Bad Bishop

Society of Villains #1

by L.J. Shen, Anne Morgenrau (Translator)

»Du musst aufhören, mich töten zu wollen, Lila – du weißt, dass mich das anmacht.« Band 1 der viralen Dark-Mafia-Romance-Reihe endlich auf Deutsch!

Um ihren ruinierten Ruf zu retten, soll Mafiaprinzessin Lila Ferrante ausgerechnet an Tiernan Callaghan verheiratet werden, den Anführer des irischen Syndikats und Erzfeind ihrer Familie. Tiernan ist geheimnisvoll, grausam, berechnend – und stimmt dem wahnwitzigen Vorschlag zu Lilas Entsetzen zu. Was niemand weiß: Tiernan hat noch eine Rechnung mit einem alten Feind offen und braucht dafür dringend Verbündete. Lila scheint der Schlüssel zu sein, um seinen Racheplan endlich in die Tat umzusetzen. Doch nach und nach erschweren echte Gefühle dieses Vorhaben …

Bei diesem Buch handelt es sich um Dark Romance mit einer Leseempfehlung ab 18 Jahren. Im Buch sind Triggerwarnungen enthalten.Books that make you – blush.
Du suchst Liebesgeschichten mit reichlich Spice, mitreißenden Tropes oder morally grey book boyfriends? Dann entdecke weitere Bücher von Blush!

Enthaltene Arranged Marriage, Enemies to Lovers, Forced Proximity, Opposites Attract
4 von 5

Genres: Dark Romance, Romance, Mafia Romance, Dark, Audiobook, Enemies To Lovers, Forced Proximity

545 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 4, 2025

About the author

L.J. Shen is a New York Times, USA Today, WSJ, Washington Post and #1 Amazon Kindle Store bestselling author of contemporary romance books.

She writes angsty books, unredeemable anti-heroes who are in Bill Gates's tax bracket, and sassy heroines who bring them to their knees (for more reasons than one).


Keep up with L.J. on all platforms:
Newsletter Sign up ➜ https://bit.ly/3LhsIrb
Instagram➜ shorturl.at/cDJRZ
TikTok ➜ shorturl.at/frw59
Facebook➜ https://goo.gl/fKCSo4
Website ➜ www.authorljshen.com

Reviews

[Marianna Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I love you with a force that could destroy planets and universes, Lila.” “Protecting you is a compulsion at this point. I’d stop the night from falling if darkness scares you, Lila.”

No stop it RIGHT NOW!!!!!!! I am so obsessed with this book it’s not even FUNNY!! I went into this literally thinking I was going to hate it and it ended up being one of my favorite mafia books EVER?!!!!!! This is seriously sick and twisted and unhinged and INSANE and I was sat for every second of it! I didn’t want it to end!!! Please please check your trigger warnings and know this is extremely dark!

Tiernan. Don’t even start with me. There’s morally black then there Tiernan. He’s so toxic and possessive and I’m actually so in love with him it’s unhealthy. A funny sarcastic psychopath with trauma is just gonna make me fold every single time. My god did he break my heart though! This mannnnnnnnnn no I haven’t no words. Also them both being inexperienced >>>>>>> like them being each others first kiss had me GIGGGGGGGLINGGGG!! But again I warned you he is extremely toxic and does some crazy stuff in the beginning that some people will hate… I’m not some people. Oh my god and Lila???? I was scared she was gonna be another weak FMC with no backbone…. NOPE!!! Couldn’t be further from the truth, our girl is unhinged and I loved her! She literally stabbed and shot him on their wedding night and he LOVED IT?!!!! Bye.

AND THE PLOT TWIST?!!! No I’m so gagged. I’m also loved the side characters so much I need Achilles and Tierney’s book NOW!!!! I just know this whole series is gonna eat.

I’m actually gonna pass away this was so good.

[SK · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Protecting you is a compulsion at this point. I'd stop the night from falling if darkness scares you, Lila."

STOPPP THIS WAS PERFECT 😩🤌 Like this was more than anything I could have asked for. And honestly, I'm questioning the one star slandering reviews (especially with a certain cheating ACCUSATION- Will elaborate on that later). 😒

But firstly, I must rave about how good that plot was? It's no doubt dark and has a lot of gore and graphic language/scenes. It's not for everyone but it had me invested throughout. Like at no point from the first page to the last was I like I'm bored. Nope. It was a hooking plot. Had mystery, darkness, mafia tropes and life with utter chaos and drama that I loved.

The family dynamics really boosted this book up imo. Without the brothers? This would not have hit as hard as it did. Sure, the drama is chef's kiss but they make it real. I won't lie that certain dialogues and scenes had me screaming because of second hand embarrassment cause they were that cringe. But at the same time it was so hilarious too, I couldn't not enjoy myself. The banter was so good between all and the depth to these characters and relationship dynamics was fun and intense. Perfectly balanced.

Coming to Tiernan first.. I LOVED him. Yes, he's a little unhinged. Okay, maybe a lot. Not everyone will like him and that's fine. But to me, he was so charming? The sarcasm and wit, the vulnerability that grew and all that possessiveness and restraint to be gentle made him perfect for me.

And I loved Lila. My word, I felt so angry on her behalf. What was done to her all her life wasn't fair. And to see her become her own person, to make decisions and gain that autonomy was sexy as hell. She's a baddie and I take no slander against her.

Now the romance is slow burn. Yes there is attraction but it is not insta lusty or lovey sort. Their chemistry is so perfect. I loved their banter and genuine emotional connection that forms despite being forced into a marriage. It flows natural and unhinged between them until it settles to a more soothing angst that makes you root for them. The first half of their relationship is intense and fiery and the second half is passionate and loving. It reads natural (as natural as in a fictional mafia setting).

About the cheating accusation reviews on here and I really must address this because of how bad and imo falsely they represent Tiernan and the book. Firstly, you can only cheat on a person you're together with. Now the couple here, were forced into marriage that they didn't want. Neither Tiernan nor Lila were into each other at all. It's been like a couple of days into marriage. They are not together!! They don't love each other!! They're not emotionally attached to each other so it is not even emotional cheating. Secondly, it is addressed later in the book. Lila and Tiernan set firm boundaries with each other and it's never crossed again. He really respects her and stays loyal to her throughout the rest of the book. Thirdly, we have a statement from Lila herself nearing the end that she didn't consider it cheating because they weren't together. So pray tell, why are you all slandering this?! 🥲🥲

As for the ending? Oh boy, I LOVED the drama and the plot twists. I was shook and could not have predicated that at all 😩😩 Safe to say I'm gonna read the next one soon. And please do give this book a fair chance before assumptions. And do check trigger warnings!!

Thanks to my girl Meg for reading it with me 🩶


~•~•~
Have seen mixed reviews but it's been on my tbr for a while and I can't wait to give it a go.

[Irene]

ARE YOU ACTUALLY FUCKING KIDDING ME I THOUGHT THERE WAS JUST QUOTES ABOUT HIS FUCK ASS LIFE BUT HE FULL ON CHEATS ON HER

“Tiernan picked up his pace, his good eye boring into mine. Cold. Hard. Dark as my most illicit, awful nightmares.
He was taunting me.
A moan of fury parked in the back of my throat. I didn’t let it loose.
He coiled his long, lithe fingers around the front of the woman’s neck, like she was an animal he was taming, not breaking his stare from mine. That was when I noticed she was wearing a pink, knee-length dress. A LoveShackFancy staple.
I recognized it, because it was mine.
He touched my clothes? Stole them? Gave them to his mistresses?
My heart pounded furiously. Mama was right. Men were the work of the devil. I was never going to let him touch me.
“Jesus Christ, Callaghan.” The woman snapped her head back from the kitchen island, her eyes flaring at the sight of me. Her forehead had a red mark from being pressed against the hard surface. She looked nothing like me, despite the general characteristics. Her eyes were dark and a little too far apart, her mouth thin and wide, and her nose slightly crooked. “Your wife’s awake!”
Tiernan grabbed her by the hair, pinning her cheek “faced me. He closed his eye, looking tortured. “Shut up.”
“She’s watching.”
He thrust harder, deeper into her.
“She’s not firing on all cylinders,” he muttered.”

[Annika · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 boring and problematic ⭐️

Pregnancy by rape, is a delicate matter, nuance is important.

The story is not good, it’s actually a little boring and handles problematic issues in a lazy manner. I LOVE problematic storylines, but it has to be delicate?

Pregnancy by violent rape, and a heroine who is super welcoming of the pregnancy is just romantasizing the dilemma that rape victims can find themselves in. I respect that’s where you end up, but the road to that decision is going to be very, very nuanced, right? It was used a a cheap plot device to get the MMC’s married. The subject deserved more sophistication!

I am out, book terminated at 60% because the h is too one dimensional and ……

Someone apparently read “Annie’s song” by Catherine Anderson! 😂

Both books have: drumroll 🥁🥁🥁

1/ A deaf herione who is perceived mentally disabled with capabilities to age of 3, by every one except the mom.

2/ Both books have a heroine being violently raped while virgin. And not understanding what is happening.

3/ Both books have a herione get pregnant by a rapist.

4/ Both books have the heroine marry another man because of the pregnancy.

5/ Both books have the h’s not understand pregnancy or their own arousal. She thinks she is having a miscarriage when aroused.

I was intrigued because it’s a contemporary mafia setting, instead of Ohio 1900. I did not hate the similarities but I did hate how the book handled pregnancy by rape.

I you have read other reviews by me, you know I don’t have a problem with problematic! It draws me in so I can experience the sorcery of the author tie a bow on it. Not today. I didn’t finish it, but I have lost all my faith with this author.

The spice was SO BAD. Epic cringe.

Should you read it? Absolutely NOT.
It’s boring and problematic, at the same time😂 That is a book crime against humanity.

P.s. It was better than her last book. 😬 There is technically cheating in this book, but they don’t know each other yet, I don’t know if it really counts as cheating. If the wedding vow is the limit, I guess it is. But they barely know each other’s names when it occurs.

