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bmparks's review
dark
emotional
fast-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? Yes
4.0
kalikaosgood's review
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
pinkypinky's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
klillyreads's review against another edition
4.5
This is a beauty and the beast retelling in the mafia world. Such a great story with a lot of emotion and events going on. The MMC Carter is the head of the Cross family whereas the FMC Aria is the daughter of the head of the Talvery family. This story has mafia wars going on, forced proximity, captivity, enemies to lovers, and an HEA!
cheshire0226's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
ariaojou's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
slow-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
2.5
Book 1: Merciless
I didn't start reading this expecting it to be good. I just wanted to diversify my reading genre and had a try at dark romance. Honestly, it was entertaining for what it is, despite the lack of plot. The spice is just meh, at least for Book 1, and I really expected it to be better. I don't have much to compare it to, but for me, Twisted series (Ana Huang) was better in terms of the spicy scenes.
Book 2: Heartless
If I didn't choose to read the collection of 4 books in 1, I would have DNF'd by the time I reached around halfway of Book 2. I loved Aria. Not only do we share a name, but she had this fight in her that makes me want to invest in her story. Not anymore, though. She's losing that "bite" of hers, at least in Book 2, as she progressively becomes what she herself calls "Carter's whore." How convenient that the D makes everything better. He's still a guy who kidnapped her, trapped her in a cell for weeks to starve and suffer in her own filth. Yes, he upgraded her to a nice bedroom, and gave her everything she could have possibly wanted (with the exception of freedom, of course), but it's only a gilded cage. And I don't understand why Carter would prefer Aria submissive; where's the fun in that?
Book 3: Breathless
Just when I wanted Aria to have more "bite" as a character, Book 3 gave that. This one finally, FINALLY, dips into the real plot - the so-called "war" that's always mentioned in the background but barely explained, and has so much more actions than the previous two books combined. That means less smut, of course, but I was already bored so I didn't mind the change of scenery, so to speak. This one might be my favorite so far.
Book 4: Endless
This book is just the overall resolution to the story, with some added conflicts to spice things up. Oddly enough, it's still my second favorite out of the four books, despite the lack of smut scenes. I appreciate the plot, though I wish it wasn't just one revelation after another near the ending. The character development on Carter's part feels a bit abrupt, but I could look past that. Glad it's a HEA.
Overall, I'm glad I chose to read the compilation instead of the books one by one. Otherwise, I would have DNF'd halfway through Book 2.
I didn't start reading this expecting it to be good. I just wanted to diversify my reading genre and had a try at dark romance. Honestly, it was entertaining for what it is, despite the lack of plot. The spice is just meh, at least for Book 1, and I really expected it to be better. I don't have much to compare it to, but for me, Twisted series (Ana Huang) was better in terms of the spicy scenes.
Book 2: Heartless
If I didn't choose to read the collection of 4 books in 1, I would have DNF'd by the time I reached around halfway of Book 2. I loved Aria. Not only do we share a name, but she had this fight in her that makes me want to invest in her story. Not anymore, though. She's losing that "bite" of hers, at least in Book 2, as she progressively becomes what she herself calls "Carter's whore." How convenient that the D makes everything better. He's still a guy who kidnapped her, trapped her in a cell for weeks to starve and suffer in her own filth. Yes, he upgraded her to a nice bedroom, and gave her everything she could have possibly wanted (with the exception of freedom, of course), but it's only a gilded cage. And I don't understand why Carter would prefer Aria submissive; where's the fun in that?
Book 3: Breathless
Just when I wanted Aria to have more "bite" as a character, Book 3 gave that. This one finally, FINALLY, dips into the real plot - the so-called "war" that's always mentioned in the background but barely explained, and has so much more actions than the previous two books combined. That means less smut, of course, but I was already bored so I didn't mind the change of scenery, so to speak. This one might be my favorite so far.
Book 4: Endless
This book is just the overall resolution to the story, with some added conflicts to spice things up. Oddly enough, it's still my second favorite out of the four books, despite the lack of smut scenes. I appreciate the plot, though I wish it wasn't just one revelation after another near the ending. The character development on Carter's part feels a bit abrupt, but I could look past that. Glad it's a HEA.
Overall, I'm glad I chose to read the compilation instead of the books one by one. Otherwise, I would have DNF'd halfway through Book 2.
duan_jvr's review
Carter is a selfish man who needs to grow a pair and get on with his life. Good smut, but not good enough to keep me reading this problem-ridden book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Physical abuse, and Drug use
tbf9002's review
Too too dark. Wouldn’t finish.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement
Moderate: Trafficking
mridener96's review against another edition
1.0
I’m really disappointed with this series tbh. The story was repetitive and I think 724 pages is far too lengthy for the plot of this series. This could have easily been shorter and still had the same outcome.
The grammatically errors were horrendous.
The grammatically errors were horrendous.
darlingbookshelf's review against another edition
5.0
I asked for dark romance, and I definitely got it with this one. I absolutely love the pace of this book and the characters growth. I feel that Aria needed Carter just as much as he needed her. If you are looking for forbidden love, dark, hot, and leaving you on the edge of your seat type of book, I highly recommend.