I am rating this as a DARK romance not a sports romance. If you came here for sports romance, please put this back down because this is absolutely a dark romance dressed in a hockey jersey. Now that we have that settled...🌚

This was so well-written, I am in tears 😭 I kid you not, I am clutching at my chest and pounding on the wall! This was JUST the right amount of toxicity, darkness and obsessiveness with dollops of sweet romance to balance it out. 🩷

Is our MMC bonkers level of insane controlling stalker? Yes but excuse you, Lincoln literally improved her life! 😤 She was living in a rundown apartment, constantly harrassed and could barely afford decent food. After he came into her life, she was so much happier and healthier. Am I in denial? Maybe.. but in this economy? Sir, I accept 😍

Our FMC might seem like a damsel-in-distress but after living her whole life being deprived of life's simple pleasures like a comfortable bed, good food and real friends, Monroe was STARVED of affection and I can hardly blame her for it. I would be too, in her shoes! 😔💔 Was it Stockholm Syndrome in the end? Maybe.. but do we care? Again, no! She's happy and healthy, and really, that's all that matters! 🥹

I liked that Lincoln was vulnerable with his emotions with Monroe. Often times with dark romances, the MMC is cold, standoffish and even if he does become emotionally available, usually it's only when the FMC is in danger or attacked. But here, Lincoln opened up about his abusive past and tragic loss first before Monroe opened up about hers. 🥺 Before he went batshit crazy, he was rather patient for a morally dark man and he often followed Monroe's pace and her cues, even if it's to "make her fall in love" with him. 

Also, I hate the third act breakup so much that when the story was headed that way, I literally CHEERED when Lincoln refused to let Monroe leave. He literally prevented the third act breakup himself, thank you!!! 🤣🙏

All in all, this was a really great dark romance book that I would happily recommend. Of course, the readers who came for a sports romance are probably shocked by all the red flag things happening - my condolences to you 🤣🫣

This has really good potential and I was very excited after seeing the premise. But unfortunately, I just personally felt that the whole execution fell flat. 

If you want fluffy romance and delicious smut, I beg of you, pick this book up. This was so so unexpected and I truly did not think I would enjoy this book so much. I picked this up on Saturday morning, thinking it would be a PWP smutty fast read. But it was so much more. Let me just say, I'm quite new to monster romances. Like I've always been intrigued but I've never really been won over. But this book right here? This is it. I've been converted.

Our FMC seems to have high functioning anxiety and I've never felt so seen. I related so so much to Violet. As someone who struggled with job searching, struggled adapting to a new job, struggled finding new friends in a new environment, struggled wanting to look successful or at least stable to my parents, I just felt so validated! And I was NOT expecting that from this book at all. 

Our MMC is literally the greenest green flag, I could cry. It makes sense that he's not human because literally no human man like this exists. The entire time he courted her, he always went at her pace and followed her cues while verbally communicating how he felt and where they stood. The way he IMMEDIATELY checked on her after their first time and asked if she wanted ice cream... I'M CRYING BECAUSE NO HUMAN MAN COULD EVER. 

Also, Rourke and Violet took the time to actually get to know each other. This wasn't the balls to the walls, non-stop, heavy, filthy smut that I was expecting from the title and cover. It's so much better and I am so pleasantly surprised at how well this was executed. Don't get me wrong, is it filthy? Absolutely. But the filth in the first half of the book was very technical? Like it was just her doing her job so it honestly didn't *feel* filthy. It only started to feel that way once the tension between our characters grew. And urgh, the TENSION that grew over the first half of the book while they courted... I have never screamed "JUST FK ALREADY" louder at any book before. Especially one where I had expected the fking to have already happened at least 5 times by this point. 

The only reason I didn't give this the full 5 stars was actually the writing. While I loved the writing for most of it, I noticed there were quite a few scenes where our characters are doing something in the present and then suddenly we're thrown back into their memory but the transition is quite jarring and confusing that sometimes I thought I had accidentally skipped a paragraph or something. I had to reread a few scenes just to make sure I'm getting it right. However, it didn't take away from the fact that this was still such a nice book.

