What do you think?
Rate this book
Billion $ Bastards #1
Dirty Devil
Self-made billionaire Damian Blackwood catches—and seduces!—Hong Kong’s sexiest thief in this first installment of Jackie Ashenden’s Billion $ Bastards trilogy!
My parties are legendary—as is my security. So when Thea Smith almost successfully steals a priceless necklace from my penthouse, I can’t help being impressed by her skill. But I didn’t make my billions letting others take whatever they want and walk away. Instead of calling the police, I’ll unravel the mystery and shatter her tight control—using all the seductive skills I possess.
Vulnerable and strangely innocent, Thea is unlike any thief I’ve ever met. Now that I’ve made her delightfully responsive body mine, I want to show her she deserves better than the life she’s chosen. The more time I spend with her supple limbs wrapped around me, the further she sees past the playboy facade. I know I’m a bastard, but she sees the pain and loneliness in my soul. And I must push her away before she steals my guarded heart…
Harlequin DARE publishes sexy romances featuring powerful alpha heroes and bold, fearless heroines exploring their deepest fantasies.
Four new Harlequin DARE titles are available each month, wherever ebooks are sold!
My parties are legendary—as is my security. So when Thea Smith almost successfully steals a priceless necklace from my penthouse, I can’t help being impressed by her skill. But I didn’t make my billions letting others take whatever they want and walk away. Instead of calling the police, I’ll unravel the mystery and shatter her tight control—using all the seductive skills I possess.
Vulnerable and strangely innocent, Thea is unlike any thief I’ve ever met. Now that I’ve made her delightfully responsive body mine, I want to show her she deserves better than the life she’s chosen. The more time I spend with her supple limbs wrapped around me, the further she sees past the playboy facade. I know I’m a bastard, but she sees the pain and loneliness in my soul. And I must push her away before she steals my guarded heart…
Harlequin DARE publishes sexy romances featuring powerful alpha heroes and bold, fearless heroines exploring their deepest fantasies.
Four new Harlequin DARE titles are available each month, wherever ebooks are sold!
- GenresRomance
Kindle Edition
First published December 26, 2019
About the author
Jackie Ashenden
545 books982 followersJackie has been writing fiction since she was eleven years old. Mild mannered fantasy/SF/pseudo-literary writer by day, obsessive romance writer by night, she used to balance her writing with the more serious job of librarianship until a chance meeting with another romance writer prompted her to throw off the shackles of her day job and devote herself to the true love of her heart – writing romance. She particularly likes to write dark, emotional stories with alpha heroes who've just got the world to their liking only to have it blown wide apart by their kick-ass heroines.
She lives in Auckland, New Zealand with her husband, the inimitable Dr Jax, two kids, two cats and some guppies (possibly dead guppies by the time you read this). When she's not torturing alpha males and their stroppy heroines, she can be found drinking chocolate martinis, reading anything she can lay her hands on, posting random crap on her blog, or being forced to go mountain biking with her husband.
She lives in Auckland, New Zealand with her husband, the inimitable Dr Jax, two kids, two cats and some guppies (possibly dead guppies by the time you read this). When she's not torturing alpha males and their stroppy heroines, she can be found drinking chocolate martinis, reading anything she can lay her hands on, posting random crap on her blog, or being forced to go mountain biking with her husband.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
January 5, 2020
Quick and hot read worthy of 3,5 stars...
January 7, 2020
Dirty Devil by Jackie Ashenden is a sexy billionaire romance set in Hong Kong with a would-be thief catching the eye of her mark.
Thea Smith is on a mission. She’s a ‘re-acquisition’ agent, recovering stolen goods for people using some under the radar skills, training she received while under the wing of a mentor. To keep his legacy, she’s used to being part of the background while doing her jobs, but she secretly longs to be seen. And then she gets her wish.
Damian Blackwood assumes that the cute waitress not on the employee list is up to something, and he’s right, when he discovers her in his private office trying to get into his safe. He’s fully aware when she tries to seduce him that it’s meant as a distraction but he can’t deny he’s attracted to her and he’s not an unwilling participant – though he makes sure before things get too far that she is aware and consenting to anything that might happen in this surprisingly unexpected one night stand. Yet in the morning, he isn’t ready to let her go, even knowing she’s trying to steal from him. He wants to find out more about this intriguing and challenging woman. Will Thea stick around to find out whether Damian is worth the risk to her career, and her heart?
