Ava Ryan

3.75 Dirty Martini stars

The blurb of this story drew me in. I am glad because I loved diving into this book. Especially, as the first few chapters started out from Damon's point of view. I liked watching their banter and getting to see it from his perspective. It switches out from there and alternates the point of view between him and Carley.

The first portion of the book I really liked. It seemed to lag a little in the middle and the bantering seemed to be off. There was a huge time lapse of seven months that seemed disjointed from the story. I wanted to see how these two characters were traversing their relationship. There seemed to be a lot of focus on "billionaire" which was odd because Damon was striving to be one. It just seemed out of sorts. The best parts of the book were how the beginning and ending mirrored one another. This story would have ranked higher if certain things were more fleshed out, such as the father, which that situation or plot never really took off, other than to kind of be a point of contention later. The HFN was good but I wanted more.

Still, the story was good. I enjoyed the brothers too and am glad that they are getting their own story. Hopefully, there will be more insight into Damon and Carly in those stories.… (meer)

Swoonworthy chemistry
5 stars

This is the third and final book in the Manhattan Billionaires trilogy but fear not, each book stands alone and features a different couple. The trilogy focuses on three billionaire friends - and the other 2, Liam and Michael (from His Lost Love and His Forbidden Love) do appear in this one bringing with them all the ribbing, banter and bromancing we need. However, the focus is definitely on our couple - Jake and Skye.

The story kicks off right in the action as Jake and Skye meet for a blind, swipe right, date. Their connection is immediate and I felt that chemistry oozing out my kindle from the first. The fact that Skye chooses to meet Jake in a bookshop is the stuff that romantic fantasies are made of!

Skye is slightly younger (think she was 23) and in a period of transition in her life after deciding that Law School was not for her. Despite that, she is bright, feisty and never comes across as weak or immature. I loved her - the perfect blend of kick-ass and sweet. There was also no imbalance of power between the couple despite the nanny / boss situation. So don’t worry that you’ll get any icky feelings - you won’t.

But it’s Jake that 100% stole my heart. It’s ridiculously hard to write a hero that is equal parts strong and alpha - but still vulnerable, sweet and completely at the mercy of the girl he loves. The way Jake blushed and got a bit tongue tied around Skye made my heart go pitty-pat! Yet he was still hot, sweet, smart, rich and such a good father. *Sigh*

As I mentioned before, the chemistry between Skye and Jake was instant and electric. So when it comes to the sex, get yourself some pearls to clutch because it is swoonworthy! They definitely feel like a perfect pairing and you can’t help but root for them to get together and make it work.

As a secondary character, Marlene was just the right kind of bad ex-wife. But the way Ms Ryan gave us a glimpse at her getting her own happy ending was absolute perfection and also made me laugh. And although I’m not much for children in my romances, Charlie and Becca were an adorable delight. If all children aren’t like this - nobody tell me.

The story is written in first person, present tense in both Jake and Skye’s viewpoint. What gave this some extra oomph is the way that, at times, it was like the characters were talking to us, as readers, about the situation. It really worked and not only that, it was hella funny at times. I laughed out loud on more than one occasion.

Ava Ryan is a queen of billionaires romances and this is definitely one of her best. I didn’t want to put it down and felt a bit bereft when I had finished. If you’re new to Ava Ryan - or you’ve read every book of hers - I cannot recommend this tale highly enough. One of my favourite stories this year. 5 stars.… (meer)

Not my favourite of Ms Ryan’s
3 stars

This is the second book in Ryan’s Manhattan Billionaire’s series. I read and enjoyed the first in this series, His Lost Love, but you don’t need to have read that book to enjoy and understand this one. This book is Michael and Ally’s story. Michael is the twin of Mia and the best friend of Liam, the couple from that first story.

We meet Michael first in this story and it’s clear from the get go that he is head over heels for Ally. I liked his grumpiness, the banter with his friend, and his borderline obsession (but in a hot, sexy way) with Ally. I still liked him as we were introduced to Ally and the two became reacquainted. Then Ally started to work for Michael and I started to get uncomfortable feelings. He was MEAN to her. Unkind and mean. I do enjoy an alpha. I’m even more partial to a grumpy one - but this was different. I didn’t like it.

