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Darkest Dance #1
Dance of Deception
A scorching hot mafia series from bestselling author Jagger Cole.
He knows what I saw. Now, he owns me.
Carmine Barone is a monster no one sees but me. A beautiful villain with a cold, black heart and a body honed for violence. But when I stumble into a world I was never meant to see, the ruthless mafia heir becomes something else, my husband.
Now, I'm trapped in a forced marriage to a man who hunts in darkness. A man who plays games with lies and deception. A secret predator who wants to feast on my darkest, most immoral desires.
And the only thing worse than being chased by a psychopath? Wanting him to.
Dance of Deception is a standalone dark mafia romance with a smart heroine and an ultra possessive psycho hero with "look at her and I'll unalive you" energy. No cliffhanger. HEA included. For mature listeners.
He knows what I saw. Now, he owns me.
Carmine Barone is a monster no one sees but me. A beautiful villain with a cold, black heart and a body honed for violence. But when I stumble into a world I was never meant to see, the ruthless mafia heir becomes something else, my husband.
Now, I'm trapped in a forced marriage to a man who hunts in darkness. A man who plays games with lies and deception. A secret predator who wants to feast on my darkest, most immoral desires.
And the only thing worse than being chased by a psychopath? Wanting him to.
Dance of Deception is a standalone dark mafia romance with a smart heroine and an ultra possessive psycho hero with "look at her and I'll unalive you" energy. No cliffhanger. HEA included. For mature listeners.
11 pages, Audible Audio
First published March 13, 2025
2542 people are currently reading
6667 people want to read
About the author
Jagger Cole
72 books5,479 followersA reader first and foremost, Jagger Cole cut his romance writing teeth penning various fan-fiction stories years ago. After deciding to hang up his writing boots, Jagger worked in advertising pretending to be Don Draper. It worked enough to convince a woman way out of his league to marry him, though, which is a total win.
Now, Dad to two little princesses and King to a Queen, Jagger is thrilled to be back at the keyboard.
When not writing or reading romance books, he can be found woodworking, enjoying good whiskey, and grilling outside—rain or shine.
You can find all of his books at www.jaggercolewrites.com
Grab a FREE book for joining my fans-only newsletter! -> https://dl.bookfunnel.com/8rld1ik3sd
Now, Dad to two little princesses and King to a Queen, Jagger is thrilled to be back at the keyboard.
When not writing or reading romance books, he can be found woodworking, enjoying good whiskey, and grilling outside—rain or shine.
You can find all of his books at www.jaggercolewrites.com
Grab a FREE book for joining my fans-only newsletter! -> https://dl.bookfunnel.com/8rld1ik3sd
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 849 reviews
March 29, 2025
Okay, I really thought this was gonna be in my top 3 Jagger Cole books, but why is it not??
First of all, Cole can write, no doubt. His stories? 🔥🔥🔥 His world-building? Immaculate. But romance? Yeah, not so much. Like, his books are scorching hot (why do I keep coming back? You already know.), and I’m way too invested in this world to back out now. But emotional depth? That’s where he fumbles. Every. Single. Time.
Honestly, this was a 4-star read easy, until it wasn’t. And the reason? Clear as day. I’ve read 20+ Cole books, and lately, every single one of them feels the same. And don’t even get me started on how they all start the exact same way—with a dub-con scene that’s basically non-con. And I hate that. I love a well-written dub-con moment, but not when it veers into full non-con territory. At this point, it’s a pattern, and it’s exhausting.
And the endings? OH. MY. GOD. Someone make it stop. Cole, babe, do you know any other way to end a book? Because it’s always:
1. Misunderstanding or fight in the last 10-20%.
2. FMC gets kidnapped.
3. MMC goes full psycho mode and comes to the rescue.
4. Both of them end up in danger.
5. They miraculously save themselves.
6. HEA.
LITERALLY. EVERY. TIME. I am so sick of reading the same damn ending over and over. Like, at this point, it should be illegal.
So, where does Dance of Deception land? Right in the middle. Carmine Barone is a ruthless psycho, and Lyra is a ballerina with a tragic past. She sees something she shouldn’t have, and now she’s trapped in a forced marriage to Carmine. The push-pull? On fire. The spice? Top-tier. The emotional connection? Where?
Look, I love a good dark romance, but I also want to believe in the love. And here? It’s just not there. Lyra and Carmine spend more time indulging in their kinks than actually talking. I’d love to ask Carmine, "What do you love about Lyra? What are her best traits?" Because honestly? I have no idea.
The secret society aspect? More laughable than intimidating. It’s giving grown men playing dress-up.
So yeah, Dance of Deception is hot, addictive, and entertaining—but deep? Not at all. If you love Cole’s usual formula, you’ll eat this up. But if you’re looking for something fresh and different? You won’t find it here.
📌 Tropes:
✅ Enemies-to-lovers 💘
✅ Forced marriage 💍
✅ Psycho MMC 🖤
✅ Secret society/Masked men 🎭
✅ Dub-con (borderline non-con) ⚠️
Would I keep reading this series? Of course. Am I frustrated? Absolutely.
First of all, Cole can write, no doubt. His stories? 🔥🔥🔥 His world-building? Immaculate. But romance? Yeah, not so much. Like, his books are scorching hot (why do I keep coming back? You already know.), and I’m way too invested in this world to back out now. But emotional depth? That’s where he fumbles. Every. Single. Time.
Honestly, this was a 4-star read easy, until it wasn’t. And the reason? Clear as day. I’ve read 20+ Cole books, and lately, every single one of them feels the same. And don’t even get me started on how they all start the exact same way—with a dub-con scene that’s basically non-con. And I hate that. I love a well-written dub-con moment, but not when it veers into full non-con territory. At this point, it’s a pattern, and it’s exhausting.
And the endings? OH. MY. GOD. Someone make it stop. Cole, babe, do you know any other way to end a book? Because it’s always:
1. Misunderstanding or fight in the last 10-20%.
2. FMC gets kidnapped.
3. MMC goes full psycho mode and comes to the rescue.
4. Both of them end up in danger.
5. They miraculously save themselves.
6. HEA.
LITERALLY. EVERY. TIME. I am so sick of reading the same damn ending over and over. Like, at this point, it should be illegal.
So, where does Dance of Deception land? Right in the middle. Carmine Barone is a ruthless psycho, and Lyra is a ballerina with a tragic past. She sees something she shouldn’t have, and now she’s trapped in a forced marriage to Carmine. The push-pull? On fire. The spice? Top-tier. The emotional connection? Where?
