Genre: F/F, Romance, Erotica, Female Fiction, Adult Fiction, LGBTQI

Love Without Limits is the second instalment of the Josephine and Caitlin love story from the Pink Bean series by Harper Bliss. It goes deeper in detail to understanding non-monogamous relationships.

The narrative of this story tests Jo and Caitlin's relationship. It also explores a relationship deeper into it's duration and not just at the formation of the relationship. 

Non-monogamy is debated thoroughly throughout this book and its place within the relationships within modern society. To be honest before reading any of the Pink Bean series and reading about Caitlin and her work/beliefs I had not really known much about non-monogamy. 

Harper's writing lends nicely to the discursive nature of the narrative of this book. It also showed the progression of the characters, especially Jo, from the first book - Everything Between Us, where we were introduced to both protagonists and the exploration of body image and self-confidence within lesbian relationships was shown within the narrative.

The reason why I only gave this book two-out-of-five stars is purely for the non-monogamy element, as personally I do not believe in it. There also was not as much development of the characters within this, especially in Caitlin. However, the book did read well and I could see how some people could enjoy this. It will be interesting to see how the Pink Bean series develops from this...

Genre: Adult Fiction, Romance, F/F, Female Fiction, Erotica, LGBTQI.

Lesson Plan was an extremely enjoyable read. It was a suggested read on my Amazon account, so I read the blurb and thought why not, lets give it a whirl - and I wasn't disappointed.

From beginning to end the narrative had a really lovely flow. It didn't seem to be running away and it never seemed to be dragging, as Goldilocks would say it was 'just right".

Armstrong's writing style is easy going and free-flowing. Her use of humour within this, especially shown in the varying communication structures between best friends and family members, was very enjoyable. I must admit there were a few times that I chuckled to myself.

The Lesson Plan series is in it's infancy, but I am sure with stories like this it will be a huge success. I can't wait to see what happens next in this series.

Personally I would love to see the formation of Jameson and Candace's relationship up until the start of this book and their wedding. It would be good to learn a bit more about them as a couple - just an idea. 

My reason for giving this book a whopping five stars was purely for the enjoyment factor, I found this book extremely entertaining to read, and in the end I was routing for both characters - I wanted to see them become a couple and get together.

Genre: Adult Fiction, Romance, F/F, Female Fiction, Erotica, LGBTQI

A recommendation by a friend led me to read this book by Lauren Gallagher. ​

Stuck Landing was an interesting read - to say the least. Gallagher's writing style made this book such an easy read, which allowed me to focus primarily on the characters and the narrative.

I liked the exploration of the LGBT world within this story. Not only were we privy to the development of Anna & Natalya's relationship, but we saw two other relationships grow in Levi & Carter and Jeremy & Scott.

Obviously, the main focus was on Natalya and Anna and both of their insecurities and how that effects their relationship.

Gallagher cleverly explored Anna's issue of biphobia in detail, but also showed it's progress and Anna's realisation that  dating a 'bi' woman doesn't mean that you should have any preconceptions as to their motives.

We also had Natalya's more subtle insecurities of committing herself to someone only to have them use you for personal gain - I'm sure quite a few people can relate to this. However, what was intelligently done here was the way that Gallagher reinforced that actually this should not prohibit the formation of a relationship, this was done through the strength within Natalya's character.

All-in-all I enjoyed the development of both characters and the formation of the feelings and emotions that they have for each other.

All of this is my reasoning behind giving this a four star rating. An enjoyable and easy read.

Genre: Adult Fiction, Romance, F/F, Erotica, LGBTQI

WOW! Just, WOW!! That's all I can say after reading the latest instalment within the Pink Bean Series by Harper Bliss.

When I finished Everything Between Us, after only 48 hours of starting to read it, I remember trying to analyse all the emotions that were running through me throughout my journey alongside Josephine and Caitlin, and I was staggered at what I found.

I was exhausted. I was drained. I was happy. I was sad. I felt love. I felt heartache. I felt confident. I felt dejection. Inevitably I was transformed.

After reading this book, I feel like a different person. I have been able to not only relate to aspects of what Josephine was saying in her book, but I lived it with her. I have experienced her transformation in her self-confidence, that I can only use to help my own.

