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aliu6's review
4.0
4.25 stars
Carmen Lyttleton is too busy with her job to spend time on her love life. Maybe that's why it's been over a decade since her last meaningful relationship with a man. But when Carmen accompanies her friend to get a tattoo, she finds herself drawn to the tattoo artist—the lesbian tattoo artist. Ash Taylor was burned years ago after she fell in love with a straight woman, and since then, she's refused to put herself in another similar situation. But it's hard for Carmen and Ash to stay apart when everything feels so easy when they're together. Can Carmen help Ash overcome her fears and dare to love?
cw: homophobia (from minor characters), suicide attempt (briefly mentioned, by minor character)
There was a bit of a slow start, but then I started really getting into the story. I ended up enjoying this one.
The Characters: We get an alternating third person limited POV of the MCs, and both were very likable. Ash had her past to deal with, and Carmen needed to explore her sexuality. In the beginning, I found Carmen a bit timid. She seemed a bit bland next to all these other colorful personalities. But then it was like a flip switched and she was mature and confident, and I was loving it. Ash was pretty steady throughout, although her understandable fears cause her to do some childish things. I also really liked the side characters. We get a good deal of page time with Tamsyn and Maggie from A.L. Brooks's previous book (which was pretty good, although not as good as this one, if memory serves). Ash's niece, Sophie, who is going through her own coming out process, is fantastic.
The Romance: This was definitely a slowburn, where the MCs became friends and mutually pined over each other. And then they finally revealed their feelings, and even then, they kept to kissing until Carmen was ready to go all the way. It was really cute. I definitely got the sense of the ease of their relationship through their banter. There are a few spots of angst, but nothing major. I almost expected a bigger issue, like one of their exes returning, but I'm glad it didn't happen.
The Plot: The plot follows along the romance and with Carmen's coming out journey. There's also some sideplots involving Carmen's business and Ash's niece, which were also quite engaging. Like I said, there was a bit of a slow start, but the last two thirds of the book went down real easy.
The Writing: The writing was solid. It was pretty British in style, and I read all the dialogue in British accents (not that I'm good at differentiating between them) in my head.
The main area where this loses points is in the slow start, but this was a really enjoyable story. I like how we get deeper into the characters' lives. The coming out story is an important one, and it's different for every individual. Would recommend this!
Carmen Lyttleton is too busy with her job to spend time on her love life. Maybe that's why it's been over a decade since her last meaningful relationship with a man. But when Carmen accompanies her friend to get a tattoo, she finds herself drawn to the tattoo artist—the lesbian tattoo artist. Ash Taylor was burned years ago after she fell in love with a straight woman, and since then, she's refused to put herself in another similar situation. But it's hard for Carmen and Ash to stay apart when everything feels so easy when they're together. Can Carmen help Ash overcome her fears and dare to love?
cw: homophobia (from minor characters), suicide attempt (briefly mentioned, by minor character)
There was a bit of a slow start, but then I started really getting into the story. I ended up enjoying this one.
The Characters: We get an alternating third person limited POV of the MCs, and both were very likable. Ash had her past to deal with, and Carmen needed to explore her sexuality. In the beginning, I found Carmen a bit timid. She seemed a bit bland next to all these other colorful personalities. But then it was like a flip switched and she was mature and confident, and I was loving it. Ash was pretty steady throughout, although her understandable fears cause her to do some childish things. I also really liked the side characters. We get a good deal of page time with Tamsyn and Maggie from A.L. Brooks's previous book (which was pretty good, although not as good as this one, if memory serves). Ash's niece, Sophie, who is going through her own coming out process, is fantastic.
The Romance: This was definitely a slowburn, where the MCs became friends and mutually pined over each other. And then they finally revealed their feelings, and even then, they kept to kissing until Carmen was ready to go all the way. It was really cute. I definitely got the sense of the ease of their relationship through their banter. There are a few spots of angst, but nothing major. I almost expected a bigger issue, like one of their exes returning, but I'm glad it didn't happen.
The Plot: The plot follows along the romance and with Carmen's coming out journey. There's also some sideplots involving Carmen's business and Ash's niece, which were also quite engaging. Like I said, there was a bit of a slow start, but the last two thirds of the book went down real easy.
The Writing: The writing was solid. It was pretty British in style, and I read all the dialogue in British accents (not that I'm good at differentiating between them) in my head.
