Review – Mafia Queen by CD Reiss

Mafia Queen; The DiLustro Arrangement #3 
(#3 within a trilogy)

Publication Date: October 12, 2021

Genre/Tropes: Trilogy/Arranged Marriage/Dark/Mafia Romance

Author: CD Reiss

Review Rating: 4.5 Gold Stars

Review/Synopsis:

Review:

The final installment in the Mafia-DiLustro trilogy and war is on the horizon.

While a war has been a long time time coming, even though once upon a time Santino and Damiano were friends who grew up together, it was ancient artifact that came between them and poisoned what they had, spilling blood and fracturing their partnership.

There is a lot to unbox as this final book comes to a close. War, deception, grief, history, family dynamics, and an artifact that no one has actually seen, yet. Buckle up and hang on for quite a ride.

This last book was up and down with suspense and then moments of emotion. It was quite a rollercoaster. Violetta finds her sense of power after feeling powerless for quite a bit of the series. Where she had lost a lot of her fight, she found her inner backbone and earned her title of Mafia Queen. I understand sometimes a person has to lose everything to finally come back, but I was happy to see she found her spirit, Santino is a powerful man and needs a powerful woman by his side.

While Santino has fascinated me from the beginning, his single minded focus on obtaining the crown was also frustrating. I did enjoy seeing him fall more in love with his wife and open up a new side of himself in this last book. He is by no means a soft man, but for his wife he found the meaning of love and would certainly do anything for his queen.

This is a dark work with all the scruples of kill or be killed.  4.5 star read.

Synopsis:

What doesn’t kill you makes you a killer.

Santino DiLustro changed me. You can’t spend time in bed with the devil without getting addicted to the heat.
Before him, I was a girl. Innocent and weak.
Now, I’m a woman. A fighter. A killer.
I’ll burn the world down for him. Shatter the sky. But I will not break.
No. I will rise up and destroy whoever dares to threaten what my king has built, because I am forever his queen.

October 12, 2021 The DiLustro Arrangement

 Mafia Bride (The DiLustro Arrangement Book 1)

 Mafia King (DiLustro Arrangement, #2)

Mafia Queen (DiLustro Arrangement, #3)

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on Goodreads under Kay Daniels Romance
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Review – Evil Queen Anthology

Evil Queen Anthology 
(A Charity Anthology)

Publication Date: October 18, 2021

Genre/Tropes: Anthology Romance

Authors: Dee Lagasse, Victoria Ellis, Kat Savage, J.R. Rogue, Christina Hart, Kandi Steiner, Abbi Glines, Kelsie Rae, C.C. Monroe, Kat T. Masen, B.L. Olson, Stella Montgomery, K. Leigh, Jerilyn Saint Jane, Len Webster, C.L. Matthews, Amanda Cuff, Mignon Mykel, Nicole Banks, London Miller, Alexandria Bishop, Cynthia A. Rodriguez

Review Rating: 5 Gold Stars

Review/Synopsis:

Review:

In this new anthology, where you’d think darkness reigns supreme, but it’s more about women empowerment and how women find their own happy endings…or beginnings.

This anthology is jammed pack with short stories, prequels, and novellas. Here is a look at just a few I reviewed:

Len Webster’s Juniper;

Len is a fantastic writer of angsty love triangles. Juniper has been in love with her friend Benny forever, but Benny has recently fallen in love with Darsha. This new development hasn’t lessened Juniper’s feelings any, but tell that to her best friend. While Juniper has tried her best to shove those feelings in a box, it doesn’t help when she has to see him making kissy face with his girlfriend. While it’s been almost a year and Juniper knows she needs to move on it’s easier said than done. However, when she meets Brandt, he might be the answer to finally starting a new path. Could this be the beginning of Len’s famous triangle?? While she doesn’t mention this continuing in a bigger book, it does have all the lovely components of a Webster angsty novel, so I’m hopeful to see these characters again.

Kelsie Rae’s Samantha;

A second chance love story. This novella is sweet and steamy all rolled into one second chance romance. Phoenix and Sam were best friends until Phoenix moved away ten years ago, but neither ever forgot the other. When they were just six years old they made a pact to marry one another on their twenty-fifth birthdays. Phoenix is now a rock star and Samantha is just an ordinary girl living in LA, they shouldn’t have the opportunity to run into one another, much less think about a pact they made almost twenty years ago, but can birthday wishes come true? This particular story, or at least these characters do continue in Kelsie’s next book.

