[ARC Review] The Billionaire and the Escort by Evelyn Mahony
Format: eARC
eARC provided by: Evelyn Mohony via Gay Romance Reviews
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Josh Roberts’ job as a high-end escort not only pays the bills, but also allows for dreams of one day owning his own art gallery - but only if he keeps his calendar booked. Out on the prowl for his next client, Josh finds James Barnwell, a billionaire resort developer and the man who will forever change Josh’s life. James might be bisexual, but he’s been lacking certain experiences that Josh can give him - for a hefty price. Josh is more than happy to take James on as a client, but soon all the nights together start to feel like something more, and Josh finds himself breaking the cardinal rule: never fall for your client.
There was actually a lot more substance to The Billionaire and the Escort than I thought there would be. Evelyn Mahony does a great job developing these characters; even the side characters have nuanced personalities that easily come through in the writing. I really liked the fact that neither Josh nor James had stereotypical characteristics; in fact, it was really nice to see the default roles they fell into and then see them switching things up. I definitely feel like Josh had more growth and character development throughout the story, but we do see more from his perspective. As both characters began to fall for each other, I loved the inner turmoil each character put himself through. It was raw and real, and Josh struggling with his feelings about falling for a client was almost palpable. There was drama, a fantastic cast of characters, and some very hot scenes between Josh and James. If you’re a fan of the falling for your client trope, or if you just love a good story about falling in love against the odds, The Billionaire and the Escort is a well written standalone from a debut author.
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