The main area where this loses points is in the slow start, but this was a really enjoyable story. I like how we get deeper into the characters' lives. The coming out story is an important one, and it's different for every individual. Would recommend this!
hsinjulit's review
5.0
When Carmen accompanies her best friend to Ash's tattoo studio, she isn't looking love. She is straight and in a relationship. But when she visits her friends Tamsyn and Maggie, she finds herself reconsidering what relationships mean. After running into Ash at Alma's during coffee break, the pair strike up a friendship. With painful past experience of falling for a straight woman, Ash is determined not to make the same mistakes again. Besides, what can their friendship possibly turn into?
The process of Carmen and Ash getting to know each other is purely beautiful. Even before any of the romantic elements fall into place, I love the bond the pair have. Since I always enjoy a good slow-burn romance, Dare to Love definitely had me feel like falling in love. With Carmen figuring her sexuality out at forty-three and Ash's distrust in "straight" women's feelings, their interactions were sometimes frustrating to read. Yet, it was those struggles that makes the story real because both were fighting so hard against their own insecurities.
In addition to the drama between our two main characters, Sophie, Ash's niece, has a wonderful storyline as well. The teenage girl is also wondering about her own sexuality. We get to see dealing with coming out at different stages of life, and what it means to dare to love when you trust someone over your own fears.
Dare to Love is a beautiful story that I will definitely reread. I love everything about it, including all the amazing friendships between main and supporting characters. This originally high-four is now a solid five, and I recommend it to anyone, especially those questioning their sexualities regardless of age. You are not alone.
The process of Carmen and Ash getting to know each other is purely beautiful. Even before any of the romantic elements fall into place, I love the bond the pair have. Since I always enjoy a good slow-burn romance, Dare to Love definitely had me feel like falling in love. With Carmen figuring her sexuality out at forty-three and Ash's distrust in "straight" women's feelings, their interactions were sometimes frustrating to read. Yet, it was those struggles that makes the story real because both were fighting so hard against their own insecurities.
In addition to the drama between our two main characters, Sophie, Ash's niece, has a wonderful storyline as well. The teenage girl is also wondering about her own sexuality. We get to see dealing with coming out at different stages of life, and what it means to dare to love when you trust someone over your own fears.
Dare to Love is a beautiful story that I will definitely reread. I love everything about it, including all the amazing friendships between main and supporting characters. This originally high-four is now a solid five, and I recommend it to anyone, especially those questioning their sexualities regardless of age. You are not alone.
abbytenge's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
netgyrl's review
4.0
Solid well written romance. Both MCs were really likable. I have to side with Lex when she writes in her review when the big reveal comes on what is keeping one of the MCs from committing to trying a relationship with the other it's very, What? Really? That's it?! Even so, who cares because I really enjoyed the read and it has one of my fav tropes: The straight lady realizing she aint so straight after all. And it's trope-adjacent to my other fav - anything to do with actors/singer etc.
eyrinreads's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
mjsam's review
4.0
ARC received via Ylva in exchange for an honest review.
This is a follow on from [b:Write Your Own Script|44536119|Write Your Own Script|A.L. Brooks|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1553005872l/44536119._SY75_.jpg|69118108] and features Carmen (Tamsyn’s agent) and Ash, a tattoo artist. The two meet when Carmen’s BFF decides to get a tattoo in reaction to her latest breakup. Carmen is intrigued by Ash, who doesn’t fit any of Carmen’s preconceived ideas of what a tattoo artist would be like. They meet again by chance and start up a friendship. Both MCs are mid 40s and written as fully fleshed out, with careers, family and friends that enrich their lives.
Ash has been burnt by a straight girl in the past, so she’s up front about only wanting a friendship with Carmen, even though they are both falling for the other. Ash is also helping her 14 yr old niece Sophie (who is a delight) through the coming out process. This also involves Ash’s sister, Courtney, and some of their scenes were really moving.
On Carmen’s side, we have Tamsyn and Maggie from ‘Write’ and Carmen’s best friend Felicity, who I thought was going to be some vapid divorcee, but was a wonderful friend. Carmen’s brother Tristan and his partner are also featured, and I loved the scenes between the siblings, their relationship was very sweet.
