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chels984's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
i just love them sm i never wanted it to end omg
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Gun violence, Murder, Sexual content, Cursing, Death, Blood, and Gore
Moderate: Drug abuse, Death of parent, Addiction, Alcohol, and Alcoholism
r_oy_s's review
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.75
After reading an emotionally heavy book I was looking for an easy, light read. And the next I know this book popped up as a suggestion. Even though the plotline wasn't that extraordinary but it was so well executed that from the beginning it had me HOOKED. The story was written in perfect pace with the gradual progression of the events.
Nicolas Russo is arrogant, cunning, possessive, shrewd and unhinged. He knows it, owns it proudly and unapologetically. And he's a living, breathing (albeit in pages) temptation for us readers and also for Elena. Wherein Elena Abelli is sweet, poised, thoughtful, loyal and caring - a beautiful caged bird in the Cosa Nostra. But when she meets Nico her perfect facade starts to slip and she comes alive with her dormant feelings bubbling to the surface.
The sexual tension between these two was utterly maddening, my palms were sweating profusely from the anticipation of what's gonna happen when they're alone in the same room. Those hot and heavy stares of Nico shooting towards Elena had me blushing furiosly (tucking my hair behind the ear)! In my opinion the spicy scenes were tasteful not OTT that ruins the vibe of the story.
In addition to the main char cters the ens mble of characters also deserved honorary mention. Elena's Nonna was a hoot. The way she dished her daughter-in-law and the rest of her family from time to time to keep them on their toes had me cackling. I would like to be friends with her, if she lets me, obviously! I also love the dynamic Elena had with her siblings and cousins. There was plenty of family drama, tension, action, heartache and comic relief present that kept the story flowing. In spite of the involvement of feelings from the beginning, the tumultuous evolution of the relationship between Nico and Elena, lacked a good amount of romance. They definitely needed more time together as a couple that was considered to be romantic. Also there was some problematic dialogue and questionable behaviour of them which didn't sit well with me. Regardless of that I really enjoyed reading this book.
Nicolas Russo is arrogant, cunning, possessive, shrewd and unhinged. He knows it, owns it proudly and unapologetically. And he's a living, breathing (albeit in pages) temptation for us readers and also for Elena. Wherein Elena Abelli is sweet, poised, thoughtful, loyal and caring - a beautiful caged bird in the Cosa Nostra. But when she meets Nico her perfect facade starts to slip and she comes alive with her dormant feelings bubbling to the surface.
The sexual tension between these two was utterly maddening, my palms were sweating profusely from the anticipation of what's gonna happen when they're alone in the same room. Those hot and heavy stares of Nico shooting towards Elena had me blushing furiosly (tucking my hair behind the ear)! In my opinion the spicy scenes were tasteful not OTT that ruins the vibe of the story.
In addition to the main char cters the ens mble of characters also deserved honorary mention. Elena's Nonna was a hoot. The way she dished her daughter-in-law and the rest of her family from time to time to keep them on their toes had me cackling. I would like to be friends with her, if she lets me, obviously! I also love the dynamic Elena had with her siblings and cousins. There was plenty of family drama, tension, action, heartache and comic relief present that kept the story flowing. In spite of the involvement of feelings from the beginning, the tumultuous evolution of the relationship between Nico and Elena, lacked a good amount of romance. They definitely needed more time together as a couple that was considered to be romantic. Also there was some problematic dialogue and questionable behaviour of them which didn't sit well with me. Regardless of that I really enjoyed reading this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Murder, Alcohol, Gun violence, and Sexual content
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, and Cursing
Minor: Death of parent, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Sexual assault, Addiction, and Rape
astralastria's review
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
It's literally the BEST book I have ever read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: Blood, Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Gun violence, and Drug use
zc2's review
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Okay imma be real honest I’d say this book is a 4.9 ⭐️. It’s the epitome of every enemies to lovers. I love the transition from Nico and Adrianna to Nico and Elana. Where the family was Italian it was hard to keep track of who was who in the large family. Everything was delicately placed in the plot such a great read if your just starting dark romance. Definitely recommend. I would have loved an epilogue though that would be my .1 😖 anywho if you like mafia based romance this is the book for you. If you loved this book I would check out “The Brutal Prince”- by Sophie Lark.🍓
Content Warnings
Moderate: War, Genocide, Addiction, Alcohol, Cursing, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Grief, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual content, Medical content, Body horror, Car accident, Murder, Violence, Vomit, Alcoholism, Blood, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, and Stalking
admunro20's review
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This book accomplished what I wanted it to. Spice 🌶️🥵
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Murder, Sexual content, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Cursing, and Death
Moderate: Stalking, Sexual assault, Body shaming, Rape, Sexual harassment, Violence, and Pregnancy
ivanaacosta's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Grief, Gun violence, Hate crime, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Confinement, Murder, Sexual content, and Violence
molly_rose's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Gun violence
Minor: Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Eating disorder, Alcoholism, Violence, Sexual assault, Gun violence, Rape, and Bullying
anzyve's review
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug use, and Death
sophiejo_'s review
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
🤎 slighhtt spoilers
ok there’s an issue with this book loll. with all mafia romances they come with the disclaimer that there’s likely going to be misogyny and some version of sexual assault or alpha males or arranged marriages, etc. but the reason i can still read them is because by the end of the book these problems are resolved, at least for the main characters.
