delilah and claire both were characters who were well thought out and had great storylines. though their relationship moves quite fast once throughout the book i enjoyed it non the less and i can’t wait for the rest of the books in the series

Delilah Green Doesn't Care was a good romance, i liked the characters and the romance, and altogether a delightful read. I felt for Delilah and her feels about her childhood, i think the author made a great job in the empathy for this character.
The plot was good, not surprising or new, but what is expected of this type of book, a fluffy, a bit angsty and dramatic, read.
Astrid and Iris were well developed side characters, I hated the fiancé, total douche, since it was supposed to be, also a good character. For the love interest, Claire, she falls a bit in the "no flaw love interest", but I think her "Baggage" was supposed to be the flaw, I still liked her though.
The book is purely a romance read, and going with that in mind it is a good book, and I would recommend it.

Headlines:
Great chemistry
Quirky cuteness

This book had all my excitement engaged, I fancied everything about this blurb, the potential of the couple, the small town and returning home vibe and the family complications. In execution, I enjoyed all these elements, just not as much as I'd hoped.

The strengths of this couple for me was that together they brought a quirky cuteness, Delilah brought the strong but untouchable feel to the piece and Claire brought a overwhelmed hot-mess-ness when really she wanted to project capability and organisation. I liked them together, their potential, their chemistry. There were some interesting side characters in Claire's friendship threesome, especially Astrid, Delilah's step mother and then the whole marriage scenario. The plot was interesting for sure.

So, all that is really positive but there was just something that made this read drag a bit for me. Honestly, I can't quite put my finger on it but it took me weeks of picking up and putting down this book to finish and I'm sad about that. I wanted to be totally spun into the story that I couldn't put it down.

Overall, I came out feeling this was an okay read with some good parts and slow parts.

Thank you to Little Brown for the early review copy.

This review can be found at A Take From Two Cities Blog.

A very sweet queer romcom about Claire, a bookshop owner in Bright Falls, a small Oregon town, who falls in love with Delilah Green - her best friend’s estranged step-sister. An entertaining read, I’d recommend it for anybody who needs something good and easy to distract themselves.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher.

Delilah Green Doesn't Care. Ooof. What a ride this book was. Delilah is great. I loved her, witty and intelligent, artistic and wounded, sassy but also sad. She is complex and perfect. Her journey through this book was rocky and challenging and filled with emotion, and it was a joy to read. I feel moved; by how much Delilah grew within this story how much all the characters grew actually. Claire, our love interest, is a sweet, caring and a bundle of feelings all wrapped up in savvy vintage clothes. Ruby, Claire's daughter, is rebellious and loving and well on her way to being a fantastic artist. Iris, dear Iris, is loud and brash, hilarious but also hurting; and lastly, Delilah's stepsister. Lovely, misunderstood, lonely Astrid, struggling the same as Delilah but without them knowing.

This book is packed full of emotion; they leap off the page at you, settle deep in your heart and make it impossible to not binge-read. It's is so much more than a romance novel; it's a story of acceptance and forgiveness, of family, new and old and of opening yourself up to new possibilities. I am thankful for the chance to read this book, and I am looking forwards to Astrid's book.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a digital ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Representation: lesbian and bisexual main characters and bisexual side characters

‘Delilah Green Doesn’t care’ is dual pov f/f romance. It follows Delilah Green who is returning to her hometown to be the photographer for her stepsister Astrid’s wedding. Planning to simply get through the wedding before escaping back to New York, Delilah doesn’t expect the emotions that return due to her unhappy childhood. Let alone falling in love with her childhood crush. But who doesn’t swoon at the city girl returning to her small hometown and finding love trope.

The characters in this book had so many layers. They were complex and were prone to not always making the right choices but it just made them feel all the more real. When I went into this book I didn’t know much of what to expect, so when I found out that Claire had a kid… I was a little hesitant. That being said, Ruby (Claire’s 11 year old), I feel only added to the complexity of the characters and seeing how Delilah interacted with Ruby was enough to make me smile.

