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dark
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The book was very good in the beginning but towards the end I felt like it was rushed. There should have been more chapters at the end of the book explaining more. Good overall.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Sexism
Minor: Violence
dark
funny
mysterious
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:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Stalking
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Bullying, Toxic relationship, Vomit
dark
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Junior works for his dad in the mob. He's never had much say over his life, but he's been obsessed with Lauren since they were in high school. He's stayed away from her for 10 years, to protect her, but he's supported her anonymously the whole time. Lauren is a camgirl and is very happy she no longer has to deal with Little Italy and the mob ties from her family. When they reconnect after the years, she tries to stay as far from him as possible, but he keeps showing up.
I love a good mafia romance, and this was a fun read. Lauren is a boss, and I love the friendship that forms between Josh and Junior. I actually enjoyed this one more than Lights Out, and I'm excited to know if there will be a third one!
I love a good mafia romance, and this was a fun read. Lauren is a boss, and I love the friendship that forms between Josh and Junior. I actually enjoyed this one more than Lights Out, and I'm excited to know if there will be a third one!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Injury/Injury detail
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This was pretty different from Lights Out and I was dubious for the first 50%. By the end, I was on board with Junior and Lauren's relationship. The audiobook was excellently produced. I was expecting this to be funnier than it was -- I didn't laugh out loud at all, whereas Lights Out made me lol multiple times. Because of that, I didn't like this quite as much.
I liked diving more into mafia culture. Nico Sr. was a piece of work. Honestly, I kind of forgot about his relationship with Aly and Josh from LO. Seeing how being born into the mob ends up being their lifestyle was kind of scary. It's almost like a gang where it's really hard to leave because they control every aspect of your life. Allen had a very decidedly negative view of the mafia, which is warranted. The fact that Nico Sr. was totally willing to throw Junior under the bus with the olive oil investment shows just how brutal he is. (I just read a book where the patriarchal figures are just as ruthless -- Kiss of the Basilisk by Lindsay Straube.)
I like how sex positive Navessa Allen is. I've learned more about the industry from influencers I've seen on social media, but getting a female perspective was fun after Josh's perspective from LO. Hearing Junior break down Lauren's income was fascinating. I do wish Allen had talked about how hard it is to succeed at cam work. The amount of work and dedication it takes to become successful is grueling. Yes, she mentions it took Lauren a couple years to get to where she was, but the day in, day out work/work ethic was missing. Clearly Allen is drawn to voyeurism as a concept (Josh spied on Aly, Lauren and Junior visit Velvet). I actually also really liked the sex scenes that take place at the club. We also get a glimpse at the discrimination against the industry. There are certain regulations that entrap the owners, which are easily exploited.
The allusion to Josh's online presence when Lauren recognizes Aly's UN was sneaky! I'm kind of surprised Lauren didn't tell Junior. Also don't 100% understand why she doesn't tell him. Generally, there seemed to be secrets that were kept between the characters that had 0 impact on the outcome of the plot. Like how Josh's roommate (or former roommate) and Junior are in business together. And lastly, why Josh has such a strong aversion to meat. Like it's not a huge secret, but Junior doesn't know why and someone just tells him they'll tell him later when it would've taken 1 sentence to explain it. I feel like there's another big secret but I can't remember it at this time... (Ok, I guess the secret that Lauren's father is in Italy was kind of impactful for Lauren's personal growth.)
I also like how Junior learns about himself and his sexual preferences. His experience of being introduced to the kink world was relatable. The lack of language/vocabulary/exposure to new sexual experiences is pretty typical. The mafia is also pretty homophobic and monogamous on the whole. There seemed to be less spice than in LO, which is fine! The spice that is included didn't feel like a c/p from LO, which was good.
I don't entirely understand Junior's parents' relationship. It's hard for me to believe that Nico's abusive behavior doesn't bleed into his relationship with Moira. Of course, she's in a particular position to protect her children from their father's wrath, which we see at the end when Junior breaks free from Nico's influence. Honestly, though, when Nick Jr. tells Josh the plan of how he would break the news to Nico, I expected something more than just confronting him with the whole family present. Like, I get why he does it that way, but it was a little anticlimactic after how cryptically it's handled.
