day he strides into my art gallery. There’s only a mere trace of the boy I once knew. Self-assured, handsome, intoxicating—Emmett is more man than I can handle.
There’s no room for him in my gilded cage. My life is planned to a T. From where I go to how I dress, it all depends on the calculated whims of my grandmother. Soon, I’ll even dutifully walk down the aisle toward a man of her choosing.
Emmett can’t stand my obedience. Now that we’ve rekindled our friendship, he’s intent on unearthing my heart’s true motives.
And therein lies the problem: I was doing just fine without him, but now that he’s rattling the bars of my cage, I’m forced to acknowledge the truth.
Once upon a time, Emmett Mercier was all I wanted. The midnight wanderings, the whispered nothings, the unbearable longing—they etched indelible marks on my soul. Even now, after all these years, my heart is only fluent in one language.
Forbidden French.
360 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 10, 2022
507 people are currently reading
2593 people want to read
About the author
R.S. Grey
53 books11.9k followersR.S. Grey is the USA Today bestselling author of over twenty-five romantic comedies. She loves books, chocolate, reality TV, and cold weather. She lives in Texas with her husband, two daughters, and dog. Visit her at rsgrey.com.
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September 9, 2023
HELLO? DID I JUST FIND ANOTHER HUSBAND?? YES… YES, I DID AKKAKSHSHJSKAKSJSJJDKS
Do you know what’s better than *𝘆𝗮𝘄𝗻* enemies to lovers?? 𝐒𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐀 𝐅𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐅𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐌𝐈𝐄𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐌𝐔𝐓𝐔𝐀𝐋 𝐏𝐈𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐎 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐒… 𝐘𝐄𝐀𝐇𝐇𝐇𝐇 𝐄𝐗𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐋𝐘.
Watch me buy the paperback edition bc I AM OBSESSED. Like I’m genuinely upset that their story ended. I love this book OMFDS words can’t express how much. 𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘁!
Hello?! 𝑻𝑯𝑬𝑰𝑹 𝑭𝑰𝑹𝑺𝑻 𝑬𝑵𝑪𝑶𝑼𝑵𝑻𝑬𝑹?!!
The small moments?? Their every conversation?? Their little games?? How they always know when the other is feeling down?! How they always search for each other?! 𝗛𝗶𝗺 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗲𝗸?!! 𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗶𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝗰𝗸?!
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐫 “𝐋𝐚 𝐩𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐬” !!! *𝗺𝗲𝗹𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝗽𝘂𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲*
I’d call this she falls first, he falls harder. It’s the silent obsessions they have for each other that does me in tho *𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵* *𝗺𝗲𝗹𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻*
𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐈’𝐯𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐰𝐨𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐌𝐂 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐌𝐂.
Like gfishsjhd 𝐋𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐲 is SO FREAKING PRETTY AND HOT AND CUTE AND CLEVER. Gahhh I love her so much. 𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐀𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐒𝐄 >>>
She was so relatable bc I kinda understand her situation. And I love the way she’s wild and completely herself when she’s with him 🤭🦋💕And her character development was *𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗳𝘀 𝗸𝗶𝘀𝘀*
𝐄𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐭 was jshdkshj 𝑺𝑶 𝑯𝑶𝑻 I’m crumbling. The way he carried himself was 𝐌𝐖𝐀𝐇. He’s so narcissistic and I loved it idc idc. 𝑨𝑵𝑫 𝑯𝑶𝑾 𝑯𝑬 𝑮𝑹𝑶𝑽𝑬𝑳𝑳𝑬𝑫 𝑩𝑹𝑶𝑶𝑶 𝑯𝑬’𝑺 𝑮𝑰𝑽𝑰𝑵𝑮 𝑵𝑨𝑺𝑯 𝑭𝑹𝑶𝑴 ‘𝑫𝑬𝑽𝑰𝑶𝑼𝑺 𝑳𝑰𝑬𝑺’ 𝑨 𝑹𝑼𝑵 𝑭𝑶𝑹 𝑯𝑰𝑺 𝑴𝑶𝑵𝑬𝒀. Like hahsjjdhshsjs the dedication he had was MWAH. And he’s so fucking wholesome it’s too cute not to mention.
And therefore: 𝐌𝐘 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊 = 𝐈𝐍𝐅𝐈𝐍𝐈𝐓𝐘.
𝗦𝗼𝗻𝗴𝘀: 🎧
Burn slow — Naïka
𝗙𝗮𝘃 𝗤𝘂𝗼𝘁𝗲𝘀:
“𝗠𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗲-𝘁𝗼𝗶…𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗲-𝘁𝗼𝗶…𝗼𝘂̀ 𝗾𝘂𝗲 𝘁𝘂 𝘀𝗼𝗶𝘀.”
~KANDKSJKSKSKSMSKSSKS
“𝗟𝗮 𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘀.”
~SCREAMINGGG
𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲.”
“𝗦𝗮𝘆 𝗶𝘁 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻.”
“𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁?”
“𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲. 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝘁 𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗼𝗳𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗼𝗻𝗴𝘂𝗲.”
“𝗝𝗲𝗮𝗻-𝗠𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗹 𝗕𝗮𝘀𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗮𝘁,” I say again, leaning into my buried accent.
𝐇𝐞𝐫 𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬 𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐚𝐬 𝐢𝐟 𝐬𝐡𝐞’𝐬 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐚 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐟’𝐬 𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐬 and continues leading me through the space.
~THIS SCENE AHAHAHSKJDKDKSKDKDKDKDJSKSKS HELP I'M IN LOVE WITH THEM SO FUCKING MUCH
“𝗢𝗳 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁. 𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝘄𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸, 𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁?”
“𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁.”
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐮𝐩. 𝐈’𝐦 𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐥𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲.
“𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝘁 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻? 𝙋𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙞𝙨?”
~STOP IT
“𝐒𝐨 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝒊𝒔 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐞.
𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐈’𝐦 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐲, 𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐲, 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐞𝐫.”
“𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗺𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗿𝘆. 𝗦𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗶𝘁.”
“𝗬𝗲𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻…𝙮𝙤𝙪.”
~Sighhhhhh
“𝙑𝙤𝙪𝙨 𝙚̂𝙩𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙧𝙚̀𝙨 𝙗𝙖𝙞𝙨𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚.”
~I AM MELTING HELP???
“𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐦𝐞𝐝, 𝐈 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐤, 𝐝𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐬.”
~AAAAAH
“𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁, 𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘀.”
~MELTINGGGG
“𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗜’𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗹𝗶𝗽 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆?”
“𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝘃𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗲𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗲𝘄 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸𝘀.”
I know he’s only teasing now. He can’t truly be worried that I care for someone else. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐢𝐦.
~BRO SHES SO 💅✨ FOR MAKING HIM WORK FOR IT
“𝐈 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐋𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐲’𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝.
𝐈’𝐦 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫, 𝐮𝐩 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐩 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐧𝐚𝐢𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧, 𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐤𝐧𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐞𝐬. 𝐈 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐢𝐭 𝐬𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲.“
~THIS IS WHAT I MEAN WHEN I SAY SMALL MOMENTS
“Then his mouth presses against my cheek, and he whispers, “𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗺𝘆 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘄, 𝗟𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘆, 𝗺𝗼𝗻 𝗰œ𝘂𝗿 𝗾𝘂𝗶 𝗯𝗮𝘁.”
~I CLAIM THIS MAN AS MY HUSBAND
𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝘃𝗶𝗯𝗲𝘀:
Marriage for one - Ella Maise
Devious lies - Parker S Huntington
Do you know what’s better than *𝘆𝗮𝘄𝗻* enemies to lovers?? 𝐒𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐀 𝐅𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐅𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐎 𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐌𝐈𝐄𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐌𝐔𝐓𝐔𝐀𝐋 𝐏𝐈𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐎 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐒… 𝐘𝐄𝐀𝐇𝐇𝐇𝐇 𝐄𝐗𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐋𝐘.
