Review - In the Heir Westerly (Westerly Billionaire #1) by Ruth Cardello

Image and blurb from Goodreads

Title: In The Heir
(Westerly Billionaire #1)
Author: Ruth Cardello

Release Date: May 23rd, 2017

Age Category/ Genre: Contemporary Romance

Publisher: Montlake Romance

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Ruth Cardello returns with an irresistible series about sexy billionaires and the strong-willed women who tame them.

Brett Westerly is his father’s golden child, but it’s come at a cost. As head of the family corporation, he throws himself into his work—hiding in his office is easier than confronting the reality of his broken family.

After a bitter divorce that split the family and divided loyalties, the wealthy Westerly matriarch offers an early inheritance to any grandchild who marries and invites the entire family to the wedding. Brett’s brother Spencer rashly gets engaged, and Brett knows it’s his duty to intervene. But he never imagined the unwelcome desire Spencer’s fiery fiancée would spark in him. Now the man who’s used to getting everything he could want has met the one woman he can’t have.

Ever since she was a girl, Alisha Coventry considered Spencer and his sister Rachelle the family she didn’t have. When Spencer asks for her help, Alisha has no problem becoming his fake fiancée—until she meets Spencer’s sexy older brother Brett. The chemistry between them is undeniable—forbidden—but as their relationship deepens, Brett is determined to have her.

Alisha only wanted to help the family make amends. Now she’s falling for the wrong Westerly.

Goodreads

Buy Links: Amazon

3 “Spin on Fake Marriage” Stars

ARC via NetGalley.

Thank you, Montlake Romance!

This is my first book by this author, and I can see why she's been successfully publishing contemporary romance books for a while. When the romance finally kicked in, the chemistry between Brett and Alisha made this a hot and enjoyable read.

In the Heir is the first title in the author’s new series about a rich family, the Westerly, and the women (and I’m guessing men, too, since there are also sisters involved) who fall in love with them.

In this story, Alisha agrees to “fake marry” her childhood friend Spencer, but ends up falling in love with his brother. The forbidden romance arc immediately grabbed my attention, and it was the best aspect of the story, no doubt.

My biggest problem with In the Heir was that it took too long to get to the best part. I’m not talking about slow burn romance, because I’m a fan of that, but the fact that there were too many subplots, and they ended up taking away from the romance.

The first few chapters were too heavy on the whole “Grandmother is forcing us to marry in exchange for an early inheritance”. We started with a chapter from the grandmother’s POV, and I simply wasn’t feeling it. I get that it was important to set the theme for the entire series, but I wish it had been handled differently.

Since I wasn’t a fan of that beginning, it took me a while to get into the story. I have to say that the moment Brett and Alisha went on that cruise, things improved a lot. The story finally focused on them and their chemistry, and I started enjoying it. I only wish things hadn’t felt so rushed toward the end. Their HEA didn’t feel natural enough, and I blame it on the chapters in the beginning and in the end wasted on the inheritance subject.

So while I did enjoy the romance, I think the book would’ve benefited from focusing more on Alisha and Brent than on the other characters and everything else that was happening with the Westerly family.

*If you liked this review (or not), if you read the book (or not), come say hello and leave your comments bellow.