by T. L. Swan
ASIN/ISBN: B08X472VK3
Publication: August 26, 2021
Series: The Miles High Club #3

**This one ended up being a little long. I tried to condense it, but Elliot Miles really made me mad and I couldn’t.**

Kate Landon is the IT manager at Miles Media in London. She’s intelligent and isn’t afraid to stand up for herself, even if it’s her boss Elliot Miles she’s giving a piece of her mind. Their enemies status begins to shift once Elliot spies the woman in the red netball dress who turns out to be none other than Kate.

I didn’t want to read this and tried staying away from the series because I was disappointed in the first book, The Stopover. Then someone posted an excerpt of The Casanova on Bookstagram, and I decided to give it a chance. Guess what? I’ve already reread The Casanova a few times since I first got my hands on it. Swan left me in shambles, nearly decimating me as the dreaded third act hit because Elliot is a complete idiot.

I liked Kate when she was first introduced through Elliot, who sees her as a complete witch. He hates her. It soon becomes obvious she is only this way with Elliot. She stands her ground and isn’t afraid to go up against the boss, especially when she knows she is right. Working through personal issues that have greatly affected her outward appearance and her personality, Kate tries to revert to being the person she used to be. She loses a bit of her bite when she gets with Elliot, which was disappointing. 

Elliot Miles is known as Casanova Miles and dates those in the upper crust of society. Elliot is full of surprises as his stern workplace persona gives way to a softer side he shares alone with his family and with Kate. I was nearly as smitten with him as Kate was, except Kate didn’t know him like I did. She didn’t know until it was too late, and I wanted to pummel him.

In workplace romances, I always think about the power dynamics and how they can have an undue influence on the relationship. Despite Elliot being Kate’s superior, it did not have an undue effect on their relationship. It’s also established early on that Kate stands her ground against Elliot and he is rather intimidated by her. I am a bit ashamed to say that Kate and Elliot’s sizzling chemistry made me forget about the power imbalance between them.

While I loved the chemistry and the tension between them, their relationship is a little bit unstable, even toxic at times as they try to work out their feelings for each other. Is it casual or is there possibly something more? There’s a dinner scene where I’m completely perplexed at Kate’s reaction because, well, she started it. Elliot’s response isn’t any better. It was aggravating at times. Make up both your minds!

Early on, I already guessed what was going to be the major obstacle between Kate and Elliot. As I’ve said about prior books, predictability isn’t necessarily bad. For The Casanova, it came down to the delivery, and Swan it broke me. I searched for answers and justification, and it still wasn’t enough even when the book ended. 

I’ve placed Elliot with the likes of Luke from You Didn’t Know Me Then and Eithen from A Case of Longing. All three are leading men who broke my heart, love interests who I wanted to suffer just a bit more than they got at the end of their respective books. Read The Casanova if you like enemies to lovers with steamy scenes between the leads. It’s a romance novel so there is a HEA, but just be prepared for the heartbreak before you get to it.  I’m still not okay.