The relationship between the MCs is the very definition of a slow burn. Even after they get together there’s no rush towards sexy times, so if you’re waiting for that, you’ve got a long wait. This is the opposite of ‘Write’ in that regard. I loved the slow build and that we got to see the MCs get to know each other. I also liked that though this is a coming out story for Carmen, she wasn’t tooing and froing at any point, she discussed her fears with her friends and with Ash, and was very brave about putting herself out there. Her first attempt at that had me choking up.
The only downside in the story was Ash’s hesitation about becoming involved with Carmen, I could understand her hesitation (although I thought her backstory was a little too... I don’t know, it just didn’t seem like something that should have held her back for as long as it did, given that the relationship wasn’t even a relationship, but YMMV). In any event it got too repetitive towards the end, and is the reason I knocked off a star.
This is a lovely romance between two sweet MCs who deserve their HEA, with the added benefit of also being able to catch up with Tamsyn and Maggie again. Four stars.
This is a follow on from [b:Write Your Own Script|44536119|Write Your Own Script|A.L. Brooks|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1553005872l/44536119._SY75_.jpg|69118108] and features Carmen (Tamsyn’s agent) and Ash, a tattoo artist. The two meet when Carmen’s BFF decides to get a tattoo in reaction to her latest breakup. Carmen is intrigued by Ash, who doesn’t fit any of Carmen’s preconceived ideas of what a tattoo artist would be like. They meet again by chance and start up a friendship. Both MCs are mid 40s and written as fully fleshed out, with careers, family and friends that enrich their lives.
Ash has been burnt by a straight girl in the past, so she’s up front about only wanting a friendship with Carmen, even though they are both falling for the other. Ash is also helping her 14 yr old niece Sophie (who is a delight) through the coming out process. This also involves Ash’s sister, Courtney, and some of their scenes were really moving.
On Carmen’s side, we have Tamsyn and Maggie from ‘Write’ and Carmen’s best friend Felicity, who I thought was going to be some vapid divorcee, but was a wonderful friend. Carmen’s brother Tristan and his partner are also featured, and I loved the scenes between the siblings, their relationship was very sweet.
The relationship between the MCs is the very definition of a slow burn. Even after they get together there’s no rush towards sexy times, so if you’re waiting for that, you’ve got a long wait. This is the opposite of ‘Write’ in that regard. I loved the slow build and that we got to see the MCs get to know each other. I also liked that though this is a coming out story for Carmen, she wasn’t tooing and froing at any point, she discussed her fears with her friends and with Ash, and was very brave about putting herself out there. Her first attempt at that had me choking up.
The only downside in the story was Ash’s hesitation about becoming involved with Carmen, I could understand her hesitation (although I thought her backstory was a little too... I don’t know, it just didn’t seem like something that should have held her back for as long as it did, given that the relationship wasn’t even a relationship, but YMMV). In any event it got too repetitive towards the end, and is the reason I knocked off a star.
This is a lovely romance between two sweet MCs who deserve their HEA, with the added benefit of also being able to catch up with Tamsyn and Maggie again. Four stars.
lsnack's review
5.0
This book had a great buildup with a lot of kissing. I like getting to see Ash and Carmen interact with family and friends. Ash's niece Sophie was a great side character and how her and Carmen are actually going through some of the same feelings. It was also great to have more of Tamryn and Maggie. Would love to see how Sophie develops.
brennooth's review
5.0
Ash and Carmen are absolutely adorable and I love them. What an amazing story..
cdownes's review
3.0
An enjoyable story with a few strong messages.
I won't replay the whole blurb for you, suffice to say that the two main characters are Ash - a Tattooist who is a somewhat self-classified butch lesbian, and Carmen - a successful heterosexual talent manager.
The two instantly click, and where sometimes this can seem contrived, in this book it works. It's not shoved in your face, it sort of peeks at you as they try and slowly work out what it means and what the possibilities could be, if there can be any at all.
There's a side story with Ash's niece which is delicate and honest as well.
I enjoyed it. The writing is quite good, the dialogue easy and relaxed, and the plot is gentle.
I won't replay the whole blurb for you, suffice to say that the two main characters are Ash - a Tattooist who is a somewhat self-classified butch lesbian, and Carmen - a successful heterosexual talent manager.
The two instantly click, and where sometimes this can seem contrived, in this book it works. It's not shoved in your face, it sort of peeks at you as they try and slowly work out what it means and what the possibilities could be, if there can be any at all.
There's a side story with Ash's niece which is delicate and honest as well.
I enjoyed it. The writing is quite good, the dialogue easy and relaxed, and the plot is gentle.
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