Sophie Lark

This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.

Introduction
The Spy is the fourth installment in the "Kingmakers" series, and this is technically the final installment of the series as I know book five I believe doesn't feature the school, but I could be wrong. I know The Spy was intended to be the final installment originally. I pretty much went into this one completely blind, I just knew the small hints leading up to the serial plot, would be finalized in this show more one here so I was highly intrigued, and I really love this cover -----the sexy man NOT the weird illustrated. I did enjoy this one and I do recommend listening to these in audio formats if you can, because the narrations are well done and definitely worth the wait for them.

The Main Protagonists
The Hero: Ares
Hiding his identity, posing as his best friend, looking for justice for his family and seeking to get close to his father's enemies daughter to seduce and use her if necessary. His duty is to family first and foremost.

The Heroine:Nix
Strong and a bit of a loner, as she is the daughter of the most hated man in the mafia world, Nix is strong and passionate and has a kind heart full of desires for adventure.

Summary
Nix has always loved her father and he is overprotective but she is determined if she is to take her father's place, to attend the Kingmakers as she wants to escape the life she was raised in and to be able to stand on her own. What she doesn't expect though is to find her own courage and strength as it isn't easy to stand on her own but also to be so hated from everyone around her except her roommate who seems to be cunning and badass in her own way. Nix has her own smarts and is determined to find her own path until she falls for Ares who is a man of mystery and layers. She knows that there is so much more to him than meets the eye. Ares is a man on a mission, and he is torn between duty and his heart. He is supposed to get close to Nix to save his family, and he has also had to assume this secret identity from everyone even those closest to him, but he doesn't plan on falling hard for Nix who is the daughter of his most hated enemy.

My Outlook
Whew boy, this book was a roller coaster of a ride. I absolutely adored every single moment of this one and I am not sure but I think this is a close tie to "The Bully" and in fact I might even love it more than "The Bully" and I honestly thought no book from Sophie Lark could actually top that one. There was just something so much more in depth for the plot that just seemed to work way better for me. I was so intrigued by this pairing. And from the beginning, we get to see their backgrounds and their connections with their families, so instantly you are drawn in and just captivated by them as individuals.

When they meet at the Kingmakers though, its more like friends coming together. Nix is new and in her first year, but she is also so hated and she doesn't understand why. She doesn't know all the evil things that her father has done and if even in the mafia he is the most despised that is saying something. What I was intrigued about with Nix is that she was open minded and wanted to know the truth surrounding her family and not have it kept from her. Ares even though he wants to hate her, soon gains admiration for her which quickly turns into love. He doesn't want to have a heart for Nix, but he quickly sees that she is so much more than her father's daughter and he becomes torn over duty and heart. And my heart just broke for these two, because as the truth is revealed about his family (And no one was more shocked than I was on this) you start to see how drive Ares is for his family and to save them.

The romance that builds between these two is just simply wonderful. I loved their connection to each other and how protective Ares gets even though he understands why so many students are bitter against Nix. Both Nix and Ares have such fighting spirits for adventure and for those that they love. They definitely have powerful sparks between them but there is also something so much deeper that forms between them. Nix quickly reveals all of herself with Ares, but what I loved about Nix is that she knows that there is a persona that Ares is hiding from her and when everything is revealed its truly so saddening for Nix. You know that there isn't another way that this could have happened, but even through that betrayal she also still loves him so deeply. And in the third act.....this book completely captivated me and I couldn't put it down. And seeing how Ares friends just ended up standing by him when they learn the truth just fills the heart seeing that strong loyalty that they have for each other. And seeing how much in the end that his family accepts Nix through it all despite what her father has done, warms your heart and soul on such a deep level. Sophie Lark really works her magic with this one and she has captured such beautiful things in this series and I can't wait to delve into the final connected book "The Savage".

Overall View
I found The Spy to be a captivating read that kept me on the edge of my seat, a plot that steals your attention, characters that endear your heart, and a romance that you will want to fight the world for.....STUNNING IN EVERY WAY!

Rating Evaluation:
Plot: 5
World Building:5
Cover:5
Hero: 5
Heroine: 5
Steam: 4
Heart & Feels:5
Ending:5
Overall View: 5 show less

It gave me hope that loveliness could bloom out of ugliness and scarcity.

After just having read another stalker/serial killer dark romance, I was in the mood to pick this up and glad I did. There Are No Saints is a slow burn dark romance, where the spice really starts at the end of the book. As this is a duet set, this does end on a bit of a cliffhanger. The first two chapters were a bit slow as the author is introducing the characters. I wasn't really sure where she was heading with the show more story yet, but by the end of the second chapter, I was hooked and invested in Mara. Mara is drawn to Cole like a moth to the flame, despite knowing the danger clearly radiating from him.

