Morana Valdis was born into a life of crime. Mobsters and murder were apart of her daily life. After losing the most precious piece of her, the monster was unleashed.
Named after the Goddess of Death, Morana became the darkness they always tried to keep caged.
The Reaper was born.After a mysterious package is delivered to her, holding key pieces of evidence in the murder of her twin brother. Morana and her Reapers set out to seek revenge, as an unknown evil begins to close in.Can The Reapers make it out of Sanorah alive?
Triggers including violence, graphic murder, assault both sexual and otherwise, please proceed with caution.
Betrayal is not for the faint of heart. This part is true: lots of blood and violence. The characters deal in assassination and sexual assault seems to be quite popular in the mafia.
Betrayal is also the story of Morana, a deranged character at best.
Morana (Moranna? Let's call her Mor) is first introduced as a psychopath and as someone that reveal in other people's pain and death. And according to the Society for the Study of Psychopathy, psychopath traits include:
+ Lack of guilt/remorse + Lack of empathy + Lack of deep emotional attachments + Narcissism + Superficial charm + Dishonesty + Manipulativeness + Reckless risk-taking
Mor checks all these traits and on the paper, it sounds amazing. I am not all about meeting a psychopath in real life, but immersing myself in their head is always interesting. Unfortunately, this very serious and dangerous condition was simply a pathetic attempt of creating a somewhat badass character whose only skill is slicing the throats of tied people.
I was sold a psychopath heroine, I got a young woman followed by a shit ton of issues. And she got annoying incredibly fast.
Trigger warning: see above
You might also like: + Raven Blood: I found Betrayal very similar to Raven Blood in the writing but also the non explained worship of the heroine.
Morana, Ranger, Hunter, and Nash are known as Reapers for a family crime syndicate. Morana's dad adopted the guys after Morana's twin was murdered.
This is a psycho love story and it is delicious. Well unless you have triggers... Don't read if you can't handle lots of gory murder, torture, rape, depression, yearly suicide attempts, etc.
Morana never gets over her brother's death. She gets darker... becomes a monster to deal with people who need to die. She likes knowing she is the last face they will ever see.
This aren't supernatural reapers. Just regular old death dealers whose job it is to deal or reap death on specific targets.
Anyway, in the book we are given flashbacks of how the guys came into her life, how they became reapers, and other tidbits, several years apart to explain.
Ranger and Hunter and up in a menage with Morana. They wait 7 years for it to happen. She was clueless how they feel.
Nash is like family and I wonder if he is really a half brother since he looks so much like her twin that died, and he has same rare blood type as Morana.
Definitely an interesting series and I am invested now in the series. Can't wait to see what happens next.
This was one amazing book not meant for sensitive readers. Contrary to my initial impression that it would be an urban fantasy novel, it turned out to be a homicidal contemporary romantic suspense novel with a manage. And I will admit, one of the exceptionally rare contemporary reads that kept me glued to the pages. First of all, I should say that the author is completely new, but since she promised so much violence, murder, revenge and sex, I could not resist reading this debut of hers. I seriously could not stop. And although there were parts which were logical and predictable, the other parts left me clueless and guessing. The writing is style is engaging, raw, and at times sarcastic, plot brilliantly executed, and the characters beautifully developed. The author left the world deliberately limited to the immediate environment of the main characters to create the atmosphere of their limited and very dark world. That was so well done, I literally felt like there was nothing else there, until there was, for a very brief moment.
The interaction among characters is unique, the bond among them is unique, they only have each other, and Morana, the main character is the core of their small unit. As I mentioned previously, there is an incredible amount of violence, torture and murder in this book, and it's not meant for sensitive readers. There is so much ugly stuff in this book, and yet the author made it somehow beautiful and poetic. Regardless of being contemporary, it does have an urban fantasy tone to it. Morana has some serious homicidal tendencies, and she was trained to kill since a young age, and she is a mob princes, used as an executioner by her father. Well, at least that keeps her murderous personality in check, until she learns a life changing information about events of the past, and all hell breaks loose. That was amazing to observe, as I definitely felt like I was right there. Morana was so calm and collected and focused most of the time, and then completely lost to her rage and her need to kill and torture. Overall, it was one of my favourite books of the year, and the author immediately made my list of favourites. I am grateful that the next two books are already announced and coming soon, because I can't wait to read the story further and find out what happens. Reading order of the series is: Betrayal (The Reapers Book 1), Deception (The Reapers Series Book 2) coming August 2019, and Bloodlines(The Reapers Series Book 3) coming November 2019.
