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witcheep's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
The vampire lore and the mysterious tensions are intriquing, giving strength to the worldbuilding around the romance – the romance being the main plot. The story is entertaining, though I struggled a lot to come to terms with the huge status imbalances between the main characters; I'm not sure if I can wholeheartedly root for them becoming a couple because of this. The rest of my review will be rambling/reasoning about this imbalance.
The romance relies very heavily on the trope of forbidden romance and a premise of an inexperienced human woman learning about her romantic and sexual likes with a centuries old, very experienced immortal man. This premise puts these two in a very imbalanced relationship, especially when it is paired with a huge financial imbalance as well: she is struggling with crippling debt and he is "richer than God", as she puts it. The potential threats or red flags in this kind of setting are mentioned by Thea's roommate, but only briefly, and Thea chooses to ignore them. I guess that shouldn't be a surprise, since the clear hint to a billionaire romance is in the title of the book. But does the experience/financial status need to be flaunted so much without pondering the imbalance between the main characters? Perhaps it is needed for the plot to be able to strongarm the allure in the relationship to be in the forefront and to make the vampire society's norms to be the aspect that makes the relationship forbidden, instead of theforbiddenness coming from imbalanced status.
I wish, though, that these premise issues got more room in the plot alongside the societal struggles. The imbalanced premises of the relationship make the experienced, rich party hold all the power in the relationship, making it very hard for the other one to stand up for herself if there ever is a need for it. Even though there is specualtion about amate bond between them that could even things out a little, I still find this kind of power imbalance in a romantic setting unsettling for all the potential to strip the "weaker" party from any real agency, and even putting them in the potential harm's way, if the relationship turns sour. The experience and financial status come around in the plot much more than the vampire society's norms, so it would be good to address them more as well.
The romance relies very heavily on the trope of forbidden romance and a premise of an inexperienced human woman learning about her romantic and sexual likes with a centuries old, very experienced immortal man. This premise puts these two in a very imbalanced relationship, especially when it is paired with a huge financial imbalance as well: she is struggling with crippling debt and he is "richer than God", as she puts it. The potential threats or red flags in this kind of setting are mentioned by Thea's roommate, but only briefly, and Thea chooses to ignore them. I guess that shouldn't be a surprise, since the clear hint to a billionaire romance is in the title of the book. But does the experience/financial status need to be flaunted so much without pondering the imbalance between the main characters? Perhaps it is needed for the plot to be able to strongarm the allure in the relationship to be in the forefront and to make the vampire society's norms to be the aspect that makes the relationship forbidden, instead of theforbiddenness coming from imbalanced status.
I wish, though, that these premise issues got more room in the plot alongside the societal struggles. The imbalanced premises of the relationship make the experienced, rich party hold all the power in the relationship, making it very hard for the other one to stand up for herself if there ever is a need for it. Even though there is specualtion about a
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Cancer and Alcohol
Minor: Kidnapping and Pregnancy
kbairbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
DUDE. Dude. This was so much fun!! All I can say is that if you like grumpy sunshine, mates, vampires, or fake dating this is for you. I don’t have time to say anything else because I already own book two and I need to read it right now!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Gore, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Murder, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Cancer and Pregnancy
bedtimesandbooks's review against another edition
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Drug use, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
kayceeisbookish's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Seductive and steamy. This book is the perfect mix of vampire romance + 50 shades of Grey. That cliffhanger was so painful, though! The characters were fun, flirty, and made me enjoy reading the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Cursing, Death, Sexual content, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
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