***This book was reviewed for XPresso Tours

Mr Prescott by Carlos Dash was a quick and cute read. Nathan Prescott, mayor of London, is visiting New York for a few days in a formal visit. One day, whilst out walking (to the dismay of his guards), he ventures into a bookshop. There he finds a young woman being rather harshly chastised by her manager for being a few minutes late to work. Gallant Nathan intervenes, and afterwards, asks the woman, Nicole, to dinner.

But Nicole isn’t just another fling to him. For one, she’s about a decade younger. And she makes him feel like no other woman has before. After a night of passion, Nicole flees, distressed by the thought of getting used to Nathan’s lavish lifestyle even for a few days. He wants to let her go. There’s no good answer to those concerns but to respect them. Yet, Nathan can’t stop thinking about her.

I’m unabashedly an Anglophile. I love British/ English culture. Taught a cultural awareness class on it for a time. I don’t know if the authors behind the pen name are British, but I appreciated the depth of cultural and linguistic detail to the story.

‘In England, insulting someone is an art form’ <- that line, right there. I’m dying. Such truth. 

I liked that the story was from Nathan’s, first person POV, often close to stream of consciousness, that mental inner monologue we keep up in our heads. It added extra insight into his personality and thinking. We get to see the insecurities he’s not showing outwardly. I was rather amused that it is marketed as an ‘older man’ romance. Nathan is younger than me. Yea, I’m a little slow. I get now that it simply meant a disparity in ages.

I’m not as familiar with romance genre. Not my cup of tea, generally. This was a case of ‘instant love’, which I found a bit cheesy, and definitely unrealistic, but that’s just me. I know it’s a trope, and a thing people go for, and that romance is a different sort of escapism and suspension of belief than sci-fi/fantasy.

The writing often felt stilted. Not bad, mind. It just felt like it wasn’t fully polished yet. Another spellcheck is recommended. There were some homophone errors, though nothing to take away from the story.

???? Recommended if you like sexy Brits, instant love, and happy ever after romance.