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elspethmigliore's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
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? It's complicated
3.5
okay, it was decent.
I have mixed feelings about it for many reasons.
the writing was actually very nice and descriptive. the smut wasn't too much and it wasn't very fade-to-black which can be appreciated, and the storyline was there throughout it all. I also really appreciated how well the relationship between the two main characters went from enemies to lovers in a very smooth way. It was slow burn, but the tension built perfectly. (although at the end it seems like the tension just immediately jumped to love and I was a little confused bc it almost like switched on suddenly with no buildup. the beginning tension contrasted well with the ending but the buildup near the end was not good.) My main issues with this book are about the characters and the general feel of the story.
The presence of misogyny, racism, and homophobia was way too strong for my liking. I understand it's a mafia romance which means "men, men, men!" basically, but the subtle racist and homophobic insults were too much. Also, the whole idea of the "Sweet Abelli" thing being based off of men and how the main character was too sweet and innocent that men couldn't control themselves was really an annoyance.
I got very annoyed with the miscommunication, but then again that's normal for a mafia romance (btw, not a really big fan of mafia romances to begin with). I do think the characters could have brought a little bit more, and I wish we could have seen more of the reactions of everyone to basically the whole story.
Although it wasn't my favorite book, it really was hard to put down. I did enjoy how the story just pulled me in.
would most likely reread it, but not definitely ☑️
I have mixed feelings about it for many reasons.
the writing was actually very nice and descriptive. the smut wasn't too much and it wasn't very fade-to-black which can be appreciated, and the storyline was there throughout it all. I also really appreciated how well the relationship between the two main characters went from enemies to lovers in a very smooth way. It was slow burn, but the tension built perfectly. (although at the end it seems like the tension just immediately jumped to love and I was a little confused bc it almost like switched on suddenly with no buildup. the beginning tension contrasted well with the ending but the buildup near the end was not good.) My main issues with this book are about the characters and the general feel of the story.
The presence of misogyny, racism, and homophobia was way too strong for my liking. I understand it's a mafia romance which means "men, men, men!" basically, but the subtle racist and homophobic insults were too much. Also, the whole idea of the "Sweet Abelli" thing being based off of men and how the main character was too sweet and innocent that men couldn't control themselves was really an annoyance.
I got very annoyed with the miscommunication, but then again that's normal for a mafia romance (btw, not a really big fan of mafia romances to begin with). I do think the characters could have brought a little bit more, and I wish we could have seen more of the reactions of everyone to basically the whole story.
Although it wasn't my favorite book, it really was hard to put down. I did enjoy how the story just pulled me in.
would most likely reread it, but not definitely ☑️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Blood, and Alcohol
Moderate: Body shaming, Misogyny, Vomit, and Sexual harassment
sophiejo_'s review against another edition
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 against another edition
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: Alcoholism, Cursing, Sexism, Violence, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Drug use, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Vomit, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment
ujint's review against another edition
this book in a realistic nutshell up till the one third of the book because that’s when i decided to DNF it:
• a complete waste of time
• disgusting. i’ll explain
—> 1. heroine, a dude with unresolved emotional problems, basically manipulates hero.
—> 2. heroine is hero’s soon-to-be step sis but hey, who cares because the lust for each other is mutual, right? it is. TO THEM.
—> 3. the mc and love interest doesn’t even have the slightest romantic spark for each other. they’re all ‘oh he’s so intimidating and dark it makes me blush soooooo hard’ or ‘oh she has such a shapely ass my groin is taking control over my thoughts’ and such. no chemistry. only lust.
—> 4. it makes me bang my head against the wall that the only unique and special aspect Nico seems to notice about Elena is her ass. and body. and did i also mention: her sweet, perfect ass that is the talk of NYC?
—> 5. the heroine is a complete asshole. he’s literally (i do notice that i’ve been using that word quite a lot in this review but no matter—) such a douche that he can’t even think of a nice, wholehearted compliment for Elena, OR EVEN HIS FIANCÉE. Elena is known to him as a seductress in love with someone else other than him, and also has a perfect ass. Adriana is known as the weird, freak sister that he has to marry. WHAT THE WHAT?!?!?!? HAVE YOU NO SENSE OF DECENCY?? i geeettt that this is a mafia story but come ooooooooon all we see of Nico is him being a ruthless dickhead who treat women as objects.