[naima · Rating 5 out of 5]

HOLY MFFFFFFFF.

buddy reading with my beutiful hol' up im tryna spell beautiful Annie. mixed reviews so you already know im gonna read it.

so far...
Her *points the gun at his head*
Him says she’s bluffing and can’t handle shit
Her *gets rid of the safety*
Him tells her to show decorum bc its 1am *puts on the silencer*😭
annie and i: "their definitely flirtinggg"

I don’t even know how to start this review for this crazy ass book so this is gonna be a word vomit

.
lets address this first tho - this book is NOT for the weak hearted, if you were looking for some sweet hand holding this is not for you

And I’m not going to excuse the crazy ass things that were said in this book BUT I’m not going to clump them in the category and say that they made the book ‘bad.’ If anything they made the book so unusual to its counterparts, that it became interesting to read…also this is a mafia book it’s going to have crazy men if the sky is blue.

Her STUPID mum was very infuriating, how dare she. I get that intention but it’s so fucked up. If I ever come across the bitch this is what im going to do

Lila the woman you are…grazing your husband with a bullet on your wedding night instead of consummating…I’m in awe.

ONLY THIS WOMAN would find Tiernan making an effort annoying 😭

"Unfortunately, Tiernan became even more insufferable after I saved his life. He now insisted we have dinner together every evening. He brought delicacies from the Italian deli"

And when Tiernan went on his long ass rant about how he only did blowies and anal cus there was less chance of the woman orgasming (again not romanticising, just admiring the audacity of this asshole).

But holy fuckkk, when Tiernan and Lila communicate for the first time, it felt like Christmas came early OKAY I was SMILING.

And don’t get me started on when Lila spoke for the first time (even though it was out of rage, it was big for her) I wish it was out of love and not anger though.

“I hate you, but not enough to ruin these perfectly good shoes.” Tiernan shouldered off his peacoat and splayed it on the ground beneath me, so I didn’t tarnish my pink pumps. Finally, I speared him a pissed-off glare, stepping onto his jacket. “The wool of your stupid coat got stuck in my heel.”

🤭😂😂😂 I ❤️ WOMEN DEGRADING MEN.

I knowww he did some unforgivable shit (not gonna start w this, id prolly never end) but he’s a junkie for his woman!!!. He’s jealous of the OBGYN, hes jealous of a dildo, and hes jealous of a potential tattoo artist after she said he would tattoo his writing on her.

What Lila thought would happen if she drew and gifted him a portrait of HIMSELF

One thing I do wish though is that Lila’s feeling about her situation were expressed more in her inner monologues, I know she expressed rage and there were signs of her not coping well but I wish we heard how she felt and what she was thinking.

How Lila looked in that *one* scene with her pink gun thats bedazzled with diamonds

“Darlin’.” I crouched down, pressing her hand to my lips. “This is the
last time I’m leaving you for more than ten minutes Whose stupid idea was
that?”

UM LITERALLY HIS

Tiernan planning Lila’s security

“I love you with a force that could destroy planets and universes, Lila.” 🥹🥹❤️‍🩹

you can say ANYTHING you want about these two, ANYTHING but you cannot say they they were not there for each other when they needed each other the MOST. Tiernan’s devotion and loyalty to Lila, and Lila’s bravery in return. INSANE. But that being said i will say that this book was interesting to me more so because of the plot than the romance.

some extra thoughts
- I’m kinda hung up on how she probably tasted gunpowder residue (can’t be good right?) after he put the freshly shot gun in her mouth.
- And 2 certain plot choices reminded me of 2 certain similar-part plots of 2 certain movies *cough 365 days, 50shades cough*
- And surely these grown ass Italian men who weigh prolly more than 200kgs and kill for fun are not using the lingo “math is mathing” righttttt or am I too judgemental of men
- His crossed out self destruction🥹
- Emilia spencer mention!! felt like my 2 fav worlds colliding, i would pay good money to see Vicious interact with the men
-Tiernan being scared of Lila during labour
- White. Yellow. Lavender. Peach. Green. Orange. Red. White. Yellow. Lavender. Peach. Green. Orange. Red.

so YEAH i LOVED this book and my adrenaline ran highhh after those last chapters

[Yasmine · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½ — 4,5/5 🌑✨♥️

“I love you with a force that could destroy planets and universes, Lila.”

I didn’t expect this book to hold my attention the way it did 🫠

What begins as a marriage arranged for convenience quickly shifts into something far more complicated once both characters realize they are not dealing with someone they can easily read or control.

The more the story unfolded, the more it leaned into tension rather than instant connection, which made it easier to stay invested.

✦ two people, one arrangement, zero clarity ✦

The arranged marriage setup here isn’t just a background detail—it drives almost every interaction.

Both characters enter it with their own assumptions about the other, and a lot of the tension comes from how wrong those assumptions turn out to be 😶‍🌫️

Instead of relying heavily on constant twists, the story often focuses on shifting dynamics: who has the upper hand in a conversation, what is being hidden, and how long it takes before honesty starts to surface.

The mafia and family elements add pressure but the core of the story stays centered on how two people negotiate a situation neither of them fully chose.

⸻

Lila Ferrante stands out because she doesn’t announce herself in obvious ways.

She pays attention, processes more than she says 🥺 and often understands the situation earlier than the people around her realize.

What makes her interesting is not sudden confidence or dramatic change, but how consistently she adapts to what she’s facing without losing awareness of her surroundings.

She often ends up being underestimated, which becomes one of the things that quietly works in her favor.

Tiernan Callaghan is written in a way that makes him difficult to approach at first.

He is controlling in how he handles situations and tends to keep emotional distance as a default rather than an exception 🫣 What surprised me at times, though, is that he also had moments where his reactions or lines came off unintentionally funny 😂 which made him more engaging to read than I expected.

As the story progresses, it becomes clearer that his behavior is less about mystery and more about habit—how he has learned to operate in his environment.

The writing keeps him consistent throughout; he doesn’t shift into a different personality later on, but small details start to explain his reactions more clearly.

⸻

✦ nothing about them was linear ✦

The relationship develops in a gradual way, built more on exposure than on immediate trust 🥹

At the beginning, most of their interactions are shaped by misreading each other or trying to stay in control of the situation.

Over time, those interactions start to change shape. Conversations become less guarded, and there are moments where they begin reacting to each other as individuals rather than as part of an arrangement.

What makes their dynamic engaging is that progress is not linear—it moves forward, then hesitates, then adjusts again.

One thing that seems to divide readers is the early “betrayal” scene 😮‍💨 It didn’t bother me the way it did for others. At that point, the marriage was still purely transactional, with no trust or emotional connection between them, so it didn’t feel like a betrayal of something already built—more like part of their messy beginning rather than a real break in something established.

✦ and somehow, they made it work anyway ✦

The strongest part of this book for me was the dynamic between the main characters and how it shifts over time rather than any single plot twist or event 🤭

It’s a story that works best when focused on how two people adjust to each other under pressure, and how that adjustment slowly changes the way they see both themselves and each other.

My rating of The Society of Villains Series:

1. Bad Bishop — 4.5 ⭐️
2. Twisted Pawn — 4.25 ⭐️
3. Fallen Rook — TBR

❀⊹⊱ 𝓟𝓻𝓮-𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓭 ⊹⊱❀
⤿ Alright… this better be worth the chaos I’m about to enter 😛👀

[Sonia]

This book solidifies why I haven’t read LJ in years 🤷🏻‍♀️.

Read Irene’s review to see why (thank you for your review Irene ❤️)

Because watching my “husband” f’ing another woman is sexy right? 🙄

There are things we can’t unsee🥴🥴🥴, and having the hero inside another woman while the heroine is watching is one of them 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫.

Some might say they don’t ACTUALLY consider this cheating because of X Y and Z reasons, but I’m tired of that excuse. It’s like when people give men leniency when it comes to real life cheating- you know, because “boys will be boys” 😐, or the famous Friends scenario- “they were on a break.”

We live in a world/society with that same mentality that slut shame women who act the same as men^^, and I don’t wanna see it in the books I’m spending hours/days reading.

Plain and simple 🤷🏻‍♀️

Not. For. Me.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️
Of course I was going to like this. As if I needed further proof that I have a weakness for completely unhinged fictional men 🙃

Oooo this was such a wild ride!!
Don’t let the fact that it took me a while to finish this book fool you into thinking it dragged, because it absolutely didn’t! Honestly, the delay had nothing to do with the story itself.
Reese and Monty completely ruined me in the best way. At the time of me picking this book up they were the only couple I wanted to gush about and moving on from them felt almost impossible.
But the moment I finally locked in with this story I couldn’t put it down.
This book is amazing in the most chaotic way.
It’s crazy, sick, twisted and also made me laugh way more than I ever expected from a dark romance.
The writing flowed really well and I found myself completely immersed in the story. I was intrigued the entire time.
I did figure out the main twist pretty early on, but that final twist? Absolutely not. I did not see that one coming and it left me sitting there with my jaw on the floor.
There were also so many moments where I was just thinking okay…what the hell is happening right now? but in the best, most addictive way.
And I have to say, I was surprised by how much plot there actually was.
The story kept me invested the whole time and the pacing was excellent.
Even more surprising I actually enjoyed the flashbacks.
Normally I’m impatient to get back to the present timeline and end up skimming them, but here I was fully invested in learning more about Tiernan’s past and backstory.

