I am a sucker for LJ Shen books and Ruthless Rival got basically all my favorite tropes – childhood friends/rich girl & housekeep son/enemies-to-lovers/second chance romance. Written in past and present version. You can see the sweetest part when they were just lonely kids enjoying each other company and eventually became more. The older version of Christian is to die for – gorgeous, successful and all alpha male 😊 Arya is also successful, beautiful, smart but still a bit gullible when it comes to her family. I really enjoy the banters and the slow-burn but I think I was expecting a little more angst between them. I guess since Christian was hiding his identity, I did not get the anger and resentment coming from both sides. However, the chemistry is palpable though. Arya and Christian were definitely made for each other. You can tell they are drawn to each other despite the fact that Christian was no longer the young Nicholai from the past. This trope I have seen before but they storyline is pretty unique. We have childhood romance with identify changed and some twists, fierce enemies turn passionate romance. The story is also about family and forgiveness. I would have loved more romance and less family drama/revenge. Overall, it was an enjoyable read. I love the epilogue. First standalone and a beautiful beginning to Cruel Castaways series.

LJ Shen brings us the first installment of a new and exciting series called the Cruel Castaways! It focuses on a group of misfits who are thrown together in an all boys academy and form a hodgepodge family - Christian, Riggs and Arsene. This intense and passionate journey focuses on an enemies-to-lovers second chance slow burn romance for Christian Miller and Arya Roth! This book was so hard to put down and I honestly finished it and went back immediately and relived some of the moments because I was so in love with this couple!

I loved how Shen allows us glimpses of the past and the origin story of the boys club as well as how Nicky/Christian and Arya began there intriguing friendship. I loved and hated watching them experience the past as a bystander because I wanted to live in the moment and hug them. It broke my heart to see there world ripped apart and how their lives were scattered to pieces and put back together with tape and glue until a more permanent option is available. I also loved how we get to see them in the present and who they have grown up to be as adults. Nicky has transformed himself into Christian and Arya doesn’t know who he truly is. The push and pull between Christian and Arya draws you in and makes you flip the pages as fast as possible! This book is filled with lies, betrayal, redirects, mistruths, hope, love, passion, heartbreak, mystery, allure, vulnerability - it literally explores the kaleidoscope of emotions.

Arya and Christian burrowed under my skin and into my heart! Arya is a confident and independent woman who has gotten herself where she is in life by grit and determination! She is full of sass and quick comebacks! But she also has a softer side when it comes to her relationship with her father and wanting to be loved. I love the complexity in the characters and we see it in Christian as well! Christian definitely comes off as arrogant and entitled in the beginning but he loves his friends fiercely and would do anything for them. He is also very possessive but as his layers are peeled back we see the softer and more vulnerable sides to him which only draw you in more and make you love him!

You can’t help but be charmed by these two together and I loved the banter and wit thrown at one another! This is a definite must-read and I can’t wait to see more of this couple in the next book and find out more about Riggs and Arsene.

Another LJ book that i read expecting to find that old spark from her old books, but unfortunately, it's not really there.

I liked Nicky/Christian and Arya's friendship as kids, and I liked them as adults... Mostly. He wasn't a complete egomaniac jerk, and she wasn't a doormat. So that's a given in any LJ book.
I also liked that he was the poor boy and she was the rich girl, even if she wasn't snob about it. They were on the same ground as adults.

The story though, was shallow and quite predictable. Cliche and forgettable.
From day one it was clear that her father was shady and how everything would unfold and end.
So at one point, i was just listening it to pass time, cause I already knew how everything would fall in place.

Her Mom lack of interest in her during her whole life, and her excuse to approach her own daughter 30 years too late, when she was on the verge of bankruptcy, was ridiculous and unrealistic! Especially the easy way that Arya accepted it.

A few things kept bothered me in any LJ Shen book, and one of them, is the way she ALWAYS insert a designer name for shoes or clothes into the guy's internal thoughts! Like seriously?
As if ANY man would identify if a woman walking into a crowded dark bar was wearing a Jimmy Choo or a Target high heel! Unless he's an insider in the fashion circuit, he'll only see a difference if she's wearing Crocs!

Anyway... I think it's time to forget that I've loved her books in the past, cause it's been a couple of years since she surprised me with something new and really good.

The narration was good... Probably why I finished without being mad for even starting it!

