Money, scheming, family politics, step siblings are all in the storyline of this book. Who can you trust and what will you, or they gain if you do, or don't act the way they do or don't want you to. Life choices and consequences are played out in this read.

I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is a hard one for me. On one hand, I don't think this book plot should be more than 1 book. I feel like it was drawn out unnecessarily and a plot that could have been done in 1 book was stretched into 3. On the other hand, I enjoyed the story until the end when i found out there were more books. The chemistry between the Bastard and the Princess was hot. There were times when I wanted to slap her, though, especially when she would remind him that he left. I kept telling to my Kindle "He told you he was leaving. Get over yourself already." I really liked the Bastard character. I like how he want afraid of who he was and he want going to let other dictate to him who they thought he should be.

I had no idea it was going to end with a cliff hanger, i'm not sure if I liked it enough to read the next ones.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher, I am voluntarily providing my honest review.

This book ends on a cliffhanger. I do not like to read books that end on a cliffhanger unless I am prepared and already have the next book in the series. While this book was mentioned that it is the first in a series it did not say anything about cliffhangers. The story was interesting, but I felt as though the writing style was lackluster. Most reminiscent of high school English paper writings. Therefore, I thought paying $4.99 for each of the following two sequels was too high of a price and will not read them. Perhaps if it was written better I would.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed above are solely those of my own.

Gah, I should have checked before reading this from NetGalley. Had I known it was part of a series, I wouldn't have read it because now I am bloody hooked!

Admittedly it was difficult for me to get into the story at first because Eric and Harper are constantly in circles. They kept bringing up the same issues over and over and defending themselves to the other person all over again.

At some point, the argument felt old and I began to questioned what the heck I was doing reading a story that doesn't seem to be going anywhere.

It wasn't until the midpoint of the story that I am immersed into the whole I-see-number-in-my-head thing. Harper's big-old-secret is somewhat predictable, and that left me somewhat disappointed. But how Eric reacted to the secret that got me all tangled up in their world and made me want to know more, but it ended in a cliffy!!!

I did not finish this book. I’m halfway through and the characters have zero depth. The only dialogue between Eric and Harper are him accusing her of not being truthful and her saying she’s telling him the truth. I do not care at all what happens.

Good story that moved quick and flowed well. My only real issue is that it would have been nice to know a little more about Harper's father's company to understand the drama/situation a little better. By the end of the story though, I was ready for the sequel.

I feel like this story had potential to be very good. It was annoying that the description didn’t mention that the book ended with a cliff hanger. I didn’t feel much of a connection with the main characters.

Enjoyed this book. Shame about the ending would have loved to finish reading this. Another great book from Lisa. Thanks again.

Oh buddy, this book has got the sexy times!! WOO!! Eric (The Bastard) and Harper (The Princess) were drawn to each other from the moment they first laid eyes on one another, and talk about chemistry. And then comes the puzzle of the family fortune. How did the business go sour? What really was going on behind closed doors all those years? Eric's father's company has been jeopardizing lives, yet by the end of the book, we are barely closer to a resolution than we were at the beginning. And ooooh, that cliffhanger ending!

Lisa Renee Jones does it again!
I was hooked into this story from the very beginning and made me want to read the next book in the series right away.

If you are looking for good Suspense and romance books that are hot and sexy then I do highly recommend.

Packed full of tension, twists and turns and chemistry, I’ve been so excited to start this book and I wasn’t disappointed. I can’t wait for more!

Thanks to the publisher for a copy to read and give my honest opinion.

This is one of those books where the main two characters have a hate/love relationship. Between the sex and the fighting these two are a proverbial mess. Eric Mitchell is months shy of being a billionaire brought home to the family that has always referred to him as the bastard. The family company is in big trouble and the female he cant stop thinking about wants him to fix the situation.

What did I like? This is a favorite author of mine and there is always fighting to go with the filthy sexual situations. Despite the taboo step sibling relationship there is no blood holding the two together and the fireworks between them are plenty. Despite the cliffhanger I still want part two.

Would I buy this book? Id kindle it for sure, the cover is so fetching. I wouldn't loan it until part two comes out though because that cliffhanger is difficult.

Thoughts for the author? I want me some Lila Love:) Despite all this authors series I really love Lila's. This book just gave me a taste of fun while I wait for what I really want!

Not a particularly great romance, but the overall plot was good. Other than the forbidden step sibling romance trope, there was nothing steaming about Harper's and Eric's hook-up. I didn't think they had a chemistry despite the number of times both of them emphasizing on their feelings for each other. The cliffhanger was neatly done. Can't wait to read the next book!
ARC received in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Netgalley!

*Thank you to NetGalley and Julie Patra Publishing for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review*

emoji rating scale: 😩🙁😐😀😍
The Bastard rating: 😐

Wow. I’m here for the ending (and that cover). Cliffhanger, much? Overall, this story has so much potential, but is blocked by odd pacing and constant repetitiveness. This story goes from 0-60 in seconds, with Eric and Harper not getting the chance to identify themselves individually. Suddenly the the breaks slam and six years go by without either one really looking to find anyone else (which doesn’t feel believable).