If you’re familiar with Jackie Ashenden’s books, particularly in the DARE line, then you’ll know to expect some intense sexual tension, some smoking hot scenes and characters who are willing to skirt the lines of propriety to get what they want and all of that is present here. Thea has led a pretty lonely life, left on a doorstep as an infant and raised in an orphanage before being taken under the wing of her mentor and learning thieving skills that have saved her life more than once. But always being invisible has taken its toll so when Damian offers her his full attention, even knowing that she’s there to steal something from him yet not threatening her or calling the police, she can’t resist taking a bite of that juicy tempting apple. What does surprise her is that the next day, he wants her to stick around, and he’s willing to hold off his two best friends to do so.
The story takes place over a short time and is an insta-lust, insta-love story, with a sweet happy ending and epilogue. I appreciated that Damian respected Thea’s survival skills and seeks to help her in her Robin Hood-esque career by providing the funds to make it more legitimate. The setup is made for two more stories with popular tropes (best friend’s sibling and friends to lovers) for Damian’s wealthy partners in the Billion $ Bastards series and you can be sure I’ll be adding them to my to-read list!
This review also appears at Harlequin Junkie: https://harlequinjunkie.com/review-di...
A copy of this story was provided by the publisher for review.
Thea Smith is on a mission. She’s a ‘re-acquisition’ agent, recovering stolen goods for people using some under the radar skills, training she received while under the wing of a mentor. To keep his legacy, she’s used to being part of the background while doing her jobs, but she secretly longs to be seen. And then she gets her wish.
Damian Blackwood assumes that the cute waitress not on the employee list is up to something, and he’s right, when he discovers her in his private office trying to get into his safe. He’s fully aware when she tries to seduce him that it’s meant as a distraction but he can’t deny he’s attracted to her and he’s not an unwilling participant – though he makes sure before things get too far that she is aware and consenting to anything that might happen in this surprisingly unexpected one night stand. Yet in the morning, he isn’t ready to let her go, even knowing she’s trying to steal from him. He wants to find out more about this intriguing and challenging woman. Will Thea stick around to find out whether Damian is worth the risk to her career, and her heart?
If you’re familiar with Jackie Ashenden’s books, particularly in the DARE line, then you’ll know to expect some intense sexual tension, some smoking hot scenes and characters who are willing to skirt the lines of propriety to get what they want and all of that is present here. Thea has led a pretty lonely life, left on a doorstep as an infant and raised in an orphanage before being taken under the wing of her mentor and learning thieving skills that have saved her life more than once. But always being invisible has taken its toll so when Damian offers her his full attention, even knowing that she’s there to steal something from him yet not threatening her or calling the police, she can’t resist taking a bite of that juicy tempting apple. What does surprise her is that the next day, he wants her to stick around, and he’s willing to hold off his two best friends to do so.
The story takes place over a short time and is an insta-lust, insta-love story, with a sweet happy ending and epilogue. I appreciated that Damian respected Thea’s survival skills and seeks to help her in her Robin Hood-esque career by providing the funds to make it more legitimate. The setup is made for two more stories with popular tropes (best friend’s sibling and friends to lovers) for Damian’s wealthy partners in the Billion $ Bastards series and you can be sure I’ll be adding them to my to-read list!
This review also appears at Harlequin Junkie: https://harlequinjunkie.com/review-di...
A copy of this story was provided by the publisher for review.
January 1, 2020
This is a quick read.
The thief heroine is on a mission to steal a necklace from a rich playboy Hero. So she disguises herself as a waitress in one of his grand parties. Unfortunately, she gets caught by the playboy.
She tries to lie but he catches it. Then she tries to seduce him and then goes on with a BJ.
The Playboy is impressed with the BJ and so he gives her oral too. Then again he remembers that she is a thief who gatecrashed his party to steal. But the supposedly inexperienced heroine distracts him again.
The seduction part was hard to believe as the heroine is a virgin and inexperienced. Still she manages to lure the experienced playboy. I guess they are sexually attracted.
