DIRTY MONEY (Roughneck Billionaires #1) by Jessica Clare-a review

Dirty Money

About the book: Release Date January 17, 2017

Boone Price and his brothers know oil; at least, the dirty, backbreaking side of working an oil rig. But when their scrubby, worthless hunting land turns out to be sitting on top of one of the biggest oil wells in North America, they go from the rig to the boardroom and end up billionaires practically overnight.

Now with enough money to do whatever he wants, Boone is developing a taste for fine things. And the finest thing he’s ever seen is Ivy Smithfield, local realtor. Boone’s determined to buy her affection and show the world that he’s more than just a dirty fool with a bit of money. Ivy’s classy and beautiful – she’ll make the perfect trophy wife. The fact that she’s sexy and funny is just a bonus.

There’s one tiny problem – Ivy’s as dirt poor as Boone is. Her carefully crafted veneer of luxury? All an act to promote her business. What’s Boone going to do when he finds out the woman he’s falling for is, well, in his league?

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REVIEW: DIRTY MONEY is the first installment in Jessica Clare’s contemporary adult ROUGHNECK BILLIONAIRES erotic, romance series focusing on the rags to riches Price Brothers of Texas. This is realtor Ivy Smithfield, and billionaire oil man Boone Price’s story line.

Told from dual first person points of view (Boone and Ivy) DIRTY MONEY focuses on the building relationship between ‘rough around the edges’ billionaire oil man Boone Price, and realtor Ivy Smithfield. Boone is a self-made man who struck it rich in the oil fields of West Texas; and a man who doesn’t care about appearances or his public persona but when a real estate flyer featuring the beautiful and sexy Ivy Smithfield comes into his possession our hero is determined to find the woman that calls to his heart. What ensues is Boone’s ‘in your face’ attempts at seduction, and Ivy’s struggle to keep secret her past.

Boone Price wants to become a better man: he has billions of dollars, plenty of land, and an oil company that continues to grow but what he doesn’t have is a beautiful house, a beautiful woman or the pedigree to woo Ivy Smithfield. Boone’s billionaire status lacks the respect he believes he deserves; his over the top reactions push the boundaries of civility and the norm. Ivy is a young, single woman raising her younger sister but a woman who hides the truth about her background and from where she comes. Boone’s persistent attempts soon break down our heroine’s defenses but she refuses to reveal anything about her past or her struggles to make ends meet. The $ex scenes are intimate, erotic and provocative. Boone’s ‘lumberjack’ beard enhances Ivy’s sexual pleasure.

We are introduced to Ivy’s sister Wynonna- a young woman about to enter her first year of college, and one of Ivy’s co-workers and fellow struggling realtors Farah; Boone’s brothers Gage, Knox, Clay, and Seth –all of whom have a share of Price Brothers Oil. The requisite evil comes from the Three Jacks Real Estate –Ivy’s bosses –and the men who continue to remind Ivy from where she comes.

The world building follows the growing love between Boone and Ivy, and the distinct differences between the haves and the have-nots. Ivy struggles to make ends meet to the detriment of her own health; her pride keeps our heroine from asking for help, while Boone is willing to give her anything she wants including a happily ever after.

DIRTY MONEY reminds me a bit of the movie ‘Giant’ starring James Dean, Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson among many other notable actors and actress of the time. James Dean’s character Jett Rink goes from rags to riches but is unable to earn the respect of his fellow millionaires. Respect must be earned not bought; the past is always part of one’s present. The premise is playful; the characters are energetic and animated; the romance is passionate and seductive. I am looking forward to the Price brother’s story lines.

Copy supplied by Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy

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