REVIEW: The Billionaire’s Innocent by Caitlin Crews

In The Billionaire’s Innocent (The Forbidden Series – Book 3) by Caitlin Crews, Nora Grant was brought up to move only in the best social circles and to aspire to marry well and work for charitable causes. No one has ever taken her seriously, or let her choose her own future. But now Nora has a plan to find her missing friend Harlow who was last seen in France. She didn’t know that she would soon be embroiled in a world where money can buy anything; including young women. Nora is shocked to find her brother’s friend Zair al Ruyi involved in that sleazy world. But is he who he really seems? Or will he turn out to be her savior?

“Do all your consequences end naked and in bed?” She hadn’t meant to ask that — but something glittered in his gaze then, a hot sort of intent that made everything in her clench tight.
“That’s not a consequence, Nora,” he told her softly. “That’s a reward, whether you see it that way or not.”

Zair al Ruyi might have trained to be a warrior but the business he deals with these days takes a lot of finesse and connections. He is part of a powerful bunch of men who have the money to do anything they choose. Legal or not. A lot has changed since the day he had to turn Nora down on her advances, when she was just barely eighteen. And Zair’s attraction to the beauty has only grown. While he wishes nothing more than to whisk her away and spend every waking moment with her in his arms, he knows there are dangers in being associated with him. And he’ll do whatever it takes to keep her safe.

‘Lie after lie after lie. What would be left of him with this was done? If this was ever truly done?’

Lies, attraction, and scandal abound in The Billionaire’s Innocent, a new Harlequin Special Release by Caitlin Crews.

There are actually three books in The Forbidden series, each written by different authors. This is book three and Nora and Zair’s romance. I think for the story to be completely cohesive, it might be better to read these in order. However I thought there was enough backstory that as I followed this through, it did make sense and I could understand basically what had happened to lead these characters to this point in the plot.

I thought there was nice, steamy connection between Zair and Nora, albeit a very complicated one. I liked that it took some time to really figure out if Zair was the bad guy he had led everyone to believe he was, or if there was something else going on. I’m not going to spoil the story, but I will say that there were a lot of things happening with the different secondary characters and it made for a complex situation.

Nora was an interesting character, too. She was tired of standing by and living the fake socialite life, so she decided to make a difference by finding her missing best friend. She had a lot more strength than anyone gave her credit for, and I liked that Zair finally saw that in her. At times, though, it seemed like their dialogue was a tad unrealistic given the situations they found themselves in, but being that I’ve never been in Cannes, France on a sex yacht…how could I really know? 😉 I do have to compliment Ms. Crews on a fun and sexy ending to Nora and Zair’s journey. I think it will leave a smile on your face.

If you like your romance with a big splash of adventure and intrigue, The Billionaire’s Innocent might just be for you.

Book Info:

Publication: June 21st 2015 by Harlequin Special Releases  | The Forbidden Series # 3

The Forbidden Series
Billionaires who can look, but shouldn’t touch!

For Logan Black, Jaiven Rodriguez and Zair al Ruyi, New York is spread out before them like the Garden of Eden…and no one knows the sweet taste of forbidden fruit better than America’s most ruthless billionaires!

Jaded, cynical, with a darkness that threatens to consume them whole, they think they’ve seen it all. But temptation has something new in store for each of them…

When Nora Grant decided she wanted to make something of her life, she didn’t realize it would lead straight to Prince Zair al Ruyi. Beneath his polished royalty, Zair has warrior’s blood running through his veins, and he’s found his next conquest! No matter how innocent Nora is, she can’t resist the touch of this royal billionaire.

Collect all three novels in The Forbidden Series:

THE BILLIONAIRE’S INTERN by USA TODAY bestselling author Maisey Yates
THE BILLIONAIRE’S FANTASY by USA TODAY bestselling author Kate Hewitt
THE BILLIONAIRE’S INNOCENT by USA TODAY bestselling author Caitlin Crews