King of Hearts (Hearts Series Book 3)

“I could lose the run of myself inside a woman like you, Alexis. And I fear if I made you my queen, I could no longer be a king.”I’m going to be totally honest with you—I picked this book up on a whim based solely on its eye-catching cover. I had no idea nor did I wish to know what it was about as I was looking for a book to surprise me, to make me fall in love with its story and its characters, a story to woo me somehow after so many had left me unfulfilled and aching for a truly SUPERB read. And after just one paragraph I was almost certain I had found a gem, but the more I read, the more I ADORED every single thing about this book—from its quirky and utterly addictive writing style, to two of the most loveable, compelling and downright delightful characters I had come across in a very long time, not to mention a storyline that I never saw coming, its twists and turns keeping me on the edge of my seat start to finish, and making me turn those pages faster than a speeding bullet. This is quite possibly one of the BEST BOOKS I have read in a while, so incredibly uplifting and engaging, a startling story that is nothing short of amazing in its uniqueness, and it made me want to read every single thing ever written by this terrific author.“Sometimes we see someone and they just suit us. They’re beautiful to us in every way. You’re that person to me.”Alexis Clark is a bright young woman in her late twenties who’s spent her life selling herself short despite her innate intelligence and ability to do whatever she sets her mind to, so when she applies for a job as executive assistant at one of the top investment banks in the country, she holds little hope of actually getting the job. But from the moment she opens her mouth, it becomes apparent to her soon-to-be new employer that she might be the perfect candidate for the position.“You’ll have to get up a lot earlier in the morning to offend me, Mr King.”Oliver King might be a self-made powerhouse in the banking world, a confident and successful executive in his early thirties, but he never expected someone like Alexis to walk into his office looking for a job, and even less to find himself giving it to her. Her directness and honesty feel like a breath of fresh air in an industry built on pretences and insincerity, and from their very first interaction she not only succeeds in demonstrating her quick wit and cleverness, but also in doing something very few people in his life ever could—to make him laugh. And so it takes no time for the lines of their professional relationship to start blurring more and more each day, a very unique camaraderie forming between them, and their daily interactions becoming something they both look forward to with anticipation.“Having you around makes the day that little bit more interesting. I enjoy the spontaneity of never quite knowing what you’re going to come out with next.”However, when an underlying attraction between them starts blurring those lines even further, putting into jeopardy both their working relationship as well as their friendship, Alexis blurts out the first thing that comes to her mind, hoping this would curtail any further inappropriateness from her new boss, thus convincing him that she bats for the other team. And while this little white lie buys their friendship the time it needs to grow without them succumbing to the raging sexual attraction between them, their feelings for one another grow too, so once the truth is uncovered, nothing can stop the bedroom fireworks from happening. Or for their hearts to become irrevocably entwined.“I want to f*** you so hard, Alexis, so hard you’re still feeling me inside you tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow….”Okay, did he just hit me with a side of Shakespeare in his dirty talk?I died.I died dead.But do not think for one second that this is just another predictable office romance scenario, because everything that happens up to this point only sets the stage for the ‘real’ story to take place. The plotline is divided into two distinct time frames and I cannot even hint at the events in the second one without giving too much away and depriving you of all the ‘feels’. The character evolution alone is fascinating in its extensiveness and complexity, both Oliver and Alexis having very trying journeys to travel emotionally, as individuals as well as a couple.“Do you ever wish, Alexis, that your heart was just that little bit smaller, so that you didn’t have to care quite so much?”This is so much more than just a love story—this is a story of the staying power of true love, a story of human endurance, of courage, or patience, and of love’s ability to survive a human spirit’s darkest hour. The connection between Alexis and Oliver is sheer magic, its strength palpable in the smallest details, and its beauty leaving us breathless even through occasional giggles and tears. I love a story that makes me genuinely invested in the wellbeing and happiness of the characters, and there is so much to love about Alexis and Oliver, so much to connect with and so much to be inspired by. From every angle, this was the perfect story for me, flawless in its delivery and impossible to put down. I was looking for a superb read, and somehow I stumbled across an epic one.“I never stopped loving you, not even in my darkest hour.”

