Title: Read My Lips
Author: Kelle Riley
Publisher: Kelle Z Riley, Author
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: Four
Review:
"Read My Lips" by Kelle Riley
My Opinion:

"Read My Lips" I love you was all that Clayton could say after all that had gone on with him and the lovely Claire after it was all said and done. I enjoyed the story with all that came from these two, Clayton and Claire, who seems to be made for each other. Yes, we find Clayton dealing with his dyslexia and going to the McClaire Literary Clinic using another name...Artie Michaels and this is where Claire comes into the picture. With all that was going on with these two, when it was time to come clean about his situation, it would have been better if Artie [Clayton] would have told her the whole truth right then. This was needed since Claire seemed to have problems with trust issues from her last encounter with an ex-boyfriend, and this would have also helped in the overall plot of the story. It would have enabled Clayton in the end; however, as these sweet romances can go, you will have to pick up this novel to see how and if this author could get it all straightened out in the end.

I want to thank Independently Published and Netgalley for the book's arc and for giving my honest review.

Self-made billionaire Clayton McClain has a well-kept secret that he's held all his life... he's severely dyslexic.  So far,  he's been able to hide it with well paid assistants and his best friend and business partner,  Jimmy. But after his mother's death,  he receives a letter from her that he's unable to read and he decides to finally confront his disability. He turns to the literacy foundation that his chocolatier company sponsors,  but goes in disguise. 

When Claire Lennox meets Artie for the first time he's wearing threadbare clothes and pretending to be a lowly employee in the McClain chocolate factory.  They're immediately attracted, but a bad past relationship with a corporate executive has Claire reluctant to give him a chance. As they become closer and start a relationship,  Artie is afraid to tell her the truth given her past. Will she ever accept his true identity?

I love this rags to riches story that shines a light on literacy and dyslexia. Just like a man,  Clayton needs a little more trust and communication and it takes his friend Jimmy to talk some sense into him...only too late to do any good!

I received an early review copy of this book through NetGalley. My review is given voluntarily.

Clayton is a billionaire entrepreneur who owns a successful chocolate company. He has been hiding his learning disability for years. With the guidance of a lifelong friend, he goes undercover to seek treatment from a non-profit literary clinic that he owns. Here he meets his teacher, Claire. Claire has been avoiding the corporate world and all the men who are trying desperately to climb the corporate ladder. But she falls quickly for Clayton, or Artie as she knows him. Clayton's desires for Claire trump his common sense in coming clean with his identity.

This is a secret billionaire, instant love romance.
The characters are easy to like, but come off as a little flat.
The relationship between the two characters is sweet, but the spice seems forced and similar to that of a lifetime movie, which I personally do not prefer. It really is set for older adults. (Yes, I am an older adult. But I prefer a bit more passion and fire with my romance.)

It does set up nicely the next book. I would love to see more character depth and development.

Claire, having been scorned and betrayed by her ex-boyfriend/boss, is determined to stay away from men in power. She knows all too well that they’ll always have the last word. Enter Clayton, billionaire, head of his own chocolate empire, who is dyslexic and wants to improve his reading. He seeks Claire’s help with a superhero disguise of a ball cap and fake name to help keep his vulnerability from the press and rivals. Claire is drawn to “Artie”, and Clayton who feels a pull to Claire realises that being undercover might lead to more than just benefiting his literacy.

Mix together some spice, some romance and a little deception and you get an overall enjoyable story, a quick and easy light romance.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC.

I am not sure if this is a not for me type of book or if it was just lacking in better plot development but I was really bored by this book.

I really wanted to like this one, but I skimmed A LOT of it. The characters had potential but they were so boring and a lot of their motiviations didn't make sense and seemed to come from out of nowhere.

This was a sweet romance. I really loved Artie/Clayton and Claire. Their development was so on point that I felt I knew them. I really liked how both characters had to be vulnerable, but with those insecurities.... I felt that the more intimate scenes were not needed. They were almost too uncomfortable because it clashed with who the characters are..... Those scenes would end when they closed the bedroom door if that makes sense.
I liked how Artie's story started with his family history, and how he wanted to conquer the little stumbling blocks in his way with dyslexia.
Claire was so wholesome. Almost perfect.... Where are her real flaws? All in all, a sweet story.

I liked the last third. of the story, but the majority of the story made me uncomfortable because of the gullibility of one of the main characters, Claire, who after a terrible breakup and a declaration of not getting involved, she jumps in bed with a man who comes into her literary clinic for dyslexia and doesn’t that its her boss. I also didn’t like that the story made Claire gullible again to the same man that embarrassed her before.
The part of the story I did like is that Clayton, the CEO of Claire’s company decides to tackle his problem with Dyslexia and goes to the literary clinic for help and he gets help.

I want to thank Independently Published and Netgalley for a copy of the book.

Cute romance story! While the beginning felt a little disjointed for me, it quickly picked up and became hard to put down. The overall story was cute and I really liked the mention of dyslexia, especially since this cause hits close to home. Ultimately, this felt like a hallmark type movie and I am honestly here for it. I look forward to the rest of the series.

