A Girl Like Her: A Small Town Romance (Ravenswood Book 1)

This is an odd one for me because I started it in audio but switched to an ebook format because the audio performer (who had a lovely voice) had too posh an accent for this story and it was distracting me from the realness of the characters because it was like a posh person putting on a posh accent, talking about non-posh people and it just didn’t sit well. For this reason, having read ALL the rave reviews about this book, I was a little confused, left a little cold even, wondering what I was missing. And then I switched to the ebook format. And I got it. I couldn’t put this gem down. I found myself taking notes. Stopping to think about important issues like consent and how it is giving and just enjoying this couple.The premise is that Ruth, a indie web comic book creator on the autism spectrum, fell afoul of her small English town’s golden son years ago, and became the town pariah. Meanwhile, general nice guy and blacksmith, Evan, newly out of the military and still grieving losses from his past, has moved in next door and can’t get his mind of his prickly Neighbour. The only problem is that he works for the golden son who’s made Ruth his sworn enemy.I think this book was really interesting and I found myself stopping and writing pretty much an entire essay on consent and how it is more nuanced and individual than I had thought before and how different people might have different requirements and needs to the levels of consent required. I like that with this book, the author delved deep into writing a couple of steamy scenes with a multiple levels of consent woven in to show that repeated asking of questions and communication can be sexy. I think that was nice to model. It might not be a requirement for everyone and it might not be everyone’s preference or need, but it was good to see this represented in a romance novel for any woman but especially one in which the heroine had dealt with abuses to her consent in the past.I really liked this but I have to admit that I found the hero too perfect, almost too good to be true. Like “Magical Prince say the right thing and do the right thing in an almost inhumanly perfect way.” I am not really a bad boy fan and love the nice guy heroes but can I say this hero was a little too nice and too perfect. So tall, so dark, so handsome, so patient, so even tempered, so good a friend, so likeable, so good at fixing things, so good in bed, so perfectly knowledgeable about how to deal with the heroine’s prickliness, so apt to always say the right thing. Even when the heroine is upset with him, it’s never really him because it’s always inadvertent and nothing really he did. It just got a bit too much at times. Conversely the heroine was absolutely perfect as she was- she felt authentic which is good because this is “own voices” written by an author on the autism spectrum. And she made mistakes and she had a bad temper and was prickly and wasn’t always nice and could be petty but she was strong and felt real because of all those things. I now totally get why authors make hero’s do stupid things for dramatic effect. If not it’s too much perfection.Did I like this? YES! And I recommend it if you’re looking for a lovely underdog winning story that features a heroine with an autism spectrum disorder, a beautiful sisterhood and a gorgeous friends to lovers romance with a hero that can do no wrong.

A Girl Like Her is a lovely, well-paced, sweet (and raunchy!) romance that uniquely features an autistic heroine. The characters are loveable and delightfully real. The representation of Ruth as an autistic heroine is true-to-life (though each ND person is different, her experiences were accurate).Love the sweetness and persistence of the hero. Love the banter. Love the internal dialogue and side characters and 'scandal'. This book leaves me keen to read the next book in the series - Ruth's sister Hannah's story.Yes it is set in a very small range of environments (primarily Ruth's flat) - this can be a very real representation for autistic folks as leaving the house can be difficult and uncomfortable. Yes it's raunchy in parts and there is a good amount of swearing involved. BUT this is an explicit romance novel and a bit of this can be expected! :)This would be a five-star for me if the book was longer - I would have loved to explore Evan's background a bit more fully but to be fair I am used to Christine Feehan-length-novels and depth. I did also struggle with the idea that - *spoiler*Ruth could suddenly begin to speak more fully and articulate her feelings much better; as an ND identifying and articulating feelings, particularly verbally, has never got easier. But that is a small point and does add to the lovely charm of the delicious marshmallow-y HEA.Talia Hibbert is an author with talent, perception and heart - and an obvious desire to make her readers happy.Highly recommended and I will be devouring her entire collection ASAP. :)

