I was so excited when I heard we were getting a new series from Marni Mann and all I need to say is I wasn’t disappointed, The Playboy (The Spade Hotel #1) was everything I have come to expect from this very talented author and so much more.
The narration team of Savannah Peachwood and Tor Thom did a wonderful job bringing Macon and Brooklyn to life. They were spot on with the banter and the chemistry and they were very easy to listen to.
Macon Spade is out at a Bachelor party when he spots a beautiful woman dancing alone on a stage platform. What follows is a man on a mission as he is determined to get to know her but even he didn’t expect was to fall hook, line and sinker for Brooklyn, the woman determined to keep herself to herself.
Brooklyn is strong and independent and the last thing she needs is to feel obligated to a man who is offering her a chance at her dream job.
So what does the future hold for this couple, one click to find out.
I loved everything about this book, I fell hard and fast for Macon and Brooklyn is the woman I want in my corner. I swooned, I sighed, I giggled as I found myself cheering this couple on. A perfect start to the new series and I’m now so excited for the next book, The Rebel. If you love witty, steamy billionaire romance look no further than Macon and Brooklyn’s wonderful journey.

Macon Spade sees a lady dancing in a club one night in Hawaii, and he is intrigued. She looks past him and ignores him. For a guy used to getting any woman he wants, his ego just has a hard time taking that. Brooklyn is focused on school and working to pay her way through school. She is about to graduate and has to look for a job. She also has two sisters that she is very close to, and a relationship of any sort is out of the question for her, which is why she ignores Macon. He is intrigued, however. They do end up having one night together, and each one figures they will never see the other one again; however, that is not how it works out.

This story flows well, and keeps the listener interested in the outcome. The narrators do a fine job of expressing the story. They are able to differentiate the different characters effectively, and it is easy to keep up with each separate character. This story is filled with strong friendships and great family ties. There are some incredibly supportive people in each of the protagonist’s lives and this makes for a warm and inviting story. It feels like the listener is visiting with dear friends while the story plays out.

I loved this book.

It gave off major Cinderella vibes without the step-mother and step-sisters, but in modern times.

Brooklyn is working as a housekeeper, while she finishes off her degree and then hopes to get a job straight away so she can quit her housekeeping job.

She meets Macon one night while dancing at a club and sparks are flying.

Macon is staying at the hotel that Brooklyn is working at and wants to pursue Brooklyn for a potential relationship, even though he’s been a major playboy previously.

Their relationship grows organically, aside from the fact that Macon spoils the *crap* out of her 🤣🤭

I LOVED getting to see all the Dalton brothers, and specifically Jo and Jenner from The Billionaire.

Just soooo good!!!

The Playboy is the first book in The Spade Hotel Series and what an amazing start to the series.
Marni does not disappoint with Macon and Brooklyn’s story. She brings the heat and the romance.
Macon works hard but plays harder. He’s so HAWT. His actions, his words and that mouth of his. Oh, lord. He’s a swoon-worthy dominant alpha, who gets his world rocked by Brooklyn. Just when he thinks his charming ways will do, she shows him he has to work for it. He completely does a 180 for her. He falls first, and is completely consumed by his attraction for her and I’m here for it. She’s the perfect match for him. She’s smart, sassy, she challenges him, and keeps him on his toes. She’s the male version of him to some extent but still are opposites. They have some walls to break down, some hurdles to get through and some secrets holding them back. They handled all those issues with a great level of maturity at the end. The story is full of banter, it’s fun, sexy, flirty, electrifying and has an all consuming chemistry. Loved getting the Dalton’s back in the story. Always great catching up with them. Loved these two! I can’t wait to read Cooper’s story next. The audio narration is dual POV by Savannah Peachwood and Tor Thom. They brought another dimension to the story with their characterizations. They kept me engaged, and I listened to the audiobook multiple times. It was such a good listen.

A sexy, fun, opposites attract romance that takes place in Hawaii. He is all about business, continuing to build the Spade empire, pleasure in the moment, never getting attached, working hard and playing harder. She is a strong, determined woman who is all about finishing her education, finding a good job that will satisfy her financially and emotionally and won’t let anything or anyone get in her way. Her focus is unwavering. Until they meet and the heat is off the charts. Will they, wont they? A steamy story that leads to an inevitable HEA that we needed.

Marni Mann cannot write a bad book! She came in swinging with this beauty. The Playboy is book one in the Spade Hotel series and what an epic start to a new series! Brooklyn and Macon are the main characters in this book and I loved these two so much!

Brooklyn is all about love when it comes to Macon, he can break down the wall brick by brick that she has up and capture her heart.

