{"id":24718,"date":"2017-08-19T03:39:45","date_gmt":"2017-08-19T07:39:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/?p=24718"},"modified":"2017-08-19T03:39:45","modified_gmt":"2017-08-19T07:39:45","slug":"review-all-or-nothing-at-all-billionaire-builders-3-by-jennifer-probst","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/?p=24718","title":{"rendered":"Review: All or Nothing At All (Billionaire Builders, #3) by Jennifer Probst"},"content":{"rendered":"

Buy:\u00a0 Kindle Ebook<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 <\/strong>Paperback<\/strong><\/a><\/h4>\n
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\r\n <\/div><\/div><\/b><\/p>\n
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Review<\/strong><\/h4>\n

2 heartbreakingly unfuriating stars<\/b><\/p>\n

This is the third and final book in the Billionaire Builders<\/i> series, and it\u2019s the one I have been really excited for. From the moment Tristan and Sydney were in the same room, you just know they have a history, and though on the surface there has been some animosity and they\u2019ve pretty much ignored each other, the sexual tension that has been zinging between them for the last two books has been building the anticipation for this final book of the series. But there were certain twists and plotlines that I just couldn\u2019t deal with, and that made this an aggravating and rage-inducing read for me that required much venting with my book buddies (thanks for that), and results in this ranty, feel-purging review.<\/p>\n

Please note that while this is the third in the series, each book is about a different couple and this one can be read as a standalone.<\/p>\n

Tristan is the middle of the three Pierce brothers, and is the straight-laced, serious one. The boys\u2019 world fell apart following the tragic death of their mother and, lost, bitter and grief-stricken, they all went their separate ways. The death of their father over a year ago bought them all back together when they were forced to work together in order to save the family construction building, and since then they have mended their relationships, and each of them has found their place working alongside each other.<\/p>\n

Sydney has been a part of the boys\u2019 world for as long as they can remember. She grew up with them, and then began working with Pierce Construction when she was just 16 years old. She has been by their side through everything, and they have looked after her in turn as she balanced her work with being a single mother. And now, she\u2019s ready to branch out and ask for a higher stake in the company \u2013 a move that will have her working side by side with Tristan on a huge project.<\/p>\n

As I said earlier, Tristan and Sydney have always had a special chemistry between them and it was clear that there is some sort of romantic\/sexual edge to it. There was one potential storyline for them that I was hoping couldn\u2019t come to pass, and it was much to my disappointment when I started this book and chapter 1 revealed what I was dreading\u2026 Yes, they had had a relationship in the past, and yes, Tristan is indeed the father of her 7 year old daughter and that neither he nor his family know.<\/p>\n

Now, this adds an interesting dynamic to their situation. They are working together, their animosity soon becomes grudging respect (on his side) and angst-ridden lust (on her side), and they soon recapture their easy friendship, which becomes more as their attraction to each other quickly rekindles and they find themselves falling for each other all over again. But Sydney\u2019s secret is still between them. Will Tristan ever be able to understand and forgive the decision she made all those years ago?<\/p>\n

Warning\u2026 spoilery rant ahead\u2026<\/p>\n

<\/span>Spoiler <\/div>
OK, so I love a second-chance-romance. There\u2019s something so magical about two people either recapturing love for the second time, or two people who have never really moved on from each other, coming back together. That feeling was definitely there with Tristan and Sydney, and I know that a lot of readers will revel in the drama and emotion of it all, but I wasn\u2019t able to feel it alongside them because I couldn\u2019t get past the fact that SHE. HID. HIS. CHILD. FROM. HIM. FOR. SEVEN. FREAKING. YEARS!!!<\/p>\n

How? How can any mother\u2026 any woman\u2026 do that and possibly think that it\u2019s ok? If it\u2019s a dangerous situation, I could understand, but that is not the case here. Tristan wanted to go off and explore, leaving town and a heartbreaking situation with his family to branch out and find himself for a while. And Sydney figured that if she told him, he would resent her because he wouldn\u2019t have been able to do that. You know what? Grow up princess!! This stuff happens, and people learn to change their plans and deal with it! It doesn\u2019t give you the right to play God and deny Tristan the chance to decide that for himself! It\u2019s pretty much unforgivable in my eyes, and I was so mad for the majority of this book. I felt zero sympathy for her at all.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s even worse because she has worked side by side with his family for all of that time, joining in on family dinners, and even seeing and working with Tristan every day for over a year. Her daughter, Becca is a big part of all of their lives, and none of them have a clue that she\u2019s theirs in more ways than they realize. Even when Tristan and Sydney start seeing each other and Tristan begins to spend time with Becca, Sydney she doesn\u2019t immediately come clean, intentionally avoiding getting too close so she doesn\u2019t have to reveal her secret.<\/p>\n

Now everything had changed.
\nBecause Tristan was in her bed, and in her life.
\nAnd the truth was finally going to come out.
\nShe dropped her face into her hands. Maybe she could push him away. Pretend it was only about sex. Maybe it wasn\u2019t too late to backtrack and try to get back to the way things were between them.
\nBecause if she couldn\u2019t, she was going to have to tell him the truth. <\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Seriously? AARGGHHHH!!!<\/p>\n

