Billionaire's Game, Summer Cooper

I put this on my romantic shelf because it's a romance novel but I honestly didn't feel a ton of romance.  There was incredible banter which was really excellent in its quickness, wit, and setting.  When there was passion it was certainly steamy but every single time was marred by Lesli's inability to be a rational, considerate human.

Lesli was a bundle of feels and vacillated so much that Mason had every right to be confused.  I felt that the thing with Violet was a bit unnecessary because I don't think it really made her realize her feelings any better since after her admission and "claim" she flaked out again.  The second flaking moment was the worse one because we think she finally has her sh** together only to run off again.  I think we could have omitted the second fail and then still had the Oliver consultation moment and the rest of the story would have followed well.  The end was pretty sweet but there was not enough groveling on Lesli's part for treating Mason as she did.  I get that she's immature and facing a difficult moment in her life where she gets to decide who and what she wants to be but that's no excuse for her treatment of him.

Another thing that was a bit over the top was the Violet scene at the party...it wasn't actually funny enough and it ended up being awkward even if it was a segue to Lesli's first confession.  A whole third of the book could have done with a bit more thought and consideration to make the story really sink deep and create situations that felt organic and meaningful rather than sensational fluff that just annoyed.

With the synopsis mentioning the game show I was expecting a lot more from that, maybe some tension, confessions, and bonding done through their trials there but there was none of that.  It was as if the whole game show was thrown in to give the genesis of their meeting validation rather than be an important plot point.

Overall it was an entertaining story that had some really likable moments but the actual romance was lacking.  I wished for Mason's POV and some streamlining as well as a bit more depth to Lesli.

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