How to Bang a Billionaire is book one of a trilogy all set around the same couple. It’s 1ST POV from Arden only. Now, this one does not end on a cliffhanger – they are together when the last page rolls by – but I have heard that there IS a cliffhanger at the end of 2 (due out later this summer, I believe). I might hold off on 2 until closer to 3’s release, but I’m not sure. I’m not always patient, after all.



Arden is the younger of the two, just graduated from Oxford, and is not at all sure about what he’s going to do with his life. (His major was English, by the way.) Caspian is older – I’m not sure that an exact age was said, but I was guessing early 30s, maybe? – and very rich. Like, third-richest-man-in-the-UK rich.


So how did these two meet? Well, when the book starts, Arden is helping his school with a fundraiser and is manning the phones, calling up alumni for donations. He’s only there that night to fill in for his sick roommate, and he’s been hung up on all evening, until he manages to catch Caspian’s attention – and not just for the fundraiser. The two talk for a few, and something about Arden has Caspian wanting to know more, even though that’s the opposite of his MO. He doesn’t do one-night stands but he doesn’t do relationships either. But he does want something with Arden, some middle ground between those two opposites. Before long, the two agree to an arrangement: Arden will live in one of Caspian’s houses for the summer (or longer – there’s no set end date yet), so as to be available between Caspian’s busy schedule. Arden, unable to deny his attraction to the mysterious man and with no plans for his immediate future anyway, happily agrees, even though he has his problems with Caspian throwing his money around too much.



It's soon made clear that it won’t be that simple, as Arden needs and wants more from him than Caspian can give, and this does lead to Arden leaving him for a bit. But don’t worry, Caspian goes after him, and I found that scene quite sweet.



Caspian is very much an intense, secretive, and controlling man – not in an asshole way, by any means, though he’s not perfect. He’s the tortured hero, the one whose past has made him who is today, and while we don’t find out in this book what happened in his past, we do see how the mysterious dark past has affected him. Caspian is both extremely sweet and charming to Arden, but also a bit unintentionally hurtful to him, too.


Caspian has a lot of dark baggage that clearly causes his need to put distance between them, as well as his self-hatred of his enjoyment – no, need – for control and kink in the bedroom. Arden is plenty comfortable with what he likes, including the BDSM bits, but has a hard time convincing Caspian that there’s nothing wrong with what they do behind closed doors. Arden wants Caspian to restrain him, to dominate him, but Caspian can’t let himself go enough to do so, even though it’s clear that deep down he wants that, too.



Reading this reminded me of why I love Hall’s writing, which is both beautifully captivating at times and ridiculously silly, with phrases and scenes making me giggle-snort. Even better, these moments often came out of nowhere, which is something I really love about Hall’s voice and writing style. How to Bang a Billionaire is romantic, it’s deliciously tempting, and it’s got snarky-silly, often dry, wit that I love.


If you’re looking for a new tortured billionaire with a need for BDSM, this is a great choice, and gives the reader a solid look at the start of what I’m sure will be an angsty relationship for these two men. I need to rest of the trilogy ASAP!



4 STARS!

This is the first book in the series. This is the first book by this author that I've read and it definitely won't be the last. I couldn't put this book down till I'd finished it, I was left wanting more. Even though this book reminds me of fifty shades it's still a fantastic story. I can't wait to read more from this author in the future.
Highly recommended
I voluntarily reviewed and advance reader copy of this book

I have a new love, and his name is Arden St. Ives. In this latest m/m romance by author Alexis Hall, Arden steals the show as a self-deprecating, camp, and utterly charming wannabe submissive to the aloof billionaire that is Caspian Hart.
How To Bang a Billionaire could be called 50 Shades for the m/m set, and I am just as captivated by this story as I was by Christian & Ana’s. There are certainly some similarities to be drawn here, but this book has a much different feel. There are definite distinctions. These characters, and their motivations, are unique.

This story drew me in from the start, with a prologue that damn near gave me chest pains. Hall’s writing is gorgeous and oh-so-British, interspersed with Arden’s quirky inner dialogue. There are moments and bits of dialogue that took my breath away.