NGL, this was a fun time, but there didn't seem to be a ton of character growth for either lead. I don't think that's a bad thing, but it was somewhat hard to relate to them because not many people are part of the mob, and not many people do cam work. A way to relate to fictional characters is through their trauma. We get brief mentions of how Lauren had to work through her shame and reclaim her sexual independence, but that's mostly handled before the book starts. Sort of the same with Junior -- we see him with one foot out the door. Their big conflict at the end was kind of underwhelming. I like that there really isn't a third act breakup, but again, couldn't relate to Lauren's emotional response. I don't want to diminish her emotions, but it just felt underwhelming. On top of that, we hardly see or hear about Lauren's relationship with her sister. I don't really understand why she was included since she was nothing more than a plot device. That could've been an interesting opportunity to add more dimension to Lauren's character.
I guess, this is all to say that Lights Out was really good! And this characters' stories fall flat in multiple ways for me. Additionally, some key aspects of writing mechanics fell short. I just wasn't as pulled into this story as Aly's and Josh's. Allen set herself up for a tough task of creating a story just as captivating. And unfortunately, in my opinion she just didn't deliver as strong of a story for Lauren and Junior.The stakes felt lower -- all the conflict was resolved really easily and in relatively "normal" ways. At the end of LO, Aly and Josh kill a guy. The big conflict at the end of Caught Up is Junior facing off with his father, which in contrast was kinda boring 😬
I like how sex positive Navessa Allen is. I've learned more about the industry from influencers I've seen on social media, but getting a female perspective was fun after Josh's perspective from LO. Hearing Junior break down Lauren's income was fascinating. I do wish Allen had talked about how hard it is to succeed at cam work. The amount of work and dedication it takes to become successful is grueling. Yes, she mentions it took Lauren a couple years to get to where she was, but the day in, day out work/work ethic was missing. Clearly Allen is drawn to voyeurism as a concept (Josh spied on Aly, Lauren and Junior visit Velvet). I actually also really liked the sex scenes that take place at the club. We also get a glimpse at the discrimination against the industry. There are certain regulations that entrap the owners, which are easily exploited.
The allusion to Josh's online presence when Lauren recognizes Aly's UN was sneaky! I'm kind of surprised Lauren didn't tell Junior. Also don't 100% understand why she doesn't tell him. Generally, there seemed to be secrets that were kept between the characters that had 0 impact on the outcome of the plot. Like how Josh's roommate (or former roommate) and Junior are in business together. And lastly, why Josh has such a strong aversion to meat. Like it's not a huge secret, but Junior doesn't know why and someone just tells him they'll tell him later when it would've taken 1 sentence to explain it. I feel like there's another big secret but I can't remember it at this time... (Ok, I guess the secret that Lauren's father is in Italy was kind of impactful for Lauren's personal growth.)
I also like how Junior learns about himself and his sexual preferences. His experience of being introduced to the kink world was relatable. The lack of language/vocabulary/exposure to new sexual experiences is pretty typical. The mafia is also pretty homophobic and monogamous on the whole. There seemed to be less spice than in LO, which is fine! The spice that is included didn't feel like a c/p from LO, which was good.
I don't entirely understand Junior's parents' relationship. It's hard for me to believe that Nico's abusive behavior doesn't bleed into his relationship with Moira. Of course, she's in a particular position to protect her children from their father's wrath, which we see at the end when Junior breaks free from Nico's influence. Honestly, though, when Nick Jr. tells Josh the plan of how he would break the news to Nico, I expected something more than just confronting him with the whole family present. Like, I get why he does it that way, but it was a little anticlimactic after how cryptically it's handled.
NGL, this was a fun time, but there didn't seem to be a ton of character growth for either lead. I don't think that's a bad thing, but it was somewhat hard to relate to them because not many people are part of the mob, and not many people do cam work. A way to relate to fictional characters is through their trauma. We get brief mentions of how Lauren had to work through her shame and reclaim her sexual independence, but that's mostly handled before the book starts. Sort of the same with Junior -- we see him with one foot out the door. Their big conflict at the end was kind of underwhelming. I like that there really isn't a third act breakup, but again, couldn't relate to Lauren's emotional response. I don't want to diminish her emotions, but it just felt underwhelming. On top of that, we hardly see or hear about Lauren's relationship with her sister. I don't really understand why she was included since she was nothing more than a plot device. That could've been an interesting opportunity to add more dimension to Lauren's character.