THIS BOOK NEEDS TO BE MADE INTO A MOVIE!!! Where do I even start with this book? This book is beyond full of twists and turns, it keeps you on the edge of your seat thee entire time, pulls your heart strings, makes you angry, happy and breaks your heart all at the same time. This book was written with so much thought. It has so many relatable things sewed into it. From fantasies, to heart break, emotions, personalities and all. The author poured herself into this book. Half way through the book, you’ll find yourself thinking “there’s no way this bitch is a first time author.” Which in fact she is. From the beginning of the first page, you’re hooked and ending has you begging for more. Just like Morana begged the guys for more.... this book has it all.. from sexy and steamy, to action, to romance and humor. If you’re looking for an amazing book- this is 100% it. If I could rate higher than 5 stars I would. I CANNOT WAIT FOR THE REST OF THE SERIES. I also want to add that the paper back is of high quality, not printed on the brown recycled paper that rips if you look at it too hard.
I cant believe this is actually a debut novel. Just the opening 4 lines gripped me and pulled me in and it never let go all the way through. It's a Mob story but not in the sense that a lot of mob romances are... This girl does not need rescuing. There was one part when I was ready to throw my kindle, and if you read it, which you really should, then you'll know exactly what I mean.. but luckily it went the way I really needed it to. I now have a major book hangover and will definitely get the next one the minute it becomes available. Well done Bo Reid for such a stunning and engaging first novel.
This book was a great starter to a new author and a new series. I love how different and unique Morana is from all the other typical MCs. I’m always a sucker for the twisted characters and I love her. I don’t really know how I feel about the romance yet because it felt a little rushed and incomplete but I’m excited to see where this series takes me. Great work!
Morana is the first and original Reaper for her family. She is the monster all mobsters fear seeing, because she’s the last thing they will ever see. With the death of her twin Hades, she is her fathers knife to anyone who crosses her family. With her three adoptive brothers she plans on never losing another family member again by any means necessary. But what happens when a forgotten foe pops back up and threatens her new love life and her family? She becomes her true monstrous self, The Reaper Queen.
One of the best books I've read in the past couple of years
Great story! New storyline in a genre that has held my interest for years. I love both the main character and her loves. The twist and turns of this book keep you reading for more. I highly recommend. Can't wait till the next one.
Ok this was so freaking awesome. Bo I loved how you just dragged me into Morana’s life and her boys that I couldn’t put this down once I started reading. I can’t wait to see what happens next.
This is the first book I have read by this author and all I can say is WOW!!!! It was dark and emotional. I honestly can't even put into words how amazing this book is.
No strong representation of diverse characters or minority identities.
Overall: 3.75-stars
I have a soft spot for mafia queens who go against a heroine's acceptable characterization in romantic suspense novels. Betrayal is the mafia hit team, the Reaper's origin story, led by the captivating and self-identified psychopath, anti-Heroine Morana. The book demonstrates the role of the Reapers in Morana’s father’s criminal organization. However, there are little Easter eggs that hint something is not as it should be in the criminal underworld throughout the novel.
Like other reviewers, I was a bit let down that the details of her exploits are restricted to moments where her fellow Reapers — her chosen family — do most of the “work” . But, being a reader that prefers character-driven plots, I appreciated that interspersed throughout the story, there are flashbacks that detail why Morana and her Reapers are so close.
I also enjoyed how there is a dialogue about Morana’s “tendencies” — they are not just accepted and then never discussed again, which grounded the otherwise fantastical book (it is a contemporary mafia novel that requires a suspension of disbelief). While Betrayal is marketed as a "female serial killer" novel, I think the book is more focused on Morana's internal struggles, which she calls her "monster." There seems to be a tug-of-war between the traumatic event that "let loose" her "monster" (and the resulting need to kill) and the safety and love she's found in her fellow Reapers, which is teasing a possible end to her "monster" persona.
Morana's three reapers are comprised of boys her father adopted after the tragic murder of her twin brother. Two of them become love interests in what will become a reverse harem relationship; however, it is a slow burn romance that will be explored throughout the series. The remaining reaper is strictly seen as a brother to Morana and vice versa. I enjoyed their relationship and how it illustrated unconditional love does not necessarily have to be romantic or biological. There is a “found family” theme that is prevalent throughout this novel.
I really want to like this book. The plot is decent and the characters are likable enough. Unfortunately there’s a mixup between “quiet” and “quite”, Ranger can’t ever seem to be in possession of something and instead becomes plural, there’s missing punctuation, and a couple other problems that ruin the flow. The author’s style is very easy to read with funny quips here and there. Some aspects are a bit repetitive- yes I got that MC is petite, yes I understand she’s THE Reaper.
Amazing storyline despite quite a few grammatical errors
First and foremost, this story does contain sexual assault and rape so consider yourself warned before jumping into this crazy train. This book is also a dark contemporary ménage (currently) romance , I originally thought it was paranormal or fantasy RH. The RH may develop as the series continues with new characters.
