Can't Resist Her

by Kianna Alexander

Overview

Two very determined women—in love, at odds, and risking a lot on a second chance.

After years away from home, Summer Graves is back in Austin, Texas, to accept a new teaching position. Of all the changes to the old neighborhood, the most dispiriting one is the slated demolition of the high school her grandmother founded. There’s no way she can let developers destroy her memories and her family legacy. But the challenge stirs memories of another kind.

On the architectural team revitalizing the neighborhood, hometown girl Aiko Holt is all about progress. Then she sees Summer again. Some things never change.

Neither can forget the kiss they shared at their senior-year dance. Neither can back down from her unwavering beliefs about what’s right for the neighborhood.

For now, the only thing Summer and Aiko are willing to give in to is a heat that still burns. But can two women with so much passion—for what once was and what could be—agree to disagree long enough to fall in love?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781542034098
Publisher:	Amazon Publishing
Publication date:	07/19/2022
Pages:	300
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Kianna Alexander has always been something of a dreamer. Raised among the Carolina pines, she routinely read fifteen or more books a week and was always thirsty for more. Her vivid imagination eventually led her to spin tales of her own. Kianna published her first novel in 2009 and has been publishing steadily ever since. Her passion for building empathy through fiction shows in her writing, and she truly believes literature can have a profound and positive impact on people’s lives.

Kianna is also a mother of two; a dabbler in various crafts; and a lover of random trivia, music, white wine, and sunrises on the beach. She lives in the western US with her children, her partner, the world’s highest-maintenance cat, and a precocious pup. For more information visit www.authorkiannaalexander.com.

Editorial Reviews

Heat sizzles between these two…Anyone looking for inclusive romance should check out this breezy contemporary.” —Publishers Weekly

“This is a romance novel in which the plot outside of the relationship is also compelling, and that makes this book stand out.” —Library Journal

“Kianna Alexander writes an amazing story about two very determined women—in love, at odds, and risking a lot on a second chance.” —Essence

From the Publisher

2022-05-11
When two women who were high school flames end up on opposite sides of a controversial building project, sparks fly—and a few sharp nails.

When Summer Graves returns to her hometown, the Ivy neighborhood of Austin, she's dismayed to find that much has changed from her childhood memories. The neighborhood is rapidly gentrifying. The Sojourner Truth Charter Academy—a school founded by Summer’s grandmother that has been closed for the past 10 years—is slated for demolition to make way for a new multiuse development, and Summer is determined not to let that happen. When Summer runs into Aiko Holt, her high school crush, at the work site, she realizes that she can’t let Aiko be the one who gets away (again!). The only problem: Aiko is the architect in charge of the Sojourner Truth tear down. Will steamy romance prevail, or will the building project tear them asunder? The best moments of this novel are the nuanced explorations of the impact of gentrification on communities of color, portrayals of queer people of color and their stories, and some pretty hot bedroom scenes. As Summer and Aiko’s relationship develops, they each must examine and adjust their opposing perspectives, ultimately mapping out a compromise for the building project that could serve as a model for conscious development projects in the real world. Unfortunately, the writing is uneven, featuring flat dialogue, odd descriptions, and weird choices in narration. Why do we need to know every single outfit every character wears in every scene down to the details of jewelry? Why are all the main characters’ stray thoughts italicized and isolated from the narration? And it’s hard to escape the feeling that we’ve heard this story before: It’s a steamier version of Two Weeks’ Notice starring Sandra Bullock.

A sexy, fun romance that can get dragged down by its own prose.

Kirkus Reviews