When mystery shopper Shannon Jacoby meets billionaire Declan McCormick with her hand down a toilet in the men’s room of one of his stores, it’s love at first flush in this hilarious new romantic comedy from New York Times bestselling author Julia Kent.
Great
Got me hooked and ended up buying the rest of the books in the series.
Made me laugh
easy to read and good story
Enjoying the whole series!
Liked it but only received half the book as free for Kindle and must buy the rest. Didn’t like that …
This book/series is amazing! Any time I want a good and hilarious story I go back and re-read this book and the others in this series.
3.5 stars for Book 1 of Shopping for the Billionaire. Declan and Shannon’s story is full of promise of a great series. Declan and Shannon meet in a men’s bathroom when she’s doing her secret shopper survey and meet again during a company meeting. Interesting characters and very funny dialogue.
I’m reading this series for the second time and it’s as much fun as the first time. Declan and Shannon meet in a men’s room and Shannon has her hand in the toilet. Such is the life of a secret shopper. This book is laugh out loud funny.
Declan and Shannon This book had me laughing so much! I had a grin on my face for most of book and tears of joy running down my face. Shannon’s family was hilarious. I was a bit disappointed with Declan. He was over the top with his feelings for Shannon way too soon and then had trouble dealing with their relationship.
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Let’s talk about “Shopping For a Billionaire 1 by Julia Kent”, first book in the series of the same name out of I don’t know how many books”.
This book came to my life in such of a good way. After a frustrated attempt to read a secret baby story that didn’t happened, I decided that I wanted something quick and fun and this one hit the mark. Mind I say that the story of Shannon and Declan starts here but it doesn’t end here. There are a lot of books in this series to conclude their story and I honestly don’t know how many.
Shannon is a mystery shopper for some time now, and one day after eating so many bagels in one morning that should be illegal, she needs to break to the men’s restroom so evaluate the quality of that part of that establishment. When she is caught there by the most handsome sex-in-a-stick-with-a-suit man, Declan, a lot happens with such a small space of time, which renders a laugh out loud scene.
Ms. Toilet Girl and Mr. Hot Guy instantly get a like in each other and after yet another surprise encounter, this time in a professional manner, and they decide to finally give in to their feelings. Their “date” was so fun, crazy and finally with a little steam between them. I seriously want to read the rest of their story, so I got the next 4 novellas in my device.
Since I listened to this story in audiobook, I really wished that it was told in dual point of view so I could imagine Declan talking as well as his thoughts on everything. Either way, the female voice was very fun to listen to and it seems to fit Shannon so well!
I listened to an Audible version through BookFunnel.
I loved it and it was a great start to this series.
The narrator was perfect.
I finished this book and bought the set to continue the story through #5. It is a unique storyline and I love the characters!
I received a free copy of this audio book through BookFunnel.
I have to admit that I laughed several times while listening to this book. It stopped at a high point which only leaves me wanting more. I may have to buy the next few books in the series so I can figure out what happens between Shannon and Declan! Of course, I also want to see how poorly Steve takes this new attention Shannon is receiving.
Definitely give it a chance – it’s a quick read and you will enjoy the narrator as well.
Audio Review
This is a funny start to a cliffhanger series. Shannon isn’t your typical girl and Declan isn’t your typical rich guy either and their first encounter is one for the books.
Tonya Eby narrated this short book and did a great job. I received a code to listen on Bookfunnel and choose to review. She did a great job narrating. I enjoyed it but wish it wasn’t a series of short books that end in cliffhangers but rather was one full novel but the beginning is good.
I started this at about 3 am and laughed my way to the end. No sleep was had, just a great time and a whole lot of laughs. And tears, but again, that was from laughing (actually there’s one part I’m STILL laughing about anytime I think about it!) Shannon, to me, is perfection. She makes me laugh while just being herself. She’s also got a bit of fierceness & vulnerability to her that just makes her the total package. And Declan, what can I say? He had me the second he busted in to save her (you’ll see ). He sees her from the very beginning, her quirkiness, her heart, and he does all he can to get it, and ours. *Sigh* I cannot wait to jump into more with this couple
Shopping for a Billionaire #1 by Julia Kent
**Short novelette with simple HEA but continues further to Books 2 and 3**
Shannon Jacoby is a mystery shopper by profession. She loves her work, and it fits in well with her personality of being critical of everything. Her “devices” used in doing her job were very clever – stirrer with a thermometer! She and her good friend, Amanda, works for a secret shopper company – management department.
Declan McCormick is a businessman and is the vice president of marketing for Anterdec, a giant conglomerate that owns real estate, hospitality companies, and restaurants in the city. He is confident and knows how to roll-with-the-punches.