I had different ratings throughout the book as I was reading, so I decided the best way to review this book was to split it by those sections.

“It would be so easy to hate her. But I can’t. I’m falling in love with her.” - Eric Mitchell

0-30% (read location) emoji rating: 😩

Honestly this probably would have been a DNF story for me, but I kept telling myself to just make it to another chapter. Low and behold, once you hit chapter fourteen, this book starts to get a lot better. The beginning of the book was filled with so much repetitiveness (and yes, I know I’m getting repetitive by bringing this up again) that it made it really hard for me to keep going.

“I have about thirty seconds to process Eric’s declaration that we’re not done before he pulls me close, all that sinewy muscle absorbing my body, that powerful edge that is this man, owning me, and he owns me all too easily” - Harper

30-78% (read location) emoji rating: 🙁

This chunk of the book got better; Eric & Harper’s personalities got deeper, and I felt like I could start to connect with them. But, the repetitiveness and the similar sentence wording really started to do my head in. Unfortunately, that ended up being the downfall of this book for me. The story plot itself was interesting and intriguing, which is the main reason I urged myself to keep going. There’s so much potential for a really great story series here.

“He affects me and not just physically. I mean, yes, he’s one hell of a good-looking man and he wears that expensive suit he’s got like he owns it and the world, but it’s more with him.” - Harper

78-100% (read location) emoji rating: 😐

Even with the low ratings I felt throughout this book, I ended up giving it an overall 😐 rating because that cliffhanger got me good! Jones’ certainly knows how to make a reader want to immediately pick up the next book. I felt myself navigating to my Amazon page as soon as it was done because I was left with an emptiness and wanting. You can’t just leave me like that!

GOODREADS: www.goodreads.com/review/show/2720515829

BOOK BLOG: www.inbedwithabook.com/2019/02/25/the-bastard

**I received this e-arc from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks Net Galley!**

3.5 stars.

This book has it all: steamy scenes, suspense and a somewhat <I>forbidden</I> romance. I really enjoyed it and read it so quickly. I think it's a great start to a trilogy and you don't have to read the previous 5 books in the Dirty Rich series to understand what's happening.

The ending had a major cliffhanger, but if that isn't you're style there is good news! The second book is already out and the third comes out in March so you don't have to wait long. I definitely think I'll be picking the other books up, because I need to know what happens!!

If you are in the mood for something steamy, suspenseful and quick to read with some romance thrown in definitely check it out.

The Bastard by Lisa Rene Jones is book one in her Filthy Trilogy and book six in Dirty Rich.

This is Eric and Harper's story and let me tell you, this is a nailbiting pageturner, a story full of unexpected twists and turns that kept me glued to the pages.

I loved the writing and the scorching hot story and can't wait to read the next book in the series.

Oh.My.God. That ending just killed me!

Eric Mitchell is the illegitimate son of Jeff Kingston (which explains the title of the book). Harper is his step-sister. They had a quick "secret" interlude six years ago just before Eric left. Even though he regretted leaving Harper, Eric had to go because he never trusted his father or the rest of the Kingston clan. Eric needed to leave to have the chance to become his own man. Apparently that worked out well for him since he's basically a billionaire in his own right.

Harper comes to Eric asking for his help. She suspects that something fishy is going on with the family business and she doesn't trust anyone else to help her figure it out. Their attraction to one another is still intense and Eric is protective of Harper so he agrees to help.

Eric and Harper are both keeping secrets though. Unless they can learn to trust one another and share everything - - and be open to hearing one another's secrets without judging - - they won't be able to make a relationship work. It's understandable that Eric has trouble trusting anyone given the history with his dysfunctional family. Unfortunately, he is so busy trying to protect himself that he's highly suspicious. So, when Harper's secret comes out before she can tell him herself, he jumps to the wrong conclusion and doesn't even give her the opportunity to explain. In the middle of this personal drama, they are at risk of being targeted as part of the company conspiracy. This brings me back to the final pages of this book, a definite cliffhanger moment....I need the next book now!!!

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this e-book in exchange for an honest review.

Eric has always had to fight for recognition ever since finding out that his father had an affair with is mother and then left her to struggle with cancer. The whole Kingston family shunned him until his father realised the value of recognising his ‘Bastard’ to goad his legitimate son into shape. He’s happy to leave them behind until he encounters Harper, his Princess who immediately connects to him with explosive results. Heady, intense and intriguing. It was always going to end on a cliffhanger. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I think I can sum this up pretty quickly- I began reading the book while watching the hockey game and quickly realized I would either miss the record setting game or get too deep into the book because both wasn't happening. Game then book, and I didn't stop. You would think the end of the book would have me finally going to bed since I stayed up way to late reading, but no, that isn't the case. I immediately (and let me stress immediately) went on and purchased book two in the series the second I finished. This series needs to be read in order, and just plan on not doing anything else besides reading once you start.