Retribution: A Dark Cartel Romance

by K.C. Rice

She watched her mother die. Then she was taken by the man who ordered it—her own father, cartel kingpin Xavier Alvarez.
Raised inside a criminal empire built on fear and bloodshed, Gabriella learned early that survival meant obedience. But beneath her silence, she was watching… learning… waiting.
Years later, the world fears a new Shadow—a woman building an empire designed to dismantle her father’s from the inside out.
But when a former soldier named Ryker reappears, revenge gets complicated—and the cost of retribution turns deadly.
Because when her father discovers who Shadow really is… he won’t just come for her. He’ll come for everyone she protects.
***Trigger Warning***
In order to preserve the reality in this story there are a few PA and SA scenes.

237 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 25, 2026

About the author

Considers herself “just a simple country girl” born and raised in Frankfort, KY. She enjoys the simplest things in life; Family, walks, a cool summer breeze, brilliant colors of autumn, tranquil sounds of a waterfall, and laughter.
The mastermind behind the New, Hot, and Steamy Tattered Series Books.... Though not tied to just one genre, K.C. expresses her talents in many different forms- Romance, Suspense, Erotica, Mystery and Poetry. K.C. enjoys sharing her incredible imagination with her readers. K's thoughts on the subject, " I want to be able to help my readers to escape the humdrum and stresses of everyday life. To pull them inside my stories. To feel, experience and fall in love... or lust. And to miss the characters when the book is over- to leave them satisfied, yet hungry for more."

Reviews

[Naughty Nightie · Rating 5 out of 5]

K.C hooks you in right from the start and keeps you turning the pages until the very end. When she was four years old, Gabriela's mom took her away from her tyrannical father when she had an opportunity to escape. One day, her father finds them again. Gabriela manages to hide under her bed and her mother gets shot in front of her when she won't reveal where Gabriela is. But they manage to find her eventually. She is taken to her father's island, making escape impossible. But Gabriela watches and waits, noting down all her father's secrets and keeping them hidden. Her father arranges a marriage to a monster worse than her father. She watches and waits, waiting for the perfect opportunity to finally escape the Island and the two monsters making her life hell. That day finally comes, but it's during a storm and trapped on a boat. She finds herself washed overboard, but not without her husband, getting some revenge on her first. She washes up injured on another island, but this time the people are nice, help her, and keep her hidden. Until the day her father finds her again and she is forced to escape once again. With some help from the couple who helped her and their son, Ryker, she started a new life with a new name. This time, she is set to ruin her father's business and make herself queen in his place. Hit him where it hurts. But the road to her father's ruin is not paved with gold, and there are losses along the way. Will Gabriela get her wish and an HEA with the love of her life?
I received an arc for my voluntary honest review for NN Book Blog. If you love a very dark, steamy mafia romance with plenty of action, then you will love this book. However, this book may not be for everyone; please heed the author's trigger warnings before purchasing or reading this book.

[George Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book immediately pulled me in with the emotional intensity of Gabriella’s story. The idea of a daughter raised inside the very cartel responsible for destroying her life creates a strong psychological foundation right from the beginning. What I liked most is that the revenge angle doesn’t sound one-dimensional it feels personal, dangerous, and emotionally complicated.

The Shadow identity also gives the story a darker and more cinematic atmosphere than a typical cartel thriller. There’s a sense of calculated patience underneath the violence, and the tension surrounding her father discovering the truth adds a constant feeling of danger to the premise.

The reason I settled on 4 stars instead of 5 honestly comes down more to the presentation than the concept itself. After reading the synopsis, the story feels much more emotionally intense, layered, and high-stakes than what I initially expected. It has the energy of a dark revenge thriller with strong psychological and criminal-underworld elements, but I’m not sure the current visual presentation fully communicates that atmosphere to potential readers browsing online.

I almost assumed it would be a more conventional crime romance before reading further, which would’ve been unfortunate because the concept actually feels much more cinematic and emotionally driven.

I genuinely think a stronger cover direction could help the book connect more immediately with readers who enjoy dark cartel thrillers, revenge stories, and emotionally intense suspense.