Now the things that stopped me from rating this book five stars. Well… mainly one thing. The ‘I bet you I can sleep with her’ trope. Just why? This trope will never not be bad. In this book it felt completely unnecessary and forced. As soon as I reached this part of the book, the miscommunication trope felt inevitable. Like I was just waiting for it to blow up in their faces. Thankfully miscommunication wasn’t a big part of it but it did lead to the classic third act breakup. Another trope that I really don’t like. I can guarantee that this book could have had pretty much the exact same plot line without these tropes that crept up when they didn't need to.

Ultimately, I really enjoyed this book and will definitely be recommending it to people. So if you haven't already, you should go add this to your tbr.

Content warning: death of a parent, grief and a toxic relationship

This has to be one of my favourite books of the year so far and will definitely be a hard one to follow up for my next read! I was completely hooked as soon as I was introduced to Delilah Green because she is such a brilliantly crafted central character; the perfect combination of how a woman can be so fierce and fragile simultaneously.
The story focuses on Delilah’s return home to Bright Falls for her stepsister Astrid's wedding but it is hardly going to be a happy family reunion as she is more photographer than guest. The dynamic between Delilah and Astrid is written so wonderfully, and evolves throughout the novel as Herring-Blake finds a balance between the hurt and humour that is so integral to a sister relationship. This skill of depicting these beautiful relationships fully flourishes once Delilah meets Claire, or rather re-meets Claire, after years apart.
I loved the entire set up as this was a new trope for me in the WLW genre. The concept of these two women having been loosely connected when they were younger to then be so perfectly in sync despite their lives taking very different turns was integral to making this such a gripping read. The chemistry between the characters is so palpable and every single character is so vividly composed that I really cannot fault anything about this book.
The story flows beautifully with just the right amount of complications and misread drama that fuels a flawless rom-com love story. I am already excited for the follow up story within the ‘Bright Falls’ series and have already recommended ‘Delilah’ to everyone I know!

Genre
LGBT, Romance
Diversity
Lesbian MC, Bisexual MC
Review
I cannot thank Ashley Herring Blake, the publisher and NetGalley enough for the chance to read this charming book before release. I absolutely could not put it down (to the point I kept it open on my phone at work so every time I had a moment, I could read a bit more!). I loved this book, in case it wasn't clear.
Delilah Green has an enormous chip on her shoulder - and honestly, I can't really blame her. I love when characters have realistic flaws, and that's the case for most of the characters we get to know in this book. Delilah is not entirely likeable at times, but she's all the more real for it, and there are moments in this book that genuinely made me feel for her. When Delilah is talking/thinking about her childhood, it really resonated and took me back to being a lonely, gay teenager who felt entirely unlovable, and partly because of this, Delilah's motivations felt very plausible to me.
Claire is a single mother, comfortable in her identity as a bisexual woman, so there's none of the sexuality angst that can be so prevalent in lesbian romance fiction in this book, and I loved it all the more for that. Don't get me wrong, there are times where the sexuality angst is something I entirely enjoy, but it's always refreshing to read about characters who are secure in their sexuality and who have different obstacles to overcome.
In this case, some of the obstacles that Delilah and Claire have to overcome are the fact that Delilah lives in New York City, and Claire and her daughter Ruby live thousands of miles away in a small town called Bright Falls; the fact that Claire is the best friend of Delilah's step-sister Astrid, with whom Delilah has an extremely strained relationship; and the fear of commitment that Delilah has to some extent always had but that has been exacerbated by being cheated on by the only woman she's ever really loved a few years ago.
In a rare experience for me with lesbian romance, the resolution feels both real and satisfying. And yet... I'm eagerly awaiting the sequel. Ashley Herring Blake has really knocked it out of the park with this novel. I will definitely be reading more of her work - and I recommend that anyone who enjoys a fun, sexy, and satisfying wlw romance does too!
Content Warning
Explicit sex;
You Might Like This Book If...
You enjoy a thoroughly readable lesbian romance; you feel a little old to relate to one of the most common points of conflict in lgbt fiction - coming out for the first time/coming to terms with your sexuality - but still want to read a sweet and sexy novel with plenty of points of conflict; you enjoy well-written romance fiction
Stars 5