Check out this book full of empowering, strong women.

Synopsis:

EVERYONE DESERVES A HAPPY ENDING. 

This empowering collection features novelettes about strong women overcoming all the odds to become the best, authentic version of themselves.

Contributing authors: Dee Lagasse, Victoria Ellis, Kat Savage, J.R. Rogue, Christina Hart, Kandi Steiner, Abbi Glines, Kelsie Rae, C.C. Monroe, Kat T. Masen, B.L. Olson, Stella Montgomery, K. Leigh, Jerilyn Saint Jane, Len Webster, C.L. Matthews, Amanda Cuff, Mignon Mykel, Nicole Banks, London Miller, Alexandria Bishop, Cynthia A. Rodriguez.

Find more of my reviews on Amazon under Kayreader
on Goodreads under Kay Daniels Romance
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or you can follow me on Facebook at Kay Daniels Romance

Review – Sealed With A Kiss by Erin Nicholas

Sealed With A Kiss; Boys of the Bayou Gone Wild #5 
(A standalone within a series)

Publication Date: October 19, 2021

Genre/Tropes: Contemporary Romance

Author: Erin Nicholas

Review Rating: 5 Gold Stars

Review/Synopsis:

Review:

Feel good, super steamy, full of family and animals…seriously, what is not to love about this book!!

Donovan Foster and Naomi LeClaire have steam in spades and are super flirty, even when rescuing animals from dangerous situations. This couple is just full of chemistry and it shows. They catch the attention of any and everyone no matter where they go, even if they plan on keeping their attraction to themselves…sorry hottie mchotties there is no containing their level of  heat.

Donovan lives his life in the spotlight. He’s passionate about his work and a lot of times he jumps in to situations before he thinks. Thankfully, he always come out of every rescue situation alive and with all of his body parts still attached, but that doesn’t mean that Naomi hasn’t watched his show with her heart beating out of her chest and especially as she’s grown to know the man she worries even more about all of those body parts remaining attached to his very hot body.

Naomi lives a very private life and she prefers to calculate every move before she makes it. The longer she spends in the company of Donovan the more she finds herself jumping right in to help him rescue animals, but she also finds new passions that she didn’t realize she’d ever wanted. All because of one very intense man. Donovan isn’t sure he likes seeing Naomi put herself in dangerous situations, but he also loves watching her blossom while she’s doing it. It’s a crazy feeling and certainly one he’s never experienced.

Can this traveling wanderlust be happy with a private homebody? These two may have chemistry through the roof, but is it enough to make a relationship last long term?

Sealed With A Kiss is full of wonderful animals, lots of great family that is fun with crossover worlds, LOL moments mixed with lots of sigh worthy ones.  I loved this addition to the Boys of Bayou world.

Synopsis:

What’s a girl to do when faced with a hurricane, her celebrity crush, and a power outage in their shelter?

Keep her damned feelings to herself. And her panties on…

Naomi LeClaire is just a small-town girl who loves her quiet, simple life.

Donovan Foster is a sexy, charming, wildlife rescuing internet sensation who loves the spotlight.

What do these opposites have in common?

Only an impossible-to-resist chemistry that, when they’re stuck together in a storm becomes, well, impossible to resist.

But the aftermath of the storm gives them something else in common—a rescue mission to help victims. Oh, and a heat-of-the-moment kiss caught on camera by the local paparazzi. Not to mention an offer for a reality TV show documenting them falling in love while saving animals from crazy, dangerous situations.

Wow, that escalated quickly.

This should be the last thing Naomi is willing to do. But he’s leaving in two months for his next job, so what’s the worst that could happen?

He’s either going to be her greatest adventure. Or this wild whirlwind romance will blow over faster than a Gulf Coast hurricane.

All she can really do is hold on tight . . . and hope her heart isn’t left in shambles.

Find more of my reviews on Amazon under Kayreader
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Blog Tour – Veritas by A.L. Woods

Veritas by A.L. Woods is now live!

