THE WICKED BILLIONAIRE (The Tate Brothers #2) by Jackie Ashenden-a review
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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date October 3, 2017
The Tate Brothers were once orphans and they have been raised to do one thing only: protect what is theirs.
As a trained sniper and Navy SEAL, Lucas Tate found the courage to distance himself from the wealthy, wicked patriarch who adopted him. Instead, he’s devoted his life to the elite band of brothers from his unit. So when the widow of one of his former comrades finds herself in apparent danger, Lucas makes it his job to protect her against all enemies. . .and not let her out of his sights.
Grace Riley feels overwhelmed by Lucas’s presence, but the cold-eyed marksman will do anything to keep her safe. Soon the special attention he pays her becomes a wild romantic distraction―one that troubles Grace, since Lucas was so close to her deceased husband. Still, how can she resist Lucas’s intense, ice-blue stare? All she knows is that a life without strong, passionate Lucas is one not worth living. Can Lucas can find a way to honor his former brother-in-arms by saving Grace. . .and loving her, too?
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REVIEW: THE WICKED BILLIONAIRE is the second installment in Jackie Ashenden’s contemporary, adult THE TATE BROTHERS romantic, suspense series focusing on three foster brothers-Sullivan (Van), Wolf and Lucas Tate-as well as their foster sister Chloe Tate. This is Navy SEAL Lucas Tate, and artist/painter Grace Riley’s story line. THE WICKED BILLIONAIRE can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story line is revealed where necessary although I recommend reading the series in order for cohesion and backstory. Some of the events of THE WICKED BILLIONAIRE run parallel to, and cross over with the events of book one-The Dangerous Billionaire.
SOME BACKGROUND: In the aftermath of their father Noah Tate’s death, Van, Wolf and Lucas Tate are called home from active duty to find themselves the recipients of three letters outlining what the future has in store-letters from the grave asking each son for a final favor. There is a dark history between father and sons, marred by secrets and lies, and a father ill-equipped to look after the family he chose to raise.
Told from dual third person perspectives (Grace and Lucas) THE WICKED BILLIONAIRE focuses on the protection of artist Grace Riley. Grace’s husband Griffin Riley died with a secret, and that secret has come back looking for the payout that never came to fruition. A former Navy SEAL and a member of Lucas Tate’s team, Griffin worked the darker side of the military and his untimely demise finds his widow on the receiving end of a series of threats against her life. Enter Lucas Tate, the man with whom Grace will fall in love, but a man whose heart and soul have been destroyed by the sins of his past. What ensues is the building relationship between Lucas and Grace, and the fall out when Lucas pushes away the only woman he has ever loved.
Lucas Tate is a man surrounded by the demons of his past; memories that refuse to rest or let go of guilt that continues to destroy our story line hero. Alone and separated from the brothers of his heart, Lucas is the epitome of a broken, alpha male who is unable to forgive or forget about the past. Grace Riley believes herself to be the ugly duckling; the ‘plain Jane’ whose talent and artistry are unacceptable-a belief reinforced by a father whose own career failed before it began.
The relationship between Grace and Lucas is fraught with mutual self-doubt reinforced by childhoods fraught with disapproval, humiliation and degrading remarks. Lucas doesn’t have a very high opinion of our story line heroine-an opinion that clouds his perception of the woman he believes to be ugly and plain. Basic social interactions are difficult with a man who isn’t willing to accept Grace for the woman she has become. The $ex scenes are intimate and provocative.
THE WICKED BILLIONAIRE continues to focus on the Tate family dysfunctional dynamics-three brothers who struggle in the aftermath of their father’s death, and the directives each has been ordered to follow through until the end. The premise is heartbreaking and engaging; the characters are broken, colorful and charismatic; the romance struggles with one man’s belief is he incapable of love.
Click HERE for Sandy’s review of book one-THE DANGEROUS BILLIONAIRE
Copy supplied by Netgalley
Reviewed by Sandy
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Jackie Ashenden lives in Auckland, New Zealand with her husband, the inimitable Dr. Jax, and their two kids and two cats. When she’s not torturing alpha males and their stroppy heroines, she can be found drinking chocolate martinis, reading anything she can lay her hands on, posting random crap on her blog, or being forced to go mountain biking with her husband.
