DIVINE DESIRE

Audrey Carlan, Brilliance Audio, $12.99 (9.25 hours), 978-1-5226-3867-4 In this lusty and seductive listen, attraction blossoms into love.

What happens in naked yoga no longer stays in naked yoga in Divine Desire, a steamy romance from Audrey Carlan.

Mila Mercado, an aspiring artist and full-time yogi, clashes with Atlas Powers, a singer/songwriter and fellow yogi, from the moment they meet and she unknowingly enrolls in his naked yoga class. Though they try to resist it, the tension between them is too much, and they find themselves embroiled in what each fears most: a relationship.

Audrey Carlan is a bestselling author known for her romance series. Fans will enjoy catching up with series couples, including Amber and Dash and Trent and Genevieve, as they help Mila and Atlas negotiate their brushfire attraction.

Accessible, contemporary, and layered, the story draws readers in by creating depth of character. Blustery, uber-masculine sexual talk defines Atlas, though this softens as the book progresses and the character develops. Mia, like Atlas, suffered as a child, and that suffering colors her view of commitment, though only in romance, not friendship. The characters surround themselves with strong, helpful friends who often turn them to face their blind spots, and Carlan gives each supporting character sufficient motivation to round them into three-dimensional people.

Chapters alternate between the voice of Mila and the voice of Atlas. Carmen Vine’s Mila sounds scrappy yet vulnerable, a nice fit for the character. Joe Arden’s smooth vocals are perhaps too refined for the expletive-laced dirty talk of Atlas, but the audio is clean and spare, without distracting music.

The novel strongly errs on the side of erotic play, so listeners should select their listening companions carefully, but for those eager to hear a story of lust that then blossoms into love between two beautiful people, this audiobook will do the trick.