Look, I love a good dark romance, but I also want to believe in the love. And here? It’s just not there. Lyra and Carmine spend more time indulging in their kinks than actually talking. I’d love to ask Carmine, "What do you love about Lyra? What are her best traits?" Because honestly? I have no idea.
The secret society aspect? More laughable than intimidating. It’s giving grown men playing dress-up.
So yeah, Dance of Deception is hot, addictive, and entertaining—but deep? Not at all. If you love Cole’s usual formula, you’ll eat this up. But if you’re looking for something fresh and different? You won’t find it here.
📌 Tropes:
✅ Enemies-to-lovers 💘
✅ Forced marriage 💍
✅ Psycho MMC 🖤
✅ Secret society/Masked men 🎭
✅ Dub-con (borderline non-con) ⚠️
Would I keep reading this series? Of course. Am I frustrated? Absolutely.
March 10, 2025
Dance of Deception by Jagger Cole
4/5 stars
Dance of Deception is a new series by Jagger Cole and like his previous books, this book is f***ing addictive! This book and series has a huge overlap with the Venomous Gods series and I loved that so much. Bianca and Kratos are by far my favorite couple in this world and I absorbed every scene they were in.
But Lyra and Carmine are equally impressive! Lyra just finished practising at the ballet and she is the last one to leave. As she leaves she overhears Carmine Barone talking business to some men. She tries to hide in the shadows. But his shadow is way darker and has already sensed her hiding. And after he is done talking he stalks towards her. Lyra is scared but intensely drawn to him.
The way he wrapped his hand around my throat and stroked my pulse as he studied me--it wasn't just dominance. That was something much darker.
If this is startled, I'd love to see what it looks like when you're truly scared.
I pull my hoodie tighter around me.
Again, it was like he was getting off of my terror.
Like a psychopath.
When she arrives home she has to deal with her drunk and cruel mother. Her mother blames her for her father's death. And her cruel words invoke the pain of the past. Lyra has been through something incredibly dark and her father was a ruthless man who raped and murdered women. They are in dire need of money. And Lyra is willing to do anything to pay off her late father's debts.
Things escalate and she sees things she wasn't supposed to see. A masked man hunts her down. And the only way to get out of this hole is to marry Carmine and get her hands on the money he promises his future wife.
I look up. He smiles coldly.
"I bought you."
I suck in a sharp breath.
He lifts a hand, brushes my cheek. "You're going to marry me, Lyra," me murmurs. "You belong to me now."
Even Bianca, Carmine's sister, warns her..
She takes a slow breath, her eyes lifting to mine. "Look, you're the human psychology student. Carmine is.. different. Not always, and he's very good at hiding it away. But.. It's there. And as much as I love him. He scares me sometimes.
Her throat works again as she takes one of my hands in hers.
"Lyra," she says quietly. "I'm not mad at you for marrying my brother. I'm terrified for you."
The more time they spend together the more she notices his darkness. But it doesn't scare her. It heals her, opens her and she blooms in his presence. But the past doesn't want to stay in the past and is consistently hunting her down. Things get more and more complicated and eventually it explodes.
Lyra and Carmine are pure fire together! I love their bond, their passion and how slowly they start to feel more for one another instead of just lust.
The only reason I rated it 4 out of 5 stars is because I couldn't place the distrust at one point in the story. I was really like between the two of them? It felt like it took too long for her to realize that there was a deeper trust. And that frustrated me a little bit.
But overall this is a magnificent, hot, captivating and incredibly exciting story. I couldn't stop reading and I flew through the pages. If you love dark romance then definitely give Jagger Cole a chance. He is the king of Mafia Dark Romance stories!
4 huge stars from me for this incredible story.
4/5 stars
Dance of Deception is a new series by Jagger Cole and like his previous books, this book is f***ing addictive! This book and series has a huge overlap with the Venomous Gods series and I loved that so much. Bianca and Kratos are by far my favorite couple in this world and I absorbed every scene they were in.
But Lyra and Carmine are equally impressive! Lyra just finished practising at the ballet and she is the last one to leave. As she leaves she overhears Carmine Barone talking business to some men. She tries to hide in the shadows. But his shadow is way darker and has already sensed her hiding. And after he is done talking he stalks towards her. Lyra is scared but intensely drawn to him.
The way he wrapped his hand around my throat and stroked my pulse as he studied me--it wasn't just dominance. That was something much darker.
If this is startled, I'd love to see what it looks like when you're truly scared.
I pull my hoodie tighter around me.
Again, it was like he was getting off of my terror.
Like a psychopath.
When she arrives home she has to deal with her drunk and cruel mother. Her mother blames her for her father's death. And her cruel words invoke the pain of the past. Lyra has been through something incredibly dark and her father was a ruthless man who raped and murdered women. They are in dire need of money. And Lyra is willing to do anything to pay off her late father's debts.
Things escalate and she sees things she wasn't supposed to see. A masked man hunts her down. And the only way to get out of this hole is to marry Carmine and get her hands on the money he promises his future wife.
I look up. He smiles coldly.
"I bought you."
I suck in a sharp breath.
He lifts a hand, brushes my cheek. "You're going to marry me, Lyra," me murmurs. "You belong to me now."
Even Bianca, Carmine's sister, warns her..
She takes a slow breath, her eyes lifting to mine. "Look, you're the human psychology student. Carmine is.. different. Not always, and he's very good at hiding it away. But.. It's there. And as much as I love him. He scares me sometimes.
Her throat works again as she takes one of my hands in hers.
"Lyra," she says quietly. "I'm not mad at you for marrying my brother. I'm terrified for you."
The more time they spend together the more she notices his darkness. But it doesn't scare her. It heals her, opens her and she blooms in his presence. But the past doesn't want to stay in the past and is consistently hunting her down. Things get more and more complicated and eventually it explodes.
Lyra and Carmine are pure fire together! I love their bond, their passion and how slowly they start to feel more for one another instead of just lust.
The only reason I rated it 4 out of 5 stars is because I couldn't place the distrust at one point in the story. I was really like between the two of them? It felt like it took too long for her to realize that there was a deeper trust. And that frustrated me a little bit.
But overall this is a magnificent, hot, captivating and incredibly exciting story. I couldn't stop reading and I flew through the pages. If you love dark romance then definitely give Jagger Cole a chance. He is the king of Mafia Dark Romance stories!
