Outdrawn: A Sapphic Rivals to Lovers Romance

Noah Blue has finally made it to the big leagues with her webcomic's success, as she lands a full-time job at the company responsible for the relaunch of the cult classic Queen Leisah. The comic is expected to be a smash hit, with movie deals already in the works. Noah's career is taking off, but there's one obstacle standing in her way. Sage Montgomery's natural talent has brought her to the top of the charts for eight consecutive years. Although her career has hit a plateau, she believes that working on a high-profile, mainstream comic will help her breakthrough. She expected complete creative control over the Queen Leisah relaunch, but instead, she must share credit with an artist who has been her rival since college. This artist has a real chance of surpassing her in skill. Sage and Noah must put their rivalry aside and cooperate, or at least make it appear that way. They thought the biggest challenge would be working together, but the real challenge turned out to be falling in love. Touching her was like diving into a warm pool, the heat soothing yet close to being unbearable. I wanted more, but I wasn’t confident I'd be able to handle more. That I was worthy of more. This book was probably one of the cutest books I have ever read and I'm so glad that I picked it up so early in my 2024 reading year because now I get to spend the rest of 2024 shoving it at everyone I know because this is a book I need every person to read. If you look at my entire January wrap-up and…

Well to be quite frank, over the last month or two, I've downloaded a ton of free romance books, got to love Kindle Day, with that being said I kinda can hit a snag as far as reading a ton of books that are meh as in the author delivering something short and sweet and free. And this book, I felt like the author took time to invest us in the back story to make an enemies to friends Trope really, really work and feel flushed out and .... Hmm not as dimensionaless as I've been enduring. Of course this book isn't free unless you have Kindle unlimited, which I do so maybe that's why I'm kind of lumping it into some of my Kindle day reads because I didn't pay anything for it. Even though of course I did with the subscription. It just felt refreshing. Now does it mean that the story didn't have flaws... it did. That comes in the form of the sex. If we were to give like a chili peppers rating on how steamy it was. I will give this about a notch over Pg13 as far as how substantial and how much the author was able to kind of, I don't know, give us the eemf. I love the consensual stuff. It was great but it... I don't know, something just felt like it was missing. like how in the photo booth scene in this story describes a kiss. It could have been better. But overall, I enjoyed the story

This is one of the best romance books I've had the pleasure of reading. Every character, no matter how much page time they received, was fleshed out with flaws and backgrounds and personalities all their own. Sage and Noah, our FMC's, were relatable and lovable. The rivalry didn’t feel contrived, and the progression towards love felt natural. By the time Noah and Sage were falling for each other, the writing had completely dragged me, as the reader, along with them! During Noah’s POV, I was absolutely as smitten with Sage as she was, and the reverse rang true during Sage’s POV. And the bickering! The way these women teased and taunted each other had me kicking my feet and giggling. What really touched my heart though, and what will stay with me for a long time, was the exploration of asking for “help” vs looking for “rescue.” How asking for or accepting help, or putting up personal boundaries, doesn’t reduce your personal strength or worth. How it’s necessary and often a way of letting your friends/loved ones show their own caring. Noah and Sage were both strong women. Neither needed to save or be saved by anyone. They met on equal footing and formed a deep understanding of each other because of it, which only enhanced their ability to lean on each other and support each other once they learned to allow themselves. In turn, that actually deepened their bond and brought both further happiness.

Sapphic rivals to lovers?? Family angst??? I often wonder why I even pick up contemporary romance or dark romance stories because they almost always disappoint. Either it’s too much hetero nonsense or boring plotting but this book makes me think make it’s not the genre, it’s the books I’m picking up. I am so in love with the main characters, I loved the witty banter and jabs between these too and also how they sweetened over time. The dialogue was too cheesy for the most part ( more on that later ) and reluctant working together in forced proximity was *chefs kiss* The family angst was in perfect balance with the romance and felt so relatable, I loved to see the development of both characters learning to stand up to their parents. AND ( spoilers ) THAT ONE SCENE WHERE SAGE TELLS NOAHS FMAILY TO GIVE HER RESPECT AND LET HER FINISH HER SENTENCES BEFORE BUTTING IN??? Weak in the knees. Weak in the knees. The smut was perfect( SO MUCH EXPLICIT CONSENT !!! ) , but I think for most people they will want more than we got, especially when the last 10% of the book was a little.. drawn out? ( pun absolutely intended ) in fact the ending being a little slow and out of balance with conflict was one of the only reasons I didn’t give this a full five stars. My other nitpick was that a small portion of the dialogue and the carnival date was a little cheesy. My expectations got higher as the book went along, but once they started dating the clever dialogue got a little too cheddar for…

A distinct and unconventional enemies-to-lovers romance novel. This charming and gradual romance novel was characterized by its witty banter, diverse and well-developed characters, and unique personalities. While the pacing was somewhat slow at times, I found it challenging to maintain my attention throughout the entirety of the book. The storyline, though somewhat predictable, was original in its focus on the struggles of artists seeking self-discovery. The narrative explored relatable issues and challenging family dynamics, making it a satisfying read despite its predictability.