Watch me buy the paperback edition bc I AM OBSESSED. Like I’m genuinely upset that their story ended. I love this book OMFDS words can’t express how much. 𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘁!
Hello?! 𝑻𝑯𝑬𝑰𝑹 𝑭𝑰𝑹𝑺𝑻 𝑬𝑵𝑪𝑶𝑼𝑵𝑻𝑬𝑹?!!
The small moments?? Their every conversation?? Their little games?? How they always know when the other is feeling down?! How they always search for each other?! 𝗛𝗶𝗺 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗲𝗸?!! 𝗛𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗶𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝗰𝗸?!
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐫 “𝐋𝐚 𝐩𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐬” !!! *𝗺𝗲𝗹𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝗽𝘂𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲*
I’d call this she falls first, he falls harder. It’s the silent obsessions they have for each other that does me in tho *𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵* *𝗺𝗲𝗹𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻*
𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐈’𝐯𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐰𝐨𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐌𝐂 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐌𝐂.
Like gfishsjhd 𝐋𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐲 is SO FREAKING PRETTY AND HOT AND CUTE AND CLEVER. Gahhh I love her so much. 𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐀𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐒𝐄𝐍𝐒𝐄 >>>
She was so relatable bc I kinda understand her situation. And I love the way she’s wild and completely herself when she’s with him 🤭🦋💕And her character development was *𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗳𝘀 𝗸𝗶𝘀𝘀*
𝐄𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐭 was jshdkshj 𝑺𝑶 𝑯𝑶𝑻 I’m crumbling. The way he carried himself was 𝐌𝐖𝐀𝐇. He’s so narcissistic and I loved it idc idc. 𝑨𝑵𝑫 𝑯𝑶𝑾 𝑯𝑬 𝑮𝑹𝑶𝑽𝑬𝑳𝑳𝑬𝑫 𝑩𝑹𝑶𝑶𝑶 𝑯𝑬’𝑺 𝑮𝑰𝑽𝑰𝑵𝑮 𝑵𝑨𝑺𝑯 𝑭𝑹𝑶𝑴 ‘𝑫𝑬𝑽𝑰𝑶𝑼𝑺 𝑳𝑰𝑬𝑺’ 𝑨 𝑹𝑼𝑵 𝑭𝑶𝑹 𝑯𝑰𝑺 𝑴𝑶𝑵𝑬𝒀. Like hahsjjdhshsjs the dedication he had was MWAH. And he’s so fucking wholesome it’s too cute not to mention.
And therefore: 𝐌𝐘 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊 = 𝐈𝐍𝐅𝐈𝐍𝐈𝐓𝐘.
𝗦𝗼𝗻𝗴𝘀: 🎧
Burn slow — Naïka
𝗙𝗮𝘃 𝗤𝘂𝗼𝘁𝗲𝘀:
“𝗠𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗲-𝘁𝗼𝗶…𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗲-𝘁𝗼𝗶…𝗼𝘂̀ 𝗾𝘂𝗲 𝘁𝘂 𝘀𝗼𝗶𝘀.”
~KANDKSJKSKSKSMSKSSKS
“𝗟𝗮 𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘀.”
~SCREAMINGGG
𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲.”
“𝗦𝗮𝘆 𝗶𝘁 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻.”
“𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁?”
“𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲. 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝘁 𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗼𝗳𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗙𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗼𝗻𝗴𝘂𝗲.”
“𝗝𝗲𝗮𝗻-𝗠𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗹 𝗕𝗮𝘀𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗮𝘁,” I say again, leaning into my buried accent.
𝐇𝐞𝐫 𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬 𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐚𝐬 𝐢𝐟 𝐬𝐡𝐞’𝐬 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐚 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐟’𝐬 𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐬 and continues leading me through the space.
~THIS SCENE AHAHAHSKJDKDKSKDKDKDKDJSKSKS HELP I'M IN LOVE WITH THEM SO FUCKING MUCH
“𝗢𝗳 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁. 𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝘄𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸, 𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁?”
“𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁.”
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐮𝐩. 𝐈’𝐦 𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐥𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲.
“𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝘁 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻? 𝙋𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙞𝙨?”
~STOP IT
“𝐒𝐨 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝒊𝒔 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐞.
𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐈’𝐦 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐲, 𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐲, 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐞𝐫.”
“𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗺𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗿𝘆. 𝗦𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗶𝘁.”
“𝗬𝗲𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻…𝙮𝙤𝙪.”
~Sighhhhhh
“𝙑𝙤𝙪𝙨 𝙚̂𝙩𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙧𝙚̀𝙨 𝙗𝙖𝙞𝙨𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚.”
~I AM MELTING HELP???
“𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐦𝐞𝐝, 𝐈 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐤, 𝐝𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐬.”
~AAAAAH
“𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁, 𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘀.”
~MELTINGGGG
“𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗜’𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗹𝗶𝗽 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆?”
“𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝘃𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗲𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗲𝘄 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸𝘀.”
I know he’s only teasing now. He can’t truly be worried that I care for someone else. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐢𝐦.
~BRO SHES SO 💅✨ FOR MAKING HIM WORK FOR IT
“𝐈 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐋𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐲’𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝.
𝐈’𝐦 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫, 𝐮𝐩 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐩 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐧𝐚𝐢𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧, 𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐤𝐧𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐞𝐬. 𝐈 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐢𝐭 𝐬𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲.“
~THIS IS WHAT I MEAN WHEN I SAY SMALL MOMENTS
“Then his mouth presses against my cheek, and he whispers, “𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗺𝘆 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘄, 𝗟𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘆, 𝗺𝗼𝗻 𝗰œ𝘂𝗿 𝗾𝘂𝗶 𝗯𝗮𝘁.”
~I CLAIM THIS MAN AS MY HUSBAND
𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝘃𝗶𝗯𝗲𝘀:
Marriage for one - Ella Maise
Devious lies - Parker S Huntington
January 19, 2023
Boohoo.
Poor rich ppl and their rich ppl problems 💸🙄💸🙄💸
Jokes aside, Forbidden French was nowhere near as good as it could have been. I'm sure for most of us, R.S. Grey is a hit or miss author, but this one was definitely a miss.
The romance was severely underdeveloped and the main characters lacked chemistry. I felt like the h + H barely even spent any time together (and this isn't a small book!). When they did spend time together, it was actually really cute! I wanted more book discussions, more deep and meaningful conversations, more romance.
Also, if you don't care for fashion, then you're going to find this book really obnoxious. Honestly, I was going absolutely feral at the amount of designer name-dropping - dior this, chanel that. We get it, girl! You're filthy rich! And sadly, for many of the characters, being rich was 90% of their personalities.
I definitely preferred To Have and to Hate more. To Have and to Hate has a simliar storyline (marriage of convenience, lots of art stuff, age gap) and the characters are a lot less obnoxious about their wealth. If you enjoyed this book, you might want to check it out too.
Rating: 2.5/5
Poor rich ppl and their rich ppl problems 💸🙄💸🙄💸
Jokes aside, Forbidden French was nowhere near as good as it could have been. I'm sure for most of us, R.S. Grey is a hit or miss author, but this one was definitely a miss.
The romance was severely underdeveloped and the main characters lacked chemistry. I felt like the h + H barely even spent any time together (and this isn't a small book!). When they did spend time together, it was actually really cute! I wanted more book discussions, more deep and meaningful conversations, more romance.
