An intensely sexy Billionaire Fairy Tales standalone novel by Jackie Ashenden that is billionaire romance meets Little Red Riding Hood with a happily ever after. Wicked. Ruthless. Obsessed. Sent away from his family as a boy because he couldn’t be controlled, Rafe DeSantis’s new guardian turned him into a monster. One who wants only two things out of life: To get revenge on the father who … on the father who destroyed his life. And to possess the woman who was kept from him. Ella Hart has been his obsession for years, and now that he’s her guardian he’s finally in position to black mail her into his bed. And once he has her there? He’s going to eat her up.
Innocent. Alone. Hunted.
Ella has been living with her grandmother since the death of her parents when she was a child. She’s learned to pour her grief and pain into dance, and it’s become her escape. Her passion. Now she’s set her sights on a prestigious dance school in Paris. But there’s one problem. Ella was so young when her parents died, her money was left in the hands of the DeSantis family…and it’s now controlled by Rafe. A man she’s always found compelling and terrifying at the same time. Rafe offers her an ultimatum: Give herself to him, body and soul, and she’ll get the money she needs.
Ella isn’t in a position to refuse, though she tries to resist the sexy billionaire. It feels good, until her heart becomes involved. Does the big bad billionaire want to capture her heart? Or does he only want to own her body?
Don’t miss these standalone Billionaire Fairy Tales:
The Billionaire’s Virgin (Cinderella)
The Billionaire Beast (Beauty and the Beast)
The Billionaire’s Intern (Sleeping Beauty)
more
Rafe was what his father considered a troubled child so he sent him away to live with his grandfather until he could control himself. Well, if that doesn’t instill some resentment towards your family what will?
Ella was merely a little girl when Rafe was sent away but she was always told to stay away from him that he was no good. But when Ella lost both of her parents years earlier Rafe’s father is the one that was given guardianship of her trust. Only now things are about to change…and she finds out when she requests money from her trust so she can attend a summer class at a dance school in Paris.
I will admit that this story took a while for me to get into and I cannot pinpoint why. I thought the story was well written and I enjoyed the characters but there was something just not clicking for me. This was a steamy retelling of Little Red Riding Hood and I have to say I love when Rafe called Ella Little Red.
This is the final book in the Billionaire Fairy Tales Series which follows the four de Santis brothers, each of the books can be read as a standalone. Start from the beginning or jump in now it doesn’t matter because each story focuses on one brother and it doesn’t end on a cliffhanger.
If you enjoy Fairy Tale Retelling’s, Age Gap Romances, or Steamy slightly dark Romances then this is a book for you.
Happy Reading!!!
I felt this story was an enjoyable read. This is the fourth story in the “Billionaire Fairy Tales” series. This is Rafe and Ella’s story. This story can be read as a standalone. I thought the”Big Bad Wolf” storyline was very cute and fitting for this couple. Even though Rafe came from a very rich family this does not mean that they don’t have their problems. Rafe had a temper at a very young age and the only person that could make him feel clam was a little girl, Ella. But then his family sent him away to live with his grandfather so he could help him learn to control his temper. It helped, but at what price?
I liked Ella as our heroine for this story, she has lost so much at a young age, I respect that she continued to be strong and follow her dreams. Ella is a very gifted dancer, her dream is to go to a famous dance school in Paris, but first she has to get her guardian to give her the money. What a surprise to her when she finds Rafe has taken over her guardianship from his father. I do need to warn those with triggers that this story talks and has scenes with self harm. I usually stay away from these types of stories because of a loved one with history of self harm and it’s a little too close to home, but the author used this topic to educate the readers.
If you like stories with gruff billionaires to a super sweet guy than this is a story for you. Enjoy, I know I did.
***I voluntarily reviewed this ARC for an honest review via NetGalley, this is my honest opinion and has not been influenced by the author, Publishers or NetGalley in anyway.*** Thank you!
Intrigued from the first page for this story between Ella and Rafael.
Ebook from netgalley and publishers with thanks. Opinions are entirely my own.
The Big, Bad Billionaire by Jackie Ashenden
Billionaire Fairy Tales #4
A book you will love or hate…and so say the reviews.
At first I felt that Rafe was a manipulative jerk that wanted what he wanted and would do anything to get it…no matter what. Setting his eyes on Ella and pushing her into spending time with him seemed wrong in many ways BUT as I got to know Rafe and how he had been raised his behavior did make more sense.
There was an age gap between Rafe and Ella of about twelve years. I don’t find that so great except that Ella at twenty was rather naïve, sheltered and anxious so a stronger more dominant older male might not have been the best partner for her…though the book does work and the two do bring peace to one another once they get things worked out.