I feel from this that actually the writing of it was more of a therapeutic and emotional account than the previous two books in the series, and this does shine through with the amount of raw emotion within it. You cannot write something like this if you haven't experienced aspects of it yourself. Thank you for sharing this Harper, this is something truly special.

Josephine, as a character, really hit-home for me. It was like reading about a kindred spirit in her thought processes. I liked how she developed throughout the book and at the end I was brought to tears with happiness at how she had almost done a full-circle and how much she had grown.

However, I cannot forget Caitlin, she was inspirational in the way she conducted herself with Jo - and I admire that of her. To be such a positive catalyst of change in someone's life is one of the greatest gifts that she could have given Jo.

Also, there were introductions of other characters within this novel, hopefully meaning that the Pink Bean series is far from finished - interesting. I am certainly interested to know, and Harper was quite coy about this within this novel, about the development of Amber and Martha's liaisons - this could be a potential idea for Pink Bean #4.

I gave this a whopping five out of five stars purely for the way it made me feel during and after reading it. I learned a lot from this book, to which I am eternally thankful to Harper. In the end - I just loved everything about it, from start to finish.

​Definitely a must read - what are you waiting for...

Genre: Romance, Adult Fiction, F/F, Erotica, LGBTQI

Something True encompasses the narrative of two very unlikely people meeting and falling in love.

However, it's not that straight forward - actually it delves much deeper than that. In one instance it explores how elements of our 'day-to-day' life can prevent us from being our 'true' selves. In the other it examines the lost potential of a life lived to help benefit others.

Karelia cleverly weaves this into the narrative so that we do not even notice it, which makes it subtle, but also adds context to the individual characters and their backstory.

Personally for me, it was refreshing to see an F/F romance novel clearly using the Butch lesbian persona - strangely when reading previous novels this has not been the case, it has usually been the story of two femmes, which is good, but I feel like it gets repetitive so it was really enjoyable to have the inclusion of this persona.

As you can probably guess from the paragraph above, I really liked the character of Tate, she was like a breath of fresh-air within the F/F genre, not only with her being a butch, but her whole persona. It was clear that she is the type of person that is so loyal she will do anything to help out those she really cares about.

​I liked her as a heroine, it was like an oxymoron, with her being the one everyone turns too in order to 'fix' things, but it was actually her that needed saving, but no-one could see that. I was routing for her the entire way through the book.
 
The reason for me giving this only four out of five stars is that in certain parts the book picked up pace and then slowed a little, which put me on a rollercoaster ride when reading this.

Also, the whole heroine aspect in the Romance genre seemed to make certain elements of this book a little predictable, however, there were also quite a few unexpected twists and turns along the way. So, not all bad.

An idea for another edition in the Out In Portland series could be Maggie and Lils story, we were not given too much on their history in this book, so I think there is definitely a good opportunity to tell their story. Just a thought...

Genre: F/F, Romance, Adult Fiction, Erotica, LGBTQI

​WOW! Just WOW! This book took the High Rise novella series to different heights.

No Ordinary Love took the story and relationship between Alex and Maddie to another level by looking at the impact an ex-partner has on the present.

Harper cleverly weaves the narrative to highlight the thought processes that are involved when approached by a distant memory from the past.

Alex deals with this situation in her own way, which is evident, but it's also clear to see that her decision requires serious thought. She also shows that Alex being honest with her partner Maddie and eventually encompassing the "what doesn't kill us only makes us stronger" philosophy.

Harpers writing style clearly helped to promote the rush of emotions that each character must be feeling, which helped me immensely when trying to visualise and relate to it.

I gave this book five stars because it gave me everything I needed, drama, intrigue and romance. Looking forward to seeing what the High Rise gang get up to in the 4th book in this series - Close Enough.

Stay tuned folks...

Genre: Romance, F/F, Adult Fiction, LGBTQI, Erotica

I liked this book - a lot. It took me on a personal journey with the two main Characters, Katherine and Alison.

What I really liked about The Road to You was that we got both sides of the story, which was really refreshing.

The interweaving of both characters life throughout the book gave the whole narrative a 'completed' feel. We saw both characters grow older, develop and change, which was nice to see. I felt like I had gotten to know both of these characters while reading this.

​Throughout the book we were kept in suspense as to whether or not they would get together or not! I had an inkling, but that wasn't confirmed until over 70% of the way through the book - well done Harper, love the suspense.

