Hidden Empire

The Moretti Empire #1

by K.L. Mann

Jade Donovan lives a life of secret horror, but weeks before her eighteenth birthday, she learns her whole existence has been a lie. She has a dad, one that will do anything to keep her safe.

Dante Moretti is the leader of The Outfit, an old and well-established Italian crime syndicate. He comes with a family, and the power to make sure nothing bad happens to her ever again. Finding him and her nine brothers changes everything for Jade. She’s suddenly more safe than she’s ever been, and with her family’s help, she’s able to begin to heal.

Being a certified mafia princess comes with more than just protection though, it comes with responsibility. The biggest of which is her attending Empire Academy. An off-shore mafia college for the children of the most elite criminal families in North America. Everything changes all over again for her when she meets him.

Dmitri Morozov knows Jade Moretti is going to be his the moment he runs into her. Keeping her a secret isn’t something he likes, but he’ll do it for her. He’ll do anything for her.

This is a dark mafia academy romance.

Genres: Dark Romance, Mafia Romance, Romance, Found Family, College, Dark, Contemporary

Unknown Binding

Published May 10, 2024

Reviews

[Book enthusiasts 😍 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ehh this book wasn’t it for me. Was it good? Ehh, debatable (NO). Did I hate-read it and finish it anyway? Well yes, yes I did.

My biggest annoyance in this book was Jade (FMC). I just couldn’t bring myself to like her after maybe 10% in. First off, the book started off good, with us getting some background to Jade’s unfortunate home life and her finding out who her father was. In the process she also finds out that she has 9 older brothers. Off the top, all her brothers and dad become super overprotective of her. Like over the top protective, which is fine i guess but somehow this means that they also become super affectionate with her. With lots of kisses and hugs and cuddles. Maybe it’s just me being a hater, but as somebody with siblings I have never had any sort of relationship like that with them, maybe my sisters once in a while, but definitely not my brothers and definitely not all the time. Don’t get me wrong, nothing wrong with loving your brothers, but i feel like the author just wanted to portray that every man in her life loves her deeply, but it just gave me the ick. 👀
This also brings me to my next annoyance, why does every man she meet need to be immediately into her? Very ‘pick me’ if you ask me. Not to mention, why couldn’t Jade have at least ONE female friend? Why did they all need to be men? Especially with all the cuddling and kissing and affection going on. Look I don’t care if her friend is gay, if you are in a relationship with someone, i feel like the rule of thumb is don’t cuddle in bed with another man, don’t straddle his lap, or fall asleep on his chest, especially if that best friend is your boyfriend’s brother! It doesn’t matter that the boyfriend didn’t care, it’s the principle and outward perception. Maybe im just too old fashion, but even the author points it out in a chapter where Jades brother and dad call her out and ask if she is dating both brothers because she’s way to affectionate with Ivan but claims to be in love with Dmitri (MMC).
Also why so many characters? Out of the 9 brothers we get to interact with maybe 5 of them total? Was there really a point for 9? And on top of that all these other school character are included, felt so hard to keep up.
Also she flip flops a bit in her personality, sometimes she’s super shy and timid, and then other times she’s super fierce and confident/violent. I can’t even bring myself to say that it is character development because she’s back and forth with it throughout the book. One thing is consistent though, someone (a man) just always needs to save her 🙄.
Also this girl is like super horny all the time, which i get because i was once 18 as well 😂, but damn girl, your boyfriend clearly wanted to wait why keep pushing him until he finally caves in. And that chapter where her dad hears her tell Dmitri that she wants him to fuck her was just so uncomfortable to me. Like eww I would die if my dad ever heard that. Why would you write that into a book!?!
Another annoyance, I dislike pregnancy trope, but I completely LOATHE teen pregnancy tropes, idk they just aren’t for me.

Overall wouldn’t recommend, unless of course you’re into everything i just said.

