Final Offer (Dreamland Billionaires, 3)

Tropes/ Key Points

✨POC FMC ✨Second Chance Romance ✨Summer Romance ✨Billionaire Romance ✨Small Town Romance ✨Forced Proximity ✨Childhood friends to lovers ✨Single Mother ✨Slow Burn

Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️

Blurb:

Callahan is the final Kane brother to take the steps to secure his inheritance. He kept putting it off out of fear and dread to return to the place that his life went wrong. He knows that everyone gossips about him behind his back, no more so than the small town where he broke the heart of the girl of his dreams. If anyone knows the real him, it’s her, Lana Castillo. The problem is that his grandfather is forcing him to go back to Lake Wisteria, and six years ago he promised Alana that he would never return.

Callahan has to spend one summer at the lake house before selling it. Such a simple task that blows up in his face when he returns to find Lana living there, along with her five year old daughter….who looks suspiciously like Cal.

Alana fell in love with Cal as a teenager, despite knowing it was a mistake. He had been injured playing Hockey and got addicted to drugs and alcohol to cope. She had her heart shattered in the way that he left, and never fully recovered. She thought she would never have to see him again, at least until he shows up in the middle of the night with a key to the house she didn’t know he had.

He announces that he is going to sell the house, but there is one little snag. Lana owns half of it and he needs her permission to do anything. She has no intention on giving up the only home she, or her daughter, has ever known. When faced with reality that she has to sell, she decides she won’t make it easy on him. Her plan is foolproof, at least until Cal starts chipping his way back into her, and her daughters, hearts.

Review:

This book is an amazing end to such a great series. I don’t think I’ve given a full series five stars before all the way through, but this one deserves it. Sure, the plots are a bit repetitive throughout all three and fully predictable but that’s just the layout of any romance novel these days.

I enjoyed the way that Alana is this strong independent woman. Even though she is in love with Cal, she doesn’t just allow him back in. He has to work for it and he keeps messing it up along the way. Normally I would be irritated at the repetitiveness of him “relapsing” back despite knowing it upsets Alana, but to me this is part of that accurate portrayal of his suffering. He knows what he is doing is wrong, but his mind and body are screaming at him that he needs it to cope.

One of my biggest positives about this story is the daughter, Cami. She is such a delight and a little bit of a swindler. There is some backstory with her which is absolutely heart wrenching but you wouldn’t know it by the way she is presented in the story. She is such a strong and sweet little girl who pays attention more than her mom gives her credit for. She is such a great addition to the cast of characters and I loved every time she was front and center.

I loved the way that we get to see glimpses of the other couples. I’m glad it was continued into this book as it only added to their development from between their own epilogues. It was nice to see the differences in the first two brothers and how they interacted with Cal in this story. It clearly showed how they have grown since finding their loves and it made their relationship with their brother stronger.

There was one twist ending that I did not see coming and I absolutely cheered at how it was handled. It gives a deeper understanding of who their father is at the core, and he’s just as pathetic as you wold expect him to be after two books. I think it gives a nice look into Cal’s mind and how he really feels about his abusive dad.

Overall such a nice ending to the standalone trilogy. I love the happy ending for everyone but don’t feel like it was wrapped up in too nice of a bow. This author really knew what she was doing and that deserves credit!

From Lala’s Book Reviews

All I can say is CALLAHAN PERCIVAL KANE. Like don’t get me wrong, I love Declan and Rowan, but I knew that Cal would be my favorite Kane brother since we saw so much of him in Terms and Conditions.

Cal is the middle Kane brother who is more of the family man compared to his workaholic brothers. He was the one who dreamed about settling down with the his childhood love until his career in the NHL ended after a couple of years leading to depression and dependency on pain killers and alcohol to make it through the day. Cal was able to kick the pain killers but was never able to give up the alcohol despite rehab and AA meetings. He knew that this version of himself was not the man that Lana deserved and used her fear of abandonment and rejection to breakup with her.

Six years pass and Cal has never returned to Lake Wisteria (except for one time) where Lana lives and he used to visit his grandfather Brady Kane during the summer. As good old Brady would have it, Cal needs to sell the house that Brady left for him to be able to get his inheritance and help his brothers secure their portion of the Dreamland franchise that Brady created. Little dose Cal know that Brady was a sneaky man who had more puzzle pieces than Cal expects, and when he shows up to the lake house for the first time in years, he finds out that none other than Lana had actually inherited half of the lake house. Causing Cal how to find a way to convince Lana to sell the house.

The most surprising and shocking thing that Cal finds out is that Lana has a daughter with features that are very similar to his own would be around the age of when he had left Lana.

Let me tell you, Cami (Lana’s daughter) is a little spitfire and had an adorable way of stealing the show from either Lana or Cal. Kami is probably the biggest reason that Lana made it through those six years after having her heart broken by Cal. Cami gave Lana a reason to make it through each day, and you it’s clear that Kami and Lana have an unbreakable relationship with love and trust. With Cami only being old enough to be in elementary school she is smart and observant with that childish charm that lowkey freaks Cal out at first but also steals his heart like Lana did.

