An extraordinary finale to a series that deserves to be esteemed as among the best in the genre.
A doctor and a duke who continually challenge the rules of society find that embracing love is one of the biggest risks of all.
Aurora Montalban Wright operates a secret, not exactly legal, women’s clinic in the backstreets of Paris, and when her estranged brothers cut off access to her trust, she needs to find other means of funding her operation. Desiring a distraction, she seeks out Apollo César Sinclair Robles, the new duke of Annan, who has frustrated her since they first met, yet also reawakened her long dormant carnal desire. Apollo is captivated by the gutsy doctor and becomes determined to protect her from the dangerous situations she puts herself in for her patients, even if she doesn’t want him—or anyone—to interfere with her independence. As he supports her work and she repeatedly winds up in his bed, she begins to recognize the similarities between them as Afro-Latine people using their power and skills to improve the lives of the disenfranchised and vulnerable; his aunt may be set on finding him a bride, but he’s more concerned with creating better living conditions for those who live on the dukedom’s land. As Aurora and Apollo’s feelings for each other grow, what was meant to be a temporary relationship starts to feel impossible to let go of, even as they face prejudice and confront complicated personal histories. Bursting with passion, the final book in Herrera’s terrific Las Leonas series is a masterclass in romance writing and plotting. There are heightened yet completely believable emotions and tensions throughout, with Herrera providing just the right amount of fascinating historical detail while still keeping the romance front and center. Conflicts concerning women’s healthcare, particularly regarding reproductive choices, are frighteningly resonant today. This can be enjoyed as a standalone, but is even more powerful alongside the previous books.
An extraordinary finale to a series that deserves to be esteemed as among the best in the genre.Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2025
ISBN: 9781335476968
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Canary Street Press
Review Posted Online: Dec. 28, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
PERSPECTIVES
A romance that could have used significant rethinking.
Childhood friends, almost-sweethearts, a misunderstanding, and a funeral.
Blair Lang and Declan Renshaw were best friends who went on one date before a disagreement and an accident sent them in different directions after high school. Now Blair is back from college to be with her great-aunt Lottie, who’s dying, and to support her single mother in small-town Seabrook, California. Finding a job at a coffee shop puts her in the path of her former boyfriend, since he turns out to be its owner. Can the two get past their mistakes? The novel uses the popular second-chance romance trope, but Pham fails to energize it through interesting characters. Blair’s grief over her great-aunt’s death and her plan to help her mother are overshadowed by internal monologues about her feelings, the way her friends aren’t paying attention to her, and the novel she plans to write. Declan’s distinguishing characteristic, besides being a former high school quarterback, is his skill at building birdhouses. Unsurprisingly, the couple doesn’t have much chemistry; when they embrace, their “bodies meld like…memory foam.” The wooden characters, unusual word choices (“conglomerate of pedestrians,” “litany of plants”), and odd turns of phrase (“tension melting from his eyebrows like butter melting in a warm pan”) are almost enough to obscure the lack of plot development. What passes for stakes is easily defused when Blair comes into an inheritance that saves her from working as a consultant at Ernst & Young in New York—so she can write a romance novel.
A romance that could have used significant rethinking.Pub Date: March 3, 2026
ISBN: 9781668095188
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: Feb. 16, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2026
With captivating dialogue, angst-y characters, and a couple of steamy sex scenes, Hoover has done it again.
After being released from prison, a young woman tries to reconnect with her 5-year-old daughter despite having killed the girl’s father.
Kenna didn’t even know she was pregnant until after she was sent to prison for murdering her boyfriend, Scotty. When her baby girl, Diem, was born, she was forced to give custody to Scotty’s parents. Now that she’s been released, Kenna is intent on getting to know her daughter, but Scotty’s parents won’t give her a chance to tell them what really happened the night their son died. Instead, they file a restraining order preventing Kenna from so much as introducing herself to Diem. Handsome, self-assured Ledger, who was Scotty’s best friend, is another key adult in Diem’s life. He’s helping her grandparents raise her, and he too blames Kenna for Scotty’s death. Even so, there’s something about her that haunts him. Kenna feels the pull, too, and seems to be seeking Ledger out despite his judgmental behavior. As Ledger gets to know Kenna and acknowledges his attraction to her, he begins to wonder if maybe he and Scotty’s parents have judged her unfairly. Even so, Ledger is afraid that if he surrenders to his feelings, Scotty’s parents will kick him out of Diem’s life. As Kenna and Ledger continue to mourn for Scotty, they also grieve the future they cannot have with each other. Told alternatively from Kenna’s and Ledger’s perspectives, the story explores the myriad ways in which snap judgments based on partial information can derail people’s lives. Built on a foundation of death and grief, this story has an undercurrent of sadness. As usual, however, the author has created compelling characters who are magnetic and sympathetic enough to pull readers in. In addition to grief, the novel also deftly explores complex issues such as guilt, self-doubt, redemption, and forgiveness.
With captivating dialogue, angst-y characters, and a couple of steamy sex scenes, Hoover has done it again.Pub Date: Jan. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-5420-2560-7
Page Count: 335
Publisher: Montlake Romance
Review Posted Online: Oct. 12, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2021
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
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