The Billionaire and The Geek

The Billionaire and the Geek by Jem Wendel and Hinsel Meyer is the second book in their Love on the Flip Side series. It is the story of an older man who has made billions in investments through the years, a younger literary agent who helps him write his autobiography, and how they fell in love with a few problems to be solved along the way. Chase Knightly is a fun guy and young at heart at 53 and is a billionaire through his company, Knight-In, where he helps small businesses to grow and he makes money in turn. He left the US and is now based in England. His best friends are Gab and Harry, who he met at Harvard, and are rich in their own ways and are both owners of football teams among other businesses. Because of this they are not supposed to fraternize together, but they have a special bond so they often meet in secret. Chase is at the wedding of his friends Ru and Nate when he meets Noah Ellington, a literary agent for ANC. Everyone wants Chase to write an autobiography and they suggest he talks to Noah about seeing how to go about it. Noah goes into the library at Shelton Hall where the wedding is taking place and is in awe of what he sees. His degree is in book preservation and he especially loves old books and is thrilled to see the many first editions there. Chase comes in and startles him and they then have a conversation about the book where Noah tells him that he can write about any part of his life and to think about the story he wants to tell. This excites Chase…

This was a fun and lighthearted read! I really enjoyed Noah and Chase's story. It was fun to see Noah try to resist the pull between then and ultimately not succeeding. I loved seeing them kind of circle each other before jumping into a relationship. I was glad we saw them some more after then becoming a couple. It was great to see them navigate day to day life and deal with busy lives. It's not always easy and we saw that and we also saw Noah change his attitude. He really wanted to succeed and felt pressure to do so, but in the end Chase just wanted him to be able to do his job the way he wanted. I loved Chase's caretaking and attentiveness. He was a really great partner for Noah, always supporting him. It was great to see some of the characters from previews books and experience the banter and vibes from this bookwolrd. Read this if you like age-gap with some great yearning and pining and slight forbidden romance vibes.

I always enjoy the individual works of these two authors and together they created an engaging tale of the developing love between a silver fox billionaire and an “ordinary” young(er) literary agent, drawn together by great chemistry and a love for ancient things. The story develops naturally as Noah and Chase meet to discuss a possible work relationship while trying to figure out if either is interested in the other in a non-work way. I liked the way Noah was not terribly intimidated by Chase’s lifestyle, fitting in pretty easily, and I enjoyed the appearance of characters from previous books from these authors, especially Gab from Hinsel’s world. The process that Noah engaged in with Chase to decide on what the book he might write would be about was interesting, as it changed from the original autobiography idea into a topic that really got Chase excited about the project. I also liked Chase’s solution to Noah’s workaholic attitude and his subsequent exhaustion. He was late to the love game, but committed wholeheartedly to his love and care for Noah, wise enough to know when to back off or step in. The book had me smiling many times, and I had a feeling of satisfaction for where they were at the end. I want to go back and catch up on the books from each author of the related secondary characters that played important parts in this book, just to inhabit this world again. I received an advance review copy from the authors and this is my voluntary review.

I absolutely adored Chase and Noah. Their instant pull to one another and their chemistry is absolutely perfection. I love how Chase is willing and able to help Noah achieve his dreams and how true Noah stays to himself and continues to work hard to achieve them. I also really enjoyed that while there is a larger age gap it didn’t create any unnecessary angst within the characters. Having read everything both Jem and Hinsel have published I was constantly squealing at seeing so many different characters from across both of their worlds, but I think the loudest came for Gab!! I will always love her BAB energy. But getting to catch up with Nate and Ru, Harry and Tristan, Rafe, Carter, Iris and others was great, I love cameos and crossovers so much!!

This was a sweet story. Two men from different backgrounds brought together by friends in a ploy to get Chase to write his autobiography. Noah is a book agent who typically helps clients find publishing houses. The attraction between these two is immediate and it was fun to read their back and forth between keeping it professional and the want to do dirty things together. Chase has everything he ever wanted except a partner to share it with. He certainly never expected the man he wanted would be 20 years younger. Once he decided what he wanted was Noah for both his agent and his partner he was determined to find a way to make it work. Noah is driven and determined to beat all expectations even to his own detriment. I loved how Chase cared for Noah in ever aspect. The way he decided to force him to rest was genius. I think this might have been even better if I had read the other stories. I enjoyed it as an easy low conflict read.