Taylor’s Father by Penelope Ward is LIVE! Check out my spoiler-free review and get ready to one-click this unputdownable, age-gap, forbidden romance on Kindle Unlimited. Absolute PW magic.
Title: Taylor’s Father
Author: Penelope Ward
Genre: Standalone Contemporary Romance
Tropes: Age Gap (17 Years), Best Guy Friend’s Father
Single Dad, Forbidden, Second Chance
Protective Hero, Sassy Heroine
Cover Design: Letitia Hasser, RBA Designs
Photographer: Brennen McMurray
Model: Levi Stocke
Release Date: February 22, 2026
SYNOPSIS:
From New York Times bestselling author Penelope Ward comes a new, STANDALONE contemporary romance…
When my best friend Taylor gifted me a vacation at a resort owned by his grandparents, the last thing I expected was to bond with a man seventeen years older.
Tate was also vacationing alone.
He’d come to Midnight Key to clear his head and reevaluate his life.
I’d come to get over my high school sweetheart who’d dumped me.
I’d spotted the brawny, tattooed Adonis in the lobby on the first day and thought he had to be someone’s hot dad.
But then we matched on an app that paired single men and women by proximity.
The problem was? At nineteen—almost twenty—I’d lied and said I was twenty-nine.
Tate outed me on our first date, and I fessed up to my real age.
But we continued to run into each other.
And eventually we found our connection was too magnetic to deny.
While we agreed to only use first names and to part ways at the end of the trip, I’d really fallen for Tate.
I never forgot him and knew he was the one who got away.
Remember that guy friend who gifted me the trip?
Well, four years later, Taylor got married.
He’d been estranged from his dad for years, though recently they’d reconnected.
What I didn’t know was that the man I’d had that torrid affair with at the resort would be standing next to Taylor in the receiving line.
My dream man Tate? Was Taylor’s father.
FREE to read in Kindle Unlimited
BUY LINKS – $3.99 for a limited time! (release week only)
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/48zdb4B
Special Edition Paperback: https://amzn.to/4pz5H7L:
Audio https://a.co/d/0ijjsFKk Dual narration featuring Andi Arndt and Jason Clarke
Taylor's Father by Penelope WardMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
You know that electric, fate-filled, “this cannot be happening, but I’m not walking away” kind of connection? That’s Taylor’s Father by Penelope Ward.
Blair is a woman who knows exactly what she wants and I loved that about her. She’s confident, direct, and not playing games (except maybe the kind that make Tate blush 😉). When she has a chance meeting with Tate, the attraction is instant.
Tate is carrying emotional baggage from his past, filled with regret. He’s guarded, protective, and emotionally wrecked in ways he doesn’t even want to confront. Blair just might be the woman who truly sees him, and that changes everything.
But destiny isn’t done with them after their resort vacation meeting. Of course, the universe places them in the same orbit again, and this time it’s far more complicated, messy, and forbidden.
Penelope knows exactly how to build up tension and the feels. Just when you think you know where the story is headed, she pivots with a twist that hits hard.
I love Penelope’s books, but Taylor’s Father truly hit me in the feels. Tate and Blair’s story isn’t just deliciously peppered with spice, it’s filled with heart, healing, vulnerability, and hard choices. The deliciously messy, age-gap dynamic, the chef’s kiss forbidden factor, and that relentless push-and-pull make this one absolutely unputdownable. Taylor’s Father is on my top reads of 2026 list.
AUTHOR BIO
Penelope Ward is a New York Times, USA Today and #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author of contemporary romance.
She grew up in Boston with five older brothers and spent most of her twenties as a television news anchor. Penelope resides in Rhode Island with her husband, son, and beautiful daughter with autism.
With millions of books sold, she is a 21-time New York Times bestseller and the author of over forty books. Her novels have been translated into over a dozen languages and can be found in bookstores around the world.
AUTHOR LINKS
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TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@penelopewardofficial
X: https://twitter.com/PenelopeAuthor
