Hard Pressed

October 28, 2022

Mira Lavigne, heiress to a prestigious cidery, is expecting to be named chair of the annual upstate New York Cider Week. She plans to use the occasion to highlight sustainable agriculture and raise money for reparations for Black and Indigenous-owned businesses. These goals are complicated when her colleagues name a co-chair: Dylan Miller, whose Forbidden Fruit ciders are more experimental and unpredictable. While the setup suggests a rivals-to-lovers plot, Mira and Dylan align their work plans quickly, and the focus shifts to the disparity between their private, satisfying sexual chemistry and their public, strictly professional relationship. As Mira tries to prove herself to her notable parents, Dylan becomes increasingly jealous of the attention Mira gets from men and the media as an attractive, elegant, and feminine woman. The author does eventually grant Dylan some insight into the ways that Mira also faces prejudice in their predominantly white-male industry--but conflicts around their relative privileges are settled with quick conversations and, perhaps realistically, never feel fully resolved. VERDICT A secondary purchase, particularly for collections looking for more steamy F/F romance. Readers who enjoyed Rey's Greener Pastures will also enjoy background glimpses of Audrey and Rowan's relationship.--Katelyn Browne

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