Berls
Written on Sep 30, 2022
Scoring the Billionaire - 4.5 stars
Max Monroe rocketed into my worldview this year with Single Dad Seeks Juliet and I'm on a mission to read all their books. They are the the perfect amount of sexy and lol humor that I need these days. I was looking forward to finally getting to read Wes Lancaster's story, since we've had quite the preview/foreshadowing in the previous book. Broody Billionaire did not disappoint, but it did surprise.
It surprised in that my takeaway from this book was not the humor, which is what I've come to love and count on from Max Monroe. Instead it was the heart. This book had oodles of heart... as in fill your heart and just make it overflow with happiness.
Wes, as we know from previous books, owns the NY Mavericks football team and has developed a crush on the team's new doctor, Winnie. What makes her unique from the other heroines in this book -- and where all the heart comes from honestly -- is that she's a single mother. I knew this going in. What I didn't know were the circumstances and most significantly, that her daughter is autistic. My son was recently diagnosed and so that storyline really touched me in a special way. But honestly, even without the autism, it probably would have because of Wes. I'm a sucker for a man who knows how to love a child. Watching the way Wes falls, not just for Winnie, but for Lexi is heart meltingly beautiful. It's not a "a want the mom so I better love the kid" scenario at all. I'd venture to say, he fell for Lexi first... sure he was in lust with Winnie but he loved Lexi. There was a particular moment where he feels like he failed Lexxi -- that's all I'll say because I don't want to spoil -- but his response was a "I'm not crying, you're crying" moment for me.
So all that aside -- yes this is funny. yes it is sexy as all hell and as you'd expect from Max Monroe. The heart was just a nice unexpected extra.
It was also really fun to see the characters that I've grown to love in the previous two books (and all the shorts) continue in their friendships and relationships.
The narration was great - I just love the way this series has different male and female narrators for each couple making the voices truly distinct. This time we have Joe Arden voicing Wes's POV and Maxine Mitchell voicing Winnie's POV. They fit in with the other narrators beautifully, in that their voices for the established characters really works and they are recognizable from the other books. I enjoyed their voices for Winnie and Wes as well and was able to read this at my standard 2x speed with no problems.
Scoring Her - 4 stars
I had a lot of fun with this original conclusion to the Wes and Winnie storyline. Of course, we get the whole gang and thus it is CRAZY. Thatch and Cassie are reliable for bringing the off the charts craziness - even with a newborn in toe! There's some really sweet moments with Kline and Georgia have some incredibly sweet and vulnerable moments. And, as the conclusion to Wes and Winnie's plot line we have a really heartwarming scene that most definitely didn't make me cry, it made you cry. ;)
As I've come to expect from these novellas we get all our narrators back and it's a real treat!
Red, White, & You - 4 stars
This 4th of July celebration was so fun! Hit by a heat wave that takes out the electricity, the gang escapes to Winnie's aunt and uncle's home outside the city (since they are supposed to be on a cruise). It's a fun glimpse of life with these friends whose families have grown but have not necessarily matured (Thatch I'm looking at you and your fireworks...). Hilarity ensues!
The narration is a real treat, since we bring in all the narrators for each couple!!