Also, if you don't care for fashion, then you're going to find this book really obnoxious. Honestly, I was going absolutely feral at the amount of designer name-dropping - dior this, chanel that. We get it, girl! You're filthy rich! And sadly, for many of the characters, being rich was 90% of their personalities.
I definitely preferred To Have and to Hate more. To Have and to Hate has a simliar storyline (marriage of convenience, lots of art stuff, age gap) and the characters are a lot less obnoxious about their wealth. If you enjoyed this book, you might want to check it out too.
Rating: 2.5/5
January 21, 2023
3.65 stars 🙄
This book should have been 100 pages shorter why? OH.MY.FUCKING.GOD because of the damn illustration, mumbling and inner monologues about how rich they are, how rich everyone is, how rich everything is.
I wish it was less materialistic and i don't know may be more human 💀
Whenever people started rambling about the big place, the not interested in detailed decor or HOW BIG THEIR DICK IS (moneywise) i felt lost like why the fuck am i still reading this book 😶
Only reason i didn't dnf it because i wanted to see the happy ending 🙄
This book should have been 100 pages shorter why? OH.MY.FUCKING.GOD because of the damn illustration, mumbling and inner monologues about how rich they are, how rich everyone is, how rich everything is.
I wish it was less materialistic and i don't know may be more human 💀
Whenever people started rambling about the big place, the not interested in detailed decor or HOW BIG THEIR DICK IS (moneywise) i felt lost like why the fuck am i still reading this book 😶
Only reason i didn't dnf it because i wanted to see the happy ending 🙄
Read
December 13, 2022This was such a disappointment.
Won't add it to my shelves since I mostly skimmed from 50% on. The story was just so meh. Nothing really happened. No real chemistry between the couple. No real interaction between them either, they had barely any time together on the pages. And most everything was inner monologue, which is one of my biggest pet peeve.
Sigh, another for the DNF pile.
Won't add it to my shelves since I mostly skimmed from 50% on. The story was just so meh. Nothing really happened. No real chemistry between the couple. No real interaction between them either, they had barely any time together on the pages. And most everything was inner monologue, which is one of my biggest pet peeve.
Sigh, another for the DNF pile.
November 14, 2022
Forbidden French is standalone contemporary romance by R.S. Grey. Told from both POV with a HEA
Tropes:
✔️ Big city
✔️ French billionaire
✔️ Arranged marriage
✔️ Modern day Regency-esque
Having lost her parents at a very young age, Lainey Davenport was sent by her wealthy grandmother to St. John’s Boarding School where she met the larger than life Emmett Mercier.
She was thirteen while he was eighteen, close to graduating and set to inherit and spearhead his father’s empire. That didn’t stop her from developing a huge crush on the extremely attractive and charismatic young man with the delectable French accent. Yet it wasn’t their time.
Twelve years later, Lainey is all grown up and working at the and art gallery in Boston where she bumps into the ultra-rich and successful Emmett who brings out the fiery side of her normally timid personality. And yet their timing is still wrong because Lainey has already been betrothed to another man.
I have some mixed feelings about this story. On one hand I appreciated Lainey’s sense of responsibility and the fiery spirit she only seemed to unleash in the presence of Emmett.
On the other, she was completely willing to do whatever her grandmother wanted and expected of her, from the clothes she wore, to the amount of time she worked to the man she’s marry.
I loved the obvious research that went into the world of art, but would have liked more character development.
Forbidden French is a charming story with a lovely smile inducing ending.
Quick review:
★ Character dev: 👤👤👤
★ World building: 🌏🌏🌏🌏
★ Plot: 📚📚📚
★ Romance: 💕💕💕💕
★ Sexiness: 🔥🔥🔥
★ I received an ARC of this title from the author via Give Me Books PR. The excerpts are from that copy.
★See all my book edits on Instagram
Tropes:
✔️ Big city
✔️ French billionaire
✔️ Arranged marriage
✔️ Modern day Regency-esque
Having lost her parents at a very young age, Lainey Davenport was sent by her wealthy grandmother to St. John’s Boarding School where she met the larger than life Emmett Mercier.
She was thirteen while he was eighteen, close to graduating and set to inherit and spearhead his father’s empire. That didn’t stop her from developing a huge crush on the extremely attractive and charismatic young man with the delectable French accent. Yet it wasn’t their time.
Twelve years later, Lainey is all grown up and working at the and art gallery in Boston where she bumps into the ultra-rich and successful Emmett who brings out the fiery side of her normally timid personality. And yet their timing is still wrong because Lainey has already been betrothed to another man.
I have some mixed feelings about this story. On one hand I appreciated Lainey’s sense of responsibility and the fiery spirit she only seemed to unleash in the presence of Emmett.
On the other, she was completely willing to do whatever her grandmother wanted and expected of her, from the clothes she wore, to the amount of time she worked to the man she’s marry.
I loved the obvious research that went into the world of art, but would have liked more character development.
Forbidden French is a charming story with a lovely smile inducing ending.
Quick review:
★ Character dev: 👤👤👤
★ World building: 🌏🌏🌏🌏
★ Plot: 📚📚📚
★ Romance: 💕💕💕💕
★ Sexiness: 🔥🔥🔥
★ I received an ARC of this title from the author via Give Me Books PR. The excerpts are from that copy.
★See all my book edits on Instagram
November 10, 2022
RS Grey Books are consistently improving. I promised myself that because I am a stressed-out college student with so much on my plate right now, I would read this slowly. Did I read it slowly? Haha, no, I finished it in a short amount of time. But what a wonderful way to make me conscious of how horribly single I am. A good slow burn is always a good idea, and this one is really lovely.
My gosh, Lainey and Emmett are extraordinary. St. John Boarding School is where their story begins. Lainey, a 13-year-old girl has a crush on Emmett, a senior about to graduate. All of the students at that school adore Emmett, but not Lainey. Lainey is a quiet young woman who is going through a difficult time. Everyone believes that she is a ghost because she won't speak to them. One evening, though, they share a secret moment in the library. They had some good times as teenagers, but that was all.
Adulthood is when things heats up. It was a blast reading about their experience. After years of not seeing each other since boarding school, they finally cross paths, and a tiny friendship develops. Even though those feelings shouldn't be there, they gradually start to change into something more as time goes on. Lainey is betrothed to a bald man—sorry—that her devoted grandmother chose for her because she must wed him (granny said that, not me).
And despite the fact that she doesn't want to marry this man, Lainey, being Lainey, would sacrifice anything for her grandmother. However, when they cross paths again in Italy, there is little question that these two are attracted to one another, to the point where somebody believes Lainey is betrothed to Emmett.
When everything seems to be going well, something needs to happen. Which causes issues between Emmett and Lainey, and we regrettably miss out on their adorable and joyful moments. However, everything turns out okay in the end.
𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘙𝘊 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸 🤍
My gosh, Lainey and Emmett are extraordinary. St. John Boarding School is where their story begins. Lainey, a 13-year-old girl has a crush on Emmett, a senior about to graduate. All of the students at that school adore Emmett, but not Lainey. Lainey is a quiet young woman who is going through a difficult time. Everyone believes that she is a ghost because she won't speak to them. One evening, though, they share a secret moment in the library. They had some good times as teenagers, but that was all.
Adulthood is when things heats up. It was a blast reading about their experience. After years of not seeing each other since boarding school, they finally cross paths, and a tiny friendship develops. Even though those feelings shouldn't be there, they gradually start to change into something more as time goes on. Lainey is betrothed to a bald man—sorry—that her devoted grandmother chose for her because she must wed him (granny said that, not me).
