Lavender & Gin: A Sapphic Historical Romance

I was in a reading slump, it couldn’t have been harder to read a book lately. In fact, I was forcing my brain to take in more just to keep reading – trying to be a “perseverant reader”, so to speak. I agreed to be an ARC reader for “Lavender and Gin” with the idea that something different from the usual might change my settings at the moment. And I picked up the book, it sucked me in from the opening pages into its reality and I couldn’t let it go until the very end. What to expect: The World War I left an ugly mark on the human psyche and created a hunger for unattainable happiness, so it’s no surprise that the 1920s were a period of social revolution, with morals changing, more and more inhibitions falling, and the younger generation thirsting for new experiences beyond the boundaries of old traditions and strict religious and patriarchal control. Life in Detroit during the Prohibition era was not easy, poverty and insecurity provided fertile ground for the emergence of illegal practices - you prohibit something desired and it becomes a constant craving, especially if the reality is gloomy, monotonous and miserable. Prohibition did not stop liquor trade, but only increased the price. The survival instinct sometimes pushes to extreme decisions, such is the choice of Kasia, one of the MCs. To fulfill her promise to take care of her sick mother, she takes on the identity of her brother Andrew, who disappeared in the war. The mafia flavor of the book in the style of AL…

It's nice to find a story where the characters have depth and humanity without faux drama. The setting felt historically accurate without too many jarring mistakes, too. Well, written, well edited, well done.

Lavender & Gin has a fabulous premise: Kasia, in order to avoid marriage and earn money to provide for herself and her mother, who she has a dysfunctional relationship with, disguises herself as her twin. Her twin brother Andrew, a soldier who is missing and presumed to be lost in action in Europe. She lives this life for years, leading a gang running liquor for the mob, until she meets Sophia and finds herself in the city's queer underground. Aaronson does a wonderful job of setting the stage in 1920s Detroit, with descriptive language that puts you right there with the characters, and she clearly did her research on the era. All of the characters were intriguing, and although I did find myself wishing for just a bit more...something, I'm not even sure what, between Kasia and Sophia, I enjoyed their interactions. It's a really impressive debut, and I'm really looking forward to seeing where she goes from here. I received a free ARC from the author, but my review is unbiased and left voluntarily.

Entertaining and engaging. An interesting ending. An ok read.

A smoky, jazz-soaked debut with a whole lot of yearning. Kasia has built an empire from a lie. Disguised as her missing twin brother, she leads a gang and stays just ahead of the law in Prohibition-era Detroit. She’s sharp, ruthless, and utterly alone—tough because she has to be, but aching for connection, safety, and love. Then Sophia walks into her life and sees right through her. Glamorous, mysterious, and the owner of a queer underground club, Sophia is impossible to ignore. Their romance is a slow burn, full of heat and hesitation, as Kasia starts to imagine a life that isn’t built on survival alone. There’s real weight in this story—the violence, the vulnerability, the cost of living authentically in a world that punishes difference. But there’s light, too. A hard-won joy that makes the risk and the heartbreak more than worth it. Lavender & Gin is dark, moving and beautifully told. I can't wait to see what other stories Abigail Aaronson has to tell.