https://athousandlives.godaddysites.com/f/delilah-green-doesnt-care

This book started very good and cute. It is very well written and we can really feel the connection between Claire and Delilah. The only problem I had was the length of the book. In my opinion it was too long and dragged after 50%. If the author had removed a few chapters in the middle it would be a 5 star read. But I still really enjoyed it and recommend it

Wow, I have just finished reading this and I do not have the words for how seen I feel. There are a lot of ways in which I am not like Delilah (or Claire), but there are some ways that I relate with both of them, and this story gets me. I hope that this can reach the people who need it.

This is a story of hope however small finding a place to grow, love and family (whether friends or actual family). I cannot wait for Astrid's story.

This was a sweet sapphic read that I ended up really enjoying. It started slow and for the first 30% or so I struggled to stay interested and wasn't all that fond of Claire but as the book went on I warmed up to her and to the story. I wouldn't say this was amazing but I thoroughly enjoyed it and it was a well-written, fast paced diverse romance novel that I'm glad I read.

OH MY GOD! This book was sapphic excellence. I've been in such a long reading slump and this brought me right back out. I loved both characters, and I loved the plot. I can't wait to re-read this.

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. I read it in one sitting and found it so easy to read and couldn’t believe how quickly I got through it.

It was amazing to read a book that features three queer women as main characters and yet their sexuality was not forced or the main focus of a story. The novel was just a simple romance which could have easily been a heterosexual relationship (although I don’t think I would have enjoyed that as much. they tend to get a bit repetitive).

I loved the characters that were created in the book. They all felt so real and each had such a strong personality that it was hard not to fall in love with them. Despite her rough exterior Delilah is without a doubt the best character in the book, she is strong and proud and has amazing sarcasm. Iris was hilarious throughout and was such a brilliant side character. Ruby was such an easy character to love, she was so realistic and easy to envision.

The strained relationship between Astrid and Delilah felt so real and it is clear that a great amount of effort was taken to create such a complex sisterly-dynamic which detailed character backgrounds.

I loved it!! Delilah Green Doesn’t Care was one of my most anticipated releases of 2022; the cover and the synopsis drew me in from the start. And now I can officially say that it’s one of my favourite books. It slid its way into my heart right from the start, only a couple of chapters in and I was sold. Delilah Green is my new book girlfriend, I do have a small “crush” on her. Though I’d also love to be a bit more like her (photographer, tattoos, …). What a woman. My emotions while reading were all over the place: this book had me laughing, swooning, hugging my kindle at times; I also had many tears-in-my-eyes-looking-at-the-ceiling moments, both happy and sad tears.

This book tells the story of Delilah Green, a 29-year-old lesbian wedding photographer specialing in queer weddings and black-and-white photography. She’s confident, creative, has long brown hair, lots of tattoos, is estranged from her stepfamily and, as the title suggests, doesn’t care about anything but her art. Her stepsister Astrid is getting married soon and they want Delilah to be their wedding photographer. Delilah agrees reluctantly; returning to her hometown, Bright Falls, only for the money this job pays her. The money she desperately needs to pay her bills until her photographer career in New York will eventually take off. Bright Falls holds a lot of bad memories for Delilah: orphaned at a young age, grief, loneliness, feeling like a burden. She plans to only stay until the wedding is over and then leave and never come back.

