BOOK REVIEW | Beautiful Player by Christina Lauren

Title: Beautiful Player
Author: Christina Lauren
Series? Yes, the third in the Beautiful series (companion novels)
Pages: 432
Publication Date: October 29, 2013
Publisher: Gallery Books
Source: I read this on Scribd!

A bombshell bookworm. A chronic Casanova. And a lesson in chemistry too scandalous for school.

When Hanna Bergstrom receives a lecture from her overprotective brother about neglecting her social life and burying herself in grad school, she’s determined to tackle his implied assignment: get out, make friends, start dating. And who better to turn her into the sultry siren every man wants than her brother’s gorgeous best friend, Will Sumner, venture capitalist and unapologetic playboy?

Will takes risks for a living, but he’s skeptical about this challenge of Hanna’s…until the wild night his innocently seductive pupil tempts him into bed- and teaches him a thing or two about being with a woman he can’t forget. Now that Hanna’s discovered the power of her own sex appeal, it’s up to Will to prove he’s the only man she’ll ever need.

Goodreads

Yes, I'm back on my Christina Lauren binge. After a couple days (maybe over a week??) of not reading romance I needed to read some CL. Even though I didn't enjoy Beautiful Bastard that much, I did like Beautiful Stranger a lot more. I didn't review it here, so quick and short, I gave it 3.5 stars. After the improvement of Beautiful Stranger, I was excited to read Beautiful Player, and I really liked it! Beautiful Player is, by far, my favorite of the series to date. 

Beautiful Player is my favorite in the series (so far, who knows what can happen in the next three books!). This has much to do in part to the fact there is a legitimate plot! Beautiful Bastard and Player largely focused on the relationship, and I wanted more of an equal balance between sex scenes and plot outside of just "will they get together?" In Beautiful Player, while the plot is still largely focused on the relationship between Hanna and Will, there is an overarching plot where Hanna come out of her shell and tries to overcome some of her social complacency. This plot emphasized Hanna's character growth, and added some depth to the romantic relationship. 

Honestly, there is no substantive reason why Beautiful Player doesn't get five stars. I liked everything about the book. Beautiful Player just didn't have that X factor to get five stars. Even though I liked everything, my enjoyment of this book pales in comparison to Josh and Hazel's Guide to Not Dating and Autoboyography, both of which blew me away and got five stars. I think I might appreciate these books more if I read the novellas. They include the per-established couples, and might add depth to the Chloe/Bennett relationship, which is my least favorite pairing.

Also, a quick little side note - the two characters in the book run! I don't run, AT ALL, but I love reading about running, or exercise in general, and the positive effects on mental and emotional health. I just started regularly working out this summer, and I loved how prevalent fitness was in the book, and  a good reminder to keep working out and putting myself and my health first!

If you're a fan of Christina Lauren, I would recommend this series (so far). The first wasn't their strongest work, but the series has improved with each addition. Seeing Hanna's growth and coming out of her shell was such a lovely plot, and it paired well with her relationship with Will (which was SUPER hot, to be frank). 

With that, I give Beautiful Player 
4 out of 5 Flowers!