Who doesn't love a Billionaire in disguise romance?! The premise of this book was familiar but no less fun! I liked that it was in a Chocolatier setting, I don't think I've ever read a book about that before so that was a fun little twist! This is one of those books that you know how it's going to end, but it's still a fun read!

Predictable troupe filled with sizzle, heat, romance. I found it a quick, entertaining read. I don’t know if I’d read more in this series but it’s decent enough for what it is.

This was a cute and entertaining quick read. There was more to it than a simple romance. The story explores the literacy inequalities still very much prevalent in today’s society. I appreciated the fact that the author explored this topic all while providing a secretive and romantic tale. Would definitely recommend.

Looking for a fast paced heart pumping romance? Lovers of the secret billionaire trope, this one is for you. Clair and Clayton’s love story will take you on an adventure you won’t soon forget. This is an open door romance, with lots of steam and sizzle. So what are you waiting for? Grab your copy of Read My Lips by Kelle Z Riley today!

This review is for NetGalley only - I will not be sharing on Goodreads or Instagram at this time to respect the author.

I have mixed thoughts about this book. I really loved the concept of featuring a dyslexic hero and breaking down the stigma around dyslexia. I appreciated Clayton/Artie’s self reflections on the mess he made, and enjoyed his grand gesture. I thought the second half of the book was much better than the first.

I had the following issues:
- Dialogue - it sometimes difficult to follow who is saying what, especially in the first 50%
- Pacing - the first 25% felt very fast and rushed. I didn’t get enough background about the characters and their interactions for the relationship to feel realistic
- Ethics - the client/teacher relationship probably could do with fleshing out, I questioned the ethics of their situation. I also felt it would have been good for Claire to be a language specialist - it seemed weird to have her teaching?
- POV - there were sudden snaps into Jimmy’s POV that were unusual
- Supporting characters - I think Jimmy and Jill could have been fleshed out more. Jill was quite rude to her friend!
- Predictability - I was able to predict most of the events in this book. I don’t mind predictability in romance, but I note that I didn’t find anything particularly unique about this “identity” scenario

I am grateful for the opportunity to have read this advance copy. I know the story and style will appeal to many, but the above comments reflect my personal experience with the book.

This was a touching story. The characters are life-like and relatable. The details were descriptive, but not overly wordy.

2.5 rounded up. I couldn't get with the characters. I felt like I didn't care enough about them to be fully invested in their lives and relationships. I'm a sucker for a romance but the prose has to make me root for them. It felt like it was missing the element that evokes emotion.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ “Read My Lips” by Kelly Z Riley was a nice, light, pool read with just the right amount of smut to make me blush while reading it in public. The story centers around Claire, a scorned but determined young woman who is running a literacy clinic. In comes Clayton (or Artie, as he introduces himself to Claire) who is the tippy top boss of his chocolate company, who owns the literacy clinic. Clayton is dyslexic and comes to the clinic for help learning to read, and subsequently falls for Claire. I felt as though their storyline was very accelerated, and as a therapist I also feel very uncomfortable with a teacher falling for her client, but if you want a quick, fun read this is perfect for you! Thank you to @netgalley for providing me with this eARC in exchange for an honest review. #bookstagram #netgalley #netgalleyreview #netgalleyreads #netgalleyreviewer #readmylips #richestoroyals #bookworm #speedreading #speedreader

Claire and Clayton's story. A nice Cinderella story of humble Claire and rich Clayton. When he visits her to help with his dyslexia, sparks fly. His waiting to tell her the truth of who he was took a bit too long, but otherwise a fun and easy summer read. Would recommend.

On the positive side, the novel conveys a beautiful sense of place. Chicago almost felt like another character. The description about the work done at the literacy center—especially the specific information about dyslexia—was very interesting. I always love learning something new along with the story! The resolution did have a nice emotional resonance—I believed their pain and was happy for their reconciliation.

Unfortunately, neither the characters nor their relationship felt fully authentic or developed to me. I couldn’t quite get a handle on who they really were or what motivated them. I found the “game” awkward and the pace of their relationship felt somehow both rushed and drawn out. Some of the corporate scenarios seemed a bit implausible.

I wouldn’t discourage anyone from giving it a try, but it didn’t quite land for me.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

<b> I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. </b>

Clayton, or Artie as we know him for most of the book, is an extremely successful and rich business owner. Claire is a slightly disgraced woman, working in a literacy clinic. A lot of this book was predictable. This was an easy read, but I felt like I had trouble connecting with the characters. With the storyline being predictable, I felt like I couldn't understand why some of the decisions were made the way they were. I also felt like I couldn't understand Clarie's naivety. She wrote off all corporate men because of Robert. She never really asked questions and she immediately forgave Clayton after a couple of days. They also fell in love fairly quickly, which made it hard for me to believe the relationship. There was also a surprisingly amount of sex in this book. I thought the sex become intense really quickly. I thought the timeline was a little disjointed. At times, events would pass normally and then other times, it seemed like things were glossed over. I really liked the idea of seeing a main character with dyslexia since I have not read about it in many books, but I felt like he learned really fast after Claire and it didn't seem quite believable to me, considering how long and how hard he struggled. This could be due to the inconsistent timeline. Overall, this book did not stand out to me, but it still had some cute moments.

I would recommend this book to anyone who needs a quick and light romance.