Macon is everything and more than you would want in a man. He’s sweet, sexy AF and so swoon-worthy. Normally he has women throwing themselves at him, but Brooklyn isn’t one of them women.. it doesn’t stop him from making his feelings for her known, even though he has not had feelings for a woman since he was younger so he has no idea how to act or what to do around her. It’s fun to read!

You put these two together and the chemistry between the two is off the charts, they bounce off each other... They may not seem like they would work. They may seem opposites but they really are meant for each other and the way the author has weaved it all together is perfection.

oh my god, the spice in this book is ….*chefs kiss*
I loved everything about this book and the characters. It was such an easy, fun, steamy, delicious and addictive read. I devoured it in one day!

READ THIS BOOK!!

5 STARS!

4.5/5 Stars 3/5 Spice

Tropes:
Billionaire
Alphahole
One Night Stand
Grumpy x Sunshine
Boy Obsessed
Reformed Playboy

🎧 Narration: savannah peachwood was the perfect brooklyn. i was so impressed with how she kept her voice sounding youthful but still strong & emotive. tor thom had a great kind of cocky voice for playboy macon but nailed the switch to a man obsessed. i felt like his cadence was a big sing-songy but overall he did a good job as macon. both narrators kept a nice pace so that when i listened on 2x it was still very clear & easy to listen to.

macon & brooklyn were such a bingeable story. 🤩 i loved how macon just flips. one minute he’s a playboy & then he sees brooklyn & everything changes. it was fun to watch him be this man obsessed & brooklyn absolutely melting for him. one night stand to something more is one of my favorites & marni wrote this one perfectly. the way they run in, then slow down & all the dynamics of their insane chemistry v the work&status dynamic - every bit of it made for an addicting story i binged in a day. i loved the cross over to the dalton brothers series & i cannot wait to for more spade hotel.

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

He's an heir to a hotel chain working on building a new resort in Hawaii. She's a business student, working full time and living in a tiny apartment with her two sisters on the island.

I really liked these characters. Macon is the single playboy who quickly becomes the growly, obsessed alpha-hole we all love to read. Brookelyn is the independent free spirited little sister that is looking to pave her own way and be taken seriously. The chemistry and spice between these characters was fire.

I just found it a little hard to believe a couple points, when any point of conflict or drama seemed to just be glazed over.

I found it a little strange that after laughing at his friends and family about being in relationships and him vowing to never fall for a woman again after his bad experience with his ex, that he changed his tune the second he saw Brookelyn with little to no debating or questioning himself. Typically you would see some sort of internal conflict when your entire ideals have changed, particularly when those ideals were based upon a previous experience.

Additionally, I felt like Macon was very quick to overlook Brooklyn's lies, when again, previous experience has essentially caused Macon to not allow himself to get close to women ever again because he doesn't think they can be trusted... and yet, when Brooklyn's lie is revealed, he is quite quick to brush it off in my opinion. Because of these two things, I found it pulled me from the story a little bit, because I expected a little more trepidation from Macon, causing it to lack some believability for me.

Overall, the book was good and I enjoyed listening to it, but it didn't really stand out compared to many other billionaire romances I've read. I didn't find there was anything specific making it overly memorable.

As for the narration, Savannah Peachwood's narration was, as always, great. Tor Thom's isn't my favourite narrator. He has this really amazing deep almost whispery tone, but I've found the same issue with his style in every book I've listened to that he has narrated. It sounds like every single sentence he says follows the same tone pattern. It's like singing a song and every single line ends on the same note. Rather than flowing smoothly it sounds almost a little to regimented and less conversational. The narration was fine, just something that I've always noticed in Tor Thom's narrations and makes me a little crazy at times.

Thanks to NetGalley for the arc!
This is the first book I’ve read from Marni Mann and I was not disappointed! I loved the pov from both main characters. The spice was hot! Perfect spicy romance book to break up my reading streak of thrillers.

Brooklyn is working at a hotel as a maid while trying to finish up her last two months at school. When the stress gets to be too much, she takes off to the club to dance, solo. She enjoys getting lost in the music and ignoring all of her surroundings.

That is until Macon spots her one evening and can’t take his eyes off her. Macon, the well known playboy, has finally met his match. Brooklyn is all he can think about, all he wants, and he will do absolutely anything to make her his. But Brooklyn knows they are way too different to ever work. She just barely gets by, Macon is a billionaire. He is on a completely different level, so why does he want her so badly? And how is she not going to cave?

Review
The Playboy by Marni Mann comes out December 28th, 2023. This is the first book in The Spade Hotel Series, which is a spinoff from The Dalton Family Series. While you do not need to read The Dalton Family Series, I do think it would be helpful to know who some of the supporting characters are and how they fit into the picture. At first all of the characters felt overwhelming, but once it started to focus on the main two characters it was fine.

The Playboy is set in Hawaii, which was super fun. I enjoyed hearing about the island and what made it unique. It was told by both Macon and Brooklyn’s POV which allowed us to really understand the characters more. I loved the opposites attract vibe, it really made it feel like the two were meant for each other.

The chemistry between Brooklyn and Macon was perfectly done as well as the spice. This was a fun read, and I think I might go back and read The Dalton Family Series in the future!

While I did enjoy the narrator, I hated the "female" voice that the male would make. Besides that, I did enjoy the narration.

A very self-assured billionaire is very attracted to a girl he sees dancing in a club. Although it's not something she normally does, Brooklyn wants to have sex with him in a party van. This starts their addiction to each other. Lots and lots of sex and language.

The addiction leads to a strong personal attraction, and moves into a romantic relationship. He finds out that she's a student, about to graduate, and driven to excel and she has a skill that his hotel chain is sorely in need of. But both of them are keeping secrets from each other.

I listened to the audio. Both narrators are wonderful.

ARC REVIEW - The Playboy - Marni Mann 

Stop what you’re doing and add this book to your TBR. Macon Spade is my newest book boyfriend. I was lucky enough to get an ALC of the audiobook version. Let me tell you, the narrators were perfect! The Playboy is my first book by Marni Mann but it won’t be my last. 

This book has so many things going for it. 
Boy-obsessed
Playboy-Billionaire meets struggling student
Set in Hawaii
dirty talking MMC 
Spicy 🌶️ 
Insta-connection

I love it when there are conversations via text in books. It makes the couples relatable and realistic, in my opinion.

I love how quickly Macon turned off the Playboy to a committed one-woman-man and how he was all in. He fell hard and fast! 

My Rating: 4⭐️
SPICE: 🌶️🌶️🌶️

I found the book dragged a bit in the middle. I felt like it was a bit longer than needed but it quickly picked up and finished strong. 

Thank you to @netgalley and @dreamscape_media for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. This book will be available December 28, 2023.

3.5⭐, 3.5🌶️

So I hate to say it, but this just was. not. it. for me. I didn't relate, or necessarily like Macon or Brooklyn's characters, and their "third act conflict" which really was the secrets they both held the entire book made no sense too me and made me frustrated. Their relationship just didn't have communication in place, and they really only related on a business level.

Unfortunately, I think I may have liked this more if I had read this book, instead of the audiobook. I didn't enjoy either of the narrators, especially during the spicy scenes, at times I was getting shivers, but not for good reasons over how they both voiced the opposite characters.

Tropes:
💙Grumpy Sunshine
💙Billionaire
💙Boy Obsessed
💙One Night Stand

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an ALC of The Playboy, by Marni Mann, narrated by Savannah Peachwood and Tor Thom. This is my honest and unpaid review.

The heat is on and it's smothered in heart. Count on Mann to get under your skin with unpredictable romance and irresistible characters. Love too tempting to pass up.

4.25⭐
Genre ~ contemporary romance
Series ~ Spade Hotel #1
Setting ~ Hawaii & Los Angeles, California
Publication date ~ December 28, 2023
Est page Count ~ 396 (26 chapters)
Audio length ~ 10 hours
Narrator ~ Savannah Peachwood, Tor Thom
POV ~ dual 1st
Featuring ~ characters in their 20's, fast burn ~ then kinda slow burn, one night stand, billionaire, college student, rich man/poor woman, age gap (27 & 22), opposites attract, alpha, secrets, lack of communication, plenty of steamage, no 3rd act breakup

Macon & Brooklyn
Macon is at a club for a bachelor party when he's drawn to the tiny dancer on a stage. Initially she's not feeling him, but very soon she realizes she can't resist his charms, so they head out to the party bus to get very well acquainted with each other.

Holy Maconator, so perfectly alpha and obsessed (not creepily) with her right from the start. He falls first, too. Although a billionaire, he's not overly billionaire~ish, except for that one time he flew her on a private jet to get the best sushi on the island.

Brooklyn was super smart, hardworking and passionate about her ideas to save the hotel money. I'm all about saving money and she had some good ideas, although probably already implemented in real life. I liked how, besides that first encounter, she doesn't give in so easily and plays a little hard to get, which throws Macon off since he's not used to that at all.

My only harp is that I really wish they didn't keep their secrets from each other for so long. They weren't even really that big of a whoop, hers especially. But at least we don't have a 3rd act breakup, so that makes up for it.

Overall, a great start to a new series and just what I'd expect from Marni. I love that we got a glimpse of the Dalton's from her previous series that I loved so much. See my reviews for all 5 of those books here.

I was lucky enough to have the ebook and an audio copy.

Narration notes:
Savannah did a lovely job. Tor was great, too, more so with his man voice than his lady one.

No one writes an obsessed man like Marni. I should’ve known from the dedication in this book that Macon Spade was going to take over my entire mind, body, and soul. My lord. I absolutely devoured this book. I loved seeing the Daltons in this book and reliving my favorite Marni series. Brooklyn might be my favorite female character of 2023. Her sass, independence, and intelligence just floored me, and I can’t get enough of her. I lowkey have a crush on both of these characters. Who am I kidding. It’s a high key crush. I just love Macon and Brooklyn so much. Y’all need to run to read this!

Savannah Peachwood is one of my favorite narrators. I just love how she performs. Normally, I’m not a big fan of Tor Thom, but I loved him as Macon! These two were a great pair.

This is my first Marni Mann read. I really enjoyed the audiobook. I love dual POV. The narrators were so good.
This book checked the boxes: spicy, hot, alpha, grumpy sunshine. I loved the characters. The banter and the angst.

Thank you for the opportunity to listen to this ARC.

3.5⭐️🎧

This was my first Marni Mann read and I enjoyed it. I love dual narration audio. I’ve always liked Savannah Peachwood’s narration and Tor Thom was the perfect voice for Macon! I think both narrators were able to convey the characters emotions really well to the listener.

It’s always fun to read the billionaire falling first and being the one to chase the heroine. Brooklyn was independent and more reserved than Macon who knew what he wanted the moment he saw her. The Playboy is the definition of instalust, and a VERY spicy read. There was as much spice as there was plot, if not a little more spice🥵 Especially in the first half of the book.

If someone asks for a billionaire romance recommendation with lots of spice, I will think of The Playboy! I just didn’t love how heavily the miscommunication trope was used in this one. I am interested in what’s next for The Spade Hotel series!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape for the ALC in exchange for my honest review! ☺️

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ //5

The Playboy
by: Marni Mann

THOUGHTS:

I want to thank the author for giving me the opportunity to read this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

🖤Alphahole
🔥Grumpy x Sunshine
🖤Good Girl x Bad Boy
🔥Billionaire
🖤Playboy
🔥One Night Stand
🖤Boy Obsessed

Holy Smokes!!!! This book was hot and delicious and all the things that I knew it was going to be. I eat up every single book that Marni writes and when this showed up on my kindle after about 5000 refreshing later—I screamed with joy! The spice was spicn’, there was never a dull moment and I loved LOVED Macon and Brooklyn. I loved watching them grow, their incredible banter and angst—sooooo yummy and so good! Perfection is how I would describe this one. This book is told in dual POV which is one of my favorite things soooo we get the best of both of the worlds. Little side notes…Macon is one of my top book boyfriends, he is HOT HOT HOT. I cannot wait for more, I will be begging for more soon because I NEED MORE of this series like yesterday pleeeease. This book is a must have on the TBR and you wont be disappointed by this book I promise you!

I was extremely impressed with the narrators for this novel. With dual POV and both a male and female narrators, I felt they really were able to breathe life into this stormy.

Macon, to me, wasn’t your typical billionaire bad boy. I will say he was a teeny tiny bit full of himself and his *ahem* capabilities (not that he didn’t deliver) in the beginning, as was expected. That being said, it did kind of give me the ick how full of himself he was. BUT he really was humble in his own way. He worked hard for what he had, he took care of Brooklyn (in all aspects ) and was never braggy about his wealth, which is normally a big thing in billionaire books. “I have money, I’m going to toss it around and you’re going to like it”. Not Macon. Macon said let me take care of you because it makes me happy.

I never felt a hug power imbalance with Macon and Brooklyn, and I loved that. Macon made Brooklyn feel like his equal from the start. Side note: we love a girl was a sassy mouth giving a man a run for his money. Brooklyn was full of spunk and wasn’t taking anyone’s crap and I live and breathe that. Give me a strong female lead and I’m sold.

There were times where I felt like this wasn’t the first novel in the series. I stopped reading and had to look and see because some things were said in a way that made me feel like I had missed something. I will definitely be looking to see if this novel is connected in some way with another. The combination of this and the ick vibes I got from braggy Macon in the beginning are the reasoning behind my three star rating.

If billionaire romance is your vibe, I would still definitely recommend you check out The Playboy by Marni Mann!