Hello everyone!
As you all know, Serenity Woods is possibly the one and only contemporary author I have on my reading list who has never once failed me, and who I tend to reach for whenever I'm feeling a bit down and need a pick-me-up.
My favourite books of hers are like old friends, cozy and wonderful and just brilliant enough to snuggle down with, so I reach for them quite often!
But I also always read every new book she releases, and I can't state this enough, but I am so, so, SO happy and thankful to be part of her permanent ARC team.
It's a dream come true, and while I don't always end up buying every book she writes, I've bought my fair share, certainly I own all of my favourites by her!
So without further ado, let's hop straight into tonight's story, shall we?
Billionaires in general wait for no man - or no woman in this case, all things considered, because the story IS about a woman in The Forbidden Millionaire.
Links to previous related posts can be found at the bottom of the page, as per usual (and I swear I WILL get a review of The Wrong Billionaire up on here eventually!).
The Forbidden Millionaire follows Aurelia, the youngest Ashford child, who gets saddled with a personal protection officer, Luke, not that she knows the reason why. In fact, Luke is specifically ordered NOT to tell her, which naturally ends well.
Not.
But I digress.
She's got a stalker, and her family's worried, so this is where Luke comes in. Marcus, Aurelia's brother, hires him to keep her safe, and she, of course, is all AGAINST this idea, so the first few chapters are a lot of fun where she tries to give him the slip, but unlike her previous guards, he's way too smart and too quick, so he always manages to cut her off.
They eventually form some sort of truce, but it doesn't happen until after she meets up with her ex again.
Dom is the kind of douche you just LOVE to hate, and, honestly? I hated him from the second he was mentioned. Then he shows up on page and starts ordering for her, talking over her, making decisions for her like he's her master ...
I was ready to punch his teeth down his throat BEFORE he grabbed her arm and Luke had to bodily remove him.
Anyway, he decides to teach Aurelia how to defend herself, because she's generally tiny and needs to know at least some techniques, and of course it gets harder for the two of them to deny their physical attraction to one another.
Points to them both, however, because they don't give into it, and keep it as professional as possible, even while sharing sweet moments at New Year's, as well as at Marcus and Wren's wedding (they of the infamous Wrong Billionaire fame).
Things might have gone along that route for a while if not for the fact that the guard team intercepts a letter to Aurelia with actual photos of her - photos taken RIGHT AFTER SHE'D BEEN HAVING SEX.
This leads them to her ex - yet again - who apparently took those photos without her consent and never deleted them, then someone hacked his Cloud and now he has said photos.
Luke is mad. I'm mad, too, but then again I'm mad for a lot of things in this one LOL.
The escalation gets eased off yet again while life keeps on happening, the company keeps butting heads with their competitors and Aurelia's brothers have a meshed-in timeline for their own stories, but Aurelia and Luke keep growing stronger through each and every moment, as he's constantly present not just as her guard, but as a genuine friend.
Then he walks her into her apartment one evening and discovers her stalker broke in, and all of a sudden everything goes to pot.
Aurelia learns WHY she needed a bodyguard, and is rightly hurt and angry with her family for not telling her, treating her as if she were a child, so she doesn't want to be anywhere near them and takes the excuse to be flown to an exclusive resort with Luke - the only person she actually wants by her side.
It's at the resort that he opens up about his catastrophic relationship with his ex who didn't like sex and made him feel bad about it, and they finally give in to their attraction.
Not just that, but they admit both are in love with the other, but just when you think all's well that ends well, a vase of flowers gets delivered - from her stalker.
Since Luke had purposefully messed up the name of the villa they were staying at, he now knows the stalker and leak is someone inside the security group, which eventually leads to a dramatic confrontation between him and Kai, a man who used to guard Aurelia from time to time, and who tries to take her away against her will, but Luke's faster than him.
Their feelings and burgeoning relationship are revealed to the family, not that they'd have had much say given Aurelia's a free spirit, but once everything's settled and they can breathe, they decide to actually date.
Aurelia finds the New Zealand gallantry star hidden in Luke's kitchen cupboard, and while she knows he left the army, she also knows this medal is a BIG DEAL.
And yet, because his parents and ex were just terrible people, they made him feel like protecting his teammates and trying to save their lives was something nasty and bad, so he's never been proud of being an actual hero.
Thankfully he now has Aurelia to fight for him in his corner.
If you're subscribed to Ms Woods' newsletter, you can also read a free bonus epilogue, in which we learn Marcus and Wren have a daughter, Caesar and Maddie have a son (and are actively trying for more), while Aurelia and Luke get married in front of friends and family, promising to forever love one another, as they should!
And as always, Ms Woods does not disappoint.
Aurelia and Luke are lovely characters whose story isn't drawn out, but does take some work to get to the HEA, and the backdrop of the stalker definitely gives it Bodyguard vibes. Seeing as that's a really good movie I'm not complaining LOL.
Then again, I liked Luke from the second his car was revealed to be a Skoda Kodiaq, so I can't even talk.
The mystery is actually well done, and the personal relationships really shine in this one.
The writing remains as engaging as ever and I love travelling to different corners of New Zealand through these books!
The Ashford Legacy has been a wonderful series to read and I can't wait for the next adventure.
1000/10 recommend!
Aurelia and Luke are lovely characters whose story isn't drawn out, but does take some work to get to the HEA, and the backdrop of the stalker definitely gives it Bodyguard vibes. Seeing as that's a really good movie I'm not complaining LOL.
Then again, I liked Luke from the second his car was revealed to be a Skoda Kodiaq, so I can't even talk.
The mystery is actually well done, and the personal relationships really shine in this one.
The writing remains as engaging as ever and I love travelling to different corners of New Zealand through these books!
The Ashford Legacy has been a wonderful series to read and I can't wait for the next adventure.
1000/10 recommend!
xx
*image not mine
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