I really liked this book. I’ve been a fan of LJ for a while now and I love how she creates characters that are believable while also creating a story that pulls you in right from the beginning.

Arya and Christian How can attraction be so great?

I love the author's books and have read all of them by now, but this one is different, it's not a friends to lovers or enemies to lovers roman, it's just so much more.
So much more feelings, especially suppressed ones, so much aversion to other people.

As great as the author's screaming style is, it's always fun to read her books.

Have fun reading!

Am I obsessed with Arya Roth & Christian Miller? Yes! These two are giving us all the slow burning goodness, all the push and pull, and the intense passion....the plot of Ruthless Rivals is so addictive and consuming, I was hooked immediately!!

One thing about L.J.'s writing is you know the characters are going to be complex, quite possibly a bit of an asshole, stubborn, sexy, and unforgettable. I am just as excited to know more about Christian's bestfriends, Riggs and Arsene.

In Ruthless Rivals, Shen takes us on a journey of childhood love, enemies to lovers, angst and revenge, all wrapped in a sultry HEA!

Ruthless Rival is a delight from beginning to end

LJ Shen has created characters so likable and attractive, a world so vibrant and engaging, that we want to crawl into the pages and know them!

.

This ennemies to lovers story is full of irresistible characters but Christian Miller is my favourite!!

He’s an alpha to the core and I love how important his friends are to him… they are his family and the dialogue is epic!


The story is flawlessly told from both Arya and Christian ' POV with flashbacks. Christian’s childhood was full of pain and made him the man he is now- A rich successful lawyer that everyone fears.

Arya is the epitome of the definition of a daddy’s girl!! She’s successful and would do anything for her father.

Christian and Arya meets and boom they clash…. The passion, the hate, the love, the anger … all of it mixed together will give you a story that will make you crave for more!!

Both main characters have tons of baggage which makes their individual stories interesting and watching them come together was EVERYTHING.

There is nothing I love more than an enemies-to-lovers story and no one does it better than L.J. Shen! I love a story that has an intriguing storyline, a sexy alpha, and a sassy heroine. This book had it all! The sexual tension was off the charts and the witty banter was so much fun. I could not stop smiling! I could not get enough of the chemistry between Christian and Arya. From the moment they met, I knew I was in for one hell of a ride. These two had me hooked and addicted to every word. I devoured this book! I simply adore this author's work and I can't wait for her next release!

♥ Review by Lys

Oh man, this thing was alllllllll over the place. Characters were sympathetic one minute and the villain the next, there was some kind of dating bet/deal that I didn't really get, the purple prose was out of hand, and honestly, I am very over the name dropping of designer clothes to remind the reader that someone is rich. There are so many other context clues there to do that work, I don't need to know that her skirt was Balenciaga. (And also, how are you simultaneously proud of paying your way through college and working at a just-becoming-successful firm with none of Daddy's money and also buying many designer pieces of clothing?)

I find that LJ Shen books are hit or miss for me, and this missed by a wide mark. YMMV!

This one was a weird one for me. It was slightly memorable, but also not at the same time. Honestly, there were some things that felt really disjointed. I think LJ Shen relies a lot on writing bad boys who are good only for the women they love, but in this one she was writing about someone who was good, but had just been wronged. Because she's so accustomed to the former it I don't think she did the latter very well. I just could not figure out if I liked Christian or not and I felt like his redemption arc was forced when he honestly didn't even need one. Neither he nor Arya did, to be honest. Now granted, they did have a good chunk where they figured their stuff out and were together, but I don't know. It didn't entirely work for some reason. Maybe because it was a book full of misunderstandings all the way through.

All in all, it was entertaining, but it's definitely not her best work.

L.J. Shen is one of my favourite authors. I adored so much in this book - I was hooked from the first chapter - and so many one-liners that are currently living in my head rent-free.

'WHO RAISED YOU?'

However, I am rating this a 3.5* because the book's second half felt disconnected. It was almost as though L.J. lost the story's point and melded two different plots together. And the characters felt off in the second half, too.

It was still a thoroughly enjoyable book that I would recommend.

Arya Roth became best friends with her housekeeper’s son Nicholai. But her father threatens her relationship and she loses contact with him the same year. Decades later, she meets the attorney determined to destroy her father and all her childhood memories. Without knowing the charming Christian Miller is the same boy she loves years ago, she starts to fall for him. Will the love survive all the lies involved in their lifetime?

