Review: Matched to a Billionaire by Kat Cantrell

SUMMARY FROM NETGALLEY.COM:

Wanted: one convenient wife
Venture capitalist Leo Reynolds is married to his work, but now he needs a wife. Someone to run his home, host his parties—and accept a marriage that's strictly business. His one rule: love will play no part in their union. At least that's the lie he tells himself, until he meets his match….
Enter Daniella White—handpicked by the matchmaker as the perfect wife. Marriage to Leo means security, and she's willing to give up passion for friendship. But the moment they meet, sparks fly. And now temptation—and Leo's own heart—have the billionaire ready to change all the rules.

MY TAKE:
It's been awhile since I've been interested in reading a romance novel but I just couldn't pass up this one after reading the premise.

In Matched to a Billionaire, Leo Reynolds is a billionaire workaholic looking for a wife who can understand that his priority is his job. The role is more personal-assistant-meets-public-relations-specialist, but Daniella White is happy to accept, especially if it means security for her and better care for her ill mother.

If you've read Harlequin romances before, you already pretty much know how this book is going to end. However, the getting-there part is interesting. The tone is what I've come to expect from a Harlequin novel. The romance, the conflict, the characters are sort of standard (but not stock) for Harlequin novels and are very comforting especially if you like your romance novels a certain way.

I've always liked the whole matchmaking-and-arranged-marriage/relationships plot because there's usually a lot of things that can happen and ways for the characters to react to each other. One of my favorite Korean movies is My Little Bride. If you haven't seen it yet, don't be put off by the title. You should definitely go and watch this one as it's a cute rom-com with lovable characters.

Anyway, in the novel, despite their instant spark, Daniella and Leo try to stick to their business-arrangement marriage. Eventually, though, they want a little more and things get complicated.

There were a couple of parts that felt a little too melodramatic to me and cutting them down a little bit would have made the story feel a little tighter and maybe a little more focused. I could definitely see this as a movie.

Leo was an okay guy, although there were moments when I felt like shaking him and telling him that he should act like a businessman and find ways for him to get what he wants. Daniella was a strange character for me, in the sense that, sometimes I liked her and sometimes I disliked her. Her desire to be a housewife might not sit well with everybody, but even though I like having a regular job, I would have been just as happy managing a household the way she does. There were other moments when she was perfectly agreeable and witty and I liked that. The thing I didn't like about her was all the constant references to her feisty side being Scarlett (as in Scarlett O'Hara from Gone With the Wind). The first few mentions of Gone With the Wind characters was cute. However, in time, it started to feel like Dannie had a split personality.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harlewuin Desire for the e-ARC. Publication date of Matched to a Billionaire is on July 1, 2014.

THE GOOD:

1. Dannie and Leo have excellent chemistry.
2. It's nice to live vicariously through Dannie.
3. The plot is predictable but the story itself has interesting developments and is, overall, a fun read. 

THE BAD:

1. There are moments that feel a tad too dramatic. 

FAVORITE QUOTE/S:

Fairy tales were stories about magical solutions to problems and full of people who fell in love, but whose real relationships couldn't possibly stand the test of time.

READ IT IF:

1. You like stories with arranged marriages or matchmakers.
2. You secretly dream of being a wealthy socialite wife to a caring, passionate husband.
3. You like characters that have a lot of chemistry. 

RATING:


SOUNDS INTERESTING?