There will be readers that don’t like Caspian. Some may loathe him. I, on the other hand, am fascinated by him. I AM Arden, wanting to get inside his head, needing to get under his skin. While on the surface, Caspian may seem like a “typical” billionaire Dom character, I truly believe we’ve only scratched the surface of who he is, and am excited to see where Alexis takes his character in the next installment of this series.

How To Bang a Billionaire really surprised me. I went into this story with a certain expectation, and those expectations were pleasantly and totally blown away. I’m intrigued and completely consumed with this story. I’m invested in these characters. The story was beautifully told, and Hall leaves you not just wanting more, but needing it.

I'm drawn to Alexis Hall's writing for reasons I don't understand. I haven't absolutely loved anything I've read from the author, but I can never resist the name when I see it on a book. This was more of the same - your standard billionaire 'I don't have time for a relationship but want convenient sex' book. (Except that I liked it a smidge more.) Nothing made it really stand out, but it was a decent read.

This review of How to Bang a Billionaire was difficult to write in terms of approach. Has Alexis Hall written an enjoyable, entertaining novel? Of course, he has. Has he written a pastiche of E.L. James’ Fifty Shades of Grey? I will leave that for you to decide when you have read this, the first in his Arden St. Ives trilogy. I think my response is clear in my review.

Do I approach this as a Romantic Comedy with elements of BDSM? There are certainly arguments for this; or do I approach it as Tragi-comedy where, as we often see in this author’s works, a strong but broken man is saved by a street smart, witty, golden hearted nerd?

However you approach this novel, I can almost guarantee you will want to read the next two.

It opens with an italicised Prologue, so intriguing, so beautiful and perfectly worded that Chapter One is a jolt of reality I actually resented. Believe me, if the novel had continued in style of the Prologue, Alexis Hall would probably sell fewer copies initially, but would have made the shortlist for the Man Booker Prize! It’s a short BDSM scene in which the sub being beaten loves the Dom and bears the pain for him. However, the Dom just cannot allow himself to give into his sadistic needs any longer. There are also hints of a much deeper story within the Prologue.

Back to the present, and we are introduced to Arden St. Ives, an adorable, rather lazy and de-motivated English Student at Oxford. He is currently phoning the alumni of his college to beg for money for St. Sebastian’s College. He isn’t having any luck until he calls Caspian Hart, a renowned, reclusive billionaire. Caspian is amused and intrigued by the bumbling, but refreshingly honest Arden. The phone call is a lovely way to bring them together and Arden remembers to invite Caspian to the fundraising dinner, and unexpectedly, on the parts of both men, he accepts.

Their relationship begins with a lusciously described blowjob on the balcony overlooking the grand hall, where below them the fundraiser is winding down. The verbal and sexual sparring is, of course, thoroughly entertaining and the author creates an intangible something between them that causes the characters to keep coming back to each other and ensures readers will stay with this couple, whatever happens.

We also have secondary characters of note; Arden’s straight, best male friend, Nik and Caspian’s sister, Ellery, who is a very complex and interesting character. Although she has had the seemingly lavish and expensive upbringing Caspian has, she is a rebellious, suicidal, self-harming, drug-taking thrill seeker, and yet is very likeable. Ellery adds to the intense thread of sadness woven through this novel.

Caspian’s office is beautiful, as are all of his male secretaries and assistants who resemble Calvin Klein models, especially Caspian’s PA, Bellerose. We even have Arden tripping over and making a fool of himself in front of businessmen in a meeting with Caspian. Sound familiar? Yes, there is a beautiful apartment. Plus, a negotiated contract, which Alexis Hall manages to make very funny while also revealing how boring the life of a ‘kept man’ actually is. Towards the end, Arden receives an invitation to the masked ball that’s being held to mark Ellery’s birthday. There is no misunderstanding of references to the Fifty Shades trilogy - they are meant to be seen.