4 huge stars from me for this incredible story.
March 14, 2025
I’d love to ask Carmine what he loves about Lyra. What are his favorite things about her, about her personality?
I’m curious, considering those two characters didn’t really spend any time together that wasn’t focused on indulging in their kinks. That was the extent of their entire relationship.
This book reminded me a lot of the “Vicious hearts” from one of the author’s previous series. The story of Cillian and Una was similar to the point that all of the plot twists, besides maybe one, were incredibly obvious and heavily foreshadowed.
I honestly just got bored with it. More so because the whole Black Court storyline just made me cringe. The whole concept of it and the way those masked guys carried themselves with such pomposity and self-importance made them look like boys that want to be taken seriously and treated like adults, but all the props only make them look more immature and ridiculous.
Either this book really was unusually boring and unoriginal or I got to the point where I’m bored of reading Jagger Cole, who seems to be constantly writing the same characters falling in the same type of lust, but never actually in love. Dunno.
I’m curious, considering those two characters didn’t really spend any time together that wasn’t focused on indulging in their kinks. That was the extent of their entire relationship.
This book reminded me a lot of the “Vicious hearts” from one of the author’s previous series. The story of Cillian and Una was similar to the point that all of the plot twists, besides maybe one, were incredibly obvious and heavily foreshadowed.
I honestly just got bored with it. More so because the whole Black Court storyline just made me cringe. The whole concept of it and the way those masked guys carried themselves with such pomposity and self-importance made them look like boys that want to be taken seriously and treated like adults, but all the props only make them look more immature and ridiculous.
Either this book really was unusually boring and unoriginal or I got to the point where I’m bored of reading Jagger Cole, who seems to be constantly writing the same characters falling in the same type of lust, but never actually in love. Dunno.
March 15, 2025
I love all the dark mafia romances from Jagger!
He just knows how to write perfect stories with all the tropes I'm addicted to. Can't wait for the next one!
He just knows how to write perfect stories with all the tropes I'm addicted to. Can't wait for the next one!
March 13, 2025
⭐⭐⭐⭐
🌶️🌶️🌶️.5
Dance of Deception is the start of a brand new series from Jagger Cole, and I was excited to see which mafia we were going to be focusing on after loving the Memento Mori series about the Yakuza I was honestly surprised we were not getting Kir's book since he was featured in that series. Luckily, he does show up in this book, and I keep loving him even more!
Carmine Barone was first introduced in the Venomous Gods series. You may remember him as Dante and Bianca's older brother. He is about to become the Don since his father plans to retire, and he is also part of a secret society within the mafia called the "Black Court." Lyra discovers his secret by mistake while she danced blindfolded at a secret location and witnesses him execute a man as 'The Hound' from the Black Court. Lyra has been struggling financially as a professional ballerina since she has to help support her alcoholic mother. She is put in an even more desperate situation now that she has to pay off her father's debt, so she makes a risky choice to try to blackmail Carmine with his secret. Now, Carmine decides to pay off her debt and forces her to become his wife.
I was surprised to see how ruthless and dark Carmine was, compared to what he was like in Toxic Love. He is definitely considered a psychopath, but Lyra is drawn to his darkness. She appreciates the same kinks as Carmine, and they are a perfect match. As always, Jagger Cole delivers the spice, and there are so many hot scenes.
The only issue I had was with feeling the romance and emotional connection between the characters. It was mostly a sexual relationship, and I just wanted more intimate scenes between the characters. I do think that was difficult in this since Jagger was trying to set up a whole new series, and there were a lot of new characters introduced. I loved the secret society aspect, and I can't wait for the rest of the series.
Jagger Cole always delivers an excellent mafia storyline with lots of twists and turns. This one had a crazy twist, and it was super exciting!
Kinks: CNC, primal play, biting, marking, somnophilia
Thank you to Valentine PR for providing the ARC.
🌶️🌶️🌶️.5
Dance of Deception is the start of a brand new series from Jagger Cole, and I was excited to see which mafia we were going to be focusing on after loving the Memento Mori series about the Yakuza I was honestly surprised we were not getting Kir's book since he was featured in that series. Luckily, he does show up in this book, and I keep loving him even more!
Carmine Barone was first introduced in the Venomous Gods series. You may remember him as Dante and Bianca's older brother. He is about to become the Don since his father plans to retire, and he is also part of a secret society within the mafia called the "Black Court." Lyra discovers his secret by mistake while she danced blindfolded at a secret location and witnesses him execute a man as 'The Hound' from the Black Court. Lyra has been struggling financially as a professional ballerina since she has to help support her alcoholic mother. She is put in an even more desperate situation now that she has to pay off her father's debt, so she makes a risky choice to try to blackmail Carmine with his secret. Now, Carmine decides to pay off her debt and forces her to become his wife.
I was surprised to see how ruthless and dark Carmine was, compared to what he was like in Toxic Love. He is definitely considered a psychopath, but Lyra is drawn to his darkness. She appreciates the same kinks as Carmine, and they are a perfect match. As always, Jagger Cole delivers the spice, and there are so many hot scenes.
The only issue I had was with feeling the romance and emotional connection between the characters. It was mostly a sexual relationship, and I just wanted more intimate scenes between the characters. I do think that was difficult in this since Jagger was trying to set up a whole new series, and there were a lot of new characters introduced. I loved the secret society aspect, and I can't wait for the rest of the series.
Jagger Cole always delivers an excellent mafia storyline with lots of twists and turns. This one had a crazy twist, and it was super exciting!
Kinks: CNC, primal play, biting, marking, somnophilia
Thank you to Valentine PR for providing the ARC.
March 17, 2025
Another absolute banger from Jagger!! Carmine and Lyra were so delicious and the plot had me glued to my seat at all times. Carmine’s darkness and possessiveness was hot hot hot and I love that Lyra stood her own. The secrecy of the Black Court has me so intrigued and I can’t wait to see what comes next.
.
.
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Thank you to Valentine PR for the arc opportunity!
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.
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Thank you to Valentine PR for the arc opportunity!
March 14, 2025
Tropes:
✅ Enemies-to-lovers
✅ Forced marriage
✅ True psycho hero
✅ Secret society/Masked men
✅ Primal/CNC/impact kinks
✅ Look at her and 🔪
✅ Enemies-to-lovers
✅ Forced marriage
✅ True psycho hero
✅ Secret society/Masked men
✅ Primal/CNC/impact kinks
✅ Look at her and 🔪
March 10, 2025
5⭐️|3🌶️
Are you kidding me?? Absolutely OBSESSED with this book!! It was so good and it had me hooked from page one.
