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A contract bathed in blood.
A love forbidden from all angles.
For years, Sergio Santoyo has walked around with a gigantic chip on his shoulder—one directly infected by his father’s lethal corruption.
At the age of thirteen, he was forced to make a difficult decision, choose two to live and one to die. That choice followed him through his dreams, creating vivid nightmares that still keep him up at night. He was bred from birth to shoot first and never ask questions. A man with nothing to lose, nothing to gain, and who always has the perfect aim. His reputation as his father’s hired gun left him a target—one that a rival Cartel would take out without question if given the chance.
But the target on his back meant nothing to him as long as the family was safe. His loyalty never wavered, at least not until his latest contract was slid under the door. Now Sergio has to decide what he cares about more . . . the love from a father that is the sole reason for his nightmares and blood-soaked hands, or the forbidden love he keeps hidden behind closed doors.
A love forbidden from all angles.
For years, Sergio Santoyo has walked around with a gigantic chip on his shoulder—one directly infected by his father’s lethal corruption.
At the age of thirteen, he was forced to make a difficult decision, choose two to live and one to die. That choice followed him through his dreams, creating vivid nightmares that still keep him up at night. He was bred from birth to shoot first and never ask questions. A man with nothing to lose, nothing to gain, and who always has the perfect aim. His reputation as his father’s hired gun left him a target—one that a rival Cartel would take out without question if given the chance.
But the target on his back meant nothing to him as long as the family was safe. His loyalty never wavered, at least not until his latest contract was slid under the door. Now Sergio has to decide what he cares about more . . . the love from a father that is the sole reason for his nightmares and blood-soaked hands, or the forbidden love he keeps hidden behind closed doors.
155 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 19, 2021
15 people are currently reading
52 people want to read
About the author
Quinn Ryder
41 books471 followersRunning From Drac: OUT NOW!
Haunting Phantom: OUT NOW!
Falling for Krampus: OUT NOW!
Loving Voorhees: Coming March 27, 2026
Catching Feelings: Coming April 23, 2026
Hail Mary: Coming Sept 24, 2026
Quarterback Sack: Coming Nov 9, 2026
Snowbound with Gremlin: Coming Dec 7, 2026
Haunting Phantom: OUT NOW!
Falling for Krampus: OUT NOW!
Loving Voorhees: Coming March 27, 2026
Catching Feelings: Coming April 23, 2026
Hail Mary: Coming Sept 24, 2026
Quarterback Sack: Coming Nov 9, 2026
Snowbound with Gremlin: Coming Dec 7, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
March 10, 2021
Heart in your throat!
This book will keep your heart in your throat from page one! Action packed and full of emotion,this is a great book! I wish it was longer.
This book will keep your heart in your throat from page one! Action packed and full of emotion,this is a great book! I wish it was longer.
January 17, 2021
Sergio has grown up in the cartel since his dad is the head of it. If that wasn’t bad enough from a young age his dad taught him how to shoot and kill. Now as an adult his life is still controlled by his father but that all changes when he meets the beautiful, blue eyed Catalina. Even though he’s promised to another Sergio cannot stop taking Catalina and making her his own.
However when he finds out that Catalina is the daughter of his father’s enemy he knows life is about to get complicated and that he is going to be forced to make a choice, the love of his life or his family?
Family, love, betrayal, violence. This book has it all. For her first foray into the mafia world Quinn Ryder did an amazing job. I can hardly wait for Emilio and find out what happens next!!!
However when he finds out that Catalina is the daughter of his father’s enemy he knows life is about to get complicated and that he is going to be forced to make a choice, the love of his life or his family?
Family, love, betrayal, violence. This book has it all. For her first foray into the mafia world Quinn Ryder did an amazing job. I can hardly wait for Emilio and find out what happens next!!!
January 19, 2021
OMFG!!! Wow! This was such a great book. Filled with action, twists, turns, secrets, a little deception and revelations. Sergio is the eldest son of the Julio Santoyo and he will be taking over the cartel when his father retires or is killed. Whichever comes first. His father has made him into an emotionless hitman. Catalina is the secret daughter of Jose Charro. When Sergio first sees Catalina, he feels an instant connection to her. These two are both promised to others, but they want each other. This is somewhat like a darker mafia version of Romeo and Juliet. I was shocked and hooked by everything I read and cannot what to read Emilio. I couldn’t put this down until I was done. I need more. 💜🔥
April 27, 2021
Love's lust, betrayal and lies
Sergio is a dangerous man in the mafia. He also has a heart though because when men are attacking two women he saves them not knowing one is from an enemies family. He can't let the face of Catalina go he thinks of her all the time regardless of having to marry Esme.
