My feelings were hot, cold and everything in between. Read on!
Pippa Grant
March 3, 2022
Blurb: He’s a billionaire heir. A grump supreme. Hater of people. Bigger hater of peopling with people. And my new fake boyfriend.
Emotionally unavailable doesn’t even begin to describe Hayes Rutherford. He’s cold. He’s distant. He has more defenses than a nuclear missile silo. And he’s the ultimate catch of the century. At least, according to his bank statement.
My job’s simple: Keep Hayes’s matchmaking relatives and all interested ladies away from the cranky, grumpy, walled-off heir to my favorite movie empire by pretending to be his one true love, and in return, he won’t ruin my life over a teensy, tiny little misunderstanding.
But the more I sneak past his walls and fences, the more I realize that while we might be from different worlds, we have more in common than either of us expected. The man under all the glitz, glamour, and dollar signs could be the real love of my life.
But you know what they say about fake dating a billionaire—it’s all fun and games until the scandals start.
Purchase Link:
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This first statement may be more geared toward all of you reviewers, but perhaps we’re all reviewers of something. The Last Eligible Billionaire by Pippa Grant is a book where I don’t even know where to begin my review because it was adorable and frustrating, emotionally true and raunchy, unique and repetitive, fun but cliched. I liked it and didn’t like it–seriously the beginning definitely had me reconsidering reading the book at all, cringy and eye-rolling, while the end had me loving it.
Perhaps, in part, it was my fault because I read a review of one of Grant’s books from last year in which the reviewer mentioned how often the male MC in THAT book was getting an inopportune erection. Guess what? Nearly 40 year-old Hayes Rutherford (I won’t mention how many times it’s repeated that he is almost 40-years old, editing, please) keeps having erections at the drop of a hat. Yes, I realize that this is a book. A romance book. But seriously–okay, maybe not seriously, but you must know what I mean. It just seems like teenage fodder.
The characters, especially Begonia, the female MC who ambles between sensible and the most sheltered 30-something ever, speak in long passages that you usually only hear on TV sit-coms in which the character is ranting or waxing humorously poetic. Granted, sometimes the passages are funny but also sometimes monotonous.
And, my last con: Hayes and Begonia act like they belong in a New Adult novel rather than people who are a decade and more beyond that.
On the flipside, Hayes and Begonia are frequently wonderful together. Begonia is a trip. She sees the good in everyone and if she doesn’t, she fakes it until she makes it or provides an insult that hurts her–just from saying it–probably more than them. I just loved her attitude, which made her probably one of my favorite Pippa Grant characters ever. She has a heart of gold.
I also quite liked Hayes and sometimes found that we were told he was grumpy more often than it was actually shown. (I’ve got to add that show vs tell is a huge thing in this book and if you’re a fan of more show than tell, you may find it frustrating.)
My favorite character was Marshmallow, a German Shepherd, who failed out of service school because he puts his training and knowledge toward things that he’d like to do when he’d like to do them rather than when he’s told, except when Hayes, who is allergic to dogs, tells him to do something. Marshmallow made for some really amusing parts of the book.
So, after all that, where do I stand? At some point, The Last Eligible Billionaire clicked with me and I began to enjoy it more than feel frustrated. Hayes began to feel very human, with foibles that have kept him emotionally stunted, to some degree. I did wish that Begonia had “found” herself before falling in love again, but, well, love happens.
It’s definitely a win for Pippa Grant fans. For others, your mileage may vary.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Your reviews are so entertaining. Honestly. You should publish a book of reviews.
Maybe we can just skip the “of reviews” part and just do the book. Haha. Thanks, Maggie! 🙂
Perhaps the author is relying on past success, it sounds formulaic.
Love the rating system.