Unlocking Her Innocence by Lynne Graham is a taut, emotional romance laced with the kind of tightly woven sexual tension that she excels at crafting. Ava Fitzgerald’s life was shattered when she was convicted for causing the accident that claimed Vito Barbieri’s brother’s life. Serving her sentence left her isolated, shunned, and haunted by gaps in her memory from that fateful night. She remembers only fragments, her teenage crush on Vito, her impulsive and humiliating attempt to seduce him, his cold rejection, and then… nothing. Upon her release, she wants nothing more than to keep her head down, work, and rebuild what is left of her life.

Fate, however, has other plans. At twenty-two, Ava finds herself working for the one man she hoped never to see again. Vito, now thirty-one, is a powerful and cynical billionaire, still carrying the weight of grief and bitterness. In his eyes, Ava is the reckless, spoiled girl who destroyed his family’s happiness, and he is determined to make her pay. Yet, beneath his hard-edged control, he is unsettled by the changes in her. The shadows in her eyes, the humility in her demeanor, and the innocence she still exudes.

Their encounters crackle with mistrust and attraction in equal measure. Vito’s desire wars with his resentment, while Ava’s lingering feelings for him are tempered by guilt and shame. As pieces of that lost night begin to surface, truths emerge that challenge everything Vito thought he knew. The emotional stakes are high, but so is the undeniable pull between them, and their journey from enemies bound by tragedy to lovers bound by truth is both intense and rewarding.

Ava is a heroine you can’t help but root for; quietly resilient, deeply vulnerable, and determined to stand on her own despite the crushing weight of her past. Vito, for his part, is every inch the commanding Lynne Graham hero: aloof, devastatingly attractive, and emotionally guarded, yet capable of deep tenderness when he finally lets his defences down. Watching him grapple with the truth and his growing feelings makes his transformation all the more satisfying.

What I particularly enjoyed was how Graham handled the pacing of their romance. The tension simmers beautifully, the moments of tenderness all the more powerful for the rocky road that precedes them. The resolution is heartfelt, and the glimpse into their life together three years later is the perfect finishing touch.

Recommended for: fans of intense, emotionally charged romances featuring an ex-convict heroine, a brooding hero, and a storyline where past wrongs give way to healing and love.

Final Verdict: Passionate, dramatic, and deeply romantic, Unlocking Her Innocence is Lynne Graham delivering the kind of emotional and taut sensual intensity she is best known for.

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