L-O-V-E! That is how I feel about this book. It's my first Christina Lauren novel and boy could I kick myself for waiting so long to try out their work.
THIS is how you do funny, sexy romance. If you are a fan of Emma Chase, you will like this author as well. Max Stella (OMG, that NAME ) Is now in the top 5 of my favorite book boyfriends (Malcolm Saint from Manwhore is still number 1, though). I love emotionally intelligent, honest guys who are perceived as commitment shy playboys but in reality are just sewing their wild oats until the meet the right woman.
This is the publisher's summary: "Escaping a cheating ex, finance whiz Sara Dillon’s moved to New York City and is looking for excitement and passion without a lot of strings attached. So meeting the irresistible, sexy Brit at a dance club should have meant nothing more than a night’s fun. But the manner—and speed—with which he melts her inhibitions turns him from a one-time hookup and into her Beautiful Stranger.
The whole city knows that Max Stella loves women, not that he’s ever found one he particularly wants to keep around. Despite pulling in plenty with his Wall Street bad boy charm, it’s not until Sara—and the wild photos she lets him take of her—that he starts wondering if there’s someone for him outside of the bedroom.
Hooking up in places where anybody could catch them, the only thing scarier for Sara than getting caught in public is having Max get too close in private"
Sara and Max's story starts off hot and just keeps getting hotter as the story progresses. I loved both of these characters. Sara is an ambitious career woman who is making a name for herself in the world of finance. The book begins with her starting over in New York after her long term relationship crashes and burns. Max is also VC genius who has made his fortune by funding successful artistic ventures.
He falls for Sara pretty hard and fast. Sara is more hesitant to allow Max in. She knows his reputation and is guarding her heart against anymore damage. However, she can't deny her scorching sexual attraction to Max and as part of her "new Sara" campaign allows herself to have a physical affair with him.
Now, this storyline is not new- I've seen dozens of times. So, the story is fairly predictable. However, the writing and the character development makes it as exciting as the first time I read a romance novel. Not to mention the sex is off the charts HOT!!! Max's acceptance of Sara's quirks and his patience and tenacity when it came to giving her what she wanted was great.
I could go on and on about how much I loved this book. I can't quantify how much I loved the love story (because it is a GREAT love story) of Sara and Max. So, I won't try. I will just encourage you to read it.
This is book 2 in a the Beautiful Bastard series and Bennett and Chloe are featured pretty heavily in this story as is Will the character in book 3 of the series. But, as I said this was my first book by these authors and so it can be read as a stand alone. I am definitely going to read them all now. I have already read the novella that is between books 2 and 3 called [Beautiful Bombshell] which is a great little romp about Bennett/Chloe and Max/Sara.
It was awesome and delicious and leaves you wanting more. I listened to the audio version and read the Kindle version and the narrators were great. It is told from dual POV (which I love) and the male narrator's Max voice is awesome. It has a touch of cockney in it and it fits the image of Max as Cambridge educated, New York city playboy who also has a touch of scruff to him that lets him be deliciously dirty in the bedroom.
This is a winner and is definitely one of the best I've read this year.