Both father's are crazy with a capital C. But even they can't keep them apart. I will never know why Sergio didn't just shoot his twisted father, I truly hope he gets what's coming to him.
Sergio is a dangerous man in the mafia. He also has a heart though because when men are attacking two women he saves them not knowing one is from an enemies family. He can't let the face of Catalina go he thinks of her all the time regardless of having to marry Esme.
Both father's are crazy with a capital C. But even they can't keep them apart. I will never know why Sergio didn't just shoot his twisted father, I truly hope he gets what's coming to him.
January 19, 2021
This is a fantastic book that will have you on edge. It's a fast paced read that'll take you on a wild ride. The plot, storyline, and characters are well written. Sergio and Catalina's story is so much more than I could've imagined. Their tale has some shocking revelations that you won't see coming. The action, suspense, twists and turns along with a hint of some betrayal will have you wanting, needing more. This is a story you don't want to miss. I highly recommend reading. You won't be disappointed.
January 19, 2021
Boy, oh boy that was... intense and so, so much more!! Holy cow I was NOT expecting all that especially that ending!! Quinn managed to grab me from the very beginning and refused to let go until the last word. I felt it all from the pain and love to the pure gate seeing bright red. I knew I was going to love this book but I was not expecting to fall this hard now I need Emilio, book 2. You rock Quinn!! Thank you for another amazing story. I can’t wait to see what you have for us next!! 🖤😈😉
January 24, 2021
I absolutely loved this book! Once I started I couldn’t stop. I had a mafia style telenovela playing in my head the whole time and it was so much fun. I know “fun” is an odd way to describe a twisted mafia romance, but it was.
Sergio, the eldest son to an abusive tyrant of a father has always done what has been expected of him. He has been raised to be a ruthless killer all his life and is next in line to inherit the family’s illicit cartel business. But a chance encounter with the most beautiful woman he has ever seen has him questioning if a life bathed in bloodshed and doing his fathers bidding is really what he wants. Now Sergio has to decide between sacrificing more of his own happiness for the sake of family loyalty, or burn the only life he has ever known to the ground for the love of his life.
Sergio, the eldest son to an abusive tyrant of a father has always done what has been expected of him. He has been raised to be a ruthless killer all his life and is next in line to inherit the family’s illicit cartel business. But a chance encounter with the most beautiful woman he has ever seen has him questioning if a life bathed in bloodshed and doing his fathers bidding is really what he wants. Now Sergio has to decide between sacrificing more of his own happiness for the sake of family loyalty, or burn the only life he has ever known to the ground for the love of his life.
January 20, 2021
🌟🌟Received an ARC🌟🌟
This book had amazing character development, a story line that I hadn’t necessarily heard before. Even though it could be considered a mafia style Romeo and Juliet, the plot was continually thickening and the drama got deeper and deeper. It kind of leaves you on a cliff hangar not knowing what’s going to happen next but it makes you want to go ahead and preorder book 2 so you can figure it out. The love between Sergio and Catalina is one for the ages!
The only reason I went four stars instead of five is because it all felt super rushed to me, like I wish it was about hundred pages longer because the pace and speed of it all felt unrealistic.
Overall though a great storyline and can’t wait to read book two!
This book had amazing character development, a story line that I hadn’t necessarily heard before. Even though it could be considered a mafia style Romeo and Juliet, the plot was continually thickening and the drama got deeper and deeper. It kind of leaves you on a cliff hangar not knowing what’s going to happen next but it makes you want to go ahead and preorder book 2 so you can figure it out. The love between Sergio and Catalina is one for the ages!
The only reason I went four stars instead of five is because it all felt super rushed to me, like I wish it was about hundred pages longer because the pace and speed of it all felt unrealistic.
Overall though a great storyline and can’t wait to read book two!
February 3, 2021
WOW!!! Quinn Ryder has done it again! I couldn’t put this book down! I read it in a day! As soon as you open the book... I mean, I have never read a book with a beginning like this one! I won’t give anything away but please give this book a try. I promise you won’t be disappointed! From the beginning with Sergio’s father ordering him to make a choice no child should have to make to the Love between Sergio and Catalina and then the ending leaving you wanting the next book to come out now, Quinn keeps you glued to the pages! So so good! Well done!
March 21, 2021
Great read.
What a great read! I was pulled in with the prologue and couldn't out it down.
Sergio has always put his family first, doing every despicable thing his Father asks him too. But when he first sets eyes on Catalina he starts to question everything.