And despite the fact that she doesn't want to marry this man, Lainey, being Lainey, would sacrifice anything for her grandmother. However, when they cross paths again in Italy, there is little question that these two are attracted to one another, to the point where somebody believes Lainey is betrothed to Emmett.
When everything seems to be going well, something needs to happen. Which causes issues between Emmett and Lainey, and we regrettably miss out on their adorable and joyful moments. However, everything turns out okay in the end.
𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘙𝘊 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸 🤍
November 23, 2022
Skimmed most parts because I was not in the mood to read about luxury OOTD complete with sartorial details including brands, fabric type and texture and in-season styles. 😬 I also found both MCs annoying, all their push and pull esp the heroine’s doormat character. 🫠
March 27, 2023
I haven’t read an R.S. Grey book in a while and was really looking forward to this one. Unfortunately, it fell flat for me. The book is split into two parts - part 1 takes place when Lainey and Emmett are teens, and part 2 is over a decade later. Part 1 actually made me a bit uncomfortable since Lainey is 13 and basically obsessed and stalking Emmett (who is 18 and about to graduate). I understand it was an unrequited crush, but I also didn’t feel any friendship or kinship in the few interactions they shared. It made it awkward when these “moments” were referenced later in the book and the reader is meant to swoon/feel that bond. I just never felt any true chemistry between Lainey and Emmett. Both were so childish and Emmett’s 180 after Lainey’s declaration made me roll my eyes. I wish more time had been spent developing the relationship between the main characters instead of describing their clothes, accessories, and how rich they were.
The narration was wonderful, though I did find Alexander Dunham-Wood’s voice somewhat odd when he voiced teenage Emmett. His voice was much better suited to adult Emmett. Lilly Drake was a great Lainey and her voice fit with the character very well. I also loved all the French words and sayings. Overall, this was an enjoyable listening experience, but sadly it couldn’t save this story.
Audiobook Review
Overall 3 stars
Performance 4.5 stars
Story 2 stars
CW: parental abandonment & death (past), parental infidelity, drug/alcohol addiction (secondary character), bullying (past)
*I voluntarily listened to a review copy of this book*
The narration was wonderful, though I did find Alexander Dunham-Wood’s voice somewhat odd when he voiced teenage Emmett. His voice was much better suited to adult Emmett. Lilly Drake was a great Lainey and her voice fit with the character very well. I also loved all the French words and sayings. Overall, this was an enjoyable listening experience, but sadly it couldn’t save this story.
Audiobook Review
Overall 3 stars
Performance 4.5 stars
Story 2 stars
CW: parental abandonment & death (past), parental infidelity, drug/alcohol addiction (secondary character), bullying (past)
*I voluntarily listened to a review copy of this book*
December 7, 2022
rs grey’s only flop
November 13, 2022
“If it’s a bother, I can go…” His sincere gaze captures mine. “Don’t make me ask you to stay. I will, and it won’t make either of us feel good.”
I was so excited to read this book when I read the blurb but the story was slightly different than the blurb made it out to be. Lainey & Emmett had a palpable chemistry. They unexpectedly meet each other years later after their time together in the same boarding school. Though, nothing seems to be changed about them. While the book was engaging and fun to read and the romance was well developed, I was not quite impressed with some conflicts Nevertheless, I enjoyed reading the book but I still wanted something more tbh.
I was so excited to read this book when I read the blurb but the story was slightly different than the blurb made it out to be. Lainey & Emmett had a palpable chemistry. They unexpectedly meet each other years later after their time together in the same boarding school. Though, nothing seems to be changed about them. While the book was engaging and fun to read and the romance was well developed, I was not quite impressed with some conflicts Nevertheless, I enjoyed reading the book but I still wanted something more tbh.
November 13, 2022
This one just didn't work for me. I was expecting something similar to "To Have and to Hate" by the same author, but it was very different. I didn't care much for the first part of the story when they're kids. The friendship mentioned in the synopsis was basically two conversations. I also didn't really buy into their friendship or romance as adults. I hung on because I kept hoping it would get better, but it ended up just not being for me at all.
January 25, 2023
After Emmett appeared in My Professor, I knew I would become obsessed with him and had to pick this up straight away and I’m so glad I did.
I loved this so much, all the grandeur, the characters, everything was just👌🏻
I loved this so much, all the grandeur, the characters, everything was just👌🏻
January 23, 2025
I'll preface this review by saying that I'm a huge fan of R.S.Grey, I've read practically everything she's written, if not everything, and she's one of my go-to authors for rom-coms. She writes with ease, and knowledge, and really knows how to pull her readers into the story.
That being said, Forbidden French unfortunately fell a little bit short for me. Things that I loved:
- Lainey: the gilded-caged princess who never suppresses who she is when she's with Emmett
- Emmett: I loved this take where he accepts that he's going to inherit his father's empire, and gets in line with that. Most takes would be having the son buck that expectation.
- the research that went into the art side of things.
- them . Was NOT expecting that, and I think it added some delicious angst to the story.
What I like a little bit less:
- the constant brand-name dropping felt tacky - even though I understand the context and know that these characters are uber rich
- the French dialogues as written in the story sometimes is not how French is spoken really, for example "es-tu en tardif?" would in reality be "es-tu en retard?"
- the dynamics of the two main characters for falling in love is not my favorite, but that's a personal preference: Lainey seems to have always been in love with him, when they barely spent any real time together, and the realization of Emmett about his feelings felt like they came out of nowhere. I just feel like they did not spend enough time together, but at the same time, the little time that they do spend together is the most real they have been, so 🤷🏻♀️
Overall, a very entertaining read! I will always read whatever Rachel writes, and look forward to her next!
Thank you to the author for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
That being said, Forbidden French unfortunately fell a little bit short for me. Things that I loved:
- Lainey: the gilded-caged princess who never suppresses who she is when she's with Emmett
- Emmett: I loved this take where he accepts that he's going to inherit his father's empire, and gets in line with that. Most takes would be having the son buck that expectation.
- the research that went into the art side of things.
- them . Was NOT expecting that, and I think it added some delicious angst to the story.
What I like a little bit less:
- the constant brand-name dropping felt tacky - even though I understand the context and know that these characters are uber rich
- the French dialogues as written in the story sometimes is not how French is spoken really, for example "es-tu en tardif?" would in reality be "es-tu en retard?"
- the dynamics of the two main characters for falling in love is not my favorite, but that's a personal preference: Lainey seems to have always been in love with him, when they barely spent any real time together, and the realization of Emmett about his feelings felt like they came out of nowhere. I just feel like they did not spend enough time together, but at the same time, the little time that they do spend together is the most real they have been, so 🤷🏻♀️
Overall, a very entertaining read! I will always read whatever Rachel writes, and look forward to her next!
Thank you to the author for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
November 5, 2022
ARC REVIEW
Forbidden French is the newest release from R.S. Grey, and despite some flaws throughout the narrative, the book is interesting and fun to read.
I've always found Grey's writing light, fun, fluid, so much so that she is one of my favorite authors of the genre, and Forbidden French was no different, she managed to drive the narrative in a good, cohesive way, always leaving me with a desire for more with each scene I read.
Despite this, I believe it the book could have been even better, if the two protagonists had an individual development, if they had their thoughts, emotions and family relationships explored.The romance was well developed, I liked all the scenes of the two of them together. I liked the way she developed their story as a couple.
Lainey is a fun character, who had everything to be a complete character, but the lack of individual development ended up making her a little vague. Her relationship with her grandmother could have been better explored.
As for Emmett, he was also an interesting character, but with the lack of individual character development, several aspects of him were extremely vague, such as his thoughts on his half-sister.
Forbidden French is the newest release from R.S. Grey, and despite some flaws throughout the narrative, the book is interesting and fun to read.
I've always found Grey's writing light, fun, fluid, so much so that she is one of my favorite authors of the genre, and Forbidden French was no different, she managed to drive the narrative in a good, cohesive way, always leaving me with a desire for more with each scene I read.
Despite this, I believe it the book could have been even better, if the two protagonists had an individual development, if they had their thoughts, emotions and family relationships explored.The romance was well developed, I liked all the scenes of the two of them together. I liked the way she developed their story as a couple.
Lainey is a fun character, who had everything to be a complete character, but the lack of individual development ended up making her a little vague. Her relationship with her grandmother could have been better explored.
As for Emmett, he was also an interesting character, but with the lack of individual character development, several aspects of him were extremely vague, such as his thoughts on his half-sister.
November 13, 2022
WASTE OF TIME!!! Where is the chemistry? The banter? The courtship? THE PLOT??? I kept waiting for SOMETHING to happen, only to realise I’m three quarters into the book and the characters barely know each other.
Every character was underdeveloped, so many completely unnecessary scenes, a slew of plot holes, inconsistent characterisation, and sheer lazy writing.
HOW does he miraculously fall head-over-heels in love with her? WHY does she still love him? HOW IN THE WORLD does her grandma’s entire personality do an about-turn near the end?
Lainey was an annoyingly-written character, with every word written to encourage the reader to feel sorry for her. She was so two-dimensional! Same with Emmett. Where is the complexity? Why do they even like each other? What us even happening???
A good quarter of the book is just name-dropping brands to try and reinforce the idea of everyone being old money rich. WE GET IT! Everyone’s rich! Move on.
Fjdjsklakdhsjsf too many thoughts, not enough coherence.
Every character was underdeveloped, so many completely unnecessary scenes, a slew of plot holes, inconsistent characterisation, and sheer lazy writing.
HOW does he miraculously fall head-over-heels in love with her? WHY does she still love him? HOW IN THE WORLD does her grandma’s entire personality do an about-turn near the end?
Lainey was an annoyingly-written character, with every word written to encourage the reader to feel sorry for her. She was so two-dimensional! Same with Emmett. Where is the complexity? Why do they even like each other? What us even happening???
A good quarter of the book is just name-dropping brands to try and reinforce the idea of everyone being old money rich. WE GET IT! Everyone’s rich! Move on.
Fjdjsklakdhsjsf too many thoughts, not enough coherence.
September 19, 2023
This was so good. I LITERALLY read it in one sitting.
November 15, 2022
TL;DR: Poor little rich girl fails to grow a backbone until the very end until she does when I arguably feel like she doesn’t deserve the hero. But he’s not really a prize either.
43% in…..I think this one’s going to be a miss for me. The poor little rich girl vibes are high in this one where it feels like it being forced down my throat every single page. I can’t help myself conjure sympathy for spineless Lainey—like girl cmon, stand up for yourself just once to elitist and racist grandma and not quietly marry a man you don’t love. I typically like and try not to let the real world logistics and realities infiltrate my enjoyment of books like these and billionaire romances, but this one had me wanting to scream “EAT THE RICH” and have Lainey grow some lady balls.
Also her being in the art space for employment is such a boring cliche for these wealth-focused type romances.
53% SERIOUSLY LAINEY!! Royce calls it off, grandma and daddy mercier organize you and Emmett to get engaged and you dutifully stay quiet? GROW A FREAKING BACKBONE. At least Emmett tries to fight it.
56% it’s very hard not to empathize with this comment but I still hold firm that she needs to stand up for herself. She’s undoubtedly complicit even when she clearly know Emmett doesn’t want an engagement or to be controlled. Get your head out of grandma’s a**.
“What does an animal born in captivity know of freedom?”
58% Lainey stop trying to make up for your mom’s so called mistakes and have some accountability.
Side note: I’m getting real sick of all the designer names drops and couture fashions highlights. They really don’t add anything to the story.
63% babe, you can’t be mad at Emmett for standing up for himself and sticking it to his dad by ditching the engagement party. At least he’s trying to stand up for his own beliefs. And you can’t certainly be mad when Alexander calls you out on it.
68% GOOD ON YOU EMMETT. Yes I’m also now advocating for no wedding. This really doesn’t feel like a romance novel anymore and definitely does not match the cover.
70% Seriously Lainey? Do not blame your long standing love for Emmett as an excuse for carrying on the charade. I get that he hurt you flaunting with many women but you had the power to stop all that. You were just too scared. Look, I know this stuff is difficult but it’s your life to live and not to live for others. Honestly though, why do you love him? You really haven’t spent any alone time with him besides Italy. This feels more like puppy love.
71% FINALLYYYYYY. Yes girl, even though it’s too late, confront yo grandma. But seriously grandma, you knew the girl was struggling recently and said nothing? What about all those shitty comments about seeing too much of her mom in Lainey? Did your autocratic genes not give you any semblance of emotional intelligence skills?
74% Haven’t commented much on Emmett. Bro…loook I do get you didn’t like the engagement and needed yo make it known publicly, but it was pretty mean to go around with a bunch of girls while supposedly engaged. You pissed Lainey very well and better step up your game to get her back.
81% Emmett…I like the wooing…keep it coming. Lainey get over yourself and forgive the man. You know you want too and your partially to blame for all the drama….
Epilogue: in the real world, I’d give it a year or two.
Sigh… I was really forward to this hoping it would be in the same vein of Love the One You Hate but it wasn’t so I didn’t enjoy it.
When I read the teasers, I was hoping for like a laidback hero meets and reforms a prissy heroine to abandon her boring life and stand up to grandma. I was hoping we would see Emmett rebuff his dad after school and make his own path and encourage Lainey to do the same after meeting again. Sadly, this is not what I got.
I was expecting more romance and humor from this author but it didn’t deliver sadly.
Also I’m surprised but not really by all the five stars reviews and the correlation that they are by arc readers. However, such is the trend these days with romance reviews…
43% in…..I think this one’s going to be a miss for me. The poor little rich girl vibes are high in this one where it feels like it being forced down my throat every single page. I can’t help myself conjure sympathy for spineless Lainey—like girl cmon, stand up for yourself just once to elitist and racist grandma and not quietly marry a man you don’t love. I typically like and try not to let the real world logistics and realities infiltrate my enjoyment of books like these and billionaire romances, but this one had me wanting to scream “EAT THE RICH” and have Lainey grow some lady balls.
Also her being in the art space for employment is such a boring cliche for these wealth-focused type romances.
53% SERIOUSLY LAINEY!! Royce calls it off, grandma and daddy mercier organize you and Emmett to get engaged and you dutifully stay quiet? GROW A FREAKING BACKBONE. At least Emmett tries to fight it.
56% it’s very hard not to empathize with this comment but I still hold firm that she needs to stand up for herself. She’s undoubtedly complicit even when she clearly know Emmett doesn’t want an engagement or to be controlled. Get your head out of grandma’s a**.
“What does an animal born in captivity know of freedom?”