A steamy enemies-to-lovers single dad romance from bestselling author, A.L. Woods.

Maria

It was supposed to be a fling.
A one-night stand.
Then Jordan Kovacs asked for more.
A date. I don’t date—I f*ck.
While he showered, I left.
The end.
Or so I thought. I have a problem.
My ex-f*ck buddy is getting married.
And I can’t get out of going—long story.
I need an arrangement I can understand from a man who only had me for a night.
But Jordan has other plans for me.
Things that will tip the scales in his favor.

Jordan

A tryst was what she was looking for.
A date was what I wanted.
A chance.
I understand Maria Tavares.
She’s a beautiful lie.
Now she needs something from me: a favor.
So I’ll function in a way she can understand: an arrangement.
Three months.
All in. Strings attached. No interferences. Titles exchanged.
The plan is simple, with only one rule—veritas.
Let’s see if Maria’s ex-f*ck buddy understands that, too.

Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited!!
US: https://amzn.to/3yfNnG4
WW: http://mybook.to/veritas

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3emkJuZ

Read Kay’s Review: Veritas

Meet A.L. Woods

A.L. Woods is an author of rollercoaster romances, caffeine aficionado, and collector of Sailor Moon paraphernalia.

She lives 40 minutes west of Toronto, Ontario with her partner, Michael, and their 8lb larger-than-life miniature dachshund, Maia-whom they lovingly refer to as their ‘doghter.’

Woods can be found holed away in her office writing her next novel with a bowl of Nibs within arm’s reach. When she’s not writing, she’s likely belting out an ad-libbed song, emotionally investing in a fictional bad boy with a strong jawline and fluency in sarcasm or inventing fresh ways to procrastinate.

She believes that burritos should be in their own food group, loves the fall, winged liner, and listening to metalcore at an offensive level.
 
Connect with A.L.
Website | amandawrites.ca
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Excerpt Reveal – Mafia Queen by CD Reiss

MAFIA QUEEN (The DiLustro Arrangement #3) by CD Reiss

Release Date: October 12th

Genre/Trope: Arranged Marriage/Mafia Romance

Add to Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58326167-mafia-queen

MAFIA QUEEN from New York Times bestselling author CD Reiss is coming soon! Get ready for the FINAL book in THE DILUSTRO ARRANGEMENT!

Preorder Mafia Queen #3

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3AfvQil

Apple Books: https://apple.co/3AfwOLb

Kobo: https://bit.ly/3nDis4a

Nook: https://bit.ly/3hEoNIJ

Google Play: https://bit.ly/3999sLB

Start the Series Today!!

Mafia Bride #1

Amazon: https://geni.us/MafiaBrideAmazon

Apple Books: https://geni.us/MafiaBrideApple

Nook: https://geni.us/MafiaBrideNook

Kobo: https://geni.us/MafiaBrideKobo

Google: https://geni.us/MafiaBrideGoogle

Get Mafia King #2

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3d3nZKo

Kobo: https://bit.ly/2Qz6jOV

Nook: https://bit.ly/3vYHtsa

Apple: https://apple.co/39hqLuf

Google: https://bit.ly/39gnQ4X

Excerpt:

When I open my eyes, the dim light only enters one. The other is swollen shut, but through the fog, I can make out a blurry dark blob in the center of flickering yellow light. A head. A man. The voice.

I am sitting. My wrists lay on the arms of a chair. I can’t move them.

“Mrs. DiLustro.” He has the voice of an old man and his breath stinks of fermented plaque. “I need to know—”

“Who are you?”

“Father Alfonso.” His reply is slow and drunken. “I officiated your wedding to Santino DiLustro.”

“Asshole.” I blink hard. Breathe in the incense. Scratch a sudden itch on my nose and cheek with an overly rough right hand, then lift my left off the arm of the chair.

Okay. So my arms are weak. Not tied down.

Itches attack my face. When I try to scratch my left eye, it tingles then explodes in pain like an afterthought.

“I cannot commit a sin,” Father Alfonso says. “Please. Tell me if your husband has died.”

My mind is clearing slowly, but I cannot fathom what Santino’s life or death has to do with a priest adding one more sin to a long, long list of them.