“There are some things you don’t get over. You just accept them, and keep breathing. That’s enough.”Talia Hibbert is a national treasure, and I don’t think that I ever want to leave Ravenswood or these characters. Talia truly crafts the most heartwarming romances, with amazingly diverse characters, and weaves in some of the sexiest scenes I’ve ever read in my entire life. I have loved everything that she has written so far, and A Girl Like Her is probably my favorite yet. Truly a masterpiece, and she is truly creating a brand-new tier in the romance genre, above the rest.➽ Ruth Kabbah - Black and autistic (both ownvoices), plus sized, web comic creator, in love with all things comic related, close with her family (especially her sister), and is very weary of new people because of something that happened in her past.➽ Evan Miller - White, ex-military, new to town, and Ruth’s new neighbor. Evan is also learning to live with a loss from his past, and he really is such a giving and kind soul and hopes to win over his new neighbors with his shepherd pie.Obviously, these two’s paths cross and they start a friendship over food and comics, and like, what damn goals! Ruth doesn’t leave her apartment too often, because of an abusive relationship that happened in her past and the fall out because of it. And Evan is slowly putting together the pieces of what might have happened, while he also realizes how damn small Ravenswood truly is.This book just masterfully weaves so many important elements into this tale, too. Ruth, being on the autism spectrum, feels overwhelmed many times throughout the novel, but she never once feels like a stereotype. Ruth just handles a few things differently sometimes, and that’s okay, but it has never and will never hold her back from anything, ever.Also, this book is so damn sex positive and I was actually saying “YES!” while reading some of things Ruth said in this book. What a damn queen. Also, like in all her books, Talia always puts consent at the forefront, and proves over and over why nothing is sexier in romance than consent!I really loved how this book also talked about the guilt abuse victims will feel, even though they were the ones who did nothing wrong. I think this is just something we don't talk a lot about as a community and a society, but survivor's guilt is so real, and something that so many people have such a hard time coming to terms with. And seeing Ruth realize that Daniels constant harassment and manipulation was nothing that she deserved truly added five years to my life.“Because allowing yourself to be manipulated by a man like Daniel wasn’t a crime, and you never deserved to be punished.”Overall, I just loved this more than words. The sex was steamy and hot. The characters were simultaneously so soft but so very strong. The themes were important and so beautifully woven. And the story was so damn easy to fall in love with. At this point, I’m just going to preorder and read everything that Talia Hibbert writes, because she is a damn gift to the romance genre.

Beautiful story. I appreciate how author’s characters are not the usual run of the mill. They are imperfect with contemporary realistic attributes, issues, and dilemmas. The men are so sweet

I really like how Talia Hibbert adds main characters who have "illnesses" whether physical or mental, Our leading lady Ruth has autism and a mislead, misunderstood back story, such a good read, I didn't see the twist and although the steamy scenes seemed to pop out of left field the whole book overall was a nice easy read.

A Girl Like Her is one of the best contemporary books I've ever read. It has:- autistic, fat heroine- soft ex-military hero who cooks for heroine- lowkey slow burn romance- so sex positive and fat positive- CONSENT- explores getting over an abusive relationship and the consequent social falloutI really loved seeing Ruth and Evan's relationship develop and grow and I also loved Ruth's individual development throughout the novel too. Talia Hibbert's writing is SO fun and humorous and lovely and I cannot wait to read more of her books!

I ADORED THIS BOOK. So much fun, great dry humour, well written with memorable characters.

Talia Hibbert is truly a goddess when it comes to romance and this may be her best book.

It is so refreshing to find a story like this that is actually set in good ol'Blighty. Usually one has to tap up our American cousins for these kind of characters and plots. The difference between here and there is dating a woman of colour doesn't raise the storm that it does in the US (well, not in London or most major cities in the UK).This allows us to just focus on the story and the interaction of the main protagonists.I fell in love with Ruth from the start. She reminds me of so many people that I work with (ASD and LD). Her constant struggle to fit in with societal norms especially around facial expressions and conversations. Her prickly behaviour and eventually her assertiveness when she puts aside her undeserved guilt.With regards to Evan, I'll just say that everyone deserves an Evan.Well done Talia for giving me a delicately woven tale of small town life with a gossipy population, an evil wrong-doer who thinks much to highly of himself and a woman who gets the love that she deserves. Enjoy peeps 😉