I do what I want. I get what I want. If there's a god of this world, it's me.

Cole is a rich artist who thinks he is god in all aspects of his life, including his tendencies to murder. His rival artist happens to be a serial killer as well, but a shoddy impersonation of Cole. Cole is controlled and thoughtful, while Shaw is a beast with his messy kills. Constantly trying to up each other, Shaw notices a girl, Mara, who catches Cole's eyes. After kidnapping her and putting her on death's door, he delivers her in the middle of nowhere after following Cole; a gift, a temptation for Cole to figure out what to do. Not wanting to play into Shaw's hand, Cole leaves her for dead. Against all odds, Mara escapes her situation and survives. Weeks later, Cole sees her and becomes instantly obsessed with her. Stalking her every move and location, trying to figure out how to break her open, as she acts as if nothing happens while she goes about her normal days.

What Cole does not anticipate is what Mara is truly like. She is stubborn, strong, can be spiteful, doesn't like to be told what to do, and most importantly, a trauma survivor. She escaped the devil's grasp and lived to tell the tale, although no one believes her. Mara starts questioning her sanity, constantly hearing the deprecating words from her mother in her mind. Her alcoholic mother, aka emotional cancer, was never a proper, caring or loving mother. As her mother turned a blind eye, Mara was abused by her stepfather. After years of being blamed for everything, the guilt causes Mara to self inflict harm. While those scars have healed, they are still visible, casting doubts from the police officer taking her statement.

Cole is obsessed with the idea of killing Mara, then to possessing her and then back to killing her when he realizes she has become his one weakness. She has knocked his world and sense of control off kilter. For someone who thrives on controlling every aspect in his life, Cole is uncomfortable with the new feelings he has never felt before, including regret and jealousy. Mara knows what she saw that fateful night and she knows it was Cole who left her for dead, but why? With her life being completely turned upside down and fortune raining around her, at the hands of Cole, will Mara be able to stay away? What happens when she pulls off his masks to see who he really is and what he is capable of? show less

I am completely speechless about this book here. It was so wonderful, addictive and kept me up all night reading. Which I don't mind, that doesn't happen too often. I was so intrigued by this one especially after "Rebel" ended but boy did Sophie Lark really satisfy me and this book is definitely worth the hype and I can see why so many readers love this book so deeply. I normally don't agree with hype books, I will be honest, but in Bully, this book is brilliantly written and one of my show more favorite reads from this author and I do think its one of her best mafia books read. I am so curious to see if we learn what happens in their HEA in later books, I just loved the connection to Ivan and Snow in this book. And I am glad that I had read that series before reading this one for sure. It was so interesting to see how this story was developed.

In the Bully we get a blend of aspects that seemed to really work so well together. We have a connection where there is some blackmail and some bully romance. I actually think this is one of the better bully romances. The hero is blackmailing the heroine because he learns a deep secret that if it becomes known its her life. So seeing this game that they play together was so delectable and when their relationship becomes more serious and BDSM comes into play....HOLY SMOKES....does the sexual tension raise up a notch or ten. Really adored their chemistry and Sophie Lark really did a superb job in building up the BDSM elements while also building on their relationship in such a profound way. And the way that the hero grovels and what is willing to sacrifice for her in the third act just melted my heart. I do feel like the heroine was dragging out the grovel way too much. Like girl come on the dude made a mistake, just forgive him already. If a grovel is to be dragged out longer, it needs to be super bad. And while he hurts her, she knew he had inner pain and lashes out at people, did she just conveniently forget about that? But despite my issue with how the grovel was did, this still turned out to be a five star read for me just because I loved everything else about the book and it had so much heart that won me over in the end.

Overall I had a blast with these two and am curious to see the pieces of the "spy" to really come together in book 4. show less

I really enjoyed the main characters and their relationship—which are really well-written, unique, and compelling. I especially loved the time Sophie took with these characters backstories and nuances. They definitely felt like real people by the end of the book. Because I liked the characters, their relationship, and the plot so much, I wanted to give it a higher rating (I kept going back and forth with how to rate this book while I was reading. However, the smut (which was well-written show more but not for me) and one-liners kept bringing me out of the story. While I enjoyed the book, it’s something I’m content to read on kindle unlimited and don’t think I’ll buy to add to my bookshelf.

(But, again, I’m conflicted because I really did like the characters and the story—so watch me change my mind ten more times before tomorrow) show less