Lana is more guarded as time has moved on as she now has to think about her daughter. She has a good life in Lake Wisteria where she knows that the small town of people love them and would protect them like a family. After being shocked into a momentary stupor of seeing her teenage crush after six years of loneliness. She’s afraid of the worse that he will somehow make his way back into her heart and is unwilling to let go of her part of the house. Lana decides that if Cal is so persistent on selling the property, she would make it near impossible by suggesting that the old house needs to be renovated to increase listing price. Cal would rather sell it sooner rather than later, but relents knowing that this would be the only way.

Cal wants to be out of the town where he could have had the love of his life and being so close to Lana and Cami in the guess house is his own personal form of torture of having what could have been so close but out of reach. And, as Brady Kane would have had it, the house is filled with asbestos causing Lana and Kami to have to live in the guess house with Cal. Cami is beyond thrilled as she and Cal have become best friends over the weeks while Lana is hesitant to be so close to Cal as he is already starting to wear down the walls around her heart.

As the three of them are forced to play house, they fall into a routine and it would be easy for Lana and Cal to imagine a life together but the looming end of the summer and Cal leaving is one of the things that has Lana holding onto any sense of letting herself fall again for the man who so obviously wants to become someone who is worthy of her time.

Cal decides that it is finally time to get sober for himself and that he owes himself the changes that could come along with it. And, he decides that he would spend every last second of a sober life proving to Lana that he is the man that could give her and Cami a life filled with love.

The Final Offer is in my opinion the best book in the series. With Cal’s book being the largest in the series, it sadly went by way to quickly as Cal and Lana have to overcome the trust issues that they have with themselves and each other and find their way back to each other after six years of separation.

As much as I love the grumpy sunshine trope going on with the first two books, I love the golden retriever energy that Cal has and his undying loyalty that he has. I love his determination to change for himself and becoming a person who would be deserving of a better life.

This book is filled with first love, heartache, and finding your way back to the person you were meant to be with.

I nearly read this entire book in a day. I couldn’t put it down. I really liked the first two books, but this one was by far my favorite. The other books had more of a power-dynamic love between a stubborn, work-obsessed man and a sweet woman who was trying not to get her heart torn apart. This book was different thigh. Cal is like a golden retriever, so sweet and tender. Truly the only thing he cared about was Lana, and it was so sweet. This book reminded me a lot of Carley Fortunes books (partly because both take place at a lake, lol) but the romance is just sweet and tender, and spicy when it needs to be. The spice in this book was also 🥵. Still crying over the ending, I wish Cal had ANOTHER book!!!!

Every time I thought it couldn’t get better, it did. I loved this trilogy so much. The characters and their stories intrigued me the whole time, it was always hard to put the books down. Then when I finish the last book I see the authors note and felt so touched by it (not wanting to spoil what it says but for me it was true). I was so immersed I felt part of the world and I’m sad to let it go. I recommend this trilogy 10/10.

I am not typically a fan of billionaire romances, and I am also not a fan of super long romance books, so I was a little skeptical at first, but way to save the best for last Lauren Asher! I did not care for the first book in this series, I really enjoyed the second, but this one was so dang good! I really enjoyed the plot of this one, and thought it fit in well with the plot of the other two. I loved seeing how it all came to an end. This one had so many tropes that I love (childhood friends to lovers, forced proximity, single parent), it has some drama, it was emotional, it was full of family and also a great community of found family. The Final Offer was everything I love about romance in one book. There were a few things that threw me off, and I wish were a little more flushed out, but it didn't change the way I adored this book. This one definitely had some heavy moments (trigger warning for addiction), but I felt like it was really balanced well. I have come to realize that I really enjoy the single parent trope, and one of my favorite things is when the love interest (Cal in this case) comes into the child's life and you can immediately see that they are going to love each other. Cal and Cami's relationship was so dang sweet; one of my favorite parts of the book if I'm being honest. I also really loved that the history between Cal and Alana was explained well. I think a lot of time in second chance romance I find myself rolling my eyes, but not in this one and was excited for them to fall back in love. I didn't think that I would be sad to see this series end, as I really only continued on after the first book because I hate not finishing series. After I finishing this one, I am really excited to read more from Lauren Asher, I think I'm going to read the Formula 1 series next!

I am a little sad to let this series go as I loved the concept and idea behind but like the author said - it is great to see the progress of the Kane brothers and how far they came.

I knew Cal’s book wouldn’t be an easy read - dealing with addiction and how long Cal just skated by but I appreciated that the author didn’t just send him to rehab out of the gate or act like it would be a quick dry journey.

We really got to see how a functioning alcoholic makes it thru the day, and really life.

I also like the addition of a child - Cami. But a huge part of me wanted the child to just be theirs. Did we need the sister? I don’t know … I guess it showed how much Lana dealt with addiction in her life but then where was her growth? Maybe some Al-non would have be good.