—> 6. i also do think Elena should be shaded just as much as Nico because first of all have you no shame of the infidelity between you and your soon-to-be brother-in-law? i honestly can’t remember her feeling remorseful about sneaking around with Nico when he’s supposed to be with Adriana
—> that ALSO bring me to the fact that instead of simply talking to his fiancée and getting to know her interests, Nico oh so freely demands a list of Adriana’s personality from Elena like HELLO?? and Elena had the non-audacity to just oblige????? where is your sense of pride girlie?????
•this book infuriates me to the core that it makes me want to jump off a building.
okay i think that about sums all of my rants. who knows my madness may even bring up a few points i also despised.
• a complete waste of time
• disgusting. i’ll explain
—> 1. heroine, a dude with unresolved emotional problems, basically manipulates hero.
—> 2. heroine is hero’s soon-to-be step sis but hey, who cares because the lust for each other is mutual, right? it is. TO THEM.
—> 3. the mc and love interest doesn’t even have the slightest romantic spark for each other. they’re all ‘oh he’s so intimidating and dark it makes me blush soooooo hard’ or ‘oh she has such a shapely ass my groin is taking control over my thoughts’ and such. no chemistry. only lust.
—> 4. it makes me bang my head against the wall that the only unique and special aspect Nico seems to notice about Elena is her ass. and body. and did i also mention: her sweet, perfect ass that is the talk of NYC?
—> 5. the heroine is a complete asshole. he’s literally (i do notice that i’ve been using that word quite a lot in this review but no matter—) such a douche that he can’t even think of a nice, wholehearted compliment for Elena, OR EVEN HIS FIANCÉE. Elena is known to him as a seductress in love with someone else other than him, and also has a perfect ass. Adriana is known as the weird, freak sister that he has to marry. WHAT THE WHAT?!?!?!? HAVE YOU NO SENSE OF DECENCY?? i geeettt that this is a mafia story but come ooooooooon all we see of Nico is him being a ruthless dickhead who treat women as objects.
—> 6. i also do think Elena should be shaded just as much as Nico because first of all have you no shame of the infidelity between you and your soon-to-be brother-in-law? i honestly can’t remember her feeling remorseful about sneaking around with Nico when he’s supposed to be with Adriana
—> that ALSO bring me to the fact that instead of simply talking to his fiancée and getting to know her interests, Nico oh so freely demands a list of Adriana’s personality from Elena like HELLO?? and Elena had the non-audacity to just oblige????? where is your sense of pride girlie?????
•this book infuriates me to the core that it makes me want to jump off a building.
okay i think that about sums all of my rants. who knows my madness may even bring up a few points i also despised.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Sexism, Violence, and Sexual harassment
martho9's review against another edition
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
0.25
This is the worst book I've ever read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Toxic relationship, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
rafaelabossoni's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Misogyny and Sexism
Minor: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Vomit, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
charlynlynlyn's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Infidelity, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Pregnancy and Alcohol
Minor: Cancer
dlrosebyh's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
this book hooked me from the sentence to the last one and it was a very interesting read. apart from the wattpad stories i have read before, it’s safe to say that this is my first dark romance read. i usually find the genre disturbing because i don’t really like violence in my contemporary books.
this book was a good read, but there were some plot holes. i didn’t fall in love with nico as much as i expected to. he was still misogynistic somehow and to be honest, he really needs therapy. i also would’ve preferred if he groveled more because i didn’t think he groveled enough. on the other hand, i would’ve wanted to see more of elena’s family and her past— to dig deeper on why her father tried to sell her. i also wish i got to see more of adriana.
overall, it’s a great read, it just has some plot holes. if you want a book that will help you get out of a reading slump, i suggest to read this.
this book was a good read, but there were some plot holes. i didn’t fall in love with nico as much as i expected to. he was still misogynistic somehow and to be honest, he really needs therapy. i also would’ve preferred if he groveled more because i didn’t think he groveled enough. on the other hand, i would’ve wanted to see more of elena’s family and her past— to dig deeper on why her father tried to sell her. i also wish i got to see more of adriana.
overall, it’s a great read, it just has some plot holes. if you want a book that will help you get out of a reading slump, i suggest to read this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence and Violence
Moderate: Death, Blood, and Murder
Minor: Drug use, Rape, and Sexual harassment
janetriestoread's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Death
thenerdwithglasses's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Rape, Toxic relationship, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Drug use
Minor: Addiction and Sexual harassment