ARC Review: His Wicked Wish by Olivia Drake

His Wicked Wish by Olivia Drake is the 5th in the Cinderella Sisterhood series. Madelyn Swann is an actress who is ready for a change. She decides to auction her services as a mistress to the highest bidder in order to obtain enough funds to follow her dreams. The scandalous auction catches the attention of Nathan Atwood, an earl's second son. Nathan surprises Maddy with a proposal, for marriage!

This is a story riddled with vengeance and pride. There are many secrets in the past that shaped these characters and their actions. I found the book to be extremely predictable. I can't remember being surprised at any point. I loved Maddy. She was funny, spirited, and kind. She was also very independent and strong. I never liked Nathan. He was almost always a jerk and/or jealousy ridden except for maybe two scenes.

There was no specific fairy tale that I found this to be similar to, but I did see a lot of fairy tale influence. A beautiful woman disguised as an old maid to test the hearts of gentleman. Nathan plays a night in shining armor, and Maddy does some pretty remarkable things herself.

I liked the book. But I was wanting something a little more unexpected. I'm not the biggest fan of predictable story lines. The romance wasn't convincing to me from Nathan's end, but it was convincing on Maddy's end. It made my heart hurt for her quite often. I just didn't think Nathan deserved such a wonderful girl. I don't know if this series will continue but I love the fairy tale magic of it all and hope to read more!

**ARC provided by Publisher**

Purchase: | Amazon | Kindle | B&N | iTunes |

ARC Review: Bella and the Beast by Olivia Drake

If you hadn't guessed it from the title, Bella and the Beast is a historical romance with a Beauty and the Beast fairy tale influence. It's the fourth book in the Cinderella Sisterhood series by Olivia Drake. I am a huge lover of fairy tales, and Beauty and the Beast was my favorite for quite a long time. When I got the chance to review this book I was pretty excited!

Bella Jones is a 29 year old spinster who has been raising her 15 year old twin siblings since their mother's death. Her family has been living in Persia because her father is an archaeologist. Bella has helped her father and the exotic is something she has always loved. Unfortunately her father has also now just passed away. On his death bed he tells her of a treasure and to go back to England and Aylwin to find it.

Miles Grayson (the Duke of Aylwin) is a beast of a man. He's not beastly in the sense of his appearance, but in his personality. He secludes himself in his home studying the Egyptian artifacts he brought back from his father's expedition there. He has some deep animosity for Bella's father who had also been in Egypt.

With the help and urging of the Countess of Milford, Bella applies to Aylwin to assist him in his endeavors with his Egyptian collection. Aylwin agrees with the goal of learning about what happened back when they were children in Egypt. She is trying to find the treasure map. The two butt heads quite a bit, until little by little they start learning the truth about each other. Though they both don't think it possible, a romance grows.

Bella and the Beast was very well done for a retold fairy tale. There was just enough influence to give it the magic feeling, but the story was unique. I was impressed with Bella's resolve through out the whole book. She had a lot of responsibility. It was endearing to watch Miles' beast-like nature shed away to reveal a very loving man. This was the first Olivia Drake book I've read and I now have the rest of the Cinderella Sisterhood series on my to read shelf! So glad to find another author to obsess over!

**ARC provided by Publisher**

Purchase: | Amazon | Kindle | B&N | iTunes |