58% Lainey stop trying to make up for your mom’s so called mistakes and have some accountability.
Side note: I’m getting real sick of all the designer names drops and couture fashions highlights. They really don’t add anything to the story.
63% babe, you can’t be mad at Emmett for standing up for himself and sticking it to his dad by ditching the engagement party. At least he’s trying to stand up for his own beliefs. And you can’t certainly be mad when Alexander calls you out on it.
68% GOOD ON YOU EMMETT. Yes I’m also now advocating for no wedding. This really doesn’t feel like a romance novel anymore and definitely does not match the cover.
70% Seriously Lainey? Do not blame your long standing love for Emmett as an excuse for carrying on the charade. I get that he hurt you flaunting with many women but you had the power to stop all that. You were just too scared. Look, I know this stuff is difficult but it’s your life to live and not to live for others. Honestly though, why do you love him? You really haven’t spent any alone time with him besides Italy. This feels more like puppy love.
71% FINALLYYYYYY. Yes girl, even though it’s too late, confront yo grandma. But seriously grandma, you knew the girl was struggling recently and said nothing? What about all those shitty comments about seeing too much of her mom in Lainey? Did your autocratic genes not give you any semblance of emotional intelligence skills?
74% Haven’t commented much on Emmett. Bro…loook I do get you didn’t like the engagement and needed yo make it known publicly, but it was pretty mean to go around with a bunch of girls while supposedly engaged. You pissed Lainey very well and better step up your game to get her back.
81% Emmett…I like the wooing…keep it coming. Lainey get over yourself and forgive the man. You know you want too and your partially to blame for all the drama….
Epilogue: in the real world, I’d give it a year or two.
Sigh… I was really forward to this hoping it would be in the same vein of Love the One You Hate but it wasn’t so I didn’t enjoy it.
When I read the teasers, I was hoping for like a laidback hero meets and reforms a prissy heroine to abandon her boring life and stand up to grandma. I was hoping we would see Emmett rebuff his dad after school and make his own path and encourage Lainey to do the same after meeting again. Sadly, this is not what I got.
I was expecting more romance and humor from this author but it didn’t deliver sadly.
Also I’m surprised but not really by all the five stars reviews and the correlation that they are by arc readers. However, such is the trend these days with romance reviews…
November 9, 2022
Review by Lisa Kane
Forbidden French is a more serious story than I am used to from this author. Usually her writings are light and funny with fantastic wit. This story told over a number of years had beautiful writing but it wasn't as light and had some deep emotions that hurt one's soul.
Lainey knew of Emmett from attending the same boarding school. He was a few years older than her, way more sophisticated and was the guy every girl wanted. His family are the richest of the rich, having made their fortune in the fashion industry. Emmett's parents are unhappily divorced-his mother never got over his father, while his father wasted no time in replacing her with a younger model. His family is French and one gets the feeling he was just born sophisticated and suave.
Lainey is gawky and terribly shy. She is the butt of the school's mean girls all the while she had a burning crush on Emmett. They have a few conversations, some interactions in the library. Emmett is about to graduate and while he has no lusty feelings for Lainey (there is the age difference) she has left a lasting impression on him.
Fast forward quite and few years and they are back in each other's spheres. Lainey has somewhat found herself. She was raised by an overbearing grandmother. Her life has always bene one of privilege but she has wanted to make her own mark, her own way. There are expectations from both Emmett and Lainey's families and those complicate the couple's lives.
I have to say that I liked how Emmett's feelings for Lainey have affected his persona-he who has always been self assured is a mass of emotions and doubts when it comes to her. That's a twist I can get behind. Lainey has molded into a woman who knows her own worth and one who is willing to lose what she most desires if she is not cherished for the wonderful creature that she has become.
I like this more serious side to the author's writings. I enjoy a good rom/com, but this one was very well written.
Forbidden French is a more serious story than I am used to from this author. Usually her writings are light and funny with fantastic wit. This story told over a number of years had beautiful writing but it wasn't as light and had some deep emotions that hurt one's soul.
Lainey knew of Emmett from attending the same boarding school. He was a few years older than her, way more sophisticated and was the guy every girl wanted. His family are the richest of the rich, having made their fortune in the fashion industry. Emmett's parents are unhappily divorced-his mother never got over his father, while his father wasted no time in replacing her with a younger model. His family is French and one gets the feeling he was just born sophisticated and suave.
Lainey is gawky and terribly shy. She is the butt of the school's mean girls all the while she had a burning crush on Emmett. They have a few conversations, some interactions in the library. Emmett is about to graduate and while he has no lusty feelings for Lainey (there is the age difference) she has left a lasting impression on him.
Fast forward quite and few years and they are back in each other's spheres. Lainey has somewhat found herself. She was raised by an overbearing grandmother. Her life has always bene one of privilege but she has wanted to make her own mark, her own way. There are expectations from both Emmett and Lainey's families and those complicate the couple's lives.
I have to say that I liked how Emmett's feelings for Lainey have affected his persona-he who has always been self assured is a mass of emotions and doubts when it comes to her. That's a twist I can get behind. Lainey has molded into a woman who knows her own worth and one who is willing to lose what she most desires if she is not cherished for the wonderful creature that she has become.
I like this more serious side to the author's writings. I enjoy a good rom/com, but this one was very well written.
November 16, 2022
This feel weird and catered to a world that very few live in where family obligations and betrothal are just the norm I guess? It wasn’t super believable as any every day type story. And the amount of control the dad/grandmother have is just flat out obnoxious more than anything.
I was going to try to make it through but I just couldn’t. This was a DNF at 54%.
I was going to try to make it through but I just couldn’t. This was a DNF at 54%.
November 10, 2022
You can find this review of Forbidden French on my blog, Heart's Content!
A big shout out and thank you to the author for providing me with a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review!
I’ve loved R. S. Grey’s work from the moment I stumbled upon them. They’ve always been like catnip to me and oftentimes all I need to do is read the blurb of her book and I find myself immediately wanting to dive in. R. S. Grey’s stories have always been light, sweet, warm and sprinkled with lots of humour. This book and the one before it, My Professor (you can read my review of it here) show R. S. Grey delving into a darker territory of writing. The type of books with grey characters, heartbreak and some obsession even.
It took me a bit to place Forbidden French with regard to its predecessor. While reading it, it didn’t immediately strike me that Emmett was the same Emmett from My Professor. This is frankly quite fantastic because it can very well be read as a stand-alone. But comparing the two books I feel R. S. Grey did a big jump from where she was as a new writer to darker romance to where she is now.
Whatever issues I’d had with My Professor mostly evaporated with Forbidden French, perhaps because from the very beginning there’s a connection between the protagonists that is very evident. The story starts with a wonderful dark and cozy feel to it. Imagine quiet library corners with shafts of light filtering in, dust motes in the air and the smell of books. Peaceful swims and dark night secrets, that’s what this book entails.
The part where Forbidden French and My Professor was similar was that the characters aren’t very well delved into. Amongst the obstacles the MCs face in a book, one of them is fighting for personal growth. While the setup for the struggles against the growth was in place, the resolution and growth isn’t as well handled. I was quite looking forward to that, but they were all quite quickly resolved and wrapped up.
But the book has a lot of heart. My favourite part of this book is the very different character portrayal. Not everyone is a run away, break free kind of person. Some people just need space but genuinely love their quiet gentle lives and don’t need everything to change to be happy. Just having choice, respect and space is sometimes enough. I enjoyed seeing that finally but would’ve loved to see this better explored to the match the depth which which it was initially portrayed.
