nebulous07's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
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? No
4.0
Sophie Lark has done it once again, and I love the Brutal Birthright series!
Stolen Heir follows Nessa Griffin, who grew on me in Book One (The Brutal Prince). It was wonderful to reunite with the Gallos and the Griffins! I appreciated how her strength is demonstrated through her art and creativity as a ballerina and choreographer. Mikolaj couldn't be more opposite to Nessa. Fuelled by anger, revenge and duty as the head of the Polish Braterstvo, he has seen his share of torture, brutality and apathy.
Sophie Lark weaves her magic using Beauty and the Beast elements, and the character growth is believable. This book is about enemies to lovers and proximity with an age gap, and I loved every minute of it. The balance between dark and light is Sophie's strength, which shines throughout the book. The backstory behind the protagonist, complemented by a fast-paced plot, made it engaging. The elements of passion and spice are well-spaced. The only thing I missed was it being more high-stakes, for I never felt Mikolaj would lose. I can't wait to dig into book three with Nero's story!
Thank you, NetGalley & SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books, for giving me an ARC. This honest review is left voluntarily.
Stolen Heir follows Nessa Griffin, who grew on me in Book One (The Brutal Prince). It was wonderful to reunite with the Gallos and the Griffins! I appreciated how her strength is demonstrated through her art and creativity as a ballerina and choreographer. Mikolaj couldn't be more opposite to Nessa. Fuelled by anger, revenge and duty as the head of the Polish Braterstvo, he has seen his share of torture, brutality and apathy.
Sophie Lark weaves her magic using Beauty and the Beast elements, and the character growth is believable. This book is about enemies to lovers and proximity with an age gap, and I loved every minute of it. The balance between dark and light is Sophie's strength, which shines throughout the book. The backstory behind the protagonist, complemented by a fast-paced plot, made it engaging. The elements of passion and spice are well-spaced. The only thing I missed was it being more high-stakes, for I never felt Mikolaj would lose. I can't wait to dig into book three with Nero's story!
Thank you, NetGalley & SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books, for giving me an ARC. This honest review is left voluntarily.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape and Torture
imskylow's review against another edition
I had to DNF this book. The writing felt very juvenile. The words don’t have weight. The prose is stiff and unyielding and the emotions felt dry to me. There was also a big lack of imagery. I tried to skip forward to see what the book would feel like later and I was not terribly impressed by what I found. This plot of this book is merely a vehicle for the smut. I say this as a reader who enjoys smut: I feel like each tool an author uses in a story should be carefully placed, crafted, and utilized. Smut just isn’t interesting when there’s a lack of believability and a real sense of tension.
I received the digital version of this book as a ARC books from NetGalley, which is interesting because Goodreads says this book was published back in 2020. Not quite sure why this available for review now in 2023.
I received the digital version of this book as a ARC books from NetGalley, which is interesting because Goodreads says this book was published back in 2020. Not quite sure why this available for review now in 2023.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Gun violence, Kidnapping, and Confinement
Moderate: Murder, Blood, Self harm, and Suicide
Minor: Rape and Antisemitism
booksalacarte's review against another edition
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
2.5⭐️ 3🌶️
Mafia dark romance
Beauty and the beast retelling
Enemies to lovers
Professional ballerina
Opposites attract
“Touch her and die”
The writing is really stilted int he beginning. Maybe it’s the dual first person POV. And it’s needlessly repetitive. Something said in chapter 2 is almost verbatim in chapter 6.
The monotonous replay of a specific scene in the other POV in first person isn’t interesting, it’s boring.
The characters are under developed. There is such potential, but their character arcs are rushed and their relationship arc hardly goes beyond Stockholm syndrome. Their on page interactions are very few, making their relationship seem very immature. There is very little on page tension because they hardly ever interact.
But it was a quick and easy read.
Thank you NetGalley and Bloom Books/Sourcebooks for an Advanced Reader Copy of the ebook in return for an honest review.
Mafia dark romance
Beauty and the beast retelling
Enemies to lovers
Professional ballerina
Opposites attract
“Touch her and die”
The writing is really stilted int he beginning. Maybe it’s the dual first person POV. And it’s needlessly repetitive. Something said in chapter 2 is almost verbatim in chapter 6.
The monotonous replay of a specific scene in the other POV in first person isn’t interesting, it’s boring.
The characters are under developed. There is such potential, but their character arcs are rushed and their relationship arc hardly goes beyond Stockholm syndrome. Their on page interactions are very few, making their relationship seem very immature. There is very little on page tension because they hardly ever interact.
But it was a quick and easy read.
Thank you NetGalley and Bloom Books/Sourcebooks for an Advanced Reader Copy of the ebook in return for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Gore, Gun violence, Cursing, Suicide, Kidnapping, Hate crime, Murder, Stalking, Confinement, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Rape, Violence, Misogyny, and Sexual harassment
carla20's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Suicide, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Kidnapping, Murder, and Violence
christikb's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-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
4.5
Here's my shameful, horribly kept secret. I love alpha mafia men (in fiction only, I swear!). I love fairytales. And I am OBSESSED with these two things when put together. So it makes sense that I fell head over heels for Nessa and Miko's story. And even though Miko and Nessa's storyline is a lot Stockholm Syndrome-y and Miko is the least polished of the Brutal Birthright men and the transition from hate to love is a bit sudden, I am a complete sucker for Stolen Heir. SH is like what would happen if Beauty and the Beast and Swan Lake (the ballet) had an EXTREMELY SPICY, criminal baby and I was here for every second of it. I don't care about any flaw of this story, the prima ballerina and the tattooed Braterstwo leader who bows to no one except this tiny ballerina absolutely slays me. Major trigger warning on rape and suicide in the prologue (which is absolutely gutpunchingly heartbreaking).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Rape, Suicide, and Sexual assault
stuffandwhatnot's review against another edition
emotional
3.75
Another brisk and mostly enjoyable mafia romance, this time with a Beauty and the Beast twist. Not as banter-filled as the previous volume and Miko definitely pissed me off more than Callum did, but man once he realizes he's in love, he's all in.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping
Minor: Rape and Suicide
apolen's review against another edition
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Kidnapping, Sexual content, and Gun violence
Moderate: Suicide and Sexual assault
Minor: Abandonment and Rape
maralmao's review against another edition
2.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Kidnapping, Mental illness, Rape, Stalking, and Sexual assault
__romancereader__'s review
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I loved this book i think this one is my favorite so far in the series so Stolen heir is my number 1 and Brutal prince is my number 2 so far i cannot wait to read the rest of these books i loved the beauty in the beast things that were happening in this book i don't really know if that makes sense i hope it does i did also really love that Mikolaj was her first ifykyk and her last ofc these books are very good i read them fast there good story's i love the couples in these books so far i loved how even trying to hate Nessa in the beginning Miko still wouldn’t let none of his men touch her or even think about hurting her i love these crazy things that happen at the end but go by fast it gives me enough time to enjoy the ending without my anxiety kicking in this book was so good i love how in these books so far also you get to meet the next book’s character in it overall i lived this book the most and i rated it obviously five stars⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️🥰🥰🥰🥰
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Gore, Rape, Toxic friendship, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Alcohol, Blood, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Self harm, Sexual content, Stalking, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Grief, Gun violence, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault
Not all content warnings are about the main characters some are and some are about the characters you meet/hear in the book 🫶🏼🫶🏼🥰🥰Enjoyecravens's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Sexual content, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Rape, Toxic relationship, Blood, Child death, and Death