As for the characters…Tiernan is something else entirely 👀
This man is toxic, possessive, he’s intimidating, crazy, unpleasant and honestly a pretty awful human being at first.
Not going to sugarcoat it, he was rough to warm up to.
In the beginning I did not like this man. At all. I kept wondering how anyone could see him as redeemable. He hates everyone, women, men, children…literally the whole world.
And yet…somehow he did it 🫣
He redeemed himself and don’t get me wrong he is still very much the same sarcastic psychopath at his core, but the way he shows up and opens up to Lila after he finds out the truth completely shifted how I saw him.
The lengths this man would go to for her, the gestures and devotion got me completely swooning.
And I definitely didn’t expect to be giggling, kicking my feet and swooning over this man as much as I did. But here I am. What can I say I love an obsessed man, basically barking when Lila says the word.
Loved how you can clearly see when his feelings shifted and watching him struggle with those emotions, especially the fear of losing her and not be worthy of her, ended up being one of my favorite parts of the entire book.
There’s just something about a fictional man who despises the world but softens only for her.
Also his dry humor was chef’s kiss 🤌🏻

And then there’s Lila.
At first, I wasn’t exactly excited about reading another mafia story where an 18 year old girl is pushed into an arranged well, in this case basically forced marriage. I expected a whole different personality from her but she surprised me in the best way.
I actually ended up loving her almost immediately.
Being inside her head was such a great experience. She’s incredibly mature for her age, sharp, witty and her snarky little remarks had me smiling more than once. She’s such a strong fmc and knowing everything she went through made her journey even more meaningful.
Her character development was so beautiful to see. What I loved most was watching her grow into the woman she was always meant to be.
Tiernan never tried to hold her back or dim her spirit, instead he supported her in his own way and gave her the space to finally become herself.
Seeing her stand up for herself and demand respect from the people who wronged her genuinely made my heart so full.
She endured so much, yet still managed to rise above it all.
And the best part? She was truly Tiernan’s equal. She met him step for step, never backing down and never letting him overpower her.
Also the way she had that man completely wrapped around her finger, and knew it, was absolutely glorious. And the fact that she wasn’t afraid to use that power? Oh we love to see it 🙂‍↕️

Watching their relationship unfold was such a messy, chaotic and beautiful journey in the end.
They start off absolutely despising each other, barely able to stand being in the same room, but slowly that hatred begins to shift into something deeper. Understanding, respect and eventually love.
What made their dynamic so compelling is that they’re both deeply wounded in their own ways.
They carry so much trauma, so many scars, and yet somehow they find comfort in each other.
My heart ached for both of them and seeing these two broken people slowly learning how to trust, how to care and how to open their hearts was everything I wanted and more from this dark romance.

"She was playful and confident and fearless. I no longer set the pace of what was happening. The conqueror became the conquered. And I knew, with amusing, dark finality, that I was completely, tragically, wretchedly hers."

This book definitely made me want to pick up more of L.J. Shen’s work and I already cannot wait for the second book.
I’m especially excited for Achilles and Tierney’s story because their dynamic immediately caught my attention.
Tierney, in particular, already has my whole heart.
She’s giving me strong Gianna vibes from The Maddest Obsession and I was hooked on her character right away.
From the moment Lila entered her life and her brother’s life, Tierney never once treated her differently.
She was there for her from the start, supporting her, protecting her and standing by her side when she needed it most.
And when she finally opened up about what happened to her…I was literally sobbing.
That moment completely broke me. You can tell she hides so much pain behind her humor and that cold, guarded exterior, and it just made me want to understand her even more.
I’m so excited to eventually be inside her head, to see her thoughts, her struggles, and how her story unfolds especially with Achilles.
There’s clearly so much depth to her character and I already know that book is going to be an emotional ride. I truly cannot wait to see how their story plays out.

I just want to say that this book is extremely dark and contains many heavy triggers. Please make sure to check them all if you ever decide to pick up this book‼️ Your mental health matters more than any book ❤️
This is definitely the kind of book that won’t work for everyone, but it worked for me. Also if you’re looking for a sweet, cute and emotionally stable mmc, this probably isn’t your book.
But if you’re ready to abandon your morals for a bit and dodge some red flags (because this man says and does some pretty questionable things at the beginning that I absolutely hated) hop on in.

________________________________________________
pre-read:
Jumping into my first L.J. Shen book and I'm not totally sure if this is the best place to start...but we'll find out! I've heard nothing but good things, so fingers crossed it delivers the entertainment 🍿

[❥ KAT ❥ Kitty Kats Crazy About Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 𝐆𝐄𝐀𝐋𝐀𝐂𝐇 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐒.....📚'𝙼𝚈 𝚁𝙴𝚅𝙸𝙴𝚆 𝙰𝙽𝙳 𝙾𝚃𝙷𝙴𝚁𝚂'📚 can also be found on my blog: ╰┈➤KITTY KATS CRAZY ABOUT BOOKS

°❀⋆.ೃ࿔* 𝐁𝐀𝐃 𝐁𝐈𝐒𝐇𝐎𝐏 °❀⋆.ೃ࿔* Is the first full length dark twisted romance book in the (Society of Villains) series by author L.J. Shen. Spoken in dual POV's. FMC: Lila Ferrante 18 and MMC: Tiernan Callaghan 28..

It's seriously been many moons ago since I've read a mafia romance book, only right that to bring me back to this genre which I used to love is by this author..

☀︎ Marriage of convenience
☀︎ Enemies to lovers
☀︎ Age gap
☀︎ Forced proximity
☀︎ Scarred MMC
☀︎ Opposites attract
☀︎ Morally grey MMC
☀︎ Hates everyone but her
☀︎ She tries to kill him (“You have to stop trying to kill me, Lila. It’s giving me a massive hard-on, and I’ve never been good with delayed gratification.”)

This is where Shen shines, it’s not too dark, but some will need to check triggers, it has been said that this series will go darker, which I am all for…

Lila is a gorgeous, and extremely courageous Italian mafia princess who many underestimated how clever she actually was, even her own siblings treated her as though she had the plague. Many called her dimwitted and developmentally delayed which is exactly what she presented to the world as tasked by her mother in order to keep her safe. But secretly during the summer like a sponge she was learning everything she could get her hands on.

(“The only way to escape marriage to a mobster was to be unable to be married. More specifically-to pretend I had a developmental disability. My mother came up with the scheme when I was a child, and I went along with it, trusting she knew best.”)

Tiernan is a Irish mafia prince and was as cold hearted as they come which was programmed into him at a very young age, as you delve deeper into his story you'll understand exactly why he is the was he is and boy that heart breaks as you read what he and his twin sister had to endure when they were younger.

Lila endured something horrific and life changing which is where Tiernan is coerced into marrying her.

(“I always dreamed about a dashing prince. Heavily lashed, with pouty lips and big, beautiful eyes. As it turned out, I fell in love with the complete opposite of it. With a Nephilim, a fallen giant, hands scarred from murder.”)

I tiptoed into this not really knowing what to expect, the giggles, (“She's not intellectually impaired, you oversized used condoms.”) the swooning, (“ I always thought a bullet will finish me off. But in the end, it was my wife that turned out to be my demise.”) the hardcore love towards these two was unexpected, the slow burn and those angsty too and fro feels these two subjected me to, cemented my love for this author yet again. I loved these two, and they probably became my top favourite couple of 2025.

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[Miki’s⚠️ Safety Reviews & Rants⚠️]

Full on cheating!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

If your up L.J.Shen Ass. Keep your comments to yourself we all have different triggers, likes and dislikes. You’ll be deleted and blocked. Don’t waste your time.

[Hades ( Disney's version ) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for an ALC of Bad Bishop by L.J. Shen

So, Again, we listen to our Lord of the underworld when she tells us to 👏🏼CHECK👏🏼 YOUR👏🏼 TRIGGER 👏🏼WARNINGS!! 👏🏼.... This is definitely another one of those books my loves. so please check that before diving in!

This is another book that will not be for everybody and that's perfectly ok! Just, if it's not for you, respectfully, stay over there🩵..And I really do mean that with love because your mental space matters! Buuuut also because at the same time,great books don't deserve bad reviews due to you picking the wrong cup of tea.. This book is definitely for our dark romance people!...If you are into darker romances buckle up! You're in for a delightfully dark time!! I would personally put this book in the group with others.. such as Haunting Adeline, the Court of Ravens duology, etc. You're either going to eat this book up leaving not even an atom of a crumb..or, you're going to think there's something wrong with those of us that do love it over here and halfway through you'll probably find yourself Googling if Amazon sells Holy Water..And I really don't think there's going to be an in-between here lol.

I did thoroughly enjoy this book and everything about it. L.J. Shen really does such an amazing job seamlessly blending the atrocity and beauty of life, with some fun along the way.

Prior to now I had no idea something could possibly be so wretched and beautiful at the same time.

The layers to this book are just incredible. I loved that it was like Peaky Blinders but with Russian & Italian Mob families. I loved the nicknames the characters gave each other and the fact they weren't cringy as all he🏒 🏒 like in a lot of other books. I loved that real pieces of history were sprinkled in. I loved that the author writes such an enchanting and engrossing story that you forget you aren't in some other world that existed long ago, until you're reminded by things like the use of technology. Yeah, I think it's safe to say I loved this one 😅.. If all of that wasn't enough to sell me, my 90's baby heart was snatched the second I heard "tamagotchi".. and OH MY Zeus!! THE ENDING!!? WHATT?!?.. This was just all around a phenomenal experience!

Until next time,
Hades
🩵

[♥︎ Heather ⚔ (Semi-Hiatus-attempting return)]

Did LJ Shen delete her IG? 😅 I Can’t find her and I literally just reposted about this series and now I can’t find the tropes 😭

Anyway, it sounds incredible- I’ll update this shortly. 🫠

[nadine (s-ia) · Rating 1 out of 5]

buckle up I have a lot to say.

before we start: dear authors, please stop writing small, short, skinny, petite fmcs if you're going to make the mmc a fuckass giant. it’s ridiculous.

pregnancy rape (not by the mmc), cheating, abuse?, and threats of rape even in front of her family. he's a piece of shit of a man. as if he didn't know she was raped, impregnated, and forced to keep the baby and marry him he still threatened her.

now let's start with the mother; she told the family that Lila is intellectually impaired to protect her from mafia men and from being forced into marriage so a husband couldn't abuse her. smart move to be honest. but she also kept her clueless about basic life skills. yes she took her to the island so she could be herself riding horses, taking tennis classes, reading but Lila doesn't know anything beyond that. she doesn't understand her own body during pregnancy, doesn't know what PayPal means, or how to order things online. she literally doesn't know basic things, and I blame her mother for that even after we learn the real reason, it's not justifiable.