However this is the queering of Fifty Shades of Grey, where people react in a complex and believable way to complex situations - and although I suspect there will be BDSM power exchange to come, there is none in this first book with the exception of the Prologue. Arden’s inner voice and his dialogue are humorous and slightly innocent. Alexis Hall restrained himself from giving Arden an inner god in a tutu.

I would call How to Bang a Billionaire, a pastiche rather than a parody because there is no spitefulness or malice in his writing. Indeed, I think Alexis Hall has emphasised the sadness and complexity of his dominant, Caspian Hart, rather than merely queering the misogynistic attitudes and abusive sex of the original.

This is his first book to be published under the Forever Yours imprint, and his new editor has done a marvellous job of retaining the author’s distinctive style, although I felt it was lacking some of the gorgeous evocative ramblings I love so much in an Alexis Hall book.

There was never a doubt in my mind that I was going to give How to Bang a Billionaire (who chose that title? lol) a rating in the ‘A’ range. It was A++ after that Prologue but I’ve settled on an A- .

I was unsure about the number of intertextual and cultural references. Intertextuality, allusion et al are part of writing and I like when I recognise them and they enhance a description or humour. But occasionally, they can become slightly elitist or isolate readers who do not recognise them. I noted down eighteen such references when I realised they were starting to jump out at me. Many, such as the reference to Alien, or to wonderfully romantic scenes in old, black and white movies and even American classics like MacGyver and Ferris Bueller, are pretty international and well-known. The ‘Balrog’, I am Legend, Ulysses, Heyer’s The Corinthian, du Maurier’s Mrs Danvers, G.K. Chesterton, or allusions to Narnian stone lions are perhaps too obscure for a romantic trilogy about a billionaire.

Maybe I am being just too picky, but what a delight to be picky about intertextuality. How to Bang a Billionaire is an entertaining read from beginning to the HFN ending, with the Prologue and the end scenes in Scotland pure undiluted Alexis Hall. Yes, of course, I shall be buying books two and three when they are released. Enjoy.

A drop dead gorgeous billionaire who is a repressed Dom and after the whole damn book we still don't know anything about him beside being a repressed Dom? Oh yeah, sounds pretty familiar and pretty dark. But since this book had such a cheeky and blunt title call 'How To Bang a Billionaire', the little twist come in the form of wannabe submissive Arden St. Ives.

Arden is a English literature student volunteering to make cold calls to successful alumni hoping to get some generous donation. Due to his wacky personalities, he made an impression on Caspian Hart, the most beautiful man to grace the earth. His words, not mine. This book is told entirely in Arden's POV, which honestly most of the time I find it hilarious. He had a tendency to be optimistic one minute and self deprecating the next. Bipolar, much? He also tends to babble a lot and he can go on and on about the same issue over and over again in his head. Initially I want to shout at him to just get over it already and stop being a drama queen. But Arden being Arden, I think he is an acquired taste, the more I read about him, the more I like his idiosyncrasy.

Caspian Hart is the rich asshole extraordinaire. He is like this gentleman who is always being nice and proper but I want to throttle him most of the time for being an emotionless brick wall. He is very close off about his personal stuff, but tend to shower Arden with anything money can buy.

Arden has little self worth when it comes to comparing himself to his secret lover. And living like a mistress or worst a prostitute waiting for Caspian's attention is initially tantalizing, but later on make him feel worst than a whore. When Arden finally grow a back bone and showed Caspian what he needs, will Caspian able to reciprocate? Okay, in the end Caspian is still as mysterious as ever and I still haven't seen kinky scene yet, but this book do end with a nice HFN for them.

I know this might sounds really 50 Shades, but I don't care cause this is M/M and I love it.

To be cross post at Amazon and my blog on release day.

This book was a fabulous romp through a very interesting and pervasive narrator--our friend Arden. He's deliciously camp and utterly delightful, with wit and verve that made me laugh out loud several times. His ideas of what to do and say had a silly, realistic feel but came from a very different lifestyle than mine--and probably yours. I loved it and him.

Arden's getting ready to graduate and somehow gets stuck working on a telethon in place of his roommate Nik, who's much more into volunteering than he is. While whiling away his hours of participation, he cold calls a former alumnus who gives him a bit of flirtatious fun. Not realizing who he was talking to and buzzing on the thrill of flirting, he invites him to the party for donors.

When Caspian Hart ventured into Oxford and St Sebastian's College's annual fundraiser dinner, he was really coming to meet the enchanting Arden St. Ives, his telethon caller. Their meeting was everything it wasn't supposed to be--whimsical, deliciously intimate, and ended with a kiss.

It had seemed to Arden that he was hopelessly outclassed, but after the kiss? Maybe there was something there?

But what?

These two men are years and maturity apart. What Arden does have, though, is something Caspian has been missing his entire life: a loving family and a wonderful sense of self-worth, with friends and family that accepted him. Can he teach Caspian the way?

Naughty tempestuous fun with two characters with a great plot line. I'm really hoping that there's another story about them because I'd love to see more of Arden St. Ives and his deliciously raunchy style of love. Thanks, Alexis Hall!

Sigh........

DNF @ [ the giving of the grant (hide spoiler)]

Here's the thing, while the author has lovely prose, because they do, just take Glitterland or Waiting for the Flood which are some of my all time favourite reads, and while this book had lovely prose.... it just didn't work for me.

Truth be told I feel very hit or miss with this author and TBH I feel that way with a lot of writers.
Readers are not going to love everything and that is just a fact.

So while I probably did not give this book a fair shot because I did DNF early, there are reasons.....

[
I am and will always be a 50 Shades fan.
I am and will always be someone who doesn't really read BDSM books unless it is Joey W Hill.
I did not look at 50 shades as a BDSM book. I didn't. I looked at it as a love affair and that in the end people will change only if they want to....
Dont bash me cause I liked 50 ok......

This book is a parody of 50 Shades.
Once I read how the MC fell in front of the other MC it was pretty much over for me.
And then...
The Grant......
Like the books......

I just couldn't get over the similarities.

Also this is a 3 book series with the same couple.

With that said, I probably will go back to finish this book once the series is complete.

In what 2 years? I dont know when the next 2 books will be put out but when that happens I will go back and finish. I hate Cliffhangers and I hate incomplete series.

(hide spoiler)]

Mare

Oh I never wanted this to end. So much still to learn about Caspian Hart!!!!!

Random review tangent:

I hesitate to link E. L. James with Alexis Hall, but I'm just going to go ahead and do it. As I read this story I kept thinking it reminded me of another book though the link remained illusive. Finally got it! How to Bang a Billionaire felt like an m/m version of the relationship Christian (50 Shades of Grey) might have had if the one with Anastasia failed.

stay with me.

In this story, Anastasia would have helped Christian while they were together to resolve his lingering negative BDSM associations, and very real need/desire for a D/s relationship as a means to express his love. He's at peace with his past and his desires, but unwilling to participate in a D/s relationship with her. They break-up. Then, Christian meets someone else who's super great and the REAL love of his life. Christian is unwilling to explore a BDSM relationship with this person out of fear, but this NEW BETTER person is into it and doesn't want this vanilla, artificial expression of Christian's affection. The fictional future partner likes a bit of BDSM and the D/s relationship. He/she also thinks they can have a healthy relationship exploring it together. But Christian resists and resists and resists. End 4th book.

back to How to Bang a Billionaire

In this book, using the aforementioned theory, Arden St. Ives isn't Anastasia - he's the person after her. The true love. Caspian Hart is the Christian character - damaged by his (in this case) mysterious/intriguing past and trying to have a healthy relationship but unwilling to explore a D/s relationship with his new partner.

At least I think that's what I think it happening here with Arden and Caspian - though the jury might still be out.

What it definitely is is a complicated love story - and it features my most favorite trope of them all - opposites. Returning to my earlier analysis (hmm), Caspian is the detached, wealthy, handsome business titan; Arden is the naive (in his own way) college student who sparks Caspian's attention and focus. They're different in every way but intensely attracted to one another from the first moment they meet. In fact, there's an instant connection between them before they meet, when Arden cold-calls Caspian to donate to his alma mater. Caspian is charmed, Arden is curious. The conversation is a delicious preview of what's to come - and the story sucks you right in from the get-go.