I felt so sorry for both Rafe and Ella. There were traumas in their lives neither really deserved. There are no doubt people who live such lives but reading about them is not always easy. The issues that might bother some are not easily shared without giving away a significant portion of at least one backstory so…just be warned this is dark and there might be issues for some of you considering reading this book.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press-Swerve for the ARC – This is my honest review.
4-5 Stars
Ella is a ballerina who lives with her only remaining family member, her grandmother. She was to go to a dance school in Paris for the summer but has to ask her guardian for the money.
Rafe is the CEO of his family’s weapons company. He makes his father resign and takes over guardianship of Ella’s trust. He shows everyone how mean he can be. He wants Ella and will do anything to have her, even bribe her. He tells her she has to make a case for the money she wants.
Ella has feelings for Rafe but doesn’t want to. She is scared of him until she spends more time with him and realizes he wears a mask around everyone. But she sees the real him and he doesn’t like that. When he goes off on her, he tells her to leave, so she does. Can she get him to open up to her or will she lose him?
Great story. Very hot sex. A wolf and red riding hood storyline, sort of. He refers to himself as a wolf and Ella plays red riding hood in a ballet.
* Voluntarily read and reviewed this for netgalley *
3.75 stars–THE BIG, BAD BILLIONAIRE is the fourth instalment in Jackie Ashenden’s contemporary adult BILLONAIRE FAIRY TALE erotic, romance series focusing on the DeSantis’s siblings-Xavier, Nero, Raphael, Lorenzo and their sister Olivia. This is thirty two year old CES of DS Corporation Raphael DeSantis, and twenty year old ballerina Ella Hart’s story line. THE BIG, BAD BILLIONAIRE can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story line is revealed where necessary.
Told from dual third person perspectives (Rafe and Ella) THE BIG, BAD BILLIONAIRE focuses on the building by acrimonious relationship between twenty year old ballerina Ella Hart, and her guardian, billionaire CEO Raphael ‘Rafe’ Desantis. Eighteen years earlier, a then two year old Ella, adored the man she has now come to hate- a man whose once violent temper forced his father to send Raphael away to teach the young teen a lesson-a lesson that came back with a vengeance as Raphael took control and possession of DS Corp’s CEO.
Throughout the years, Rafe never forgot about the young girl who would one day grow into the woman that stole his heart but a series of painful losses found our heroine the soul keeper of her elderly grandmother, as she herself struggled between her head and her heart, and the prospect of dancing in Paris France. When our heroine is accepted into the prestigious European ballet school she is forced to confront the man who now controls all of her money. Enter Rafe DeSantis, Ella’s new guardian and financial controller, and the man with whom Ella will fall in love. What ensues are Rafe’s terms (an manipulation) for funding Ella’s European adventure; the building romance between Ella and Rafe; and the potential fall out as Rafe has yet to come to terms with the demons from his past.
THE BIG, BAD BILLIONAIRE is a modern retelling of LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD with all of the fairy tale markings including Ella’ bedridden, elderly grandmother, a ballet production of Red Riding Hood, and a hero who considers himself more wolf-like than human. Raphael DeSantis’s brutal and abusive childhood formed the man who would one day take down the father who all but gave up on our story line hero but childhood memories that now control every aspect of his adult life. Rafe and Ella’s fathers were best friends, and as such Rafe was a part of Ella’s early life but our heroine does not remember the good times with the man she would grow to love.
The relationship between Ella and Rafe is enemies to lovers; a second chance, or sorts, for two people whose earlier years were destroyed by heartbreak and sorrow, abuse and suffering, loss and revenge. We learn of Rafe’s overwhelming need to rekindle his friendship and relationship with the woman who has now become the focus of his fantasies and dreams; and of Ella’s unresolved and indeterminate hatred for the man she once loved and adored. The $ex scenes are erotic, seductive and intense. The sexual attraction is palpable.
THE BIG, BAD BILLIONAIRE is a story of betrayal and trust; redemption and fractured family dynamics; second chances and falling in love. The premise is enchanting and imaginative; the characters are broken and tragic; the romance is dramatic and passionate.
Love in all it’s tragic glory turns into an empowering tale of happily ever after. Ms. Ashenden breaks down barriers and tunnels deep into the soul of her readers. The Big Bad Billionaire is a haunting story of obsession, romance and so much pain. Ella and Rafe share a bond that has remained embedded in their souls. It borders on manic, but it seems almost ethereal. The misunderstood little boy has now become an embittered adult with a multitude of agendas and an obsession to gain back all he’s lost. Including the angel that has flitted through his mind and held a claim on his heart for years. Can the broken man find redemption in the scared young woman that has yet to discover her own strength? There were so many moments that I could barely breath from all the emotions. Part Phantom of the Opera, part Little Red Riding Hood, Ella and Rafe dance to the beat of their own drum and the melody is one not easily ignored.