When a chance, bloody meeting puts her in the path of Sergio, Catalina can't stop thinking of him. Once she discovers her Father has sold her in to marriage, she is even more determined to find her way to Sergio.
Can't wait for book two!!
What a great read! I was pulled in with the prologue and couldn't out it down.
Sergio has always put his family first, doing every despicable thing his Father asks him too. But when he first sets eyes on Catalina he starts to question everything.
When a chance, bloody meeting puts her in the path of Sergio, Catalina can't stop thinking of him. Once she discovers her Father has sold her in to marriage, she is even more determined to find her way to Sergio.
Can't wait for book two!!
January 19, 2021
Sergio is a man that has only known violence and bloodthirst and the hard choices he had to make early on in his childhood made him the man he is today. The book is full of action,suspense,secrets,love and everything in between!
This is my first book in the Social Rejects Syndicate I've read,and it hasn't disappointed... Quinn has delved deep into the world of the Mexican Mafia and I can't wait to find out what happens next in the Santoyo Trilogy!
A five star recommendation!
This is my first book in the Social Rejects Syndicate I've read,and it hasn't disappointed... Quinn has delved deep into the world of the Mexican Mafia and I can't wait to find out what happens next in the Santoyo Trilogy!
A five star recommendation!
February 14, 2021
Omg!!! Just finished this book and I loved it!!! I love the love at first site!!! I feel like even though it’s rare it can happen. I hate Esme! There always has to be some stupid broad I hate lol I read this in a couple hours only because I had distractions. I was happy, excited, mad, all in one story. Again with Quinn’s books the only complaint that I ever have is they aren’t long enough!!!! If I could give a million stars I would!!!
February 7, 2021
Sergio and Catalina
Omg if you are looking for a story that will keep you on the edge of your seat and craving more as you keep reading than Sergio is the book you want. It’s a story full of love, malice, heartache, and death. Even the hired gun of a prominent family deserves love right.
Omg if you are looking for a story that will keep you on the edge of your seat and craving more as you keep reading than Sergio is the book you want. It’s a story full of love, malice, heartache, and death. Even the hired gun of a prominent family deserves love right.
January 18, 2021
Woah! What a read! This is an amazing story, full of twists and turns and it will keep you on the edge of your seat. Sergio and Catalina’s story is just...... wow. I couldn’t put it down and practically devoured every word. I want more! Such a great story, read this book! You won’t be sorry!
January 20, 2021
Fantastic and enthralling Mafia romance.
Sergio was enthralling and captivating from start to finish. I loved grittiness and depths of the characters and twists and turns you don't see coming. Mafia romance is not usually my thing but I can't wait for the next installment.
Sergio was enthralling and captivating from start to finish. I loved grittiness and depths of the characters and twists and turns you don't see coming. Mafia romance is not usually my thing but I can't wait for the next installment.
January 20, 2021
The hitman has a heart ...
Quinn Ryder will have you holding your breath, again and again ... Sergio and Catalinas stories start with love at first sight.. Family and loyalty has no boundaries...
Quinn Ryder will have you holding your breath, again and again ... Sergio and Catalinas stories start with love at first sight.. Family and loyalty has no boundaries...
January 24, 2021
I really love the fast pace of this book. It was action-packed and kept my interest for the beginning. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. If you like books that kick-arse then this is for you.
February 5, 2021
Absolutely fantastic read! The story, characters, twists and turns all have me from the first page! Best Mafia story I've read in a really long time!
April 17, 2021
Talk about a deadly, drama filled, cluster. Both Sergio and Catalina are forced to do something neither of them wants. Can they get out of it without getting killed? This book was amazing!
January 22, 2021
I had to think about what I wanted to say about this spectacular book without giving any spoilers. This may be Quinn's first venture into writing about the mafia world but she killed it. There is plenty of danger, betrayals, secrets, desires, angst and more. As with all mafia families their traditions, roles, expectations and loyalties are to be honored at all times. If you don't follow those principles there are severe consequences. This book will grab you and your attention right away. You will be so invested with the characters, their story, their emotions and desires, you will not want to put the book down. Serigo is a complex man. He is the man his father made him be. Or is he? Catalina is a pawn her father intends to use to have more power. Will she do as he says? When these two meet there is a strong connection. Is that enough? What will happen when they discover more about each other? What will they do to be together? Will it be their family or their love? Get this book to find out! It is worth every minute you spend reading! I can not wait to get the next book!
January 7, 2024
Can I give it more than five stars please. I couldn't put it down once I started it. It had me from page one. I can't wait to see what happens next because the ending had me. Must read
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews