Honorable Sins

Syndicate Sins #3

by Lucy Monroe

Blood contracts can’t be broken, except by spilling more blood.

KARA

Six years ago, I fought to end my marriage. Now I’m fighting to protect everything it has become.

Mick is still my beloved sociopath and Fitz is a mob boss in training, who watches over his younger brother and sisters with his dad’s ruthlessness and my compassion.

But someone doesn’t want my husband to be underboss anymore, much less the next boss. Whispers are growing that the Shaughnessy Mob should be led by Shaughnessy blood.

They think I’ll stand back and let them threaten the man whose soul is entwined with mine, to try to take what’s ours.

They don’t know me at all.

MICK

I didn’t inherit my role as underboss. I offered up my life and signed a contract in blood for it. Before I knew how much I would have to lose without it.

But the best way to safeguard what matters most is from a position of power and that means mine has to be absolute. Because no one will stop me from protecting what’s mine, the only four people in the world I have any genuine feeling for: my wife and our children.

But someone thinks they can take it all from me.

Not. Going. To. Happen.

Because anyone who comes for my throne isn’t just challenging my rule. They’re threatening Fitz’s future and the safety of our family. And that comes with a death sentence I’m only too happy to carry out.

This is a standalone mafia romance with a guaranteed HEA.

Content Warning: on the page violence, foul language, mention of attempted SA (minor to minor), and explicit spice on the page.

226 pages, Paperback

First published August 13, 2026

About the author

I write spicy romance books that end in an HEA. Contemporary romance, historical romance, paranormal romance…I write it all. The two things my books all have in common is lots of emotion and spice. Last year, I fell in love with a new subgenre: mafia romance. Since I write what I love to read, I started a new standalone series, Syndicate Rules where you’ll meet over the top alpha heroes in the Italian and Greek mafias as well as the Irish mob. There are arranged marriages, forced marriages, enemies to lovers, stalkers, forced proximity and lots of mafia intrigue. Morally gray is my new favorite color.

Follow me on BookBub for alerts on my next release: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/lucy-...

I’ve been published a while and most of my 90+ books have hit the Nielson Bookscan bestseller list, a few ended up on the USA Today bestseller list and some even hit national bestseller lists in the UK and Australia. My books have been translated into numerous languages and are for sale in dozens of countries around the world. I’ve won awards and been published with most of the big houses in New York, but my greatest achievement is touching readers’ hearts. When I hear from a reader who got caught up in one of my books, I know I’m doing what I’m meant to do.

I love writing emotionally deep stories with snappy dialogue and solid plots. I’m more grateful than I’ll ever be able to express that so many readers have taken my stories into their hearts and put my books on their reread and keeper shelves.

Reviews

[Dee Dee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a delightful story set amidst the turmoil and demands of Lucy Monroe's Mafia world. It follows on the heels of “Sins of Innocence,” Book 2 of Syndicate Sins, with many of the same characters, and blends a unique summer time children's birthday celebration together with traditional Christmas celebrations and an additional birthday. It's a lighter story overall in that it centers around their teenaged son and the younger children at the same time it reveals the conflict and dangers of the underworld Mob.

Mick and Kara are tested as both the king and queen of the Shaughnessy Mob and as parents when their son, Fitz, the future boss of the mob, is put in harm's way. It's not a brilliant move to make with these parents in control. Honestly, I read this book so fast because I just could not put it down. I'm going to schedule some time in the future to reread it because I loved it. It was fun. It had risks, danger and laughter. The author's command of the English and Irish languages is unparalleled

[I read for the vibes · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.3 ⭐

I was happy we got to revisit Mick and Kara as they are one of my favorite couples from both of the Syndicate series.

However, I didn't enjoy this as much as I did the other books. There were typos, inconsistent spellings, and general timeline issues. For the last one, maybe it's because the story happens in parallel with Sins of Innocence (Wraith and Aine's story) which I haven't read yet.

But overall, still happy to have read it and I'm looking forward to future books with this family.

[Kelley Granzow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another 5 star story

I couldn’t put this book down! It was a fantastic idea to write Mick and Kara’s timeline to match Wraith and Aine. Lots of action, betrayal, humor, karma, life and death….. honor and love. Thank you Lucy for jumping in and creating a Mafia Romance that has everything your readers are looking for.

[Tina Howell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love that we got a second book for Mick and Kara. Six years later and they are going strong with more kids. This book is amazing. I love how strong this couple becomes. This is a great book but I definitely recommend reading book 1 in this series first.

[S Walker]

This felt like an extended epilogue of Kara and Mick’s HEA, no drama between them, just some side story running parallel with Wraith and Aine. The latter already exists so this was not necessary.

[LastNightInVegas · Rating 3 out of 5]

3

[Lisbeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok, but boring at times, since it ran parallel with the former book sins of Innocence.

[Patricia Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

mish mash of last two books

Really loved the first two books and was excited for the third. Sadly it was a reworking of the first two and didn’t engage me.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it.

[Madeline Maslanka · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.75

[Seems · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is worth reading from the beginning. The first is marriage in trouble, and I loved Kara's silent strength and you see how much she's grown as a person and them as a couple in this book.