Delilah Green Doesn't Care by Ashley Herring Blake
CW: Sex, Drinking, Controlling Parent, Controlling Fiance, Money Problems, Grief
3.5/5
Delilah Green is an adult orphan who was raised mostly by her indifferent step mother. As soon as she was able to, she left the small town of Bright Falls for New York City. There she's been working as a waitress and a photographer. She rarely visits her childhood home, but when her step sister offers her 15k to be her wedding photographer, Delilah goes back to Bright Falls. During her 2 week visit, she must face all the reasons she left, but they might not be as one-sided as she had assumed.
Claire is one of Astrid's best friends, but she is not in favor of the wedding. The fiance is not a good person, but she doesn't know how to make Astrid see it. She is happy about one aspect of the wedding, though, Delilah. This strange, alluring woman is going to change her life. She gets along with her daughter and makes her feel seen. However, will a relationship with someone across the country be worth it? Delilah has made it very clear that Bright Falls is no longer home.
I struggled to give this book a rating out of 5. I went back and forth between 3.5 and 4. I know that doesn't sound like much of a difference, but 3.5/5 looks much worse visually than 4/5 does. My struggles with Delilah Green Doesn't Care are things that I doubt will dissuade many as they are based on my being ace and not morals. This book is overtly sexual. I don't typically have a problem reading sex scenes, but the two main characters are horny in almost every thought they have. The style of cover is not one I would otherwise associate with erotica. When I see an illustrated cover instead of a painting or photograph for a cover, the most sex I expect is limited to specific scenes. As long as the sex is mostly separated from the rest of the plot, I'm not uncomfortable.
I considered not finishing the book, but I was already rooting for Claire and Delilah. Claire is a single mom of a preteen and a total sweetheart. She runs a bookstore and has so much love for the people in her life. It's hard not to want to see her be happy. Delilah has felt so unwanted in her life, her photography being her only source of happiness. Witnessing her properly fall for her childhood crush warmed my heart. It's a very good queer love story if you're comfortable with a lot of sex and ignore how quickly it happens.
The part of the story featuring Astrid and Delilah is very strong and also made the book worth it. It's well written and paced. Both girls have reason to not get along with the other. We start from Delilah's view of it, but can sympathize with Astrid by the end as well. Both had lost so much and were raised in a toxic environment. Their story made sense and was handled with so much care by Ashley Herring Blake.
While this book wasn't 100% for me, I do recommend it to those that think they'd enjoy it. The characters are compelling and the plot is good. It also has a similar charm to Jen DeLuca's Well Met series, an absolute favorite of mine.
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