Cora Kenborn

I love the unique blend of mafia betrayal and art theft in my third book of the Underworld Kings. Ms. Kenborn and Ms. Wiltcher work together to create dark, fast-paced intrigue with an enemies-to-lovers theme which is always a great combination.

As the youngest son of New Jersey's mafia boss, Renzo Marchesi is out to avenge his brother Nero's murder and Tatiana Sanders, daughter of dirty politician Senator Rick Sanders and owner of the exclusive art gallery, Elysium, is just the tool to help show more him. But her cool exterior hides a dangerous secret that collides with Renzo's world. Can these broken rivals find strength together to fight their demons?

Tatiana has sacrificed so much. Her strength is incredible as she wears her ice queen persona to keep everyone away while an evil man blackmails her to control her every move. Then Renzo storms into her life with an agenda that includes using her however necessary for his end goal. But his plans change when he sees the beautiful scarred young woman whom he needs for his salvation. Their banter is funny and heartwrenching as they throw insults and confess their sins while opening their hearts for the first time. Renzo is one of those alpha bad boys who worms his way into your heart. The way he softens toward Tatiana and makes her battles his own is beautiful. Their story is intense and worth waiting for as they get their vengeance and find truth in themselves and their families. They are strength personified.

I recommend this epic love story filled with secrets, blackmail, suspense, vengeance, and redemption. I look forward to reading this pair of authors again.

Thank you to Ms. Kenborn and Ms. Wiltcher for giving me the opportunity to read this book with no expectation of a positive review. show less

Mafia romance is my favorite. When I find authors that can do justice and manage to give me the violence juxtaposed with passion, I gobble it up. That is why the moment that this book dropped on my kindle, I stopped what I was doing and stayed up way past my bedtime in order to get the answers that I needed from the way that the last book had ended.

The suspense, action, and intensity from the first book of this duet were still there in this book. Yet, there was something more to this show more conclusion as well. In the first book, I spent a portion of it trying to tie in Lola and Sam's story (from the anthology). Those pieces came together in the ending. They continued in this story with some pivotal cameos by those characters. The story still was very much focused on Santi and Thalia though. I found myself mesmerized by the fluidity and stylistic choices that these authors made when crafting this story. I do not know who wrote what and was seamless in the transitions.

In the first book, so much was built on their hate but mutual attraction to one another. In this book, it was so much more than that. These characters grew, because they were forced to by circumstance. The animosity and pure hatred that had fueled the rivalry between families was a lot to be put on these characters and it was no wonder that hate ran as deep as it did considering that is all they had known grown up knowing. I felt how hard it was for both of them to make the decisions that they did but it made sense in the end. This is a bumpy ride. However, it is redemptive in the idea that love can be the answer, especially when it comes to being a Santiago and a Carrera.

As usual, there is just the right amount of steam (good lord, is Santi delicious) that fit in well not only with the stories but in the temperament of the characters, (again, LOVE that Santi is like an uncaged animal and is consumed by how passionately (whether in hate or love) he feels for Thalia.

This book answered questions that I didn't even know that I still had from the original books but once all the pieces came together, it was an a-ha moment because everything fit into place. So much time lost, so much pain, and so much blood that it made my heart hurt. In the end, though, I felt a sense of hope which was much needed for these beloved characters. Especially, since I have loved both sides of this war and was hard-pressed to have to choose one side over the other.

The authors gave hints as to what is coming next and I am looking forward to the interconnected stories. The foreshadowing hints have me VERY excited for these characters. I highly recommend this duet and anything that these authors write, singularly and collectively. This duet does mafia well, giving it the grit, passion, and intensity that one would expect from this sub-genre. show less

Johnny Malone is a very interesting character that is shrouded in mystery and secrets. He comes off as cruel, defiant, and makes his own path except now he is ordered to see a therapist as a part of his probation. He takes nothing from no one and even though he is on probation you get the sense he is more powerful than he lets on. Becca is a therapist that is great at her job, she can see there is a lot more to Johnny than he lets on, but if he refuses to open up how will she help him? She show more has a past that has defined her and she tries to hide that part of her life, but Johnny too can see there is more to her story gets under her skin. As these two navigate this building attraction they fight it off as long as they can, but there is so much going on around them that could end up hurting them. This does end on a cliffhanger, but I am so curious as to what will happen with them that I’m excited for the next one. show less

4.4 stars

After reading a short story in the Stalkers anthology, I found myself needing to come back and catch up on the Carrera Cartel. I'm glad I did because this book was fantastic. Mafia is my preferred guilty pleasure and this author does it well.

This author is a gifted wordsmith. Her stylistic choices, her tone, and her ability to craft a sentence were just a few things that kept me engaged with the story. Add in likable characters, suspense, a little sarcasm, and chemistry and this was show more a hit. I enjoyed Leighton (her unique inner monologues were great, I'll remember the definition of unique forever now) and Mateo (good lord was he a little dreamy) and their connection.

I had a few minor issues with the fluidity of the story and with a transition or two between scenes is the only reason this didn't score higher. That being said, this was still a great book. I look forward to Brody's story next. show less