Tiernan cheated on her on their wedding day. and do you know what he did next? he brought a blonde woman (like Lila) to their apartment and cheated in front of her. to make it worse, he is actively turned on by Lila while believing she has a "child's brain." even worse, he gave the mistress Lila's dress to wear while cheating so he could imagine her. and if that wasn't enough, he brought another woman into her bedroom. (that’s so Lila can finally snap and start talking) when she spoke and he learned the truth, his first thought was: “Chiara was right. As soon as her daughter opened her mouth and I listened to her talk, the first thing that sprang to my mind was that I could fuck her now. She was fair game.” WTF

as for the plot it got lost. the entire book, Tiernan talks about revenge and killing Alex, blah blah blah. he ambushed him, they talked, and boom everything gets resolved in half a page 😃. as for Lila's rapist I suspected two people. one was cleared, leaving only one option, and in the end it was him. so there was no plot twist for me.

anyway, was the book good? eh, no. was the plot good? it had potential. do I recommend it? no. save your time.

thank you Ashlyn for buddy reading this with me and I'm sorry for blowing up your dms with so much updates 😅 looking forward to reading more books with you in the future 🤍.

[bookluvr (s-ia) · Rating 2 out of 5]

a dumpster fire!!! a literal one! yet…i couldn’t seem to stop myself from peering into the flames. ignore the stars — this thing kept pulling me back in after several dnfs over the course of hours!!! i almost want to reward it for being a resilient little shit but i cannot in good conscience offer it any better than what i’m giving it 😂. my rating is one more than one, and that’s a win!

a long disclaimer for what turned into a longer-than-intended post:

this review isn’t about to be malicious or too negative, i promise. i just have…well…observations. and an experience to relay to my reading journal here. a lot of my mutuals love this book, so i don’t mean any disrespect 😂.

personally, i don’t even have deep hate in my heart for it and i can somewhat understand the appeal for others. however, i cannot say that i fully liked this book. i was cackling and grimacing and ya know…i was rarely bored haha, so there’s that i suppose. see my review tone as playful rather than hateful. imma always keep it a buck with my feelings though.

dis about to be a free flow of my consciousness because i need to get it all out naow while it’s still fresh, so this may get a tad chaotic. have to stay on theme with the book. this will also be (overtly) spoiler-free, except for relaying what happens in the first few pages and in the paragraph about lila further down. ok — let’s proceed.

i knew, i knew, that i was thoroughly cooked when this book opened up the way that it did. allow me to recount what i was up against in the first 30(ish) pages ALONE:

🚩the mmc gets his eyeball gouged out by the fmc’s brothers in the most hyperunrealistic way (not that i thought a mafia romance would be super realistic, but this scene was something else — the writing here was so goofy 😂😂);

🚩the mcs have their first intro as the mmc gets released by the brothers and runs into the fmc on his way out. he threatens to *checks notes* “drown, chop, rape and kill her” (fmc’s summary version). he doesn’t make good on all his threats (wheeeew!) but he does leave her with his eyeball and walks away with a skull under his armpit (and his frikken eyeball just scooped out, bleeding all over the place and on her). you’d never think anything was less than fine by the way he was carrying on like everything was hunky dory here. he will go on to use said skull as a penholder. a resourceful prince;

🚩from the outset, the fmc’s entire characterization is sketched out in the most bizarre fashion. we find out that she fakes a mental disability that makes her (aged 18) come across as aged 4-6 (the book couldn’t decide either). uhm 😦 yeah…she even plays with dolls. the nuttiest thing is that we learn later on in the book that she does have a disability, but it’s not the one she pretends to have and it has nothing to do with her mental aptitude;

and

🚩the fmc gets raped on-page (by an unknown assailant — not the mmc, thank god), gets PREGNANT from said rape and is REFUSED an abortion due to mobster catholicism logic. she has no say. the family handling it the way that they did, “solving it” the way that they did…it sure was something…

now, red flags #3 and #4 didn’t come as a complete surprise to me because i’d seen partial whispers of these things in the past (so i was expecting some variation of these ideas to pop up along the way)…but seeing the execution and the extent of the insanity for myself was a different experience altogether AND i hadn’t prepared myself to get pistol-whipped in the first 30 pages, let me tell you.

i had not even breached the 10% mark and this is what i was dealing with.

…like, i kneeeeeeeeeeeeew (re: the aforementioned being cooked part).

and i kept reading anyways.

and the madness did not end where i just did 😂. it continued. in earnest.

i was feeling brave picking this up in the first place (the marketing for the new (mm) release in this series got to me, i fear) — so i decided to start from the top. now, here i am pondering how to unread parts of this. my jaw was on the floor 😧😂😭.

there’s absolutely nothing (more) that i could say about this book that i’m sure hasn’t been said already, so i’ll try to keep it brief (famous last words, ha). yes, it handled A LOT of things very questionably and in poor taste, and it was utterly ridiculous overall. the disability hoax was awful, just so distasteful and messed up allll the way to hell — that’s actually the thing i found most offensive about this and not the other bajillion controversial things lol lol. however, it’s also true that yes…i was entertained by parts of this?? after my last abysmal read, this was a step UP on entertainment value alone 😂. first off, there’s the lunacy of it all. but also, there’s a decent and fun(ish) mafia plot here and some of the side characters piqued my interest! i didn’t really care deeply for the mcs or the romance though, but they had an amusing appeal of their own.

idk man, something about lj shen’s nonsense makes me snicker because while i haven’t read anything by her in a very long time, i do remember being in stitches while reading the first two books in that fairytale reimagining series she co-wrote with parker s. huntington. this wasn’t as fun for me as i remember those books being at the time that i read them, but they were hated too and somehow i vibed. this book had me shaking my head and pausing to stare at my walls so many times, or bursting into laughing fits at the sheer incredulity of it all at others. some lines were a creativity i had not come across in a minute 😂 ”morality is mediocrity’s dry-cunted sister” just popped into my head as i’m typing this up real quick, and believe me — there were a ton more insane sentences in here 😂😂. like…a TOOOON. all this to say, i could never accuse this book of being bland (except maybe when i was in lila’s pov at times or towards the end when things became predictable and i wasn’t connected to the romance enough to appreciate the gooey bits). i’m sure many other reviews will tell you exactly what happens in here play-by-play because this has gotta be one of the most talked about dark romances of 2025, and to say that the reception was polarizing would be a massive understatement. people either loved it or wanted to plunge it down a filthy porta-potty toilet — fewer people inbetween (at least, from my line of sight). i think i identify as a lower-end inbetweener though 😅.

wawaweewa…tiernan (the mmc) is probably some of the worst humanity has to offer up — but not theeee worst. bring back the gallows for earlier-parts-of-the-book tiernan though because he was downright deplorable. his mind was a colourful, interesting place to say the least 😅. the beginning of the book had a dedication that read ”to all the readers who complain that my heroes are always irredeemable jerks…i’m afraid i have terrible news”, so i was warned and the prophecy came to pass somewhat…but there IS a turning point. even at his worst though, some of his antics and lines had me wheezing when i wasn’t wanting to clobber him over the head 😂. that’s all i could have hoped for 😂. i did ask for more of a piece of shit on my last mafia romance, and maybe ingredient x was a touch more heavy-handed than i bargained for in this recipe at first. still, he was comical (even just the imagery of him strutting around with that eyepatch was hilarious), AND he softened up for his wife and pulled off a few sweet gambits lmao. can’t say he wasn’t utterly down bad for her. and i quote: ”she could roll in pig shit and i’d lick her clean from head to toe.” i liked how protective he became over his girl, and when it came down to the wire and despite him hollering depraved threats that implied otherwise, he was a consent king. i always exhale in relief nowadays when reading a dark romance and this turns out to be the case. the bar is in hell. there was redemption for him after all.

lila’s character was built in a way that i had me questioning my literacy level. i could not fathom what we were doing with her, and i won’t attempt to explain it (ok maybe i will — so this next part may get a little spoiler-y). it didn’t make sense that she was aware of some things in life but naïve about others. i get that she was sheltered but wdym you don’t understand what your body is doing while making out —that it’s prepping for intercourse — and there you are thinking you “had an accident” and are wetting yourself. she announces that to the mmc like a dunce, mind you, and needs it explained to her like she’s a toddler. this is after (dis)illusions of her cognitive deficits are lifted for all the characters AND long after she walked in on the mmc earlier in the book having sex with someone else and could see from her far-off position that he was “in the wrong hole” and was “riding her rectum”. also, you had not that long ago gotten a vaginal ultrasound with a wand that you were horny enough to be thinking about being your husband’s appendage. i don’t include the rape as an enlightening experience on arousal, but girl…all other evidence is there that you know what sex is and what it means / feels like to get excited!!! please. AND you are (apparently) incredibly smart, can suture up stab wounds like a champ and have a more than basic understanding of anatomy (and you’ve had secret tutoring over the years, even if you didn’t have formal schooling). you’re 18 and haven’t been raised chained up in a basement. like, what the hell is this? 😂 lj, stop playing 😂. the inconsistencies don’t end here, this is just one example of many i could get into. lila’s inner monologues felt like trying to solve for y the fuck on more than one occasion. deeply unserious. her trauma wasn’t handled very well either but it’s a mafia romance, so that was probably too delulu an ask on my part. the infantilization of her just wasn’t my cuppa and the hyperfixation with her being a teenager (it was referenced constantly…even by the mmc) was odd, even for an age-gap romance (and i actually like that trope!). i think it was bothering me because she was reading like a child, given how the story was portraying her and how the other characters interacted with her, but then she’s engaging in all this other stuff going on in the book that’s not child’s play 💀.

and while on the topic of unseriousness, why was it that after a dedication like the one about her irredeemable heroes in a book of this nature, did the next page reveal a “woke” edgar allan poe quote?? only lj shen man. i have to believe that her mind inhabits a more zany, alternate plane compared to planet earth. that’s the only thing that can explain this behaviour. the fact that the president of america and his first lady are openly associating with these people was laughable too — why couldn’t she make it the mayor or something 😂😂. it had to be outlandish and far-fetched to make the book lol.

while the entertainment factor was present, a few personal no-nos occurred here and there and i’m a little (a lot) flabbergasted, so 2 stars is the best i can do. the writing quality also had its quirks, which factors into my rating:

— it was shaky and juvenile (and let me be honest: cringey) in areas. the spice didn’t do it for me either because of this;

— some things should have been shown and not told. there were scenes of them spending time together and getting comfortable with their arranged marriage that i think would have been nice to have had on-page instead of recapped. this would have made their connection and changes in their dynamic more convincing for me and maaaybe given me a better chance at eating up the romance; and

— there were noticeable mistakes and inconsistencies (ESPECIALLY but not limited to the fmc’s characterization — again, so many big fat gaping holes that i COULD NOT ignore and they were driving me absolutely bonkers when i couldn’t unsee them).

it dawned on me quite late into this that this played into some of the things i don’t love about the accidental / surprise pregnancy trope. i kinda hate that trope even in light / contemporary romances and try to avoid it where possible, unless i’m stuck reading an interconnected standalones series and feel the need to be complete on it. while this isn’t technically that to a tee, because of lila’s situation, some similar story beats from those kinds of books pop up in here.

but…in spite of all of this, i was kinda tickled by this book in parts and this is probably the most gleeful and energized i’ve felt about a 2 star read. ever. no small feat. don’t really know what else to say 😂.

if you see me reading more from this series, that’s nunya or my rational side’s business…it’s solely between the chaos demon swinging from my back and god 😅🤭. like i said, i’m into some of these side characters, so i see potential for me to climb with this series? does alex get a book? i might be interested in him. also, i gotta see what that luca do. when he ran his knuckles through his stubble ONCE near the beginning of the book, me: 🐱💦 + 😛 = new kink unlocked. simple arithmetic. even a lila could understand it. in theory.

p.s. to throw my opinion into the mix (one nobody asked for): i didn’t think it was cheating either, given where we were at with this relationship around the time of said event. regardless, it did read a smidge unsavoury to me in its execution 🙈. i don’t think i would have bat an eye had it happened behind an ajar door instead of one blown wide open like that…detailed the way that it was, using the language that was used, fmc just standing all up in there like 👁️. but hey, that’s just me.

[✨Rachael, Island Bookworm ✨]

Note to self and spoiler



The MMC doesn't cheat 😒🙄 he just fucks another woman who's wearing his wife's clothes after he's already married. 🤷🏾‍♀️ I don't care if he fucks them up the ass with an alien dildo,touching another woman sexually after you're married is cheating 🙄. He didn't have feelings for the h yet, he's not committed to her yet, he thinks she's mentally deficient..... blah blah blah it's still fucking cheating slimy ass mother fucker! The excuses we make for pos mmcs never ceases to amaze me😂 thankfully I don't read this author..... curiosity sent me here 🤭

Imagine the h already went through so much trauma and then has to put up with a "husband" like this?And she walks in on them fucking too 🖕🏽and then he's redeemed 🙄🙄🙄
FFS we've lost the plot in romance I tell ya



It's my opinion I'm entitled to it the same way you're entitled to yours so stfu cheater loving ass 😘.

[Yelena · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5
This is my not-so-gentle reminder to never give a fuck about reviews or other people opinions about books and always try by myself because THIS WAS AMAZING.
Y'all I'm still in the after shock that the ending gave me what was that!!! Now I'm not gonna lie I had figured out the main plot twist super early because I always jump to the worst conclusion (this is why I don't read thrillers) but still the last twist at the end FLABBERGASTED me
damn this was good
the plot was strong since the beginning I was so invested to know what happened to Tiernan and why is he so unhinged, this man is crazy asshole the word chivalry isn't even in his vocabulary he was straight forward the devil and I ate it up of course his character got much better later in the book but I preferred asshole Tiernan more than softy cutey pie Tiernan 👀 I enjoyed the flashbacks that we got so much it was heart breaking but definitely made the story better.
I loved reading about the Irish mafia I always wanted to read about them it was refreshing. But of course the fmc Lila is Italian so we had the Camorra as well
The romance was so good at the beginning I loved both characters together and I feel the need to clarify the cheating in case it scared you away from the book.
1. They were FORCED to marry each other not arranged
2. To him she's diss able (developmental delays aka her mind was 6)
3. Her brothers(they're so hot btw) payed him not to touch her and gave him a mistress??
So believe me under any other circumstances cheating is a big no to me but I would've rather he slept with anyone but her because that would've been deranged after what happened to her anyway.
I loved everything and it was giving 5 stars until %60 then some characters "Lila "🙄 were acting stupid "Lila" 🙄and the spice was kinda cringe I got the ick more times than I can ignore it also there were some very random conversations happening at random times very very unnecessary and cringe I was so confused, anyway it was pure fun and I loved every character I can't fucking wait for Tierny's book I know she's about to become one of my fav fmc and I'm already in love with L.J. Shen writing it's so hilarious and fun 🙏🏻

[Georgia · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Protecting you is a compulsion at this point. I’d stop the night from falling if darkness scares you, Lila.”

“I love you with a force that could destroy planets and universes, Lila.”

It’s my first book from L.J. Shen, and let me tell you, it completely caught me from the very first chapter. It’s such a dark, twisted book that I’m left with no words. Tiernan is an unhinged man with humor who slowly falls for her and he fell for her so hard.

Lila was so patient and kindhearted and truly adored him. It was unbelievably cute that they were both inexperienced. They are such an amazing couple, especially from the second half of the book onwards. I thought Lila would be a weak FMC, but let me tell you, she did not disappoint. She knew exactly what she was doing from the start. I was so annoyed with her parents, not including her brothers. I truly hated her mother and her father too, she did not deserve to go through all the manipulation and being dressed and treated like a young child… She is such a badass who shot her husband on the first night of marriage, and that says a lot. I also loved the feud between her brothers and Tiernan so, so much.

Honorable mention to Tierney because she is such a fun character to read about and be around, and I’m so happy to see that the second book is about her. Cannot wait to go through it 🤭

[Mysha · Rating 4 out of 5]

OKAAAYYY yeah that was entertaining af.

I steer clear from dark romances because either the MMC or the FMC always PISSSS MEE THE FRRIIIICKKKKKKKK AWWWWFFFF. But I actually enjoyed both our characters in this?!?!?!?!

Lila fakes being intellectually incompetent to avoid an arranged marriage with a mafia man but is forced into it anyways… BUT SHE’S SUCH A BADDIE!!!! From day 1 she’s putting up a fight and even shoots him. When he’s with another woman in their kitchen she’s so cool and collected, I LOVEDDDD HERR!!

As for Tiernan, he really grew on me… I always get so icked out by mafia men but like although some thoughts and things were corny I WAS STILL ENJOYING THE HECK OUT OF IT! He was down bad for Lila and always treated her with dignity and like an actual person (even when her intellectual abilities were up for debate).

I will say, I did guess who the attacker was pretty early on but I still wasn’t 100% certain so the plot was still engaging.

There were obviously flaws and personal issues I had with the book (WHY IS THE FMC ALWAYS 18?!?! I hate how rape is always treated in these types of books… like when Lila appreciates having gone through all that crap because it led her to Tiernan…NO NO NO NO NO!!! Tiernan’s preferences with women early on, etc). But I did go into this putting away all my sane thoughts so I could enjoy this better lmao.

Some moments I loved:
-PINK BADAZZLED GUN!!!
-First kiss at the shooting range yesyesyesyes they were so cute and her naivity actually made me lol girl you did not pee yourself😭
-Tiernan being soo nervous because in a way it was his first time being intimate in every way as well
-Her brothers!!! Mainly Enzo :’)
-Crumbs of Achilles and Tierney… I’m intrigued
-When Tiernan went crazy of the portraits of Tate lolll I was sat!!!!!
-Teddy bear in her childhood bedroom lolz
-How bothered Tiernan got when Lila didn’t care for the girl in her home
-THE COAT ON THE PUDDLE YUUUUUUAUAAS
-Any moment Tiernan groveled. Loved every second of it. And she really made him work for it lmao.

Yeah that was a fun time.

[Jaz k · Rating 1 out of 5]

23%

“Lila did not seem to care one iota about my cheating on her openly and provocatively. It shouldn’t bother me. Fuck knew nothing else ever did. Yet, somehow, I found myself…dissatisfied. The audacity of that woman.”

???

“But if I truly wanted Lila’s pussy—which, I was beginning to suspect was the case—I had to tone it down.
And maybe no more hookers.
Fine, definitely no more hookers.”

Very romantic !!

“Besides, I only do blowies and anal. Less chance of giving the woman an orgasm.”

“But I wasn’t going to allow both of our first times to be in the bathroom where the help took their shits.”

lol!! He’s not a fucking virgin wtf

[Matea ☽ [ia] · Rating 5 out of 5]

6 ⭐️ READ!!!!

I didn’t post a review right after finishing this book because I honestly needed some time to process everything. I read it after a long reading slump and O. M. G!!!

This was the perfect comeback — I absolutely adore this book.
Dark romance mafia perfection 🤌🏻

I felt the tension, the obsession, the fall into love. And that ending… holy f*ck. I expected Angelo to be involved from the beginning, but I definitely didn’t see that scenario coming.

About the cheating scene — I saw that a lot of people had issues with it, but I honestly didn’t find it horrible. I actually think it added something important to their dynamic. And to me, it felt like they weren’t truly “together” at that moment, even though they were married… if that makes any sense 🤣

Honestly, one of my favorite reads of the year!!!

