Reservations of the Heart Review — Is It Worth Reading?

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you.

Verdict: A witty, steamy age-gap romance: Stella Gilbert, a 41-year-old doctor and divorced mom still wary after her marriage ended, and Aurora Shirley, a 29-year-old temp reeling from a family secret, both swear off love and settle for something casual. Readers love the banter and the heat; critics found the leads’ anti-love attitudes grating and the shift from sex to love unconvincing.

Best for: Readers who want funny, flirty dialogue, an older divorced mom and plenty of steam.

Heat level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️

Rating: ★★★★☆ (3.9/5 — a 4.27 Goodreads average across 1,555 ratings, 3.92 on StoryGraph from 177 reviews, and 4.6 stars across 1,759 Amazon ratings)

Tropes: Age gap, divorced mom, no-strings-attached, workplace, 40+ lead, wedding date.

Reservations of the Heart is T.B. Markinson’s 2019 self-published contemporary lesbian romance. Doctor Stella Gilbert used to have it all: a career on fire and a picture-perfect family, until her wife blindsided her. Three years after the divorce, her loved ones worry that work and raising her daughter are all she allows herself.

It holds a 4.27 average across 1,555 Goodreads ratings, with 82% of them four or five stars, 3.92 on StoryGraph from 177 reviews, and 4.6 stars across 1,759 Amazon ratings.

What Is Reservations of the Heart About?

Aurora Shirley has just learned that her parents lied to her all her life, and she is done trusting anyone. Women are the last thing on her mind as she starts a temporary job at the local medical school, but she needs a date for her best friend’s wedding or she will be the worst maid of honour in history.

When Stella and Aurora come together, sparks fly. Neither wants a relationship, but what they find in each other is more than physical. Can two wounded women who think love is the last thing they want let each other in?

What Works in This Book

• Banter: The most repeated praise is the funny, flirty dialogue between Stella and Aurora.
• Heat: Readers describe strong sexual energy and hot scenes.
• Aurora: A couple of readers single her out as warm-hearted, feisty and the more emotionally mature of the two.
• Everyday realism: Office politics, family, money and career troubles make it feel grounded for one fan.

Book Synopsis

A doctor who has given up on love. A temp who has given up on trust.

Just sex, they agree. Their hearts have other ideas.

My Review

Markinson’s strength is dialogue, and this book runs on it. The medical-school setting is mostly admin, as one reviewer notes with amusement, but somehow the admin is fun, and the running jokes and quips carry the story through its slow build. Readers enjoyed the characters’ growth and the way both women take ownership of their issues with jealousy and keeping people at a distance. One reader also appreciated an epilogue set far enough ahead to show how both families have grown.

The same premise puts others off. A couple of readers who gave up found the characters’ motivations negative and the chemistry missing, and another could not see how a purely physical arrangement turned into love. Some found Stella distant or annoyingly clueless, a friend character naggy, and a burst of jealousy over a best friend baffling. A couple said it dragged or simply bored them.

My honest note: Come for the banter; the romance follows.

Element	In Reservations of the Heart
Central relationship	Stella Gilbert (41, doctor, divorced mom) & Aurora Shirley (29, temp scheduler)
Core tropes	Age gap, no strings attached, workplace
Setting	A medical school
Heat level	🌶️🌶️🌶️
Length	340 pages (Kindle edition)
Series	Standalone
Content notes	Past infidelity, family secret, divorce

How Spicy Is Reservations of the Heart?

High. The relationship begins as a physical arrangement, and one reader calls it extra steamy.

The angst is low: Stella’s ex-wife cheated, Aurora is dealing with a family revelation, and there is a late misunderstanding that resolves fast.

Who Should Read This Book?

You’ll likely love it if: you want a sexy, funny age-gap romance with a divorced doctor mom. It is on our single mom lesbian romance list.

You may want to skip it if: you need the chemistry to be emotional before it is physical.

In short: Flirty, steamy, surprisingly sweet.

What Readers Are Actually Saying (September 2026)

On Goodreads the split is 49% five stars, 33% four, 13% three, 4% two and 1% one. On StoryGraph, 83% tagged it lighthearted, 58% emotional, and 90% found the characters loveable.

Why readers love it (according to the discourse): Banter first. Second, the heat. Third, Aurora. Fourth, low angst.

What readers argue about and complain about: The leap from sex to love, above everything. Second, chemistry. Third, Stella and the jealousy subplot.

The comparison worth making first: Temptation, another steamy age-gap romance with a single mom.

Frequently Asked Questions

How big is the age gap?

Twelve years. Stella is 41 and Aurora is 29.

Is Reservations of the Heart a medical romance?

Not really. Stella is a doctor, but readers point out that the story centres on her administrative role at a medical school, so there is very little medical detail.

How spicy is it?

Steamy. The relationship starts as a no-strings arrangement, and readers describe the sex scenes as hot and frequent.

Is it angsty?

Not much. Readers describe it as low angst with a slow build and a late misunderstanding that is resolved fairly quickly.

Is Reservations of the Heart on Kindle Unlimited?

Yes, when we checked, or $5.99 to buy on Kindle. The audiobook is narrated by Lori Prince.

If You Loved Reservations of the Heart, Read These Next

Try more Markinson with Two of a Kind, The Love Project or Book Lovers. Browse our single mom list or the full Book Reviews archive.

The Bottom Line

Reservations of the Heart sets out to be a funny, sexy romance between two women who do not believe in love, and its banter and heat deliver. What holds it back is a relationship some readers never believed in. A strong Kindle Unlimited pick for Markinson fans. Check Reservations of the Heart on Amazon →

The Eikna Overall Ranking

On the Eikna scale, Reservations of the Heart ranks as a good single-mom pick — witty, steamy.

The Evidence Scorecard

Overall ★★★★☆ 3.9/5

• ✓ 4.27 average across 1,555 Goodreads ratings
• ✓ 82% of Goodreads ratings are four or five stars
• ✓ 3.92 on StoryGraph from 177 reviews
• ✓ 4.6 stars across 1,759 Amazon ratings

Romance ★★★★☆ 3.7/5

• ✓ No strings to more
• ✓ Age gap
• ✓ Slow build
• ✓ Leap to love questioned

Characters ★★★★☆ 3.7/5

• ✓ Feisty Aurora
• ✓ Guarded Stella
• ✓ Supporting cast
• ✓ 90% loveable on StoryGraph

Writing ★★★★☆ 3.9/5

• ✓ Great dialogue
• ✓ Funny
• ✓ Dragged for some
• ✓ Admin-heavy setting

Emotional Impact ★★★☆☆ 3.4/5

• ✓ Trust issues
• ✓ Healing
• ✓ Low angst
• ✓ Light

Heat Level ★★★★☆ 4/5

• ✓ Extra steamy for one
• ✓ Frequent
• ✓ Explicit
• ✓ Adult

Ending ★★★★☆ 3.9/5

• ✓ HEA
• ✓ Future epilogue
• ✓ Quick resolution
• ✓ Standalone

Re-read Value ★★★★☆ 3.8/5

• ✓ On Kindle Unlimited
• ✓ $5.99 Kindle price
• ✓ Lori Prince audiobook
• ✓ Banter

Affiliate disclosure: Lesbian Romance Reads is a participant in the Amazon Associates Program. If you buy through the link below we may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you.