With Love, from Cold World

One of the better M/F contemporary romances I've read in the past year (frankly, it doesn't have much competition), and a significant improvement on Thompson's 2022 mainstream debut, [b:Love in the Time of Serial Killers 59722215 Love in the Time of Serial Killers Alicia Thompson https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1640224232l/59722215.SX50.jpg 94049519]. The plot is nemeses-to-lovers, with a slightly run-d0wn “winter in Florida” theme park as the unusual setting. The FMC is a former foster child with intimacy and control issues. The MMC's parents threw him out of the house when he was caught kissing another boy, leaving him with abandonment issues. The buttoned-up FMC and the laid-back MMC take a little too long to get past their mutual antagonism, but as they slowly open up to each other their relationship becomes passionate and supportive. This is one of the few M/F romances I've encountered in which the MMC's bisexuality is an important plot point, instead of a way for the author to performatively indicate their queer allyship. The novel's cover image suggests that it will have a similar vibe to an Ali Hazelwood book, but I found Alicia Thompson to be more skilled at creating realistic, flawed characters and thus a more satisfying HEA.Slightly tangential, but important to me, rant: This is the second book I have read recently that uses the “we can just get a grant to save the organization!” resolution. As a former grant writer, I can assure you that there aren't oodles of grants growing on trees, just waiting to be picked by any earnest do-gooders that come around. Getting a grant is usually a long, laborious and complex process that requires a specific set of skills, not just “good at writing.”