The book is nothing great. Not bad either.
The thief heroine is on a mission to steal a necklace from a rich playboy Hero. So she disguises herself as a waitress in one of his grand parties. Unfortunately, she gets caught by the playboy.
She tries to lie but he catches it. Then she tries to seduce him and then goes on with a BJ.
The Playboy is impressed with the BJ and so he gives her oral too. Then again he remembers that she is a thief who gatecrashed his party to steal. But the supposedly inexperienced heroine distracts him again.
The seduction part was hard to believe as the heroine is a virgin and inexperienced. Still she manages to lure the experienced playboy. I guess they are sexually attracted.
The book is nothing great. Not bad either.
January 4, 2020
I've been a fan of Jackie Ashenden's novels for some time and although I generally complain about insta-love romances, which this first novel in her new series, Billion $ Bastards, has in spades, when done as well as it is in this book, it works for me, and it gets a 5-star rating, since I picked it up, opened it, and read it straight through until morning.
Thea Smith is the heroine in this novel. She's had a rough life, and was living on the streets until her mentor, Mr. Chen, found her on the streets of Hong Kong, trained her, and taught her his business--re-acquiring (aka, stealing) previously stolen items and returning them to their legitimate owners for a fee. When we first meet Thea she is crashing a party thrown by notorious playboy billionaire, Damian Blackwood. Dressed as a waitress, she manages to avoid detection by the security guards and gain entry to the private and exclusive gathering. She's there on a mission, to re-acquire the Red Queen, a fabulous ruby necklace, stolen from its rightful owner 20 years earlier, and recently acquired at auction by Damian, a collector of fine and rare gemstone jewelry. She plans to steal it if she can find it, grab it, return it to it's rightful owner, and get away without detection--a tactic she learned from her mentor, and one she' been successful at for years.
When Thea first sets eyes on Damian, he's surrounded by a bevy of beautiful and wealthy women, all doing their utmost to gain his attention, but she's drawn to both the story he's telling, his charm, his looks, and the chemistry when they first lay eyes on one another is off the charts. What Thea doesn't know is that Damian has an eidetic memory, and he knows she isn't one of the waitstaff he meticulously hired, wondering how she got past his security team.
Since Thea prides herself on being unmemorable, and considers herself so ordinary that no one ever notices her, she is soon in Damian's supposedly secure office trying to find the safe containing the Red Queen, not realizing that Damian did indeed notice her, knew she didn't belong there, and wondered who she was, and what she was after. He finds her in what he believed to be his secure office--hiding under his desk. Although he knows she's up to no good, and has already guessed what she's after, he's sidetracked by her and the electricity between them, and in Thea's virginal mind, what better way to distract him from having her arrested, than to offer him her body and her sexual services. She's never done this before, but Damian is definitely interested, and she'd rather offer him sex than get arrested.
What follows is typical of Jackie Ashenden novels, two interesting and seemingly mismatched characters who are from completely different backgrounds, but each broken, and/or scarred in some fashion, who find common ground, have steamy sex, learn more about each other, and, in the process, begin to come to terms with the emotional scars they bear, and manage to slowly heal one another. Is it formulaic? Of course it is, but Ms. Ashenden is so masterful at creating these characters you can't help but root for them to find their HEA ending.
Other than Ms. Ashenden's ability to make these characters jump off the page and into your heart, were this novel written by any other than a small handful of authors I can name, I'd be listing my standard complaints about insta-love, not enough action, no threat of danger from someone else who wants to steal the rare ruby necklace, and so on, but in Jackie Ashenden's more than competent hands, I absolutely loved this novel, fell in love with her hero, and wouldn't change so much as a single word of this impossible to put down, steamy, heartfelt, and emotionally satisfying novel. I highly recommend it, and can hardly wait for the next novel in this series.
