weelasswithabook's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
slow-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
4.5
CW: sexual assault, violence, date rape (kinda), seriously claustrophobic scene
I've had this on my list for ages and FINALLY got around to it, and I'm grateful I did. Mafia romance isn't really my thing so when I come across one that does it for me, I'm all over it!
I thought the 3rd person POV wasn't going to work for me, as a love triangle can be super hit and miss (usually a miss tbh 😂), but this vengeful hate and spite driven love triangle was *chefs kiss* done perfectly.
Now I'm not going to lie, a large portion of the book was used to build up the vibe, setup and atmosphere for the Kingmakers college/university, but I really enjoyed it because without all of that, we couldn't have the story we did. Think the Triwizard Tournament, but make it mafia instead of wizards 😍 I was 100% into it. I felt it was a pretty unique concept, having never stumbled across a mafia based educational setting before (which sounds weird but it works).
Moving on to the relationships and characters. Anna and Leo's friendship was super cute. Childhood best friends to lovers, without the "I'm only friends with this person to get in their pants" element is always a winner for me and they had a super solid friendship to build their relationship on top of.
Dean... Well... What a POS 😂 I have no idea how this mf is going to redeem himself when we get to his book.
Side character-wise, I've got such a soft spot for Ares 😭 I haven't looked at what relationships are coming in the rest of the series, but if he doesn't get his own book, I'm suing.
Overall, I really enjoyed this. Suspenseful, sweet, spicy, perfect. Like I said, there were parts that felt quite drawn out, but I genuinely feel it was necessary for the whole setting to be fully realised. The only drawback was the huge delay in the couple getting together. But again, I love a slow burn so I can't complain.
I've had this on my list for ages and FINALLY got around to it, and I'm grateful I did. Mafia romance isn't really my thing so when I come across one that does it for me, I'm all over it!
I thought the 3rd person POV wasn't going to work for me, as a love triangle can be super hit and miss (usually a miss tbh 😂), but this vengeful hate and spite driven love triangle was *chefs kiss* done perfectly.
Now I'm not going to lie, a large portion of the book was used to build up the vibe, setup and atmosphere for the Kingmakers college/university, but I really enjoyed it because without all of that, we couldn't have the story we did. Think the Triwizard Tournament, but make it mafia instead of wizards 😍 I was 100% into it. I felt it was a pretty unique concept, having never stumbled across a mafia based educational setting before (which sounds weird but it works).
Moving on to the relationships and characters. Anna and Leo's friendship was super cute. Childhood best friends to lovers, without the "I'm only friends with this person to get in their pants" element is always a winner for me and they had a super solid friendship to build their relationship on top of.
Dean... Well... What a POS 😂 I have no idea how this mf is going to redeem himself when we get to his book.
Side character-wise, I've got such a soft spot for Ares 😭 I haven't looked at what relationships are coming in the rest of the series, but if he doesn't get his own book, I'm suing.
Overall, I really enjoyed this. Suspenseful, sweet, spicy, perfect. Like I said, there were parts that felt quite drawn out, but I genuinely feel it was necessary for the whole setting to be fully realised. The only drawback was the huge delay in the couple getting together. But again, I love a slow burn so I can't complain.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault
Moderate: Violence and Sexual content
Minor: Confinement
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