“He’s dead.” I scratch my jaw and rub a colony of itches from my right cheek. My hand feels rough as lace. “She killed him.”

I point to some place to the left where Gia exists in my mind, and I’m about to say her name when I realize my hand is lighter than usual.

Father Alfonso leaves, hunched, touching surfaces and walls until he finds the door before he clicks it closed. When I’m alone, I sit straight in the chair. Hold up my hand. My one good eye is full of gunk. I blink. Blink. Blink. When it clears, I know what the candlelight will reveal.

A room with plaster walls.

A tiny, darkened stained glass window.

I can’t see close. The world is crisscrossed by the net I’m caught inside.

But across the room… a thick wooden door. A cabinet with a small statue of the Virgin, surrounded by the unassertive yellow glow of candles.

When I scratch my face this time, it’s easier to identify the roughness of my fingertips.

I’m wearing a veil.

Throwing it back, I see clearly and hold my left hand in front of me. My ring. Rosetta’s ring. A meaningless assembly of rock and metal that my husband etched with a secret and gave to me.

It’s gone.

Blurb:

What doesn’t kill you makes you a killer.

Santino DiLustro changed me. You can’t spend time in bed with the devil without getting addicted to the heat.

Before him, I was a girl. Innocent and weak.

Now, I’m a woman. A fighter. A killer.

I’ll burn the world down for him. Shatter the sky. But I will not break.

No. I will rise up and destroy whoever dares to threaten what my king has built, because I am forever his queen.

About the Author:

CD Reiss has a long history of aimlessly moving from place to place. She finally settled in Los Angeles where she earned a master’s degree in cinematic writing from USC. After graduation, she ultimately failed to have one line of dialog put on film, but stayed in Hollywood out of spite.

Since screenwriting was going nowhere, she switched to novels. Soon after, luck arrived with a complete set of baggage. She now has over two dozen titles under her belt. Two of those are NY Times Bestsellers and a handful more are USA Today bestsellers. Her audiobooks have won APA Audie Awards and Earphones Awards, swelling her ego to an inhuman size.

She lives with her family, two cats and her long-suffering husband in a small Hollywood house that’s been outfitted with huge, ego-sized doorways.

Connect w/CD Reiss:

Website: http://www.cdreiss.com

NL Signup: https://geni.us/CDRml2

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/CDReiss.writer

Instagram:https://instagram.com/cdreiss

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CDReisswriter

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/CD-Reiss/e/B00AYLW7T2

Cover Reveal – Bad Cruz by L.J. Shen

Bad Cruz, an all-new much anticipated rom com from Wall Street Journal bestselling author L.J. Shen is coming November 10th and we have the cover that will give you all the feels!

From Wall Street Journal bestselling author L.J. Shen comes a romantic comedy that will make you fall in love…or at least stumble your way to it, laughing.

I would say Dr. Cruz Costello is my archenemy.
But that would require acknowledging one another, which we haven’t done in over a decade.

He’s the town’s golden child. The beloved quarterback-turned-physician.
I’m the girl who got knocked up at sixteen and now works at a diner.

He is Fairhope royalty.
I get my monarch dose from tabloid gossip.

He’s well-off.
I’m…well, off.

When our siblings get engaged, Cruz’s parents invite both families to a pre-wedding cruise.
Except Cruz and I find ourselves stuck on a different ship from everyone else.
Cue ten horrible, insufferable days at sea with a man I cannot stand.
(My fault, of course.)
But when the alcohol pours in, the secrets spill out, and I’m left with one question:
Can I take another chance on love?

Reserve your copy today!
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3y7hM8u
Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/BadCruz

Add Bad Cruz to Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3AVtPYs

Cover Designer: Bailey McGinn

About LJ Shen
L.J. Shen is a USA Today, Washington Post and Amazon #1 best-selling author of contemporary, New Adult and YA romance. Her books have been sold to nineteen different countries.

She lives in California with her husband, son, cat and eccentric fashion choices, and enjoys good wine, bad reality TV shows and catching sun rays with her lazy cat.