The other main character is Claire Sutherland. She’s a bisexual single mom of a pre-teen daughter, Ruby. She owns the bookstore in town, River Wild Books, loves wearing vintage clothing and spending time with her two best friends from childhood, Astrid and Iris. Delilah and Claire find themselves in the same place at the same time: a bar. Claire decides, pushed by Iris, to ask the attractive stranger for her number; she doesn’t recognise Delilah after all these years. Delilah does, though, and is also instantly attracted to “nerdy-sexy” Claire. There might be some fun to be had after all in Bright Falls. What starts as a “potential one-night-stand if I play my cards right, which will also annoy my stepsister” develops into a beautiful, swoon-worthy romance about family, finding love, friendship, opening up to people, taking chances, dealing with childhood trauma, and most importantly, healing.

I just loved everything about this book. It progressed nicely, taking into consideration the present events and how the past, the experienced loneliness, and childhood trauma, still affect the present. Delilah, Claire and Ruby have their special place in my heart now. Delilah Green has this rough, confident exterior, always reminding others and herself that she doesn’t care; not letting people in, protecting herself from getting hurt, being vulnerable. I also found her very relatable at times. I also loved the way Delilah was able to connect with Claire’s daughter was fascinating to observe. There are just so many beautiful scenes in this book; I can’t wait for my physical copy to arrive and go through the book again, to tag them all. Moreover, the romance book club I’m in is reading Delilah Green Doesn’t Care in March and I can’t wait to discuss the book with them and to hear what they’ll all think.

so I'll start off by saying that this book is competing with red white and royal blue for my #1 favourite book. if you know me, that is saying a LOT. I don't even know where to begin with this review. this book did something with me I wasn't expecting. it crawled inside me and messed with my brain in ways I didn't know was possible, in a good way. an incredible good way. one of the themes in this book was toxic family and that really hit me. I'm not in the same position as Delilah is in, but I definitely have to deal with toxic family. reading about that topic in this novel was really comforting, but also really hard at times. nevertheless, I really really loved it. sometimes reading this book felt like therapy (lmao). apart from the toxic family topic, Delilah Green doesn't care was just an amazing book that felt like a big hug. I'd recommend this to literally everyone (check trigger warnings tho!!). I can’t wait to read Astrid's book in this series!!

I loved this book so much. Delilah Green Doesn't Care is funny, warm, full of so much heart and a fab queer romance! The lesbian and bi representation made me so happy. I loved the fact that all the characters felt very fleshed out and so real - they all had flaws and fears and all went through their own little journeys as the plot unfolded. Plot development and character development meshed together so well in this book.

Delilah was my favourite character, but I have to give a special shout out to Iris because she was so hilarious - her loud, brash personality contrasted so well with Claire and Astrid's and you could clearly see how they'd all become friends. I loved the friendship dynamics that build within the novel, like how Delilah finds a friend in Iris, someone who's actually quite similar to her in a lot of ways. And it truly warmed my heart how Delilah behaved around Ruby. She can see so much of herself in her, and knowing how she felt as a youngster, she doesn't want Ruby to ever feel ostracised for wanting to break the mould.

The chemistry between Delilah and Claire was just incredible. The passing glances and lingering touches that suddenly explode and turn into something so passionate - loved all of it. They complemented each other in so many ways - Delilah is a bit rough around the edges and Claire more prim and proper. Even their appearances seem to strike as opposites as well - Claire is all soft, voluptuous pin-up style curves and Delilah is edgy and covered in tattoos. The visual of them together is great, and the cover obviously captures that brilliantly as well.

I know people love to know tropes of romance books before they pick them up and this book certainly doesn’t disappoint when it comes to that. We’ve got grump/sunshine, sibling’s best friend, there's only one bed, instant attraction, single parent, pre-wedding hijinks, high school nemesis turned love interest.

