Name: Ali's review of The Mister by E. L. James
Item: The Mister
Rating: 4
Author: Ali

E. L. James

'Packed with passion ... a love story full of charm, music and soul-mates ... a classic E L James combo of the sweet and erotic with the perfect ending for romantics. I think it's her best by far!' - Milly Johnson, The Sun ___________________ The thrilling new romance from E L James, author of the phenomenal #1 bestselling Fifty Shades trilogy London, 2019. Life has been easy for Maxim Trevelyan. With his good looks, aristocratic connections, and money, he's never had to work and he's rarely slept alone. But all that changes when tragedy strikes and Maxim inherits his family's noble title, wealth, and estates, and all the responsibility that entails. It's a role he's not prepared for and one that he struggles to face. But his biggest challenge is fighting his desire for an unexpected, enigmatic young woman who's recently arrived in England, possessing little more than a dangerous and troublesome past. Reticent, beautiful, and musically gifted, she's an alluring mystery, and Maxim's longing for her deepens into a passion that he's never experienced and dares not name. Just who is Alessia Demachi? Can Maxim protect her from the malevolence that threatens her? And what will she do when she learns that he's been hiding secrets of his own? From the heart of London through wild, rural Cornwall to the bleak, forbidding beauty of the Balkans, The Mister is a roller-coaster ride of danger and desire that leaves the reader breathless to the very last page.

The Mister

E L James

___________________ The thrilling new romance from E L James, author of the phenomenal #1 bestselling Fifty Shades trilogy London, 2019. Life has been easy for Maxim Trevelyan. With his good looks, aristocratic connections, and money, he’s never had to work and he’s rarely slept alone. But all that changes when tragedy strikes and Maxim inherits his family’s noble title, wealth, and estates, and all the responsibility that entails. It’s a role he’s not prepared for and one that he struggles to face. But his biggest challenge is fighting his desire for an unexpected, enigmatic young woman who’s recently arrived in England, possessing little more than a dangerous and troublesome past. Reticent, beautiful, and musically gifted, she’s an alluring mystery, and Maxim’s longing for her deepens into a passion that he’s never experienced and dares not name. Just who is Alessia Demachi? Can Maxim protect her from the malevolence that threatens her? And what will she do when she learns that he’s been hiding secrets of his own? From the heart of London through wild, rural Cornwall to the bleak, forbidding beauty of the Balkans, The Mister is a roller-coaster ride of danger and desire that leaves the reader breathless to the very last page.

There were a lot of things about this book that rubbed me the wrong way. It felt as though the “Mister” took advantage of his maid in a non-spicy way. It was incredibly long and just bleh

Amanda 

An incredibly unserious book and more than anything, it is deeply offensive - to immigrants, to Eastern Europeans, to victims of human trafficking. I am not angry but I am resentful because it repeats the same stereotypes you can hear from your average Tory voter and it does nothing to challenge them. Rather it uses them for its silly little plot or to sexualise Alessia's vulnerabilty.

And while I am at a point where I am happy to hurl back an offensive stereotype to any English bellened, it was the way the book treats the matters of domestic abuse and human trafficking that I did not find funny at all. Yes, Eastern Europe has a lot of modern and forward thinking people living normal lives, having normal relations. Yes, there are more conservative regions. And yes, both domestic abuse and human trafficking are key issues of women on the Balkans - and that I care deeply about. All of these can be simultaneously true.

What I am not going to take is an Englishwoman telling me that what we need is a nice posh Englishman to show us what it is like to be treated well. Should we be so lucky to be very, very pretty and very, very hot and maybe talented at playing the piano. 

An incredibly unserious book and more than anything, it is deeply offensive - to immigrants, to Eastern Europeans, to victims of human trafficking. I am not angry but I am resentful because it repeats the same stereotypes you can hear from your average Tory voter and it does nothing to challenge them. Rather it uses them for its silly little plot or to sexualise Alessia's vulnerabilty.

And while I am at a point where I am happy to hurl back an offensive stereotype to any English bellened, it was the way the book treats the matters of domestic abuse and human trafficking that I did not find funny at all. Yes, Eastern Europe has a lot of modern and forward thinking people living normal lives, having normal relations. Yes, there are more conservative regions. And yes, both domestic abuse and human trafficking are key issues of women on the Balkans - and that I care deeply about. All of these can be simultaneously true.

What I am not going to take is an Englishwoman telling me that what we need is a nice posh Englishman to show us what it is like to be treated well. Should we be so lucky to be very, very pretty and very, very hot and maybe talented at playing the piano. 