[nadine (semi ia) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can't decide which brother I want to be with: Armani or Matteo

[buket · Rating 4 out of 5]

🚨HELLO, ATTENTION PLEASE🚨

this review is for the girlies who grew up with reading wattpad, the girlies who loved reading pov-y/n books, the girlies who creates scenarios before bed and the girlies who read at least once “oh no my mom sold me to one direction what am i gonna do” level of crazy stories on the internet. if you’re not one of these girlies, keep scrolling, this review it not for you🧸

okay, if you’re still with me we can talk about this 🤭

first of all please leave your common sense here 📥 because you won’t need it while reading this🤗

now IMAGINE;;

you’ve been abused for the past 17 years by your mother and her boyfriend💔but then you learn that you’re actually daughter of the italian mafia capo😧so the police take you to his house and guess what?! you actually have NINE BROTHERS!!😌they’re all protective and love you very much so life is good🌝
now it’s time for you to enroll in mafia university to learn how to be a mafia princess 👑 you meet someone on your first day- wait is that rival russian mafia heir?! 👀 oh and he is obsessed with you?!🤭

now, did i find it unbelievable that she could sneak out for months with this rival heir without her brothers knowing? yes absolutely, she lives with four of her brothers but they never suspected anything for months? hmmm

❓did i find her relationship with mmc’s brother weird? absolutely. like come on who cuddles, sleeps in the same bed and kisses her brother-in-law? not me🤨



anyways, it wasn’t always about lovey-dovey couple stuff and brothers obviously 🙄 some other drama happened too which made me cry?! the audacity✋🏻but i don’t suppose you expect me to explain it all, no? honestly i’m surprised if you made it this far. i will reward you with some quotes 💋

💝 “You’re my boyfriend, right?” I ask, pulling out of our kiss and blushing beet red. “I can call you that in my head?”
“I’m yours,” he answers immediately. “You can call me anything you want.”
“What do you call me inside of your head?” I ask, biting my lip.
“Mine,” he says simply.



💖“You could call us friends,” he says with a lift of his shoulders. “You’d be wrong, though.”
My eyes widen. “Oh? What… what would you call us?”
“Inevitable.”



💗“Krasotka, when I fuck you, you’ll be madly and irrevocably in love with me. It’ll be shortly after I put a ring on this little finger,”



in conclusion, this was like a scenario one would imagine before bed. not me though, in no world i would imagine living with ten men even if they’re my family🌝 this was spectacular i hope she will give me 14 of them because i need books about every single side character (i’m looking directly at Ivan, Matteo, Apollo, Armani🫵🏻 but no pressure 🤗)

[˚₊‧꒰ა vruxreads ໒꒱ ‧₊˚ · Rating 2 out of 5]

I DNFed at 72%

A big fucking cringe-fest. The heroine Jade was way too desperate for my liking. Bro calm your tities down you just saw him. Also the hero was meh.

I just liked Matteo (the 9th brother)
of heroine. He was so much fun.

There were millions of names like sooooo many 😵

‼️no cheating, no ow drama‼️

[elara · Rating 3 out of 5]

⤷ ꒰ 3.5 ☆ ꒱

couldn’t decide which men from this book would i pick for a threesome

[alisha . · Rating 2 out of 5]

its giving wattpad…

[Gabriela *ೃ༄ · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF who tf allowed this to be published

[Natalie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really liked the beginning of this book and the plot had me drawn in immediately but as I kept reading it was hard for me to stay interested. I wish the two main characters had more grovel instead of seeing each other once and being "in love". There were a few parts of this book that honestly gave me the ick.. I think the plot has so much potential but towards the end I did alot of skimming just so i could get through it.

[Mahnoor · Rating 3 out of 5]

it had potential to be good

[Nora · Rating 1 out of 5]

im never trusting booktok again

[Franziska · Rating 1 out of 5]

BIGGEST BULLSHIT EVER! This is a terrible Wattpad story. Way too many people and Names, cringe to an unbelievable extent!!!!!

Like WTF was this weird ass competition as mafia princess???????? It made me want to claw my eyes out!!

SHE IS A VIRGIN YET SHE GETS ON HER FUCKING KNEES ON A PARTY IN FRONT OF A GUY SHE DOES NOT KNOW AND WRITES „MINE“ ON HIS CHEST!?!?!?!?!? Who thinks of a “game” in which one aspires to look the hottest with a random guy in order to become THE mafia Princess?!?

This gave me PTSD and I only read 36% of the book.

