Business Not As Usual by Sharon C. Cooper tells the story of Dreamy Daniels, a young, intelligent Black woman with an unfulfilling job as a secretary at a start up. She has only two goals in mind: graduate college with her Bachelor’s, and win the lottery. To anyone sane, the fact that she has winning the lottery as an achievable goal is peak unrealistic but Dreamy is the picture of optimism.
Despite seemingly having all the odds against her, as she lives in a seedy LA neighborhood with her grandpa and cousin in a house that’s falling apart, her aforementioned unfulfilling job with a boss who undermines her every move, and a recent breakup with an asshole who made her question herself, Dreamy remains positive and drips optimism – something clearly evident in her colorful wardrobe and matching personality.
At work, she meets venture capitalist Karter Redford. A multimillionaire (billionaire?) with superstar parents who may invest in the startup Dreamy works at. Karter, this handsome, older Black man did not expect to have his breath taken away upon seeing Dreamy for the first time. As one of those guys who barely dates because of his seemingly bad taste in women, Dreamy caught his eye and he realized he was determined to figure out how to get to know her. Upon meeting, sparks fly between them though both of them know it would put their professional relationship at risk if they were to pursue something romantically. But this is a romance novel, so they do it anyway.
As the story unfolds, brimming with cuteness and sexy scenes sprinkled in, it becomes clear that Dreamy’s main holdback from wanting to pursue love is thanks to her ex-boyfriend Brandon, who had the balls to tell her that she wasn’t good enough to be with a man like him. Honestly, he was right – she was too good to be with an asshole like that. Regardless, the words stuck with Dreamy, where she questioned her worth and whether she was deserving of love after all.
For Karter, he’s faced with mortality as one of his closest friends died young of a heart attack from consistent stress and overworking. As Karter has no life outside the office, he’s determined to change that for the sake of his health. Once he meets Dreamy, he realizes that she could be the path to a more relaxed lifestyle if he had someone to share it with.
Overall, Business Not As Usual was a super cute read. I can’t tell you how many times I squealed and kicked up my feet while reading, despite the fact that I needed to push through the first 100 pages to get into it. I’ll admit, it seemed very corny and cheesy in the beginning, but what romance book lacks cheesiness? Once I got past that, I had to know whether Dreamy wins the lottery, and if there was any adversity in store for her and Karter. I won’t spoil whether she wins or not; for that, you’ll have to read the book. Either way, I enjoyed reading Dreamy and Karter’s story and give Business Not As Usual 3.5 stars.
Have you read Business Not As Usual? Let me know in the comments!
