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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
A Cruel Arrangement is the second book in Tijan’s Kings of New York series. It picks up the threads of the story that began in A Dirty Business, but focuses on the characters of Ashton and Molly instead of Trace and Jess.
All Molly Easter wants is to run her bowling alley in peace. But her life is upended when Ashton Walden bursts into her life and her business. As the new head of the Walden mafia family, Ashton is set on using Molly as a tool to help him find a killer. With ghosts from their pasts constantly at their heels, and a mystery antagonist set on destroying them all, Ashton and Molly will find themselves constantly thrown together, their growing attraction something neither of them can continue to ignore.
I enjoyed the push-pull dynamic between Molly and Ashton, and how both grow as characters throughout the narrative arc. There’s a heavy dose of enemies-to-lovers vibes, which I very much enjoyed. It makes for some delightfully steamy scenes, if you know what I’m saying. (I think you know what I’m saying.)
Because A Dirty Business ends on kind of a doozy of a cliffhanger, I was expecting A Cruel Arrangement to continue to follow Jess and Trace’s story. I was pleasantly surprised when Tijan went an alternate route and focused on Molly and Ashton instead, while still addressing the cliffhanger from the previous book. This cliffhanger is the driver behind the conflict in the novel, and it totally worked for me. And Jess and Trace pop up plenty in this story, though they are definitely secondary characters.
If you enjoyed the first book in this series, you will not be disappointed. And if you haven’t, I would definitely recommend reading it before diving into this one. I always appreciate how Tijan constantly pushes the envelope in style and narrative expectations, and have enjoyed her foray back into more mafia-style books.
Thank you to Montlake and NetGalley for the ARC.
All Molly Easter wants is to run her bowling alley in peace. But her life is upended when Ashton Walden bursts into her life and her business. As the new head of the Walden mafia family, Ashton is set on using Molly as a tool to help him find a killer. With ghosts from their pasts constantly at their heels, and a mystery antagonist set on destroying them all, Ashton and Molly will find themselves constantly thrown together, their growing attraction something neither of them can continue to ignore.
I enjoyed the push-pull dynamic between Molly and Ashton, and how both grow as characters throughout the narrative arc. There’s a heavy dose of enemies-to-lovers vibes, which I very much enjoyed. It makes for some delightfully steamy scenes, if you know what I’m saying. (I think you know what I’m saying.)
Because A Dirty Business ends on kind of a doozy of a cliffhanger, I was expecting A Cruel Arrangement to continue to follow Jess and Trace’s story. I was pleasantly surprised when Tijan went an alternate route and focused on Molly and Ashton instead, while still addressing the cliffhanger from the previous book. This cliffhanger is the driver behind the conflict in the novel, and it totally worked for me. And Jess and Trace pop up plenty in this story, though they are definitely secondary characters.
If you enjoyed the first book in this series, you will not be disappointed. And if you haven’t, I would definitely recommend reading it before diving into this one. I always appreciate how Tijan constantly pushes the envelope in style and narrative expectations, and have enjoyed her foray back into more mafia-style books.
Thank you to Montlake and NetGalley for the ARC.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Mafia romance with light spice. Ashton loves violence and Molly may seem sweet and innocent but she has a part of her that is pretty violent. We do find out who killed Kelly and why. No cliffhangers and there is HEA
I'm sorry, but I didn't enjoy this book. The story told in this book is far too long for it to be. I adore Mafia romances. Unfortunately, I was let down by this.
The story didn't hold my interest, and the characters lacked substance. I couldn't figure out what was happening half the time. Perhaps it's because I wasn't really hooked. A few characters seemed to be introduced, discarded, and then returned as vital to the story.
Thank you to Valentine PR and Tijan for providing me with an ARC via NetGalley
The story didn't hold my interest, and the characters lacked substance. I couldn't figure out what was happening half the time. Perhaps it's because I wasn't really hooked. A few characters seemed to be introduced, discarded, and then returned as vital to the story.
