ll That Lies Within by Lynn AmesAll that lies within by Lynn Ames is a good read. Ames never writes the same book twice and her characters and plots are well thought out and unique.

The book doesn’t have a lot of angst, and for regular readers you will know how much I love the drama that often comes with a good romance.

However, a good romance can also be gentle and explore characters and relationships in a way that doesn’t need drama. It can be sweet and tender and make you think. All That Lies Within is exactly that kind of book.

The Characters

Dara Thomas is a world famous movie star. She is America’s sweetheart. Secretly she is also a famous novelist, her pen name is Constance Darrow. Carolyn Detweiler is Dara’s best friend and agent. She keeps Dara’s secret allowing her friend to live a duel life. On the other hand we have Rebecca Minton, a professor of American Literature and a huge fan of Constance Darrow. She teaches Darrow’s works in her class and is thought of as the leading expert on all things Darrow. This is particularly handy when the film rights to one of Darrow’s books are bought because Darrow is a notorious recluse and will not come out of hiding to help with the film.

This is not really all that mysterious, considering that the writer is really the actress Dara Thomas. The studio hires Rebecca Minton to help with the script and Dara Thomas is cast as the leading lady. The two meet and well, you know…

The Writing Style

Lynn Ames has a nice style of writing. She is a little more eloquent with words than many of the lesbian fiction writers. Her story is gentle and even when big things happen, they are underplayed rather than making them very dramatic. I enjoy her work and enjoy the fact that her stories are entirely original.

The Pros

Her characters are both feminine females. What I mean by this is that sometimes books create a butch and femme role and that can become a little tiresome. I believe that couples come in all shapes and sizes and I like variety in my reading. It is also nicely written, has good pacing and clear characters.

The Cons

This is not a read for you if you can’t cope with subtleties or if you like the butch/femme roles to be clearer.

The Conclusion

This is a good book. Well worth a read.

Excerpt from All That Lies Within by Lynn Ames

Rebecca’s hands trembled as she turned the letter over and over. She hadn’t dared hope that she’d hear back from Constance Darrow…and within several weeks too. She ran her fingers over the return address, which was ridiculous, she knew, since it wasn’t even hand-written and it was only a post office box in New York.

“Oh, for goodness sake. Just open it and stop being a school girl.”

Rebecca reached for the letter opener and made a neat slit along the top of the envelope. The paper was standard-issue letterhead, with the name Constance Darrow and the same address from the outside of the envelope centred at the top.

As she scanned the contents, she realized with a jot that there was more than one page. Constance Darrow, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, had taken the time to write Rebecca a multi-page letter.

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Bits And Bobs

  • ISBN number: 9781936429066
  • Publisher: Phoenix Rising Press
  • Lynn Ames

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