This one is set in the 90s (was actually written back then I believe) so some of the stuff mentioned is kind of dated, but it’s still a good listen (I listened on audiobook). It gives Beauty and the Beast vibes— he’s scarred from an accident, and has been a recluse in his house ever since; even thinks of himself as a monster since his wife died in the accident after a tragic incident at a party.
She is a phone operator and they had talked nearly everyday for 2 years— she fibbed a lot about herself, but mainly for entertainment purposes. She wasn’t trying to hurt anyone. The truth comes to light when her office catches on fire, and she’s rushed to the hospital. He comes to see her and discovers her as she really is— but he doesn’t mind— he valued her friendship more than her looks. Plus he hasn’t exactly been truthful either.
He houses her in her recovery, and she has always had a crush on him through their phone calls. He cares for her but he doesn’t love her— he can’t love her due to the guilt he feels because of his late wife. Things come to a head though when she realizes he will never love her, or himself, and decides to leave. He is forced to do some inner reflecting.
I felt the ending was a little rushed compared to the speed of the rest of the book, but I enjoyed it overall.

Thank you Harlequin Audio for the listen!

I unfortunately am DNFing this audiobook. It’s not my usual genre, more toward fiction rather than spicy romance. Not quite my cup of tea and I don’t want to lessen the authors rating on GR so I won’t be reviewing.

Originally released in 1998, it doesn’t have the depth of the usual Susan Mallery books I read. The beginning was interesting, but I got bored midway through. Rushed to the end.

Stone lost his wife over three years ago. This left him with a scarred face. He very seldom leaves his home. So he is a bit lonely. He has actually started calling his answering service to talk to one lady, Cathy. When Cathy is caught up in a fire, this pulls Sloan out of his home to help Cathy. He brings her to live with him and this starts a friendship which just might lead to love.

This started pretty well. But then it sort of fell apart. I really got a bit bored with Cathy’s insecurities. And this story is all about looks…how he looks, how she looks. This drove me a bit insane. Plus, there are quite a few places that Stone is very condescending to Cathy.

So, needless to say, I was not a big fan of this book. I did finish it and I applaud Cathy with overcoming and becoming stronger and self confident.

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

Another amazing book, about love and loss by Susan Mallery. Absolutely loved the whole story. Loved the FMC and the MMC that had his own battles to go through. Such a good listen.

This was an enjoyable audiobook to listen to. Very much the Beauty and the Beast vibe. The characters were interesting and the story moved along quickly. I liked the narrator. It would be an awesome book to listen to while at the beach!!

Thank you to #NetGalley and #HarlequinAudio for an advance listening copy of #MillionarieBachelor. This is an older book with updated cover art. Unfortunately, the content was not revised and is really dated. 2 stars.

Quick, short listen. Parts of the story seemed childish with Cathy not communicating certain things with Stone but it was a different take on a romance where they don't see each other at first.

Not what I was expecting. I'm not sure if it's a reprint, but it's clearly set in the 1990's and the attitudes of the characters reflect it. There are some predictable tropes and some retro-body image talk that was hard to get around. It wasn't a bad story, but not what I was expecting.

Communicating with nightly phone calls and never meeting face to face seems like a safe way to build an intimate friendship. But a twist of fate will bring them face to face and reveal truths that have been withheld.

Cathy Eldridge is an answering service operator who has been enjoying her nightly phone calls with millionaire Stone Ward. But what happens when tragedy brings them face to face?