Thank you to Valentine PR and Tijan for providing me with an ARC via NetGalley
This author has a way of writing that really does it for me. A Cruel Arrangement picks up right where A Dirty Business left off, but follows along on another couples journey. Molly and Ashton had intrigued me in A Dirty Business when it was clear there was something there, and I couldn't wait to read their story and it definitely didn't disappoint. Ashton is the cold, hard mafia leader who does exactly what he needs to take care of things, and Molly, despite her tragic background, and negligent and corrupt con of a dad, is a very upbeat almost sunshine personality. As opposite as they are, they also have things that connect and pull them together, in addition to crazy chemistry. Molly has a knack for finding herself in serious trouble from almost the very first line of the book to the last, which made for such an entertaining read. This book was non-stop action and I didn't want to put it down because I couldn't wait to see what was going to happen next. I kind of hope maybe we'll get more from this world from this author!
In this mafia romance, Molly Easter’s life is upended when Ashton Walden waltzes back into it. They first met as kids. Now oh-so-hot but oh-so-cold Ashton is the head of the Walden mafia family, and he wants Molly to do something for him.
Despite her father’s involvement with the mafia, Molly has lived her life on the straight-and-narrow as much as possible, constantly fighting against the darkness inside her, but Ashton’s arrangement places her right in the crosshairs in the middle of a mafia war.
Ashton’s the one who typically gets his hands dirty, but can he keep her physically safe? He doesn’t do love, but is there something different about this arrangement with Molly?
This has the twists and turns and push-pull dynamic of a delicious mafia romance. It’s got that crazy dichotomy of the hierarchy and bonds of the mafia family with some more tender found / chosen family aspects. We see palpable chemistry and sweet moments between Ashton and Molly, scorching on-page encounters and pinkie promises, and cold-blooded killing juxtaposed with caretaking. All of this is mixed in with a mystery that they are trying to solve. All combined it makes this book a highly bingeable read.
I received an advance copy of the book from Montlake and NetGalley. All review opinions are my own.
Despite her father’s involvement with the mafia, Molly has lived her life on the straight-and-narrow as much as possible, constantly fighting against the darkness inside her, but Ashton’s arrangement places her right in the crosshairs in the middle of a mafia war.
Ashton’s the one who typically gets his hands dirty, but can he keep her physically safe? He doesn’t do love, but is there something different about this arrangement with Molly?
This has the twists and turns and push-pull dynamic of a delicious mafia romance. It’s got that crazy dichotomy of the hierarchy and bonds of the mafia family with some more tender found / chosen family aspects. We see palpable chemistry and sweet moments between Ashton and Molly, scorching on-page encounters and pinkie promises, and cold-blooded killing juxtaposed with caretaking. All of this is mixed in with a mystery that they are trying to solve. All combined it makes this book a highly bingeable read.
I received an advance copy of the book from Montlake and NetGalley. All review opinions are my own.
This one was not as good as the first one but I still enjoyed it overall. Loved the sass of the characters and liked the banter
I've never wished for someone to get shot as much as Molly, she annoyed the ever living sh*t out of me, as a result I struggled to finish this.
I love Molly! She’s insane in the best way. She had me cracking up through the whole book.
Tropes:
Mafia
Frenemies to lovers
Touch her and die
Tropes:
Mafia
Frenemies to lovers
Touch her and die
Feisty Molly and self-confident Ashton are off the rails when they're around each other! The verbal sparring, and back and forth exchanges only add to the delicious build up! Loads of suspense, and a bit of mystery make this duo's story impossible to put down. I like how this series has a tad bit of mafia world crossover as well. Bottom line, Ashton's book was worth the wait!
Ashton has never been known as a loving or kind man. Ruthless to the bone and all Mafia he makes no apologies. When the need arises for information to be gathered about Justin and Kelly's deaths he does not hesitate to use Molly Easter to get it. Or tell her a few truths. But he should have known Molly was not going to just be a tool he could use and put down. She is unique in every way and determined to not do as she's told. War is not just on the horizon, its here, and no one is safe. So falling in love would definitely not be advised. Its dark and dangerous and so good!