Again, much like 50 Shades, Caspian tries to dictate the terms of the relationship and Arden, bewildered by the attention and interest of his powerful crush, cedes to his demands. Which we all know is never a recipe for a successful relationship. And it isn't here either. Arden doesn't want Caspian's wealth or power or connections - he wants Caspian.

Misunderstandings/hot sex/missed opportunities... this is the relationship between Caspian and Arden in How to Bang a Billionaire. But this is a book by Alexis Hall and not E. L. James, so you already know he elevates this complicated love story into something better and more excellent than most everything else. It's poignant, bittersweet and tender - and just terrific.

I loved it almost as much as my favorite title by Mr. Hall - and I love knowing there is more to come from this pair and this author. You will too. SO SO GOOD. And also, the title. ITS HILARIOUS AND AWESOME.

p.s. does anyone know how many books are planned for the series?

How to Bang a Billionaire,  Alexis Hall
 
Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews
 
Genre: Romance,
 
I’ve enjoyed several of Alexis' reads now, he delivers a solid storyline with a side of romance that I can believe in, that has the edge on so many romance reads by making the stories fresh and unusual, the characters just that bit different.
On the face of it Arden and Caspian are unlikely lovers, total opposites and yet together they work. Not without some serious issues though ;-) Well, who wants a love story that runs smoothly, boring.
I was a little underwhelmed by the ending, it seemed for so long they were struggling, and then in the last few chapters there's a glimmer of hope for the future, but it felt very HFN rather than HEA and I was just disappointed. I wanted more. As it was I would have rated four stars, I just needed more conclusion.
And then I came to write my review, looked on Goodreads to see what else I'd enjoyed from Alexis and found - hurrah - this ISN'T the end, there's more - two books more, in Arden St. Ives 2 and 3, due out later this year.
That changes everything, I understand now why there wasn't that happy ever after, why it felt inconclusive and of course I can rate as a part story, not as a complete one, and that's the magic five because I loved it, and am looking forward to seeing where life and love takes these two next.
 
So what did I love? Arden, wonderful, glorious Arden.
I adore characters like him, he's small, slight, prone to dressing in a unique style - I want his T shorts, and his velvet jacket. I love fabrics, love the feel of velvets, satin, lace, a bit of glitter and sparkle and t-shirts that stand out from the mundane. My daughter reckons I've never grown out of my teen glam rock style of the seventies.... Why should only ladies get to love things like that?
Arden felt like a guy friend, a person I could know, I understood his Klutziness (oops, just wrote Clitziness...nope he's definitely not that!) He's very confident in who he is though, not hiding his attraction to men as so many people still feel they have to, and that's good to read. Tough still in real life though, sadly there's still too much bigotry and judgement, and too many hiding who they are.  
He's a good student, must have worked very hard to get to Oxford given his background and the struggles he and his mum have had. They're very close, yet she's clearly encouraged him to stretch himself, be ambitious. Trouble is like many students he's not sure what comes next. Put everything into finals and now its almost over, he's uncertain what to do.
In keeping with his general pleasant and helpful personality he's manning a phone line one evening, his friend who should be doing it is sick and Arden been roped in. He's calling old Alumni, reading from the crib script, trying to persuade them to donate to the university, and inviting them to the annual dinner for old and current students and staff. He's not having much luck so far, and then he calls up Caspian Hart.
Delighted that someone doesn't hang up once he's delivered his opening spiel he's thrown off course, forgets what he's asking, fumbles and rambles.
Oh yes, that's me on the phone, I hate it. Like Arden just here, my mind switches off the minute someone answers, so I understood exactly how he could go from an intelligent student to rambling motor-mouth in a passing sentence!
Caspian isn't used to that, and ...he's quietly intrigued. The rich and powerful like him get told what people think they want to hear, not the truth. No one is ever as open as Arden. They chat a little, Arden delivers his spiel and the invitation and that's it. So he thinks. And then the dinner evening arrives and brings Caspian. Neither are quite what the other expected, they are so totally opposite and yet the attraction between them leaps off the page.
 
