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A Light in the Dark

By MA Nichols
KINDLE UNLIMITED
AUDIOBOOK
Level 1 Intimacy
No Innuendo
Zero Swearing
Zero Violence
Adult
No LGBTQ Content

Trigger Warnings

Grief, Death, Alcohol Abuse

Book Details

Genre

Historical Romance

Publisher

Self Published

Series

The Ashbrooks

Book #

5

Point of View

Dual First Person

Length

Novel
later in lifewallflowerheiresshistorical settinginheritanceredemptionsingle dadslow burnsmall townvictoriansecrets

Found a trope you love? → Tap it to explore more ❤️

Audiobook Details

Narrators

Madeleine Brolly

Narration Type

Single

Synopsis

A prodigal son hoping for redemption. A virtuous lady with a tattered reputation. Both fear the future, but together, they might find the peace they crave.

When Hazel Potts received a large inheritance from a friend, she knew her life would change—though she thought it would be for the better. But as people begin to whisper concerning the nature of her relationship with that gentleman, Hazel’s reputation quickly begins to tatter. Longing for freedom, she dreams of a life away from gossip and judgment, but between her fears and her duty to her family, she is trapped and unable to find a way forward.

Lucas Ashbrook knows a thing or two about shattered reputations.

When he ruined a young lady nine years ago, it was his younger brother who agreed to marry her. Ostracized from his family, Lucas escaped to America and found nothing but heartache. Now a changed man, he returns home in hopes that he can heal the damage he’s done, but when his brother only sees betrayal and deceit and the rest of the town sees only the cavalier wastrel he once was, Lucas struggles with balancing the man he was with the man he is now.

The prodigal son can change, can’t he?

Two souls not looking for love, but when they stumble upon one another, they discover a new possibility they never considered. In each other, they find solace, understanding, and perhaps, a chance to rewrite their narratives—but only if Hazel and Lucas dare to defy expectations and dare to dream of something better.

Will fear dictate their futures? Or will they find the love and acceptance they seek?

Where to Read

Amazon
Audible
Youtube

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KINDLE UNLIMITED
AUDIOBOOK
Amazon
Audible
Youtube

A Light in the Dark

By MA Nichols

Genre

Historical Romance

Publisher

Self Published

Series

The Ashbrooks

Book #

5

Point of View

Dual First Person

Length

Novel

Narrator(s)

Madeleine Brolly

Narration Type

Single
later in lifewallflowerheiresshistorical settinginheritanceredemptionsingle dadslow burnsmall townvictoriansecrets

Found a trope you love? → Tap it to explore more ❤️

Content Guide

This guide helps readers understand the content of this book.
Click the ⓘ icons to see how each level is defined.

Level 1 Intimacy
No Innuendo
Zero Swearing
Zero Violence
Adult
No LGBTQ Content

Trigger Warnings

Grief, Death, Alcohol Abuse

Synopsis

A prodigal son hoping for redemption. A virtuous lady with a tattered reputation. Both fear the future, but together, they might find the peace they crave.

When Hazel Potts received a large inheritance from a friend, she knew her life would change—though she thought it would be for the better. But as people begin to whisper concerning the nature of her relationship with that gentleman, Hazel’s reputation quickly begins to tatter. Longing for freedom, she dreams of a life away from gossip and judgment, but between her fears and her duty to her family, she is trapped and unable to find a way forward.

Lucas Ashbrook knows a thing or two about shattered reputations.

When he ruined a young lady nine years ago, it was his younger brother who agreed to marry her. Ostracized from his family, Lucas escaped to America and found nothing but heartache. Now a changed man, he returns home in hopes that he can heal the damage he’s done, but when his brother only sees betrayal and deceit and the rest of the town sees only the cavalier wastrel he once was, Lucas struggles with balancing the man he was with the man he is now.

The prodigal son can change, can’t he?

Two souls not looking for love, but when they stumble upon one another, they discover a new possibility they never considered. In each other, they find solace, understanding, and perhaps, a chance to rewrite their narratives—but only if Hazel and Lucas dare to defy expectations and dare to dream of something better.

Will fear dictate their futures? Or will they find the love and acceptance they seek?

Reader Reviews

Have you read this book? Help other readers by leaving a review.

No reader reviews yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!

Leave a Review

Reviews help other readers know what to expect from a book.
Please avoid spoilers and be respectful in your review.

