Goslyn County

This is a slice-of-life novel, really, and I haven't read another lesbian romance that I would classify that way. A lot of lesbian romances (romances in general) seem to focus on suffering, and while it can be fulfilling to read about characters facing hardships and overcoming them, I sometimes find those kinds of plots emotionally draining. This is not that kind of book at all, and it was really refreshing to read.

These women do have problems - for example, they've both been unlucky in love - but they're ordinary, surmountable problems, not horrible tragedies or anything like that. When a conflict develops between them, it's understandable, and they resolve it in an adult way.

I really like the way that all of the people who know and love Olivia and Maureen are cheering for their relationship throughout the book, up to and including the final scenes. I am old enough to still get excited when same-sex relationships are portrayed as normal, to the extent that all of the characters' friends and relatives are delighted for them. So I don't have much objectivity, because I just sigh happily at stories like this. Their relationship builds slowly and develops at a pace that feels organic. There is a decent amount of domestic fluff: cuddling and cooking for each other and things like that, as well as a few sex scenes. If you're primarily drawn to the romance aspect of this book, it's very much front-and-center.

But this book actually has a fairly large cast, and they're all interesting characters. It's written in third-person omniscient PoV, which serves the crime-drama plot well. There's excellent character development of the criminals, as well as of some police personnel (Olivia's co-workers). I admire how incisive the author's characterizations feel. I sympathize with the criminals, and the police chief, because the author shows you their motivations and personalities, and just their everyday lives. There are no one-dimensional villains, just regular people who sometimes make bad decisions.

Overall I enjoyed this book a lot, and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading sweet and realistic romance. I'll definitely be keeping my eye out for future releases from A.M. McKnight!