And all this while he\u2019s fighting so hard to build something between them.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just want you. I want a second chance at your heart. I know you\u2019re scared shitless because of what happened in the past, but we\u2019ve both changed and grown, and I refuse to blow this because it\u2019s easier to pretend it\u2019s all about sex.\u201d
\n\u2026
\n\u201cI want Becca to join us too. She\u2019s part of you, and it\u2019s a package deal. It\u2019s time we date, sweetheart. I won\u2019t take no for an answer.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And when Sydney finally grows a pair and reveals all, my heart broke for Tristan, for little Becca, and the rest of the family, as they struggle to come to terms with Sydney\u2019s betrayal.<\/p>\n

\u201cDo you know how much time I\u2019ve lost? Time I can\u2019t get back. Do you know what that feels like, Sydney?\u201d
\nEyes glittering with fury, he stepped toward her, his muscled body tight with drawn tension. \u201cHow would you feel if you found out you had a daughter and missed the first seven years of her life? Missed her first step, first word, first smile? And you had no choice, because the person you once trusted decided to keep her from you?\u201d
\n\u2026
\n\u201cYou never gave me a chance. Even when I came back, and you had opportunities to tell me, you continued to lie.\u201d He backed away again, his face haunted. \u201cEven in bed, buried inside of you, thinking we had this connection nothing could break, you lied.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

He was a father.<\/em>
\n Her words spun in his brain, causing more havoc. That little girl belonged to him, and he\u2019d been kept from her. He didn\u2019t care about Sydney\u2019s tangled rationalizations or excuses. He deserved a chance to be a father and hadn\u2019t been given one.<\/em>
\n \u2026<\/em>
\n All this time he\u2019d been patient, tearing down each one of her walls, pleasing her body, and through every kiss, she\u2019d known and deliberately held the most precious thing of all from him.<\/em>
\n Family.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

*sob*<\/p>\n

And though I was already mad as hell at her, I still managed to get madder because through it all she never apologises. She never admits that she did the wrong thing, instead constantly defending what she did and declaring that she made the right decision for her daughter \u2013 never mind that she deprived both Becca and Tristan the first 7 years of her life that they could have spent together. How is that ok? You know what? It\u2019s just not, and I don\u2019t understand how she could justify it.<\/p>\n

Everything changes for the three of them once the secret is out, and I admit that Tristan\u2019s response to finding out the news is extreme and he doesn\u2019t handle it as well as he could have. But I could actually understand his motivation and his reasons for doing what he did, and by that point I had zero fucks to give for Sydney, so whatever.<\/div><\/div>\n

Beneath all of the pain, anger and confusion, you can see that there are real feelings, and there is an emotional and dramatic love story as Tristan and Sydney work to get past her lies and betrayal, and his (in my opinion, completely justified) anger and coldness. This book is an angsty ride with lots of ups and downs as they navigate their difficult situation. It\u2019s an interesting dynamic for a love story, and a lot of romance fans will probably lap it up, and I get that, because usually I would have loved the sweet moments, the seriously passionate sexy time and the swoony declarations.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t care about then. I care about now. And the woman you are right now, right here, is the one I\u2019m falling for all over again \u2026 I\u2019m playing for huge stakes, Syd. I\u2019m playing for you.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

But for all of the above reasons, this one just didn\u2019t work for me. I was pissed off from chapter 1 and that soured everything, and it only got worse the more I had to read about Sydney\u2019s self-righteous declarations that she did the right thing, and never even apologising for it. It\u2019s just not ok. But bravo, Tristan for clearly being a better person than I!<\/p>\n

The scenes with Tristan and Becca were just gorgeous, and I loved seeing the brothers all together and being a rock for Tristan to lean on, supporting him and having his back completely. There is some progression for each of their stories with their girls and an epilogue which finishes off all three of the stories really nicely. And those relationships are what saved the book from being a DNF for me.<\/p>\n

Like the others in the series, this book is really well written, and the characterisation, dynamics and romance are all there\u2026 I just couldn\u2019t with this one.<\/p>\n

2 stars.<\/p>\n

An Advanced Review Copy was generously provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.<\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Billionaire Builders series<\/strong><\/h4>\n

\"\"\u00a0 \"\"\u00a0 \"\"\u00a0 \"\"<\/p>\n

Everywhere and Every Way (#1)<\/strong> (Caleb)
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Kindle Ebook\u00a0<\/a> |\u00a0 Paperback<\/a><\/p>\n

Any Time, Any Place (#2)<\/strong> (Dalton)
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Kindle Ebook<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 Paperback<\/a><\/p>\n

Somehow, Some Way (#2.5)<\/strong> (Brady)
\nBuy:\u00a0 Kindle Ebook<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 Paperback<\/a><\/p>\n

All or Nothing At All (#3)<\/strong> (Tristan)
\nReview<\/a>
\nBuy:\u00a0 Kindle Ebook<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 Paperback<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Buy:\u00a0 Kindle Ebook\u00a0 |\u00a0 Paperback Review 2 heartbreakingly unfuriating stars This is the third and final book in the Billionaire Builders series, and it\u2019s the one I have been really excited for. From the moment […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":22882,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","yasr_overall_rating":2,"yasr_post_is_review":"","yasr_auto_insert_disabled":"","yasr_review_type":"Product","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[52,9,24,29],"tags":[669,668,48],"class_list":["post-24718","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-drama","category-romance","category-second-chance-romance","category-steamy","tag-billionaire-builders","tag-jennifer-probst","tag-review"],"yasr_visitor_votes":{"stars_attributes":{"read_only":false,"span_bottom":false},"number_of_votes":0,"sum_votes":0},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/All-Or-Nothing-At-All.jpg?fit=150%2C225&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7gaNL-6qG","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24718","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=24718"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24718\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/22882"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=24718"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=24718"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=24718"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}