Thea Smith is the heroine in this novel. She's had a rough life, and was living on the streets until her mentor, Mr. Chen, found her on the streets of Hong Kong, trained her, and taught her his business--re-acquiring (aka, stealing) previously stolen items and returning them to their legitimate owners for a fee. When we first meet Thea she is crashing a party thrown by notorious playboy billionaire, Damian Blackwood. Dressed as a waitress, she manages to avoid detection by the security guards and gain entry to the private and exclusive gathering. She's there on a mission, to re-acquire the Red Queen, a fabulous ruby necklace, stolen from its rightful owner 20 years earlier, and recently acquired at auction by Damian, a collector of fine and rare gemstone jewelry. She plans to steal it if she can find it, grab it, return it to it's rightful owner, and get away without detection--a tactic she learned from her mentor, and one she' been successful at for years.
When Thea first sets eyes on Damian, he's surrounded by a bevy of beautiful and wealthy women, all doing their utmost to gain his attention, but she's drawn to both the story he's telling, his charm, his looks, and the chemistry when they first lay eyes on one another is off the charts. What Thea doesn't know is that Damian has an eidetic memory, and he knows she isn't one of the waitstaff he meticulously hired, wondering how she got past his security team.
Since Thea prides herself on being unmemorable, and considers herself so ordinary that no one ever notices her, she is soon in Damian's supposedly secure office trying to find the safe containing the Red Queen, not realizing that Damian did indeed notice her, knew she didn't belong there, and wondered who she was, and what she was after. He finds her in what he believed to be his secure office--hiding under his desk. Although he knows she's up to no good, and has already guessed what she's after, he's sidetracked by her and the electricity between them, and in Thea's virginal mind, what better way to distract him from having her arrested, than to offer him her body and her sexual services. She's never done this before, but Damian is definitely interested, and she'd rather offer him sex than get arrested.
What follows is typical of Jackie Ashenden novels, two interesting and seemingly mismatched characters who are from completely different backgrounds, but each broken, and/or scarred in some fashion, who find common ground, have steamy sex, learn more about each other, and, in the process, begin to come to terms with the emotional scars they bear, and manage to slowly heal one another. Is it formulaic? Of course it is, but Ms. Ashenden is so masterful at creating these characters you can't help but root for them to find their HEA ending.
Other than Ms. Ashenden's ability to make these characters jump off the page and into your heart, were this novel written by any other than a small handful of authors I can name, I'd be listing my standard complaints about insta-love, not enough action, no threat of danger from someone else who wants to steal the rare ruby necklace, and so on, but in Jackie Ashenden's more than competent hands, I absolutely loved this novel, fell in love with her hero, and wouldn't change so much as a single word of this impossible to put down, steamy, heartfelt, and emotionally satisfying novel. I highly recommend it, and can hardly wait for the next novel in this series.
February 3, 2020
I wanted to like this one more than I did. It's dueling first person POV that shifts between hero and heroine every other chapter - a shtick that romance authors have beaten half to death. Also, I was hoping our jewel thief heroine would be sharp, tough, smart, and a badass. Instead we get a poor wounded orphan girl who feels like she's a nobody. She's desperately lonely borderline pining for affection and....that's not a badass jewel thief. The hero is prototypical Alpha playboy who pushes everyone away because he couldn't save his mother. Oh and he has silver eyes - which you read about a lot. What is it with romance authors and weird eye colors? Who has silver eyes?! It's like amber colored eyes. You know what color amber is? Frickin' yellow. Do all these romance characters with amber colored eyes have jaundice?
Anyway, I digress. This is fine. I read it in a day, I kept turning the pages, but this could have been great and it was merely meh. Also, you never get closure on the necklace that the heroine shows up to steal from the hero which...that seems like a huge gaping plot hole to me but whatever. Moving on.
Anyway, I digress. This is fine. I read it in a day, I kept turning the pages, but this could have been great and it was merely meh. Also, you never get closure on the necklace that the heroine shows up to steal from the hero which...that seems like a huge gaping plot hole to me but whatever. Moving on.
January 8, 2020
I always know I'm going to get a fabulous read when I pick one of Jackie Ashenden's books. I love the fact that she is always imaginative and does not simply re-tread the old tropes which so many Mills and Boon authors appear to do and that her execution is stylish, engaging and satisfying.
This one has a really fabulous hero in Damian Blackwood - a charismatic and beautiful billionaire who has an eidetic memory so never forgets anything - a blessing and a curse. The heroine Thea hides in the shadows never engaging with people until she meets Damian while trying to steal a valuable necklace from him. (She describes this as "re-acquisition" but from Damian;'s point of view, it's still stealing!
She tries to use sex to distract Damian and despite being a virgin, she succeeds and ends up distracting both of them. Jackie writes credible and steamy sex scenes and they help us understand the ever-developing attraction between h/H.
His relationship with his sister and his business partners set the scene for understanding Damian's hangups and for the next 2 books. I liked Damian - he was not a bad guy at all - just a little damaged. I cannot wait for the next in the series.!!
I was lucky enough to win this book on the author's FB page. Thank you Jackie!
This one has a really fabulous hero in Damian Blackwood - a charismatic and beautiful billionaire who has an eidetic memory so never forgets anything - a blessing and a curse. The heroine Thea hides in the shadows never engaging with people until she meets Damian while trying to steal a valuable necklace from him. (She describes this as "re-acquisition" but from Damian;'s point of view, it's still stealing!
She tries to use sex to distract Damian and despite being a virgin, she succeeds and ends up distracting both of them. Jackie writes credible and steamy sex scenes and they help us understand the ever-developing attraction between h/H.
His relationship with his sister and his business partners set the scene for understanding Damian's hangups and for the next 2 books. I liked Damian - he was not a bad guy at all - just a little damaged. I cannot wait for the next in the series.!!
I was lucky enough to win this book on the author's FB page. Thank you Jackie!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 16, 2020
This was good story that had strong characters that worked really well together!
Romance blooms in this story that was full of raunchy scenes and unexpected endings.
It is 5 stars from me for this one, it was a thoroughly enjoyable story and one I will be very highly recommending!
Romance blooms in this story that was full of raunchy scenes and unexpected endings.
It is 5 stars from me for this one, it was a thoroughly enjoyable story and one I will be very highly recommending!
February 1, 2020
An enjoyable read telling the story of Thea and Damien who meet in strange circumstances when he catches her trying to steal a priceless necklace from his office. Rather than calling the police, Damien in Thea proceed to engage in a dangerous game of flirting with each other, and when one thing leads to another, a no strings night of passion follows.
What I enjoyed about the story was that Damien and Thea are both fairly complex characters (credit to Jackie Ashenden who has a real talent for this based on reading this and her previous books) who each have their own issues, but find a connection with each other as they navigate their strange relationship. The fact that there is a story beyond the sex scenes adds depth to the plot, and as time goes on, you genuinely do root for Damien to overcome his trust issues and let Thea into his life on a more permanent basis. The characters are likeable and as a reader you do become invested in what happens to them which is good. I must say, I wasn't keen on how the first 'encounter' comes about after Damien finds Thea in his office because, as Thea's back story was revealed, her actions did seems slightly out of character, however, this aside, the story bubbles along nicely to the point where you want the two to be happy.
The concluding chapters are strong as Damien struggles to accept that he needs to overcome his past issues in order to move forward, and I enjoyed the closing scenes as he attempts to right his wrongs with Thea. As this is the first book in a mini-series, we will hopefully see more of Damien and Thea in future.
What I enjoyed about the story was that Damien and Thea are both fairly complex characters (credit to Jackie Ashenden who has a real talent for this based on reading this and her previous books) who each have their own issues, but find a connection with each other as they navigate their strange relationship. The fact that there is a story beyond the sex scenes adds depth to the plot, and as time goes on, you genuinely do root for Damien to overcome his trust issues and let Thea into his life on a more permanent basis. The characters are likeable and as a reader you do become invested in what happens to them which is good. I must say, I wasn't keen on how the first 'encounter' comes about after Damien finds Thea in his office because, as Thea's back story was revealed, her actions did seems slightly out of character, however, this aside, the story bubbles along nicely to the point where you want the two to be happy.
The concluding chapters are strong as Damien struggles to accept that he needs to overcome his past issues in order to move forward, and I enjoyed the closing scenes as he attempts to right his wrongs with Thea. As this is the first book in a mini-series, we will hopefully see more of Damien and Thea in future.
February 14, 2020
A quick hot read.
Thea is a woman on a mission - to steal a very expensive necklace for a client but sexy billionaire Damian catches her in the act.