I liked Ally. She didn’t have particularly high self-esteem but was still strong and smart. I even understood her reasoning behind her reluctance to end things with her boyfriend, Bruce. Ally started to go down in my estimations when she took a job working with Michael. Only because we’re told that after working together and nursing a massive crush on him, Ally had to go into intensive treatment for mental health issues. I tried to be as understanding as possible but if you have a bad reaction to a certain food, you don’t, when given the opportunity, eat more of that food because you just can’t help yourself. Or if you do, you have to take the consequences and hell mend you.

As the story went on, I noticed an uncomfortable pattern and a real difference in the balance of power between Ally and Michael. Michael would do something wrong, or admit to doing something wrong, Ally would forgive him and on we would go. Michael admitted to gaslighting Ally - which he definitely did do - and she shouts at him a little then nothing. And when Michael gets everything he’s ever dreamed of and then is mean to Ally and she forgives him just like that.

I finished the book with a scrunched brow and a little confusion. I think the overarching word was ‘uncomfortable’. There was absolutely no physical cheating in this book but I think all the yearning and wanting while in marriages and relationships probably added to my discomfort.

With all that said, it was the story that I was uncomfortable with as Ms Ryan’s writing is, as always, awesome. I was invested in the story and at no point did I ever contemplate not finishing the story. So I can definitely appreciate the skill of the storytelling if not the subject or plot of the story itself.

This series revolves around 3 best friends whose medical device made them billionaires. We’ve already had Liam’s story and now Michael’s. So the only one left is Jake. We get a tiny tease of that story in this book - something about a nanny and inappropriateness that I am 100% there for. Despite my rather lukewarm reception with this particular story, I’m still very much looking forward to the next story in this series, and will happily look out for other stories by Ava Ryan in the future. Just 3 stars for this particular story but I’m definitely still a fan.… (meer)

Excellent second-chance romance
5 stars

His Lost Love is the first book in a new series of standalones called the Manhattan Billionaires. It stands completely alone, however fans of Ms Ryan will remember that Liam is the formerly estranged brother of Ella, the heroine of The Billionaire’s Cinderella. All three brothers and their partners also make cameos in this story, with Ryker and Ella’s part being biggest as it’s their wedding Liam and Mia are attending in this story.

Liam and Mia broke up over 10 years ago and were each other’s first loves, giving this story a delicious second-chance vibe. There’s also a touch of the enemies-to-lovers trope going on, too, as despite their obvious connection, there is a lot of anger, distrust and borderline hatred between our couple at the start of the book.

Both Mia and Liam are interesting, likeable characters. Mia is a successful woman and while she has confidence and sass, we also learn about her fears and how she doesn’t feel her life is complete. Her push and pull with Liam is understandable and I especially loved how she stood up for herself 100% with him.

Liam is potentially a marmite kind of character - you’ll either love him or hate him. He’s described as a bad boy but when we meet him I feel that he’s definitely settled down into a strong and stable man. He’s definitely arrogant but there are many an occasion where his emotions overcome him. I do enjoy a male character who comes across as strong and somewhat alpha, but conveys emotion well.

The reason for the love/hate is due to something that happened when Liam and Mia were first together/splitting up. Mia and Liam have a massive fight and they break off their engagement. Liam leaves and Mia later finds out that he was with another girl. I HATE cheating but, if I’m honest, I felt this was more of a ‘we were on a break’ situation. Were they really still together? And so was it really cheating? I’m not saying this to absolve Liam of his terrible choices, but rather to explain that it didn’t overly bother me so hopefully it won’t bother you either. Regardless, Liam redeemed himself in my eyes (and in Mia’s) and that’s all that matters!

The story was sweet and I really felt the pair were working through their issues. The love was clear from the first - even when the pair were still at odds/ pretending it was only physical. Great chemistry - sexually and otherwise. When they had their big, blowout talk - it was pretty uncomfortable, sure, but it never got to the level of being too angsty or gut wrenching.

I’ve really enjoyed Ava Ryan’s writing and her storytelling - and this is no exception. I did waver between 4 and 5 stars on this one but it was very readable and before I knew it, I’d come to the end. And I admit that a lack of epilogue at the end might have pushed me more towards 4 stars. I NEED an epilogue, people! Luckily, we got a quick teaser about hopefully the next book in the series featuring Michael, Mia’s twin brother. In that story, I’m expecting a follow-up on how Mia and Liam are doing or I might revolt!

If you’re looking for a believable and romantic second-chance romance story with billionaires, banter and meddling friends and family - then I would recommend this book to you. 5 stars from me.… (meer)