Where There’s Room For Us by Hayley Kyoko

TL;DR: A delightfully soft and joyful romance.
Source: NetGalley , Thank you so much to the publisher!

Plot: Two girls fall in love against a father’s wishes and find space for themselves.
Characters: They were both lovely, though they don’t stand out too wildly against the rest of the cast.
Setting: My favorite part of this was the setting of The Bridge, which I thought was fantastic.
Romance: These two were CUTE, all caps intended.

Summary:

When her brother unexpectedly inherits an English estate, the outspoken and infamously daring poet, Ivy, swaps her lively New York life for the prim and proper world of high society, and quickly faces the challenges of its revered traditions–especially once she meets the most sought-after socialite of the courting season: Freya Tallon.

Freya’s life has always been mapped out for her: marry a wealthy lord, produce heirs, and protect the family’s noble status. But when she unexpectedly takes her sister’s place on a date with Ivy, everything changes. For the first time, she feels the kind of spark she’s always dreamed of.

As Ivy and Freya’s connection deepens, both are caught between desire and duty. How much are they willing to risk to be true to themselves—and to each other?

Thoughts:

I was completely taken aback by this one, I’ll admit. I saw a sapphic historical and assumed it would be another one where the characters sneak around. I didn’t full read the synopsis and see that it was a queernormative society so I was tickled when that was the case! While it is a place where you can love who you’d like there is also some expectations placed on those who would inherit especially in regards to titles so that is where the bulk of our conflict comes in.

The conflict in itself was a bit on the predictable side for me which was the only complaint I had. It was clever, in the way the law had been structured for this time and setting but I saw it coming a mile away. Besides that the book was a joy though, and I was smiling through most of it. Hayley really captures the idea of queer joy in this and shows how these two girls find happiness together.

I will also point out that I loved how the conflict resolved, as the characters needed time and they took it. I appreciate that a 180 turn wasn’t performed immediately and the girls took the time to grow apart before they grew back together.

If you want something with joy and love and that gives hope, this is for you.