The Kingmaker: A M/M Mafia Dark Romance

by Marian Black

They assigned me an idealistic attorney who thinks I belong behind bars. Emilio Rossi walked into my courtroom wearing righteousness like armor and a fading wedding ring tan line that tells me everything I need to know. He's vulnerable. Brilliant. Completely wrong for defending a man like me.

I should've requested different counsel.

Instead, I'm finding excuses to keep him close. Watching him fight for me in court with a fire that makes me want to see what that passion looks like when I strip away all his principles. He thinks he can maintain professional boundaries. He thinks his integrity will protect him from men like me.

He's wrong.

I'm going to corrupt him. Claim him. Make him mine in every way that matters. And when he finally surrenders—and he will surrender—he'll realize that loving a monster means becoming one too.

The only question is whether he'll hate me for it or thank me.



I took the Vitale case to save my career. Now I'm not sure I'll survive it with my soul intact.

Alessandro "Sandro" Vitale is everything I've spent my legal career fighting against. He's dangerous, calculating, and guilty of crimes I can't prove. Defending him should feel like selling out. Instead, it feels like falling.

Every courtroom battle pulls me deeper into his world. Every conversation makes me question the lines I swore I'd never cross. He looks at me like I'm something he wants to own, and God help me, part of me wants to let him.

I know what he is. I know what choosing him will cost. My reputation. My principles. Everything I've worked for.

But when he touches me, none of that matters.

He's breaking down every wall I've built, every rule I've followed, every certainty I've clung to. And the worst part? I'm starting to think that's exactly where I want to be. Broken open. Completely his.

Even if it destroys us both.

A dark M/M romance where a ruthless mob strategist claims the attorney assigned to defend him. High heat. Morally grey characters. Obsessive love. No cheating. HEA.

Book 1 in the Inferno series. Each book features a different couple but follows an interconnected story. Can be read as a standalone.

Genres: Amazon, Romance, M M Romance

315 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 29, 2025

Reviews

[Becki Graves · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF'D 48%

This story has a lot of potential but it needs to be line edited.

Not only does the author reuse the same anecdotes way too often, they also end up paraphrasing the same thing over and over.

There are two different characters named Vincent.

Both characters flip flop their opinions.

Some of it doesn't even make sense.
The attorney knows he's being trailer but still goes on dates with his client.

Sandro pays off Emilio's credit card but Emilio never reacts.
The author states Sandro ordered the payment to be untraceable but then it turns out the FBI trace it easily?

Emilio gets threatened BECAUSE he chose to be Sandro's attorney, but then he thinks he's a liability BECAUSE he is being targeted so he needs to distance himself???

But if Sandro got a new lawyer they would then just target the new lawyer too so??

And the firm pushed him to take the case knowing what Sandro does but then they want him to quit?

None of it makes sense.

[Lucie · Rating 1 out of 5]

AI

[Reva Coomer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay..

I liked this story...but at times I felt like I was reading the same part over again. There are parts that are word for word the something that happened before. A little odd. I hated how wishy washy the lawyer was. Oh, I can't believe I compromised myself...then...don't be sorry for me, I made my own choice. It was more than battling with oneself...anyway, I am going to read book two.

[Maria · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is ”written” by AI author.

[Kym Ganczak · Rating 2 out of 5]

Way too little of the story made sense and it took me out of it. Why is Sandro being charged with assault when he didn't do anything...Matteo did? Why are the attorneys preparing for this trial like it's a death penalty case? For a character so obsessed with ethics, Emilio really doesn't act like he has any. Characters don't behave the way they've been set up to behave and there are so many inconsistencies in the story it's unenjoyable. Ex. Emilio's law firm basically forcing Sandro's case on Emilio and then a chapter or two later trying to force him off of it. It makes absolutely no sense. There was no foreshadowing or intrigue - everything was laid on the table from the very beginning and the big baddie was painfully obvious, even to characters who really shouldn't have known it at that point. What underworld boss is going to start choosing mercy suddenly when he's known for the exact opposite? All because his boyfriend of a couple weeks asks him to? I don't mind suspending belief...I do it a lot. But holy bananas, Batman. This one was a doozy.

The spicy scenes are pretty much copy and pasted from one to the next. It's lazy and it makes for boring reading.

I had so much hope going into this. 2 stars because at least some of the plot was enjoyable.

[Cindy Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wouldn’t call it dark

This book is definitely not dark but worth the read. I’ve read about three of Marian’s books lately and they’re enjoyable but I have a few peeves. One is the repetition in writing. They’re all about a supposed bad guy who goes soft when falling in love. She repeats herself a lot in every story. The line “Well do it together” is a constant verse used multiple times in every book, almost like a staple. Trust me you won’t miss or forget it. There’s a lot of things like this in the writing. Repeat repeat. Then there’s the sex scenes, there’s plenty of it in this book which I happen to enjoy but every single one is the same with maybe one or two different words spoken in them to make them sound different but they’re exactly the same from start to cleanups. It feels like they’re copy and pasted in each chapter. A little too vanilla for me. Other than that the stories are enjoyable enough to read through. The characters are good, the storyline is good, the editing is good. It’s a one time read book only in my opinion.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Listen. I enjoy my gay smut. I enjoy it even more when it comes wrapped in an actual good storyline instead of just vibes and dramatic breathing.
The Kingmaker by Marian Black delivers both—steamy tension and plot thick enough to trip over in expensive Italian shoes.
Law. Crime. Mafia bosses. Sharp-suited attorneys exchanging words like loaded weapons.
Absolute. Perfection.
Came for the romance, stayed for the danger, finished the book like I’d just survived a very attractive felony.
10/10 would willingly be emotionally manipulated again.

[Ashley Paugh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Repetitive

This book is very repetitive. MMCs repeat themselves multiple times throughout their chapter long internal monolog. There isn't anything left to the imagination, hidden agendas are plainly laid out on the table with no room for foreshadowing. I have no clue how the spice is written because I couldn't make it that far. It was somewhat condescending to my intelligence the way this was written.

[Colton Dean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good, but a lot of repetition.

Overall the story, characters, and pacing felt really good. That said, as I got further through the book, I began noticing what appeared to be a lot of repeated dialogue and scenes. The last few chapters felt unnecessary, and was more like a condensing a repeat of the entire book with different details.

I liked the characters, the power dynamic, and the word building and will probably be reading the next book before long.

[Rassika · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent

I would have rated higher if the book wasn’t so repetitive. The spicy scenes were copied and pasted. EACH. SCENE. The dialogue was predictable and I cannot pinpoint the moment both characters fell for the other. I stayed for the outcome of the trial. The story needed heavy editing. It also needed to be fleshed out more. It was decent. Not great.

[Fernanda Morsch · Rating 1 out of 5]

Começou bem, mas desandou à medida que ia desenrolando. Os personagens ficaram bitolados e nem de longe é Dark Romance. Hoje, as pessoas não estão mais sabendo o que é cada tema. Qualquer livro é considerado dark, sem ser. Sério, é frustrante.

[JJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

omg brilliant read I loved it fantastic characters
I love the law part and the slow romance
now the next book
thanks

[Theresa Gauley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked the characters but the author was very repetitive in the writing.

[The Reluctant Retiree · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting

I wasn’t sure if I would enjoy this one. To my surprise, I found myself devouring the entire story. Wonderful

[Ilene G> · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay story.

I liked the characters and most of the story. The last chapters I thought are unnecessary. The author repeated phrases and situations. Parts became tiresome.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great start to what is going to be an amazing series! Be warned, it’s dark and gritty and doesn’t hold back on its punches…