[dak · Rating 5 out of 5]

5✰ ♟️👁️ 🖤 🔫 ☘️ “𝘐’𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘱 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘧 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝙇𝙞𝙡𝙖”

sooo dark mafia romance might be something i need to take a dive into because hello?? 🤭 i absolutely loved this 🙂‍↕️🤏🏻 the plot had me hooked from chapter 1 + this was funny as hell!!

𝙇𝙞𝙡𝙖 my underestimated queen!! my heart hurt for all she went through but i loved watching her find herself in this book 💞💘💓 and 𝙏𝙞𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙖𝙣 our morally black, unhinged, toxic king 🫶🏻 10/10. his backstory broke me 💔 also the eyepatch is a big yes from me!

i absolutely loved 𝙇𝙞𝙡𝙖 and 𝙏𝙞𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙖𝙣 together. something about watching them grow together and fall in love despite all the fucked up shit they both have endured, my heart!!
➵ 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝟺𝟾 & 𝟺𝟿 💗
➵ 𝒢𝑒𝒶𝓁𝒶𝒸𝒽 ⏾⋆.˚

also this found family forming has me so excited for the next books in the series!! running to 𝓣𝔀𝓲𝓼𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓟𝓪𝔀𝓷 😜

•·· ➵ 𝘐 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘺 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘦𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘴, 𝙇𝙞𝙡𝙖 ᢉ𐭩 .•· ➴

[whimsy_soul414 · Rating 1 out of 5]

hated this book and cheating! MAJOR DNF

If I could’ve put zero stars, I would’ve. And before anyone says to check the trigger warnings, I’m still pissed off.

The fact that this has so many good reviews is wild to me. I should’ve looked at the trigger warnings, but cheating in a book, marriage of convenience or not, is absolutely not forgivable.

I'm sick of the author writing awful men and women who are treated horribly and used for everyone else’s advantage. Find a new plot. Also, the “OW drama” is bs when he completely sleeps with another woman in front of HER, OW drama to ME is a past ex or maybe a quick interaction with another women not a man saying: “If you don’t like it, walk away or join” in the context of SLEEPING WITH A HOOKER! (all the love to sex workers tho) IM DISGUSTED AND FUMING WITH THE MAN!

L.J Shen in her dedication for the book seemed like a twisted foreshadowing to how I was going to feel for this awful book.

This book had so much potential and im genuinely sick over the cheating scene it was so unnecessary we already know the MMC is a pos and a bad guy, i despise cheating, why chose and reverse harem in any order. i honestly was looking forward to this book after all the reviews; but to read the cheating and then to skip to the end and see they they are now magically in love, i genuinely don’t care if it was one and done, i feel awful for Lila but in some ways she was her own downfall in her story, she played into the bullshit and never grew a backbone.

I think we need to stop writing “dark romance” that are unnecessary and just a tag-line for abuse! I'm done with L.J. Shen’s books for a while; this was disappointing and disgusting. I don’t feel like Lila got her revenge; it felt like she was a punching bag to everyone, including her mother. All these good reviews - I genuinely can’t believe it. Rant over.

edit: just seen the blurb and book cover for the next book in this series, i sincerely hope that BEAUTIFUL cover doesn’t get trashed the way this one did with cheating and awful men legit pissing all over the whole thing <3.

[Lena · Rating 5 out of 5]

5⭐️

"She was playful and confident and fearless. I no longer set the pace of what was happening. The conqueror became the conquered. And I knew, with amusing, dark finality, that I was completely, tragically, wretchedly hers."

This was dark! Maybe I should’ve checked the trigger warnings first. Even so, I devoured this book and needed to know what happened next. I just love this feeling when I forget I’m reading. And that was definitely the case with this one.

About the MCs: Tiernan is not a good person. Especially in the beginning, his actions are morally black. And honestly, I don’t get why authors still write the cheating trope. Was it really necessary?🥲
However, that was the only part I truly hated. Lila was the sweetest. The way she handled everything and grew throughout the book was so satisfying. Tiernan also had a very traumatic past, and seeing how they grew closer and fell in love was really well done, in my opinion.

What I also absolutely loved were the mafia families, the connections and the cameos from characters like Sam Brennan or Wolfe Keaton from previous books. Emilia Spencer was also mentioned multiple times.😍

Another part I enjoyed soo much were the Ferrante brothers! The way they defended their mother when their dad hit her! And also their protectiveness toward Lila.

—> "There was Luca, his oldest son and natural heir. Part aristocrat, part horsemen. Calculated and quiet. Smooth and cold as marble."

—> "Achilles, his middle son. Feared by all and loved by none. A Greek warrior. A monster that contorted itself into the form of a human, always one moment away from bursting at the seams."

—> "And Enzo, his youngest son. With the warm, whisky eyes and pliant nature. Far too handsome than any man had the right to be. The charmer. The persuader."

—> There’s also another secret brother.👀
"And then there was his favorite. His secret son. His golden boy. Essere il Beniamino. Not a high-born Ferrante, but capable nonetheless."

I’m super excited to see whose book will be next. There are so many characters I need a book about.
Still, I hope the next one will be about Achilles and Tierney! They’re already so possessive around each other, and Tierney will certainly be such a strong FMC!🤞🏻

tropes:
~> mafia romance
~> Italian mafia princess x Irish mafia king
~> arranged/ forced marriage
~> traumatic pasts
~> hate/ enemies to love (she shoot him and stabbed him!)
~> forced proximity

dedication:
"To all the readers who complain that my heroes are always irredeemable jerks… I’m afraid I have terrible news."

favorite quotes:

"Rafaella Callaghan is mine. Nobody is to look at my wife, speak about my wife, or breathe in her direction. She’s under my protection now. The first to cross the line will be the last."

"Oderint Dum Metuant. Let them hate as long as they fear."

"Deaf. Not intellectually impaired. Not develpopmentally delayed. Deaf. Sharp. Intelligent. Cunning. Talented. Slightly unhinged, which - let’s admit it- only added to her allure. Beautiful beyond words, art, and cultural standards."

"Hands that killed, tortured, and destroyed many lives. Hands I knew would never hurt me. My husband. My protector. My macabre fantasy."

"The way you look at me. Like I hung the gealach in the sky to light the way for you."

"Protecting you is a compulsion at this point. I’d stop the night from falling if darkness scares you, Lila."

"What my wife wants, my wife gets."
"Even if that thing is a dead husband at the dinner table?"
"I don’t remember stuttering."

"This man has a lot of blood on his hands, and I look past all that. When does a monster stop being a monster, Mama?"
"Oh, bambina, when you love it."

"I love you with a force that could destroy planets and universes, Lila… Its you and me against the world… But I like our odds, darlin’."

"This entire city can burn to the ground and I wouldn’t even blink. It’s about my wife, and about justice, and about making sure she’s safe. I’d tear the world to shreds for her, and they know it."

[maddi ⋆˚ᨳଓ.⋆ (semi-ia) · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

°❀.࿔ ❛ 𝑖 𝑤𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑖𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑦𝑜𝑢'𝑙𝑙 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟, 𝑠𝑜 𝑖'𝑙𝑙 𝑠𝑎𝑦 𝑖𝑡 𝑎𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛—𝑖. 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒. 𝑦𝑜𝑢. ❜ ₊˚⊹ ᰔ

✧˖°. ┆★★★★ ½ — 𝟰.𝟱 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘀

ılı.lıllılıı.ıllı..
𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑙𝑦 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑖𝑛𝑔 ‧₊ ♪˚⊹
don't you start ❘ artemas
0:37 ─•────── -2:26
⇆ㅤ ◁◁ ❚❚ ▷▷ㅤ ↻

⋆˚꩜｡❛ 𝑐𝑎𝑛'𝑡 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑖 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤 ❜˖ ݁♬⋆.˚𝄞

₊ 🌕 ⊹ 𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑠 ⋆˚࿔

WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?! BUCKLE UP CUZ I HAVE A LOT TO SAY OMFG. i wanna start by saying that i don't actually like mafia romance, or at least i didn't think i did UNTIL I READ THIS MASTERPIECE I'M SO GONE ✋ so the first 30-40% was kinda ehhh it's alr but nothing special BUT THENNN LILA STARTED TALKINGGG AND IT ALL GOT GOOD 🙂‍↕️ i'm not rlly sure when the plot picked up BUT IT DID BCUZ THEN EVERYTHING GOT CRAZY I FREAKING KNEW IT WASN'T ONE OF THE SUSPECTS BUT I DIDN'T EXPECT IT TO BE HIMMMM HELLOOOO AND THAT TWIST AT THE END?! JAW ON THE FLOOOR. so glad it all worked out tho i never doubted my man tiernan for a second 🤗 AND LILA W HER BEDAZZLED CUSTOM MADE PINK CLOCK WOOOO SHE'S SUUUCH A BADDIE I LOVE HERRR!! 🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️

i can't explain it but i LOVE the overall vibe of this book and series 😭 i can't describe it but it's in the music i listened to as well like normally my playlists have a lot of similar songs bcuz there's only so many songs i like but w this it was all new i was whipping out rihanna, kesha, lady gaga THOOOOSE sorts of vibes it's SAURRR PEAK and i alr have my playlist for b2 lined up 🙂‍↕️ WHICH I'M SOOO HYPED FOR BTW I LOOOVE TIERNEY MY QUEEN AND THE WAY SHE HAS ACHILLES DOWN BAD FOR HERR I ALR KNOW THEIR BOOK IS GNA EAT 🤭

ALL i have heard abt this series is abt lucasofia so whilst we didn't get much of them in this book i'm V excited to see more of them!! ALSO SHE'S PREGNANT TOO?! one thing abt me is i DESPIIIIIISE pregnancy in books soooo...haha gl to me ig 💀 the scenes in this were alr borderline too much for me i can never do the thing where the guy tastes the girl's breast milk IT'S SO OFF PUTTING MAKE IT STOP 😩😭 some of the scenes in here r just part of the book tho like it's just a bit odd, for example: the blood sucking 🫠 that's all i'm gna say abt that thank yewww but i love this book anyway it's a bit crazy and crazy is my fav <3 i didn't expect this book to make me so emotional but i was CRYINGGG bcuz it's so sweet and so sad and so hopeful just ugh it's all so bittersweet and perfect 🥹 i'm hopping onto b2 IMMEDIATELY 🙂‍↕️ ty to my gorgeous bby naima for putting me onto this ily <3

⋆˚꩜｡❛ 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢'𝑟𝑒 𝑔𝑜𝑛𝑒 ❜˖ ݁♬⋆.˚𝄞

🖤 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠 ⋆｡°✩
⤿ CHIARA CAN FUCKING GO TO HELL IDEC I'LL NEVER FORGIVE HER but i'm glad lila could (?) <3, VELLO can also rot in hell 🥰, ENZO HE'S SO FUNNY I LOVE HIM, ACHILLES meh. he has potential tho i can't wait for the absolute YEARNING in b2 🤭, LUCA go find sofia, TIERNEY I LOVE HERRRR MY FASHIONISTA BADDIE QUEENNN 💋, ALEX IDC I LOVE HIM TOOOOOO AGHHH <3, FINTAN...🦗

🎨 𝑙𝑖𝑙𝑎 ❛ 𝑔𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑎𝑐ℎ ❜ 𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑒 ⋆.˚ ☾⭒.
⤿ MY WITTY BADDIE QUEEENNNN!! 🙇‍♀️ i liked her from the beginning but when she grew into herself and was free to be the sassy, sarcastic, bossy, witty queen she is I FELL IN LOVEEEE 😩 one of my fav scenes was when she caught him in the kitchen and saluted him iykyk it was fun 🤭 my heart was BREAKING for her tho she went thru sm and she was so sheltered and could have had sm more if it weren't for her fucking mum #hateher 🙄 i love that she wasn't afraid to feel and she was so authentic and unashamedly her i love her sm <3

🍺 𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑟𝑛𝑎𝑛 𝑐𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑎𝑔ℎ𝑎𝑛 ⋆˚꩜｡
⤿ CALL ME DELUSIONAL BUT HE'S SO SWEET IF HE'S A RED FLAG I'M COLOURBLINDDD 🤲 the way he's so kind and considerate and also so baby girl he's just a damaged mannnn 😭 GOOD LORD HIS TRAUMA TOO OMG READING THE PAST CHAPTERS MADE ME SICK THE ABSOLUTE HORROR HE AND TIERNEY WENT THRU AND THAT HE WAS SO READY TO KHS 😭 MY BABYYYY 💔 his humour's so dry and he's so sarcastic he's such a king and also lowkey an asshole but i love him 🤗

⋆˚꩜｡❛ 𝑖𝑠 𝑎 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑑 𝑖'𝑚 𝑎𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑒 ❜˖ ݁♬⋆.˚𝄞

❤️‍🔥 𝑙𝑖𝑙𝑎 + 𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑟𝑛𝑎𝑛 ₊˚⊹ ᰔ
⤿ I LOVE THE ARRANGED MARRIAGE TROPEEEE!! IT ALWAYS EATS 🙂‍↕️ MY WIFE?? WIFEY?? MY HUSBAND?? GAH honestly the amount of nicknames they had for each other AND I LOVE THEM ALLLL 👏 BUT HIM CALLING HER MOON?? 😩 i have a soft spot for moon/sun related nicknames AND THE MEANING BEHIND IT WAS SOOO SWEET SHE'S LITERALLY HIS REASON TO LIVE?! when he crossed out his self-destruct counter i CRIEDDD 😭 they were both so inexperienced which was so awkward and funny but also reeeeaaally sweetttt 🥹 and when they both turned their trauma into smth better that quote was so sweet i think i cried. SHE FREAKING SHOT HIM ON THEIR WEDDING NIGHT AND THE NEXT MORNING HE TAUGHT HER HOW TO USE A KNIFE PROPERLY AND LET HER CUT HIM 😩 AND HE TAUGHT HER HOW TO SHOOT PROPERLY AND GOT HER THAT FREAKING PINK BEDAZZLED GLOCK 😭 girl i'd also be down bad jeez calm down i'm easy 🤭 also the dancing scene was soooo cutie agh everything abt them is so sweetie and cutie 🥹 but they're also crazy and so power couple and i love themmm 😇

⋆˚꩜｡❛ 𝑑𝑜𝑛'𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡, 𝑐𝑟𝑎𝑤𝑙𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑏𝑎𝑐𝑘 𝑎𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛 ❜˖ ݁♬⋆.˚𝄞

🎧 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑙𝑖𝑠𝑡 ‧₊ ♪˚⊹
⤿ fetish - nessa barrett
⤿ cry - ashniko, grimes
⤿ all for us - labrinth, zendaya
⤿ passenger princess - nessa barrett
⤿ don't you start - artemas
⤿ serena joy - olivia rodrigo
⤿ judas - lady gaga
⤿ only for you - nessa barrett

⋆˚꩜｡❛ 𝑖 𝑐𝑎𝑛'𝑡 𝑙𝑒𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛, ℎ𝑜𝑤 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑖 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑑? ❜˖ ݁♬⋆.˚𝄞

💌 𝑞𝑢𝑜𝑡𝑒𝑠 ⛧⋆˚࿔⋆

✧ ❛ 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑖 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡𝑖𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑑 𝑚𝑦 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑑 𝑢𝑝, 𝑖 𝑎𝑠𝑘𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑚𝑜𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑎 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑜𝑛 𝑡𝑜 𝑙𝑖𝑣𝑒. 𝑤𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑎 ℎ𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑏𝑎𝑟𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔, 𝑚𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 ℎ𝑖𝑚. 𝑖 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑘 𝑖𝑡 𝑔𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑚𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢. ❜

✧ ❛ 𝑤𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑡 𝑒𝑎𝑐ℎ 𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟, 𝑔𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑛𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝑡𝑤𝑜 𝑓𝑜𝑜𝑙𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑞𝑢𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑙𝑑. 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑢𝑠𝑒 𝑤𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑡ℎ 𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑎𝑔𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑑𝑜 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑤𝑒 𝑑𝑖𝑑𝑛'𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑘 𝑤𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝑏𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑒. 𝑓𝑢𝑐𝑘 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑒𝑎𝑟 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑢𝑚𝑎 𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟. 𝑤𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑛. ❜

✧ ❛ 𝑤ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑖𝑓 𝑠ℎ𝑒'𝑑 𝑝𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑎𝑙𝑙 ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑚𝑒? 𝑦𝑒𝑠, 𝑖 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑗𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑜𝑢𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑛 𝑢𝑛𝑏𝑜𝑟𝑛 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦. ❜

✧ ❛ 𝑔𝑜𝑑... ❜ ❛ 𝑛𝑎ℎ. 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑛 ℎ𝑒 𝑑𝑜𝑒𝑠𝑛'𝑡 𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑡𝑜𝑢𝑐ℎ 𝑚𝑦 𝑤𝑖𝑓𝑒. ❜

✧ ❛ 𝑖 𝑤𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑙𝑖𝑣𝑒. 𝑖 𝑓𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑 𝑚𝑦 𝑝𝑢𝑟𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑒. 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑎𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑎𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑡ℎ 𝑙𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑚𝑦 𝑝𝑎𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑛𝑖𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑚𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑠. 𝒉𝒆𝒓. ❜

✧ ❛ 𝑖 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢. ❜ ❛ 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑦 𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑒, 𝑖 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑐𝑟𝑢𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑖 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑𝑛'𝑡 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟. 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑢𝑠𝑒 ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑠—𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑑𝑠—𝑖 𝑤𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑦 𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑠, 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑦 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑡, 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑦 𝑣𝑒𝑖𝑛𝑠. ❜

✧ ❛ 𝑖 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑎 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑐𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑑𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑜𝑦 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑒𝑡𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑒𝑠, 𝑙𝑖𝑙𝑎. ❜

✧ ❛ 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑠𝑡 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑤𝑒 𝑔𝑜𝑡 𝑚𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑑, 𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑟𝑛𝑎𝑛 𝑡𝑜𝑢𝑐ℎ𝑒𝑑 𝑚𝑦 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑚𝑎𝑐ℎ. ❜

✧ ❛ 𝑠ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑛𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝑔𝑜𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑜 𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑎𝑐ℎ𝑖𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓𝑓 ℎ𝑒𝑟 𝑏𝑎𝑐𝑘 𝑖𝑓 𝑠ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑢𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑎𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 ℎ𝑖𝑚, 𝑙𝑜𝑜𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝑠ℎ𝑒 𝑑𝑖𝑑. ❜ 🤭🤭

✧ ❛ ℎ𝑒𝑦, 𝑚𝑜𝑜𝑛. ❜ ❛ ℎ𝑒𝑦, 𝑠𝑢𝑛. ❜

✧ ❛ 𝑖 𝑔𝑎𝑣𝑒 ℎ𝑖𝑚 𝑎 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑟𝑡𝑦 𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑢𝑡𝑒 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑑 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡. 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒'𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑗𝑜𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 ℎ𝑢𝑛𝑡 𝑖𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑦 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒, 𝑤𝑎𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑠𝑙𝑎𝑢𝑔ℎ𝑡𝑒𝑟? 𝑐𝑢𝑡𝑒 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦, 𝑏𝑡𝑤. <3 <3 <3 ❜ - i love tierney.

✧ ❛ 𝑓𝑎𝑣𝑜𝑢𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑜𝑢𝑟? ❜ ❛ 𝑑𝑜𝑛'𝑡 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑜𝑛𝑒. ❜ ❛ 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑚𝑢𝑠𝑡 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑜𝑛𝑒. 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑜𝑛𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑠 𝑜𝑛𝑒. ❜ ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑖𝑒𝑑 𝑚𝑦 𝑒𝑦𝑒𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑑𝑎𝑟𝑘 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑎 𝑏𝑒𝑎𝑡, 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑓𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑦 𝑠𝑎𝑖𝑑, ❛ 𝑏𝑙𝑢𝑒. ❜

⋆˚꩜｡❛ 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑦 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑡, 𝑖 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤 𝑖𝑡'𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑛𝑑 ❜˖ ݁♬⋆.˚𝄞

⊹ ﹒ ⁺ ﹒ ⊹ ﹒ ⁺ ﹒ ⊹ ﹒ ⁺ ﹒ ⊹ ﹒ ⁺ ﹒ ⊹ ﹒ ⁺ ﹒ ⊹ ﹒ ⁺ ﹒ ⊹

⋆✴︎˚｡⋆ ┆ 𝑝𝑟𝑒-𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑 .ᐟ ₊ ♟️ ⊹

hopping onto this train bcuz all my baddies love ittt 💋 if this is in third person imma throw hands

[EmBibliophile · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 stars

“You were my first dream, I think.”

