Book Review for The Shifting Sands Beneath Us by Giulia Lagomarsino

Title: The Shifting Sands Beneath Us

Author: Giulia Lagomarsino

Genre: Billionaire Beach Romance

Release Date: June 6, 2022

‘I never saw this coming! This story has all the twists and turns that you come to expect reading a Lagomarsino book! Rose and James have amazing chemistry!! I loved this story!’ ~★★★★★ Goodreads Review

He’s a grumpy, cold-hearted billionaire.

—A workaholic that demands perfection.

He’s ruthless, harsh, and unforgiving in all aspects of business.

But that’s not the man I fell for.

I'll never forget the smooth talker who shared my cab that day—so carefree and full of life.

Stuck in a loveless, arranged marriage, I was out of options.

Until he came along and flipped my world upside down.

But that was then, and this is now.

The man I knew is gone, and all that's left is a shell where his heart used to be, and lumps of coal in place of the warm eyes that used to watch my every move.

Instead of the romantic, sweet man I came to know, he now wears an impenetrable mask of indifference.

I'm just not sure I can fight for a man I no longer recognize.

This author has done it again and created another heartbreaking read for a couple who were destined to be soulmates, but life had other plans for them.

Rose and James had soulmates written all over them. Their chance meeting turned into something so much more. Their relationship was doomed from the start, but this couple took a chance to grab whatever little happiness they had with one another for as long as it lasted. They made a beautiful couple, and my heart broke for them, their lives already mapped out for them and full of misery. Your heart bled for this couple through the entire story; you wanted to cry and rage on their behalf, and honestly, we don't know how they were both going to move beyond the pain of losing one another. The characters of this story were pretty awesome. Clarissa was a pretty fun character, and Fletch was a man of wisdom and advice, and his on-and-off again tryst with Clarissa and their antics provided us with tons of laugh-out-loud moments. The story took on a beautiful twist that we did not see coming, but it was a delightful one. Do you believe in second chances? I have to say I was rooting for both Rose and James to make their way back to one another, as they both deserved to be happy. I had to admire them both for wanting to break the chains that weighed them down because of their family's greed and their thirst for more money and power. We loved being on this couple's journey, however heartbreaking it was, and it was my dearest hope that love would conquer all. We loved that the author took the chance and clearly wrote something that was not normally in her wheelhouse but, we are very glad she did as we loved James and Rose but, not Kimberly and Alexander but, all along we prayed that both would once again find themselves as just plain old Rose and James as they deserved the life they had envisioned all along. A beautifully written story that we whole heartily loved. P.S. The author stated this was probably going to be her one and only beach read, but we think that Fletch and Clarissa really need a story. Perhaps these characters can make their way into an up-and-coming new series that would be fantastic!

“James,” my father barked, causing me to grit my teeth. I never once knew him to speak to me in a kind voice. Everything about him was abrasive and set me on edge.

Knowing I had to acknowledge him at some point, I turned and took off my wool coat, handing it to my father’s butler, Thomas. Composing myself, I followed the sound of his voice to his study where he already had a cigar lit as he looked through some documents.

“Yes?”

“John Wallace will be here soon. I need you to look after him for me.”

I gritted my teeth, knowing what was coming. “Sure.”

His eyes met mine in a hostile way that would have scared any board member, but I was used to him. “Not sure. Before Michael’s death, Wallace and I were on the verge of merging our companies. We would be the largest corporation on the east coast!” he said, slapping his hand down on his desk. 

“You can still have that.”

“You know the stipulations of merging our companies.”

I did, and my brother had readily agreed. It was a gentleman’s game, one in which the merging of companies was sealed with a marriage. It didn’t make sense. Those old fashioned values, the days where a handshake was as good as your word were long over. Any deal could be made now under the right conditions without having to sacrifice your happiness.

“I’m not marrying his daughter.”

“Kimberley is a very nice woman.”

I rolled my eyes at his description. The last time I had seen her, she was meek and boring. Not to mention, her looks left a lot to be desired. Her dirty blonde hair was always a frizzy mess, and the freckles sprinkled over her nose made me think of Orphan Annie. I wasn’t the type of man to judge a woman solely on looks, but I did think there had to be an element of attraction. But above all that, I wanted to like being in the company of my wife. An arranged marriage wasn’t at all a guarantee of happiness.

“She may be nice, but I will not be forced into marriage. I’m not Michael.”

He scoffed at that, his disappointment in me obvious. “I’m well aware that you are not your brother. You prove it to me every day you defy me.”

“And you thought the day of his funeral was the perfect time to bring this up? You can’t even let us mourn him before you shove me off on his fiancé?”

“Business never sleeps. If we don’t move on this now, he’ll make a deal with the Connelly Group. That family is ruthless. If he makes a deal with them, we’ll never expand the way we need to. Is that what you want, for our company to limp along?”

I found it funny that he thought the Connellys were ruthless, when he was planning my marriage on the day of my brother’s funeral. My father was one of the most hated businessmen in the city. People despised working with him because of how unforgiving he could be in a business deal. For that reason alone, I wanted nothing to do with the company. 

“I will not marry her,” I said forcefully, my fists clenching hard as I stared him down.

He stood from his desk, buttoning his suit jacket as he walked around to confront me. “It’s a requirement for you to take your place as CEO.”

I huffed out a laugh at that. “We both know I won’t be CEO. You will run the company until you’re dead.”

“But the board needs a fresh face, which is why I was voted out in place of your brother. But make no mistake, the company is run by me.”

“I’m aware of that.”

“Then you know you need my approval to take over.”

“I’m not looking for your approval. This isn’t the life I want. I will never run this company,” I said, turning for the door.

“Then they’ll vote in Jerry Wright.”

