A review by rai_ishardtoplease
The Payback by Julie Weaver

adventurous emotional funny sad 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

3.5

“‘You’ve taken a big step tonight, and you’ve taken it with me.’ I kissed her, then cupped her jaw. ‘Thank you for trusting me.’ With your heart.”

So. Funny story… I almost dropped this. Which isn’t a particularly uncommon event, of which the outcome is almost always the same—I talk myself out of dropping it, and by the end, I regret all my life decisions.

Plot twist: I actually didn’t regret this life decision.

If you, like me, came here after reading the novella and skipping over the first book because it sounded way too testosterone-heavy, then rest assured that you’re safe here. The first ~12 chapters might try to convince you otherwise, but believe you me, it’s not a lost cause.

Those first dozen chapters had me worried that all I had to look forward to was a heroine-who-doesn’t-need-saving repeatedly getting saved by a tortured hero with an exaggerated savior complex, sprinkled with triggeringly gratuitous mafia misogyny that, in another life, would’ve been spun into a very tacky dark romance.

Fortunately, Weaver had other plans. Plans that involved a degree of specificity and solemn awareness that lead me to believe she either has insider knowledge or just takes her true crime very seriously. Either way, strong immersion factor.

But a stronger simp factor ;)