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Maksim: Book One of the Korolov Bratva
Not yet published
Expected 5 Feb 26Because of the way I speak, everyone judges me the moment I open my mouth. Even though I’m 6’5 and two eighty, they see me as weak. They always have.
Even my father who passed me over as his heir.
Behind the mask with the automated voice, I’m not weak. Women desire me, and men fear me.
As fortunes change within my family, I need to correct my impediment. That’s why I seek out one of the best speech pathologists on the East Coast. On paper, Dr. Sarah Whitfield looks boring and rigid.
But the good doctor is hiding a she has a kink for Masked Men. She sheds her professional facade on weekends when she attends Masked Events.
And I’m here to fulfill her fantasies of being kidnapped by a masked man.
But this time, it’s for real.
Even my father who passed me over as his heir.
Behind the mask with the automated voice, I’m not weak. Women desire me, and men fear me.
As fortunes change within my family, I need to correct my impediment. That’s why I seek out one of the best speech pathologists on the East Coast. On paper, Dr. Sarah Whitfield looks boring and rigid.
But the good doctor is hiding a she has a kink for Masked Men. She sheds her professional facade on weekends when she attends Masked Events.
And I’m here to fulfill her fantasies of being kidnapped by a masked man.
But this time, it’s for real.
411 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication February 5, 2026
1 person is currently reading
2 people want to read
About the author
Katie Ashley
68 books9,016 followersKatie Ashley is a New York Times, USA Today, and Amazon Top Three Best-Selling author of both Indie and Traditionally published books. She's written rockers, bikers, manwhores with hearts of gold, New Adult, and Young Adult. She lives outside of Atlanta, Georgia with her daughter, Olivia, her rescue mutts, Belle and Elsa, and her two cats, Mama Kitty and Luna. She has a slight obsession with The Golden Girls, Shakespeare, Harry Potter, and Star Wars.
With a BA in English, a BS in Secondary English Education, and a Masters in Adolescent English Education, she spent eleven years teaching both middle and high school English, as well as a few adjunct college English classes. As of January 2013, she became a full-time writer.
Although she is a life-long Georgia peach, she loves traveling the country and world meeting readers. Most days, you can find her being a hermit, styling leggings, and binging on Netflix whenever her toddler daughter isn't monopolizing the TV with Paw Patrol or Frozen.
CONNECT WITH KATIE
➜ NEWSLETTER: http://bit.ly/2ljVosh
➜ FACEBOOK: facebook.com/katie.ashleyromance
➜ FACEBOOK READER GROUP (ASHLEY'S ANGELS): facebook.com/groups/ashleyangels
➜ WEBSITE: www.katieashleybooks.com
➜INSTAGRAM: Instagram.com/katieashleyluv
➜ TWITTER: twitter.com/katieashleyluv
➜ PINTEREST: pinterest.com/katieashleyluv
With a BA in English, a BS in Secondary English Education, and a Masters in Adolescent English Education, she spent eleven years teaching both middle and high school English, as well as a few adjunct college English classes. As of January 2013, she became a full-time writer.
Although she is a life-long Georgia peach, she loves traveling the country and world meeting readers. Most days, you can find her being a hermit, styling leggings, and binging on Netflix whenever her toddler daughter isn't monopolizing the TV with Paw Patrol or Frozen.
CONNECT WITH KATIE
➜ NEWSLETTER: http://bit.ly/2ljVosh
➜ FACEBOOK: facebook.com/katie.ashleyromance
➜ FACEBOOK READER GROUP (ASHLEY'S ANGELS): facebook.com/groups/ashleyangels
➜ WEBSITE: www.katieashleybooks.com
➜INSTAGRAM: Instagram.com/katieashleyluv
➜ TWITTER: twitter.com/katieashleyluv
➜ PINTEREST: pinterest.com/katieashleyluv
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
Review of advance copy
New Author for me and I loved this book! Maksim by Katie Ashley is book one in a new mafia series, the Korolov Bratva. If you love a dark mafia romance with masked men and primal play, with so much heat and heart, this is the perfect book for you!
Maksim and Sarah, I LOVED these two. Each of them had so many layers, both been through so much and truly deserved every bit of healing and love! Maksim was the first born and heir to the Bratva throne, but his evil father refused to give it to him due to his “defect”, his stutter since he was a child. This had shaped him so deeply. This rejection. This man!! For a mafia Pahkan, he has a heart of pure gold! So protective and caring of his family, but feeling alone, turns to the masked primal hunts to play in secret with his prey. His reputation as “the beast” is well known. Sarah is a very successful speech pathologist. This girl has a heart for her family, even to the point of denying her own happiness. Just so kind and giving. Her one outlet is the “primal hunts” she participates in. These two are brought together both for her to help him and his speech, (by him kidnapping her and asking her for help!!), and secretly, she has no idea he’s the beast that absolutely brought her to her knees in one night. This story is just so well written as these two face the trials and trauma in both their lives. They are very real and vulnerable with each other in these dark areas. And slowly the healing and growth begins. Watching her show him unconditional love and watching him both with Sarah’s family and with her is perfect. Their chemistry is so hot and their connection undeniable.