I absolutely LOVED this book!!! It was dark, morbid, and twisted. I love reading books where I’m rooting for the bad guys because the author has done a tremendous job creating a world that allows the reader to connect with the characters. The author did an awesome job creating all the main characters and Morana was awesome to read about. She’s cold, ruthless, and deranged which is perfect for her role in this series.
We follow Morana from the time she’s 16, when she has already become the Reaper for her father’s mob/crime business. So basically she’s an assassin. Her father ends up building her “crew” and then we fast forward to 5 or 6 years later.
We learn a little about why Morana is the way she is. I am obsessed with how the author crafted the Morana character from how she behaves, her thoughts, and even her spoken words. She definitely has the kicka** femme fetale vibes and I loved reading about her. We are introduced to other characters that play a key role into the overall storyline. We are given several detailed scenes of what Morana and her Crew does when assigned a “job”.
I would have easily given this book 5 stars if it wasn’t for the editing and grammatical errors. I saw “quiet” used instead of “quite” frequently and “defiantly” instead of “definitely” which are huge pet peeves of mine. I also found several run on sentences. Even though it needs another round of edits, it was still easy to decipher through the mistakes.
Fantastic first book for this author which was so dark, twisted, unique and detailed. I will continue to read this series to see what happens next, especially after that cliffhanger!!!
I wanted to like this book so much, but unfortunately it just fell very flat for me.
I’m an avid fan of the dark, especially if the FMC is in charge. And Morana is definitely in charge in this book. However, the way the book is hyped up, it seems as if the FMC is supposed to be this super scary, dark, twisted villain, and sadly she’s not.
Morana is nothing but a girl hurt by the fact she lost her twin brother. It’s that simple. She’s depressed, and because she’s depressed, she lashes out at everything and everyone. I found her snark annoying, and her bravado false. She talks of how she’s a “monster” who doesn’t want to be saved, but that’s not true at all.
It’s very easy to see that Morana doesn’t like her life and she’s only killing because she’s sad her brother died. She only ever kills when they’re tied down in a chair, or when they’re so beaten they can’t move.
Even in the end, it’s just a bunch of time skipping where we don’t even read or know about any of this “badass killing” that Morana does as she supposedly takes down another “Mafia” all by herself. And where the hell is her father in all this?
Sadly, I think I had too many expectations for this book, and because of that I was unable to truly fall in love with it. I won’t be completing the rest of the series, but that doesn’t mean it’s a bad book; it just simply wasn’t what I thought it was meant to be.
As I kept reading this I could only think of the Tywin Lannister quote "Any Man Who Must Say 'I Am The King' Is No True King".
I was a bit disappointed in this book, the premise looked really interesting but the way it was written was a bit off putting to me. The first 30% felt like it was written in bullet points. We were told what happened instead of experiencing it with the characters. There was also this insta-love quality to the relationship between the guys and Morana. We don't get to see any interactions between them or how their relationship grows we are just told that after a month together she has become their everything.
We also keep being told how badass and unfeeling Morana is, but the only skill shown is her showing up to slice people's throats after they have been beaten down by someone else.
So long story short at 58% I was not attached to any of the characters, I didn't really know much about any of them and if I had to read one more time how badass/unfeeling/much of a monster/Original Reaper Morana was without any proof of it I was going to throw my kindle out the window.
Morana Valdis is a complete bad ass! I'm scared of what it says about me that I found her personality relatable. It kind of makes me sound like a psychopath but I don't care , I totally love her!
Morana's name means death. In Slavic mythology it was the name of the goddess of death and winter. And that's what Morana is serving you because if you see her coming? It's already too late for you.
Morana, along with her reaper crew (Ranger, Hunter & Nash) which is comprised of her brothers through adoption are her back up, They are lethal, protective, loyal and devoted. I love the dynamic between them. Morana was born into a life of crime and when the only thing she's ever cared about is taken from her the true monster was born.
I was completely pulled in by chapter one. If you're into suspense, carnage, dark, brutal, edge of your seat stories with a twist of romance thrown in then you'll love this and gah! That cliffy though!
Betrayal is very captivating, highly addictive, and unforgettable!
You know those books that you read where you not sure what to expect but then you end up getting a surprise and you love the book....that's this book.
This book is about Morana who is not just a Mob princess but a reaper for her family. And the reaper is not someone you want to get a visit from. 3 guys are brought into her family/crew and they become her responsibility for the good and the bad.
I absolutely loved the connection that was built between her and her new brothers. They each provided something different for morana which I liked. I really liked the winter/darkness mentions in her in regards to how the MC was feeling, however it did sometimes get a bit repetitive. I really enjoyed the MC, she was independent, dark and bada**. And can I just say I love a girl who loves some good knife work.
