She wasn’t sure how news of her getting caught, half-naked, in a clinch with the new president — by the president’s mother — would go over with the dean. [loc. 2915]
Lesbian romance that hits all the beats and many of the tropes of traditional romance novels: surprise new boss, unfounded jealousy, awesome best friend, moments of doubt ... There's an additional layer of doubt, as Grace, our viewpoint character, is exclusively attracted to women (and, as the novel opens, is recovering from a bad break-up) while recently-widowed Abbie has been married to a man.
This was a light read, but an enjoyable one. Grace is an interesting lead: she's attempting to write a Great American Novel based on the theft of an abstract painting, Woman-Ochre (the retrieval of the painting dates the action of the novel to 2017) and, as a teacher of literature at a small New England college, has some excellent asides about Beowulf (I agree 100% about the failings of the 2007 film). There is also an intriguing backstory involving nuns. Abbie is more opaque, as we're seeing her from Grace's perspective, and Grace is unaware of some salient facts -- facts that, in true romance fashion, could easily have been communicated earlier in the novel, thus avoiding a lot of anguish and some hilarious shenanigans. Still, Abbie is a good romantic interest, and there are happy endings all round. Also includes a cute dog (named Grendel), an envious colleague, a Trump-voting relative, and a student with a crush. Great fun!
Fulfils the ‘has a Dedication’ rubric of the 52 books in 2023 challenge.
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