Carmine wasn’t someone I was super intrigued by in the past books but holy fuck did I absolutely LOVE this man. He was completely unhinged, don’t get me wrong, but some of the things this man did & said to Lyra had me absolutely melting for him 🥹
Lyra has an insane amount of trauma from what she witnessed at 14 years old by her father. She’s kept that trauma bottled up inside of her. She doesn’t face it head on until Carmine is there and helps her work through it.
There’s so much suspense and secrecy and a major twist that definitely had my jaw dropping.
I swear no one writes better mafia than Jagger. I’m so excited for the rest of the series to come ESPECIALLY Kir’s book.
Thank you so much Jagger Cole & VPR for this arc 🤍
Are you kidding me?? Absolutely OBSESSED with this book!! It was so good and it had me hooked from page one.
Carmine wasn’t someone I was super intrigued by in the past books but holy fuck did I absolutely LOVE this man. He was completely unhinged, don’t get me wrong, but some of the things this man did & said to Lyra had me absolutely melting for him 🥹
Lyra has an insane amount of trauma from what she witnessed at 14 years old by her father. She’s kept that trauma bottled up inside of her. She doesn’t face it head on until Carmine is there and helps her work through it.
There’s so much suspense and secrecy and a major twist that definitely had my jaw dropping.
I swear no one writes better mafia than Jagger. I’m so excited for the rest of the series to come ESPECIALLY Kir’s book.
Thank you so much Jagger Cole & VPR for this arc 🤍
April 3, 2025
No sé si me gustó mucho o lo odie, pero que LIBRO tan 🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻 snsjjsjsjajsjajajs necesito una historia de Disney .
December 16, 2025
4 з 5 ⭐️
В мене складні стосунки з автором. Але ця книга сподобалася 🤗
Кармін психопат, він це знає, Лура це знає, але трішки невистачило цих розвитку цього, так показано що жорстокий, не має емоцій щодо своїх дій, але якось мало.
А от сюжет захопив, незвична мафія, я вгадала хто надсилав повідомлення, але разом з тим фінал цікавий та тримав в напрузі 🔥
В мене складні стосунки з автором. Але ця книга сподобалася 🤗
Кармін психопат, він це знає, Лура це знає, але трішки невистачило цих розвитку цього, так показано що жорстокий, не має емоцій щодо своїх дій, але якось мало.
А от сюжет захопив, незвична мафія, я вгадала хто надсилав повідомлення, але разом з тим фінал цікавий та тримав в напрузі 🔥
August 19, 2025
I am obsessed with thisssss series 😍 PERFECTION 👌 😋🫶🫶
March 12, 2025
“𝑰’𝒍𝒍 𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒖𝒄𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒐𝒏 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒓.”
If y'all don't know this yet, let me tell y'all that I'm totally a mafia girly as I live for those deranged, over possesive psychopath mafia bosses who scream 'look at her and I'll unalive you' energy. And this book- I DEVOURED IT IN SINGLE SITTING.
This was my first Jagger Cole book. I have several of his books on my TBR and now I know what I’m going to read in my spare time (gonna straight up devour his other mafia series lol). BCOZ DAMN THIS WAS SO GOOD.
Carmine Barone needs a wife to become the new Don of Barone family and is also a member of a secret society. From their first meet he has his eyes set on Lyra, a ballerina with traumatic past.
"𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒚 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈. 𝑩𝒖𝒓𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏. 𝑺𝒉𝒆’𝒔 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒆, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑰’𝒍𝒍 𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒆 𝒈𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒐𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒉𝒆𝒓. 𝑬𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒆 𝒇𝒖𝒄𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓.
𝑬𝒙𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕 𝒎𝒆.
𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝑰’𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒖𝒄𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘𝒏."
I LOVE CARMINE BARONE 🫠💕, there's just no other reason for me to think these lines are hot lmao 🥵🤌.
If you're in a mood for spicy dark forced marriage mafia romance, this book is for you <3.
Tropes-
Mafia
Forced Marriage
BDSM
Masked Men
Secret society
OTT Unhinged MMC
Touch her and 💀
If y'all don't know this yet, let me tell y'all that I'm totally a mafia girly as I live for those deranged, over possesive psychopath mafia bosses who scream 'look at her and I'll unalive you' energy. And this book- I DEVOURED IT IN SINGLE SITTING.
This was my first Jagger Cole book. I have several of his books on my TBR and now I know what I’m going to read in my spare time (gonna straight up devour his other mafia series lol). BCOZ DAMN THIS WAS SO GOOD.
Carmine Barone needs a wife to become the new Don of Barone family and is also a member of a secret society. From their first meet he has his eyes set on Lyra, a ballerina with traumatic past.
"𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒚 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈. 𝑩𝒖𝒓𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏. 𝑺𝒉𝒆’𝒔 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒆, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑰’𝒍𝒍 𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒆 𝒈𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒐𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒉𝒆𝒓. 𝑬𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒆 𝒇𝒖𝒄𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓.
𝑬𝒙𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕 𝒎𝒆.
𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝑰’𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒖𝒄𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘𝒏."
I LOVE CARMINE BARONE 🫠💕, there's just no other reason for me to think these lines are hot lmao 🥵🤌.
If you're in a mood for spicy dark forced marriage mafia romance, this book is for you <3.
Tropes-
Mafia
Forced Marriage
BDSM
Masked Men
Secret society
OTT Unhinged MMC
Touch her and 💀
March 17, 2025
First typo I noticed was on page 81… well done, Jagger! Further, the description of Carmine’s package provided me with a weekend of much needed laughter.
January 3, 2026
»Would it have changed anything?«
»You're my wife. Everything about you fucking matters to me.«
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
❥ 𝑳𝒚𝒓𝒂 𝜗𝜚˚⋆
I adored her. She is kind and sweet but stubborn and brave at the same time.
❥ 𝑪𝒂𝒓𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒆 ⋆✮
This man is cold as ice but has a soft spot for Lyra. He is dangerous, a little psychotic and possessive.
✥ 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌
Jagger Cole has proven again why he is one of my instant buy authors. This was phenomenal and I loved every single page. It felt like 100 pages although there were over 500 - the pages just flew by and I couldn‘t stop reading. This was the perfect mixture of angst, drama, action and a dark love story. The mafia world Jagger Cole has created is thrilling, well thought out and full of dangerous men who would burn the world down for their woman. I‘m a sucker for a well written and dark mafia romance.