More Books to Explore

A True Gentleman
The Shameless Flirt

Featured Author Picks

Reason To Be
Anchor Cove
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Mind Reader
Screenshot
My Heart to Keep
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Coasting Into Love
His Christmas Wish
Terms and Traditions

Find Your Next Closed Door Romance

Stop guessing — find books that actually match your preferences
Filter by intimacy level, tropes, and more in seconds

Find books you'll love

2700+ books • Filter by exact content levels • Built for closed door readers

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Physical Intimacy Levels

Level 1

  • Holding hands or affectionate touching
  • Compliments or confessing love
  • Low-description kissing
  • Tender embraces or cuddling
  • Blushing and sighing
  • Non-descriptive discussions of sex
  • Established relationships
  • Fade to black if married
  • Any sexual encounters are only referred to from the past, not described or shown on page
 

Level 2

  • Touch that signals attraction
  • No touching in the underwear zone
  • Long kisses, lightly descriptive
  • Deeper kisses, tongue implied but not described
  • Feeling warm or flushed
  • Gasping, deep sighs, light growls or groans
  • Thinking or speaking about desire in a non-descriptive way
  • Fade to black for established relationships after a scene that matches this level, though this may be unpopular if they are not married
 

Level 3

 

  • Hands moving, still not in the underwear zone
  • French kissing with tongue described
  • Make-out sessions that still follow these guidelines
  • Feeling hot or sweaty
  • Heavier gasping, groaning, deep growls, or panting
  • More frantic moments and some loss of control
  • Male shirt may come off, but nothing else
  • Leg may straddle waist, but no mention of arousal
  • If characters lie down together, there should be little description of contact or movement
  • May happen in a bedroom or on a bed, but should be interrupted or end with a fade to black scene
  • Focus stays on the emotion
  • Fade to black should still happen between married couples or at the end of the book between engaged or committed couples

Innuendo Levels

Level 0 — None

  • No sexual innuendo
  • No suggestive humor
  • No crude or sexual jokes

Level 1 — Minimal

  • Minimal innuendo or double meanings
  • Light teasing
  • Mild crude or dad humor
  • Not frequent or strong

Level 2 — Moderate

  • Moderate suggestive humor
  • Double meanings
  • Sexual tension
  • May include crude or sexual jokes

Level 3 — Heavy

  • Heavy innuendo
  • Strong suggestive dialogue
  • Frequent crude or sexual humor

Swearing Levels

Zero

  • No swearing

Mild

  • Up to 10 uses of “hel*” or “dam*”

Moderate

  • 10+ uses of “hel*” or “dam*”
  • And/or use of bodily swear words like “shi*,” “as*,” etc.

Severe

  • 30+ swear words
  • And/or any use of the F-word one or more times

Violence Levels

Zero

  • No on-page violence

Mild

  • Violence is present without detail or only referenced vaguely
  • May briefly mention blood or injuries
  • Comparable to a G-rated movie

Moderate

  • Violence is more frequent and/or more detailed
  • Can be more intense
  • Injuries may be lightly described
  • Comparable to a PG-rated movie

Severe

  • Violence is more detailed and frequent
  • Blood may be mentioned and injuries may be described in detail
  • Comparable to a PG-13-rated movie

Intimacy Levels

Level 1

  • Holding hands/Affectionate touching
  • Compliments/confessing love
  • Low-description kissing
  • Tender embraces/cuddling
  • Blushing and sighing
  • Non-descriptive discussions of sex
  • Established relationships
  • Fade to black if married
  • Any sexual encounters from past only referred to, not described or on-screen

Level 2

  • Touch that signals attraction
  • No touching in underwear zone
  • Long kisses, lightly descriptive
  • Deeper kisses, tongue implied not described
  • Feel warm/flushed
  • Gasping, deep sighs, light growls and groans
  • Thinking/speaking about desire non-descriptive
  • Fade to black for established relationships after a scene that matches this level – but may be unpopular if not married

Level 3

  • Hands moving, still not in underwear zone
  • French kiss with tongue described
  • Make-out sessions still follow guidelines
  • Feel hot, sweating
  • Heavier gasping, groaning, deep growls, panting
  • More frantic and lose some control
  • Male shirt may come off, but nothing else
  • Leg may straddle waist, but no mention of arousal
  • If they lay down together anywhere, use little description of contact/moving
  • May happen in a bedroom or on a bed, but should be interrupted or end with fade to black scene. Keep focus on the emotion.
  • Fade to black should still happen between married couples or at the end of the book between engaged/committed couples.