Review: Unbridled

Unbridled by D. Jackson Leigh
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Finished on June 24, 2021

Favorite Scene/Quote: "P.S. Your clothes are on the chair, except for the black lace panties. I'm keeping those."

I was very interested when I saw this book on Netgalley. I have previously read a book by D. Jackson Leigh and I remember really enjoying it. Since this book had an interesting premise, I decided to read another book by this author.

Disclaimer: I received this book through Netgalley and Bold Strokes Books in exchange for a fair, honest review.
    
Lauren has had to fight to get control of her personal and professional life. She’s a mystery writer who recently had a bit of a break. She’s taking a break and bringing her niece to horseback-riding lessons when she meets Marsh. Marsh is the instructor and Lauren is very attracted to her. Marsh agrees to take Lauren on as a student, but first she has to prove that she’s good enough. When Lauren realizes that Marsh has a demon in her past, she decides to dig deeper into the situation in hopes of finding out more about Marsh and maybe finding a new inspiration for her book.

I absolutely loved this book. Lauren and Marsh were interesting characters who had a nice dynamic with each other. They fed off of each other to make situations, erotic and not, very interesting. Lauren has issues with control that stem from when she was younger (kind of) and Marsh has issues that stem from an incident that occurred a few years prior. Marsh is determined not to start anything resembling a relationship with Lauren and Lauren, despite her worries, is determined to have Marsh.

There is a mystery to this book that I didn’t expect. It’s not mentioned in the summary, so I wasn’t quite sure what to think of it. I took some time to think about it and I found that I actually really enjoyed it. I thought it added a nice depth and backstory to Marsh and allowed for Lauren to show her attachment and dedication to Marsh. (view spoiler)[ Especially after going behind Marsh’s back to learn more about the situation and write a book around it. (hide spoiler)] It worked really well in the story and, for the most part, never felt forced.

I will freely admit that one of my favorites things about this book is the sex scenes and erotic intimacy. At first, I didn’t expect to find this book as hot as I did, but the book kind of throws you straight into an 18+ rating. After a minute to adjust, I found that it was fun especially when Lauren and Marsh meet and grow closer. The intimacy between them felt honest so that the relationship that formed was hot and involved several nice sex scenes.

I thought this book was excellent. It had very nice characters, good sex scenes, and sweet and tender moments that allowed the two characters to form a connection. I plan on reading this book again and I definitely recommend it to anyone who wants a good read with a happy ending.

Bonus Favorite Quote: "You were fearless today. A warrior. A wasp warrior."