The romance certainly had passion, and the sex scenes had plenty of heat. I enjoyed getting to know the characters. Both Valentin and Dale have interesting personalities, but I felt a little distanced from Valentin.
The conflict in the story had some very emotional moments. The emphasis on the ideals of materialistic city life versus simple country life was pretty strong, and the vividly depicted setting is an important part of the story.
Piers Ryman’s performance was lovely. His interpretation of Dale’s bad French accent was adorably cringe worthy. Sigh. Valentin’s accent was just fiiiine.
This is a lovely romance with some character self-reflection, a bit of poorly spoken French, and excellent narration.