lynn_webb's review against another edition
4.0
** Potential for spoil alerts if you have not read the first book. If you have not I highly suggest you do. Although this book could be read as a standalone and much of the necessary background information is given, it truly adds to this story. It gives you some emotional connection not only to the stories but also the plight of the characters that are not the same if starting without reading Ruthless Prince.
The D’Agostinos are back in another captivating installment of the Dark Syndicate series. This time around, we get a crash course in all things Tristan and meet Isabella.
She just happens to be the daughter that only a select few know exists. Her father is the leader of The Circle of Shadows and their most powerful known enemy, Mortimer Viggo. Isabella has lived a semi-sheltered life under the oppressive thumb of her father by way of constant bodyguards and shows of power. Although her life is not her own, she appreciates the small victories such as finishing school and having a job she loves. However, she is all too aware of the fact that it is because her father ALLOWS her to have them. Her life changes in unexpected ways the moment she meets Tristan. Tristan and his brothers are still reeling from the death of their father and the betrayal of their oldest brother. They are each handling recent events in their own way. For Tristan, that means hunting down all enemies, both known and unknown. It is on this mission when he sees Isabella, first in a photograph and then face to face. What he doesn't know during that first meeting is that together both their fates were bound to change.
In this book, we find that the brothers are constantly investigating and plotting to get the answers and revenge/justice they are looking for. All the while, they are also trying to rebuild the Syndicate AND some semblance of peace of mind. What they don’t realize is that there is yet another potential snake in the grass that is their trusted inner circle. Question is, will they figure out who it is in time?
Just as the first did, this book had me from the beginning and I loved it! Summers continues to write stories and characters with a depth that brings them to life as if watching them instead of reading them. I always appreciate strong female characters, especially in the world of Dark Romance. She gives me this in Isabella and Candace. She also continues to give us strong powerful men who are ruthless in life with everyone it seems, except the ones they love. What makes the stories stand out, even more, are the lengths some fathers will go to for power with no mercy on anyone, including their own daughters. Our emotions are constantly being taken on a ride while being given bread crumbs that all make sense in their own time. As always, waiting for the next to come will be a rough journey.
Voluntarily reviewed after I received a free copy of this book courtesy of HiddenGems and the author, Faith Summers/Khardine Gray, in exchange for my honest review.
The D’Agostinos are back in another captivating installment of the Dark Syndicate series. This time around, we get a crash course in all things Tristan and meet Isabella.
She just happens to be the daughter that only a select few know exists. Her father is the leader of The Circle of Shadows and their most powerful known enemy, Mortimer Viggo. Isabella has lived a semi-sheltered life under the oppressive thumb of her father by way of constant bodyguards and shows of power. Although her life is not her own, she appreciates the small victories such as finishing school and having a job she loves. However, she is all too aware of the fact that it is because her father ALLOWS her to have them. Her life changes in unexpected ways the moment she meets Tristan. Tristan and his brothers are still reeling from the death of their father and the betrayal of their oldest brother. They are each handling recent events in their own way. For Tristan, that means hunting down all enemies, both known and unknown. It is on this mission when he sees Isabella, first in a photograph and then face to face. What he doesn't know during that first meeting is that together both their fates were bound to change.
In this book, we find that the brothers are constantly investigating and plotting to get the answers and revenge/justice they are looking for. All the while, they are also trying to rebuild the Syndicate AND some semblance of peace of mind. What they don’t realize is that there is yet another potential snake in the grass that is their trusted inner circle. Question is, will they figure out who it is in time?
Just as the first did, this book had me from the beginning and I loved it! Summers continues to write stories and characters with a depth that brings them to life as if watching them instead of reading them. I always appreciate strong female characters, especially in the world of Dark Romance. She gives me this in Isabella and Candace. She also continues to give us strong powerful men who are ruthless in life with everyone it seems, except the ones they love. What makes the stories stand out, even more, are the lengths some fathers will go to for power with no mercy on anyone, including their own daughters. Our emotions are constantly being taken on a ride while being given bread crumbs that all make sense in their own time. As always, waiting for the next to come will be a rough journey.
Voluntarily reviewed after I received a free copy of this book courtesy of HiddenGems and the author, Faith Summers/Khardine Gray, in exchange for my honest review.
iamtannie's review against another edition
5.0
I honestly wasn’t going to be reading this, but curiosity got the best of me. May I say I love Massimo but Tristan has a big chunk of my heart, and don’t even get me started on Dominic. He has my soul.
Obvi, you can’t top Emilia and Massimos story/book, but it is pretty good. I loved reading this and even got me excited of the main plot line.
They are fighting a bigger battle, and even though they each have their family, they will fight for the greater good and protect their families lives with their own.
There were some parts were Isabella did pissed me off, but I loved her. She had suffered a lot through her life by the hands of her own father. She saw two people she loved die, and she couldn’t bear loosing someone else.
Enter Tristan, he was supposed to just kidnap her but what they didn’t expect was robbing each other’s heart.
