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A review by thebritishbibliophile
Sinful Vows by Deborah Garland
4.0
'Deborah Garland at her best! Mafia romance is where it's at, and the story woven here was enticing from start to finish! More of this, please!' - The British Bibliophile
Thank you to Deborah for this ebook Advanced Readers Copy for me to read and leave an honest review, as part of her ARC team.
Sinful Vows by Deborah Garland is the first book in her Astoria Royals series, a series which from this first novel already yields great promise to be both a great & someone's go-to mafia romance series. I'm a massive fan of mafia romance, so there was no doubt that I was going to like this story for that fact, for one, and because Deborah--an author I love--is the one writing it.
What drew me initially, other than the attractive cover and blurb, was the warning attached to the novel. Usually, warnings are there to do two things. Firstly, to warm people. Secondly, give people the opportunity to go on to something else if this read might not be for them. There is, however, a third option in this case. Desire to read something that comes with a warning. Who isn't enticed by the forbidden, the dark and dangerous? I know I can't resist.
For context, here is the warning. *Reminder* this is not to put off a reader, but to make you aware of the themes/scenarios and possible triggers:
Author’s note: Sinful Vows is a 45K Astoria Royals standalone MF romance with forbidden themes, a fifteen-year age gap, one-bed, a possessive alpha uncle (no blood relation) and a sassy heroine who makes the ultimate sacrifice to protect her daughter. The story is filled with tension and includes deliciously dirty open-door bedroom scenes, so please read at your discretion.
No OWD, no cheating, HEA guaranteed.
This warning ticks several of my personal bookish preference boxes. Age gap? Yes please! One-bed? Yes, yes yes! Possessive alpha? We all know the answer to that one. Sassy heroine, it goes without saying. Straight off the bat before we've even turned the first page there's a lot that's promised to us, and knowing theres a Happily Ever After waiting for us at the end makes it all the sweeter.
The story overall--where at times would be unrealistic in the real world--played out brilliantly on the page, as the freedom to explore unrealistic situations allows. Fiction makes them possible in the realm of fiction only. There were times when things certainly got hot under the collar--more than once--, made me swoon and appreciate the true romantic nature that the main characters had going on.
Deborah also left plenty of twists and turns woven throughout the journey towards the Happily Ever After. She's picked up the knack of surprising us at the most unlikely of turns, and I'm all here for last-minute surprises, and revelation after revelation. Just when you think the truth has come out, the real truth comes out a time or two later. It's thrilling. It's brilliant story-telling. Deborah keeps you anchored to the page with this story, as with any mafia romance, there's no shortage of things going on and when you least expect them to. Or when things are suspiciously quiet for too long. Either way, this read was far from dull and I simply devoured it.
Did I wish there was more to the end? Sure. I won't spoil it, but I do like the stories I read to end on a more rounded note, but where it was left was not incomplete by any means. Otherwise, Deborah wouldn't have said 'HEA guaranteed'. That said, we are getting another book in the series and I cannot wait to read more of the Astoria Royals. I'm firmly on board!
Four stars!
Thank you to Deborah for this ebook Advanced Readers Copy for me to read and leave an honest review, as part of her ARC team.
Sinful Vows by Deborah Garland is the first book in her Astoria Royals series, a series which from this first novel already yields great promise to be both a great & someone's go-to mafia romance series. I'm a massive fan of mafia romance, so there was no doubt that I was going to like this story for that fact, for one, and because Deborah--an author I love--is the one writing it.
What drew me initially, other than the attractive cover and blurb, was the warning attached to the novel. Usually, warnings are there to do two things. Firstly, to warm people. Secondly, give people the opportunity to go on to something else if this read might not be for them. There is, however, a third option in this case. Desire to read something that comes with a warning. Who isn't enticed by the forbidden, the dark and dangerous? I know I can't resist.
For context, here is the warning. *Reminder* this is not to put off a reader, but to make you aware of the themes/scenarios and possible triggers:
Author’s note: Sinful Vows is a 45K Astoria Royals standalone MF romance with forbidden themes, a fifteen-year age gap, one-bed, a possessive alpha uncle (no blood relation) and a sassy heroine who makes the ultimate sacrifice to protect her daughter. The story is filled with tension and includes deliciously dirty open-door bedroom scenes, so please read at your discretion.
No OWD, no cheating, HEA guaranteed.
This warning ticks several of my personal bookish preference boxes. Age gap? Yes please! One-bed? Yes, yes yes! Possessive alpha? We all know the answer to that one. Sassy heroine, it goes without saying. Straight off the bat before we've even turned the first page there's a lot that's promised to us, and knowing theres a Happily Ever After waiting for us at the end makes it all the sweeter.
The story overall--where at times would be unrealistic in the real world--played out brilliantly on the page, as the freedom to explore unrealistic situations allows. Fiction makes them possible in the realm of fiction only. There were times when things certainly got hot under the collar--more than once--, made me swoon and appreciate the true romantic nature that the main characters had going on.
Deborah also left plenty of twists and turns woven throughout the journey towards the Happily Ever After. She's picked up the knack of surprising us at the most unlikely of turns, and I'm all here for last-minute surprises, and revelation after revelation. Just when you think the truth has come out, the real truth comes out a time or two later. It's thrilling. It's brilliant story-telling. Deborah keeps you anchored to the page with this story, as with any mafia romance, there's no shortage of things going on and when you least expect them to. Or when things are suspiciously quiet for too long. Either way, this read was far from dull and I simply devoured it.
Did I wish there was more to the end? Sure. I won't spoil it, but I do like the stories I read to end on a more rounded note, but where it was left was not incomplete by any means. Otherwise, Deborah wouldn't have said 'HEA guaranteed'. That said, we are getting another book in the series and I cannot wait to read more of the Astoria Royals. I'm firmly on board!
Four stars!