Emmett and Lainey truly make an interesting pair. I loved their initial interactions and where they eventually arrive at with their relationship. There’s a certain sweetness to them that’s hard to miss and harder not to fall for. The contrast in their personalities was written well. Grey represented this really well by having them react in polar opposite ways to the same situation and its consequences, which was really interesting to read.
Talking about contrasts, seeing and reading about characters you feel both good and difficult about is always fantastic. I love that double sided emotion. Lainey’s grandmother certainly brought that to the book and I would’ve loved to see her character and the important interaction between her and Lainey explored more.
I would definitely recommend Forbidden French. It’s a quick, sweet read with explosive emotions and soft friendships with such a picturesque atmosphere. Four stars!
A big shout out and thank you to the author for providing me with a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review!
I’ve loved R. S. Grey’s work from the moment I stumbled upon them. They’ve always been like catnip to me and oftentimes all I need to do is read the blurb of her book and I find myself immediately wanting to dive in. R. S. Grey’s stories have always been light, sweet, warm and sprinkled with lots of humour. This book and the one before it, My Professor (you can read my review of it here) show R. S. Grey delving into a darker territory of writing. The type of books with grey characters, heartbreak and some obsession even.
It took me a bit to place Forbidden French with regard to its predecessor. While reading it, it didn’t immediately strike me that Emmett was the same Emmett from My Professor. This is frankly quite fantastic because it can very well be read as a stand-alone. But comparing the two books I feel R. S. Grey did a big jump from where she was as a new writer to darker romance to where she is now.
Whatever issues I’d had with My Professor mostly evaporated with Forbidden French, perhaps because from the very beginning there’s a connection between the protagonists that is very evident. The story starts with a wonderful dark and cozy feel to it. Imagine quiet library corners with shafts of light filtering in, dust motes in the air and the smell of books. Peaceful swims and dark night secrets, that’s what this book entails.
The part where Forbidden French and My Professor was similar was that the characters aren’t very well delved into. Amongst the obstacles the MCs face in a book, one of them is fighting for personal growth. While the setup for the struggles against the growth was in place, the resolution and growth isn’t as well handled. I was quite looking forward to that, but they were all quite quickly resolved and wrapped up.
But the book has a lot of heart. My favourite part of this book is the very different character portrayal. Not everyone is a run away, break free kind of person. Some people just need space but genuinely love their quiet gentle lives and don’t need everything to change to be happy. Just having choice, respect and space is sometimes enough. I enjoyed seeing that finally but would’ve loved to see this better explored to the match the depth which which it was initially portrayed.
Emmett and Lainey truly make an interesting pair. I loved their initial interactions and where they eventually arrive at with their relationship. There’s a certain sweetness to them that’s hard to miss and harder not to fall for. The contrast in their personalities was written well. Grey represented this really well by having them react in polar opposite ways to the same situation and its consequences, which was really interesting to read.
Talking about contrasts, seeing and reading about characters you feel both good and difficult about is always fantastic. I love that double sided emotion. Lainey’s grandmother certainly brought that to the book and I would’ve loved to see her character and the important interaction between her and Lainey explored more.
I would definitely recommend Forbidden French. It’s a quick, sweet read with explosive emotions and soft friendships with such a picturesque atmosphere. Four stars!
December 8, 2022
After reading "My Professor" (one of my favorite reads this year) I was really curious with Emilia's brothers and when I saw that this book was about Emmett, I just forget about all the books on my TBR and picked this up.
Maybe it was because of my big expectations that I ended up not loving it as much as I thought I would.
I think I was expecting more from Lainey; she was a shy and proper girl but I wanted to see more fire from her.
Emmett was the typical assh*le billionaire, something I really enjoyed in the other book, but here I was expecting a little more of his personality.
These two had a lot of history and they were cute to read about but I wanted more spice and more of ✨ that ✨ high.
So yeah, maybe I felt it was something missing in this book because I had big expectations from this author and also from this characters/story.
Overall it was a good book but I really can't say it was my favorite from the author, specially since her other release this year was an amazing surprise to me. Let's see what else Rachel has planned out.
▬ 𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬: age gap, arranged marriage
▬ 𝐭𝐰: death, depression, substance abuse
Maybe it was because of my big expectations that I ended up not loving it as much as I thought I would.
I think I was expecting more from Lainey; she was a shy and proper girl but I wanted to see more fire from her.
Emmett was the typical assh*le billionaire, something I really enjoyed in the other book, but here I was expecting a little more of his personality.
These two had a lot of history and they were cute to read about but I wanted more spice and more of ✨ that ✨ high.
So yeah, maybe I felt it was something missing in this book because I had big expectations from this author and also from this characters/story.
Overall it was a good book but I really can't say it was my favorite from the author, specially since her other release this year was an amazing surprise to me. Let's see what else Rachel has planned out.
▬ 𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬: age gap, arranged marriage
▬ 𝐭𝐰: death, depression, substance abuse
November 17, 2022
4.5 ⭐
🚨 Aviso de conteúdo: bullying, depressão, menção a suicídio e abandono parental.
Lainey Davenport foi criada pela avó desde os 12 anos, vinda de uma família rica e muito respeitada, ela vive sua vida de acordo com o que a avó espera dela, indo para inúmeros eventos sociais que não aprecia, sendo vestida como uma boneca, e aceitando um noivado com um homem que mal conhece. Mas o reencontro com Emmett Mercier, sua paixonite de infância e adolescência, pode ser o que ela precisa para quebrar algumas regras.
Lainey e Emmett tem personalidades muito diferentes, mas eles tem muito em comum quando se trata de família, já fizeram muito para agradar outros. Ambos são muito ricos, mas todo esse dinheiro não traz felicidade que eles merecem. Lainey se anula totalmente para agradar a avó, em vários momentos só queria que ela reagisse e não aceitasse tudo com a cabeça baixa. Mas quando eles estão juntos a energia diferente, Lainey não é a mesma garota tímida e submissa, e esse lado ousado dela fascina Emmett.
O romance entre eles é construído aos poucos, mesmo que a atração exista desde o reencontro, e isso gerou a expectativa que eu gosto de acompanhar. Forbidden French tem um ar de realeza por toda a história, mesmo que nenhum dos personagens tenha algum título real, mas são famílias muito importantes e poderosas que vivem pelas aparências, e isso mostra também que ter tudo não traz felicidade. Eu gostei demais desse livro, não vou me aprofundar mais para não estragar a experiência, mas se você também curte esses romances com problemas de gente rica, acho que vai gostar desse.
Leitura feita através de um ARC cedido para uma resenha honesta.
🚨 Aviso de conteúdo: bullying, depressão, menção a suicídio e abandono parental.
Lainey Davenport foi criada pela avó desde os 12 anos, vinda de uma família rica e muito respeitada, ela vive sua vida de acordo com o que a avó espera dela, indo para inúmeros eventos sociais que não aprecia, sendo vestida como uma boneca, e aceitando um noivado com um homem que mal conhece. Mas o reencontro com Emmett Mercier, sua paixonite de infância e adolescência, pode ser o que ela precisa para quebrar algumas regras.
Lainey e Emmett tem personalidades muito diferentes, mas eles tem muito em comum quando se trata de família, já fizeram muito para agradar outros. Ambos são muito ricos, mas todo esse dinheiro não traz felicidade que eles merecem. Lainey se anula totalmente para agradar a avó, em vários momentos só queria que ela reagisse e não aceitasse tudo com a cabeça baixa. Mas quando eles estão juntos a energia diferente, Lainey não é a mesma garota tímida e submissa, e esse lado ousado dela fascina Emmett.