It was really good to have the story of two extremely different people finding their path that led them to each other in a believable way. Harper certainly shows that opposites attract within this narrative! ​

I also loved the inclusion of the 'best friends' within the story-line - they were integral in guiding the two main characters together, which showed, that sometimes it's easy to overlook whats right in front of you.

A follow-up on this could explain the story of Anna and Grace, as not too much information was given about their stories - just an idea.

For me, this book is a five star book all around. It has everything - a decent narrative, it's written well and it showed clear development of the main characters. So, in all - I loved it.

Genre: Romance, F/F, Adult Fiction, Erotica, LGBTQI

This is the 2nd book within the Pink Bean Series and I must say I really liked it.

What Harper manages to do very cleverly in all her books is to find a very interesting and unique angle and create an enthralling narrative that draws the reader in from start to finish.

That's no different to what she has done with Beneath The Surface. We were introduced to the characters Kristin and Sheryl in the first Pink Bean novel, but Harper's focus was not on their life/situation but rather that of Micky and Robin.

Here, she clearly delves into their relationship, from inception to past the end point of No Strings Attached. This is what is extremely unique about the narrative of this novel, where the whole thing explores a 20 year relationship and the development of the characters within it.

Not only does she cover this angle very well, but she also tackles the dark topic of alcoholism and it's effects, not only physical, but psychological on an individual and their close family members. In light of this, this book is a lot darker than Harper's other novels.

But that's not a bad thing, instead it clearly shows Harper's versatility as an author to tackle such a topic in a professional and yet sensitive way.

My reasoning behind giving it a four out of five stars, and if I could I would have gladly given this a four and a half out of five, is merely due to one tiny thing. Depth.

By Harper covering the entirety of Kristin and Sheryl's relationship she has had to condense it, which means in some places it seemed a bit rushed - it did feel like this could have been three books. But that's just a personal thing from my point of view. We were provided with enough information to allow the flow of the narrative to progress in an engaging way, therefore, not detracting from the enjoyment of the story.

Anyway, book number three in the Pink Bean series is due to be released soon and I cannot wait to see what happens next. I will definitely pounce on this when it is released. Watch this space...

Genre: F/F, Romance, Adult Fiction, Erotica, LGBTQI

​If I am honest, I struggled with this one, which is weird because usually I love and get so gripped by Harper's writing.

Do not get me wrong, this has nothing to do with her ability as a writer, I just did not seem to get on with the narrative/characters as I have with many other books of hers.

In the Distance there is Light explores the life of an individual who has lost the person they love in the most tragic of circumstances, which is a good angle, as generally people tend to focus more on the tragedy rather than the life after.

However, and this is where I struggled with this, I could not fathom, how someone who was in a heterosexual relationship could suddenly end up in a lesbian relationship, over night. It just didn't sit right with me.

I mean I can see what Harper was trying to do here, showing how grief can bring two unexpected people together for comfort and support - but it just was not believable in this scenario.

I also struggled with the lead character Sophie. I know she was going through the most difficult and traumatic times, but the way in which she dealt with it just confused me. I guess until I have been in her position, and I wish to god that I will never have to be, I will never fully comprehend how someone would 'deal' with such a loss.

Anyway, there were some good points regarding this book - namely Harper's writing style. Once again her writing style made it extremely easy to read and engage with, either positively or negatively.

The awarding of only 3 stars, which is the joint lowest I have scored Harper to date, is predominantly due to my struggle with the narrative and characters - nothing else.

Don't worry Harper - I still love what you write!

Genre: Romance, Adult Fiction, Erotica, F/F, LGBTQI

I wanted to broaden my horizon's for Lesbian Romance novels, so I decided to try Lydia Rose's novel Trust in me. 

On a whole I thought the narrative and direction of the story was good, however I did found it lagging in a number of areas.

Firstly, there were occasions when Rose clearly lost the train of who said what within the characters dialogue, which is a major faux pas.

Secondly, after Jules and Paige get into a relationship the pace of the story slows dramatically and starts to produce an air of predictability in regards to the direction of the narrative.

The aforementioned issues mentioned above constitutes my reasoning for awarding this book a lowly two stars, which is a shame., as I thought the narrative had a lot of potential.

Do not get me wrong, this has not put me off reading anymore of Lydia Rose's books in the future. On the contrary, I cannot wait to read another of her books and be proved wrong. Watch this space...