Her Heart's Desire

by Anne Shade

Eve Monroe couldn’t ask for a better life. She’s free of an unhappy marriage, her event planning business is a success, and she’s surrounded by the love and support of her family. Then Lynette walks into her life and her intense dark eyes and easy charm have Eve longing for a love her heart has always desired, but she’s too afraid to admit to.

The last thing Lynette Folsom is looking for is love, especially with a closeted lesbian. She’s gone down that road before and has nothing but a broken heart to show for it. When she meets Eve, she begins to wonder if love behind closed doors can really work.

Two women. One choice. Will they be able to overcome their doubts and fears to embrace their deepest desire?

Genres: Romance, LGBT, Adult

196 pages, ebook

Published February 1, 2022

About the author

Anne Shade loves writing romances about women who love women featuring strong, beautiful Characters of Color. Her dream is to retire and open a bed and breakfast so she can spend her days doing what she loves…providing wonderful hospitality, writing novels, and planning fabulous weddings.

Librarian note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is an easy read an written well enough, but it wasn’t for me.

I understand coming out can be hard but there is one thing I just can’t stand… being a lesbian or anywhere on the queer spectrum isn’t a lifestyle. It really irks me that people call it a lifestyle, in and out of the community. A lifestyle is something you are actively choosing to participate in, sexuality isn’t a choice, is it… This book references the lesbian lifestyle a lot and it annoyed me. I feel like the author rushes through the life of the characters, but as a reader I was a little lost. At times there was a lot of detail and at times just a lot of rushing.
I couldn’t connect with the characters either. Neither Eve nor Lynette held any appeal for me.

As said the writing style is pretty good, but I just didn’t connect with the way this story is told. Please read other reviews to figure out if this is a book for you.

*ARC received in exchange for a voluntary and honest review*

[Kaye · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eve Monroe is running a successful event planning business. She is coming to terms with her bisexuality, but hasn’t dated in the couple of years since her divorce. She plans a book signing event for new author Lynette Folsom and the attraction is instant. I love that even with the instant attraction these two mature women take their time. Lynette had a closeted partner in her past that really hurt her and she doesn’t want to run that risk again. So they start off slowly with dinner, texts and even taking a break. In an unusual move (for a novel) the author has Eve seek counseling to help her come out to her Puerto Rican/black family. Family is important to both women.

Overall I like the story. The feelings, timeline and conflict seem realistic. I had a some issues with the writing style. Occasionally the story awkwardly jumps to a memory from the past. Other moments felt more told than shown. And the book felt short overall even though it covers a good deal of time. Thank you to NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Gabriella · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was my first book by Anne Shade, and I thought it was a pretty well-written, easy read. It’s not a bad book, but unfortunately, it just didn’t work for me.

Eve Monroe (lesbian, Black, half Puerto Rican) wants to embrace her lesbian identity after being closeted her whole life. Lynette Folsom (lesbian, Black) has been burned in the past by a woman who was closeted. Eve and Lynette are instantly attracted to each other, but they have to work through their respective conflicts before their relationship can work.

I did have some issues with how the story was told. While the writing was mostly good, there’s some head hopping that took me out of the story. In addition, several of the MCs’ meetings are purely coincidental, which got old really fast. There’s also an unnecessary flashback of Lynette meeting her ex for the first time. Why was this included??

I also thought some elements of the story were unintentionally problematic. I don’t know how I feel about how Shade handled the story of Eve’s trans cousin Juliana. Since she was a kid, Eve has known Juliana was trans, but for half the book, she refers to pre-transition Juliana by her deadname and dead pronouns. Eve also outs Juliana to Lynette at some point. Eve’s therapist, who’s supposed to be progressive, says unnecessarily gendered things such as “women are overthinkers and use their hearts/intuition more than men.” Furthermore, Eve’s lesbian identity is frequently referred to as a “new lifestyle.”

Though this one didn’t work for me, I’d recommend it if you’re looking for a quick, steamy romance.

content warnings: homophobia, graphic sex, transphobia, manipulation, outing, deadnaming, misgendering, d-slur, vomiting, mentions of colorism, alcohol (recreational)

I received an ARC from Bold Strokes Books via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Alena]

The writing managed to annoy me greatly in the first few pages, so I’m out.

[Rosa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic erotica. While it is steamy, the storyline fits and I love the agency Eve has for herself.