🎆Enemies to lovers
🎆Childhood sweethearts
🎆Second chance romance
🎆Slow burn romance
🎆Secret identity in romance

Some of the fun tropes in romance combined to get a fun book full of banter and angst!! Christian Miller character reminded me a lot of Harvey Spector (handsome, arrogant lawyer) who does whatever he wants!! Predictably good, because i knew for sure this book would be amazing for me, when I read the synopsis. I enjoyed the dual perspective, giving more characterization in the story.

Surely recommend picking this one up, if you are a fan of romance ❣️

I was given an advance readers copy of this book and have decided to write a voluntary honest review. I am really looking forward to the rest of this new series,if it's anything like Ruthless Rival I'm in for a bumpy roller-coaster ride, full of drama, angst and so much more. Christian was so hot I freaken loved him. His personality, his determination he's the whole package. I really felt for him in this book. Arya I loved from the start, she's sweet with a rebellious side. Together these two are flammable. I'm also really curious about arsene and Riggs. Especially Riggs.

Enemies to lovers, second chances, betrayal, misunderstandings and love make up this amazing book! And let’s not forget revenge, hate and chemistry. Arya and Christian are childhood friends who are inseparable every summer. Until they’re not. It’s many years later that they come face to face again. But it’s not all flowers and candy at the reunion. Anything but. But Arya is in the dark about who Christian really is and Christian just see’s red when he sees Arya. Can these two move past the misunderstandings and betrayal to get their HEA? Find out what happens to them from page to page. It’s a wild ride that will keep you on the edge of your seat. So sit back and hang on!

𝙱𝚘𝚘𝚔: 🆁🅄🅃🄷🄻🄴🅂🅂 🆁🄸🅅🄰🄻
𝙰𝚞𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚛: 🅻🅹 🆂🄷🄴🄽
𝙶𝚎𝚗𝚛𝚎: 𝙲𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚖𝚙𝚘𝚛𝚊𝚛𝚢 𝚆𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚜 𝙵𝚒𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗
𝚃𝚛𝚘𝚙𝚎: 𝙴𝚗𝚎𝚖𝚒𝚎𝚜-𝚝𝚘-𝙻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚜
𝙲𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝙳𝚎𝚜𝚒𝚐𝚗: 𝙲𝚊𝚛𝚘𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝚃𝚎𝚊𝚐𝚕𝚎 𝙹𝚘𝚑𝚗𝚜𝚘𝚗
𝚁𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
𝚂𝚙𝚒𝚌𝚎: 🌶🌶🌶



“𝑌𝑜𝑢’𝑟𝑒 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑒．“
“𝐻𝑜𝑤 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝐼 𝑛𝑜𝑡， 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑙𝑎𝑚𝑒 𝑖𝑠 𝑠𝑜 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑓𝑢𝑙？“

One thing I know for absolute certain is when I open up a L.J. Shen book I am never going to be dissatisfied by what I’m reading.
Ruthless Rival was enthralling to say the least. I’m a sucker for an out of this world enemies to lovers romance and the story that unfolded between the covers of this book did not leave me high and dry. It did leave a colossal smile on my face and left me loving 2 more of Shen’s characters that stole my affection. Shen is and always will be one of my one-click authors.
When Arya Roth was young she became best friends with her housekeeper’s son. Soon, friendship turned to young love, and when Arya dared him to kiss her, a chain reaction of disastrous events led to the boy being sent away and out of Arya’s life.
Now, two decades later, Arya is an on-the-rise publicist with her beloved father as one of her biggest clients. So when her father is sued by a former employee, Arya sets out to prove that her father is not the monster he is accused of being. The only problem is the attorney who is determined to destroy her father’s good name. Christian Miller is charming, ambitious, and devilishly good looking, and Arya has no idea he is that same boy who kissed her all those years ago.
Past and present collide as Arya falls hard for Christian. But when she finds out who he really is and about his obsession with getting revenge on her father, can she choose love over family?

Everything about this book is worth all the praises its given. I highly recommend Ruthless Rival and all other books written by this author.

