kaeliesreads's review against another edition
5.0
This book is very good. I have read this author before. If you are looking for mafia romances, she is one of my go to authors But I strongly encourage you to check your trigger warnings before reading this book.
duchessrin's review against another edition
4.0
My heart had moved on from one unattainable man to the next.
Valentina's first marriage was a sham. At eighteen, she married Antonio even knowing that he was gay, hoping that he would eventually learn to love her back. But it was futile. Her husband used their marriage to hide his sexuality, knowing that the familia wouldn't forgive him.
After his death, she marries Dante, the future head of the Chicago familia. The secrets that she intends to keep are threatened to be unveiled but she is also determined to finally have a true marriage.
But with Dante's indifference with her, Valentina's not so sure if her wishes would come true.
I didn't really get my hopes up when I found out who the couple was in this book. Yeah, I'm more excited with Gia and Matteo's story. I've said that a lot of times already. That said, I really don't know what to feel about this book.
As usual, Cora Reilly's writing got me really attached with her character. I sympathized with Valentina throughout the story.
“At one point, I thought I could never love someone as I loved Antonio, no matter how unrequited that love was. And today I’m condemning him to his death for another man who will never love me back.”
Up until the end, I didn't feel that Dante loved Valentina even if she thought he did.
Would he ever love me? Would I ever find in this marriage what I so desperately wanted?
Or if he did (since we don't know what was in his mind) it wasn’t as much as he did with his first wife. It was like Valentina's only the second best, like he didn't have a choice at all but to care for her.
For the first time, I’d know he loved me while he’d make love to me, even if he’d never said the words aloud.
Which was realistic in its own way. Dante clearly loved his first wife and even in her death, nobody could replace her. Not even Valentina. What they (Dante and his first wife) had was not something irreplaceable.
I still think that Valentina deserved something more. After the shit she went through, she deserved somebody who would adore her like Luca did with Aria.
“Make love to me. Just today. I know you don’t love me. Pretend, just for tonight. Hold me in your arms for once.”
Perhaps Dante might improve through time, after all, love is not instant. I hope we could have a glimpse of what ran in his mind.
reading_is_life4me's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
cheneric's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
heathreadsx's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
whatthefawkes's review against another edition
5.0
Yes, yes, yes. I loved this one so much. Be still my beating heart. So much angst.
raviel's review against another edition
4.0
4.25/5
___________
Reread 13-14/10/16 and I've finally gotten around to reviewing it.
He seemed so restrained and controlled, as if his emotions were bottled up so deep inside, not even he could reach them.
I loved the mafia premise, that's initially why I started reading this series, but I was left dealing with mixed feelings for the first book, and I had no hope for this one, and very high hopes for book 3 and 4. Surprisingly, they all left me annoyed and disappointed, save for this book of course!
I can't believe I considered skipping this book, I didn't think Valentina's story would interest me. I'm obviously glad I didn't; it turns out I adore her. I admire her stubbornness, and will to go after what she wants. I know some people will think she was chasing after a guy that wasn't interested, but no, she was determined to get out of life what she had been denied in her first marriage, what she had dreamed of since forever.
She says it herself:
“There isn’t enough room in our bedroom for me and the memories of your past.”
Dante didn't, and couldn't let go of his past, and his first wife. Her memory was suffocating his marriage with Val, and in turn making it difficult for her to try to make her marriage work. Dante is a closed-off man who has difficulty showing, and dealing with his emotions, and Val made damn sure at every turn that he would let her in enough to make this marriage work. It was all she had wanted.
She never gave up on Dante, or her marriage, and I was so, so proud of her determination to take control of her life and marriage.
She came out of her first marriage stronger, more determined, focused to get the happy life she deserved. Refused to be cowed, or subservient to the wish of others. Rejected the modelled life she was expected to lead, refused to be a pretty trophy wife, and demanded nothing but the respect she was entitled to. That's the kind of character development I'm here for. I can't speak enough of how much I adore her, and on a lot of levels she is similar to me, which I've never really been able to say about a character before.
“Sometimes I think you hurt me on purpose to keep me at arm-length.”
This perfectly explains Dante's actions throughout the book. Though not excusable, I understand why he would want to keep Val at arms length. After losing his first wife, he is not ready to open up to any woman ever again. Not only does he think it will dishonour the memory of his first wife, but he can't bear the thought of going through the pain of losing someone he loved again.
But still, Val's efforts don't go to waste, she finds a way to creep into his cold heart, and it's almost funny how much his stupid pride holds him back from accepting that he is deeply and madly in love with her.
And then: “As long as I rule the Outfit, you won’t be harmed.” What the fuck. He is literally covering up the murder of one of his own men (albeit a very shitty person whose death made the world a better place). This is not the Dante we originally knew. Obviously the guy still has a shit tonne of issues, especially with speaking about his emotions, but nothing says 'I love you' quite like 'I'm going to make damn sure this murder is covered up and you are never implicated.'
“Thank you for helping Bibi.”
“I did it for you,” he said simply.
I'M TELLING YOU. Dante Cavallaro... the Boss.... will literally let his wife get away with anything.... it's amazing, really.
“You are going to kill him.”
“I’m going to kill them all, Valentina. I have to.”
I stared into his determined blue eyes. No hesitation, no pity, no mercy.
“I have his number.”
This... this is the moment we all knew Val would never choose anyone over Dante. This is also the moment when Dante realised how blessed and lucky he is to have Val in his life. Someone to love him, someone he could trust unconditionally.
I feel like this is probably the longest review I've ever written, and it's probably because I've never tried to analyse any book as much as I did this one.
Anyways... in other news, the only problem I had with this was of course And obviously, the editing, or lack of. It drove me insane. Find a better editor, please.
I'm pretty sure there were more things I didn't like the first time I read this book, but I can't remember right now, so I'll let it slide until I do.
tl;dr if you like the trope where character A is some powerful, feared mafia boss, who doesn't let anyone get away with anything (because y'know... one wrong word/move and they'll end up dead), though character B can get away with doing or saying anything (literally) cause character A is hopelessly in love with them (but they're shit at talking about feelings and have a tragic/rough past) and is only gentle and warm with character B etc etc, then this is probably the book for you.
___________
Reread 13-14/10/16 and I've finally gotten around to reviewing it.
He seemed so restrained and controlled, as if his emotions were bottled up so deep inside, not even he could reach them.
I loved the mafia premise, that's initially why I started reading this series, but I was left dealing with mixed feelings for the first book, and I had no hope for this one, and very high hopes for book 3 and 4. Surprisingly, they all left me annoyed and disappointed, save for this book of course!
I can't believe I considered skipping this book, I didn't think Valentina's story would interest me. I'm obviously glad I didn't; it turns out I adore her. I admire her stubbornness, and will to go after what she wants. I know some people will think she was chasing after a guy that wasn't interested, but no, she was determined to get out of life what she had been denied in her first marriage, what she had dreamed of since forever.
She says it herself:
“There isn’t enough room in our bedroom for me and the memories of your past.”
Dante didn't, and couldn't let go of his past, and his first wife. Her memory was suffocating his marriage with Val, and in turn making it difficult for her to try to make her marriage work. Dante is a closed-off man who has difficulty showing, and dealing with his emotions, and Val made damn sure at every turn that he would let her in enough to make this marriage work. It was all she had wanted.
Spoiler
And my heart broke when she felt that the only love and joy from a family life she would receive would be from her children. Also, I loved that the author didn't demonise or vilify Carla (Dante's first wife), nor did Val hate her, or resent her, or whatever women vs women drama some authors love creating, it's disgusting. Dead or not, Carla was Dante's first wife, the woman he loved for over a decade, and I think her presence throughout the book, especially with regards to Val's insecurity about her position in Dante's life, was portrayed realistically, without any women on women hate.She never gave up on Dante, or her marriage, and I was so, so proud of her determination to take control of her life and marriage.