The passionate new romance from E L James, author of the phenomenal #1 bestselling Fifty Shades Trilogy London, 2019. Life has been easy for Maxim Trevelyan. With his good looks, aristocratic connections, and money, he's never had to work and he's rarely slept alone. But all that changes when tragedy strikes and Maxim inherits his family's noble title, wealth, and estates, and all the responsibility that entails. It's a role he's not prepared for and one that he struggles to face. But his biggest challenge is fighting his desire for an unexpected, enigmatic young woman who's recently arrived in England, possessing little more than a dangerous and troublesome past. Reticent, beautiful, and musically gifted, she's an alluring mystery, and Maxim's longing for her deepens into a passion that he's never experienced and dares not name. Just who is Alessia Demachi? Can Maxim protect her from the malevolence that threatens her? And what will she do when she learns that he's been hiding secrets of his own? From the heart of London through wild, rural Cornwall to the bleak, forbidding beauty of the Balkans, The Mister is a roller-coaster ride of danger and desire that leaves the reader breathless to the very last page.

This book had almost zero plot, but it had me giggling and kicking my feet. I gobbled this up. 

I think because I imagined Callum Turner as the main guy, it greatly influenced my love of it, but whose to say? (Lol) 

Barely anything happened, but live laugh love this book. 

Sarah Campbell

This book had almost zero plot, but it had me giggling and kicking my feet. I gobbled this up. 

I think because I imagined Callum Turner as the main guy, it greatly influenced my love of it, but whose to say? (Lol) 

Barely anything happened, but live laugh love this book. 

Sara Uribe

First of all, I want to warn you for any swear words that WILL be in this review. This is your first and only warning! I went into this book with some hopes. Did I hope and pray that E.L. James got somewhat better at writing? Yes. Did I hope that maybe she got a better editor? Yes. Did I hope that she didn’t write about another privileged a**hole who tries to act like an alpha male? Yes. Well here we are and I got none of my hopes. They were squashed. Several times.

So let me start out with Alessia. Oh, Alessia. I actually really liked her. She is the main reason I didn’t give this book one star, because I really wanted to. This sweet and innocent girl ran away from home looking for a new life on her own, so she didn't have to marry who her father chose for her. I really sympathized with Alessia. I wanted her to move on in her new life and really make it. She is sweet, kind, compassionate and everything too good for a dick like Maxim. This girl is very put off by men, coming from her home life and the life that a new husband would promise her, you could understand why she is skittish and nervous around men. 

Maxim. Where do I start with this f**ker? Clearly, if he can sleep with his brother's widowed wife he is capable of anything terrible. I cannot see how, if this book will be more than one book, which I am sure it will; just how will their relationship last with his inability to keep his d**k in his pants. I got a huge creepy vibe from Maxim. He kept saying that Alessia looked very put off by him, yet he was still like “ehh it’s alright, I am still going to lust over her anyways and I get her to do what I want at some point.” Like what??? No, no, no, that’s not cute. It’s creepy as hell. I cannot take Maxim’s repulsive thoughts. They’re so agitating. One second he’s like “I can’t hear her scream again, she needs to be with me” but then a second later he’s also saying “I would like to make her scream in another way.” Who says stuff like that? If y’all could see my face while reading this book. I think I’ve rolled my eyes about 500 times.

Here is my favorite quote from this book:
*Cue me rolling my eyes*
Maxim talking about Alessia being a virgin: “Breaking in a virgin is a big responsibility. It’s a tough job, but someone has to do it. Might as well be me.”

Now listen, am I up for a book with an alpha male and a poor little virgin who is waiting for the right bad boy to come along and sweep her off her feet? YES, sign me the hell up! The problem I have with E.L. James is her inability to write these kinds of stories. Like you can do it, Honey, please sit down and have someone else do it for you. I 100% think that this book is even worse than FSOG. And the main reason for that is because Maxim is f**king CREEPY! Just thinking about him right now is giving me the chills. And I am not talking good chills. Thankfully I didn’t purchase this book. My local library had it available on audio. I am so glad I didn’t waste any money on this ⭐️⭐️ read.

I am sorry if I sound like such an asshole in this review. I just clearly have a lot of feelings about this book.

The #1 New York Times bestseller—a thrilling new romance from E L James, author of the phenomenal bestselling Fifty Shades Trilogy. London, 2019. Life has been easy for Maxim Trevelyan. With his good looks, aristocratic connections, and money, he's never had to work and he's rarely slept alone. But all that changes when tragedy strikes and Maxim inherits his family's noble title, wealth, and estates, and all the responsibility that entails. It's a role he's not prepared for and one that he struggles to face. But his biggest challenge is fighting his desire for an unexpected, enigmatic young woman who's recently arrived in England, possessing little more than a dangerous and troublesome past. Reticent, beautiful, and musically gifted, she's an alluring mystery, and Maxim's longing for her deepens into a passion that he's never experienced and dares not name. Just who is Alessia Demachi? Can Maxim protect her from the malevolence that threatens her? And what will she do when she learns that he's been hiding secrets of his own? From the heart of London through wild, rural Cornwall to the bleak, forbidding beauty of the Balkans, The Mister is a roller-coaster ride of danger and desire that leaves the reader breathless to the very last page.

Kelsey Joëlle

Second ever audio book, I'm hooked!


Honestly, I liked the book.