This is just a fantastically diverse book and quite possibly one of my favourites of the year so far!

source of the book: NetGalley
Okay, this book right here is amazing romance. It's fun and romantic, but relatable at the same time. The chemistry and relationship between the characters are incredible (especially between Claire and Delilah).
So, basically, this book follows Delilah, 30 y.o photographer, who lives in NYC for rent. One day she gets an amazing offer- a 15k photoshoot and she agrees... despite it's her step sister's wedding.
She will do absolutely anything to mess with her so she tries to hook up with her sister's best friend who is Claire a single mum.
AND THE BOOK TROPES, I ADORE THEM:
-sister's best friend
-grumpy/sunshine
-one bed
-bi and lesbian rep
THE SECOND HALF OF CHAPTER 19 WAS CHEF'S KISS.
Personally, I loved the character of Delilah, she is such a confident, girl boss...She really is wifey material.
Claire, she's an amazing, loving, and caring parent. I adore her.
I LOVED THE QUEER LOVE STORY HERE, WITH EPIC ROMANCE AND EVEN SPICE TOO. I LOVED IT!
The only thing I didn't like very much was long and often monologues, which in fact didn't really pull me in from the beginning, but still continued it and it was so worth it.
ALSO, CAN WE APPRECIATE HOW FREAKING BEAUTIFUL THE COVER IS?! I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!
I CAN'T WAIT TO READ MORE FROM THIS SERIES!
Thank you to NetGalley and publishers for allowing me to read an e-ARC of this beautiful book for an honest review of mine! I already posted a review of it on GoodReads!

So, I love this cover, and I kind of adored Claire's character. The story is mostly a good romance, with a touch of heartbreak and family drama.

Delilah is a photographer who returns to her hometown to photograph her step sisters wedding. Whilst there, she meets Claire - a single Mum and one of her step sister's best friends.

I really didn't like Delilah at all - I found her frustrating and very annoying. I also though the plot was pretty slow and seemed to really drag on.

A miss for me, unfortunately!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Do you know that feeling, when you read a book and you know it's good, really it's an objectively well written book but you just don't vibe with it?
That's how I felt while reading »Delilah Green Doesn't Care«. I expected to love this and to be fair, there are parts that I really really really liked. The small town vibes, a bit of a grump and sunshine dynamic between Delilah and Claire, how much this was about family, Iris, the fun banter.
Unfortunately, the writing style wasn't working for me. As I said, it's not badly written or anything, it just wasn't my favorite. It's written in third person which isn't my favorite in romance books and I don't know, I just couldn't really connect to the characters. I can't really explain it/pinpoint what exactly wasn't working for me but... oh well. It is what it is. I liked Delilah and Claire both a lot (but honestly, my favorite character was Iris and my favorite moments were wenn Iris and Delilah interacted because they were so much fun together because they're so similar) but I just didn't feel the chemistry between them.
Nonetheless, I'm still pretty much looking forward to the next book because I want to read more about these characters because they were my favorite thing about this book, the secondary characters maybe even more than the main characters.

4.5 Stars

Synopsis: Delilah Green is going home to Bright Falls to photograph her stepsister's wedding. But, Bright Falls holds nothing but grey and lonely memories for Delilah. Then she meets Claire, her stepsister’s childhood friend, and Delilah decides to have some fun. But more than fun seems to be in the cards.

Delilah Green Doesn’t Care, by Ashley Herring Blake is a steamy, funny, and heart-warming sapphic romance.

Heyhey, BookNerds – Surprise! Today I bring you a Rom-Com book review instead of fantasy! And a fantastic Rom-Com at that! Delilah Green Doesn’t Care, by Ashley Herring Blake was a delightful read that I absolutely adored – it was funny, witty, heart-warming, emotional and had it’s share of serious moments.

Delilah Green Doesn’t Care is a very well written romance. The prose is witty, evocative and full of heart. The book is told from the perspectives of Delilah and Claire, our MC and love interest. I love both perspectives, both worked well with the romance story and gave us insight into each character’s motivations, emotions and thoughts. Both narratives compliment each other, keep you engaged and keep the pace of the book balanced. The dialogue is also realistic, witty, emotional and flows well – it reflects the characters personalities well.

