REVIEW: The CEO Buys In by Nancy Herkness

The CEO Buys In 
by Nancy Herkness
Release Date: July 21st 2015 by Montlake Romance
Series: Wager of Hearts #1
Pages: 412
Genres: Romance, Contemporary
Author's Links: Goodreads, Website, Twitter, Facebook
View/Purchase: Goodreads, Amazon, B&N

Self-made billionaire Nathan Trainor feels restless and disillusioned. His company may be thriving, but he can’t find a woman who sees him for more than his wealth. With his love life in the red, he meets two other billionaire bachelors at the ultra-exclusive Bellwether Club. The three of them make a wager of the heart: they must find women who love them for who they are, not their money.

Savvy office temp Chloe Russell is trying to scrape together the money she needs to support her grandmother. So when a flu epidemic strikes Trainor Electronics and she’s promoted to Nathan Trainor’s assistant, she jumps at the lucrative opportunity. But then Nathan himself falls ill, and he and Chloe must work from his penthouse while he recuperates. Before long, it’s clear there’s genuine heat between them, and it’s more than just a fever spike. Will Nathan win Chloe’s heart—and the bet? Or will their differences destroy any chance for love?

(Synopsis taken from Goodreads)

My Review:

The CEO Buys In was such a great and addicting book to read. Not having read any other works by the author before, I did not know what to except of a book that seems to have a very common story line. As a contemporary romance reader, I love these types of books, yet there are too many and some might even have similar plots. Now with that said, I actually loved this book. Herkness does an amazing job creating a setting that is both unique in its own way, while keeping the reader guessing as to what it's going to happen next. 

At the beginning of the story we meet three men, all equally young, handsome, and wealthy. When they suddenly meet at the ultra-exclusive Bellwether Club, these men meet for the first time and they all decide to make a wager of the heart: they must find a women who love them for who they are, not their money. It all sounds easy, yet hard when they're all betting something that priceless to them. If they win, they will not be getting the women of their dreams, but if they lose they will be losing a lot more than just their hearts. The first one up to the challenge is self-made billionaire Nathan Trainor, whose job has made him a workaholic and devoted to his company more than anything else. When savvy office temp, Chloe Russell starts working at Trainor Electronics, she is determined to work hard in order to make enough money to hire help for her dear grandmother. So when the flu epidemic strikes the workers at the company, she gets temporarily promoted to being the CEO's assistant.

Not having met before, Chloe is immediately taken back at how handsome Nathan Trainor is, yet his cold attitude makes her see that a work relationship will never end up good. Now she has no choice but to make sure she works extra to keep her job. But just when she was getting used to her job, Nathan Trainor gets sick and ends up staying in his home, but with too much to do he requests that Chloe stays with him until he gets better. With her job on the line and a very fragile grandmother, she accepts. Soon his delirious moments make him weak, and a part of him wants Chloe close to make things better. As the two start to get to know each other, the more they start to realize that their chemistry is stronger than they thought, and that they can give a relationship a try.

Like I mentioned before, I truly enjoyed reading this book. It is evident from the very beginning that they both have put themselves in a position where they have to protect their loved one over themselves. They have pasts that they need to move on from, and if they start to trust each other then things will get better for them in the future. Both of the characters have great personalities, Chloe is caring and a hard worker, so is Nathan. They are both driven by success, and when they're together they make great team. In the story, Chloe helps Nathan overcome his past, by helping him get a better relationship with hi father. On the other hand, Nathan is willing to do anything to impress Chloe's grandmother in order to get her to accept him as Chloe's boyfriend. Soon they face obstacles that they need to overcome together, leading the ending that I really enjoyed reading. Now, I loved overall plot, I just wished the author could have written a few scenes at the end that would have made the book so much better. At times the scenes felt rushed a bit, specially in the end, but the epilogue tied everything together very well. I highly recommend it, can't wait to read the next three books in the Wager of Hearts trilogy. :)

***A copy of this book was provided by the author/publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All my opinions are my own.***

My Rating: 4.5/5

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