Spoiler
Especially considering how she was manipulated and used by Antonio. For her to realise that, acknowledge how she had been treated, how she had eagerly gone into a marriage with naive hope, only to realise she was deluding herself, and she would gain nothing but misery.She came out of her first marriage stronger, more determined, focused to get the happy life she deserved. Refused to be cowed, or subservient to the wish of others. Rejected the modelled life she was expected to lead, refused to be a pretty trophy wife, and demanded nothing but the respect she was entitled to. That's the kind of character development I'm here for. I can't speak enough of how much I adore her, and on a lot of levels she is similar to me, which I've never really been able to say about a character before.
“Sometimes I think you hurt me on purpose to keep me at arm-length.”
This perfectly explains Dante's actions throughout the book. Though not excusable, I understand why he would want to keep Val at arms length. After losing his first wife, he is not ready to open up to any woman ever again. Not only does he think it will dishonour the memory of his first wife, but he can't bear the thought of going through the pain of losing someone he loved again.
But still, Val's efforts don't go to waste, she finds a way to creep into his cold heart, and it's almost funny how much his stupid pride holds him back from accepting that he is deeply and madly in love with her.
Spoiler
I mean... Dante shook his head. “Goddamnit, Valentina. You should have come to me.” I'm going to bet my soul on the fact that he's basically saying she could have found a way to convince him to do this for her instead of putting herself in danger if she were to get exposed lmAo.And then: “As long as I rule the Outfit, you won’t be harmed.” What the fuck. He is literally covering up the murder of one of his own men (albeit a very shitty person whose death made the world a better place). This is not the Dante we originally knew. Obviously the guy still has a shit tonne of issues, especially with speaking about his emotions, but nothing says 'I love you' quite like 'I'm going to make damn sure this murder is covered up and you are never implicated.'
“Thank you for helping Bibi.”
“I did it for you,” he said simply.
I'M TELLING YOU. Dante Cavallaro... the Boss.... will literally let his wife get away with anything.... it's amazing, really.
“You are going to kill him.”
“I’m going to kill them all, Valentina. I have to.”
I stared into his determined blue eyes. No hesitation, no pity, no mercy.
“I have his number.”
This... this is the moment we all knew Val would never choose anyone over Dante. This is also the moment when Dante realised how blessed and lucky he is to have Val in his life. Someone to love him, someone he could trust unconditionally
Spoiler
remember when he said he doesn't trust anyone unconditionally and that Val has never given him any reason to trust her, after that Frank incident??I feel like this is probably the longest review I've ever written, and it's probably because I've never tried to analyse any book as much as I did this one.
Anyways... in other news, the only problem I had with this was of course
Spoiler
the lack of direct apology, over what a prideful shit Dante was, and that cheating accusation. I mean “Is it mine?” rEALLY DANTE, REALLY?? It was /sort of/ acknowledged but not to the extent I would have liked. Val deserved better.I'm pretty sure there were more things I didn't like the first time I read this book, but I can't remember right now, so I'll let it slide until I do.
tl;dr if you like the trope where character A is some powerful, feared mafia boss, who doesn't let anyone get away with anything (because y'know... one wrong word/move and they'll end up dead), though character B can get away with doing or saying anything (literally) cause character A is hopelessly in love with them (but they're shit at talking about feelings and have a tragic/rough past) and is only gentle and warm with character B etc etc, then this is probably the book for you.
mooncricketjp's review against another edition
5.0
Loved it!
This is such an amazing series and every book is better than the last. Loved Dante and Valentina. Love how strong they were!
This is such an amazing series and every book is better than the last. Loved Dante and Valentina. Love how strong they were!
jada0904's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0