The actual plot revolves around Delilah, a queer (self described) New York artist, who is going home to Bright Falls to photograph her stepsister’s (Astrid) wedding. But Delilah and Astrid have a strained relationship, their childhood shadowed with loneliness and isolation, and Delilah really doesn’t want to go home. When Delilah returns to Bright Falls she runs into Claire, Astrid’s childhood friend. Claire is a small town book shop owner with an eleven-year-old daughter and an unreliable ex. The two’s polar opposite lifestyles collide; Claire refuses to fall for Delilah’s charms, and Delilah is determined to unsettle Claire but when the two, along with Iris (Astrid’s other childhood friend) are drawn together through the wedding festivities they plan to save Astrid from her terrible future husband.

I really enjoyed the plot of the book, it had so many elements that came together to give you something very real. From Delilah dealing with her relationship with Astrid, to her aiming for her artistic goals, to her romantic relationship with Claire, everything worked well to create realistic relationships and a dynamic story. The book, being a romance/comedy is driven by it’s characters and, because the characters are so fantastic, this works perfectly. I loved the story between Astrid and Delilah, the slow unfolding of their past and the way they worked through it. I loved Delilah’s story of being an aspiring artist, a hardworking queer artist with goals and ambitions. I enjoyed Delilah and Claire’s story, the slow unfolding of their relationship and the swinging between just casual fun or something that is more real. But I also really enjoyed Claire’s own story, her life as a mother, struggling to put herself first, and her unreliable ex adding more stress to her life. Every character had a story or connected with another’s story and it made the book all the more enjoyable.

Astrid also has a key part in this story, more specifically how her friends and stepsister want to help her leave her terrible relationship. This part of the story was an interesting balance of serious and comical – some of the schemes were definitely fun and comedic but also it dealt with some more serious issues. I really hated Astrid’s fiance, and really did want to slap him but thought the plot was done well and I was most definitely on the ‘break up’ teams side!

The cast of this book is beautifully queer and lgbtq+. Delilah, our mc, is a lesbian photographer, who also explicitly uses queer and gay to describe herself. Claire is an openly bisexual bookshop owner and mother. Iris is also an openly bisexual woman. I loved that this book is so unabashedly sapphic, and so openly deals with identity and sexuality. But it is also sensitive, intense and emotional, it is comforting and angsty all in one. All these characters are in or around their 30’s, comfortable with who they are but also imperfect – they have embraced their identities but they have flaws that they overcome over the course of the book.

Every character is dynamic and realistic. Delilah is stubborn, withdrawn and keeps things casual. She has wall around her heart, and a tendency to push people to keep them away. She is very charming when she wants to be but also very witty and good at unsettling people. I actually really did love Delilah – she’s flawed, but real and vulnerable, also her tattoos!! But that’s another story. Delilah is a great mc, and I loved watching her growth over the course of the book.

Claire is the love interest and does not do casual. She is serious, devoted to her daughter, and struggles to put herself first and is easily stressed. Claire is soft, and gentle, she deeply cares about her friends but struggles to confront people and speak up. I loved Claire, and I could really relate to her character, she made for a great character and love interest. I liked watching her development throughout the story.

Astrid. So Astrid is Delilah’s stepsister and is about to get married. She seems cold, stuck-up and distant but she has her own story, she is clever, determined and a people pleaser. It took me a while to warm to Astrid but I did, I could relate to some of her flaws and I felt for her and the horrible relationship she was in. I liked her development too but look forward to more of it in the second book.

Iris is the final friend in the group and is incredibly blunt and brutally honest, but she is also hilarious and very much knows who she is. Iris may have had the least development but her character was still well written and worked well in the group – she also definitely made me giggle at times.

We also get other characters such as Claire’s daughter, ex, and more – all of which were equally dynamic and well written. I really did love the cast of characters in this book.

Overall, Delilah Green Doesn’t Care, by Ashley Herring Blake is a steamy, witty, angsty and funny romantic comedy that tugs on the heartstrings and works its way into your heart.

*I received an eARC via #Netgalley #LittleBrownBookGroupUK in exchange for an honest review – Thank you!*