Anyhoo. I loved this series and this was a wonderful end.

The Dreamland Billionaires saga comes to a close with the story of Cal, the problem child of the Kane brothers. A former professional athlete turned alcoholic, Cal is not well equipped when it comes to handling his feelings. When a clause in his grandfather’s will sends him back to Lake Wisteria to spend the summer, he is forced to face his childhood friend and love of his life, Alana, whose heart he had broken when he walked out six years before. While Alana had given her love to Calahan Kane freely in the past, there is no way that she is going to let herself be hurt by him again… or will she?

While the first two books in the series were somewhat typical, fluffy romances, there was a whole lot more angst in this one. Cal is an alcoholic, and I appreciated the fact that his journey towards recovery was not glossed over and was not magically turned off like the flipping of a light switch. But while the book dealt with serious topics, it still was lighthearted and fun when it needed to be.

I loved how the characters in the previous books were woven throughout this one in ways that made sense, but did not detract from the main story. My favorite new character was by far Cami, in whose honor I am implementing a new swear jar for my house (IYKYK).

“I dare you to want for me. The real me The sober me The best me who wants to spend the rest of his days getting drunk on life with you”

Can I tell you how much I loved this book!? My favorite brother of the three, Cal! Seeing his story last was such a great closure to this series. Alana? My goodness loved her Latina character and attitude. And Cami!! What a sweet girl! She weaves into Cal’s heartstrings and this is beautiful to read.

This book was all about the journey. The journey of a character that has gone through hardships after loss, the end of his career, an absent alcoholic parent, and more. The awareness throughout the book that we need to work on ourselves before we can give to anyone else. If your bucket is empty, what can you offer? Loved the message behind it…

Lana and Cami were amazing characters. Coming through their journey of loss and newfound family in a town where everyone became a gigantic family. The town and its people 🥹 The support they give each other. Love small-town vibes!

Cal and Lana 🔥👀 My goodness those spicy scenes 🌶️🤐

Loved seeing the brothers grow throughout the three books. Grumpy men learning to let go and be shown what life is truly about through love by strong female characters women. Really enjoyed the last scenes with the brothers, reconnecting and breaking a cycle, choosing to walk stronger together.

The Final Offer was an enjoyable second chance romance book. This is the third and final book in the Dreamland Billionaire series, so I would recommend just reading the prior books first for a better reading experience.

It is dual POVs of the main characters, Callahan Kane and Alana Castillo, and there are some great tropes like a forced proximity, a single mother, a small town and a friends to strangers to lovers romance. I do recommend checking the content and trigger warnings before reading though, as alcoholism and addiction were a big part of this book.

The overall premise was interesting, it was a bit more heavier than I was expecting though. The pacing was also quite slow and there were a few moments and scenes that were dragged out way too long. But I will say, the discussions regarding anxiety and addiction were written beautifully. There were also some amazing side characters and laugh out loud moments. I also really liked seeing the Kane brothers and their girls all together again.

I gotta say my favorite character and scenes were those of Alana’s daughter, Cami. She was definitely the star of this book and I just loved the way she swindled money from Cal. Their banter and dynamic was just so amusing.

The relationship between Alana and Cal was filled with so much angst, tension and longing. The heartbreak between them was beautifully written and definitely made me tear up a bit. I also really loved all the teasing, banter and spice between them.

There was quite a bit of push and pull from Alana though, which was understandable with everything she experienced with him in the past. Towards the end her hot and cold attitude did get a bit annoying though. I also would have liked more flashbacks scenes or backstory detailing their romance when they were younger, to have better understood the immense love they had for each other.

As this was a second chance romance in regards to OW/OM, he never dated anyone after her but slept around especially while he was using. But when Alana and him reunite, he hadn’t slept with anyone in over 2 years. Alana, did date someone for a couple of months 2 years before they reunite as well, and other than that nobody else was mentioned.

The one thing I did struggle with, was Cal’s decision on getting sober. I didn’t want him to use Alana as his main motivation and it unfortunately came off that way to me. While, he does state that he’s doing it for himself, I wanted a bit more self-reflection to truly believe that, as his decision felt quite sudden.

I also wanted more on his sobriety and recovery journey, as it was one of the biggest plot points throughout the story, and we didn’t get much of it. Honestly, it just felt very rushed and brushed aside at the end. I felt like his decision to go to rehab should have happened sooner and not until almost the end as well.

I will say though, I did like how Cal’s father and the shares of the company were handled and wrapped up. There was no redemption for him, which I appreciated because he definitely did not deserve it.

The last few chapters felt a bit rushed and there were a few subplots that felt quite unfinished/unanswered, like the drama with Alana’s sister and Cal’s feelings towards the family business and the fight with his late grandfather, but there was still a really sweet conclusion. The extend epilogue was also so heartwarming and I just loved seeing all of them together with their kids.

Overall, just a heartfelt read and nice conclusion to the series.