hellolieselore's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
stucknbooks14's review
5.0
(I received an ARC for this book)
This book ends on a kinda cliffhanger! It’s definitely open ended!
(there's a second book coming to complete the duet!)
Trigger Warnings include, but are not limited to:
this is a dark mafia romance that includes a kidnapping/hostage situation, torture, edging as punishment, dubcon, sexual assault, attempted rape, rape
(many of these acts in detail on page)
I give five stars to books I know I’ll reread. When reading them once just isn’t enough. And while this dark (very dark and twisted) book should be good enough after one read, there’s something about it that I wouldn’t mind revisiting. There’s something in these characters that I feel like I could gain more from if I were to visit them again. See things differently with a better understanding. But I’m sure you can imagine from the trigger warnings, it’s a heavy read. So even with a reread, I know it will affect me. Enzo Vigione and Giovanna Silvani are the next generation of prominent mafia families. Families with blood between them. So when Gia walks into his family’s home to request to be purposely abducted for ransom, you know nothing is going to be good. And nothing is going to go as planned. Enzo and Gia aren’t strangers. Sure, their families are connected by bad blood, but there is more than that. When Enzo becomes Gia’s babysitter, everything changes. Everything. Her family played dirty through compassion, but Enzo’s family was so much worse. And she was reminded of that; a reminder she needed. A reminder Enzo needed. They are both casualties of wars. Wars of multiple magnitudes. When you look up ‘toxic’ in the dictionary, you’ll see Glinda pointing at a picture of Enzo and Gia with a caption that says “there they are, and there they’ll stay”. Very rarely does a mafia romance focus on the next generation of family leaders, so this was a refreshing change of scenery. There was no romanticizing or celebrating any of the terrible things any of the characters have done. This was a story about murderers…and it was written as such. I COULD include some “romantic” tidbits to reel you into reading this…but you need to experience those first hand…you’ll need the rare goodness as breathers. I WILL say that Enzo has NO right crawling onto my book boyfriend list has if he doesn’t have a neon red flag above his head like a sim character!
My Favorite Quotes:
• “We’re in this now. Balls deep in it.”
• “It ain’t your mind I wanna sink into.”
• “Besides, I’d want you awake to feel every inch of me.”
• “Sometimes you gotta go toe to toe with a lioness and hope she doesn’t bite ya.”
• “You ain’t ever been my enemy.”
• “You give me that pretty mouth of yours, and I’ll show you what hell tastes like. Then you can decide if you want to walk through fire with me.”
• “You’re the worst drug, and I just want to overdose on you.”
• “I just wanted to make sure you knew you were mine. The only thing that matters is that you are f!cking mine.”
• “I hate you right now, but you're mine. Give me a little time and I’ll remind you of that.”
• “You can’t touch yourself because I’ll be the only one making you come.”
• “You only need to remember that you’re mine.”
• “I will make every f!cking day we're here feel better than the last.”
10/10 Dirty Birdy
9/10 Enemies to Lovers
8/10 Forced Proximity
10/10 Mafia Romance
10/10 Series
This is my review for Closer to Sin
This book ends on a kinda cliffhanger! It’s definitely open ended!
(there's a second book coming to complete the duet!)
Trigger Warnings include, but are not limited to:
this is a dark mafia romance that includes a kidnapping/hostage situation, torture, edging as punishment, dubcon, sexual assault, attempted rape, rape
(many of these acts in detail on page)
I give five stars to books I know I’ll reread. When reading them once just isn’t enough. And while this dark (very dark and twisted) book should be good enough after one read, there’s something about it that I wouldn’t mind revisiting. There’s something in these characters that I feel like I could gain more from if I were to visit them again. See things differently with a better understanding. But I’m sure you can imagine from the trigger warnings, it’s a heavy read. So even with a reread, I know it will affect me. Enzo Vigione and Giovanna Silvani are the next generation of prominent mafia families. Families with blood between them. So when Gia walks into his family’s home to request to be purposely abducted for ransom, you know nothing is going to be good. And nothing is going to go as planned. Enzo and Gia aren’t strangers. Sure, their families are connected by bad blood, but there is more than that. When Enzo becomes Gia’s babysitter, everything changes. Everything. Her family played dirty through compassion, but Enzo’s family was so much worse. And she was reminded of that; a reminder she needed. A reminder Enzo needed. They are both casualties of wars. Wars of multiple magnitudes. When you look up ‘toxic’ in the dictionary, you’ll see Glinda pointing at a picture of Enzo and Gia with a caption that says “there they are, and there they’ll stay”. Very rarely does a mafia romance focus on the next generation of family leaders, so this was a refreshing change of scenery. There was no romanticizing or celebrating any of the terrible things any of the characters have done. This was a story about murderers…and it was written as such. I COULD include some “romantic” tidbits to reel you into reading this…but you need to experience those first hand…you’ll need the rare goodness as breathers. I WILL say that Enzo has NO right crawling onto my book boyfriend list has if he doesn’t have a neon red flag above his head like a sim character!
My Favorite Quotes:
• “We’re in this now. Balls deep in it.”
• “It ain’t your mind I wanna sink into.”
• “Besides, I’d want you awake to feel every inch of me.”
• “Sometimes you gotta go toe to toe with a lioness and hope she doesn’t bite ya.”
• “You ain’t ever been my enemy.”
• “You give me that pretty mouth of yours, and I’ll show you what hell tastes like. Then you can decide if you want to walk through fire with me.”
• “You’re the worst drug, and I just want to overdose on you.”
• “I just wanted to make sure you knew you were mine. The only thing that matters is that you are f!cking mine.”
• “I hate you right now, but you're mine. Give me a little time and I’ll remind you of that.”
• “You can’t touch yourself because I’ll be the only one making you come.”
• “You only need to remember that you’re mine.”
• “I will make every f!cking day we're here feel better than the last.”
10/10 Dirty Birdy
9/10 Enemies to Lovers
8/10 Forced Proximity
10/10 Mafia Romance
10/10 Series
This is my review for Closer to Sin
whatisshereadingnow's review
mysterious
fast-paced
2.0
I will preface this by saying I love Lauren Biel Hitchhiker series so I thought I’d try this.
I found there was no flow and I was being dragged from one scene to the next. There was zero chemistry between Enzo and Gia, and he just seemed very possessive in a non-sexy way, their i love yous seemed clinical and the entire story line is rather drastic without any sort of flow.
I found there was no flow and I was being dragged from one scene to the next. There was zero chemistry between Enzo and Gia, and he just seemed very possessive in a non-sexy way, their i love yous seemed clinical and the entire story line is rather drastic without any sort of flow.
nikita_reads0's review
5.0
Get ready for a sizzling love story! Gia and Enzo, born into rival mafia families, ignite a forbidden romance full of
darkheauxmance's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
3.0
I enjoyed the premise of the book, and it had a lot of potential.
Gia and Enzo had undeniable chemistry. Their sexual chemistry was off the charts, and the spice was 🥵. When Lauren writes spice, you know it's going to be good.
I think where the book lost me was that it was too fast-paced. There were certain parts, especially when delving into both MCs past where it needed to be slower and more thorough.
At times, the spice was repetitive, and sometimes Gia felt like she was a doormat with Enzo rather than being the strong FMC we were introduced with.
But, overall, it was enjoyable, and I liked the plot and both main characters.
Gia and Enzo had undeniable chemistry. Their sexual chemistry was off the charts, and the spice was 🥵. When Lauren writes spice, you know it's going to be good.
I think where the book lost me was that it was too fast-paced. There were certain parts, especially when delving into both MCs past where it needed to be slower and more thorough.
At times, the spice was repetitive, and sometimes Gia felt like she was a doormat with Enzo rather than being the strong FMC we were introduced with.
But, overall, it was enjoyable, and I liked the plot and both main characters.
valerie_amanda09's review
4.0
This was a phenomenal read. The writing style and how she crafted the characters had me on the edge of my seat. I am so invested in Enzo & Gia's relationship. I can't wait to dive into the second book.