Running out of options she tries to seduce him but ends up getting more than she bargained for.
Told from a first person perspective we get to see things from both Thea and Damians perspectives.
Can Damian finally let someone in and not just his bed but his heart?
Will Thea find someone to finally love her?
It’s a fast paced insta-lust insta-love whirlwind story that you get swept into just as much as the characters do.
There’s some truly steamy sex scenes to get your pulse racing and moments of real tenderness too.
Thea is a woman on a mission - to steal a very expensive necklace for a client but sexy billionaire Damian catches her in the act.
Running out of options she tries to seduce him but ends up getting more than she bargained for.
Told from a first person perspective we get to see things from both Thea and Damians perspectives.
Can Damian finally let someone in and not just his bed but his heart?
Will Thea find someone to finally love her?
It’s a fast paced insta-lust insta-love whirlwind story that you get swept into just as much as the characters do.
There’s some truly steamy sex scenes to get your pulse racing and moments of real tenderness too.
June 2, 2020
Wonderful characters. Heat that makes this a page turner. Glad we already had the air conditioning on before I read this one! Left me dripping we ton just about every other page. Not for younger readers.
Read
January 2, 2020Categories
Contemporary Romance, Contemporary Women's Fiction
Miniseries
Billion $ Bastards (Book #1)
Contemporary Romance, Contemporary Women's Fiction
Miniseries
Billion $ Bastards (Book #1)
June 7, 2020
3.5 stars
I like the characters in this series, and this one was particularly steamy. Looking for the third book.
I like the characters in this series, and this one was particularly steamy. Looking for the third book.
July 20, 2020
4.5 stars!!!! soooooo SOOOOO GOOOOOOD
April 4, 2021
Dirty Devil was a quick, dirty and enjoyable read.
March 2, 2026
ok read
Very slow with slow story, both main characters were likeable and the story was interesting. Will read the next two books.
Very slow with slow story, both main characters were likeable and the story was interesting. Will read the next two books.
February 18, 2020
I loved this sexy, scandalous story.
Complex, emotionally damaged characters, passionate, sensual love scenes. and an original meeting between the two main characters. All factors, which had me turning the pages to see what would happen to Thea, the streetwise but vulnerable heroine, when she meets, sexy as sin playboy Damian, who hides his generous heart well.
The emotional connection between Thea and Damian matches the passion, although it does have to play catch up. Their first encounter is purely intrigue and lust based. Thea's career, as someone who steals stolen items for the true owners, brings her into direct conflict with billionaire, Damian. The attraction is strong, and her quiet self-possession draws Damian in and threatens the walls he's built around his heart.
Both the characters are likeable. Although outwardly different, both have emotional scars. You want them to overcome their past issues, and find happiness together. The conflicts are many, both external and internal, but love finds a way.
Hot, hectic and heartwarming, this is a great start to what promises to be a memorable series.
I received a copy of this book from Mills and Boon via NetGalley in return for an honest review.
Complex, emotionally damaged characters, passionate, sensual love scenes. and an original meeting between the two main characters. All factors, which had me turning the pages to see what would happen to Thea, the streetwise but vulnerable heroine, when she meets, sexy as sin playboy Damian, who hides his generous heart well.
The emotional connection between Thea and Damian matches the passion, although it does have to play catch up. Their first encounter is purely intrigue and lust based. Thea's career, as someone who steals stolen items for the true owners, brings her into direct conflict with billionaire, Damian. The attraction is strong, and her quiet self-possession draws Damian in and threatens the walls he's built around his heart.
Both the characters are likeable. Although outwardly different, both have emotional scars. You want them to overcome their past issues, and find happiness together. The conflicts are many, both external and internal, but love finds a way.
Hot, hectic and heartwarming, this is a great start to what promises to be a memorable series.
I received a copy of this book from Mills and Boon via NetGalley in return for an honest review.
December 11, 2019
Jackie Ashenden is one of those authors where you just know you're in for a good time when reading one of her books, and Dirty Devil is no exception. I'm not usually a fan of insta-love stories, but the chemistry between Damian and Thea was smoking hot and I loved their story. Can't wait for the rest of the series!
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews