LGBTQ Book Review: The Inheritance by Alison Naomi Holt
A spicy sapphic romance of two women from different worlds. A Code One Club book.
The Inheritance: LGBTQIA Book Overview
A copy of this book was provided in exchange for a review.
Synopsis
Not every connection begins with possibility. Some begin in the middle of loss, survival, and the instinct to remain guarded. The Code One Club series by Alison Naomi Holt follows sapphic stories that grow out of those conditions, where trust is uncertain, and connection carries weight from the start.
Within the Code One Club world, lives intersect in ways that reveal more than what’s visible on the surface. These stories are built on contrast, where privilege and hardship, control and chaos, and fear and trust exist side by side, shaping connections that carry real weight.
In The Inheritance, Phyla McGuire is powerful, controlled, and emotionally untouchable, while Ash Redux is a former Army K9 handler barely holding on, navigating life on the streets while battling PTSD. When their lives collide, what begins as circumstance becomes something deeper and far more dangerous. Set against a backdrop of power, wealth, and survival, their connection forces both women to confront who they are beneath the roles they’ve built.
In a twisty beginning, the death of a billionaire (hurray!) triggers a complex series of events that lands Ash under the wing of Phyla. The queers’ physical proximity slips into emotional proximity, and the two develop a charged tenderness for one another in between moments of absolute disdain.
LGBTQIA Characters/Relationships
A lot of the characters are queer.
Our two main characters are sapphic. Ash is a presumed lesbian, and Phyla, previously married to a man, is a presumed bisexual woman. A prominent side character is also some sapphic flavor, who routinely sleeps with her personal assistant woman.
Ash’s best friend is a woman married to a woman, who also owns the lesbian sex club, Code One Club (for which the series is named). If memory serves, the only definitively straight character is Phyla’s insufferable assistant.
All relevant romantic relationships are sapphic.
LGBTQIA Content Assessment
Hooo boy, do I love a queer villain. In the beginning, Phyla is a total bitch, and I ate it up. (I thought that was worth noting for anyone who has a problem with morally ambiguous queers.) (If you fall in this category, I feel sorry for you.)
For my routine comments, very low homophobia exists in this novel. The insufferable assistant uses the d-slur, and Ash makes a comment about it. The moment is short-lived. Otherwise, so many queer characters play pivotal roles in the story that it thankfully leaves little room for unsavory LGBTQ tropes.
The Inheritance: Some spoilers
I have not read very many novels in third-person omniscient, but The Inheritance pulls it off pretty well. Readers get a sense of how all the characters feel and interpret each others’ behavior, including characters outside of Ash and Phyla.
The spicy level is fairly medium. There are two explicit scenes, and the second half of the novel has a lot of pining.
This novel depicts veteran PTSD and how one recovers, including setbacks and missteps. Certainly not every therapist crosses empathetic boundaries like Ash’s does in the novel, but the clear compassion of people in Ash’s life presents a solid model for readers who love someone with PTSD (and arguably other mental illnesses).
I enjoyed the read, but ultimately felt like many of the book’s details led to a predictable ending. Perhaps that is the simple nature of romance novels (I’ve not read very many). Still, I spent the first 5 chapters thinking one woman was the main character of the book, only to find out she proved to be rather irrelevant to Phyla and Ash’s story. It left me wondering why I knew so many details about her in the first place. 3/5.
Author’s Bio
Alison Naomi Holt writes bold, emotionally charged sapphic fiction centered on powerful women who refuse to be diminished. A former police officer, she brings grit, realism, and a sharp sense of humor to stories that explore love, resilience, and identity.
Her books often feature commanding “ice queens,” fiercely independent women, and unexpected connections that challenge both. Whether set in high-powered boardrooms, dangerous streets, or intimate emotional landscapes, her stories blend intensity with vulnerability, creating characters who feel as real as they are unforgettable.
Holt is also an advocate for literacy and believes deeply in the transformative power of stories to inspire confidence, connection, and change—especially for women. When she’s not writing, she’s often riding horses or chasing the next story idea demanding to be told.
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