They say, "Don't judge a book by it's cover". But when the cover is that suggestive, you can't help but judge it. I came in expecting a PWP book of smut but left with my heart full and my thirst quenched. Absolutely no regrets. I get it now, monster girlies. I get it. 

This had so much potential. I was so excited for this book. But unfortunately, it was so so hard to get through, for some reason. I think a big reason is the writing style. It's so formal, dense and wordy. I think it was the author's attempt to create that mysterious old-age aura around the vampire but it just weighed down the story. The conversations between our two characters were painful to read because they were so jerky and awkward and is lowkey reminiscent of socially inept highschoolers. Maybe it was the author's attempt at creating tension but again, it wasn't executed very well. I had to DNF because I was really trudging through thick, thick mud in order to get past the pages. I thought this would be a fast and run read but unfortunately, it's not for me. 

This was rather disappointing. It started out so strong and good and I was loving every bit of it. Until our FMC turned into a complete brat. Tell me how it makes sense that she laments over wanting a mature man but acts like a whiny child? In the beginning, she seemed all reasonable and great, but after their first night, she transformed into an ill-mannered spoilt child. Literally, as someone who worked in the childcare industry, she really resembled the 5 year olds I've taken care of. 

The FMC had a horrible habit of making assumptions, jumping to conclusions and then blowing up at people. And the guys just sit there and take it even though one of them thought he's had enough of this kind of petty arguing in his previous marriage. And ok, one of the other guys likes punishing her so she might be bratty to get that. But there's a difference in putting on a bratty act for attention and being a completely childish brat over unreasonable matters.

The guys had the patience of saints because no matter how many times she blew up on them, they would reach out and try to resolve it. They were very mature, they acted their ages, communicative and respectful. And our FMC, who has LONG been wishing for this type of man to enter her life, decides that she was not the luckiest woman in the world to land 3 great guys and resorts to crying fits, raging unreasonably and throwing tantrums. Imma say that maybe her dad had a point that her mom naming her "Sugar" probably fked up her character because what is wrong with this girl?!

I'm so let down because this book started out so good and then spiralled just like our FMC. I hate to say it but the only amazing takeaway were the men and grandma. Glad the FMC got therapy in the end, she sure as hell needed it. 

This was a bullet train ride to the end. They really meant INSTANT love with this one. With instant love came instant found family. While I was reeling at the high speed, I must say all the characters were very endearing and managed to make an impression in such a short amount of time and words. I would love to reread this as a fully fledged book. 

A light heartwarming read to fill my evening. Only thing is, the stories were short and I felt only the first two lived up to the title where having a cat improved their lives. The other three just had cats mentioned in them. The fourth story was especially frustrating and finished with loose ends. Wished the stories were a bit more focused about how having cats really healed their hearts but overall still a good read.

I am in love with this couple. I am in love with this book. Hell, I might be in love witht his author even though this is my first book from her because ma'am, thank you SO MUCH for writing this. I think this book may have actually healed something inside of me. 

Amazing tropes include:
⭐ Disability & chronic illness rep
⭐ Found family
⭐ Arranged marriage 
⭐ Age Gap
⭐ Grumpy x Sunshine

I am so so so glad the author didn't make Sofiya transform into some cold strong girlboss as the story progressed because so many mafia romances do that. Like yes, we love a girlboss, we love a woman who can fight and we love a woman who takes down her enemies coldly and mercilessly. But there's a beauty and strength in being gentle, tenderhearted and kind. I feel like with the rise of "woke" and "strong, independent" FMCs, many authors have forgotten this. I've had enough of girlboss FMCs who kill with a roll of an eye and I'm so glad this book gave us someone new and real.

