Haven Weston is a 25 year old plus size model with physical intimacy avoidance issues who has never even had a hug. Her therapist suggests cuddle therapy to help her with her problem. Reign "King" Beckett is a 40 year old billionaire who falls into instalove upon seeing Haven in a hotel lobby. The tropes for this book are right up my alley - age gap, he falls first, OTT possessive/protective, curvy FMC, but somehow it doesn't quite all hit for me. It's an easy quicker read, and I enjoyed it. I just also feel that there's some potential left on the table.
Haven and King don't feel fully fleshed out to me. I want to know more about how Haven has made it to 25 with the issues she has, and still had the confidence to model high fashion, and lingerie. She is at one hand afraid of touching and being touched, and on the other so starved for affection she agrees to this marriage of convenience super quickly after discovering that King has been hiding the truth of who he is from her the entire time she's known him. I know... willful suspension of disbelief... I also want more from King's background as to why he doesn't believe in love. It's just kind of stated.
While I wish the characters were more fleshed out, a larger issue for me is over the pacing. The big conflict happens around 80% of the way in, and I don't know why the villain is the villain. They have no dimension at all previous to then really, and it doesn't have much oomph behind it as a result. Then the conflict is resolved almost instantly, even though King's reaction is pretty heinous. When the MMC goes that far, I want a big time juicy grovel. I need a big time juicy grovel. I didn't get a big time juicy grovel.
Overall, if you're into the tropes, and are looking for a quick enjoyable read with an OTT hero, this one definitely fits the bill.
Thanks to The Author Agency and Hope Ford for the ARC opportunity.