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r_oy_s 's review for:
Deviant Hearts
by Jagger Cole
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Mafia romance x Marriage of convenience
If you've ever wondered (like me) what it would be like to read a Mafia romance written by a male author then please go no farther. This book (or if you prefer to continue with the rest of the series) is the answer.
What I liked most is that there is plenty of action happening in the story which is rare to find in other books based on this similar trope. And the sequence of events are well orchestrated by the author. Unfortunately, all of the suspense besides the mafia stuff leads to nothing; the climax was totally unsatisfactory for me.
In the beginning the lead characters seem to be giving an impression of dislike for each other then on the wedding night they didn't waste a second to jump into the bed. Dislike be damned! Also the portrayal of the heroine, Neve, was grating on my nerves, yes she's a ball buster but she was described to be pouting, bad mouthing the hero, doing impulsive shit like a freaking teenager instead of being a person in her twenties. Ares, the hero seems to be a rather mature, sensible guy. But the mention of Greek mythology was too repetitive for my taste and it was unclear to me till the end why, besides his namesake of God of War what he's actually done to be crowned with that title?? The emotional bonding between these two leads was non-existent, one moment they're having sex while hating each other and then suddenly they're professing love for each other. Basically there wasn't any gradual development in their relationship, it went from 0 - 100. Even they seem confused about this sudden change!
Oh yes, there were plenty of spicy scenes but all those were written from the female POV. I really would've liked to read some scenes from Ares' POV. Regardless of that, you could actually tell it was written by a male author (no shade to the author though), because if it's written by a female author then those scenes would've turned out differently. Besides that the supporting characters definitely brought a lot of warmth and colour to the story- the camaraderie between Neve and her family as well with her sister-in-law and her bodyguard was really good. Even Ares also had a good relationship with his family but a little bit more interactive scenes would've been nice.
All of the mafia goodness and the thrilling elements had me going till the end but I would've preferred the writing style to be a bit more refined.
If you've ever wondered (like me) what it would be like to read a Mafia romance written by a male author then please go no farther. This book (or if you prefer to continue with the rest of the series) is the answer.
What I liked most is that there is plenty of action happening in the story which is rare to find in other books based on this similar trope. And the sequence of events are well orchestrated by the author. Unfortunately, all of the suspense besides the mafia stuff leads to nothing; the climax was totally unsatisfactory for me.
In the beginning the lead characters seem to be giving an impression of dislike for each other then on the wedding night they didn't waste a second to jump into the bed. Dislike be damned! Also the portrayal of the heroine, Neve, was grating on my nerves, yes she's a ball buster but she was described to be pouting, bad mouthing the hero, doing impulsive shit like a freaking teenager instead of being a person in her twenties. Ares, the hero seems to be a rather mature, sensible guy. But the mention of Greek mythology was too repetitive for my taste and it was unclear to me till the end why, besides his namesake of God of War what he's actually done to be crowned with that title?? The emotional bonding between these two leads was non-existent, one moment they're having sex while hating each other and then suddenly they're professing love for each other. Basically there wasn't any gradual development in their relationship, it went from 0 - 100. Even they seem confused about this sudden change!
Oh yes, there were plenty of spicy scenes but all those were written from the female POV. I really would've liked to read some scenes from Ares' POV. Regardless of that, you could actually tell it was written by a male author (no shade to the author though), because if it's written by a female author then those scenes would've turned out differently. Besides that the supporting characters definitely brought a lot of warmth and colour to the story- the camaraderie between Neve and her family as well with her sister-in-law and her bodyguard was really good. Even Ares also had a good relationship with his family but a little bit more interactive scenes would've been nice.
All of the mafia goodness and the thrilling elements had me going till the end but I would've preferred the writing style to be a bit more refined.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent