REVIEW: Forbidden Kisses by Sha Renee

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Forbidden Kisses by Sha Renee is a novella length military romance and a tale of forbidden love in the ranks which asks the age-old question of whether love is strong enough to overcome.

We meet the two main characters one day in a coffee shop. Their meeting is serendipitous – a chance encounter over delicious caramel cappuccino. What follows is a strangely sexy bathroom scene that gives them the opportunity to develop their interest in each other. Layla and Ethan remain drawn to each other and decide to further the relationship over the next few weeks. For various reasons, neither goes into detail about their careers and so the two are shocked when they realize they both work for the Navy, only Ethan is an Officer and Layla is enlisted so they aren’t allowed to fraternize. Both are faced with the question of whether their careers or their love should come first.

In terms of pros for this book, I enjoyed it as a lighthearted and quickly paced weekend read. While it’s the first in what looks like the potential start of a series, it has a satisfying ending that doesn’t leave the reader hanging while waiting for the next book. If you like your reading with some descriptive sexy times, this book will satisfy; it’s a sexy read with a smattering of sensual scenes throughout. I enjoyed the characters of Layla and Ethan. Ethan presents a refreshing change from the romance trope of brooding, dark and angsty hero which can become boring after awhile. Instead, Ethan and Layla were both presented with a variety of thoughts, goals, and relationships, even despite the short length of this story.

The premise of this story requires that a ‘secret’ be kept while Layla and Ethan fall for each other. I thought the author did a good job of setting this up without making the ‘secret’ feel too forced or contrived. As well, the reveal was handled well and served to up the tension of the story without creating overwhelming melodrama as I’ve seen happen in other ‘secrets revealed’ type stories. Due to length, this story remains largely focused on the development of Ethan and Layla’s relationship as well as their striving towards a resolution of the anti-fraternization rules. The author does a good job of not letting other things interfere with this focus while also leaving a few opportunities to carry forward tension in the next installment (More thoughts on this at the end).

Finally, I enjoyed learning about the anti-fraternization rules and I thought the author did a great job of researching and relaying the ins and outs of this. I had no idea the level of consequence that could arise in this kind of situation and this knowledge definitely added to the conflict in the story.

Now for cons. There were a few irritants throughout the story which may or may not be of concern for other readers. I found that Ethan was a bit highhanded or patronizing at times and his perpetual use of the endearment “Baby Girl” was a bit irritating. I liked Layla’s strength and her hard work towards her career so this felt like a bit of devaluing who she was as an adult. In another scene, Ethan also breaks a cardinal rule in conflict between a man and a woman and tells Layla she’s “acting out of emotion”. Yikes. Thankfully, Layla stands up for herself and challenges him on treating her “like a child”.

Last, I found that both Layla and Ethan waffled in their decisions to continue or end the relationship once it was revealed that they were breaking the fraternization rules. I would expect a certain amount of internal conflict for anyone in this situation as they balanced the consequences with their desire to remain with a loved one, but at times, I found that there were some jarring reversals in their decision making.

Now, all this being said and with the knowledge that there is at least a second book on its way with these characters, I wonder whether some of the relationship issues I’ve noted above will be addressed in the next installment? If so, I think that would provide an interesting and real-life addition to the story as Layla and Ethan negotiate the parameters of their relationship going forward.

All in all, I give this 3 ½ stars.

#Review #romance #military #forbidden