Beautiful Stranger
Christina Lauren
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Published: April 2013 (Gallery Books)
Rating: 
Escaping a cheating ex, finance whiz Sara Dillon’s moved to New York City and is looking for excitement and passion without a lot of strings attached. So meeting the irresistible, sexy Brit at a dance club should have meant nothing more than a night’s fun. But the manner—and speed—with which he melts her inhibitions turns him from a one-time hookup and into her Beautiful Stranger.
The whole city knows that Max Stella loves women, not that he’s ever found one he particularly wants to keep around. Despite pulling in plenty with his Wall Street bad boy charm, it’s not until Sara—and the wild photos she lets him take of her—that he starts wondering if there’s someone for him outside of the bedroom.
Hooking up in places where anybody could catch them, the only thing scarier for Sara than getting caught in public is having Max get too close in private.
Power duo Christina Lauren really hit it out of the park with Beautiful Stranger. Now don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed Beautiful Bastard but the chemistry between Max and Sara was off the charts steamy and yet still had a solid foundation for love to bloom even with the quick pace.
There is no insta-love on either side, though plenty of lust, and it was a delight to watch Max’s understanding shift was a delight and he has joined the illustrious rank of book boyfriend. I wasn’t as attached to Sara. I tried to be understanding of her silly rules and hot/cold attitude with Max but towards the end I was so frustrated with her. He is a catch, ma’am! I love that Max pushes Sara’s boundaries respectfully without the ridiculous invasive alpha behavior that we see in some stories. Allowing Sara’s character to explore things about herself she didn’t know, regarding both sexuality and her personality, thanks to her previous dud of a relationship essentially dousing any new adult exploration on her side.
This sexy contemporary romp is definitely not one to miss. If you haven’t had a chance to read Christina Lauren yet, you are doing it wrong and need to add some of their books to your TBR stat.