It was kinda refreshing, something diffrent. Liked both the main characters. Story wasn't the greatest, but oh well

Kathleen Tom

Rating: 5 Stars ★★★★★

HI BOOKLOVERS,

I know I know again I'm late but I love this! Like really love love this, you know? A cleaner and the Earl? Really? I love the storyline, I love the characters and the up's and down of the story. But it would be fun if we can read more of it. I feels like the book is just too short but I still like how it turns out. 

It was funny on how Maxim always try to correct Alessia English. It was not a depressing romance like it actually sound but overall is was readable. 

And, I can wait for my copy to arrived soon. 

Highly Recommended! :)

xoxo! Kath.

surtified™

Magda Silva

Nope. No. No. This was just bad! Probably my worst reading this year

Alexandra Dawning

I was hoping for a sexy, up-to-date version of a Georgette Heyer Regency novel, but this was just... a bit boring. I struggled to care at all about either protagonist. Maxim isn't interesting enough to be a 'bad guy come good' - he's just self obsessed and privileged, and Alessia is a 2-dimensional love interest for him to fall in love with/seduce. It was all a bit silly, but not quite silly enough to become funny. I was glad to get it finished and move on to something else.

Katelyn Rush

Shelby Caldwell

oh so bad. i read it forever ago and i still remember how bad it was.

Loredana

Alessia is a young immigrant from Albania struggling to make ends meets as a cleaning lady for rich british people. Including the handsome Maxim...

Well.. I really struggle to make up my mind on a not for this book. It was not completely bad, a good half of it was quite good, I was not transported but it was not bad. but once I was at 70% of the book I was sure it was the end of it, but no... and here is my biggest problem with this book : there is too much stuff going on in the 30% of it ! some events keep happening several times and it really bothered me, the last 30% were unnecessary to me. I didn't really feel so much sympathy or anything for the characters and I think that's why the last chunk was boring to me. But I still chose to give it 3 star for the first 70% of it that I liked. Unfortunately it was a miss for me.

Clara hash

loved it!
A bit more complicated than what I thought it would be, but loved the suspens in the end!

Anne

If you like novelettish stuff, a little visionary romance, this is the perfect book. Really moving and goosebumps feelings 

b.andherbooks

While I applaud E.L. James making bank and for finally breaking away from the 50 Shades world, this was rough. 

I read all three 50 Shades books and liked them okay. This, I could barely made it through. The Mister is very long, over 500 pages, and it is just...boring? I didn't care about the characters, I didn't believe their chemistry, and frankly I skimmed through most of it. The sex scenes were few and far between, super tame, and choppy.

Also, there is so much going on, but nothing that really matters to the overall story. She's a synesthete, a piano prodigy. Okay, why besides having it be a character trait that helps win over the hero? He's a playboy, a philanderer, a sex fiend, a pianist, a composer, a flippin' DJ (gross), and now he has to run his family's estate after his brother's death. 

There were some ominous statements made at the end that make me think James will do a sequel, so who knows.

Kathy

Not all good but also not all bad.
OK EL James I almost didn't finish this book but now that I did I am glad. 
The beginning started out very very very very slow.
Around chapter 23 is when the book got good. I wanted to keep reading. The ending was perfect for another book. If you write part 2 I would read it.

Jessica 

Blog | Twitter | Instagram | Review also found here at Booked J. 

This was part of a buddy-read. Normally, I wouldn't have picked up another E.L. James book after the massive miss that was her prior releases. (I'm looking at you, Fifty!) But, my friend was very insistent that I give this a chance with her. And, admittedly, there was a spark of curiosity on my part. I wanted to see how E.L. James' writing has improved in the years; I wanted to see if this was a more thoroughly compelling book. 

The Mister, unfortunately, was nothing short of a cringe fest. The brand of cringe that is E.L. James has expanded through the years. This book is just plain... not good. It is mediocre and dull. It is pretty much as lifeless as a novel can get in my eyes. The Mister wastes its own potential and falls into the trap that breaks a novel. If it's possible, James' writing has somehow become worse since her prior releases. 

Much like with the Fifty Shades books The Mister has very little development and focuses far too intently on things that don't really matter in the end. There is basically no chemistry between the characters. Any sparks that may flicker in and out are subpar, at best. And, as always, her characters have the tendency to lack any sort of personality and talk in a way that is rather embarrassing. Nothing quite to 'my inner goddess' levels, but still... disjointed and awkward.

To make matters worse the flaws that were each so prominent in her previous novels were just as present now. In-fact, there are some moments that felt recycled from said books. Maybe even from others, I'm not sure. Regardless, next to nothing about The Mister worked. It read like a book that had nothing going beyond surface level and had the tendency to drag on. 

I've always said that E.L. James' romance is flawed and cringe-worthy at its best, but that she has the potential to write something that would blow fans of the genre away--unfortunately, The Mister is not that book. This is the type of book that pulls me away from the genre from time to time and puts me in the worst kind of reading funk.

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The Mister by E. L. James

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