Victoria Blue

I hate it when the blurb and the story don't match. The blurb pretty much spoils the whole story for one. The line "The clock is ticking, and the political scandal is growing." does not match what I read since Oliver has no idea of what is going on and his is the only one who is telling the story. The book is not even about him and Bailey. It's a bunch of things thrown together. I was even questioning if he was going to end up with Bailey or his roommate because there wasn't a clear show more direction of where the book was heading. On one hand, we had Bailey whose husband died and is focused on not growing the scandal and on the other Skye was throwing tantrums and acting like a jealous woman, so I had no idea if Bailey was actually going to be the one for him. I was going to give two stars to the book, but when I went back and read the blurb, I felt even more cheated.

Oliver lacks any kind of personality. If you ask me to describe to you what a stereotypical male model is like Oliver will be my example. I feel like I am insulting the male models now and that wasn't my intention. And he might pretend that he is a book boyfriend but he is not book boyfriend material.

I wish I had known that Oliver is an escort. I was sold on the idea of him pretending to be a book boyfriend, but I feel like I got a gigolo instead. It's like ordering dresses online from a dubious source. What you pictured and what you got are two completely different things. Did we really need a gigolo who actually sleeps with other women after he meets "his lady" when the book is not even 200 pages long?

I was so annoyed with everything else going on in the book that I wasn't even bothered by the cheating. And I am always bothered when someone cheats. Oliver was also ok with it.

If the book had focused on one thing I would have been happy. We had Oliver's business, the woman that was helping him with his business, whatever was going on with Skye and the part of the book where Oliver and Bailey are supposed to be a convincing couple. I am a huge fan of the misadventure series, but this one was a hard miss. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. show less

Great book

I love this storyline. It digs into relationships and trust issues. Realistic love concerns in a new relationship. Can't wait for the continuation of their story.

I voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this book provided by NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

No Prince Charming is my first taste of Angle Payne and Victoria Blue's storytelling. No Prince is book one in the Secrets of Stone series, and published in March of 2018. I like that these two authors have come up with a modern day Cinderella, kind of, plot. There are just enough Cinderella notes to flavor the story without being a complete copy. I'm impressed with this fresh show more take.

Claire Montgomery is complicated and yet predictable. She works for her son-to-be step-mother and step sister. They're awful, as you would expect. Their PR company is hired to revamp the image of Stone Global. She's meek, taking all the grief the control freaks throw her way. She competent, smart, lovely inside and out, but really, really, needs to speak up for herself. The writing duo have written the step-sister, Margaux, as the one you love to hate. I adore a character that evokes such emotion.

Killian Stone needs a PR firm to repair the damage his brother has wrought. This guy is as close to Prince Charming as you can get in the 21st century. Handsome, strong, sexy, rich and besotted with Claire. Did I mention rich and handsome? He winds up chasing our Cinderella, but she's fast. The big obstacle for our couple will be secrets, so darn many secrets. Somehow Claire manages to stand up to Killian and not be walked all over. Of course, she runs away.

Our couples story is continued in book two, No More Masquerade. That's where I'm heading, I want to know what happens to Claire and Killian. There are loose ends that I hope are taken care of. Happy reading.

#AngelPayne #VictoriaBlue #NoPrinceCharming #SecretsOf Stone #NetGalley #WaterhousePress show less

Misadventures at City Hall is a stand-alone novel in the Misadventures series by Victoria Blue. I believe that Skye is a known character to those who follow the series, while Kyle is brand new. Skye is best friends with Oliver whom we have met in Misadventures with a Book Boyfriend which is also written by Victoria Blue. One could call this book a sequel to MWABB, but with different main characters. Oliver and Bailey also appear in this one.

Kyle came off as a jerk and slimy person in the show more beginning so it took me a while to warm up to him. I couldn't believe that a person like him could be the hero of a novel, but he slowly proved himself to be worthy. Skye was likable at first, but I slowly started to dislike her or rather how much she seemed to put her work above anything else. I am not a fan of people who constantly push the other away. I was tired of her. I also didn't get the impression that she was really in love with Kyle. She was one the one who should have been doing the groveling and yet she didn't. I was not convinced that this is a romance novel. show less