O romance entre eles é construído aos poucos, mesmo que a atração exista desde o reencontro, e isso gerou a expectativa que eu gosto de acompanhar. Forbidden French tem um ar de realeza por toda a história, mesmo que nenhum dos personagens tenha algum título real, mas são famílias muito importantes e poderosas que vivem pelas aparências, e isso mostra também que ter tudo não traz felicidade. Eu gostei demais desse livro, não vou me aprofundar mais para não estragar a experiência, mas se você também curte esses romances com problemas de gente rica, acho que vai gostar desse.
Leitura feita através de um ARC cedido para uma resenha honesta.
January 6, 2023
is this really a rs grey book? this felt so different than what i came to identify her writing style with.
the story also felt a little like a historical romance with the bethoral (s) plotlines. but it was too hot and cold for my liking. also, i can't help but be annoyed by the heroine mother background, which i feel its rooted in some harmful steryotypes of latino immigrants - especially brazilian woman. maybe, again, im reading too much into it, but if i would be lying if i said it didn't make me roll my eyes. oh a brazilian immigrant seducing a rich man and cheating on him in a tóxico relationship - how NOT rooted in harmful steryotypes (its an irony).
but I do hope this will take me out of my slump, bc now i'll run and try to read something better.
the story also felt a little like a historical romance with the bethoral (s) plotlines. but it was too hot and cold for my liking. also, i can't help but be annoyed by the heroine mother background, which i feel its rooted in some harmful steryotypes of latino immigrants - especially brazilian woman. maybe, again, im reading too much into it, but if i would be lying if i said it didn't make me roll my eyes. oh a brazilian immigrant seducing a rich man and cheating on him in a tóxico relationship - how NOT rooted in harmful steryotypes (its an irony).
but I do hope this will take me out of my slump, bc now i'll run and try to read something better.
November 13, 2022
3.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
December 6, 2022
This might be my least favorite book by RS Grey. Usually her books are fun and filled with charm and witty banter. This book was so boring, like she wasn't even into writing it. Both MCs are filthy rich and that was extent of their personalities. They barely spend any time together to form a relationship/feelings. Also if I have to hear the word "betrothed" in a contemporary romance one more time, I'll scream.
January 11, 2023
R.S. Grey is an immediate one click author of mine. Usually their books are packed full of wit and banter, great side characters and hot alpha action. But Forbidden French lacked pretty much all of the usual, this could be intentional on the authors part, and she diversified from her usual writing style. But for this particular book I wasn't a fan. I found Forbidden French comme ci comme ça in content and characters.
December 28, 2022
2.5
This is the first book I’ve by the author in along time & i could cry …I’m so disappointed. I thought it started out really good. I loved their getting to know each other in the library scene. Fast forward, I adored how they reunited but shortly after it fell apart for me. Neither character had a backbone. They had charming characteristics but it was hard for me to love either one of them. Their character development fell short to me & the ending felt super rushed .
This is the first book I’ve by the author in along time & i could cry …I’m so disappointed. I thought it started out really good. I loved their getting to know each other in the library scene. Fast forward, I adored how they reunited but shortly after it fell apart for me. Neither character had a backbone. They had charming characteristics but it was hard for me to love either one of them. Their character development fell short to me & the ending felt super rushed .
November 6, 2022
I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
***May contain Spoilers***
R.S.Grey has delivered another great story filled with love, loss, desire, redemption, emotional growth, and finding the courage to use your voice.
Emmett Mercier is stunningly handsome with his dark hair and eyes. He is smart, hardworking, and aloof. While he has every advantage the wealth he was born into affords he has been neglected if not abandoned by his parents. After their divorce he was raised by various nannies until boarding school. Even under these circumstances he still hopes for the approval of his business mogul father who is never truly pleased and expects him to “toe the line” and follow the plan he envisions for Emmett’s future.
Elaine “Lainey” Davenport is strikingly beautiful with her dark hair, pale green eyes and skin. At an early age she stays with her Grandmother to be protected from her parents toxic and tumultuous relationship. When she is middle school age both her parents die, effectively altering her life and outlook. She spends her youth trying to root out the bad qualities she sees in herself as inherited by her parents and lives to please her only family left, her Grandmother. At boarding school she excels academically, but her shy demeanor, ability to fade into the background coupled with her pale complexion leads to teasing that plagues her for the entirety of her youth. Antique notions of women and the proper way to behave are deeply ingrained into her as she navigates the wealth and connections of the old money and status her family name garners. She knows what is expected of her and lives her life to please her grandmother. Lainey is happy and content, but she isn’t thriving.
Emmet and Lainey both live similar lives in which they follow the plan, adhering to the wishes of others. While attending boarding school they find different ways of coping with the weight of those expectations. Although years apart in age they strike up an odd friendship of sorts in which they can read one another and often find solace in being quiet together or baring secrets and burdens to a kindred soul. Years later as adults they meet at various occasions and forbidden sparks fly. The crush of Lainey’s childhood comes back stronger and Emmett is drawn to her as much more than a “kid” he went to school with. Can they navigate the expectations of familial duty without loosing their freedom to choose their own happiness? Is it even possible to choose their own destiny and not crumple under the stress and destroying their fledgling relationship. Grab Forbidden French to find out how it all ends.
***May contain Spoilers***
R.S.Grey has delivered another great story filled with love, loss, desire, redemption, emotional growth, and finding the courage to use your voice.
Emmett Mercier is stunningly handsome with his dark hair and eyes. He is smart, hardworking, and aloof. While he has every advantage the wealth he was born into affords he has been neglected if not abandoned by his parents. After their divorce he was raised by various nannies until boarding school. Even under these circumstances he still hopes for the approval of his business mogul father who is never truly pleased and expects him to “toe the line” and follow the plan he envisions for Emmett’s future.
Elaine “Lainey” Davenport is strikingly beautiful with her dark hair, pale green eyes and skin. At an early age she stays with her Grandmother to be protected from her parents toxic and tumultuous relationship. When she is middle school age both her parents die, effectively altering her life and outlook. She spends her youth trying to root out the bad qualities she sees in herself as inherited by her parents and lives to please her only family left, her Grandmother. At boarding school she excels academically, but her shy demeanor, ability to fade into the background coupled with her pale complexion leads to teasing that plagues her for the entirety of her youth. Antique notions of women and the proper way to behave are deeply ingrained into her as she navigates the wealth and connections of the old money and status her family name garners. She knows what is expected of her and lives her life to please her grandmother. Lainey is happy and content, but she isn’t thriving.
Emmet and Lainey both live similar lives in which they follow the plan, adhering to the wishes of others. While attending boarding school they find different ways of coping with the weight of those expectations. Although years apart in age they strike up an odd friendship of sorts in which they can read one another and often find solace in being quiet together or baring secrets and burdens to a kindred soul. Years later as adults they meet at various occasions and forbidden sparks fly. The crush of Lainey’s childhood comes back stronger and Emmett is drawn to her as much more than a “kid” he went to school with. Can they navigate the expectations of familial duty without loosing their freedom to choose their own happiness? Is it even possible to choose their own destiny and not crumple under the stress and destroying their fledgling relationship. Grab Forbidden French to find out how it all ends.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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