When I think of LH Cosway, I immediately think of quirky, eccentric characters and an outside-the-box plot. Cosway consistently crafts such unbelievably well-developed characters and sets them inside the most fantastical, layered circumstances and she makes me just want to sink right down inside her stories and never come out. King of Hearts felt different... oh, believe me, I still felt like I wanted to wrap myself up in this story and never come out of it. I fell in love with these characters immediately, with their story and I was so consumed with where this would all go that I couldn't think of anything else. But Oliver King and Alexis Clark didn't feel so odd to me, they didn't feel so eccentric... or maybe they did and LH Cosway just exceeded my expectations by making them feel very real in all of their peculiarity. Oliver King is a successful businessman but he's also a gifted pianist and he comes from a family with tightly locked up secrets. Alexis Clark is his new assistant and everything from her fashion sense to her innate curiosity to every hilariously unexpected word that comes out of her mouth makes her a character the likes of which I've never read before. These characters might not be strange and different in the traditional LH Cosway sense of the word, but they are refreshing, they are original and they're fraught with interesting, magnetic personalities demanding that I loved them more than I ever expected to love two characters when I opened this book.Oliver King was first introduced in Hearts of Fire as the drunkard brother of the circus owner who obviously had a story to tell. As that story unfolded it became clear that King was a classic case of "Oh, how the mighty have fallen," but one could only speculate on what his life must have been like before he became the belligerent, homeless ghost of a man following the circus. The biggest question in that book was what on earth had happened to Oliver King? What caused the catastrophic downfall of such an enigmatic man? When King of Hearts opens, and all through the first half of the book, it's still impossible to fathom how this charming, sexy, powerful, successful businessman went from being the Oliver King he once was to the King he's come to be.This story is told in two parts... the before and the after. The 'before' takes place six years prior to the events in Hearts of Fire, giving us the entire backstory of who Oliver King was before his world crashed down around him. When I read Hearts of Fire, King was barely on my radar, as I'd been so consumed with the story of Lille and Jack. I thought King was a nuisance, really. I barely connected with him, with his drunken, belligerent behavior, hurting himself and in the process tearing others down with him. I didn't know him or understand him until now. The journey through the before and after in King of Hearts just made Oliver King my most beloved Cosway character yet.King of Hearts is aptly named because this character completely owned my heart from beginning to end. I fell in love with Oliver King, the powerhouse with the world at his fingertips who played chess with his alluring assistant in his opulent bathroom, and I fell in love with the Oliver King who had nothing but dirty clothes and greasy hair and an alcohol addiction. I fell in love with Alexis Clark, this confident, quirky, smart, self-assured woman who captivated me with her story from the first page. I loved how real she is, how authentic and honest both of these characters were, but more, how fantastic they are together. The chemistry between these characters was edible, if that's even a thing, whatever, I'm making it one. I wanted to sink my teeth into this storyline, these characters, this perfectly paced course of events, there's just no better way to describe it. Cosway plotted out this story so exquisitely, building and building and building the connection, the attraction, the sexual tension, drawing me in so completely that there was no finding my way out. I'm still not out. My thoughts and my heart are still in that book and I doubt I'll find my way out anytime soon.I love a good office romance. I love a friends to lovers romance. I love angst and sexual tension and a decadent slow burn. I love second chances. I love plot twists that feel believable and consistent with the rest of the story. I love raw, tangible emotion and fantastic writing. I love a meaty, layered plot and characters that consume me. I love authentic dialogue and witty banter. I love and appreciate stories that step outside the box and don't follow the mundane formula of everything else out there. I love everything about King of Hearts and I love every single word, every sentence, every miniscule detail, every choice LH Cosway made in executing this perfectly unforgettable story.

<3 <3 this book, what an amazing story.

LH Cosway is one of my favoutite authors, so i have to admit i started reading this book with high expectations. And i wasn't disappointed! I loved not only the story, it was also great to see previous characters make an appearance. I liked the honesty and realistic depiction of someone who thought he lost it all only to be given a second chance. His struggle to come to terms with the reappearance of a love he thought lost is heartbreaking but beautiful at the same time. The way the two main characters are drawn to each other and find their way back from heartbreak drew me in and didn't let me go until i finished the last page. Recommend this to anyone who likes a romantic but tragic love story with HEA!

I read a lot (meaning a book a day) and many books just blend into one with no distinct storyline. Not the case with the fantastic LH Cosway. Well written, unique characters, unpredictable and always a page turner.My pet peeves at the moment are the reformed womaniser or borderline cheating storylines. Nothing like that here, thank goodness.If you haven’t read any of this author’s work before, you definitely should! This whole “Hearts” series makes for a great introduction to LH Cosway’s style.

Wow this book is sooo good.Worth ten stars.Once I finished it I wanted to read it again!!Funny, heartwarming and 2 wonderful characters you will love.

Another enjoyable read from Ms Cosway. I thought it had a nice pace and both characters, Alexis and Oliver King were well written and their love story quite. I did have a few grumbles, that's why I didn't give it 5stars. But I thought it was better than the previous one in the series, but not quite as good as Six of Hearts. Looking forward to the next installment in the series.