This was the weakest I have read from Martin so far. I'm not bummed I read it, not at all, it made me chuckle - I kind of loved the fantasy, but it did skirt some of that left field deep emotion that her books can hit with.

I'll also say that I love the heroine is a "hairdresser" (heroine's preference) and as usual, Martin treated her profession with respect and depth. And I love that her billionaires work. There was a reference to competence porn in this book, which is a shelf I made when I started this series and I think has suited every one of the books. I also wouldn't mind a flip of the cinderella story, but it looks like the next one won't play out that way either. ( )

A hilarious breath of fresh air
5 stars

I’ve never read Annika Martin before but since finishing this book I’ve already gone on a backlist blitz, grabbing up everything she’s written before I became aware of her and her writing.

This book is written in first person, present tense with chapters written from the viewpoint of both Tabitha and Rex. This works really well as we find out more about the characters - especially Rex - and the way the chapters are divvied up, I was often chomping at the bit to find out what the other one thought of certain situations and scenarios. As such, I absolutely rattled through this book in no time at all.

I always think it takes a very skilled author to bring a quirky character to life in a story without making them a parody, or so wholly irritating that they make your teeth hurt. Tabitha was neither of these things. She liked sparkles, Hello Kitty, soap operas and froufrou pink drinks - and she owned that fact with no apologies. Next level basic. I love it! But if you think that’s all she is - you (and Rex) would be so wrong. She’s got hidden depth and she’s hella smart to boot. And not forgetting that she’s so funny. The way she deliberately rubbed Rex the wrong way whenever she could just killed me. It gave me a delicious little evil thrill to watch him squirm!

As much as I loved Tabitha, I loved Rex just as much. Again, it’s a real skill to make a grumpy, broody, asshole like Rex come across as a decent guy. Even better than that, was to know how Rex was feeling and to watch him come to the realisation that everything he thought he hated were actually all the things he loved most about Tabitha. It’s not about changing her; it’s not about loving her despite her quirks, it’s about realising she’s everything - just the way she is. I’m not doing justice to how wonderful it was to watch his slow descent into love - without ever losing his own brand of grumpy grumpiness! And let me tell you that taunting and teasing a grumpy man to lose control and throw his girl up against the wall and take her - is everything you need to read to get your very own kicks.

As well as the love story, we have the added bonus of the strange goings on aboard the yacht. Is Marvin a fake long-lost nephew? Who is following Rex and Tabitha? Who is trying to sabotage whom? Back in the day, I used to watch Days of Our Lives and this reminded me of all the ridiculous situations that you can’t help but love. It’s super fun and I laughed out loud on more than one occasion and yet it never gets to that slapstick stage where it becomes ridiculous. Even non-soap opera fans will enjoy the fun!

Honestly this book was everything that I didn’t know I needed. It’s hugely entertaining, crazy funny and deserves way more than the 5 stars I can give it. I loved Tabitha and Rex - so much so that I’m still thinking of them and want to read about what they’re up after they get their happily ever after. Finding out that one, maybe two, maybe even three, of Tabitha’s friends have their own books (Most Eligible Billionaire, The Billionaire’s Wake-Up-Call Girl and Breaking the Billionaire's Rules) gives me happy chills - and I’m seriously hoping that Noelle and Malcolm Blackberg (who are only in this book for barely a hot second!) get their own book, too (Woop - they do - it’s called Return Billionaire to Sender!). Seriously, this book is everything and Ms Martin, you’ve got yourself a new fan! ( )