Title: For the Love of April French
Author: Penny Aimes
Publisher: Carina Adores
Length: 253 Pages
Category: Contemporary Romance, Transgender Romance, Interracial Romance
Rating: 5 Stars
At a Glance: For the Love of April French is composed of so many things: compassion and conflict and insight, and the joys and struggles and sweetness of two lovely people falling in love with each other. The range of emotions I experienced while reading this story made the journey, as a bystander who came to want every good thing for these characters, such a fulfilling one.
Reviewed By: Lisa
Blurb: April French doesn’t do relationships and she never asks for more.
A long-standing regular at kink club Frankie’s, she’s kind of seen it all. As a trans woman, she’s used to being the scenic rest stop for others on their way to a happily-ever-after. She knows how desire works, and she keeps hers carefully boxed up to take out on weekends only.
After all, you can’t be let down if you never ask.
Then Dennis Martin walks into Frankie’s, fresh from Seattle and looking a little lost. April just meant to be friendly, but one flirtatious drink turns into one hot night.
When Dennis asks for her number, she gives it to him.
When he asks for her trust, well…that’s a little harder.
And when the desire she thought she had such a firm grip on comes alive with Dennis, April finds herself wanting passion, purpose and commitment.
But when their relationship moves from complicated to impossible, April will have to decide how much she’s willing to want.
Review: For the Love of April French is a tender, poignant, and exceedingly romantic story, and a stellar debut for author Penny Aimes. This book wears its heart on its sleeve in all the most touching and compassionate ways, in its portrayal of two people who have been hurt in the past and who come into their connection with some serious reservations. For April, it is the underlying belief that a long-term, loving and committed relationship is something she’s not destined for because history has dictated it, so she settles for whatever she can get in whatever time she’s given with someone.
The author’s skill in crafting engaging characters is inarguably one of the book’s strengths. April and Dennis are layered and nuanced, charming and sensitive and sincere, and I became completely invested in the success of their budding connection. It was clear to me they were destined for each other, even if it took them some time to reach the point where they could admit it themselves; however, it’s this book’s heart that reached out a grabbed me and kept me invested in seeing them build towards their happily ever after. April’s inner voice—the one that whispers she’s not worthy of a lasting connection with anyone, the voice that sometimes tries to convince her she’s not who she knows she is—remained a persistent adversary, even as she came to understand she’d found someone in Dennis who dominated her so beautifully, in every way she needed.
It took time for April to realize Dennis’s exceptional kindness and generosity weren’t part of a game to string her along until he would inevitably move on to another submissive. What Dennis is not, is perfect, though, and I appreciated that Aimes gave him his own flaws along with a past he’s had trouble forgiving himself for. He was not the expert Dom, nor did he always get things right with April, but he sought to learn, which proved to be pivotal in their relationship, though it wasn’t the magic fix to every layer of conflict they faced. Some of those challenges had to be faced alone rather than together, and, wisely, the author allows her characters to do that within the third act tension that led to their happy ending.
For the Love of April French is composed of so many things: compassion and conflict and insight, and the joys and struggles and sweetness of two lovely people falling in love with each other. It epitomizes the sort of courage to fall in love that means patience and taking risks in spite of your fears, not only in love but in being who you are meant to be and allowing someone to see your strengths and vulnerabilities. The range of emotions I experienced while reading this story made the journey, as a bystander who came to want every good thing for these characters, such a fulfilling one.
You can buy For the Love of April French here:
[zilla_button url=”https://www.harlequin.com/shop/books/9780369716026_for-the-love-of-april-french.html” style=”black” size=”large” type=”round” target=”_blank”] Carina/Harlequin [/zilla_button][zilla_button url=”https://books2read.com/For-the-Love-of-April-French” style=”black” size=”large” type=”round” target=”_blank”] Amazon & Other eTailers [/zilla_button]