Tabs’ review of Billionaire on the Loose (Billionaires and Bridesmaids, Book 5) by Jessica Clare
Contemporary Romance published by Intermix 20 Sep 16
Jessica Clare is back with another fun Billionaires and Bridesmaids book. In this one, we’ve got ourselves a hunky European royal biding time in New York until he can return to his home and a geeky tech woman trying to avoid the pitfalls of being a female gamer and having a difficult time of it. Loch and Taylor seem like an unlikely pair on the surface, but it turns out they’re just what the other needs.
While a lot of this book is fun, it also tackles difficult issues in gaming. The heroine, Taylor, is basically being held hostage emotionally by another player in the World-of-Warcraft-esque game she plays and it’s taken control of her whole life. The other player is very clingy, has overridden boundaries, and freaks out and threatens to hurt himself whenever she’s disconnected from the game for too long. He’s not a physical threat to her, but he’s emotionally exhausting and draining and it’s affecting her job and pretty much eliminated the possibility of her having a love life of any kind. When he acts out, the rest of the gaming community blames her for “leading him on.” The woman can’t get a break.
Taylor is a really great heroine. She’s a computer programmer who plays MMORPGs, wears a 4th Doctor Doctor Who scarf, and has major attention issues that often result in physical injuries. She’s also a super social person who gets along great with everyone. This ties into her stalker-gamer troubles because she’s the kind of person who wants to help those around her. She’s likable and stays true to her self in tough situations. It’s easy to root for her and to want her to find the happiness she deserves.
Loch is the character who needs to experience growth. He’s a polo-playing European royal who likes his leisurely lifestyle just fine, thank you, and is perturbed when he has to leave the country for a bit. He’s not very deep. He’s bored. When he’s set up with Taylor, he’s all into it because she’s entertaining and smoking hot. His motives then become selfish, and I totally had cause to mutter “Oh, Loch, you stupid fuck, this is not going to go well” on a few occasions. Luckily, he matures, realizes the error of his selfish ways, and makes strides at becoming a better person because that’s who he wants to be. The man gives good sincere grovel too. I’m an absolute sucker for good sincere grovel, so this totally won me over.
I have to admit, though, telling me you’re going to spank me if I misbehave isn’t exactly the way to get me to behave.
This book is a lot of fun and the heroine is truly excellent. Jessica Clare calls this book her “ode to gamer girls” on her website, and I think she did a great job with that. One more novella left in this series to go as Gretchen and Hunter’s wedding, the impetus for the whole series, approaches. I’ll be there with bells on.
Grade: B+
Summary:
Taylor is a genius when it comes to computers, but understanding the opposite sex is beyond her. Because she always fumbles her flirtations, she needs help in finding her Prince Charming. So when her friend, Gretchen, sets her up as a tour guide for a new guy in town, she says yes despite her misgivings.
She just doesn’t expect Mr. Charming to actually be royalty…
A faction in his country wants him to be king, but Loch has no intention of taking the crown. To keep from being named as the next successor, he hatches a scheme to marry a totally unacceptable American woman. Quirky Taylor seems like the perfect person for the job, until Loch realizes he likes more about her than her ability to keep him off the throne.
When Loch’s secret schemes come out, his chance of happiness with Taylor are blown—unless he can find a way to get the nerdy object of his affection to believe she’s truly the queen of his heart…
Other books in this series:
