The Fortunate Ones
by R.S. Grey
Published November 1, 2017
Source: I received an ARC of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion. This in no way affected my review.
At Twin Oaks Country Club, there are the fortunate ones, and then there are the rest of us: the waiters, the caddies, the valets, and in my case, the cabana girls. Most days, I’m poolside in a pleated skirt, dishing out margaritas to tycoons and titans. It’s not exactly my dream job, but it does come with one perk… James Ashwood. He’s my silver lining in a custom black suit.
Besides being a legacy member at the club, he’s a tech mogul and Austin’s most eligible bachelor. Oh, and those dimples? Yeah, they make my stomach dip too.
On good days, I catch his sleek Porsche winding down the tree-lined drive. On better days, I steal a glimpse of his handsome profile as we pass in the hall. And on the absolute best day, I find him alone at the bar, looking for company.
“Come have a seat.”
Those four little words set me down a path I never could have imagined. Private planes, penthouse suites, and temptations around every corner make it impossible to keep my distance. His world feels decadent and wild—but overindulgence comes with a cost. Every kiss comes with strings. Every erotic encounter is a promise I’m not ready to keep.
When I pump the brakes, he hits the gas. James doesn’t want to go slow—he wants a commitment.
And the thing about the fortunate ones?
They’re used to getting what they want.
R.S. Grey has become my go-to author when I’m looking for a light and fun romantic comedy. I’ve read several of her books and there hasn’t been one that I wasn’t thrilled with! I loved her last novel, THE FOXE AND THE HOUND, which I wrote about here. That one was my favorite novel of hers to date, so I was definitely anxious to read THE FORTUNATE ONES and see if it lived up to expectations.
There was so much I really loved about THE FORTUNATE ONES. I really identified with Brooke’s aspirations to travel the world and work as an au pair overseas. As someone who is straight up obsessed with travel and foreign languages, I loved that Brooke was too! I absolutely adored the Austin setting (obviously) and thought that the author did a really great job of incorporating local tidbits in a way that didn’t seem like she just tried to insert famous Austin places via a Google search.
I was into the country club setting, although I never really figured out why two girls who come from A LOT of wealth themselves were working there. The country club definitely seemed like the kind of place Brooke’s dad and stepmom would belong to, seeing as they live in a huge mansion and host actual galas. It seemed like they would not approve of their twenty-something daughters essentially doing nothing with their lives and working as cocktail waitresses? (Not that there is anything wrong with waitressing….AT ALL….it just seemed unrealistic for two super rich girls to be doing, especially with the older one living at home even.)
James Ashwood was….an interesting character. He was definitely my least favorite of all of R.S. Grey’s love interests to date, but I can see how some people would find him appealing. He was super rich and supposedly insanely hot, but I was very turned off by his borderline-abusive tendencies. There were a few scenes that involved him being super rude to Brooke for no reason, ignoring her and playing games, or even grabbing her way to harshly, etc. But then he was supposedly just ‘really sensitive’ and ‘needed to be handled with care’. That’s not hot to me, it’s psycho. BUT HE WAS REALLY RICH AND LIVED IN A MANSION AND WANTED TO GET MARRIED ASAP, so Brooke was all about him for some reason.
I was very disappointed that Brooke considered giving up her DREAMS for this dude, too. I won’t spoil the outcome by saying what her decision works out to be, but when she is offered to move to Spain to work as an au pair, she isn’t sure if she should go or stay in Austin to get ignored by this dude some more. I will say that IN THE END (like….the very end), I was okay with Brooke’s overall outcome but still never felt connected to this romance at all due to the aforementioned issues.
Even though I found myself very frustrated with the characters at times, I was always interested in reading and am still glad I read the book. While not my favorite of R.S. Grey’s work, I give this 3 stars. Definitely check out her books if you are looking for a fun rom-com to read!
Her next book is supposed to be set in New Orleans, my favorite city ever, and I can’t wait to read it!
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