This series is definitely not for the light hearted, I even got sick by the words they were saying to Isabella even though nothing was actually happening. My heart broke for Sacha too, he was the father she needed and he even protected him with everything he had.
again, I expected more of Emelia being the queen of that castle but Candance was a close second. She was always the voice of reason the boys needed when shit got too far.
Can’t wait to read her story next.
Tropes: kidnapping. Dark romance. Mafia romance. Kinda enemies to lovers.
Romance: ❤️❤️❤️
Spicy:
Obvi, you can’t top Emilia and Massimos story/book, but it is pretty good. I loved reading this and even got me excited of the main plot line.
They are fighting a bigger battle, and even though they each have their family, they will fight for the greater good and protect their families lives with their own.
There were some parts were Isabella did pissed me off, but I loved her. She had suffered a lot through her life by the hands of her own father. She saw two people she loved die, and she couldn’t bear loosing someone else.
Enter Tristan, he was supposed to just kidnap her but what they didn’t expect was robbing each other’s heart.
This series is definitely not for the light hearted, I even got sick by the words they were saying to Isabella even though nothing was actually happening. My heart broke for Sacha too, he was the father she needed and he even protected him with everything he had.
again, I expected more of Emelia being the queen of that castle but Candance was a close second. She was always the voice of reason the boys needed when shit got too far.
Can’t wait to read her story next.
Tropes: kidnapping. Dark romance. Mafia romance. Kinda enemies to lovers.
Romance: ❤️❤️❤️
Spicy:
gypsystar's review against another edition
3.0
I’ve always loved captive romances. This one is good. Not too dark. A little angsty for my taste but it’s a good story. I found myself skimming some parts but I don’t hold against this book, any mafia romance that has scenes that aren’t focused on the actual romance I end up skimming past. It just doesn’t interest me. I do plan to read Dominic’s story but I’ll probably put a few lighter reads in between as a buffer.
awesomelybadbooks's review against another edition
3.0
This story follows Tristan D'Agostino and Isabella Viggo.
The D'Agostino men want revenge on the people who tried to destroy their family and their business starting with Mortimer Viggo, the very man who had Tristan's wife killed. When they find out that Viggo has a daughter that has been kept a well-hidden, well-guarded secret (and who has been trying to live a normal life), they decide their best bet is to kidnap her to try and extract Mortimer's whereabouts as no one knows what the mysterious, powerful man looks like in order to locate him. For reasons of her own, Isabella hates her father. This is the man that killed her mother. This is the man that had the only person she was ever in love with killed. This is the man that informs her that she is to marry Dmitri, a disgusting man (the very same one that killed the man she loved) who is vile and dangerous, who will destroy her from the outside in. Could things go more wrong when Tristan and Dominic pluck her from her "normal" life and bring her to Tristan's island? The Island he had built for the wife he lost a few years ago? Tristan never expects that he would start to fall in love with Isabella and it sure as heck surprises her when she starts to fall in love with him.
It was an average installment for me with a few aspects here and there which were intriguing. There was one aspect that I did see coming - when Isabella is trying to remember the night her mother was killed and slowly starts to remember the mysterious man that was with her father that evening. That part was a little easy to figure out, but it doesn't take away from the story! All in all, I think it's definitely worth a read especially if you're on vacation lounging on the beach or, like me, you need to kill some time at work!
The D'Agostino men want revenge on the people who tried to destroy their family and their business starting with Mortimer Viggo, the very man who had Tristan's wife killed. When they find out that Viggo has a daughter that has been kept a well-hidden, well-guarded secret (and who has been trying to live a normal life), they decide their best bet is to kidnap her to try and extract Mortimer's whereabouts as no one knows what the mysterious, powerful man looks like in order to locate him. For reasons of her own, Isabella hates her father. This is the man that killed her mother. This is the man that had the only person she was ever in love with killed. This is the man that informs her that she is to marry Dmitri, a disgusting man (the very same one that killed the man she loved) who is vile and dangerous, who will destroy her from the outside in. Could things go more wrong when Tristan and Dominic pluck her from her "normal" life and bring her to Tristan's island? The Island he had built for the wife he lost a few years ago? Tristan never expects that he would start to fall in love with Isabella and it sure as heck surprises her when she starts to fall in love with him.
It was an average installment for me with a few aspects here and there which were intriguing. There was one aspect that I did see coming - when Isabella is trying to remember the night her mother was killed and slowly starts to remember the mysterious man that was with her father that evening. That part was a little easy to figure out, but it doesn't take away from the story! All in all, I think it's definitely worth a read especially if you're on vacation lounging on the beach or, like me, you need to kill some time at work!
bookishforlife2's review
3.0
Just like my review for the first book in this series, this is a similar mafia romance story line with a plot twist towards the end. This is Tristan’s story with Isabella.
We don’t really read about the first couple at all in this book. Just the brothers getting together and plotting taking down a bad guy, while his daughter is being kept hostage on an island and she is kind of having the time of her life, because she’s “free”.
I received this ebook copy from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
We don’t really read about the first couple at all in this book. Just the brothers getting together and plotting taking down a bad guy, while his daughter is being kept hostage on an island and she is kind of having the time of her life, because she’s “free”.
I received this ebook copy from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.