Finance Bros

Bay Area Bros, Book 1

By: August Jones

Narrated by: Brandon Francis, Harley Chase

Ryan
Ever say something you regret? Like regret so hard you get the word REGRET tattooed on your arm? Same.

I accidentally told my stepbrother I was in love with him when we were fourteen. In my defense, strong cough syrup was involved, but to my great regret he hasn’t missed a chance to show me how disgusting I am ever since. He damn near ruined my life.

But I’m not a kid anymore, and the summer internship I scored at the best investment banking firm in San Francisco is my ticket to a perfect life. Everything is going to plan until he shows up.

Malcolm
My former stepbrother was supposed to fall off the face of the earth so I’d never have to look him in the eyes again, and honestly, I thought he had. The sight of him with his rock hard body in a great suit makes me feel things I’ve ignored for years. Things I’m not sure I’ll be able to avoid if I let him back into my life. And I wouldn’t except—I might need his help.

In addition to learning the ropes in finance, each intern gets a hundred bucks to turn into a pile of cash by the end of summer. Whoever makes the most wins a dream career with the firm. The only rule? There are no rules. When the rest of the interns pool their money for an advantage, I have to decide whether to go it alone and risk the job, or confront my complicated history with Ryan and work together. Good thing we both claim to be straight. Otherwise, this could get complicated.

Finance Bros is a hate to love MM stepbrother romance featuring pets, found family, a little angst, and lots of spice.

©2025 August Jones (P)2026 August Jones

August never misses

I eyeball read this when it came out and loved it so I was excited to experience it again on audio. Harley Chase and Brandon Francis are the *perfect* Ryan and Mal.

This was messy, chaotic, and full of push and pull… and I ate it up!

Both narrators did such a great job bringing Ry & Mal to life 💛

Ryan and Mal go from former stepbrothers and best friends to enemies to lovers, and the tension between them is constant. Mal’s intensity and obsession with Ryan really surprised me in the best way, while Ryan’s growth both in his career and within their found family, was so satisfying to read.

“𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗼𝗱𝘆 𝗺𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘄𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗸𝗶𝗱𝘀, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗯𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗲𝘅𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗲.”

After all the emotional whiplash, I loved seeing them finally communicate and come back stronger.

Also, the pets? Such an adorable bonus.

Beautiful journey

I absolutely loved this book from beginning to end. I am a fan of the stepbrother trope and this was beautifully. The journey from pseudo enemies to lovers was so good. I found this story to be emotional at times but also hilarious. Their journey was beautiful to watch

Fighting, Finance & Frenzy Forking

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

Brandon Francis and Harley Chase, two of my favorite narrators, brought Malcom & Ryan to life and were absolutely perfect for the roles.

Overall, I loved the story of Malcom & Ryan’s journey from enemies to project teammates to lovers. Malcom struggled with self acceptance throughout much of the book and it became apparent why the two went from step brothers/best friends to enemies (albeit one sided, mostly from Malcom). However, once Malcom began to accept himself and feelings towards Ryan, it was game on! And HOT! I was actually surprised at how possessive Malcom was over Ryan. I was not expecting that, but throughly enjoyed it. Ryan’s hesitation on letting Malcom in completely, was understandable given their history. It took until the almost the end, for Ryan to finally accept Malcom back into his heart (although if we’re being honest, he never truly left).

But the real stars of the story… definitely Stephanie & Bud (IYKYK).

Two of the most talented narrators

Love the narrators who both of them did such a great job, but the book was kind of long and somewhat boring for me. It was good not great.