I've read and loved all of the author's books. I'm also a huge politics fan. The premise of this book sounded very interesting. I'd been looking forward to reading it but sadly it didn't live up to my expectations. Robby was a very unlikeable character, I struggled to relate to her and couldn't quite understand why Taylor would be interested in her. I didn't quite buy the romance. Other than that, the plot was interesting enough and the book itself was well written.

Stevie‘s review of True Colors by Yolanda Wallace
Contemporary Lesbian Romance published by Bold Strokes Books 15 Aug 17

Having parents who are famous for whatever reason always seems to be a mixed blessing. While there are advantages to growing up in a, one assumes, privileged environment, there are plenty of disadvantages: the intrusive media attention, the speculation as to whether the child will grow up to emulate their parents or to follow an opposing path, the parental pressure to conform to their and society’s expectations of the family’s place in it, or at least not to rebel too obviously. These last are possibly more keenly felt by the children of politicians, than by those whose parents are other types of celebrity, particularly in the polarised political climate that we are experiencing in various parts of the world right now. And that’s precisely the situation Taylor Crenshaw finds herself in, made particularly difficult by the fact that her beliefs and needs are precisely the opposite of those that got her father elected to the White House.


Taylor is a lesbian and a Democrat, while her father is a Republican who has embraced the conservative viewpoints of many of his core voters. While he’s not attempting to stop Taylor from seeing who she wants, he and his team are keen that she be ‘discreet’ and only appear at public functions with suitable, equally media-neutral escorts. While Taylor loves her parents, she has no intention of putting her life on hold for the length of her father’s time in office. When she meets Robby Rawlins, she is keen to act on the attraction she feels, despite the difference in their status – though not in their politics.

Robby has three jobs, none of which is likely to endear her to the President or his advisors. As well as working in her friend’s shop, she also writes a pseudonymous political blog and performs as a go-go dancer in a popular lesbian bar. When Taylor asks her on a date, Robby at first thinks only of the gossip she might pick up for her blog. As the two grow closer, however, Robby – as well as Taylor – has to work out how much, if any, of her life she is prepared to sacrifice for love.

I really enjoyed this book. It was clear that there was a lot going on beneath the surface of Taylor’s parents’ supposedly perfect relationship, although the family had a lot holding it together beyond ambition. Taylor wasn’t the only one investing emotions into her home-life, although at times it seemed like she was giving more than either her mother or her father. I was interested also to read about the public and private events Taylor was expected to attend as first daughter, and really wanted to see her get the future, relationship, and career she deserved sooner rather than later. I definitely want to investigate this author’s back catalogue as soon as I get some spare reading time.

Grade: A

So I usually love Yolanda's books, but this was one I struggled with. My biggest hang up was I couldn't find myself liking one of the main characters. To me she was without morals and that really never changed for me. There were also some odd transitions. Taylor is the daughter to the newly incoming very conservative President and she has an completely different political view. Robby is a blogger on the level of Perez Hilton, so sometimes without any tact or understand of whom they are hurting. The odd turn for me was when all of a sudden Taylor decides she wants to get into politics and run for office. It just seemed a big leap from graduate student. This book won't stop me from reading future Wallace novels, but it maybe just wasn't my cup of tea and I didn't click with the characters.

I was unable to review this book because of a conflict in my schedule. Sorry for any inconvenience this has caused the publisher or the author of the work. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to review for you and I look forward to reviewing for you in the future.

I don't think this book was for me,

Although I liked Taylor I really struggled to empathise with the character Robby, I found her selfish, shallow and I just couldn't warm to her

I like the basis of this story but I thought the story jumped around and I found myself checking to see if I'd missed a chapter

Not sure where Lieutenant Harper Hutchinson came into the story or had any impact.

I'm not saying this a a bad book just didn't do it for me

Having read all of Ms Wallace's books and enjoying them, I was looking forward to reading this one to but I don't know if it was the subject matter (A little to close to what is happening now) or the fact that even after reading more over half the book I still didn't like either of the main characters. It's a well paced book with some interesting secondary characters. Just because it wasn't my cup of tea today doesn't mean I won't be looking forward to reading the next books by Yolanda Wallace.