I'm a stay at home mom that loves to read. Some of my favorite titles are Pride and Prejudice, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and Horatio Hornblower. I started writing when I was trying to come up with suggestions on ways I could help bring in some extra money. I came up with the idea that I could donate plasma because you could earn an extra $500/month. My husband responded with, "No. Find something else. Write a blog. Write a book." I didn't think I had anything to share on blog that a thousand other mothers hadn't already thought of. I decided to take his challenge seriously and sat down to write my first book, Jack. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed writing. From there, the stories continued to flow and I haven't been able to stop. I hope my readers enjoy my books as much as I enjoy writing them. Between reading, writing, and taking care of three small kids, my days are quite full.

Cover Reveal for The Shifting Sands Beneath Us by Giulia Lagomarsino

Title: The Shifting Sands Beneath Us

Author: Giulia Lagomarsino

Genre: Billionaire Beach Romance

Release Date: June 6, 2022

The Shifting Sands Beneath Us is a stand-alone and not connected to any other series.

I was never supposed to inherit my family's company.

I had a perfect life all mapped out, and none of it included galas, board meetings, or anything to do with money.

And then the unthinkable happened, and in an instant, my life changed.

My father gave me six months to wrap my head around my new position.

But there was one caveat...

I had to marry a woman I'd never met.

I was a modern-day David Larrabee, sacrificed into marriage to join our two companies in a gentleman's game I didn't want to play.

So, I took my six months and got away from the city.

I never expected to meet the woman of my dreams.

Or that I would have to tell her goodbye.

“So, did you really come all the way down here just to fix up a house?”

He took a sip of his whiskey, his throat working as he swallowed. “Well, that and to steal cabs from unsuspecting tourists.”

My eyebrows shot up. “Hey, I could be native to this area.”

“I highly doubt that,” he grinned.

“Give me one good reason why not.”

“I’ll give you three. One, a native from this area would have already known about the cab thief and ordered a car to pick her up instead.”

“Maybe I like watching cab thieves in action.”

The amusement on his face grew. “Two, you’re staying at a nice resort. If you lived here, why would you stay at the resort?”

“Obviously, to catch cab thieves in action.”

“But if you really lived here, you’d see them all the time.”

Well, he had me there. “I concede to your point.”

“So, why does a beautiful woman like yourself come on vacation all alone?”

I couldn’t tell him that I was here to escape my loveless marriage. But he didn’t seem to want to talk about anything personal either, so I continued our ruse. “You seemed to have some interesting opinions on why I’m not a tourist. I’m sure you can guess why I would come here on my own.”

He nodded, studying me in the dim light. “Well, clearly you’re here because you heard The Piña Colada Song, and you thought you would meet the love of your life here.”

I shook my head. “That’s a good guess, but I didn’t answer any advertisements in the paper.”

“Hmm, so you’re not a writer.”

“Not by nature.”

“Good to know. Well, if you didn’t come here for romance, I would say…you’re dying of some horrible disease and you came to live out your final days in peace.”

I made a sad face, staring down at the table like I was on the verge of tears, just to fuck with him. 

“Oh, shit. I’m so sorry. I had no idea.”

But I was never very good at lying to someone. A grin split my lips as I snorted in laughter. Covering my face, I shook my head.

“You’re fucking with me? Aw, that’s just mean.”

I finally looked up at him, thankful he wasn’t actually pissed at me. He blew out a relieved laugh, pressing his hand to his chest. “You really had me going there. Fuck, I think I was about to throw up.”

“I’m sorry.” The laughter in my voice couldn’t be stopped. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d just sat and joked with someone. “But you set it up so perfectly.”

“Well, now I know better for next time. I definitely shouldn’t fuck with gorgeous women.”

That was the second time he’d made a comment like that, and I couldn’t help but blush under his scrutiny. Was this what it was like for normal people that lived ordinary lives? They just had fun and teased each other? If so, I definitely wanted more of it in my life.

“Since you clearly suck at guessing why I’m here, how about I give it a shot.”

“Challenge accepted,” he nodded, taking another drink.

I sipped on my margarita as I stared at him. I checked out his left hand—no ring on his finger. He was building a house down here, but he made it sound like he had to get away.

“You committed a heinous crime against a landowner down here. And as punishment, you were forced to buy and rehab a home.”

“What heinous crime was this?” he asked, leaning forward on the table.

“You were pulling starfish from the ocean and laying them on his front lawn to die.”

“That is a heinous crime indeed.”

“Exactly, and on top of that, you forked his yard.”

He looked at me funny. “I’m sorry, what is forking a yard?”

“You know, when you take plastic forks and stick them in the ground. Then you break off the piece sticking out of the ground. It’s impossible to remove.”

“I’m guessing you have experience in this.”

I shrugged, taking another sip of my drink. 

“A product of your misspent youth,” he chuckled.

“What is a yout?” I said in a southern accent.

His eyebrows shot up in confusion. “A what?”

“Never mind,” I said, brushing him off. He obviously didn’t get it.

“Any other crimes you committed as a teenager? We could compare notes.”

I pretended to think about it. “Well, I never stole a cab.”

I'm a stay at home mom that loves to read. Some of my favorite titles are Pride and Prejudice, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and Horatio Hornblower. I started writing when I was trying to come up with suggestions on ways I could help bring in some extra money. I came up with the idea that I could donate plasma because you could earn an extra $500/month. My husband responded with, "No. Find something else. Write a blog. Write a book." I didn't think I had anything to share on blog that a thousand other mothers hadn't already thought of. I decided to take his challenge seriously and sat down to write my first book, Jack. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed writing. From there, the stories continued to flow and I haven't been able to stop. I hope my readers enjoy my books as much as I enjoy writing them. Between reading, writing, and taking care of three small kids, my days are quite full.

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