The Rules of His Baby Bargain

by Louise Fuller

All bets are off…

…when duty and passion collide!

Casino mogul Charlie Law promised his dying father he’d find his infant half brother and bring him home. He didn’t allow for the baby’s aunt and guardian, Dora Thorn, to counter his every move. Or for her beauty to threaten his ruthless logic…

Where her nephew goes, Dora goes. He’s all the family she has left—and she won’t back down, even from a billionaire. But beneath the bright lights of Macao, their battle of wills becomes a delicious dance of desire. And then Charlie gambles everything…with his convenient proposal!

Genres: Harlequin, Romance, Harlequin Presents

211 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 1, 2020

Reviews

[Carol Storm · Rating 3 out of 5]

Absolutely loved the first chapter or two, where Dora is dazed by the death of her big sister. Then a Chinese billionaire named Charlie tries to take away the only family Dora has left -- her big sister's child by Charlie's deceased father! Charlie is mad because his father never loved him, and never loved his mother, but at the same time Dora feels unwanted because her father left her mother and her big sister was just too perfect and then Dora lost her voice and . . . ZZZZZZZZZ!

Louise Fuller is a talented author, but she takes on too much. Charlie Law has too many sisters, spends too much time complaining about how his daddy was mean to him, and just doesn't strike me as the hero type. Note to Louise Fuller: watch Chow Yun Fat in THE REPLACEMENT KILLERS. John Lee would have eaten Charlie Law like an egg roll!

I'm noticing this trend in a lot of Presents titles lately. Directives have come down from the top to make heroes more sensitive, I guess, but the only way authors can do that is by piling up all sorts of family back stories and childhood angst that really distracts from the main romance. And by the way, having the hero run a gambling casino just struck me as so stale and out of date. I mean, maybe in the days of The Shanghai Gesture . . . but that was eighty years ago!

Another problem was the dumb ass title. "Rules of his Baby Bargain" did not impress me at all. I would have preferred "Taming the Black Tiger" or just "The Black Tiger's Bride."

When you've got a black tiger you let him run!

[🐝 Shaz 🐝 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars ⭐️
Started off well, then went a bit boring. Got better near the end.

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoughts: I liked this took place Macao, which is a place I never read before even in Presents. I loved the little bit of Chinese culture was in here. I liked that Charlie was of Asian descent, which again not many Presents have Asian heroes in them, but hopefully going forward there will be more of them. how emotionally raw this was with Dora’s deep longing for love. It was agonizing and painful as she was put through the emotionally wringer. I was tearing up a couple times as I felt her pain. I liked the chemistry. I liked how they bantered back and forth as they played the game together. Their love scenes were really good and very heated, but there’s emotion there too. I liked all the little intimate touches between them that showed they wanted that closeness between them. I liked the balance between the emotional and physical side of their relationship. It was nice to see the caring between them. I liked the date night. There was something missing though that I can’t put my finger on, causing me not to be blown away and absolutely love it. There was just a link missing for me, but overall I did enjoy it.

[Riz · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 Stars

It felt flat to me. I was bored and skimmed so many parts of this book.

[iamrite · Rating 2 out of 5]

I usually enjoy this author. And one troupe I really like is the guardian of a baby MOC. This was just flat to me - that could be because there was so much inner dialogue that really told us little. It started out with a lot of promise, but there was so much left out that H seemed flat.

H is the half-brother of Archie. h is the sister of Archie's mom. Both parents are deceased. I did like that you saw both H/h POV. You knew what H was thinking. H starts out as the typical jerk Alpha, but quickly evolves. h is strong willed, but with a really kind heart.

Contains epilogue with a HEA.

As far as troupe's go: guardian; MOC; h is not a virgin. Hero is not your typical manwhore playboy.

[rrbookverse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me gustó mucho esta historia de matrimonio por conveniencia, sobre todo porque la ambientación fue diferente, en un lugar llamado Macao, al sur de China, y que el protagonista masculino fuese un multimillonario asiático y atractivo, Charlie Law La trama engancha desde el inicio con una heroína, Dora Thorn , angustiada por su situación y tutora del bebé de su hermana fallecida, junto con la actitud desconfiada y engreída de Charlie. Ambos con sus respectivos pasados y circunstancias que tendrán que superar, mientras también dan rienda suelta a los sentimientos y la atracción que sienten el uno por el otro. Dosis justa de erotismo incluida también.

[TashNz · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Rules of His Baby Bargain by Louise Fuller is a November 2020 Harlequin Presents which I found to be rich with culture and emotion.

Macao has earned the nickname “Las Vagas of Asia” which helps set the scene for billionaire casino owner Charlie Law. Invited or ordered, depending on which way you like to look at it, Dora flies across the world to Macao with her little orphaned nephew Archie; Charlies half-brother, to meet Charlie and his family while the fight for his guardianship swirls in the background.

With both parties believing they are the best person to raise Archie, there’s lots of friction and emotion but hearts collide. Thinking a marriage of convenience is the best way forward for all concerned, with the beautiful city as the backdrop, Charlie and Dora bond. Dora reaches out for her new future and Charie leads the way.

Generations of devastation caused by Charlie and Archies father weave throughout and book and it’s captured with depth and intense emotion. Understanding Charlie and what drives him is delivered well and Dora is quite delightful and like a blossoming flower despite recent tragic events.

I really enjoyed The Rules of His Baby Bargain, it had depth and was rich with culture. Growing to know Charlie was done well and I loved visiting a city I'd never been to before. I really enjoyed this and recommend to anyone who loves this genre and troupe but is looking for something outside of the norm.

[Angelica Morado-Young · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story had a good beginning but about the middle, it seemed to get predictable. I was hoping that another character would be introduced and the main character would be more interested in him. But this did not happened and it was a typical plot. So it was unsatisfactory for me.

[More Books Than Time · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not finish, dumb.

[Susan in Perthshire · Rating 4 out of 5]

I do like this writer although she has written the odd book that I’ve not totally liked. I mostly enjoyed this one, especially for the exotic setting of Macau and two really complex and interesting main characters. But it was such hard work in places.

Charlie came across as a hard, arrogant jerk to start with but the interior monologues which formed so much of the book soon revealed the complex man underneath. Once we understood his past, he became a much more engaging character.

I had a bit of a problem with Dora (and what kind of a name is that?) as despite everything Charlie did, she continued to see herself as unworthy and unlikeable. However she redeemed herself with her honesty with Charlie and by fighting for him at the end. Intricate, complex and thoughtful - I really enjoyed this. Btw, the sex scenes were steamy! Loved them! 😉