BUT NNOOO
tbh i liked the characters well enough; Elena wasn’t a wimp and it was so cute watching Nico let out his sweet side. howeverrrrr this enemies to friends to friends with benefits to spouses to lovers DIDNT GIVE WHAT IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE GIVING.
by the end of the book i was just cringing at the sex and their lack of communication (yes there was freaking miscommunication ofcc) and ALSO during the middle of the book i thought they could work out their issues but NO. the book ends with a sweet but anticlimactic “plot twist” and then once they’ve attempted to communicate but actually just had sex… Nico is still possessive and rough and misogynistic and Elena just TAKES IT bc she feels bad for doing something that could’ve easily been resolved had she just talked to the man she was LITERALLY LYING IN BED WITH.
it’s annoying because I had high hopes but it just didn’t perform like it shouldve. ntm the “connections” throughout the book that seemed less like metaphors and more like “how do we make this meaningful? ADD A FCKING CAROSUEL”
2 stars 😤
ok there’s an issue with this book loll. with all mafia romances they come with the disclaimer that there’s likely going to be misogyny and some version of sexual assault or alpha males or arranged marriages, etc. but the reason i can still read them is because by the end of the book these problems are resolved, at least for the main characters.
BUT NNOOO
tbh i liked the characters well enough; Elena wasn’t a wimp and it was so cute watching Nico let out his sweet side. howeverrrrr this enemies to friends to friends with benefits to spouses to lovers DIDNT GIVE WHAT IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE GIVING.
by the end of the book i was just cringing at the sex and their lack of communication (yes there was freaking miscommunication ofcc) and ALSO during the middle of the book i thought they could work out their issues but NO. the book ends with a sweet but anticlimactic “plot twist” and then once they’ve attempted to communicate but actually just had sex… Nico is still possessive and rough and misogynistic and Elena just TAKES IT bc she feels bad for doing something that could’ve easily been resolved had she just talked to the man she was LITERALLY LYING IN BED WITH.
it’s annoying because I had high hopes but it just didn’t perform like it shouldve. ntm the “connections” throughout the book that seemed less like metaphors and more like “how do we make this meaningful? ADD A FCKING CAROSUEL”
2 stars 😤
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
Moderate: Alcoholism and Sexual harassment
juneday's review
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
0.75
i miss when the domain of badly written mafia books was confined to wattpad. honestly who is publishing this shit bc when the preteen fanfic writers get a hold of them all these “dark romance” authors r going out of business and to hell.
its one thing to be a kid writing shit like this but an ADULT ??? fully grown bitches writing and publishing and promoting utter garbage like its a job!! which it is i guess but honestly i would rather work shovelling animal feces or whatever than unabashedly producing something so laughably appalling 😭
and at this point discrimination isnt even a topic to be touched upon its practically a staple in this niche ass genre where crime families r as abundant as mommy vloggers and every girl eventually has her meg march arc.
tiktok “books” r a pyramid scheme coordinated by the government to siphon our brain cells for dangerous classified mission impossible level experiments and shit
if u enjoyed this book…im sorry babes a 7’11 guy with a fifteen inch cock and rock hard abs with a lopsided grin and a disregard for women (until u duh) and caskets overfilling with stacks who exclusively drinks whiskey or beer or scotch and rescues u from an arranged arranged marriage (a marriage not yet arranged but arranged to be arranged) by trapping u into yet another arranged marriage with (can u guess?!) his lordship is not gonna swoop along and lose all his so called self control (he cant even refrain from purposefully antagonising half the men in ur family to assert dominance) when he sees ur innocence and ur doe eyes and ur cute little bikini 🥺🥺
sorry girlies no alpha king coming to sexually assault u but oh its not sexual assault bc u liked it didnt u!! how fortunate.
its one thing to be a kid writing shit like this but an ADULT ??? fully grown bitches writing and publishing and promoting utter garbage like its a job!! which it is i guess but honestly i would rather work shovelling animal feces or whatever than unabashedly producing something so laughably appalling 😭
and at this point discrimination isnt even a topic to be touched upon its practically a staple in this niche ass genre where crime families r as abundant as mommy vloggers and every girl eventually has her meg march arc.
tiktok “books” r a pyramid scheme coordinated by the government to siphon our brain cells for dangerous classified mission impossible level experiments and shit
if u enjoyed this book…im sorry babes a 7’11 guy with a fifteen inch cock and rock hard abs with a lopsided grin and a disregard for women (until u duh) and caskets overfilling with stacks who exclusively drinks whiskey or beer or scotch and rescues u from an arranged arranged marriage (a marriage not yet arranged but arranged to be arranged) by trapping u into yet another arranged marriage with (can u guess?!) his lordship is not gonna swoop along and lose all his so called self control (he cant even refrain from purposefully antagonising half the men in ur family to assert dominance) when he sees ur innocence and ur doe eyes and ur cute little bikini 🥺🥺
sorry girlies no alpha king coming to sexually assault u but oh its not sexual assault bc u liked it didnt u!! how fortunate.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Violence, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Cursing
Minor: Drug use, Sexual assault, Pregnancy, Vomit, Sexual violence, Rape, and Sexual harassment