Usually I do not leave hateful comments about books, but if the author reads this: DO BETTER OR GET ANOTHER JOBBBB respectfully

[bookishbellexoxo · Rating 2 out of 5]

This had so much potential but I wish authors would stop using teen preganncy as a plot device in a setting where you could have done so many different other things that could have worked.

Like I said this had so much potential. Having said that I hope Cassio gets a book.

[IDontKnow · Rating 1 out of 5]

honestly this was such a bad book, the relationship between the two main characters just happend out of nowhere, there was no storyline between the two, almost no conversations between them, nothing. they just magically where in a relationship and she started pressuring him into having sex with her. thats the whole lovestory. there was more interaction between the fmc and her yongest brother than between the fmc and mmc.


also i felt so cringy and unconfortable reading her pressuring the mmc into having sex with her when he clearly wanted to wait until marrige. if a guy would do something like that it would be borderline sa but when a women does it its empowering? i get that the author wanted to show that the fmc is not ashamed of her sexuality, but there are way better ways of doing that than making her try to convince him in EVERY sex scene. and pls dont get me wrong, ive read books like haunting adeline and I still didnt feel uncomfortable (batshit crazy yes, but not unconfortable)

also it felt a little bit like the author maybe rushed the storyline and didnt develop the lovestory because she wanted to intigrate so many tropes at once (teen pregnancy, marrying because of a pregnancy, traumatizing past, virgin, sneaking around, protective brothers, ..) sooo much happend but non of the things that happend got described in detail. i had to read the chapter where they got married twice, i didnt realise what happend the first time because it was described in maybe 2 sentences and suddenly she was calling him her husband.
also why the fuck is she snuggeling and kissing her brother in law? thats not something you do with your gay best friend, thats just soooo weird.

if i had to describe the book in 2 sentences:
fmc is traumatized by her mother but not enough to not try to convince and borderline sa a guy she talked maybe two times with but is convinced she loves. gets pregnant while sneaking around but noones mad because all she does is always right, then finds out her mother is not her mother and her family, the one she didnt even know existed a few months before, kill the woman for her. the end

[viv · Rating 2 out of 5]

this type of found family is so good but then the insta love then she got pregnant QUICK made it so bad

[Trinity · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 🌶🌶🌶/5

TW - parental abuse (incl verbal, on page, physical, recounted in detail incl frequent suffocation, knives, food depravation, attempted murder), physical violence and gore (incl the use of sharp objects in self defence), parental abandonment, trauma, pregnancy, torture, murder (incl that of a pregnant woman and child, past, not at the hands of the MCs), SA trauma (implied, scs), fear of homophobia (not depicted), death of a parent (that of a sc, mentioned), death in childbirth (incl the child, scs, mentioned), panic attack (on page), drugs (weed gummies), alcohol, suicide ideation (of a sc, brief, wanting to be the one to die in a shootout), death of a family member (on page, gun violence), grief

Tropes - mafia, found family, dark academia, obsessed, possessive, affectionate stalking, shower sex, he washes her hair

Is there such thing as cosy mafia? If yes, this is it

When we meet Jade (FMC), she is going though it. Her life gets flipped on its side and she gains a family she never knew she had. Her dad and her herd of brothers are fiercely protective of her and I loved the relationships they all had together, especially between her and Matteo and her and Apollo

Jade joins some of her brothers at a Mafia School where children of the mafia go to learn the required... skills needed in their line of 'work'. This is where she meets Dmitri (MMC), heir to the Russian mafia. Like her brothers, he is also fiercely protective of Jade and I really enjoyed reading them being with each other from their first meeting to the end of the book. I really liked the relationship Jade had with Ivan, Dmitri's brother as he is also fiercely protective of her and their bond was so nice to read.

I'm honestly so excited for whatever comes next in this series, I want to read about so many of the characters we got to meet in this book but first on my list would be Apollo or Matteo. Idk but when Matteo and Ivan speak to each other I was like 👀. Like I know Ivan can't have anyone (read to find out why 😉) but I will scream out my vocal chords if they end up being a thing - this pairing is essentially based on one sentence lmao.