Its an off, on, off sort of affair. It starts that evening in an unusual way, and ends abruptly. Then Arden discovers the Arden St Ives Scholarship and is furious, embarrassed, insulted, upset. Who wouldn't be? And in what world did Caspian live that he thought this would be a good thing? Arden steams up to London, determined to have it out. Oh, that part was wonderful; fiery, small, Arden in one of his unique t-shirts, hair awry, velvet jacket with holes, frayed rainbow bracelets, storming into a hallowed bastion of prestige and money.
Caspian ought to be furious, he's in an important meeting, but once more Arden pulls at him, makes him feel things he's not used to. He explains what he intended  though to Arden, that he didn't mean to offend, he's anguished at how he's upset him, never realised he'd see things that way.
He then tells him that he Doesn't Do Relationships. He has predetermined connections. There Are Rules. Everything is planned, ordered, fits a schedule and has a fixed in advance end date.
Poor Caspian, he seems to have to be in control of every bit of his life, even down to sex. Opposites as I said, as Arden is all about the unplanned, in the moment hook-ups. Til now. Til Caspian. He wants more, Caspian can only give within his boundaries.

Moving on, its the night before the final exam, Arden can't sleep, is mind is rambling,  "thought about calling home but didn't see any reason to worry the s hit out of my family" Then he gets a call and it all begins..sort of ;-)

Its a wonderful story, I can hear Arden's voice in my head so well, I felt just how he was feeling. I understood when he was upset at Caspian's actions, and yet I also understood why Caspian did things, he was trying, in a scene he wasn't used to, floundering and doing his best to keep control. One look, one word from Arden though and he's lost. I love how he says so often" Arden, my Arden..." There's so much feeling comes through from just those three words. Some authors could write pages and not deliver such emotion as they contain. Sometimes Less if More.

Usually I'm all about dialogue books, and not the inner monologue type, yet here Arden is internally talking to himself much of the time and it works for me, whereas usually that would put me off. Maybe because its something I do all the while, talk to myself, mentally muse on things. 
He feels so familiar, feels like a friend, and as a klutz, lost for words at times, shambling through life person I can identify with him. Gender really doesn't matter, its what sort of person you are and Arden is me, always waiting for the other shoe to fall, convinced someone is going to call fraud at times. When he's in One Park Lane, and worries about calling up food, the cleaners, what he should be doing, whether this or that is the right thing to do that's me. Every decision is preceded by lots of wondering, thinking, musing whether I should do x or y, or maybe z would be better....

He's got some wonderful phrases and a cracking sense of humour, very irreverent at times. Wish I had the lines, but the humour is right up my street! When he's drunk too much "..more of my innards wanted to be outards..." and "...animated Watership Down which incidentally is not a movie that should ever be shown to kids. That s hit is Stephen King terrifying..." I loved that book, took my kids to the film and like Arden was horrified by it. Its gruesome, nightmarish, though it has to be said I was the only one to get nightmares from it, the kids were fine!

One perfect line sums up their relationship " He didn't take control from me. I gave it to him" Arden knows what he wants sexually, he likes to be dominated, but he's not a pushover, not a victim. Sadly he's finding it hard to get Caspian to see it that way. Seems even though Caspian knows what he wants and needs, he doesn't like it. He's always afraid of taking advantage of Arden, always worrying about hurting him.
There's a world of miscommunication between them contributing to the issues they have. They can say the same sentence, but each mean something entirely different it feels to me.
I really want them to find a way through, to be together and happy and am really looking forward to the next two books. And I didn't intend to write so much – see, like Arden I ramble...
 
Stars: five, a terrific read, great characters that feel so real, and I'm dying to get more of them.
 
ARC supplied for review purposes by Netgalley and Publishers