REVIEW: Worse than a Paper Cut by Dahlia Donovan

- August 21, 2026

WORSE THAN A PAPER CUT

by Dahlia Donovan

Release Date: August 6, 2026

Review

Dahlia writes such wonderful queer romances, and this one is especially packed full of emotion and touching moments. We also get some amazing autistic and asexual representation.

Prisca loses her anchor and friend Angus. Kauri had been there as the doctor through the process. All those hours, helped them build a connection. In the aftermath, when she feels like she’s drowning, but Kauri helps her navigate the overwhelming emotions, and how to move forward. How to live again, while still remembering.

Together the embark on a road trip to honour Angus, and somewhere along the way, they find a future together.

It’s a really beautiful story.

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Synopsis

Retired autistic rugby player Prisca Heath has spent the past year caring for the man who raised her. When Angus’s sudden decline leaves her grieving and alone, she struggles to imagine a future without him.

An unexpected connection with one of his doctors, Kauri Teague, offers a fragile sense of hope. Determined to face her loss, Prisca sets out on a road trip around the Cornish coast—accompanied by a stubborn cat and a quietly irresistible doctor.

As windswept beaches, late-night board games, and shared cups of tea begin to mend her shattered world, Prisca learns that grief and love can coexist. And that even after devastating loss, new beginnings are possible.

Perfect for readers who love emotional journeys, found family, slow-burn romance, and heartfelt stories of healing and hope.

About Dahlia Donovan

Dahlia Donovan wrote her first romance series after a crazy dream about shifters and damsels in distress. Dahlia is an autistic who prefers irreverent humour and unconventional characters. She has found great happiness with her husband, her tiny dog Bacon, and her collection of books and video games.

Dahlia has worked over the years as a teacher, insurance adjuster, and even had a brief stint as the pianist in a band–very brief, like three weeks. She uses her experiences over the years travelling around the world and working to add spice to her stories.

An adoptee, TCK (third culture kid) and survivor of childhood abuse, Dahlia uses a pen name to avoid her technically unsavvy adoptive family. Her story is all her own, though.

She’s proud to be a survivor, a writer, and one of the odd ones.

She hopes one day to write about her experiences.

She is currently obsessed with Destiny 2, the Mass Effect world, books, the ukulele, rugby, tea, and attractive men.

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