The Reluctant Billionaire
Fire & Spice
Fraught with saucy little gems of introspection and flagrant desire, The Reluctant Billionaire by Sara Madderson just lit my Kindle and knocked my sleep schedule completely off its axis. The depth of humor and honesty within it is striking, and sets the perfect tone with characters crafted in such intimate and extraordinary detail they come alive in your head and your heart.
Reluctant Billionaire is a beautiful story full of beautiful truths about appearances, expectations, assumptions, and reality (both skewed and starkly accurate). In Aide and Lotta, Madderson has crafted two different characters who have one wonderfully unique thing in common: they are both so much more than what they seem. Two individuals whose attempts at being genuine often make people see them differently. Two unique souls who find out where they belong, and create their perfect HEA together.
Madderson builds a depth not just to their love story, but to the story of humanity. And to how the surface aesthetics are so rarely ever the real story. But it's based so perfectly on the personas of the mains and how they strive so hard to be “what you see is what you get” individuals, it just makes their ability to truly see each other as so much more a vital part of the story. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and this story is a perfect example of meant-to-be souls finding each other because they can see the depth through the veneer presented.
Recognizing your worth and you're worthy is such a beautiful theme in so many romance novels, but it’s truly brought to lovely fruition in this novel. I love that Lotta knows who she is and her vulnerability and growth isn't tied to her "changing who she is,” but rather to how she sees Aide and helps him become the best version of himself. I love that their third-act conflict isn't because of a misunderstanding or miscommunication, but rather because Lotta has expectations and isn't willing to compromise. I love that Aide gets a push from a strong female presence who isn't his HEA to recognize and accept who he is and who he needs to be for himself and for Lotta. And I love that Madderson expresses it all with incredible bouts of humor, lighthearted interactions, intensely passionate encounters, perfectly placed supporting characters, relevant backstory, and incredible banter.
The Reluctant Billionaire is a series starter and most certainly standalone readable. There is no overarching plot waiting to be resolved, and Aide and Lotta got their glorious HEA, but there are several side characters begging for their stories to be told. There are also cameos by characters in Madderson’s Love in London series, and while they made me want to go read all of those books, it did not detract from or confuse the storyline of The Reluctant Billionaire.
I am so drawn to Madderson’s writing style, her easy prose, narrative flow, and authentic dialogue have made all of her books instant favorites for me. And The Reluctant Billionaire is no different. I honestly cannot wait to read this one again.
