For Astrid Parker, failure is unacceptable. Ever since she broke up with her fiancé a year ago, she’s been focused on her career—her friends might say she’s obsessed, but she’s just driven. When Pru Everwood asks her to be the designer for the Everwood Inn’s renovation that will be broadcasted on a popular home improvement show, Innside America, Astrid knows this is the answer to everything that is wrong with her life. It’ll be the perfect distraction from her failed love life, and her perpetually displeased mother might finally give her nod of approval.
However, Astrid never planned on Jordan Everwood, Pru’s granddaughter and lead carpenter for the inn’s renovation, who despises every modern design decision Astrid makes. Jordan is determined to preserve the history of her family’s inn, particularly as the rest of her life is in shambles. When that determination turns into a little light sabotage, ruffling Astrid’s perfect little feathers, the showrunners ask them to play up the tension. But somewhere along the way, their dislike for each other turns into something quite different, and Astrid must decide what success truly means. Is she going to pursue the life that she’s expected to lead, or the one she wants?
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Contemporary queer fiction across middle grade, young adult, and adult romance categories has been significantly shaped by stories centering identity, family dynamics, and romantic self-discovery, exemplified by the Bright Falls series beginning with Delilah Green Doesn't Care. Ashley Herring Blake established her presence in contemporary literature through award-winning young adult and middle grade novels before expanding into popular adult romance.
Ashley Herring Blake held a Master's degree in teaching after attending Berry College, initially enrolling as a voice major before turning to education and creative writing. In addition to her career as an author, she has worked in publishing as an editor and literary agent. Blake made her debut in young adult fiction with Suffer Love and How to Make a Wish, followed by Girl Made of Stars, which was selected as a Lambda Literary Award finalist. Moving into middle grade literature, her debut category novel, Ivy Aberdeen's Letter to the World, was named a Stonewall Honor Book as well as a Kirkus, School Library Journal, NYPL, and NPR Best Book of 2018. She expanded her middle grade catalog with The Mighty Heart of Sunny St. James and Hazel Bly and the Deep Blue Sea.
Blake transitioned into adult contemporary romance with her Bright Falls series published by Berkley, launching with Delilah Green Doesn't Care, Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail, and Iris Kelly Doesn't Date. Her adult romantic fiction also includes novels such as Make the Season Bright and Dream On, Ramona Riley. Outside of writing, Blake enjoys coffee, cold weather, cats, melancholy music, and organizing her personal library by color. A mother of two sons, she resides on an island off the coast of Georgia and maintains an active online presence at ashleyherringblake.com and via social media at @ashleyhblake.
Across age groups, Blake's fiction focuses on queer identity, emotional healing, grief, and complex interpersonal dynamics. Her middle grade and young adult books explore young protagonists navigating first crushes, coming out, and processing emotional trauma or loss with nuanced vulnerability. In her adult romances, she blends humor and emotional realism, creating imperfect characters who confront personal insecurities while finding love within supportive queer communities.
Bright Falls
