Invited to a wedding by her ex Ryan hires an escort to show she’s moved on and got over him. When Matt arrives at the bar where Ryan has been waiting he is immediately accosted by Ryan and berated for being late, surprised but amused Matt doesn’t let on he’s not said escort and plays along and goes to the wedding with her. This leads to them having a passionate one night stand where Ryan sneaks out in the morning leaving Matt’s payment on the bedside.
Eventually (at 40% of the book) they meet up unexpectedly when Ryan is visiting London, so starts their relationship all be it with a great surprise.
Unfortunately I just couldn’t get into this book, the dialogue dragged at times and the story became a little tedious. A nice enough romance but with failing to connect to the characters I didn’t enjoy this story as much as I’d hoped.
My thanks to net galley and publisher for the opportunity to review this book honestly.

I haven't read the first 2 books in the series and it didn't bother my reading at all.
Ryan thinks Matt is the escort she so desesperatly needs. And that mistake leads to all kind of shenanigans.
I really enjoyed Ryan's character. It's not that often that we see the heroine struggle from the misogynistic ways of a man's field.
The banter during their meet-cute was nice (maybe a bit too long ?) and the pregnancy trope was written in quite an emotional way.
A very good read.

I’ve read and enjoyed a high number of Donna Alam’s books. Were there books of hers that I didn’t enjoy? Certainly. No Saint and No Knight, the last two books in her My Kind of Hero series fall under the I-didn’t-enjoy banner. This review is for Book 3, No Knight, a book that started out well but then fell apart during execution.

Matt is in a bar in Manhattan following his attendance at an ex-girlfriend’s wedding, and he just wants to spend some time alone to reflect on his life choices. Ryan comes in and mistakes him for someone she hired as her plus-one at her ex-boyfriend’s wedding. Based on their discussion, Ryan assumes that Matt is an escort for hire, and Matt does not correct her. Initially reluctant, Matt is persuaded to accompany Ryan to her ex’s wedding, and they end up having a one-night stand. Months pass, and Matt is now in London, attending a business meeting at a company Maven (Matt, Oliver and Fin’s company) wants to partner with, and he unexpectedly runs into Ryan there. Although Matt is pleasantly surprised—he tried to track Ryan down for months because he couldn’t stop thinking about her—Ryan gives him the cold shoulder because she thinks he lied to her.

The book started really well, with Matt just wanting to be by himself and this feisty woman badgering him to cave in to her demands. Their initial meeting was, unfortunately, dragged out for too long, with the first 30% of the story revolving around the two of them having an extended dialogue. No action or narrative, just these two people conversing and bantering on and on and on… This extended dialogue eventually ended in a one-night stand, and the spice was hot (and what I’ve come to expect from this author). At this point, and despite the slow pacing, I liked both characters, but this soon changed.

Enter their reunion months later, and it felt like I was reading about different characters (at least, on Ryan’s side). Matt stayed consistent, but Ryan became this Debbie Downer persona who suddenly had an issue that prevented her from being “worthy” of a good man like Matt. For me, the entire premise of the story fell apart right there. Why? Because Ryan had a boyfriend before Matt, and by her own admission, she thought she was going to marry said boyfriend (until he cheated). But now we were told that Ryan had a secret from her past that made her think she is not good enough to be in a relationship with Matt... It was weird that this was not an issue in her previous relationship, and it felt like it was something the author cooked up to create conflict in Matt and Ryan’s relationship. This “justification”, however, did not hold ground. It would have been a different matter if she was not in a serious relationship in the past, but she was. To add insult to injury, the pregnancy trope (which I cannot stand) was then inserted as a plotline.

Matt was okay, but I did pick up a discrepancy in his behavior and personality (during the first part of the book) when the POV changed from him to Ryan—the two views contradicted each other. I also felt that Matt was too laidback in his pursuit of Ryan. It was all patience and giving her time to get used to him when the blurb promised/alluded to a “chase” that did not materialize. A big chunk of the story revolved around Ryan, and the reader didn’t get as much of Matt’s POV as Ryan’s.

Ryan changed from this feisty personality to someone who spent too much time in her head, lamenting her past and listing reasons why she can’t get together with Matt, while at the same time “managing” how often she sees Matt (while living under the same roof). She honestly did not feel like the same person who was introduced in the first part of the book. She spent too much counting down the weeks to the delivery of their baby. The entire middle section consisted of Ryan’s monologues and pregnancy progression. So much so that it felt like I was reading a book on pregnancy and not romance. As a result, there was very little face-to-face interaction between Matt and Ryan, and the romance and spice took a (huge) dip, and their communications resorted to texting each other daily. Ryan did not even want to meet Matt’s family and friends because she was determined that she would not be part of their lives. This entire storyline unfortunately let the book down.

I wanted to enjoy this book but excessive dialogue during the first third, constantly being in Ryan’s head, and tracking her pregnancy progression along with her did not do it for me. The lack of face-to-face interaction between Matt and Ryan made me feel that they did not know each other in the end. There was also a lot of telling vs. showing, and we didn’t even get to meet the baby.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for this ARC, I just wish that I could have given a better review.

I almost gave up on the book because the first few chapters were racey! And I realise that there was always going to be some spice but I thought that was all it would be. But then the setting changed and the story line kicked in and it was possible to see through all the sex to a plot. It’s definitely a certain type of book and maybe I should have been more prepared. Anyway you know what you’re getting with this book so read it if that’s what you’re looking for and don’t if it’s not.

I have such mixed feelings about this book. Mostly because it's **SPOILER** a surprise pregnancy - and its most of the book. We find out at maybe 20% that she's pregnant. And personally - I don't read these books. So I feel a bit betrayed because I understand it's a spoiler but I truly hated this twist and it's such a huge part of the book and plot there is no way around it.
It is well written and I think that there is nuance in both the characters themselves and their backstories and I appreciated that these aren't 20 somethings (please more MCs that are over 35 please), but this just wasn't the book for me. I might try previous books in the series, but the ending as well as the surprise pregnancy plot just leaves a bit of a bad taste for me.

This is my first Donna Alam book but definitely not my last as I loved this book.

There plot was perfectly paced and I loved that we saw a MMC fall first and fall hard.

This book had everything, witty banter, off the charts chemistry, and a man who dirty talks in Spanish 🥵

The friendship that formed between characters was realistic and some of Ryan’s thoughts throughout the book are what every woman has thought in a similar situation!

Can’t recommend this enough, thank you for providing me with an ARC!

I highly recommend this book to people who love a man just as invested in the relationship from day one as the FMC. My favorite thing about this story is they actually talked things out instead of just making assumptions about what the other person is thinking. I did not realize it was part of a series when I started the book but it did not affect my enjoyment of it at all. I am going to go back and read the other two in the series. The only thing that kept it being a 5 star is an issue that was a big part of the first part of the book was settled without any real information and I would of liked more about how it was resolved.

When Ryan mistakes Matt for her hired date for her ex’s wedding, Matt steps up and is her pretend escort for the night. They have a good time, but Ryan doesn’t expect that their paths will cross again afterwards. This was such a funny and spicy good time, I thoroughly enjoyed myself while reading this. Matt’s family being mentioned makes me curious for their books as well.
Thank you to Netgalley and Montlake for the opportunity to read this e-arc!

Firstly, I’d like to say thank you for providing me with an ARC. This is my first Donna Alam book but definitely not my last.

I absolutely loved this book. I loved Matt & Ryan - their chemistry (not just sexual - although very hot 🥵) but their friendship & banter.

I loved the other characters that often get sidelined in books but weren’t here. I got their stories & vibes and they really helped push the story along.

The pacing of the story was just right. Although, I didn’t see the twist coming - thank you for handling it so well.
We all love a HEA & this story delivered.

I’ll finish by returning to our MMC - I adore his “touch her and die” vibe, can’t get enough of his “I’ll burn the whole world for you” energy.

As for our FMC, Ryan is so relatable, she didn’t let her past stop her and she made a success of her life. She has some baggage & Matt was there to show her she’s worthy of being loved & adored.

Wish there was more of them 🤩

Link to my review on StoryGraph: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/eeadfd56-1a8b-4d5f-b9de-b969fa8a1aad

Our heroine Ryan hires a professional to be her plus one for the wedding of her current boss- also her cheating ex. Except that she mistakes a billionaire Matt for her hired escort.....

Love the romance and the swoon. The humour is terrific too. Love the steam.. Really enjoy the book.

Thanks to the publisher for the arc.

Thanks to Amazon publishing and NetGalley for this arc.

Unfortunately this one just wasn’t for me. It was written well, but the subject matter just wasn’t for me.

This book started pretty slow, spending around 30% on the first meeting between Ryan and Matt. It did feel as though the story dragged somewhat at this point of the book but Alam also did a good job of establishing a connection between our two characters and making the reader really feel like they only wanted the best for them. I was excited when we got past this point as it meant that we could get into the meat of the story and really see Matt and Ryan's love story unfold. Unfortunately, the "secrets" alluded to in the blurb? A surprise pregnancy 🤦🏻 I am not generally a fan of the pregnancy trope in books anyway but it particularly didn't feel as though it worked in this case. Ryan's bun in the oven meant that all thoughts of romance seemed to escape the story and the focus became on these two characters working towards being able to effectively co-parent. Whilst it is admirable that they wanted what was best for the wee bean, it was not what I had signed-up for with this book and it left me feeling so disappointed. There was almost a sense of these characters' reunion was going to be driven by the fact they had created a child together rather than a love connection.

Readers who enjoy a slower pace of story and don't mind (or actively love!) pregnancy tropes will likely really love this story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for this ARC!

I truly enjoyed this book — it features one of my favorite tropes: accidental pregnancy. The author did a wonderful job weaving that into a heartfelt, emotional story.

Matt was such a standout character. I adored how he loved Ryan — no love bombing, just consistent actions that showed his devotion and care. He supported her, fought for her love, and helped her grow in ways that felt realistic and touching.

I especially appreciated the character growth, particularly Ryan’s journey. The author handled sensitive topics like child abuse, infidelity, and misogyny with care, adding emotional weight without overwhelming the romance.

It’s a solid 4-star read for me, and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys heartfelt, trope-driven romance with substance.