I really liked this book. I felt and understood the protagonist's insecurities and her reasons for dressing up even though it was outside of her comfort zone.

It's always a challenge to tell a romance only from one point of view; I think this one did well. The one problem I had is that there was something akin to 'a big misunderstanding', which is a plot device I detest. Thankfully, it didn't drag out too long and was explained in a way that made sense. Still, I wish the heroine had had a little more faith in herself and the relationship to talk things over at that point. ( )

I was very excited about Thaw because it is a f/f romance novel where both of the protagonists are asexual. The early reviews were all very positive about how the asexuality is presented, as well as praise for the story in general about a homebody librarian and a glamorous model.

Unfortunately, I took that praise at face value and did not read a sample of the book before buying my own copy. I regret this, it was a waste of my $3.

I only read 9% of the book - less than is included in the Amazon sample download! - before giving up in disgust. I have no idea how the romance part of the story will play out, but I'm suspicious of the reviews saying it's done with care and without stereotypes. I have never experienced a sexual romance, but all of the asexual romances I've ever known have had very solid foundations of friendship - I assume that the best sexual relationships are the same, though romance novels do tend to focus on the sexual attraction as the big pull. At any rate, the very first scene in Thaw is between main character Abby and one of her best friends as Abby prepares to go to a swanky fundraising event in support of another friend. Abby is given an extremely stereotypical "bookworm librarian" personality and does not enjoy dressing up, wearing short skirts, makeup, or stiletto heels. Her friend should know this, yet when given the option of several dresses, shoes, and makeup styles, she puts Abby in a very short dress, very tall heels, and only demurs from some of the more advanced makeup techniques because it is dangerous to put sharp things near someone's eyes when they are flinching away. Bullying the main character into something she doesn't like or feel comfortable in is not the kind of thing I want to read about in a romance novel, because if this is treated as "of course Abby has to wear a sexy dress, suck it up!" here, what will the really important relationship be like? what other things will the author think is an "of course this is right and normal" even when they write the characters as being unhappy.

And unhappy she is: the next scene is at the fundraising event, where Abby is still uncomfortable in her borrowed clothes and is now also uncomfortable at a fundraising event, which is absolutely ridden with cliches and overdone snark. I don't like those things myself, but it seems like the author has never been to many herself - it felt like she was echoing other media. I can't really blame her for it but on top of the previous few pages, I wanted a breather from the ugliness. Even the writing style itself is clumsy and cliched, from the way the fundraising-event-friend was apparently homeless or an addict or something that brought him to the library to meet Abby, to the way he's described with "lips twitching in a constant smile", which made me worry that there was some kind of neurological problem, possibly related to former addiction? or maybe it was why he was homeless? except...it's just passed over and isn't a little bit of character history, just an awkward way to say this person smiles a lot now that he's successful.

When the love interest Gabrielle is introduced at the fundraising event with a long, dragged out sequence that plunks down every little French-ice-queen cliche I could think of, including a weird phrasing to even say "oh, and she's French", I was done. I hated every minute of the first 9% of the book and I want my money back.

Remind me to never again try to read an "Amazon Digital Services" published book without checking out a sample first. ( )

It is not an understatement for me to say that I went into Thaw with huge, huge hopes and a sense of absolute wonder. There just are no words for how it feels to find a character in a book who feels exactly the same way you do about something people rarely, if ever, talk about. With passages like these:

-"It wasn’t that she hated the idea of sex, just . . . she didn’t want it. Didn’t need it. But no one else ever seemed to feel that way; in high school, college, and even now in the break room at work, where some of the part-time ladies would talk about their husbands or dates during lunch, sex was always the focus of every relationship."

-"...in front of her. Still, the thought of having someone to spend time with, to talk to, maybe to hold while she slept? It sounded romantic. Perfect. Why was it so difficult for others to contemplate a relationship built on mutual affection, on romantic gestures that didn’t extend into the bedroom? Abby wanted roses and inside jokes, something easy and natural. Sex was a complication she didn’t have any interest in."

-"Abby knew what people had said about her in the past: that she was frigid, weird, broken. That not wanting to have sex made her somehow less than human. And despite that, she’d accepted her asexuality for what it was, never mourned the loss of something she didn’t want in the first place."

There are more deeply meaningful sections like these and the story itself is extremely sincere and moving and is everything I had hoped it would be, with a beautiful friendship/romance being more than enough for both women and characters you cannot help but root for and understand more than you could have ever expected.

I can honestly say I have never read anything like this before; it almost feels like I dreamed it in the best way possible. My words for how special this book is, for how very lovely it is that two people can connect on such a deep level that transcends the physical, are woefully inadequate. ( )

Lovely story; my first novel with an asexual (& biromantic--hooray!) character, and I really appreciated the development and support. Hope to find more in the same vein.

Abby is an introverted librarian happily living a regular life in Brooklyn. But things change when she attends a charity gala with a friend and meets Gabrielle, a famous actress and model. The two connect on the dance floor, and Abby is immediately taken by this lovely woman known in modeling circles as the Ice Queen. And while she can see how Gabrielle has earned this nickname, she also senses a softer side to her. Gabrielle asks Abby on a date, and the two begin to get to know each other, discovering they have a lot of similar interests. But even though Gabrielle seems to let her guard down around Abby, she also has problems opening up about her past. Meanwhile, while Abby finds Gabrielle fascinating, she's worried what will happen to their relationship when she admits she's asexual. She's also dealing with issues in her own personal life related to her library position. Can these two women overcome a variety of obstacles to find love?

This novel definitely follows the trope of a regular gal falling for the rich, remote, often angry lesbian: you have to surrender yourself to that and you'll enjoy the book more (much like watching a romantic comedy). There is a little too much focus at times on the fact that Gabrielle runs hot and cold, and her personal dynamics can be slightly weird at points. Still, even while occasionally annoyed, I found myself intrigued and interested at her reticence and wondering at its cause.

However, the real star of this show isn't Gabrielle, but Abby. Abby is just a real sweetheart. She's truly the force of the book. I personally identified with her and adored her love of books, avoidance of makeup, and general introverted self. She was a well-written character, and I found myself wanting to protect her. The fact she's asexual is interesting, and it really cast a light on a sexual orientation that I knew very little about. It was a good learning experience, honestly.

Much like said romantic comedies I mentioned earlier, a lot of this plot is predictable, but the book was written well-enough that I didn't mind: it's what I had signed up for, after all, and I was happy to be along for the ride. I still was really excited for the outcome and read the entire thing in about 24 hours. Besides, the novel has a hidden depth to it, giving us an interesting commentary on society's expectations about sex and relationships. Plus, Springer inserts some hidden inside jokes about books, literary series, and such. A lot of the novel just made me smile, between Abby, the asides, and the overall resolution. It was surprising and for the most part, very enjoyable. Probably a 3.75 stars, but bumped up to 4 stars due to the way it made me feel. I will definitely seek out the other novels in Springer's Season of Love series (this was actually #2, but it seemed to stand-alone just fine).

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher and Netgalley (thank you!) in return for an unbiased review; it is available everywhere as of 04/24/2017.

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