A. L. Brooks (1)

A.L. Brooks’ The Club invites listeners into a provocative and emotionally layered world centered around a lesbian sex club — a space where women can explore their desires freely, without judgment or entanglement. Through a blend of present-day narrative and well-placed flashbacks, we follow Mandy, the club’s enigmatic owner, from her formative years to the commanding role she holds today. Alongside her, several other women navigate their own relationship struggles, emotional hangups, show more and sexual awakenings.

While the story is undeniably anchored in erotic encounters, it’s far from one-dimensional. The author weaves in themes of love, vulnerability, and connection, making The Club compelling even without its steamy scenes — though let’s be honest, those scenes are a major part of its allure and are written with both heat and heart.

Narrator Sophie Hunter Scott delivers a standout performance, infusing each character with distinct accents, emotional nuance, and palpable enthusiasm. Her narration elevates the story, drawing listeners deep into the club’s intimate world and making every moment feel vivid and alive.

I’m eagerly anticipating the sequel and wholeheartedly recommend this audiobook to anyone looking for a bold, sensual, and surprisingly tender listen. show less

A really fun read! I was impressed by the variety of the stories on the theme of women, books and romance. A meet-cute in a bookstore ... a closeted '50s housewife trying not to let on that she's already familiar with the lesbian pulp novels her bookclub is experimenting with ... childhood sweethearts who bonded over a shared copy of Little Women reuniting decades later thanks to the efforts of a rare book finder and a helpful librarian ... two widows working through their grief and show more beginning to move on together ... an author picking up her biggest fan as a hitchhiker while she's fighting writer's block ... and more, but I wouldn't want to give it all away.

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review) show less

I was given this ARC by the publisher in exchange for an Honest Review.

Huh, so, apparently, I may have read a different book than a lot of people did or something? On the other hand, in the recent past I've come onto Goodreads or LibraryThing and looked at reviews of a book I hated and went, wait.... what?

I did think it was a very character driven novel. And that was another reason me liking it surprised me a little. (I usually gravitate to plot driven novels and such).

It's about Lena and show more Megan. Megan has just moved in downstairs from Lena (who has the top apartment. I do have to say, with the stairs and the doors, it took me awhile to realize where the three women all lived, Dorothy, one of my favorite characters because she was just so different and always surprising me in the novel lives on the bottom floor).

Megan is outgoing, likes parties, and is helluva clumsy. Lena is very precise, likes her cleanliness, and likes her routines. Both women have also recently come out of breakups with their significant other of two or so years, and neither of the breakups were particularly good.

The two women sort of dance around each other a little at the beginning. Lena thinks that Megan is the worst, and Megan seems to think the same of Lena. And then the roof comes in. I don't mean metaphorically, but literally. And so Megan invites Lena to temporarily stay in her apartment. They get closer, not surprisingly. There are some missteps by both, but, of course, this is a romance novel.

I liked it, as I said, definitely for the characters. I did think that the plot was interesting as well, but, it did take a little of a stretch. I mean, for one thing, I don't know about London, but, where I live in the US, if a roof comes collapsing in during a rainstorm, yeah, no one is inhabiting the building until that roof is fixed. (Although, the slowness of the Insurance/builders seemed to be spot on!)

But, it was a fun read, I just wanted more with the cats... aww... show less

I was given this ARC by the publisher in exchange for an Honest Review.

This is the story of Tamsyn and Maggie.

Tamsyn is a world-famous actress who has won an Emmy, some BAFTAs, and is very, very, very in the closet. She's also 52 years old (that was a refreshing change from 20 and 30 somethings) and when she has an incident with a director on the set of her current movie, she takes a few weeks off at a cabin that her agent's aunt owns.

That's where she meets Maggie. Maggie is in the other show more cabin across the lake and is also trying to figure things out, but her stuff has more to do with how she wants to continue her writing (she's a writer of both historical straight romance and lesbian romance.

They meet and a lot of the story goes as I thought it would. Them getting closer and there being some bumps in the road. But I was surprised here and there, and then there were the characters. I thought they were great. Sometimes 'famous in the closet' novels I wind up not liking one of the characters. But, I think because the fame differential wasn't as much in this one, it really worked.

It was a fun read, and not I totally need Tamsyn in the movie at the end. Heh. show less