In Forbidden Dreams, the second installment in her Dream series, Madison delivered another small town, enemies to lover’s romance. However, this time around the featured heroine is a single mother fighting for both her and her son’s survival. Romance readers looking for a heart-warming small-town romance with the themes of family and second chances will enjoy this latest offering from the author.
Title: Forbidden Dreams
Author(s): Natasha Madison
Series: Dream #2
Also in this series: Shattered Dreams
Narrator(s): Gregory Salinas, Savannah Peachwood
Published by Natasha Madison on January 3, 2025
Pages: 298
Length: 8 hours and 27 minutes
Genre(s): Contemporary Romance
Source: Publicist
Format: ALC
Purchase: Amazon|Audible
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Montgavin Township will never be the same when one night changes the lives of six people.
When the single mom moves in next door, it's your enemy's soon-to-be ex-wife.
Lines are drawn, and I have to remember not to cross them.
BradyFor once, my life was calm.Behind us was the threat our distillery was going to be shut down.Now we could focus on growing our brand exactly the way I dreamed of doing it when I took it over.Nothing was going to stop me. Until she moved in next door. My enemy’s wife with her seven-year-old son. I don’t need this right now. But everything inside me pulled me toward her.Even offering her a job. Little did I know, again, I was starting a war. However, I’m ready for it this time.
Harmony
It was no secret my husband had a wandering eye.Leaving him shouldn’t have been a shock to anyone.For Winston, it was more about failing at something that got under his skin.Besides, he had to make his parents happy. Which means he’s going to make my life unhappy.When the pounding starts at my door one night, I’m ready to ignore it.Until the stranger next door comes to our aid. He’s everything you want in a man.I know I shouldn’t involve anyone else in my life. But maybe it’s time for me to see what dreams are made of.
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
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Forbidden Dreams tells the story of Brady Thatcher, brother of the heroine from book one, and Harmony Cartwright.
After years of disrespect, emotional, verbal and physical abuse, Harmony took her son and left the matrimonial home. Her husband and his family thwarted her many attempts to obtain a divorce. The divorce wasn’t the only thing they thwarted. They also undermined Harmony’s attempts to acquire a job. Everyone in town was afraid of the Cartwrights because of their influential position in the town. Despite leaving her husband, he kept showing up on her doorstep in the night exhibiting toxic behaviour. It was this action that led to Brady stepping in despite being wary of her presence next door
Madison addressed the issues of abuse, divorce, child custody battle and the obstacles faced when going up against a wealthy and influential family. It was pleasing to see Harmony standing up to her husband and his toxic family. This aspect of the story intrigued me and kept me reading with the aim of discovering the manner in which Harmony would be free of the Cartwrights influence.
One can understand Brady’s reasons for his wariness towards Harmony moving next door. He hated the Cartwrights based on their history with his sister, and Harmony’s marriage to one made her guilty by association. However, the more he steps in to help her his perspective where she was concerned changed and soon, he found himself falling for the single mom and her son.
The romance here is different from what one have come to expect from the author. The physical connection remains constant, but this time around she gives readers a slow burn romance. The story would have benefitted from a deeper exploration of the emotional connection between the protagonists. Once again, I felt shortchanged as Madison chose not to dive deeper in Brady’s relationship with his father and sister. Characters from the previous book as well as a few from her Meant For series made an appearance. Their roles aided in driving the story.
I enjoyed the writing style and the story on audio was excellent. This was my first time experiencing Natasha’s book on audio and it was a gratifying experience. The narrators, Savannah Peachwood and Gregory Salinas did an excellent job in bringing the story and the characters to life. While I am familiar with the female narrator this was my first experience with Gregory Salinas work. I enjoyed their collaboration and would definitely listen to them again.
Overall, I enjoyed Forbidden Desires and look forward to the next book in the series.
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About Natasha Madison
When her nose isn’t buried in a book, or her fingers flying across a keyboard writing, she’s in the kitchen creating gourmet meals. You can find her, in four inch heels no less, in the car chauffeuring kids, or possibly with her husband scheduling his business trips. It’s a good thing her characters do what she says, because even her Labrador doesn’t listen to her…
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