Lyra and Carmine are everything I hoped for. Their tension was great and Lyra stands her ground against Carmine (which is pretty important for me in a mafia romance). It was a push and pull with a lot of secrets and lies getting uncovered. The kinks are dark and the book contains some triggers (so please check them before reading). I love the trope ballerina x mafia boss and I wasn‘t let down here. We get some dancing scenes and a lot of girls talk ( I love when the fmc actually got friends). Carmine worships the ground Lyra walks on and I loved reading about his obsessive behaviour.
This book just made me happy and I was there for the vibe. Jagger Cole’s book are always smutty and kinky combined with a solid plot. The love comes out of nowhere most of the time because the characters don‘t talk a lot but I don’t mind. That‘s just the way the author writes his books and if you don‘t like it then don‘t read it.
All in all an amazing dark romance.
𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐈 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤?
Yes. Jagger Cole delivers with this book.
𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝟓 ׂㅤ𐙚 ࣪ ⭒
plot: 5/5
spice: 4/5
humor: 4/5
couple/tension: 5/5
world building: 5/5
happy end?: yes
𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬 ᡣ𐭩ྀི₊ ⊹
possessive and protective hero, mafia romance, marriage of convenience, past trauma, touch her and die, psychotic mmc, mafia boss x ballerina, she blackmails him, virgin fmc, secret society, opposites attract, grumpy x sunshine, masked men
𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬
#1 Dance of Deception ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
#2 Dance of Ruin ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
#3 Dance of Madness ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
#4 Dance of Devils ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
#5 Dance of Defiance ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
#6 Dance of Thorns ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
»You're my wife. Everything about you fucking matters to me.«
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
❥ 𝑳𝒚𝒓𝒂 𝜗𝜚˚⋆
I adored her. She is kind and sweet but stubborn and brave at the same time.
❥ 𝑪𝒂𝒓𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒆 ⋆✮
This man is cold as ice but has a soft spot for Lyra. He is dangerous, a little psychotic and possessive.
✥ 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌
Jagger Cole has proven again why he is one of my instant buy authors. This was phenomenal and I loved every single page. It felt like 100 pages although there were over 500 - the pages just flew by and I couldn‘t stop reading. This was the perfect mixture of angst, drama, action and a dark love story. The mafia world Jagger Cole has created is thrilling, well thought out and full of dangerous men who would burn the world down for their woman. I‘m a sucker for a well written and dark mafia romance.
Lyra and Carmine are everything I hoped for. Their tension was great and Lyra stands her ground against Carmine (which is pretty important for me in a mafia romance). It was a push and pull with a lot of secrets and lies getting uncovered. The kinks are dark and the book contains some triggers (so please check them before reading). I love the trope ballerina x mafia boss and I wasn‘t let down here. We get some dancing scenes and a lot of girls talk ( I love when the fmc actually got friends). Carmine worships the ground Lyra walks on and I loved reading about his obsessive behaviour.
This book just made me happy and I was there for the vibe. Jagger Cole’s book are always smutty and kinky combined with a solid plot. The love comes out of nowhere most of the time because the characters don‘t talk a lot but I don’t mind. That‘s just the way the author writes his books and if you don‘t like it then don‘t read it.
All in all an amazing dark romance.
𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐈 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤?
Yes. Jagger Cole delivers with this book.
𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝟓 ׂㅤ𐙚 ࣪ ⭒
plot: 5/5
spice: 4/5
humor: 4/5
couple/tension: 5/5
world building: 5/5
happy end?: yes
𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬 ᡣ𐭩ྀི₊ ⊹
possessive and protective hero, mafia romance, marriage of convenience, past trauma, touch her and die, psychotic mmc, mafia boss x ballerina, she blackmails him, virgin fmc, secret society, opposites attract, grumpy x sunshine, masked men
𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬
#1 Dance of Deception ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
#2 Dance of Ruin ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
#3 Dance of Madness ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
#4 Dance of Devils ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
#5 Dance of Defiance ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
#6 Dance of Thorns ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
June 14, 2025
Dance of Deception was very Jagger. However, I think what this story was missing was an emotional piece between the MCs for me. The attraction and chemistry was there but I wanted just a bit more tenderness and real love.
This was action packed and smutty as hell and I love that about Jagger’s stories and his worlds.
Carmine was a lunatic and an uber alpha male and I can always count on Jagger to deliver an OTT and hardened by life MMC that inevitably screws up with his girl and then grovels like his life depends on it.
Lyra was a pretty decent FMC and I liked her for Carmine. Overall, a solid read from Jagger.
This was action packed and smutty as hell and I love that about Jagger’s stories and his worlds.
“Now, I’m going to leave my dick right here in your mouth.” His lips curl. “It’s not that I’m worried about your friends hearing you shatter for me. It’s that if my friends were to hear, I’d be forced to cut their throats, and that would be…inconvenient.”
Carmine was a lunatic and an uber alpha male and I can always count on Jagger to deliver an OTT and hardened by life MMC that inevitably screws up with his girl and then grovels like his life depends on it.
Lyra was a pretty decent FMC and I liked her for Carmine. Overall, a solid read from Jagger.
Read
March 13, 2025i was looking forward to this but it has yet another virgin fmc and manho mmc microtrope
"I’ve never wanted anything serious. Not women, not relationships, not any of the shit that makes men go soft.
I’ve had women—plenty of them. More than I can count. Some hung around longer than others. Some played the part of the doting girlfriend before they realized I wasn’t built for love, or romance, or happily ever after.
But they were all just temporary distractions."
"I’ve never wanted anything serious. Not women, not relationships, not any of the shit that makes men go soft.
I’ve had women—plenty of them. More than I can count. Some hung around longer than others. Some played the part of the doting girlfriend before they realized I wasn’t built for love, or romance, or happily ever after.
But they were all just temporary distractions."
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 7, 2025
el nivel de toxiquidad que manejan los protagonista me asfixió, pero el drama familiar de Lyra se lleva las 3 estrellas. Quedé flechada con Kir, quiero conocer su historia inmediatamente.
March 12, 2025
I received an ARC for an honest review.
I loved this book so much. It was absolutely incredible. I enjoyed it from start to finish and not once throughout reading did I think anything other than how much I loved it.
I will be very surprised if this book is not in my top 10 favorites of the year.
In my personal opinion, Jagger Cole is the best mafia author. This whole world he has created with all these characters, I love it so much. No one else compares.
