originalbooknerd 's review for:

Murder & Mayhem by R.A. Smyth

3.75

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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𝕸𝖚𝖗𝖉𝖊𝖗 & 𝕸𝖆𝖞𝖍𝖊𝖒 - 𝕭𝖑𝖆𝖈𝖐 𝕮𝖗𝖊𝖊𝖐 #2 - 𝕽𝖊𝖛𝖎𝖊𝖜 

 

Author: R.A. Smyth 

 

Couple: Sawyer (Red) with Oliver and Cain and maybe Dante & Enzo?? 

 

Tropes: why choose, dark romance, enemy to lovers, mercenary FMC, morally gray MCs, RH, gang romance, mafia romance, arranged marriage 

 

Review: The series continues as it ramps up in angst, deceptions and secrets. Red’s identity comes out in this book and I loved finally getting to put a name to her character. R.A. Smyth begins the slow unraveling of her character after the events in book one lead her to admit her feelings for Cain and Oliver. Sawyer’s (Red’s) plan to take down the don of the mafia in Black Creek begins to take shape in this book and watching her show her Reaper side was fascinating. Smyth blended the differences in her Reaper persona, her Red persona and her persona as Sawyer in a way that made me want to dig deeper into who she truly was and the end result was everything and more. 

 

Most of this book deals with Sawyer infiltrating Dante’s clubs with plans to get closer to his father. The twists and turns that Smyth created in this book really kept me on edge since Enzo and Dante are truly introduced as the last two men in her harem in the most unconventional of ways. I was not ready for all the past to come out about how intertwined her past with Dante was and getting his POV added a lot of tension in this book between them all. Enzo was a nice balance to the overbearing and alphamale role Dante had and he rounded out the four men perfectly. The complex bond Dante and Enzo had was shocking to me at first but then when the true feelings they had towards Gio were revealed I found them to be fitting. 

 

The introduction of Dante also introduces the trope for arranged/forced marriage. The agreement or lack of one in regards to Dante’s plans for Sawyer created a layer to the developing plot since Sawyer realizes how sticky her situation has become. I also found that the addition of Dante claiming Red was what began the unraveling of his icy exterior. I found this book to be less spicy than book 1 but to also be way more plot driven. Smyth was good at inserting Enzo and Dante into the fold and then also tying Cain and Oliver back in as Red goes in deeper to their plans. The events we get in this book also lead up to a HUGE cliffhanger that shocked me right off the edge of my seat! 

 

Rating: 7.5/10, the harem is complete and the tension rises!