It’s no secret that I’m jonesing for contemporary romance. So I was definitely intrigued by the description of Eden Bradley’s Forbidden Fruit.

For university professor Mia Rose Curry, it was all academic: her course in alternative sexuality was a safe, socially acceptable way for her to talk about the things she desired most—but had never let herself experience. And while students crammed into her class to learn about fetishes, bondage, voyeurism, and much more, Mia kept her own raging desires, and her most private fantasies, carefully under wraps . . . until one man dared to make her secret passions a brazen reality.

Jagger James is everything Mia wants, and everything taboo: he’s gorgeous, daring—and a student. Yet Mia can’t help imagining his hands, his lips, his skin . . . all the while drawing closer and closer to this forbidden fruit. She soon discovers how much Jagger wants her, demanding that she abandon every inhibition with him. Now they are about to take a dangerous step, tempting each other’s flesh, savoring every touch and breaking every rule—knowing that this dazzling, sensual feast is only a taste of something more to come . . .

OK, the hero’s name is a little over the top. But I’m a fan of the older woman/younger man story, so Forbidden Fruit already had that—and a lot of other things—going for it: 4.5 out of 5.

Mia’s a professor; Jagger’s a student. It helps if this type of scenario doesn’t bother you. But Bradley does a good job of exploring these characters as people who are aware of this conflict. It’s something they struggle with and come to care for each other despite it. In a nice variation, the age difference isn’t the source of the conflict.

Forbidden Fruit is set in San Francisco, a setting I appreciate more since my summer trip there. It was fun to see references to streets I remember. It added a nice connection to the reading experience.

Bradley’s writing is lush and evocative. If you’ve read any of her books, you know that she writes erotica. (In other words, expect the explicit.) But the beauty of Forbidden Fruit is the story—a contemporary romance worth savoring.