One of the best thing about a Jagger Cole book is all the secondary characters. I really want all of them to have books of their own. Luckily most of them do. Plus the way he teases some of these characters getting their own books is so clever.
I really loved Lyra and Carmine together. For Carmine being without emotions he sure fell hard for Lyra. Lyra was strong as heck no matter what was thrown her way she came out even stronger. Nothing was gonna stop her.
Carmine became an absolute beast when Lyra was put in danger he did burn the world down for her and I was loving every second of it.
I loved every time we got some Black Court moments. I was so intrigued, I wanted to know more especially who the other animals were. I really hope we'll see more of that soon. And don't even get me started on Knightsblood. I need more stories from there.
I really loved this. I'm gonna make it a goal of mine this year, to read more Jagger Cole books.
I loved this book so much. It was absolutely incredible. I enjoyed it from start to finish and not once throughout reading did I think anything other than how much I loved it.
I will be very surprised if this book is not in my top 10 favorites of the year.
In my personal opinion, Jagger Cole is the best mafia author. This whole world he has created with all these characters, I love it so much. No one else compares.
One of the best thing about a Jagger Cole book is all the secondary characters. I really want all of them to have books of their own. Luckily most of them do. Plus the way he teases some of these characters getting their own books is so clever.
I really loved Lyra and Carmine together. For Carmine being without emotions he sure fell hard for Lyra. Lyra was strong as heck no matter what was thrown her way she came out even stronger. Nothing was gonna stop her.
Carmine became an absolute beast when Lyra was put in danger he did burn the world down for her and I was loving every second of it.
I loved every time we got some Black Court moments. I was so intrigued, I wanted to know more especially who the other animals were. I really hope we'll see more of that soon. And don't even get me started on Knightsblood. I need more stories from there.
I really loved this. I'm gonna make it a goal of mine this year, to read more Jagger Cole books.
May 2, 2025
⭐️4.2 🌶️3.5
MR JAGGER COLE ALWAYS FINDS A WAY TO KEEP ME SAT . I WILL NEVER DISRESPECT THIS GREATNESS OF A MAN 👏🏾 . THAT IS IT THAT IS ALL🫶🏾 .
The tension , the yearning , the submission = 🧎🏾♀️
MR JAGGER COLE ALWAYS FINDS A WAY TO KEEP ME SAT . I WILL NEVER DISRESPECT THIS GREATNESS OF A MAN 👏🏾 . THAT IS IT THAT IS ALL🫶🏾 .
The tension , the yearning , the submission = 🧎🏾♀️
May 8, 2025
This is one of those so bad but can’t look away situations. At first I was like dude what am I even reading but then halfway through I was like alright what the hell sure. 🤷🏻♀️ This carmine fucker was just a fucking freak like my guy chillllll it’s not that serious. But then he slowly became more normal, still a freakazoid, but in a way I could get behind. Once he stop being weird, then I was able to start giggling with the whole possessive macho bullshit. Typically doesn’t do it for me but the whole “touch her and die” thing can do wonders when written well. Anyways, this is what it says it is, nothing to really comment on.
November 14, 2025
DNF @20%
I love very very dark romance, and i completely get that with these types of books you have to suspend belief. That being said, i can only suspend belief so far. I was barely in and i have already had far too many “wtf” moments.
I may try it be of the other books in the series, but i don’t think this series will be for me.
I love very very dark romance, and i completely get that with these types of books you have to suspend belief. That being said, i can only suspend belief so far. I was barely in and i have already had far too many “wtf” moments.
I may try it be of the other books in the series, but i don’t think this series will be for me.
April 27, 2025
♾️5 little dancer stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
(si tot cred ca-s prea puține 🙃)
4🌶
Dacă aștepți povestea clasica de iubire "interzisa" dintre o balerina și un mafiot italian,cu fluturasi si curcubeie..mergi și cauta alta carte!🤭
Nici nu știu ce sa spun, altceva decât ce a menționat autorul în descrierea cărții..pt ca sunt atâtea plot twist-uri, atâtea secrete, atâtea întrebări cărora le găsești răspunsul doar citind fiecare capitol iar povestea te va surprinde din ce în ce mai tare!
Cartea asta e mind-blowing!
Personajele și actiunea sunt atat de real si raw conturate..e genul de carte ce iti rămâne în minte și în suflet mult timp!
Happy-end garantat!🦋
(si tot cred ca-s prea puține 🙃)
4🌶
Dacă aștepți povestea clasica de iubire "interzisa" dintre o balerina și un mafiot italian,cu fluturasi si curcubeie..mergi și cauta alta carte!🤭
Nici nu știu ce sa spun, altceva decât ce a menționat autorul în descrierea cărții..pt ca sunt atâtea plot twist-uri, atâtea secrete, atâtea întrebări cărora le găsești răspunsul doar citind fiecare capitol iar povestea te va surprinde din ce în ce mai tare!
Cartea asta e mind-blowing!
Personajele și actiunea sunt atat de real si raw conturate..e genul de carte ce iti rămâne în minte și în suflet mult timp!
Happy-end garantat!🦋
March 15, 2025
I mean are we surprised that this wasn't going to be anything other than 5 stars?.....
when jagger announced that he was going to dive into secret society I was excited because he has not done that yet and obviously it did not disappoint. this follows Lyra and Carmine. Lyra is dealing with the fact that she is getting harassed by reporters and families of the victims that her father brutally r*ped, held captive, and murdered. Carmine is part of a secret society that only the five of the members know about. They are judge, jury, and executioner of those who are disloyal. They are called the Black Court and people are getting wind of their society and what they do and are trying to do. Carmine's dad has a heart attack and nearly almost dies so he decides to step down which puts Carmine at the head of the Italian mafia. He needs a wife so he holds meetings for potential wives and who happens to be there? Lyra shows up because she finds out that he is going to pay $1M for whoever marries him and she needs that money fast considering she has to pay off a debt that her father has. She ends up marrying him.
Lyra has a very dark backstory. Probably one of the darkest backstories that Jagger has ever written. She is the daughter of a psycho man and her whole life has been a lie. After seeing what her dad does she has struggled to keep the darkness at bay. Any time that she seen someone remotely close to what she saw in that basement she passes out. That changed the moment she met Carmine. Carmine helped her when it came to the darkness and he did not see her anything other than perfect. Carmine has known that he was different. His father knew it and he helped him harness it where he was able to control it. He always knew that he was not able to feel emotions like other people. He always had to be in control. Lyra needs that control which is why they work but he has never felt anything remotely close to emotion until he met Lyra.