[Kennedy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lynette Folsom, author, not really interested in being in a relationship with someone who is closeted. Eve Monroe, event planner, recently divorced, bisexual, closeted and has a strong and supportive family. She knows what she wants but is afraid to go after it. When the women meet, the attraction is felt by both of them. As the story unfolds, there is story telling from not only the present but the past which at times seems a little disjointed. Eve and Lynette are both likable characters and I appreciated how they both spent time self-reflecting. I also liked that Eve sought out counseling to help her deal with coming out to her family. In my opinion, this provided a statement that counseling is a good thing, not for all but from some. In general, the read is enjoyable but the connection between the characters was not as enjoyable as I would have liked.

ARC provided by Bold Strokes Books, Inc. via NetGalley

[Jamie (TheRebelliousReader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars. Wasn’t bad but definitely my least favorite book by Shade that I’ve read thus far which is super disappointing. I really enjoyed the writing but there was just something about the story and the main characters that I never did connect with. Eve and Lynette’s romance was very sweet and steamy but them as individuals weren’t that compelling to me. I also didn’t like the ex girlfriend drama that happened here. It felt a bit contrived. I feel like this was just too short. It needed to be a bit longer to give it time for character development and to tighten the writing a bit more. Three stars for the cute romance and some of the interesting side characters.

[Bethie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this story and always appreciate having more Black sapphic romance. Having said that, why was this story so quick? It felt like it should have been a 300-page book that was condensed into half that size. I love a good novella, but this didn't read like one. Shade did this thing where she would skip over entire time periods and give a brief description of what happened. Um, I wanted to read about that. Also, I didn't find the romance believable because their interactions were snippets of the time they actually spent together. I didn't feel them fall in love, I was told they fell in love. Rather than try and jam a much larger story into this one, I wish she had just simply told the story of them falling in love, Eve coming out and Lynette dealing with someone in the closet and her hangups. That would have been more than enough to do in novella size.

I can tell that Shade is a good writer and I do think that had this been more showing and less telling, I would have enjoyed it more. Despite my misgivings, I do recommend it because I thought the love story was sweet.

[Jasmine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eve is divorced and is working through some struggles internally and externally with accepting her sexuality when she meets Lynette. Author Lynette is drawn to Eve immediately, but she hasn't been keen to start a relationship with someone who is closeted. The attraction is undeniable, and the two women grow closer, while trying to navigate their new relationship with Eve's family and Lynette's work.

I really enjoyed this book, I thought it was sexy and fun while still dealing with a lot of emotions which deepens the readers connection to the book. The chemistry between Eve and Lynette was off the charts! I think was my first full length novel by Shade, although I've enjoyed some short stories in the past, and I look forward to catching up on all her other novels.

I received an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Silvia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eve is coming to terms with her sexuality post divorce and Lynnette is still weary after her last serious relasionship ended with her ex leaving her for a man. So they decide to take is alow with dinner, phone conversation, a day at the beach. The relasionship goes back and forth with counselling and therapy involved to help Eve with her coming out. The timeline jumps from a couple of dates to 6 months into the relashionship and It sometimes jumped to between present and past timeline without warning, A lot was going on at the same time. But in essence this is a fast read, I feel like it could have had more substance. Not a bad book just falling a little short both in lenght and essence.
Free ARC provided by BSB via NetGalley

[Temporaryspell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a heartfelt story!
Eve was endearing in her willingness to put herself out there and live her truth, fear and all.
It was great to see her work through her issues, felt like a realistic journey.
Lynette was also a great character and you can really relate to her insecurities.
As a couple, you love to see that level of communication between them.
Great plot, really likeable side characters (Juliana <3). I really felt the part about not living up to the parent's expectations. It was beautifully written.
Some events that would have been interesting to explore (ex: meeting the mum) happen BTS but since it's a shorter book it makes sense in story.
Netgalley ARC

[thesapphiccelticbookworm · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley.

Eve is recently divorced from her ex-husband when she meets Lynette and sparks instantly fly, but Eve isn’t ready to come out to her Catholic family.

This is an easy read and overall a good story, but it felt rushed and jumpy at times and I felt that the characters weren’t fleshed out enough which made it hard to connect to them.

[CK529 · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were elements to this story that I liked, but overall it was a bit boring for me. I didn't feel pulled into the story or emotionally invested in the characters; rather, I felt like some one was telling me about the characters in a somewhat removed manner. That is not why I read this genre.

[Alexis Westmore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anne Shade's romance tackles difficult issues in her sapphic romance. When Eve Monroe finally decides to give her heart the freedom it deserves, she faces the tragic consequences of a family not ready to support that freedom. Anne writes Eve's struggle to value her own heart's desires.

[Jacqueline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very well written … enjoyed the story and the characters.