Friday Fun Review: “Her Russian Billionaire” by Theodora Taylor

I finished this book a week ago, and up until now, I didn’t realize how I would structure this review for the best impact. But now I think I’ve figured it out. I thought it best to talk about just this book, and then about the author in general. While this is not the best written book (3 stars), the author’s hustle, and dedication to supplying her fanbase with what they want is noteworthy. As an author, I give her 4 stars.

(Added disclaimer:) The trick is to figuring out if you’re in her fanbase. This is probably a good representation of a lot of the erotic romances she writes. Her alphas are aggressive, almost brutal to a point, and as she says…ruthless. The heroines have some issues, but are more unique than any I’ve seen so far in erotic romance novels.

So this will be a way-left different review than what I usually do. Different set up and maybe even different tone/language. You can read the premise, get a feel for the characters, and all that prelim stuff in the sample and book blurb. Let’s get down to the nitty gritty.

About the book, Her Russian Billionaire:

Heat Level: High. (This is steamy, erotic, and sexy)

Taylor’s motto is that she writes “hot books with heart” and that’s what this is. The heart comes in the form of story. So while there’s a lot of graphic sexy times for you to see, there’s also a story, characters arcs, backstory, something to hold on to. Some of the earlier (and maybe still) self-pubbed romances came off as straight porn because, let’s face it, you could write whatever you wanted (not as much anymore, but you get my drift). This woman is a writer, not a porno creator.

Am I impressed by the writing? Not so much. There are some grammar issues and some craft issues with the POV. The dual POV rehashes some scenes during first transitions. For instance, the first few pages of another POV have the exact same plot points, so it reads as if we are repeating what we just read instead of getting another perspective. And in the middle of the novel, we get a repeat of the prologue. Again, this is from a different POV, and there’s a point to it, but we could use a little less rehash to understand the points to be made.

But does this writing criticism matter? For the most part–NO. Here’s why.

1. I’m late to the game on Theodora Taylor. This novel was written in 2012 at near the beginning of her career. All of us are still learning with that first or second book. You can already tell from her FIVE-CHAPTER SAMPLE of Her Russian Beast at the end of the Kindle edition of Her Russian Billionaire that she’d already improved on the writing issues I saw. If you’re new to her work like I was, stick with her. It will pay off.
2. Most people are not writers. I’m a writer and English professor, and I read like one sometimes, even when I just want to be entertained. So most of these “writer things” people do not notice, or if they do, they read over it because the story is good. So instead, review what I have to say about this author.

About the author:

As an indie author, I have so much respect for any indie author that can put 1 book out–let alone over 30, to garner a following in a genre that’s so vast and has so much competition, and gain an expanding following while doing so. Taylor has earned every bit of good for what she’s put out there. And most of her recognition started from garnering a word-of-mouth following. She’s done so well at it, that she got on Harlequin’s radar and she’s penned two books with them.

But her indie books are her crowning glory. They are full of steamy goodness and compelling story. She’s one of the many indie authors dispelling the continual stigma that the indie is somehow a “lower caliber” book than one traditionally published. Taylor delivers an entertaining book and on her motto of providing her audience with “hot books with heart.”