This was so good. If you want an obsessive/possessive MMC who will literally k*ll for his woman Carmine is that. The secrety society aspect really was unique to read as well. I am excited to see who else is part of the Black Court and how the secret society works. The way that Carmine will literally do anything for Lyra and he also has cameras installed everywhere she is... This was not as spicy as what Jagger normally writes but I liked it nonetheless because the story and the plot were so interesting. I was heavily invested in where the plot was going and when the plot twist happened I was at the edge of my seat. Jagger never ceases to amaze me and I can't wait o see where the series goes.
tropes:
- anti-hero
- forced marriage
- BDSM
- boy obsessed
- enemies-to-lovers
- grumpyxsunshine
- masked men
- secret society
- opposites attract
- jealous/possessive
5 ☆
when jagger announced that he was going to dive into secret society I was excited because he has not done that yet and obviously it did not disappoint. this follows Lyra and Carmine. Lyra is dealing with the fact that she is getting harassed by reporters and families of the victims that her father brutally r*ped, held captive, and murdered. Carmine is part of a secret society that only the five of the members know about. They are judge, jury, and executioner of those who are disloyal. They are called the Black Court and people are getting wind of their society and what they do and are trying to do. Carmine's dad has a heart attack and nearly almost dies so he decides to step down which puts Carmine at the head of the Italian mafia. He needs a wife so he holds meetings for potential wives and who happens to be there? Lyra shows up because she finds out that he is going to pay $1M for whoever marries him and she needs that money fast considering she has to pay off a debt that her father has. She ends up marrying him.
Lyra has a very dark backstory. Probably one of the darkest backstories that Jagger has ever written. She is the daughter of a psycho man and her whole life has been a lie. After seeing what her dad does she has struggled to keep the darkness at bay. Any time that she seen someone remotely close to what she saw in that basement she passes out. That changed the moment she met Carmine. Carmine helped her when it came to the darkness and he did not see her anything other than perfect. Carmine has known that he was different. His father knew it and he helped him harness it where he was able to control it. He always knew that he was not able to feel emotions like other people. He always had to be in control. Lyra needs that control which is why they work but he has never felt anything remotely close to emotion until he met Lyra.
This was so good. If you want an obsessive/possessive MMC who will literally k*ll for his woman Carmine is that. The secrety society aspect really was unique to read as well. I am excited to see who else is part of the Black Court and how the secret society works. The way that Carmine will literally do anything for Lyra and he also has cameras installed everywhere she is... This was not as spicy as what Jagger normally writes but I liked it nonetheless because the story and the plot were so interesting. I was heavily invested in where the plot was going and when the plot twist happened I was at the edge of my seat. Jagger never ceases to amaze me and I can't wait o see where the series goes.
tropes:
- anti-hero
- forced marriage
- BDSM
- boy obsessed
- enemies-to-lovers
- grumpyxsunshine
- masked men
- secret society
- opposites attract
- jealous/possessive
5 ☆
June 20, 2025
♫: 𝑳𝑬𝑻 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑾𝑶𝑹𝑫 𝑩𝑼𝑹𝑵- 𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔 𝑮𝒓𝒆𝒚
⁺‧₊˚ ཐི⋆♱⋆ཋྀ ˚₊‧⁺
I’m actually looking forward to reading this whole series…
⁺‧₊˚ ཐི⋆♱⋆ཋྀ ˚₊‧⁺
Uhm… this book was… something…
「 ✦ 𝐋𝐘𝐑𝐀 𝐎𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐕𝐀 ✦ 」
╰┈➤ (𝘧𝘤: 𝘈𝘭𝘪𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘯 𝘐𝘎)
She was alright. I do feel bad about her past and the way she was treated for something she didn’t do and had to live with her father’s sin. I wish she had more backbone. Like come on girl stand up for yourself.
I’m honestly surprised she’s not pregnant bc my god-
「 ✦ 𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐄 𝐁𝐀𝐑𝐎𝐍𝐄 ✦ 」
╰┈➤ (𝘧𝘤: 𝘈𝘭𝘦𝘹 𝘉𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘢)
It’s hard to fine a fancast for him.
Well isn’t he the big bad wolf… honestly that man is way too possessive like my god. He did something to Lyra that I didn’t like but if she liked it… he’s not my favorite out of the group let me just write that.
⁺‧₊˚ ཐི⋆♱⋆ཋྀ ˚₊‧⁺
The book was good-ish in the beginning like couldn’t put it down but then it started to drag and got boring.
I honestly do think it was worth 520 something pages it could’ve been shorter.
The side characters were so interesting and I’m actually excited to read their stories.
I want to read Kir story 1.) they fancast him as David Gandy. Instantly going to love. 2.) His character is so interesting and I feel like he’ll be my favorite in the series. Sadly he’ll most likely be with a blonde (aka: Evelina) I want him to be with Dove tho!
I also want to read about the Raven! The way he’s described is so interesting! I need to know who he is!
⁺‧₊˚ ཐི⋆♱⋆ཋྀ ˚₊‧⁺
Overall, 3.25/5 stars ★
I was going to give it 3.5 but I read the epilogue and it made my rating go down I’m tired of them going at it.
I’m so excited for Kir’s book! It’s coming out next month!!!
I’m going to say that CarmineLyra are not my favorite couple. I really didn’t see a chemistry between them.
⁺‧₊˚ ཐི⋆♱⋆ཋྀ ˚₊‧⁺
I’m actually looking forward to reading this whole series…
⁺‧₊˚ ཐི⋆♱⋆ཋྀ ˚₊‧⁺
Uhm… this book was… something…
「 ✦ 𝐋𝐘𝐑𝐀 𝐎𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐕𝐀 ✦ 」
╰┈➤ (𝘧𝘤: 𝘈𝘭𝘪𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘯 𝘐𝘎)
She was alright. I do feel bad about her past and the way she was treated for something she didn’t do and had to live with her father’s sin. I wish she had more backbone. Like come on girl stand up for yourself.
I’m honestly surprised she’s not pregnant bc my god-
「 ✦ 𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐄 𝐁𝐀𝐑𝐎𝐍𝐄 ✦ 」
╰┈➤ (𝘧𝘤: 𝘈𝘭𝘦𝘹 𝘉𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘢)
It’s hard to fine a fancast for him.
