By Any Other Name by Natasha WestBy Any Other Name by Natasha West is a feuding family, forbidden romance new adult story.

The Whittakers and the Goodwins hate one another. If anything goes wrong with either family they are quick to blame the other. The feud is legendary in the small town in which they live and infects every new generation with equal amounts of venom towards their rivals.

Lane Whittaker and Casey Goodwin are the eldest daughters of the feuding families and when they meet for the first time they don’t realise that they should be at war with one another. Instead there is an undeniable attraction between them. And when they realise that they are from rival families they decide to give it a go anyway. It’s not like they did anything to one another and their families are obviously silly to keep blaming the other for something that happened generations ago.

But, life isn’t quite that simple when the feud runs in the very veins of each family.

The Characters

Lane was adopted as a Whittaker when her family died. She ie fiercely loyal and will do anything for her family. She knows she is lesbian but has no real life experience with romance and can be a little bit timid.

Casey longs to travel and experience the world. She wants a bigger life than she can get stuck in a small town.

When they meet it’s an instant attraction that is strong enough to make them reconsider their beliefs about the feud.

The Writing Style

I love West’s writing style, her use of language is simply extraordinary.

The Pros

I really like the way Natasha West writes attraction. Her character dynamics are always spot on and she manages to describe the longing and passion perfectly. Here’s an example:

Hearing how little Lane expected broke Casey a little. And it drew her to lean in and kiss Lane softly. Lane was surprised but she responded quickly to Casey’s lips. Casey’s hands slipped around Lane’s face and they both felt it. It was a crackle, electricity, thrumming through them, illuminating them. Lighting up their insides like Christmas trees.

The Cons

There are a couple of typos in this one.

The Conclusion

If you love the idea of a forbidden love and two young people getting together despite a family feud then this is a great read. The story takes twists and turns that I didn’t see coming. The characters were well thought out and realistic. And the ending was wholly satisfying.

Excerpt from By Any Other Name by Natasha West

‘Right. That’s it’ Lane said and picked the not-small dog up off the ground clumsily, holding her against her shoulder, feeling her claws fighting, scratching at her bare wrists. She was heavy. ‘We’re nearly there’ Lane panted, pushing back against the door, managing to get it open.

But she didn’t account for the step.

‘Oof’ Lane cried as she fell backwards into the vets with the dog on top of her. She lay moaning, unable to move, wondering if she’d broken anything vital. But then Crackers, in an act of repentance, gave Lane’s face a little lick and Lane gave her a forgiving pat on the head. Lane knew she was only winded.

‘God almighty!’ cried out a young woman’s voice and footsteps pounded towards her, taking the dogs lead and hoisting Cracker’s weight off Lane’s body. A face appeared above her. ‘Are you alright?’

Lane looked up at the pretty girl who had just watched her fall backward through the door like a crap clown and she wanted to die. ‘Yeah’ she sighed. The girl took her hand and pulled her to her feet. Now vertical, Lane realised her first assessment had been an underestimation. The girl was more than pretty, she was downright hot. She was about Lane’s age and wore a name tag that read ‘Casey.’ She had deep brown eyes and extremely long blonde hair, hanging almost to her waist. She had jangly bangles and a flowy top, a vaguely boho-ish style about her. She wasn’t smiling but Lane saw deep dimples were hiding, ready to pop out at any point. Lane knew that if they did, she’d be a goner.

‘I’m here for an appointment’ Lane told the girl, Casey. Then she added, ‘For my dog. I don’t need an appointment. Because I’m a human. You don’t do humans in here, do you?’ Lane decided to stop talking. But then she noticed that Casey was smiling. And Lane knew she was right about her earlier predictions. Casey did have deep, sexy dimples. And Lane was indeed done for.

‘Is it Crackers?’ Casey asked. Lane simply nodded, not trusting her mouth any longer.

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