You know a book is good when it has you wanting to add to your knife collection 😉 Would definitely recommend this book
This is a dark contemporary reverse harem. Morana is the daughter of a mobster & the darkness inside of her is inevitable. She is The Reaper. She and her 3 foster brothers take jobs for the mob without question & they would give their lives to protect her; not that she needs it because shes a Mob Queen. This series is full of murder, violence, revenge, and sex. So much sex. There’s something new at every turn that keeps you interested and the cliffhangers at the end of each book are huge! The books were easy to read and kept me interested the entire time.
There were some dark scenes that may be triggering/hard to read for some, so if you’re easily triggered, I don’t recommend reading it. Otherwise, definitely check it out!
what an amazing book this is Bo Reid first book and what a fantastic first book. The book is about Areon valdis who is a mob boss and has his daughter Morana who work for her father and she is know as the reaper. Morana is a very strong kick ass reaper of death i absolutely love her. Her father adopts ranger , Nash and Hunter to become her brothers and also part of her team as reapers but there feeling for her as they get older change and not only do they love her they want to protect her. I was hook on the first page so much so i couldn't but it down and omg i cant believed the cliff hanger i didn't see that one coming and i cant wait for book 2 to find out what happens two them all.
This book was recommended in one of my fb reading groups, described as ST Abbys Mindf**k written as RH. That is so not an accurate description. This book should've been great but it lacks something. Can't figure out what exactly. There was a disconnect for me. I couldn't get into any of the characters. The plot leads you nowhere. She had more emotion with Maverick then any of her brother's. And her relationship with Nash is sad. Ranger and Hunter were like background characters. Present in most scenes but easily forgotten. Every few pages is the same paragraph about her being in the dark and being a monster. That is repeated so much it gets truly annoying. And the trigger scene near the end feels thrown in then dismissed. I won't be finishing the series.
This is Bo Reid first book release, and let me just say, wow, what a great debut it is! Once I started reading I couldn't stop, I felt so invested with the storyline and characters that I felt everything along with them. Bo has such an amazing way with words that I'm left speechless, and now have a major book hangover!
Morana is such a kick ass MC and I love the fact that she's not a dainty princess but in fact a strong woman with issues. It's such a completely new angle for a book and I'm now on the edge of my seat waiting for the next one!
This book hooked me from the start, I initially thought it was going to be a supernatural book and was pleasantly surprised when I realised it was more of a mafia style. I absolutely love morana and the her “brothers.” There were times when I got so angry with her decisions but I love the way her relationship with them developed. It ends on a cliffhanger and I’m now sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for book 2. For a debut novel she definitely blew the house down with this one.
This review is based on after the re release of Betrayal. Holy Crap! All I can really say is Murder, Mayhem and Morana! This Book is sooo good, I devoured it in one sitting. Morana is one Helluva Kickass female created by life and those who surround her and develop her into the Ultimate Reaeper. She is Beautifully devastating and so well written. I am almost more in love with her than the men! This Book is so well written and keeps you guessing that there was no way I could have put this down. I cannot wait to get started on the other books in this series. Well done Bo.
Holy hot! This book was everything I hoped and more! If you like a kicka$$ FMC then look no further! I absolutely loved the storyline, characters, plot twists, and pretty much everything. There is so much good about this book it has everything from murder and mayhem to love and sweetness, but sweet in a bloody sort of way! I would absolutely reccomend this book to anyone who loves a good darker romance. The plot is amazingly done and sucks you right in and won't let you go until you're at the end wishing for more. It is so well done and I can not wait for more....
This is fantastic dark and twisty RH romance. It has murder, mystery and suspense. The plot and characters are well developed. I loved that this story truly started from the beginning, showing the development of Morana, Nash, Ranger, and Hunter. While this was a bit predictable for me, I still found this book very entertaining and was surprised a time or two. The ending is a cliffhanger and I cannot wait until the next book. I received a complimentary copy and am voluntarily leaving an unbiased, honest review.
A little blood and murder only draws a family together and strengthens the love they share … well, it does for the Reapers. Never has a story with so many murders, tortures, and twists in such a short time captured my interest so much that I'm truly looking forward to next instalment. Morana is the girl who only sees herself as the monster in the dark and yet to her Reapers she is everything, their home, their light, their love. Watching their story unfold is definitely an entertaining read, even if the blood is spilled every couple of pages. Definitely recommend this for anyone.
A twisted tale of the family we make versus the family we are born to. The ties that bind versus the ties we choose to give ourselves over to willingly no matter what. Maybe our sweet Female lead would be even darker without her dark accepting boys to help her find love. Maybe without her fathers connections she would have been a different person as a child. But regardless she is comfortable in the dark as the reaper of souls.