Well isn’t he the big bad wolf… honestly that man is way too possessive like my god. He did something to Lyra that I didn’t like but if she liked it… he’s not my favorite out of the group let me just write that.
⁺‧₊˚ ཐི⋆♱⋆ཋྀ ˚₊‧⁺
The book was good-ish in the beginning like couldn’t put it down but then it started to drag and got boring.
I honestly do think it was worth 520 something pages it could’ve been shorter.
The side characters were so interesting and I’m actually excited to read their stories.
I want to read Kir story 1.) they fancast him as David Gandy. Instantly going to love. 2.) His character is so interesting and I feel like he’ll be my favorite in the series. Sadly he’ll most likely be with a blonde (aka: Evelina) I want him to be with Dove tho!
I also want to read about the Raven! The way he’s described is so interesting! I need to know who he is!
⁺‧₊˚ ཐི⋆♱⋆ཋྀ ˚₊‧⁺
Overall, 3.25/5 stars ★
I was going to give it 3.5 but I read the epilogue and it made my rating go down I’m tired of them going at it.
I’m so excited for Kir’s book! It’s coming out next month!!!
I’m going to say that CarmineLyra are not my favorite couple. I really didn’t see a chemistry between them.
March 9, 2025
4.25⭐️
[arc review]
whew that was HOT 🥵
jagger cole just does it so well. idk how but every single book i’ve read by him is like crack. i’ve said that before and i’ll say it over and over because he’s just that good.
ngl i forgot i’ve read bianca and kratos’ story in the venomous gods series but it was nice to see them again in this book, since bianca and carmine are siblings. lyra is a little clueless about the new york mafia world mostly because she doesn’t indulge in the gossip between the ballet girlies but bianca is the one that gives her the most support after her wedding.
lyra comes from an extremely dark past. she has an alcoholic mother and a father that has done unspeakable things to teenage girls. the poor girl is traumatized and has lived through enough for two lifetimes. my heart broke for her because it seemed that no matter where she went, it seemed like she could never move on from her past and she was constantly getting dragged backward while trying to move forward.
carmine believes he’s a monster that has no possibility of redemption. he’s insanely possessive but as vito says, he’s loyal to everyone he calls his own. that teeny tiny soft spot of loyalty for lyra comes out a lot throughout the book. you might have to squint to see it, but it’s there.
i’ve missed the new york mafia drama so i was very excited to find out that this series is taking us back and i’m beyond excited for kir’s book and another one jagger told us about in his fb group 🤭
[arc review]
whew that was HOT 🥵
jagger cole just does it so well. idk how but every single book i’ve read by him is like crack. i’ve said that before and i’ll say it over and over because he’s just that good.
ngl i forgot i’ve read bianca and kratos’ story in the venomous gods series but it was nice to see them again in this book, since bianca and carmine are siblings. lyra is a little clueless about the new york mafia world mostly because she doesn’t indulge in the gossip between the ballet girlies but bianca is the one that gives her the most support after her wedding.
lyra comes from an extremely dark past. she has an alcoholic mother and a father that has done unspeakable things to teenage girls. the poor girl is traumatized and has lived through enough for two lifetimes. my heart broke for her because it seemed that no matter where she went, it seemed like she could never move on from her past and she was constantly getting dragged backward while trying to move forward.
carmine believes he’s a monster that has no possibility of redemption. he’s insanely possessive but as vito says, he’s loyal to everyone he calls his own. that teeny tiny soft spot of loyalty for lyra comes out a lot throughout the book. you might have to squint to see it, but it’s there.
i’ve missed the new york mafia drama so i was very excited to find out that this series is taking us back and i’m beyond excited for kir’s book and another one jagger told us about in his fb group 🤭
November 16, 2025
Yeah this book is just my vibes ♥️
January 28, 2026
Carmine & Lyra
May 4, 2025
1⭐️
In my opinion this book is BORING!
Too many characters that I almost forgot who are the main characters that am supposed to pay attention.
The plot does involve dark topics but its lack in depth due to unnecessary intervention of other characters.
The romance was kinda flat for me. I didn’t even realised when they fell in love with each other.
I have been told that rating books 0⭐️ is kinda rude so am being generous with 1⭐️🙄
In my opinion this book is BORING!
Too many characters that I almost forgot who are the main characters that am supposed to pay attention.
The plot does involve dark topics but its lack in depth due to unnecessary intervention of other characters.
The romance was kinda flat for me. I didn’t even realised when they fell in love with each other.
I have been told that rating books 0⭐️ is kinda rude so am being generous with 1⭐️🙄
August 31, 2025
5⭐️ 4🌶
Mafia romance is always a favorite, but throw in secret society, and I was sat!
Lyra’s life imploded when she testified against her serial killer father at 14, and the trauma and rumors never let her go. Desperate for money, she takes a mysterious dance job with masks, blindfolds, and rules… until she sees something she shouldn’t.
Enter Carmine aka The Houd: mafia heir, Black Court enforcer, and the man about to become dangerously obsessed with his new wife.
Their chemistry? Explosive. The spice? Feral.
Suspenseful, kinky, and impossible to put down, Dance of Deception was the perfect kick-off to the series, and definitely one of my top Jagger Cole reads!
• Ballerina x Mafia Don
• Enemies to lovers
• Secret society / Masked men
• Blackmail / Forced marriage
• Primal play
Mafia romance is always a favorite, but throw in secret society, and I was sat!
Lyra’s life imploded when she testified against her serial killer father at 14, and the trauma and rumors never let her go. Desperate for money, she takes a mysterious dance job with masks, blindfolds, and rules… until she sees something she shouldn’t.
Enter Carmine aka The Houd: mafia heir, Black Court enforcer, and the man about to become dangerously obsessed with his new wife.
Their chemistry? Explosive. The spice? Feral.
Suspenseful, kinky, and impossible to put down, Dance of Deception was the perfect kick-off to the series, and definitely one of my top Jagger Cole reads!
• Ballerina x Mafia Don
• Enemies to lovers
• Secret society / Masked men
• Blackmail / Forced marriage
• Primal play
March 17, 2025
DNF at 65%… I felt nothing for the characters. He talks to her twice for like.. 5 minutes and then has the “she’s mine” attitude which I usually love.. but there’s no chemistry and the mafia talk was so dull.. I felt like I should have read a previous book, like I was missing something. The Society created was just.. again, dull 🙄 I have no idea where the five stars are coming from. Quite a few grammatical errors as well.
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