A short, sweet romance about getting out of toxic environments and taking good risks.

After losing her marketing job when the company collapses, Regina takes a position that ends up under her toxic ex Margot. Margot tries to set up Regina for failure, but a model named Grace ends up helping her. Grace is everything Margot is not, and Regina tries to fight her feelings to save this new friendship.

I'm not usually a fan of age gap, but this was done well. I wish Regina would have gone to therapy to help with her issues. It was a little weird to only get snippets from Grace's point of view. I wish there had been more; I liked her a lot. It was really nice to read about older characters finding love. Not just the MC (40s) but also her elder aunt.

This book was excellent and definitely made me feel the feels.

I would love a prequel or something with the back story of the main characters.

3.5 stars. Regina Avery finds out her current company and she is out of a job. A recruiter reaches out to her and tells her about a good job opportunity. What she does not find out until her first day, is that it is working under her crazy ex girlfriend. This job is also dealing with lingerie, something that makes Regina very nervous. She does not like staring at mostly naked women, she blushes too much and is uncomfortable. Her ex did this on purpose to make her look bad and go back to her. She meets a model, Grace and is instantly attached to her. They both want to spend more time together but Regina's ex keeps getting in the way.

I really did not like her ex and how she treated her throughout the book. I also felt like this book rushed the ending and I wanted more time with the characters together. I also wish more of the book was in Grace's perspective as I really enjoyed those parts of the book. The characters were fine, but I felt like there was also a weird excuse as to why they can't be together. Regina and Grace both needed more interactions and I really wanted to see them fall in love a little more. The whole thing was a little too short for me.

Amanda Bradley delivers a sweet and gentle closed door romance. Regina Avery (44) loves marketing and when her current company goes bankrupt she is thrilled with a new and better offer. Only when she starts does she realize it is a set up from her previous ex, Margot. Regina is more than capable to do the work but Margot is her determined to make it uncomfortable for her and is her direct supervisor.

Fashion model Grace Holland (31) is lovely as an aging fashion model. She takes an instant liking to Regina and helps her initially with aspects of the clothing line. She is the one who quickly notices Regina’s unique phobia. Who says books aren’t educational. They both fall into crush modes quickly but hilariously can’t read each other. This is the kind of book that will delight Radley fans. For me I wish there had been a bit more time of Regina and Grace together. It felt like I finely got to the good stuff and it was over. (4.5 Stars)

Thank you to NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for the ARC and I am leaving an honest review.

I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.

Regina losing her job when the company she works for goes bankrupt. She worries that’s she won’t be able to keep her aunt in a home where she thriving at. She gets a position to marketing a women’s fashion brand by her ex Margot their break up wasn’t great and when she learns that Margot can destroy her reputation she tries to over come her discomfort of being around nudity. Grace is a model that Regina meets and helps Regina with her discomfort why Regina helps her with learning marketing as they grow closer Regina doesn’t realize how much Grace likes her and Grace thinking Regina isn’t into her because she hasn’t respond to her flirting. This was a great read I like Regina relationship with her aunt and the cute romance her aunt is involve with and Regina standing up to Margot.

I wish this was longer! I need more of the backstory of Regina and Grace. I loved the aunt too…I just want more! I loved this book, I’m so glad I found it to review.

I really enjoyed the story that Amanda Radley has crafted. Three Mc’s and a great supporting cast across the ages.

Without giving anything away it takes us through the uncertainty of losing a job, being risk averse, being manipulated by an ex, having the support of family, friends and new love. Giving insight into a phobia I’d never heard of and how it can affect significant aspects of your life.

The story flows so well that I didn’t realise I was gearing up through the chapters and it was coming to its conclusion before I was ready to finish it such was my enjoyment of the story and its characters. It was also an enjoyable to change to have a book focus not detail love scenes but to focus on the developing relationships in it - both the main and sub characters relationships and its emotions.

Thanks to Bold Strokes Books and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read it. This review is my honest opinion.

A phobia I have not heard of before made quite the spectacle of itself in this sapphic novella. The MC's are professionals in their fields and stumble along the way finding one another while battling rumors, oppressive work environments, and the lesbian side quest off figuring out if they are friendly flirting or flirting flirting . Once there is less fumbling flirtatious moments the chemistry flies and makes for a cozy read.

I like Radley as a writer. There is something different about her work but I’m not sure what. Nothing glaringly obvious but it feels subtly fresh. I also love that as the relationship develops it is sweet. Not sugar coma inducing but rather pleasantly so.
I was slightly startled to discover I was nearly 90% through without making any notes. Very unusual and that in its self is worth 4 stars.

This is a story about Regina Avery who is an out of work Marketing Executive. Regina posts her CV on Indeed and gets a call from a clothing company. Turns out that her ex, Margot, is a VP at this company and deliberately hires her in order to humiliate her. Unfortunately Regina is trapped at the new company earning a high salary in order to pay for her aunt’s care. She does meet a fashion model, Grace Holland, who’s at the end of her modeling career. Regina and Grace have an instant attraction, that doesn’t seem forced or fake. Grace is super kind and helps Grace with her phobias.

I liked the first half of the book, Radley did a great job of setting up the screen in the modeling shoot. I could feel Regina’s fear and the empathy Grace showed her.

I would have like more of the relationship between Regina and Grace. Overall this was a short and sweet read.

I expected this book to be a cutesy romance, and didn’t think much of it. I was surprised and shocked at how much this book made me think, reflect….. and feel. The story was so beautiful and captivating. It was a romance, but it could have also been a drama or thriller.

Poor Regina being controlled by her manipulative and unscrupulous ex-girlfriend Margot was a bit triggering, and I do suggest that anyone who might be triggered by this kind of plot line, should beware. I did find the love between Regina and Grace so beautiful, especially because of the way they fall in love and the way they can make something beautiful out of a painful and exhausting situation.

This was a fantastic read, and one that will stay with me for a long time.

****Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an eARC so that I may give my honest feedback and review****

A very solid 4 stars and a very sweet and heartening romance.

Regina likes her routines, and being risk-averse hasn't led to much trouble so far, until her job crumbles beneath her and she realizes she has no safety net and is forced to take any job she can get, leading her back into her toxic ex's clutches, but also thankfully into the orbit of Grace, who notices what an impossible situation Regina has been thrust into and lends her help. Grace is a model in her 30s, young by age standards, but on the cusp in terms of the modeling industry, and she falls fast for Regina as they both grow closer both out of necessity and mutual respect.

Regina and Grace are really cute together, as are Regina's aunt and her beau, who provide an excellent backdrop for Regina and Grace's developing romance. The wrench in the works is Regina's ex, who is adamant that Regina gets back together with her, abusive behavior and threats be damned. Regina is an angel of a person, seeing that Margot's behavior is coming from some internal trauma, but thankfully doesn't go so far as to forgive Margot or give her a second chance or even an inch. Margot provides the major tension of the story by being a terrible human being, leaving Grace and Regina free to fall for each other, though she does keep them from getting together until quite late. This also means there's no spice, but Grace and Regina's flirting is so cute that you hardly even notice.

I also appreciated that while Regina does come to terms with her fear of risk-taking, she is allowed to keep her routines and habits that bring her comfort, instead of them being things that she needs to change to grow.

I was very excited to see a new release by this author. And she did not dissapoint. Of course it’s fade to black as per usual from Radley but that take absolutely nothing from this very well written book. Loved Regina’s growth, although She didn’t change her tea order, and Grace’s insistence. Very good side characters, Margot aside. And it’s set in London, the best city in the world :). Absolutely reccomended.
Free ARC via Netgalley