Definitely a strong premise with serious thriller potential.

[Charlotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

***POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD***
Retribution is a very interesting creative work about the daughter of a mob boss and her life after her father kills her as a child and her search for retribution on her mother’s behalf and how she also finds love and freedom. It is quite bloody, but not as descriptive or dark as I expected. There is some brutality and triggering incidents to do with SA and child abuse and trauma, though some incidents seem more glossed over. It should also be mentioned that some things are in Spanish and the author seems to try to tie it in that you don’t need to know Spanish to read the book, but it was still a bit confusing and could benefit from some direct translations in the text.
This book has a greatly thought out main character in Gabriella(Ella). She seems a bit halfhearted in some of her scenes, because she’s made out at least in her mind to be a strong woman, but then whenever something is stressful or worrying she passes out. The male characters don’t really stay steady as they move in and out of the story as it is a short book written to do with probably 20 years of life, so it keeps things changing which keeps them interesting, though some could use some polishing on character descriptions.
Overall this was a very intriguing book. It does need some more edits for grammar and spelling as some sentences I had to read over multiple times to try to get the meaning and sometimes use the context to figure out what was meant by certain words being in the wrong places.

[Karen Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a page turner! Gabriella/Gabi/Ella has been through the wringer. From her mom being taken from her at a young age, to her being raised by her drug lord of a father, to her arranged marriage at 18, to her becoming an independent woman making her way in the world. Now Ella is bound and determined to avenge her father.

Ella is finally able to get away from her abusive husband, just barely. What eventually happens to him is for the best. She is saved by a couple on an island. They take care of her. That’s where she meets Ryker. Their first encounter is not the best. He seems to not take very kindly to Ella. Keep that name in mind as him and Ella go on quite a journey together. What happens with them in the end is just the icing on the cake. Will Ella finally take down her dad? Wait til you find out! What Ella has accomplished also is one for the records book-you don’t want to miss a single moment of what she creates!

[Isolde Marchetti · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll be honest I picked this up because I was in the mood for something dark, and Retribution delivered. Gabriella is cold, smart, and absolutely terrifying by the end, but you never forget she started as a scared little girl watching her mom die. That's the part that stuck with me.

Ryker surprised me. He could've been a generic tough guy, but Rice gave him actual wounds. Their dynamic isn't sweet it's messy and tense, and I bought every second of it.

The villain (her dad, Xavier) is genuinely hateable. Like, "I wanted to throw my Kindle" hateable.

Only knocked off a star because the middle dragged a little for me. But that ending? Worth it. If you like dark revenge stories with real emotional weight, grab this when it comes out.

TL;DR: Brutal but never hollow. Just mind the trigger warnings.

[Wongani Minjale · Rating 5 out of 5]

This dark cartel thriller is a gripping tale of survival, vengeance, and deadly high-stakes betrayal. Trapped in her father’s brutal criminal empire, Gabriella transforms from a silent observer into "Shadow," a brilliant mastermind bent on internal destruction. Ryker’s arrival adds palpable romantic tension and emotional complexity. Note the serious trigger warnings for intense violence. It is a fast-paced, edge-of-your-seat revenge story that keeps you hooked until the final page.

[Regina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Retribution

Good read with plot twists, emotions, mystery, and action. This book has a strong heroine that has to work hard to keep her emotions in check while working in a world that could lead to a horrific death for her and the ones she works with. A book about determination, focus and hope.

[Ella Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Retribution: A Dark Cartel Romance is a gripping blend of suspense, revenge, and forbidden romance set against the brutal backdrop of a ruthless cartel. With intense emotional stakes, dangerous power struggles, and a determined heroine fighting to reclaim her future, it delivers a dark, action-packed story that will captivate fans of high-stakes romantic suspense.

[Stacey Vandling · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars and rounded up. This is a cartel dark romance that kept me interested from the start. I really loved the characters, and the quick chapters made this such an easy, fast-paced read. There was plenty of darkness, tension, and chemistry to keep me turning the pages.