Connect with L.J. Shen
Facebook: http://bit.ly/2OhSvp1
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Stay up to date with L.J. Shen by signing up for her mailing list:
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Website: http://www.authorljshen.com/

New Release – Kings of Blood and Money by Ker Dukey

RELEASE BLITZ
Title: Kings of Blood & Money
An Underworld Kings Series Standalone
Author: Ker Dukey
Genre: Mafia Romance
Release Date: October 8, 2021
BLURB
This is not a story of love.
This is a story of revenge and the bond created from it.

 Noah

The Gallo family took everything from us.
They killed my mother and sister, leaving me and my twin brother fighting for our lives.
My father was supposed to be there that night. He should have been there. Should have protected them—us.
When you strip a man of all he cares about, you’re left with a soulless entity seething with primal rage. He promised to turn Gallo’s bloodline to dust to get his retribution.
And he did.
All but one.

Freya

I was seven years old when I was taken in the night. I don’t remember much of life before that.
All I know now is the glaring eyes of a boy who hates me, and the comfort I find in the boy whose face mirrors his.
I’m not part of this family, but they’re all I have comparable to one.
To hate is easy.
And I do hate them.
But to love even in hate is what hardens you, strengthens you, gives you reason.
The truth is I shouldn’t love them, that all these years are leading somewhere I won’t want to go.
But I do…
Love them.
I love them both.
The only question left now is, do they love me? 

GOODREADS LINK: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58411643-kings-of-blood-and-money


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PURCHASE LINKS

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Free in Kindle Unlimited

Read Kay’s Review: Kinds of Blood and Money

EXCERPT

“You throttled me.” She levels me with a stiff glare.
“I remember seeing a bruise.” It was an impulse, a need to inflict pain with her pleasure, to ground myself.
Yanking the neck of her sweater down, she scowls. “Because you like to leave marks, right?”
A shadow passes through the room as I stand and stalk toward her, devouring the space between us. Tilting her chin with my forefinger and thumb, I trace the light bruises blemishing her soft, creamy skin. I got carried away, held her too tight. Leaning down, I whisper against her ear, “You want me to kiss them better?” Her intake of breath brings a smile to my lips. She likes the big bad wolf. No matter how much she tries to deny it, claim she hates me, her body doesn’t.
Fucking ditto. 
I swipe my tongue across her neck, capturing her with an arm around her waist. Her legs almost give in. She’s sensitive, her nerves firing. Closing my mouth over her sore little neck, I suck, kiss, caress the bare surface.
Pulling away to face her, my balls draw up at the unfiltered lust blazing in her eyes. “Ask me to kiss you,” I tell her.
Rapid breaths lift her chest up and down. “Ask me, Freya,” I command.
“No.” She closes her eyes, her tone husky. 
A dark chuckle rumbles past my lips as I grasp her jaw, cupping her beautiful face. “Fucking ask me.”
“I hate you.”
“I hate you too. Now fucking ask me.”
“Kiss me,” she cries. Not a plea, but shame. She’s ashamed at how fucking badly she burns for the monster who frightens her so much.
“Say my name,” I growl.
“Noah,” she whines.
“Kiss me, Noah,” I instruct.
Silence.
I tug her forward, inhaling all her sexual heat.
“Say it, Freya, and I’ll give you what you need.”
“Kiss me, Noah.” She sobs. My insides churn at the decision I make. Slamming my lips against hers, I ram my tongue past the seal of her delectable lips, taking my fill.


AUTHOR BIO

Ker Dukey is an international bestselling author.

Genres include: Dark Romance, Psychological Thriller, New Adult Romance, Romantic Suspense, Mafia Romance, MC Romance and more.

Ker, has over Forty titles published, held multiple #1 bestseller banners and chart-topping titles with the rights sold to numerous countries, translated in multiple languages, and have been adapted into audiobooks.

In addition to being an author, Ker is an annoying wife and a mother of three children + one dog (who thinks he’s human.) She has a passion for reading and binge-watching crime documentaries.

Find her on social media, where she loves interacting with her readers.  


AUTHOR LINKS

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2IWVLBQ
Website: http://www.kerdukeyauthor.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KerDukeyauthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KerDukeyauthor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kerdukey
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/ker-dukey
Newsletter: https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/u8m3h4
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7313508.Ker_Dukey
Email: Kerryduke34@gmail.com