I loved their families and friends we met and hope this is setting up for more stories with them all!
Loved this book! It had all the emotions and feels, it was real and raw, it was funny and heartbreaking. It was steamy and so full of angst and passion. Go read this book!
Rate: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 4/5🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
🖤 Dark Mafia Romance
🖤 Masked Men
🖤 Primal Play
🖤 Kidnapping
🖤Found family
💀 Touch her & d!e
🩷THANK YOU so much to Katie Ashley and The Smuthood for my ARC!
Maksim and Sarah, I LOVED these two. Each of them had so many layers, both been through so much and truly deserved every bit of healing and love! Maksim was the first born and heir to the Bratva throne, but his evil father refused to give it to him due to his “defect”, his stutter since he was a child. This had shaped him so deeply. This rejection. This man!! For a mafia Pahkan, he has a heart of pure gold! So protective and caring of his family, but feeling alone, turns to the masked primal hunts to play in secret with his prey. His reputation as “the beast” is well known. Sarah is a very successful speech pathologist. This girl has a heart for her family, even to the point of denying her own happiness. Just so kind and giving. Her one outlet is the “primal hunts” she participates in. These two are brought together both for her to help him and his speech, (by him kidnapping her and asking her for help!!), and secretly, she has no idea he’s the beast that absolutely brought her to her knees in one night. This story is just so well written as these two face the trials and trauma in both their lives. They are very real and vulnerable with each other in these dark areas. And slowly the healing and growth begins. Watching her show him unconditional love and watching him both with Sarah’s family and with her is perfect. Their chemistry is so hot and their connection undeniable.
I loved their families and friends we met and hope this is setting up for more stories with them all!
Loved this book! It had all the emotions and feels, it was real and raw, it was funny and heartbreaking. It was steamy and so full of angst and passion. Go read this book!
Rate: 4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 4/5🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
🖤 Dark Mafia Romance
🖤 Masked Men
🖤 Primal Play
🖤 Kidnapping
🖤Found family
💀 Touch her & d!e
🩷THANK YOU so much to Katie Ashley and The Smuthood for my ARC!
Review of advance copy received from Indie Reviewers
ARC REVIEW |
He’s the firstborn son of the Bratva boss - Built like Hulk, apparently -
But because he had a stutter, his father thought he wasn’t good enough to be heir
After tides shift within the family, Maksim decides to try and correct his speech impediment.
When Sarah, the therapist he set his eyes on, doesn’t accept the job willingly, Maksim resorts to… other unconventional methods
He happens to be into primal chases while wearing a mask… 😏 and so is she…
——
😩 guys.. Maksim has to be the sweetest gangster ever
I mean, he did some questionable shit to Sarah at the beginning 🤣, but don’t all men?
He was so nice to her and her family and he became Sarah’s rock especially since she had to deal with so much in her life.
This story was great. Lol, I ate this up. I’ve been on a mafia bender all month and this fit the vibe perfectly.
Thank you @thesmuthood & @authorkatieashley for the ARC ✨
He’s the firstborn son of the Bratva boss - Built like Hulk, apparently -
But because he had a stutter, his father thought he wasn’t good enough to be heir
After tides shift within the family, Maksim decides to try and correct his speech impediment.
When Sarah, the therapist he set his eyes on, doesn’t accept the job willingly, Maksim resorts to… other unconventional methods
He happens to be into primal chases while wearing a mask… 😏 and so is she…
——
😩 guys.. Maksim has to be the sweetest gangster ever
I mean, he did some questionable shit to Sarah at the beginning 🤣, but don’t all men?
He was so nice to her and her family and he became Sarah’s rock especially since she had to deal with so much in her life.
This story was great. Lol, I ate this up. I’ve been on a mafia bender all month and this fit the vibe perfectly.
Thank you @thesmuthood & @authorkatieashley for the ARC ✨
Review of advance copy received from Author
Wow! I absolutely loved Maksim by Katie Ashley!! This is an exciting new family to explore (I previously read and loved the Irish Rogues), plus the story was fascinating with Sarah's family situations and Maksim's stutter - I loved how richly layered these characters were. Plus, the spice with the primal hunt was top tier sexiness!!
A really great read for mafia romance lovers!
Thank you for gifting me an advanced reader copy. Review reflective of my personal opinions
A really great read for mafia romance lovers!
Thank you for gifting me an advanced reader copy. Review reflective of my personal opinions
February 4, 2026
Sarah is a speech therapist. Maksim is Bratva. He needs help with speech and wants her for the job. When she refuses, he dawns his hidden persona and uses it to his advantage. After kidnapping her, things get interesting. I felt the author really researched the disabilities in the book. It was emotional and definitely had heat! This book is for the mask and pr*mal lovers.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
This was an ARC read through the Smuthood Pr!
My first read from this author. A rather good book with excellent characters and plot! Honestly full of great emotional depth and good balance of dark romance with the sweetest morally grey MMC!
My first read from this author. A rather good book with excellent characters and plot! Honestly full of great emotional depth and good balance of dark romance with the sweetest morally grey MMC!
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews