She thinks she needs to put her family before herself. He’s determined to prove her wrong. Maggie is the heiress to the Reinhardt Department Store fortune. Her father died and the board of the company expect Alex to run the company but they’ve never had a nonfamily member run the company. The board has a simple solution—she needs to put the family first and marry Alex. Forget the fact that she … the fact that she isn’t his type and she loves someone else. Jonathan Best has been in love with Maggie Reinhardt since high school. Everything he’s done has been for her including escaping from his family’s clutches and opening a 5-star hotel and casino on the Las Vegas strip. He can’t forget their last time together and how after so long it was so right. So, after picking up the pieces he formulates his plan to stop the wedding and that when things get really interesting.
House of Cards is a standalone romantic suspense novel with a happy ending. It’s the first in the Billionaire Tech Series featuring the team members from the Venture Capitalist and Clear Security series
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If the death of her father wasn’t distressing enough Maggie finds herself in the untenable position of having to marry her best friend to retain control of the family business. She loves her best friend Alex but they both know that there will never be a romance between them especially since her heart has belonged to Jonathan since she was a teenager.
Jonathan is a successful businessman and Maggie’s brother’s best friend. They have had feelings for each other for years but have only recently acted on them. Jonathan was starting to plan a future that included Maggie until she dropped the bombshell that she would be getting married and it wouldn’t be to him.
Intrigue, twists and heat combine into a compelling storyline as Maggie and Jonathan must decide if the love they have for each other is strong enough to overcome all the obstacles conspiring to keep them apart.
I received the ARC of this book from the author via BookSprout as part of her ARC group. I am a big fan of Ainsley and have to say this one did not disappoint. Being a fan, I read the prior series of Venture Capitalists, and many of the secondary characters were from that series. In some ways it’s like seeing old friends as they showed up in this book.
This is the story of Maggie, who is the heiress to a retail empire, and currently runs their charitable foundation. From the beginning of the book we learn that since her father’s death, there has been some turmoil in running the company and her mother has arranged a marriage that will solve that issue for her and the company. Only one problem, Maggie is in love with Jonathan, her brother’s best friend who runs a luxury resort in Las Vegas and who she finally slept with at her brother’s wedding. At the start of the book, she goes to Vegas to tell him and then the action starts from there!
There is so much going on in this book, so I do not want to give too much away. Suffice to say, there is plenty going beyond how Maggie and Jonathan can work out their relationship. The intrigue surrounding her family’s company and the arranged marriage will both keep you guessing and wondering how they will figure it out. My only issue was at times I felt that Maggie was not as clever as I would expect her to be, and her decisions made me question her thought process. Also, I felt like the ending of the corporate woes was simplified and I wanted a little more action there. Lastly there was a part of the ending that I am not sure how it can be turned into the next book?!? Overall, another terrific book and cannot wait for the next in the series!!
Wow, a remarkable compelling page turner…
I have been a fan of this author for a long time & not once has she disappointed. This book however blew me away, it was stratospheric! It was raw, ugly, tender, sexy, the most intriguing characters but the sycophantic mother of the heroine was beyond selfish, she didn’t give a thought for anyone who couldn’t support her needs & that included her children she tried so hard to control. Her long suffering daughter started to rebel at the manipulation & eventually she won a hard fought dangerous battle. Loved the craftsmanship of all the characters & discovering that most of them cared deeply on so many levels including the family members that reconnected. Best of all, was her finding her hea with the billionaire who always loved her. Swoon! I received an arc & this is my honest & voluntary review.
Another great read from Ainsley! Wonderful characters, a well written story line with a bit of drama and some twists that keep you turning the pages. Add in the chemistry and romance between the main characters and you find yourself getting lost in their story.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I love these crazy people, the gambling the excitement and how they all support and love each other, and as the books grow it just gets better as each character has their story told.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Her new lover and friend or her best friend.
Jonathan is in love with Maggie. He’s built his casino in Vegas for her and planned on asking her to marry him.
Maggie just dropped a bombshell on Jonathan. She has to marry her best friend Alex for the sake of her newly inherited department store.
As she’s moving fast forward on the wedding, Jonathan has to try to get her to change her mind.
Then things get crazy with mob, nabbings and drama.
I thoroughly enjoyed Jonathan. I loved him and his focus on his Magpie. It was great to see all the SHN couples popping in for cameos. Maggie’s motivations are a lot harder to swallow but I liked her as well.
Family or a chance at happiness?
Highly recommend.
This is a very interesting story. Maggie and Jonathan are outstanding characters. This has drama conflict and family dysfunction
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
House of Cards is the first book in the new Tech Billionaires series and is a great start to this new series.
The characters are well developed, likable, and relatable. Maggie is in love with Jonnie but is willing to do anything she is told to keep the family business running, even marry a gay friend at her mother’s behest. This story is well written and has suspense, drama, heartbreak, mystery, secrets, romance, and a shocking ending.
I cannot wait to read the next book in this series.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
ARC was given by Author through Booksprout.
I am giving my review voluntarily.
WOW…that was so freaking good!!! House of Cards is book 2 in her new series (I consider Gifted book 1). I gave it 5 stars… Author hit it out of the park with this one. There’s so much in this book that my words won’t do it’s justice.
Ok….so this is kind of a spin-off from her Venture Capitalist series, you don’t need to read it to enjoy this book, but a lot of the characters that show
up here are from that series. I highly recommend you read it if you haven’t yet, it’s a fantastic series. All the books were really good!
So Maggie and Jonathan are friends from childhood and secretly they’ve liked each other forever.
Their journey to find happiness with take them through dangerous situations, lies, betrayal, broken hearts that will tear you up alongside them. This is a mystery suspense action packed with her typically steamy dreamy hotness sex, which I must have in my books! They do find their HEA in the end.
The ending to me was really unexpected, and I’m so curious to know what happened???
Ainsley St Claire I believe you have another big winner of a series here Loved IT!
This was a great story. It was highly entertaining and full id life and love. I voluntarily read and reviewed this book in exchange for a free copy.
House of Cards
By Ainsley St. Claire
Main Characters: Jonathan and Maggie
I voluntarily and honestly reviewed this book without bias or persuasion from the author.
5 out of 5 stars
This is a new series, (Tech Billionaires #1). It features some team members from the Venture Capitalist and Clear Security series and I loved that. I would like to see more romance in future installments. There were a couple of parts where I wanted to knock Maggie in the head for her stupid mistakes. I did want to make another comment but it would have been a spoiler and we all know we don’t like them. I can’t wait to read the next book in this series.
Kept me totally hooked from the first page! Great plot twists and entertaining characters! Loved it!!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This book was interesting from the get go. No lagging no slowing down. It was non-stop back and forth between Maggie and Jonnie. Their chemistry was explosive. I love how Ainsley St Claire detailed the relationship between the two families and how much he was willing to do to get to be with her. He stood by her through the most disastrous time of her life with her Mother lying to her and her world as she knew it coming crashing down. In the end it was a love that would last once she allowed herself to believe in it. I read this book in a day as I couldn’t put it down.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Maggie is being forced to marry her gay best friend Alex but when Johnathon hears this he vows to stop the wedding. Johnathon learns the the girl he has loved since he was 15 has to marry to keep her families company he offers himself but he learns that there is way more to the story.
There was romance, mystery, and drama. My critique is that it got overly wordy at times.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
If you are familiar with Ainsley St. Claire’s, “Billionaire Venture Capitalist” series, then you will probably be a fan of this book. The quick pace, the many characters that become entwined, the non-stop action… it’s all there in the same way that was in “BVC”. I always love when the Hero is determined and moved by his profound love for the heroine. Jonnie is that H in House of Cards. I have to say, I did find Maggie to be slightly annoying with her whining at times and there were times when it bothered me how the H was also willing to do anything for the h but she didn’t seem to reciprocate those feelings. But, having said that, it did not deter me from reading it. St. Claire has a wonderful writing style that keeps the reader wanting more. Her characters are always engaging and her plot is always extremely well thought out and seems to be thoroughly reseached and realistic.
While this story does end on a cliff, it is not for this story – St. Claire does a great job at completing this story while creating a cliffhanger that leads into the next book in the series. This is a terrific start into a news series. One that is sure not to disappoint.
This is the story of Maggie and Jonathan. This one just pulled me in from the start and I rooted for them to have their chance at love. With obstacles galore, I enjoyed how they navigate through the maze. I received an arc of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Wow! Best book ever. So many ups and downs in the storyline. Grabbed my attention from page one and never lost it.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is my first book by this author. I enjoyed the story line, it kept me engaged in the story along with good characters. This was a decent sized book, so it kept me entertained for a bit. I thought the book was pretty good, would like to know what happens in the next book of the series. Would love more of each of the characters from book 1.
I couldn’t help but root for Jonathan and Maggie. I was on the edge and practically biting my nails trying to see how they were going to make this work. He doesn’t want Maggie to get married to someone else and she shouldn’t. Her happiness should count for something right? Well, tell that to her family. There’s some mystery and suspense and a white hot chemistry that I couldn’t put it down.
I thought the book was good. It did read a bit slow initially, but it eventually picked up. It was good seeing all the out SHN characters back. There’s some elements of suspense like in the SHN books. HEA.