This has a very rocky and shocking start. I realized that I went into it knowing absolutely nothing. So the begging of the book really took me by surprise (check the trigger warning because I sure didn’t) and I wasn’t sure if I would end up enjoying it.

Imagine my surprise when I ended up devouring it. I love a hopelessly obsessed man and Lila had him wrapped around her little finger. He was so smitten and oh I was loving it. I mean this…

Lila must’ve been a lizard in a previous life, because she liked the thermostat on seventy-six.
I preferred it at forty-nine. We settled for seventy-six. Whoever said marriage was all about compromise had never wedded an Italian princess.

I admit that some parts (okay most parts) were over the top and overdramatic, but I honestly don’t care. Because on the other hand I loved how they were both so protective and carful with each other. It almost got me in tears. How they were both inexperienced in a way and fragile. Lila being the brave one surprised me and got me feeling so proud. I was worried she’s gonna be a mafia princess heroine with no backbone but nope, I loved that girl.

“Protecting you is a compulsion at this point. I’d stop the night from falling if darkness scares you, Lila.”

As much as I’m excited for the next book, I feel so scared because those two? It’s gonna be so messy.

[Bee (slow) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holy fuck , that ending?? Solid 5 stars. 🖤❤️

I'm glad I didn't listen to the reviews and whinning about this book, it did deter me away from it for a bit but then I got way too curious and I had to experience it for myself. And boy was it soo so good.

I guess if you are overly sensitive you would not like it, and yes it does have some cheating, but if you think that's absolutely the worst thing you've seen, honestly get a grip.

Without giving away EVERYTHING, which I'm so tempted to do, I have to say the storyline was great, twisty but also incredibly funny, I had to hold in my giggles and actually laughed out loud at some parts.
Really loved the characters and how they each had their own voice and issues, we got to see a bit of everyone, especially Tierney and Achilles as well (looking at you guys for April 7th couldn't come FASTER AT THIS POINT). But Enzo and Luca too, I'm curious on who and how the series will progress ~ since we will have what 7 books?? Quite crazy.

Tiernan is very book boyfriend coded, if you hate him, you're a monster. I said it. I've also actually fallen for him already, I just want to watch all the edits now. Everything he did for THIS GIRL, SWOON OMG. He could've been a worse man and I would've ate it up.

Lila? girl. Yes, she is 18, yes it was kinda weird for me at first, but it makes sense in the story and her evolution is beautiful. You witness her mature into a gorgeous woman by the end of the book.

Great, bingeable, fun worthy, insane and unhinged at times, but a good mafia story, and I will definitely continue the series.❤️
______
pre:read
do I want more drama? Why yes of course😂😂❤️

[Soft Nectarine ~ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shut up because WHY did I put off reading this?! This was EPIC. My DARK romance heart was in arrhythmia for days! 🖤💍✨

Unhinged but hilarious psycho falls for a deaf mafia princess in a forced arranged marriage.

Lila has a SECRET. She’s deaf but been pretending to be developmentally challenged her entire life so she doesn’t have to enter a mafia marriage. Ultra sheltered! Until one night she gets brutally assaulted & now’s she pregnant…out of wedlock too!! Her family decides to pawn her off to the King of Disorganized Chaos, a man crazy enough that people would actually believe he’d marry her 💀💍 As with any unhinged mafia man Tienan gradually invades her space & discovers her secrets while slowly FALLING INTO MADNESS that is her lovely existence.

“I’d stop the night from falling if darkness scares you, Lila.”

When Death itself falls for an angel! My absolute favorite dynamic would be THIS EXACTLY. Sheltered beauty with a fierce heart that brings a deranged man to his knees ✨ *slow clap* ✨ Tienan starts off with playful antagonizing & deranged (baseless) threats but those quickly turn into almost boyish obsession with HIS WIFE!

💀 he gives her his eyeball…LITERALLY…and she keeps it!!

🖤 at one point she compares his dick to Dyson Airwrap *great point of reference*

💀 size DIFFERENCE & age gap!!

🖤 they discover intimacy together ~ he only did anal before her….ouch

💀 less “touch her & die” and more of “touch her & I’ll drag you to hell”

True dark romance STILL LIVES! Violent scary men and their ridiculously unhinged ways, dark comedic relief & unlikely love blossoming in the middle of it 🖤✨ There’s no doubt that Tienan stole the show in this one! His hilariously bratty humor mixed with deranged violence but sparkled with absolute devotion for his Lila. I mean this mafia man WATCHES A TUTORIAL on how to eat her out!!

Warning: there is a OW scene when Tiernan still thinks his wife is “challenged” & Lila barges in to discover…he dressed the OW in her clothes *clutching my pearls*

AND THE EPIC PLOT TWIST AT THE END…by epic I mean devastating!

forced arranged marriage
morally black mmc
opposites attract
scarred mmc
bratty grump x gentle soul
disability rep
forced proximity
brotherly banter
pregnancy
sexual assault
trauma (both ch)
HEA

[Dahlia · Rating 4 out of 5]

𓏲 ๋࣭  ࣪ .4.5 🌟
A MAAAAAAAN. Am a sucker for when they go all soft for their fmca and yes Thiernan Callaghan did it 🤭🤭
Lol did i stay awake the whole night , finished it then fell asleep like the dead ? Yep .


---
PLEAAAAASE BE GOOD i need smth to get me out of my reading slump..

[Annie ˖ · Rating 4 out of 5]

⋰˚☆⁀➷


I absolutely devoured this book. I ate it up, I can’t lie 😂. Despite some major issues, I still really enjoyed it!
This is definitely a dark romance, but the threat of rape felt unnecessary and unsettling. I get that dark romance isn’t meant to be soft, but not everything needs to revolve around nonconsensual threats—especially from the supposed love interest. I just don’t like how some dark romances pivot their book around rape. That said, while the male lead was frustrating, he did redeem himself a little by the end. I’m a sucker for character growth, and seeing him change as he fell for Lila worked for me. It was a breath of fresh air to see a couple finally communicate, and have major growth. This book was 👩‍🍳💋

The plot actually delivered, which I needed from a mafia romance. The conflict with the bratva was engaging, and the twists—especially surrounding Lila’s past—were genuinely fun to read. Especially with the fact I need a plot whenever it’s centered around mafia. However, Lila’s situation (an 18-year-old pretending to have the mindset of a child due to her mother’s scheme) was uncomfortable to read, even if her mother’s intentions made some sense. It was just weird to see a 18 year old masquerade as a 4 year old, it was definitely odd. What was lowkey plot hole is where Lila learned ASL since she was deaf. I wish we got some backstory as to where she learned it, and how sufficient she is at lip reading. Especially lip reading another language other than English since that is a very hard thing to do. Another confusing part is when Tiernan was spooning her from behind, but she could still manage to read what he was saying? Didn’t make sense.
My favorite part was the chemistry. It started off very lust-driven, but as the story progressed, the emotional connection grew, and I felt the love. He was clearly obsessed, even when he tried to deny it, and I loved that dynamic.

The cheating didn’t bother me as much as it normally would since they initially hated each other and were forced into the relationship. Still, the mistress wearing Lila’s clothes was infuriating—but he did make up for it.
The drama and humor were highlights too. I laughed a lot, especially with Lila’s brothers—Enzo in particular was hilarious. Their feud with Tiernan was never a dull read. I’m really excited for the upcoming books, especially Tierney and Achilles’ story.
Overall, this book was dark, messy, dramatic, and addictive. I couldn’t put it down and had a great time reading it—especially doing a buddy read with Namia!



Pre- read : BR with Naima !! My first LJ Shen book, so excited!!!! 👀💕

[&#x131a9;makayla&#x131aa; · Rating 5 out of 5]

༝♱♗ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ♗♱༝ “𝘈 𝘣𝘢𝘥 𝘣𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘱 𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘦𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦.”

Yeah I could tell from the first 10% I was going to absolutely devour this and I did exactly that 🙂‍↕️ Delicious dark mafia romance 🖤 This was so good, the plot had me totally hooked!!

I love the way Lila is so underestimated but she’s actually a little secret siren 🤏🏼 and Tiernan was hot from the start but he only got better throughout the book 😮‍💨 dry sense of humor + hates everyone but her energy. I was giggling kicking my feet and swooning over this man ❤️‍🔥

“𝖣𝗈𝗇’𝗍 𝖻𝖾 𝗆𝖺𝖽 𝖺𝗍 𝗁𝗂𝗆 𝗐𝗁𝖾𝗇 𝗁𝖾 𝗀𝖾𝗍𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝗀𝗋𝗒 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝗈𝗌𝖾 𝗐𝖺𝗅𝗅𝗌 𝖺𝗋𝖾 𝗍𝗎𝗆𝖻𝗅𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖽𝗈𝗐𝗇. 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖽𝖾𝖻𝗋𝗂𝗌 𝗆𝗎𝗌𝗍 𝖻𝖾 𝖺 𝖻𝗂𝗍𝖼𝗁.”

I totally guessed who the attacker was, but the reveal at the end was still insanely satisfying!!

Ate. Devoured. Left no crumbs.

Audiobook: 5 🌟 I already knew I loved Lucy Rivers, but Corvin King? GAWDDAMN

༝♱♗ “𝘿𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡 𝙨𝙤 𝙨𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙮 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛. 𝙏𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙚𝙙𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙚𝙭𝙘𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨, 𝙇𝙞𝙡𝙖. 𝙇𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣, 𝙖𝙗𝙨𝙤𝙧𝙗, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙦𝙪𝙚𝙧.” ♗♱༝