A review by kfriend
Deviant Hearts by Jagger Cole

4.0

I have so long had Jagger on my TBR, and with Deviant Hearts on audio, a mafioso hero named after the god of war, AND the irish and greek mafias at odds?! Oh I knew this would be loads of fun, full of tension, and a great listen. And I really enjoyed the audio- particularly with so many of my favorite tropes in this story. Dark mafia, arranged marriage, enemies to lovers vibes (mostly rival families), clashing mafias and an OTT ultra possessive hero?! I mean YUM.

I loved the tension and build up between Ares and Neve- total romeo and juliet vibes in that they are drawn to each other but know their two families are rivals, vendettas so think there’s not hope for anything more. Until her family tells her they have a plan for more power…peace between families. By her marrying the God of War shes been admiring- Ares. The perfect union between the Greek sand the Irish mafia families.

Neve is so fun- she’s one of those bad-a mafia princesses who has a spine of steel and tons of sass. Growing up in this world hasn’t weakened her, it’s given her bravado- and she’s not scared to stand up to the scary men who dictate their world. Including Ares. Intrigued by him, and committed to her family’s power plan, she dives into the marriage. And Are is a whale bunch of delicious. He’s loyal, fierce, protective….and let’s just say, DO NOT MESS WITH THIS MAN”S ARRANGED WIFE. He’s all kinds of alpha energy- and he wants to protect his wife Neve, who enchants him. But that also means he’s super possessive and controlling at times. And with a spitfire like Neve, that means CUE all the sparks. The chemistry and tension all brews as this two lean into their attraction, and ultimately their feelings. I loved how they admired each other too- they are both strong and capable and clever, and they see a true partner in the other. Plus they have some great banter- they are actually loads of fun.

There’s a bigger mafia plot line afoot here as well- plenty of mafia intrigue going on as well (this felt less interesting to me than the main romance, but not overly immersive fortunately). This felt like a tried and true tropey mafia book overall- revolutionary? More so that familiar trope vibe and thus an entertaining and engaging listen.  The audio itself was really good. I don’t know much about Ryan West, but he was great as Ares- he brought all of the alpha intensity and grit of Ares but also the loving parts of him too. And I also have not listened to Sophie Daniels before, but I loved her performance as Neve as well. She brings fire and vulnerability, and I appreciated them both together.

This is the first in the series (and like I said my first Jagger read), So I’m excited to dig into more of the backlist as well as continue on with this series as it comes out to audio!