I have read all of Ms. Wallace’s books and this one seemed to have a weak plot. It can be described as a romance/suspense, but the suspense part didn’t develop. It was thrown in to provide a little mystery and excitement, but missed its purpose.

As with many romantic books, the lead characters meet, fall in love immediately, have a little trouble in their relationship, and then come together for a happily ever after ending. Although this story followed the same scenario, the characters’ personalities didn’t have the makings for a solid relationship.

The two main characters are Taylor Crenshaw, the daughter of the President, and Robby Rawlins, a political blogger and antique shop employee. I enjoy books when I can relate to the characters in the book. I was unable to do so this time. Although Taylor is a strong person with high morals, she is weak when it comes to Robby. I found Robby to be extremely selfish and unlikeable.

I only rated this book as 2-1/2 stars. Although I did not rate this book highly, I do recommend Ms. Wallace’s other books.

I was given this ARC in return for a fair and honest review.

I'm afraid I couldn't bring myself to finish this one. I thought the description sounded interesting and I was curious to read an f/f romance again after a long while of not doing so, but unfortunately I couldn't get into this at all, and I tried several times to make sure it wasn't just that I wasn't in the mood.

I tried, but while the setting was intriguing and had potential, the characters never came to life for me. There was a lot of awkward infodumping that sounded unnatural - one example being "George W. Bush probably wished he had instituted similar restrictions when his twin daughters were cited for underage drinking". I also found the way both Robby and Taylor kept talking to themselves really odd, and things felt like they were on fast forward sometimes, so odd was the pacing. Like, when they're in the cafe and they talk about books and exchange seven sentences and then Robby says, "Who knew talking about books could be so sexy?" when there was nothing sexy about that conversation. It just felt forced, and sadly that was not the only time, and my interest in the story wasn't enough to keep looking past that.

I will admit this book has me in a bit of a conundrum. Firstly I would like to say there had better be a book two. There are too many questions unanswered. In general terms I liked the book and I would like to see how far Taylor can actually get in politics. But on the other hand I hated all the lies and deceitfulness that seemed to be in abundance.

The two main characters are Taylor Crenshaw the current Presidents daughter and Robby part time political blog writer and someone who thinks she is a bit of a rebel. These two meet fall in love. Yep you get the picture.

Robby feels the need to not reveal all parts of herself to Taylor and they end up splitting because of what I call lies and deception. Nothing good comes from lying no matter how you spin it. I can understand why Robby did it but is wealth and status better than being loved unconditionally. Maybe I am just an old romantic but why play with both ends.

I enjoyed the story very much but if that is what you need to do to survive Washington I am glad I live in the UK. I also really liked the cover of the book. I gave it 3.75 stars because as I said I had issue with the lies. It is also a good set up for a second book which I would definitely read.

Yes, I would recommend it. It is a good read. Enjoy!

*ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley*

https://www.amazon.co.uk/review/R2VS295P8B15PJ/ref=pe_1572281_66412651_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv


https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2056846320

Taylor is the first daughter. Her father has just been elected President and he is ultra conservative while she is definitely a liberal.

Robby works in an antique store by day and is a political blogger by night. And so when Taylor walks into the story she works at, it's like Robby's birthday and Christmas all rolled into one.

Taylor seems interested in Robby right away, and Robby has plans, but also then slowly starts feeling herself falling in love with Taylor as well.

For the most part it then goes on as a regular sort of lesbian romance with various twists and turns.

And as the book went on I did like the characters more and more.

But at the start of the book I had problems with both characters. Robby just was so amazingly deceptive, and Taylor seemed to be a naive idiot.

And in general the book just seemed too contentious. These days real life is a constant fight it seems, and I just don't really want my fiction to be totally like that too.

And the stuff with the President in this book, it was just still too close. And honestly was just too real with everything going on right now.

I got this galley through Netgalley on behalf of Bold Strokes Books.

True Colors was one of those books that is significant to the times as the subject matter relates to current events with an ultra-conservative President who is unsupportive of the LGBT community. His daughter, Taylor must navigate her life very carefully as to not draw attention to her "gayness" to keep the mud-slinging away from her family. The attraction is immediate when she meets Robby in a D.C. antique shop but is unaware that Robby is a political gossip blogger with her eye on success at any cost. While Robby has some likable charm she acts like a typical low-life, deceitful gossip journalist, and despite her burgeoning desire to change her ways, it's not convincing enough for me to root for Robby to win Taylor's heart. I also felt there was a lack of cohesiveness between the three plots of the romance, the thriller subplot with Taylor's Secret Service protection detail, and Taylor's future political aspirations. I think most readers would find this an interesting story regardless of my nit-picking because Taylor is a likable character and many of us can relate to being hopelessly in love despite warning signs of danger. I just had a really hard time getting over my distaste for Robby.

Taylor Crenshaw is a grad student and daughter of the President of the United States. Robby Rawlins works in an antique store and secretly runs a political gossip blog. A chance meeting between Robby and Taylor gives Robby an in to start spending time with Taylor and the political elite to gather information for her blog. Neither of them expected the attraction and the love that would form between them, so when the secrets all come out, will their love be enough?

I didn't really like either of the main characters and found it hard to relate and connect to them. And while I thought they had tons of chemistry, I didn't feel the romance, I didn't feel them falling in love.

I did however loveeeee all the secondary characters. I loved Steven and Miles. I loved Sheridan. I loved Diana and Portia and all the little side stories. And I really enjoy the way the author writes. So I would absolutely loveeeeee more books with the characters! Hint hint :)

All in all I enjoyed the story. The drama was pretty obvious, but it was a really interesting, very gay, look into the world of politics with unique characters and great chemistry.

I received an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

To be honest, it was hard to like Robby Rawlins' character as her motives for being with Taylor were less than honorable. I much preferred Taylor's character as she felt more genuine and likeable. I'm not sure I believed their love story, it was hard to get over the fact that Robby was mostly using Taylor for her own gains.

Overall, it was an okay read and it was definitely not my favourite by Yolanda Wallace.

What begins as a good premise for a story slowly evolves into a long drawn out encounter with two characters I really couldn't connect with.
There was so much to not like about Robby (mostly) and Taylor, and really not enough to engage the reader.

2 1/2 Stars. This book really did not work for me. First I want to say, I am a fan of Wallace. That fact makes it all the more surprising how much I did not like this book. And even more than dislike, I felt indifferent. I just don't care about this book or the characters. This did not feel like a Yolanda Wallace book at all. You know when the authors Acknowledgments page, is more interesting than the whole book, that it is a bad sign.

Even though I try not to talk much politics on Goodreads, I was brought up in a political minded household. Before my mother passed, she had volunteered on many political campaigns in her lifetime. I was raised to make sure I knew who I was voting for and why. So I honestly expected to really enjoy this book. But I am a very character driven reader. I like to feel connected to the characters. I can look past other faults in a book, if I love the characters. The characters overall in this book were really lacking. Taylor was okay. Her naivete and being attracted to such a selfish person, rubbed me the wrong way. And selfish brings us to Robby. There is nothing appealing about Robby at all. I don't mind characters with flaws, but I like to root for people with good hearts. Robby was a gold digging, opportunistic, liar. What am I suppose to like about that?

When it comes to the romance, there was no chemistry. One look at Robby and Taylor wanted her. After Robby opened her mouth, Taylor should have realized looks are not everything. Really the relationship seemed so superficial to me. Even the sex scenes seemed clunky and the total opposite of steamy.

When it came to the politics side I thought would be interesting, instead it seemed far fetched and unbelievable. Wallace even tried to throw a little danger and excitement into the book, instead it fell flat and I was left wondering what was the point?