4.25stars--RUTHLESS RIVAL is the first instalment in LJ Shen’s contemporary, adult CRUEL CASTAWAYS erotic, romance series focusing on three friends: Christian Miller, Arsène Corbin, and Riggs Bates. This is thirty –two year olds, attorney Christian Miller, and publicist Arya Roth’s story line.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Arya and Christian) RUTHLESS RIVAL focuses on the second chance relationship between thirty –two year olds, attorney Christian Miller, and publicist Arya Roth. Approximately twenty years earlier Arya Roth fell in love with the forbidden, the housekeeper’s son but a stolen kiss destroyed both of their lives. Fast forward to present day wherein Arya Roth’s father has been accused of sexual harassment, and the opposing council looks familiar yet not. Enter attorney Christian Miller aka Nicholai Ivanov,the boy turned man with whom Arya shared a painful past. What ensues is the building but tempestuous relationship between Arya and Christian, and the potential fall-out when the truth is revealed.

Before entering Harvard, Nicholai Ivanov changed his name to Christian Miller, and his former life all but died in the wake of the new start. Having endured years of abuse and rejection. Christian refused to revisit the past until a sexual harassment case brought up a chance for revenge but more so a chance to seduce the woman he believed all but destroyed his life. Arya Roth never knew what happened, after that fateful night, to the boy with whom she had fallen in love. Believing Nicholai Ivanov was dead, Arya kept her love and her emotions close to her heart, having watched from afar as her parent’s relationship continued to implode. Desperate to defend her father’s reputation, secrets reveal a dark and dangerous past, and a betrayal that broke her heart.

The relationship between Arya and Christian is one of second chances, of a sorts: former best friends who were betrayed by the adults in their lives, adults whose own lives are lost or out of control. Christian’s slow seduction of our story line heroine borders on the unethical but Nicholai has not stopped loving the girl that broke his heart. The $ex scenes are intimate,seductive and passionate without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

We are introduced to Christian’s best friends: Arsène Corbin, and Riggs Bates, as well as their former guardian and mentor Alice Gudinski and Nicholai’s mother Ruslana Ivanova; Christian’s assistant Claire, and Arya’s parents Conrad and Beatrice Roth, and Arya’s business partner Jillian. Arsène’s storyline is next.

RUTHLESS RIVAL is a story of betrayal and vengeance, abuse and harassment, power and control, acceptance and love. The premise is dramatic, emotional and heart breaking; the romance is seductive and provocative; the characters are broken, charismatic,determined and intense.



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Usually a story with it switching back and forth between time frames is something that I don't enjoy. But I have to say that this book did it so much better than most. It was smooth, it flowed and didn't feel that it disrupted the story.
The story started out with me thinking, "okay. That's not bad." I can't even begin to tell you exactly when it pulled me all the way in. I do know some of the why's though. It was so well written, great, tough main characters, emotional in ways that were well felt, with plenty of mysteries, plenty of plots and outright lies. It really kept things jumping and interesting. And the "hate" between Arya and Christian was stellar.
I ended up giving it highest marks because if I had to use on word about this book it would be: "Surprising''. Surprising in the best possible way.

" I voluntarily read an advanced reader copy of this book through Netgalley. And these are my honest opinions about it.”

I really liked this book. For me it started off a bit slow, nothing really was grasping my attention about it. It took me over a week to finish which is out of my norm but I am a slow reader lol. I will say I loved the second half of the book much better. It’s definitely got the LJ Shen vibe, which I love. She always wins when it come to character development. Including secondary characters. In my opinion she really can’t write a bad book. Their chemistry was there and the back story was fire, but I am not one that normally goes head over heels for a kind of office romance… maybe it’s not that since they really don’t work together per-say but I feel like I got a little bored with the legal parts lol. I would recommend it because Christian Miller is definitely worthy of being known,

When Arya sets out to defend her father against sexual harrassment claims, she doesn't expect to feel so strongly about the attorney determined to put her dad away. There's something about Christian that Arya can't quite put her finger on, why does he seem so familiar? Christian has hidden his past for such a long time. He's not surprised Arya doesn't recognise him but he is determined to put her father away. Can he do that and get Arya on his side?

Enemies to lovers is my favourite romance trope. LJ Shen is the queen of romance writing. Put the two together and you have the makings of a damn good book. I devoured this one almost in the one sitting (arrgh kids! 😂) and absolutely adored it. The chemistry between our two characters was intense, the banter was witty and fun and there were a few surprise twists too.

Ruthless Rival by L.J. Shen is a story only she could write. This second chance enemies to lovers story is great. It does everything you want it to do and then some. Arya and Christian/Nicky are a great couple that complement each other well. And even though there is tension and conflict you are just waiting for them to realize the truth that they still and will always love each other. Great read!!