Declan’s attraction to Shannon was not as instant as some might think. Their meeting took place at a men’s toilet with so many hilarious things that I was surprised that their attraction was still evident from their body language. That hilarious moment reminded me of how attraction can be simple, unexpected, and funny at the same time.
Analyzing the book objectively, here are a few points:-
1) 2014 vs. 2019 writing
I have known the author from her “Do-Over” series (I thoroughly enjoyed this series), but I am new to the Shopping for the Billionaire series. I want to point out my previous experience with the author’s work is based on her 2019 books, and comparing Shopping for a Billionaire, an earlier work – I can safely say that her writing styles have evolved so much. I liked how the author has grown. I will assume that she took heed to some of the comments of her readers. Readers can see that there is still room for improvement for the author, which I can vouch for the author’s succeeding books.
2) Single vs. Dual POVs
My past encounters with romcom books would have both main characters’ POV – male and female. In this case, readers will only get Shannon’s POV. It was nice, but I shortchanged in trying to get to know the characters with this decision. The story would have been appreciated better if told from a dual POV. The characters would have connected better with the readers. Generally, a single POV is for mystery/suspense stories, wherein an author will want to add ambiguity to a plot. Readers do not need this in short novelette wherein it ends in a HEA.
Note: I did a bit of research and heard that some other editions have Declan’s POV at the end of the book. FYI – I first read the author’s ARC, and it did not have this bonus section. I then revisited the retailers to see if I could hunt the missing POV. I found the elusive “bonus scene” that came out later wherein (thank the Lord that the author wrote based on readers’ advice) at a retailer’s site. This extra POV made a significant difference in my rating. The Bonus Scene takes place at the beginning of Chapter 4 in this book. So, readers, make sure you have this extra scene at the back. Declan’s POV is really good!
3) “Too many internal thoughts, not enough outward happenings*.”
*The author should have used the toilet fiasco as the jumping point to have more things going on between the main characters. Some readers may find the insta-attraction lacking/incomplete within a short time, then ending the book suddenly.
I was okay with the book’s pace (even with the abrupt HEA), but just like the pace, Shannon’s crazy run-on thoughts were fast and exhausting. I did not like how Shannon would run-away with her head and comparisons on situations, but her actions were hardly anything – just a movement here or there. Shannon was the epitome of “calm on the outside but frantic on the inside.” Do not get me wrong – it is a brilliant combination. I love this a lot, especially in explaining herself in a men’s bathroom (that got me bawling over), but in later chapters, I felt Shannon’s head gave out too much information for readers. I do not know if this is a coping mechanism that the author would want to show us, but those were the “let-down’ moments in the book. Good thing, though, that Shannon comes up with these witty retorts to anyone who puts her into these “embarrassing situations.”
Note1: The author might be trying hard to place humor on Shannon by pulling every current pop references she can in each of the chapters. The descriptions were great but sometimes redundant.
Note2: I understand that the day Shannon and Declan met was the “turning point” for both of them, which might be why the author described the book in more detail than necessary. Yes, Book 1 is just Day 1 of Shannon and Declan.
4) Character focus and development could be better.
I love the crazy, hilarious supporting characters of Amanda, Marie(Shannon’s mum), and Greg (Shannon’s boss). I realized that I was looking forward more to them and their reactions than Shannons, which is not as good as I discovered. With the single POV, Declan did not have enough “page time” that I would have hoped. He was also an interesting character that I would not mind getting to know better, aside from Shannon’s.
Overall, Shopping for the Billionaire’s Book 1 gives readers a taste of the series’ perspectives and writing styles. It is a cute read with funny characters. Shannon and Declan’s chemistry is sizzling with a dash of humorous antics that will appeal to critical rom-com readers. I chuckled through the scenes as it came. The book is shorter than her other later series offerings.
I would appreciate this book better as a set with the other two novellas, Books 2 and 3, bundled together. The series’s success is evident with 17 books under this series alone for the author! I highly recommend readers to get/read the collection – Volume 1 to get a better feel for the characters as a whole and get a better appreciation for the series.
If you’re looking for funny and entertaining then this is for you. I read this series several years ago but have recently started reading again and my memory did not deceive me. It’s a great fun fast read.
Shopping for a Billionaire (Shopping for a Billionaire #1) was a great read by Julia Kent. Shannon is a mystery shopper sand meets billionaire Declan on the job. Unfortunately for her, she has her hand down a toilet in the men’s room. But that doesn’t stop their attraction. I enjoyed reading the beginning of Shannon and Declan’s story. I can’t wait to read more by Julia Kent.
The banter is great, some scenes are over the top though. I don’t go for all the other book parts because I expect more of the same.