Reviewed by Larissa

TITLE: Baby and the Billionaire

SERIES:  Shifter Rescue Book 3

AUTHOR: Victoria Sue

PUBLISHER: Self-published

LENGTH: 220 pages

RELEASE DATE:  January 31, 2022

BLURB: 

Zeke has always had the strength to fight for what he loves. But this time will he have the strength to walk away?

The shifter pack call him a human alpha, but Zeke Coleman knows he’ll never be one of them. Not really. And he hasn’t let it bother him in years, not until he meets a beautiful, damaged omega Darriel—and falls hard for the second time in his life.

After years of abuse, it takes a long time for Darriel to trust again, especially a human. But Zeke’s hang-ups about age and his place among shifters keep them apart, and Darriel forces himself to move on for the sake of his children. No matter how much he loves Zeke, Darriel refuses to risk another alpha who won’t love him back the way deserves.

But when Zeke is kidnapped and tortured by a panther clan, they can’t stay away from each other any longer. The problem is, everyone in Zeke’s life is in danger now, and he’s the only one who knows what’s going on. Even telling Darriel the truth could get him killed.

And he might be nothing more than a weak human, but Zeke will fight to the death before letting shifters hurt someone else he loves.

Sometimes it’s not about being an alpha in his body. It’s about being an alpha in his soul.

REVIEW: 

Victoria Sue continues her Shifter Rescue series with Baby and the Billionaire.  This is Zeke and Darriel’s age gap love story.  You cannot read these books as standalones. This is a continuing storyline that is pretty complex and has an extensive and fairly convoluted backstory. If you are reading this story, you need to have already read Book 1, Baby and the Wolf, and Book 2, Baby and the Panther.  Ideally, the prequel novella, Baby and the Bear, as well.  

Assuming that, you should know who Zeke is and already have the inklings of the mutual attraction between him and Darriel.   I will admit that despite my having read and reviewed the two prior books and the prequel, it still took me until at least around 15% of the way into Baby and the Billionaire to refresh my memory and get up to speed again.  Ms. Sue assumes you’ve either got a fantastic memory or have done your homework because she drops us right into the story without much in the way of transition or reminders.

Like the previous books, the action contains on-page (and off-page) violence and abuse. There’s dark stuff depicted throughout.  It’s a dark, gritty storyline with a romance overlaying it.  I didn’t immediately feel the connection between Zeke and Darriel, but Ms. Sue does a good job of developing their relationship across the narrative.  

The world-building in this series is excellent.  It’s immersive and absorbing.  The character development is similarly very well executed.  The characters, like Zeke and Darriel, are multi-dimensional and endearing, and it’s easy to become invested in our couple getting their HEA.  

The pacing and story arc progression has gotten better with each successive series installment.  In Baby and the BIllionaire, despite the density of the storyline, it moves at a good pace and keeps us interested without overwhelming us with twists and turns.  However, twists and turns do come as the suspense (anxiety) builds towards the conclusion.  Ms. Sue introduces new characters and we get some surprising revelations as well, setting us up for the next book. 

I enjoyed and recommend Baby and the Billionaire.  Your enjoyment of the series increases the more absorbed you get into the details, so for the best experience refresh on the prior books first.

RATING:

BUY LINKS: 

Amazon