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3.51 AVERAGE
3.51 AVERAGE
3,75/5
That was cute. A little too fluffy than what I expected for a mafia romance. It was my second mafia romance and I was expecting something more unhinged but it was still fun.
I have to admit: the synopsis didn't encourage me to read it. What did was someone on reddit describing the plot as "a mafia man asks his pretend wife to act like a complete idiot to fool his men" which is a much better way to market the book IMO.
Also ngl, I had trouble getting into the book as a Pole. See, I read the author's note about the Russian words, and "Malysh" sounds like Polish "Małysz" who is one of the (still) most popular Polish athletes (even though he's retired) so when I read it in the note all I could see is Adam małysz during ski jumping competition and a Polish commentator screaming "Fly, Adam, Fly!"
But I digress.
Regarding the author's note however, it's a complete bullshit because while I appreciated the thought, after reading it I think the author made a complete mistake. She defined "kukolka" and "milaya" which have been used once each, and "piroski" which have been used maybe twice or thrice.
But do you know what wor was missing from the mini dictionary? Pakhan.
Do you know how many times it has been used? 50. 50 times and there was no definition.
Apparently it means a crime boss. I had to google it.
All in all, the book was fun, I loved Nina pretending to be a complete imbecile and everyone buying that. BUT despite the supposed danger they were in, it felt like low stakes. I didn't feel like the danger was that bad, maybe because of the fluffy vibes??
PLUS The whole bookstakes place in a span of a few months. The author didn't convey it well: it felt like a few days at most. Seriously, the pacing of this book was unreal and not in a good way. Also the fact that they got married after 2 days was... No.
I also disliked how her intimacy issues got resolved at the very end, it was rushed and felt like his dick cured her fear. Seriously, that's not how it works and I disliked it too.
I'm going to leave this review with my favourite scene:
"Got it, kotik"
I close my eyes and shake my head. "You do not call a Russian pakhan "kitten", Nina. I have an image to uphold here."
She narrows her eyes at me, schools her features to embody seriousness, and touches my nose with her finger.
"My deadly kotik. Better?"
That was cute. A little too fluffy than what I expected for a mafia romance. It was my second mafia romance and I was expecting something more unhinged but it was still fun.
I have to admit: the synopsis didn't encourage me to read it. What did was someone on reddit describing the plot as "a mafia man asks his pretend wife to act like a complete idiot to fool his men" which is a much better way to market the book IMO.
Also ngl, I had trouble getting into the book as a Pole. See, I read the author's note about the Russian words, and "Malysh" sounds like Polish "Małysz" who is one of the (still) most popular Polish athletes (even though he's retired) so when I read it in the note all I could see is Adam małysz during ski jumping competition and a Polish commentator screaming "Fly, Adam, Fly!"
But I digress.
Regarding the author's note however, it's a complete bullshit because while I appreciated the thought, after reading it I think the author made a complete mistake. She defined "kukolka" and "milaya" which have been used once each, and "piroski" which have been used maybe twice or thrice.
But do you know what wor was missing from the mini dictionary? Pakhan.
Do you know how many times it has been used? 50. 50 times and there was no definition.
Apparently it means a crime boss. I had to google it.
All in all, the book was fun, I loved Nina pretending to be a complete imbecile and everyone buying that. BUT despite the supposed danger they were in, it felt like low stakes. I didn't feel like the danger was that bad, maybe because of the fluffy vibes??
PLUS The whole bookstakes place in a span of a few months. The author didn't convey it well: it felt like a few days at most. Seriously, the pacing of this book was unreal and not in a good way. Also the fact that they got married after 2 days was... No.
I also disliked how her intimacy issues got resolved at the very end, it was rushed and felt like his dick cured her fear. Seriously, that's not how it works and I disliked it too.
I'm going to leave this review with my favourite scene:
"Got it, kotik"
I close my eyes and shake my head. "You do not call a Russian pakhan "kitten", Nina. I have an image to uphold here."
She narrows her eyes at me, schools her features to embody seriousness, and touches my nose with her finger.
"My deadly kotik. Better?"
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I like the fml personality but idk a the random appearing emo parts and the "she's so small" part. But it is a decent book with good (but unfortunately also vers predictable) plot.
finished it in less than a day.
i love this book i love everything about this book i love roman he did NOTHING wrong, 0 flaws and probably more than fifty red flags but red is my favourite colour after all ;) (jk it’s silver bye)
i love this book i love everything about this book i love roman he did NOTHING wrong, 0 flaws and probably more than fifty red flags but red is my favourite colour after all ;) (jk it’s silver bye)
relaxing
fast-paced
Overall, the book was okay. It held my attention, but nothing about it really stood out.
Reminds me of my Wattpad times... how is this a published book
Ninas dad did a stupid thing and stole money from the Bratva, lost it and so to save his own arse happily trades his daughter into a marriage to the Pakhan Roman... who's reasons for suddenly needing a wife were frankly ridiculous.
There are books that I've read in the past that I call Mafia Light, you know where you get the feel of the genre/trope they tell you they are but without the depth/darkness that would've made it truly part of that genre/trope... and then there is whatever this was. This felt less Mafia-ish than even the Mafia Light books I've read in the past and Roman is meant to be the head of the Bratva ffs. This was just so bland, all characters and their interactions were flat, the story/plot itself was SO basic and surface level and the spice was frankly a joke, it was breif, skimmed over interactions with little description and Roman has Nina coming in two thrusts with zero foreplay... like be so fucking for real. 🙄
This just wasn't what it's made out to be, it was my first book by this author and I believe it was also their debut too. So for that reason I will give the next book in this series a try at some point to see if the overall writing style etc improves, but this wasn't the greatest first impression for me. 🌶
"I suppose they'll set up a meeting, or something, where we'll discuss the details.
"They already did. We are meeting the pakhan in an hour.
I look at my father and bury my hands in my hair. "Perfect. I'm just going to the bathroom to puke up my lunch, and I'll meet you at the front door in five."
There are books that I've read in the past that I call Mafia Light, you know where you get the feel of the genre/trope they tell you they are but without the depth/darkness that would've made it truly part of that genre/trope... and then there is whatever this was. This felt less Mafia-ish than even the Mafia Light books I've read in the past and Roman is meant to be the head of the Bratva ffs. This was just so bland, all characters and their interactions were flat, the story/plot itself was SO basic and surface level and the spice was frankly a joke, it was breif, skimmed over interactions with little description and Roman has Nina coming in two thrusts with zero foreplay... like be so fucking for real. 🙄
This just wasn't what it's made out to be, it was my first book by this author and I believe it was also their debut too. So for that reason I will give the next book in this series a try at some point to see if the overall writing style etc improves, but this wasn't the greatest first impression for me. 🌶
"I suppose they'll set up a meeting, or something, where we'll discuss the details.
"They already did. We are meeting the pakhan in an hour.
I look at my father and bury my hands in my hair. "Perfect. I'm just going to the bathroom to puke up my lunch, and I'll meet you at the front door in five."
fast-paced
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I’m obsessed with this book. Short, concise, and powerful.