Title: After Care
Author: L.B. Dunbar
Series: Sexy Silver Foxes #1
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary romance, Midlife romance
Pace: Slow
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 2018

I did wonder if reading this story was going to be a little bit triggering for me. I mean, it’s a romance which features a breast cancer survivor as the female love interest. And yeah, I did wonder if it was going to be highly triggering to read, having just lost a family member to cancer. But, somehow, it was incredibly joyful and kind of cathartic at moments to read. I found After Care to be absolutely adorable and totally unforgettable. This was a great “silver fox” romance that had me smiling, frowning and just all around enjoying this in every moment that I could.

Although Tommy helped Edie in a lot of ways, he was also completely a knob to her at times as well. I love that he found her sexy as is, and is constantly all about pleasing her and making her happy. However, when he was actually tested and needed to demonstrate that he actually has faith in her… well, he failed miserably. I mean, the man spends the entire story telling Edie that she needs to trust him. But then, when she needs the benefit of the doubt, he just… walks away. What an absolute fool. He kind of redeemed herself, but not enough for my satisfaction. It made the “happily ever after” portion a little more difficult to swallow than usual.

In amongst Edie’s relationship with Tommy, she also manages to create her own Found Family. Honestly, I actually think that her relationships within this were more powerful to me than the actual romance. I love a good Found Family story, and the fact that Edie is able to do this after a series of huge things have run her life off course made it all that much better. Plus, it highlights how wonderful her children are in supporting her through everything. I loved the entire secondary cast dynamic and how powerful this was to forming Edie’s happily ever after.

I can’t wait to read more stories of Dunbar’s Silver Foxes. I’m not quite in my own midlife romance, but I’m probably heading closer to that end of the scale than the new adult stories. Although I wanted Edie to give Tommy a bit more pushback when he messed up, I also loved her forgiving nature. It made for a fun and sweet story. One that I will most probably read again, and has definitely made me intrigued to read more from this series as the next midlife romance couple takes centre stage.

<- The Sex Education of M.E.

Midlife Crisis ->

Image source: Goodreads