Sofiya is nurturing, sweet and compassionate and Matteo needed someone like this. She won everyone over with her kindness and I wish we see more of this in books. And I just KNOW some readers would be mad and annoyed with her, calling her a "pick me" or childish or weak. But I highly disagree. She has been isolated, neglected and abused her WHOLE LIFE. She struggles with her disability and crippling pain all the time but still has room in her heart to be nice. If I were in pain all the time, I'd be cranky and mean and bitter as fuck. Mind you, I do struggle with chronic pain as well (though not to Sofiya's extent or severity) and when I am in that much pain, I can be a bitch. So yes, Sofiya IS strong. Maybe not physically but definitely mentally and emotionally. Also she's better with a gun than all the mafia men combined - THAT'S badass as fuck. Lowkey feel like I should take up shooting lessons because I'm so damn inspired by her. I don't think I've been so in love with an FMC before.

Docked a star because I got mad at Matteo. He is truly so stupid to not see his henchman's betrayal and, my dear author, why did you not make him grovel even just a bit?! I desperately NEEDED and was WAITING to see the grovelling for what he did!!! How could you rob us of his grovelling!!!

Also can we have a book for Ronan because despite the small amount of scenes we had with him, I immediately fell in love with his dramatical theatrics!

All in all, a great fluffy mafia romance! One of the best I've read in a while. Can't wait to check out more books from this author.

Sit tight, strap in and buckle up because it's a long bumpy dark rollercoaster ride. Can I just say the way I went from loving this to hating this to loving it again and then hating again was giving me a whiplash?

Minor spoilers below!

I was loving the relationship between Blake and Ryat in the beginning and then around 300 pages in, we get the big misunderstanding. I mean I get it, it's a dark romance, of course there has to be a misunderstanding. Otherwise how would the FMC disobey and make the MMC angry enough to punish her? But what pissed me off was when Blake kept believing her ex's word over the Ryat's. Like the same ex who has done nothing but lied to you about EVERYTHING? Sure Ryat hides a shit ton of things from you but he hasn't outright lied to your face. Hasn't Matt proven over and over again that he just wants to hurt and humiliate you? But of course, she listens to Matt.

At this point, I'm so annoyed with Blake but we carry on. Then the story and romance picked back up and I'm in love again. But of course, the author throws another curve ball at us and now I hate it again. Every scene that LeAnn is in has me SEETHING. This woman is so annoying, I can't believe I ever felt bad for her. And the plot twist about their marriage added nothing to the story tbh. I truly don't care if you were married or divorced or separated or fake married other people, we don't care. Phil Anderson is also a horrible father and a complete wimp to his wives - like if your daughter is at risk, stand up and protect her like a man. Blake really had the worst luck for parents (bio or otherwise). 

Honestly, the biggest disappointment I had with this book was discovering what the Lords really were. I guess I was expecting once these men pass the tests and become a Lord, it would mean they're men in power and they're political/underground kings. Lowkey was thinking they would basically be like Mafia bosses. But it's essentially a cult and even if you're a Lord, you get summoned randomly, ordered around and given missions to fulfill. So despite the Lord title, they're not mafia bosses but rather henchmen in the mask of a powerful man to the public.

The amount of times I was absolutely flabbergasted at how helpless the Lords were... Like please tell me how you're powerful but you can't do abc or xyz (esp you, Phil). And I'm not talking like human trafficking or r*pe or drugs - rules against these make sense, there are Yakuza and Mafia gangs that outlaw these. But I'm talking about the fact that they can't choose their own marriage partners, they can't protect their kids from essentially being sold, they can't prioritise their child's birth over a mission, etc. Like how is this powerful? This is the opposite! 

Maybe I'll learn more about the Lords' lore in the next books but so far what I have learned, I'm not impressed by at all. I did enjoy and love some parts of the story but there were moments I wanted to scream and throw my kindle at the characters themselves. Truly a dark rollercoaster ride.

Literally finished this in 20 mins. It went by so fast, I could barely stop to internalize it. It was straightforward and written very simply - which is not a bad thing. The instant love instant family and instant forever ever after left me reeling but I should have expected it since it's only 60 pages. To sum it up, this was a nice and light fluffy albeit super fast romance book.