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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
the minute this book started i knew i was going to LOVE it. i mean marriage of convenience alone is enough for me to like a book but with a cinnamon roll hero, a badass derby playing heroine, and so so much hurt comfort between the leads the book was 100% made for me. chelsea and sebastian were just perfect together and their banter, flirting, chemistry, tension just EVERYTHING was perfection. the whole dynamic with sebastians family although disturbing also added such a fun, romcomy feel to the book that i adored. also the way sebastian just wanted nothing but for chelsea to be happy and comfortable and wouldn’t do anything without her permission?? bare minimum i know but my consent kink rlly was thriving in this book
I loved this book. Sebastian was so sweet and Chelsea was just perfect, so vulnerable and strong! It was all just really great
So was this going into my favorites? no. But it was the best by far in the series and I enjoyed it. 4.5 stars
This was really great. I really loved their friendship and how enthusiatic they were about each others' successes and talents. Sebastian's a great caretaker alpha and his bad similies were the best. I thought Chelsea's recovery from trauma was done really well. She made me cry. She made me cheer. She made me laugh my ass off.
Great book. Full review over at: http://goodbadandunread.com/2015/10/22/review-the-billionaire-takes-a-bride-by-jessica-clare/.
Great book. Full review over at: http://goodbadandunread.com/2015/10/22/review-the-billionaire-takes-a-bride-by-jessica-clare/.
“You are my family, Chelsea. Don't you get that? I love you with all of my heart and soul. I don't care if you're the woman you think I need, but you're the woman I want. I love you and adore you, and every minute without you is worthless.”
still as good the second time (though really it's been more than twice)! literally the best marriage of convenience book there is, and sebastian and chelsea are a delight both separately and together.
I felt that emotions were rushed and there could have been more warning about the heroines trauma but overall it was a lovely story.
Sometimes you need a flawless hero. Sebastian is a flawless hero. He does not need redemption or forgiveness or saving. He is protective without being controlling or manipulative. He always acts with the heroine’s best interest at heart and in mind. He is tender and understanding and practically perfect in every way.
Chelsea manages to be simultaneously feisty and vulnerable. It is impossible to not love her, as Sebastian quickly discovers. Chelsea’s personality and emotional state make her participation in this modern day marriage of convenience believable.
I love the trope and I love the characters. It’s absolutely heartwarming to watch these two characters like each other, then understand each other, and finally love each other. This feel good read is a perfect addition to the series. For those unfamiliar with the series, it can definitely be read as a standalone. Fans of the series will notice that the timeline runs in parallel with the previous book (The Taming of the Billionaire). I greatly enjoyed seeing the overlapping scenes (especially the meeting in Hunter’s office).
Trigger warning:The heroine is a survivor of sexual assault. While the recounting of the rape is not graphic in detail, it is discussed.
Chelsea manages to be simultaneously feisty and vulnerable. It is impossible to not love her, as Sebastian quickly discovers. Chelsea’s personality and emotional state make her participation in this modern day marriage of convenience believable.
I love the trope and I love the characters. It’s absolutely heartwarming to watch these two characters like each other, then understand each other, and finally love each other. This feel good read is a perfect addition to the series. For those unfamiliar with the series, it can definitely be read as a standalone. Fans of the series will notice that the timeline runs in parallel with the previous book (The Taming of the Billionaire). I greatly enjoyed seeing the overlapping scenes (especially the meeting in Hunter’s office).
Trigger warning:
-Enjoyable series: Ms. Clare has been one of my go-to authors when I need a light, fun read and this series in particular has been a great little bit of billionaire romance fantasy. The interweaving friendships between the couples and it being centered around Hunter and Gretchen’s wedding has been fun and seeing certain scenes from different perspectives is a great little bonus.
-This is quirky to the nth degree: When this story begins, Sebastian is finding out the crass and horrible new “storyline” for his family in their reality TV show and trying desperately to figure out how to avoid them like the plague without actually cutting ties with his family, since he does love them. Chelsea, a derby girl/artisanal soap maker, struggling to be in a group of new people because she’s had a very traumatic experience that makes it difficult for her to handle new social situations, especially those with strange men.
These two are paired up for Hunter and Gretchen’s wedding party and decide, after a series of incidents of course, that the best thing they could do is a fake marriage to protect them from his family and her fear of men. This setup is involved and has so many quirky elements, some fun, other just exhausting, but overall a bit more serious in tone and that’s all due to Chelsea’s horrible past.
-Chelsea’s not your typical bubbly heroine: Chelsea is a mass of contradictions, but they all serve to make her relatable and not just the typical bubbly blond heroine she could have easily turned into. She's funny and needy, courageous yet anxious. Her love of derby is fun and I did enjoy those scenes alot.
Now this story could have easily veered into super-sweet territory without Chelsea’s very real problem with being in sexual situations. Her history, and why she's so leery of men, is very serious and very horrible. It’s so horrible that it almost doesn’t fit with the entire tone of the book. I think it’s a credit to Ms. Clare’s writing that she handles it in a very sensitive manner and there are no quick, magical fixes to Chelsea’s issues with intimacy. I think pairing her with a hero like Sebastian was absolutely necessary, and the pacing is sloooow, but it’s understandable.
-Sebastian is sweet beta hero: Sebastian’s wacky, tacky, reality tv loving family notwithstanding, he comes off as a bit aimless because he’s hiding his true passion for art from the world, holing up in his study to draw and sculpt. Sebastian’s has protective alpha instincts, but he is beta all the way with Chelsea. He falls for her pretty quickly but his patience and understanding made him perfect for her, even if a bit passive for most of the story.
-Struggle to connect: I appreciate the writing by Ms. Clare, and I had no complaints regarding the quality, but there was a deliberate choice to have a lack of romantic connection between Chelsea and Sebastian in the beginning. That choice, while making sense for Chelsea and the trauma she’d suffered, left me as the reader disconnected from their romance. It played more like a friendship for most of the tale, and by the time things changed, I was already more casual observer than fully invested. It was easy to put down and at times, especially in the beginning, it dragged. The balance between the funny and the drama isn’t an easy one and I’m not sure it worked completely for me here.
A fairly serious backstory for the heroine gave a bit of weight to this tale. I liked it, even if it’s not my favorite of the series. I am looking forward to Asher and Greer’s story.
**ARC provided by publisher via netgalley for review**