Scale:
⭐️ - would've DNF'ed / continued out of spite
⭐️⭐️ - shit, but whatever
⭐️⭐️⭐️ - meh, could've been better
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - lit 👅
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - loved it, inject this shit into my veins 🤪

🫑 - no smut
🌶 - no point
🌶🌶 - mediocre at best
🌶🌶🌶 - standard smut, hot
🌶🌶🌶🌶 - 🥵 okay, some CW
🌶🌶🌶🌶🌶 - fuck me 🥵🥵 CWs / filthy with a side of filth - see Poison / Room Twenty-Two: Hide and Seek/ The Naughty List

[Shiks books · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF- one of the most stupid shit I’ve ever read, and the plot had sooo much potential

[Toriఌ · Rating 5 out of 5]

★ ★ ★ ★.5

Third read:
The found family trope is my favourite part in this book. I wanted to reread this so I did.
I actually do recommend this book but only if you know what you’re getting into.
~insta love
~not the best writing (but you do fly through it)
~cliché
~mafia college
I wish we got to see more of the bond between Jade and her brothers🤍
~03.03.2025

Second read:
3.75⭐️

I had the urge to reread this book(so I did) and still really like it. Some parts I liked better the first time around and I kind of found the relationship between Ivan and Jade more questionable(I know they don’t see each other like lovers but some parts are just??). Moreover I enjoyed the fist half definitely more the the second half. I still DEVOURED the found family trope!!
~November 17th 2024

First read:
4⭐️

First of all this is no literary masterpiece and honestly it doesn’t need to be one.
I enjoyed this book so much. It made me laugh so much (and cry)
Also it puts me mentally back in my Wattpad era (definitely felt so)

The found family trope (literally) was so awesome. I kind of wish we would have seen the bound between the siblings forming instead of having a time jump.

The love between Jade and Dmitri was a bit insta lovi but nevertheless they were sooo cute together. I loved the protectiveness.

I must say I found it a bit concerning that Jade wanted Ivan in the room when she gave birth (thanks that it didn’t happen) I know they are besties but the thought just didn’t sit right with me.

AND I WANT ANSWERS, WHO WANTS THE COWBOY TO MARRY (I think it was Armani but I’m not entirely sure)

[Kimberlylovesreadingbooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 3, average.
Was this book cringe and filled with cliché scenes? Yes
Did I still read the whole thing? Yes
Did I enjoy it ? Fuck yes 🤣
This book made me reminisce about the days when I used to read books on Wattpad.😭♥️

If you're looking for a mafia romance with a not so serious plot, with a college setting and a hot brooding Russian man 🤭this will be for you 🙂.

[Jenn (The Book Refuge) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a completely wild take on a Mafia Romance. I'm actually a bit baffled by it.

There is a huge family to meet and a while new world to come to terms with. However, this strange new reality is a new lease on life for Jade, when she discovers she is the long lost daughter of Dante Moretti and the younger sister of nine, count 'em, NINE older brothers. Whoa, talk about culture shock.

Jade didn't grow up in a warm and loving home, in fact, she was barely surviving. But when her cruel mother finally snaps and admits who her father is, the last thing Jade is expecting is to find a place where she belongs. Honestly, it teared me up a few times. All this is just the beginning.

When we eventually find ourselves at Empire, a Mafia College, it doesn't take long until she meets Dmitri, a Russian heir. Well, the rest is history.

While they were completely head over heels for each other, this is actually where things got a bit... Over the Top for me. There was no conflict in their relationship.. like AT ALL. Barely anything even stands in their way. So... why was this book 500 pages?

There was lots of sweet parts and I overall really enjoyed myself but I also don't know what the real plot of this book even was... the villain was also unclear and over complicated to me.

And come on... what Mafia family is THIS touchy feely? I know she was deprived of love for a long time, so why was she just fine with being cuddled by every single person? We skip over any trouble or struggles she had besides a nightmare or two. How could she have been tortured for YEARS and just be cool with everything?

Anyway, enough rambles. At the end of the day, I would read another if it came out. I just want it to be tighter next time and have a more focused plot. But the characters were endearing as hell.

3.5 Stars
3 on the spice scale

CW: Past trauma, child abuse

[Anais Jara · Rating 1 out of 5]

this is like a rina kent and cora reilly fanfiction, the names and the whole empire schools? it’s copy and paste😭😭 the first chapters were really good and i was really excited for more then it was a disaster, nothing made sense from the moment they enter that boat road to school, the insta love? cringe. the mmc’s brother and the fmc relationship? weird. the pregnancy trope? not even gonna mention it. The whole book was a mess.
Only good thing? Matteo i guess?

[SURA · Rating 1 out of 5]

Idk why the hell i keep trusting booktok but ik it's not the last

[Ealis · Rating 1 out of 5]

So, first, the good things, I guess 🤔.

I loved the storyline in the summary, so I decided to check it out myself, and ohhh well… it’s kinda Wattpad-ish, but I knew what I was getting into. Anyway, I loved the beginning (I ignored the fact that she killed her mom’s boyfriend and hit her mom, but then, when she moves into the new home, she’s suddenly all crying and stuff—like, what happened to the girl from a few minutes ago? But I guess… trauma 🤷‍♀️).

I loved the bond between Apollo and Jade… and then BAM, five months later, she’s all lalalalala like, okay, I get that you’ve moved past the trauma, but could you really trust someone that fast? But okay…

Now, the fact that she sees Dimitri for the first time and is suddenly all touchy with him and kissing him?? And the way she trusted him so fast and told him all the lore like… WAAAAT?! 🙃

It was sooo rushed, and IT COULD HAVE BEEN SUCH A GOOD BOOK 😭.

[Olganion · Rating 1 out of 5]

The mmcs from these books would cure all my daddy issues (I mean 9 OLDER BROTHERS? HELLO SIGN ME UP), but other than that this book sucks. It's one of the worst pieces of shit I have ever read. And the thing is it started off so good, it COULD have been so good but oh well. I am truly baffled by all the 5 star reads, the only explanation is honestly bots.

[Joud · Rating 4 out of 5]

I honestly had such a good time reading *Hidden Empire*. 🔥 It gave me exactly what I wanted,,, going from a rough, lonely life to suddenly finding this huge, chaotic mafia family with all the “found family” feels. The moment Jade finds out she’s the crime boss’s daughter with nine brothers totally blew my mind, and their protective vibe got me hooked fast. 🤯🖤 The whole “Empire Academy” mafia-school twist was super fun, and the mix of romance, danger, and drama kept things moving. The characters were never boring❤️ they made me laugh, stress, and feel all the emotions. 😂💞 Honestly, one of my favorite mafia reads so far. 📚✨

[Lammie · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

So this book was good and well written. I would try another book in this series, and by this author who is new to me.

The issues … it was instalove which for me tends to give away too much at the beginning and take away the anticipation of the love story growing during the book for me. Instalust, I can get behind that and believe it. Instalove … nah 😕.

Now this is where it gets tricky. The instalove on its own would be boring. It was saved by the villain 😈. In this case two villains. Then the problem with this was the motives behind the villains behaviour was not explained AT ALL. As a reader I think we were just supposed to go with the premise that the villains were crazy. Well .. they obviously were but that’s just not good enough .

So I’m gonna round up to 4 because I mostly liked the book and the brothers could have interesting stories. Hopefully the plotting with the villains is not so lazily done in the next one.

[Toni Amey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this story. My heart broke for Jade, however I LOVED how she overcame everything and became this super strong woman! The book was somewhat of a slow burn but once it got going it was worth it. Dmitri was sooo hot 🥵 I loved how protective everyone was towards Jade , and how much love she experienced since growing up she had none. Dmitri was a dream, he was amazing in every way with how he loved Jade. This book filled my heart with so much joy. Read it ! I don’t think you will regret it.

[Gracie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ok 😟 how awful

[bel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Did I like this book? No
Will I give future books in this series a chance? Yes

[Ruth♡ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jade a tenía una vida bastante fea, todo lo que sufrido a manos de su mamá y la pareja es algo que prefería estar muerta pero justo cuando va a cumplir los 18 se entera que tiene un papá que si la quiere, que es mafioso y además tiene nueve hermanos, para ella es un sueño por fin consiguió la familia que siempre quiso. Es envíada a una escuela donde van todos los hijos de mafiosos y ahí conoce a Dmitri un ruso que la conquista pero tendran que vencer los obstáculos que se presentan.

¡¡Podría a ver spoilres!!

Quiero empezar diciendo que yo no caigo en las recomendaciones de tik tok pero caí y no fue una buena sorpresa, lo empecé más que nada por lo de la escuela de mafia, era la parte que me interesaba que debo decir que si me gustó, a diferencia de otras autoras (si Michelle estoy hablando de ti) creo que aquí se maneja mejor y vemos un poquito pero de ahí en más no sé puede rescatar mucho, primero la protagonista se que tenía 18 años pero hay no, era bien mimada y súper descuidada, ella vivió casi 7 años en una pesadilla pero no tratan bien eso, de repente encuentra a su familia y parece como si se olvidará de todo lo que vivió, de vez en cuando decía que se acordaba pero no hubo algo donde se nota que sana todo eso, es como si no le afectará, la relación entre ella y el protagonista súper instalove, de verdad, se ven una vez y ella dice que es el amor de su vida y hace TODO por estar con él, también la relación que tenía con el hermano del protagonista fue muy rara, por un momento pensé que estábamos en un trio y aunque según te lo hacen ver qué es muy natural, yo me sentía incómoda leyendo algunas situaciones, unas si las dejaba pasar pero otras eran cuestionables, todo el problema estuvo muy menso, yo esperaba más acción y en un dos por tres paso todo, también estaba súper largo de forma innecesaria, ya había un punto que leía por encimita por qué no pasaba nada interesante 🫠

Y podría seguirle pero ya sería contar mucho de la trama, así que con eso, les dejé lo que más me molestaba.

En fin no la recomiendo y aunque lo más seguro es que saldrán libros de los hermanos, no sé si quiero leerlos, solo hay dos historias que me interesan más demas, bay.

[hitynka · Rating 5 out of 5]

To historia Jade której życie wywraca się do góry nogami po latach zaniedbań ze strony matki i nadużyć przez jej partnera(ojczyma) dowiaduje się, ze jest córką Dantego Morettiego który nie miał o niej pojęcia,a także młodszą siostrą dziewięciu braci.Ojciec, wujek i jej rodzeństwo są bardzo opiekuńczy i troskliwi wobec swojej siostry. Kiedy zaczyna się rok szkolny dziewczyna dołącza do niektórych swoich braci w Empire „szkoly mafijnej”.To właśnie w drodze do szkoły poznaje Dmitrija dziedzica rosyjskiej mafii.Dimitri od samego początku miał słabość do Jade pomagał jej,jego brat ją pilnował i stał się jej ochroniarzem(to już głębszy wątek który trzeba doczytać w książce).To ten typ bohatera chłodny dla wszystkich tylko nie dla niej.Dmitri był dla niej bardzo sympatyczny niesamowity pod każdym względem jeśli chodzi o to jak bardzo kochał Jade i nie miał zawahań po szokującej wiadomości ani przez chwile nie stchórzył tylko zawsze był i ją wspierał.
*bardzo wattpadowa historia*

„“Definitely.” He shrugs. “It doesn’t matter. The sooner they know, the sooner they accept it.”

Huh? “It being us speaking to each other?”

“It being us,” he replies, twirling more pasta around his fork.

Actual tingles burst along my arms. “Us?” I ask hopefully. “Are we friends now or something? If I’d known being friends only took some homemade carbonara, I would have made it for you already.”

“You could call us friends,” he says with a lift of his shoulders. “You’d be wrong, though.”

My eyes widen. “Oh? What… what would you call us?”

He watches me like he’s looking for signs that I might flee. I don’t know that my legs would work even if I tried. And I definitely don’t want to try. I need to know what he’s thinking behind those beautiful eyes.
“Inevitable.””

Myśle, ze mi jako młodszej osobie bardzo przypodobała się ta książka, bo jest jednak w niektórych momentach taka mniej poważna¿, ale jeśli ktoś lubi ksiazki mafijne tylko z poważnym mroźnymi bohaterami bez jakiś niepotrzebnych dramatów i bez dramatyzowania to to się nie spodoba‼️

No third act breakup❤️‼️

Co może sie nie spodobać‼️SPOILER‼️
-accidental pregnancy przy około 70% książki