I think I am going to go with the theory Bold Strokes Books mislabeled this book and it really wasn't written by Wallace. I can not recommend this at all, and I hate to say that. It was not a fun review to write, but I have to be honest. If you are new to Wallace, go read The War Within or Murphy's Law, those will show you how great Wallace's books normally are.

An ARC was given to me by BSB, for a honest review.

I received an ARC from Netgalley and Bold Strokes Books.

I contemplated between 2 and 3 stars because there were so many things in this book that didn't add up like Tayler's profession - was she a student, grad student, professor TA did she have some background in Politics? It seemed like whatever she wanted she could do.
the character Taylor was at least like able and believable but Robbie's character was not at all like able- which made it also hard to read her POV. There was no chemistry between them and I felt the whole time hopeful that Tayler would get together with one of the many other lesbians in this book - with which she had more chemistry.
The ending seemed a little thrown out there with the after thought of "oh there has to be a happy ending with a couple". It just didn't seem believable to me that it would happen that way.

I was unconvinced at the likelihood of a lasting relationship forming between Taylor, a dynamic character who allowed herself to be controlled by the whims of her parents despite possessing the verve to strike out independently and Robby, whose selfishness at points throughout the plot proved overpowering. While Taylor's plight was moderately conceivable, it is highly unlikely that individuals with the resources, social as well as political connections as those possessed by the Crenshaw family would not explore a new character, like Robby, in the life of a close family member. Entrance and functioning in the upper echelons of government life would demand absolute investigation of all contacts-close or distant, the blog would never have been concealed or allowed to continue. That implausibility and the grating quality possessed by Robby detracted greatly from what should have been a book that I enjoyed, given the current climate in America. Taylor, anyone frankly, deserved better and the attempts at redemptive action for Ms. Rawlins proved too scant to merit investment in the success of the connection between the two. Also, the Miles and Steve story just proved too distracting. Ms. Wallace remains an author that I will follow due to previous publications.

I really had to work to finish this book mainly because I just couldn't connect with the characters, especially Robbie. You know when you get to the point in a romance book that you don't want the characters to be together that the book isn't working for you.

Taylor was likable but I did found her all over the place with her opinions. One minute she wanted nothing to do with being in the public eye but then later she seems to change her mind. I found the relationship did move too quickly and just couldn't feel what it was about Robbie that made Taylor want to go against her plans to not date for 4 years.

Robbie was the main issue I had with the book, she lied and then really did nothing to make it better in the end, Taylor did all the work. Just found it annoying. Robbie is selfish and her thought process for me did nothing to make me believe she really changed.

This story has some weird points regarding the developement of the events. The first one about how quickly Taylor and Robby connect and start seeing each other. The second one, is Taylor a grad student, an associated professor, both, neither, something higher, naive, all of the above? For Robby I don't have any calificative. And adding to that, it results that when it started to become interesting it finished. Even the sex scenes are scarce and hasty. I'm a little bit dumbfunded after reading it. And disapointed.

ARC received from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

I like Yolanda Wallace's writing, and have enjoyed past books of hers, but I struggled with this one. It's hard to like a book when you can't stand one of the lead characters. Robby was a bitch, plain and simple. She had multiple opportunities to not be a bitch and let 90% of them pass her by. I could (maybe/though not really) understand her trying to pump Taylor for info at the start, but once they really started to get to know each other, her selfishness and callowness really shone through.

Taylor on the other hand was lovely, albeit too trusting (and way too understanding). I honestly wish she'd been paired with either Portia or Sheridan than Robby. And to be honest, all the reasons that Robby listed for why they shouldn't get together at the end were true, but the biggest reason was Robby wasn't good enough for Taylor, and I wish Taylor had realised that.

I also didn't love the whole Steve and Miles side story. Seemed more than a little unlikely that Taylor's SS agent would be gay, but whatever. Even more unlikely is Taylor running for office. Seriously, there's just no way she would win that seat.

The political setting gave it some interest and the writing was good, as always, but it couldn't overcome the Robby character for me. This one won't be a re-read. If you haven't read Ms Wallace before, I suggest you start with Month of Sundays instead.