Learning Curve

Rachel Spangler’s debut, Learning Curve (2008), is a romance novel featuring protagonist Ashton Clarke. Ash, as her friends call her, is a handy-person and gearhead who has a reputation for prowling her local bar, the Triangle Club, picking up the most attractive women, only to take them home and then disappear before morning.

The book is set in the small town of Roosevelt, Ohio. Ash has carved out a life for herself there, working odd jobs and spending time with her best friend, Mary, a former lover now happily married with a child. Mary convinces Ash to join her for an evening volunteering at the local Gay and Lesbian Youth Center. Ash protests at first, saying she is not good with teenagers but gives in to Mary’s urgings.

At the youth center, Ash has a run-in with a sassy teenager, Tess. Ash sees her younger self in Tess, but she is also put off by Tess’s attitude. Then Ash meets Carrie Fletcher who teaches women’s studies at the local college. Determined to help as many of her students as she can access the general tenets of the course, she works hard to connect with them, no matter how skeptical they might be. She is also Tess’s neighbor and has tried to help the teen navigate her difficult relationship with her conservative, religious mother. Ash falls for Carrie right away, but Tess comes between them, jealous of the threat Ash poses to her attention from Carrie. Complicating matters, Ash runs into a former fling and can’t remember her name, confirming Mary’s suspicion that Ash is too much of a player to ever settle down.



Carrie, meanwhile, finds herself attracted to Ash, but worries she will hurt her chances at tenure if she enters into a public relationship with Ash. Her program is already underfunded and a male dean seems to be looking for any excuse to strip away more resources; Carrie reasons that if she can just hold on for another year to get tenure, she will have more freedom to be true to herself.

Still, Carrie and Ash can’t resist the attraction they feel. Ash offers to build a shelving unit for Carrie’s office, and they end up in a kiss. Carrie is abrupt with Ash, saying it is not possible for her to be a relationship right now, a resolution that only hardens when one of Carrie’s students knocks on the door and Carrie realizes the student and Ash had a one-night stand. Ash is left confused as she understands she no longer wants to sleep with strangers, she is only interested in Carrie.

Ash gets some unexpected advice on her love-life from Betty, a spry retiree Ash meets while teaching a class on how to change a tire. Betty is full of surprises: she is flirty with Ash, then tries to set Ash up with her daughter. She is also a staunch Catholic, and Ash is confused as to how she can be a member of the Church and still encourage lesbian relationships. Betty tells Ash that not all Catholics are as judgmental as Tess’s mother is and urges Ash to tell Carrie her feelings.



When Ash learns the Center is taking teens on an overnight camping trip and the group is short a chaperone, she jumps at the chance to spend time with Carrie. Tess is on the trip, too, and she continues to flirt boldly with Ash. Ash confronts the teen, suggesting she try a relationship with someone her own age and points out that another teenager, Michelle, is clearly enamored with Tess. But Tess, full of teenage angst and hostility, lashes out at Ash. Carrie consoles Ash, saying that she is doing the best she can with the teen.

The campers head out for a day of activities: Ash will take some of them canoeing while Carrie and others will go for a hike. Carrie doubles back to tell Ash something and finds her being aggressively flirted with by a young and attractive park ranger. Ash tries to tell Carrie she wasn’t interested in the other woman but Carrie is still suspicious of Ash’s ability to give up her wandering ways.

Tess and Ash continue to bicker on the canoe trip and just as they arrive back at the dock Tess deliberately rocks the canoe, spilling Ash into the freezing lake water. Ash isn’t hurt but Carrie rushes to her aid. They fall into another kiss, and as Carrie is pulling away, they overhear Tess bragging that she lied to her mother in order to go on the trip. Carrie is furious and upset, afraid that Tess’s mother will report her as a runaway, or worse, a kidnap victim. Ash discovers bruises on Tess’s arms and decides to take the teenager home to confront her mother.



Carrie is appreciative of how Ash looks out for Tess, but they still fight their feelings for each other. Spangler uses all the tropes of the genre to tease Carrie and Ash’s relationship, as they come together and then split apart until finally, they end up in bed together.

After a passionate night, Carrie tries to leave Ash, telling herself she needs to focus on her career. Depressed, Ash goes to the Triangle Club. She meets a beautiful and willing woman but can’t bring herself to flirt—Carrie is all she can think about. Just as Ash is about to leave the club, Tess comes in. Ash tries to get her to leave but Tess is defiant. Ash stays to keep an eye on her and ends up in a fistfight to keep Tess safe. Ash tries to take Tess home, but Tess says she cannot go back to her mother’s house. Recognizing how much she wants to help the young girl, Ash calls her new friend Betty.

Betty offers to take Tess in, and Ash confronts Tess’s mother with evidence of her abuse. Tess’s mother reluctantly agrees to allow Tess to live with Betty for a little while as Betty goes to her church. Carrie is impressed by how Ash looks out for Tess. Carrie and Tess spend another passionate night together and after some soul-searching conversations about their differences, agree they belong together.



The book ends with an epilogue: The Gay and Lesbian Center is hosting a student prom. All conflicts in the book are resolved: Tess and Ash are getting along; Ash and Carrie are happily together and in love. Mary approves of Ash and Carrie together, and the novel concludes with Carrie and Ash sharing a kiss.