I guess, this is all to say that Lights Out was really good! And this characters' stories fall flat in multiple ways for me. Additionally, some key aspects of writing mechanics fell short. I just wasn't as pulled into this story as Aly's and Josh's. Allen set herself up for a tough task of creating a story just as captivating. And unfortunately, in my opinion she just didn't deliver as strong of a story for Lauren and Junior.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexism, Violence, Blood
Minor: Cannibalism, Religious bigotry
dark
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
What I liked about this book was how sex work positive it was. Everything else was meh.
The characters were pretty bland and lacked sexual tension which I think is a general problem with the Second Chance trope. The plot was boring.
Audiobook:
Well narrated overall but the female narrator's "Irish" accent was atrocious. Thankfully this was only used for a minor character but I can't for the life of me understand how this was allowed into the final cut.
The characters were pretty bland and lacked sexual tension which I think is a general problem with the Second Chance trope. The plot was boring.
Audiobook:
Well narrated overall but the female narrator's "Irish" accent was atrocious. Thankfully this was only used for a minor character but I can't for the life of me understand how this was allowed into the final cut.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Bullying, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Stalking, Abandonment
Minor: Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Cannibalism, Murder
dark
funny
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Caught Up by Navessa Allen is the second book in the Into Darkness trilogy and the sequel to Lights Out. I listened to the audiobook of Lights Out a few months ago and really enjoyed the humor of it, so I decided to give the audio for this one a shot too. It didn't hurt that a book club was also reading it.
Caught Upfollows the cousin of the FMC in the first book, Nico "Junior" Trochee, a son stuck in the mob, and his second chance romance with Lauren, a camgirl. Things aren't so easy when Junior's mobster father doesn't approve, however, or when Lauren won't easily forgive Junior for the past. The author, Navessa Allen, is a woman of many trades turned full-time romance author.
As a relatively short read, there isn't a lot of room for the characters to grow, and I'd argue only Junior provides significant character development despite the dual perspective. He learns he can be redeemed and can deserve love. Lauren, on the other hand, seemed nearly self-actualized from the beginning--proud of who she was. I still liked her as a character, but she was pretty static. I adored her friends, who added to the "found family" and provided comic relief. This read wasn't as humorous as the first book, so I appreciated Taylor and Ryan's antics.
While the characters in Caught Up were darker than those of Lights Out, the atmosphere wasn't--nor was it as funny. I think this was mainly where the narrative was liking. I still enjoyed the overall story, but I think it failed to live up to the balance of darkness and humor the first novel had.
I also thought the plot wasn't as thorough as the first book had been. It was very much a "can these two characters forgive each other (or rather forgive him) and move on from the past" type of ordeal, with low stakes. It was a fun read, but I was expecting more shock factor--though I suppose we get that with the play club.
Despite this, I still appreciate Allen's writing style that was accessible and conversational, yet still providing witty banter between characters. In addition, Allen portrayed sex work and kink as something that can be empowering which was a fresh take.
There wasn't much intrigue with the book, other than worrying if the characters will get together, if Junior's father will let them, and if the play club will continue. Which I guess in hindsight is a fair amount of intrigue, especially for a romance. I just didn't find myself glued, wondering what's going to happen because I accepted it all as a foregone conclusion. But again, that's just romance.
I do think the book was a lot more logical and cohesive than the first book. The events that played out, albeit a bit rushed at the end, made sense, and I couldn't see it going any other way.
I really overall enjoyed the book. It wasn't complex, but it was a fun time, and really, isn't that the most important thing?
I think I'd give this book 3.5 stars. I preferred Lights Out, but still had a fun time with Caught Up and the voice actors did a phenomenal job. I appreciated the fresh perspective and the witty side characters. I didn't as much like the stale plot and pacing. But overall, I had fun!
Now beware that the trigger warnings include organized crime, violence, child abuse, and portrays scenes that would need very explicit consent.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Misogyny, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Stalking, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Grief, Murder
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Stalking, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Transphobia, Grief, Cannibalism, Gaslighting
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Stalking
Moderate: Cursing, Misogyny, Sexism
Minor: Bullying, Child abuse, Abandonment
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Blood, Vomit, Stalking, Death of parent
dark
emotional
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Religious bigotry, Death of parent