Breaking the Billionaire’s Rules
Author: Annika Martin
Reviewer: Jen
Rating: B+
What I’m Talking About:
I can always count on Annika Martin to entertain me with likable, crazy characters and an outrageous story. Breaking the Billionaire’s Rules is another wonderful addition to her non-named, “Billionaire” series; standalone romances centered on a loosely connected set of friends. This time around, the main character is Mia, the former roommate of Lizzie from the previous book.
Mia is a struggling actress in Manhattan who delivers food in a cat costume. It’s not ideal, but the part-time job gives her income and benefits. Her former high school nemesis, Max, is a highly successful multi-millionaire. A couple years out of high school, Max wrote a book on how to pick up women. It was a huge success that he spun into a men’s fashion line and so much more. Max has hired Mia’s company, specifically requesting her, to start delivering lunch to his office. When Mia discovers that Max’s book is directly responsible for some bad boyfriends in her friends’ lives, Mia decides to use his own techniques on Max to bring him down a few notches.
Mia and Max’s story is fun, yet emotionally engaging. They shared a special summer together in high school, but when they got back to school that fall, they fell back into their old patterns, breaking Mia’s heart. Apparently she (and Max) never got over it. The first half of the story is all about reconnecting and fighting for dominance. I loved watching Mia struggle to separate her desire to “get even” and her attraction to Max. My biggest complaint is the lack of Max POV during this time. It felt unbalanced. I would have liked seeing Max as unhinged as Mia during this time.
Their passion is evident in their work and play. This intensity pours over to their steamy connection. And once we start getting Max’s POV, we learn how obsessed his feelings are over Mia. He’s not the evil, uncaring man Mia has built up in her head but rather a complex man who never got over his high school love. I’m glad that once they start talking for real (and doing more than just talking!), that he clears the air about why she was hired and talks about why he wrote the book – that scene is so emotional! Max puts it all out there for Mia, and it’s hard when it comes crashing down.
In the end, Breaking the Billionaire’s Rules is another enjoyable, quick story from Ms. Martin. She creates quirky, flawed characters that love passionately and give one-hundred percent of themselves. The stories are outrageous, and that’s why they are fun. But outrageous doesn’t mean it’s lacking in quality or solid storytelling.
My Rating: B+ Liked It A Lot
Jen
About the Book:
Max Hilton is my high school nemesis turned billionaire. And tomorrow I deliver his lunch order. In a cat costume.
You know he’s going to love it. He’ll smile that smirky smile, sitting there all superior in his gleaming tower, the wealthiest and most notorious playboy in all of New York, the king of everything.
Turns out it wasn’t curiosity that killed the cat—it was mortification.
I’m almost ready to quit my lunch delivery job, but then my roommate tosses me a copy of The Max Hilton Playbook: Ten Golden Rules for Picking up the Hottest Girl in the Room.
It’s the book that catapulted him to stardom. And it’s my new bible.
I’m going to use his own techniques against him. I’ll wrap him around my little finger, bring him to his knees, and crush his steely heart. Call it payback for all the single girls who had to endure legions of losers wielding his legendary tactics.
But seeing Max every day, I’m discovering a side of him I didn’t even know existed–he’s not the jerky guy I thought he was. He has this smile he shows only to me, and it melts my heart. His touch sends shivers down my spine. And those forbidden kisses are driving me wild.
Falling for him was not in my plan.
Am I breaking his rules or will his rules break me first?
Release Date: February 19, 2019
Publisher: self-published
Series: Billionaires #3; Standalone
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Rom-Com
Format(s): paperback (267 pages), e-book
Book Source: Author
Purchase Info:
Amazon
Also by the Author:
Most Eligible Billionaire by Annika Martin (Standalone)
The Billionaire’s Wake-Up-Call Girl by Annika Martin (Standalone)