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Underboss Insurrection #1
Run Posy Run
She'd better run...
Posy
When I fell for Dario Volpe, I thought he was Prince Charming, and I was the luckiest girl alive. He didn't care about my past. The talk. The stain on my family's reputation.
Then he saw something I never wanted anyone to see.
He cares now.
This isn't a breakup, it's a warning shot, and if I want to get out of this bad romance alive, I have to run and never look back.
Dario Volpe is no storybook hero. He's a psychopath, and he can't decide--kiss me? Or kill me?
Dario
I'm the man behind the curtain, the power behind the throne. I could have killed her, and no one would have blinked an eye. Posy Santoro isn't exactly a mafia princess.
No one sees her as clearly as I can--the perfect mind hidden by that knockout body in the tight dress.
I made a mistake, running her off, but now I get to play one of my favorite games.
Posy can run, but she isn't made to be free. She's made for me. And when I catch her? Game over.
Run Posy Run is a standalone mafia romance with dark elements. Intended for adult readers.
HEA guaranteed.
Posy
When I fell for Dario Volpe, I thought he was Prince Charming, and I was the luckiest girl alive. He didn't care about my past. The talk. The stain on my family's reputation.
Then he saw something I never wanted anyone to see.
He cares now.
This isn't a breakup, it's a warning shot, and if I want to get out of this bad romance alive, I have to run and never look back.
Dario Volpe is no storybook hero. He's a psychopath, and he can't decide--kiss me? Or kill me?
Dario
I'm the man behind the curtain, the power behind the throne. I could have killed her, and no one would have blinked an eye. Posy Santoro isn't exactly a mafia princess.
No one sees her as clearly as I can--the perfect mind hidden by that knockout body in the tight dress.
I made a mistake, running her off, but now I get to play one of my favorite games.
Posy can run, but she isn't made to be free. She's made for me. And when I catch her? Game over.
Run Posy Run is a standalone mafia romance with dark elements. Intended for adult readers.
HEA guaranteed.
255 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 21, 2021
1242 people are currently reading
9548 people want to read
About the author
Cate C. Wells
28 books3,031 followersCATE C. WELLS writes gut-wrenching paranormal and contemporary romance. Whatever the world, readers can expect character-driven stories that are raw, real, and emotionally satisfying. Cate's into messy love, flaws, long roads to redemption, grace, and happy ever after, in fiction and in life.
As well as books, Cate has collected a husband, two daughters, and a cat along the way. She lives in Baltimore when she’s not out exploring with the family.
Want a heads up on new releases and bonus content? Sign up for Cate's newsletter at catecwells.com
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As well as books, Cate has collected a husband, two daughters, and a cat along the way. She lives in Baltimore when she’s not out exploring with the family.
Want a heads up on new releases and bonus content? Sign up for Cate's newsletter at catecwells.com
Facebook: @catecwells
IG: @authorcatecwells
TT: @authorcatecwells
Threads: @authorcatecwells
Bookbub: @catecwells
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,843 reviews
January 18, 2026
Re-read: 1/16/2026
5 Sociopathic Smut Stars
Me after finishing this book:
But really though.
So much Val catnip in one place. So much of what I love in my smutty romance.
Mafia.
Grey area.
Problematic content.
Captivity.
An anti-hero who fucks up and has to make amends.
And we haven't even gotten to the fact that the H in this is a complete and utter sociopath. A self-proclaimed, on the page acknowledged sociopath.
I mean...
I wish I could read this for the first time again.
Anyway. Huge shout-out to my homie Mo for bringing this one to my attention. I LOVED it.
5 Sociopathic Smut Stars
Me after finishing this book:
But really though.
So much Val catnip in one place. So much of what I love in my smutty romance.
Mafia.
Grey area.
Problematic content.
Captivity.
An anti-hero who fucks up and has to make amends.
And we haven't even gotten to the fact that the H in this is a complete and utter sociopath. A self-proclaimed, on the page acknowledged sociopath.
I mean...
I wish I could read this for the first time again.
Anyway. Huge shout-out to my homie Mo for bringing this one to my attention. I LOVED it.
December 1, 2021
ladies and gentlemen, i think my brain just committed suicide.
i– this bitch really went into hiding from the goddam mafia... only to become a cam girl where she shows her whole face and her username is her real first name and the hero’s surname. *that was when ellie knew, she had fucked up*
i think this quote about sums her up, honestly:
we know girly, we all have eyes💀
i also can’t say i was a fan of the fact sex for the heroine equalled shame. she had a lot of sex with a lot of different men... and? when men do it, they’re empowered. when women do it, they’re ashamed?🤨
and this authors chapters are longer than my will to live my GOD. but this kept me riveted for a few hours, so i guess that’s a win??
i– this bitch really went into hiding from the goddam mafia... only to become a cam girl where she shows her whole face and her username is her real first name and the hero’s surname. *that was when ellie knew, she had fucked up*
i think this quote about sums her up, honestly:
”I don’t say no. I don’t know how to play that game where you cling to your pride or your standards or whatever.”
we know girly, we all have eyes💀
i also can’t say i was a fan of the fact sex for the heroine equalled shame. she had a lot of sex with a lot of different men... and? when men do it, they’re empowered. when women do it, they’re ashamed?🤨
and this authors chapters are longer than my will to live my GOD. but this kept me riveted for a few hours, so i guess that’s a win??
August 6, 2021
1.5 stars
This..ugh it just didn’t make any sense to me! After the first few chapter I was already like “Run Em Run” don’t torture yourself like that. I just really didn’t like this one that I can’t even waste words on it. I’m picky with my psychopaths and the hero just didn’t do it for me. The heroine was..ugh so freakin frustrating that I wasn’t even frustrated? I was just numb towards her actions like I don’t even care anymore. I wanted to put some fight into her and inject her with some knowledge on self worth. This wasn’t dark, nor interesting. It was bland, I was bored to death, and I wanted to shot both of them.
This..ugh it just didn’t make any sense to me! After the first few chapter I was already like “Run Em Run” don’t torture yourself like that. I just really didn’t like this one that I can’t even waste words on it. I’m picky with my psychopaths and the hero just didn’t do it for me. The heroine was..ugh so freakin frustrating that I wasn’t even frustrated? I was just numb towards her actions like I don’t even care anymore. I wanted to put some fight into her and inject her with some knowledge on self worth. This wasn’t dark, nor interesting. It was bland, I was bored to death, and I wanted to shot both of them.
September 2, 2022
5 The Wrong Man Would Be My Downfall Stars ⭐
I deliberated for awhile about reading Run Posy Run. I actually had started it twice previously and it never clicked for me. Well now third time's a charm cos my head is still spinning and I couldn't put it down. Trust me it was a commitment getting past the initial chapters because our hero Dario was a major prick and Dear Posy needed a few home truths. But damn did this book do an amazing 360.
I want to go back in time. Unbreak this thing between us. But I don’t have the power.
He has it all.
Posy thought she was finally in the perfect relationship with mobster Dario Volpe. Well until he accused her of cheating and kicked her out. Now penniless and on the run, the truth is staring Posy in the face. Used yet again.
It’s so messed up that a man can be so interested in what’s going on in your head but he doesn’t give two shits about how you feel.
What happens when the man you thought you knew doesn't exist. Because Dario showed Posy just what she needed to see. However there are pieces missing from this equation and now that he's adamant to have her back, the veil has been lifted.
“You know what I think?” She sniffles, but the tears never fall. “I think you can’t stand that I flipped the script. You threw me away, and then you changed your mind, but I was gone. You’re butt hurt that the trash took itself out.”
Initially you're hating how this whole breakup has played out. Ruthless, cold, deadly. And as the lightbulb begins to flicker, you realise you're dealing with a sociopath and a woman who's a mess herself. Once Dario has Posy back in his possession, this game they have been playing is done. Now it's time to play for keeps.
I want this to make sense because the turnabout was incredible. When these two are finally stripped bare, it was creepy but also astonishing. How does a sociopath learn to love and how do you love one? This book was thrilling, really sexy and depraved, and I was a sucker for it all. There's nothing better when you don't anticipate how good a book will be!
I deliberated for awhile about reading Run Posy Run. I actually had started it twice previously and it never clicked for me. Well now third time's a charm cos my head is still spinning and I couldn't put it down. Trust me it was a commitment getting past the initial chapters because our hero Dario was a major prick and Dear Posy needed a few home truths. But damn did this book do an amazing 360.
I want to go back in time. Unbreak this thing between us. But I don’t have the power.
He has it all.
Posy thought she was finally in the perfect relationship with mobster Dario Volpe. Well until he accused her of cheating and kicked her out. Now penniless and on the run, the truth is staring Posy in the face. Used yet again.
It’s so messed up that a man can be so interested in what’s going on in your head but he doesn’t give two shits about how you feel.
What happens when the man you thought you knew doesn't exist. Because Dario showed Posy just what she needed to see. However there are pieces missing from this equation and now that he's adamant to have her back, the veil has been lifted.
“You know what I think?” She sniffles, but the tears never fall. “I think you can’t stand that I flipped the script. You threw me away, and then you changed your mind, but I was gone. You’re butt hurt that the trash took itself out.”
Initially you're hating how this whole breakup has played out. Ruthless, cold, deadly. And as the lightbulb begins to flicker, you realise you're dealing with a sociopath and a woman who's a mess herself. Once Dario has Posy back in his possession, this game they have been playing is done. Now it's time to play for keeps.
I want this to make sense because the turnabout was incredible. When these two are finally stripped bare, it was creepy but also astonishing. How does a sociopath learn to love and how do you love one? This book was thrilling, really sexy and depraved, and I was a sucker for it all. There's nothing better when you don't anticipate how good a book will be!
November 21, 2021
The satisfaction of having found the book everybody kind of read past, and for me, it sang my name.
This was a real romance guys, between me and Posy and Dario’s story. The author created a book that called me, spoke my language and made me fall in love with both imperfect main characters ❤️
It had some heavily damaged characters and of course, as the severe unstable person that I am when reading my books, his kind of psychopathy is everything I want to read about 😍
I’m gonna go to bed, buy the physical copy of the book and cry because the story is over and I don’t get to read it for the first time again.
Mkay, bye
This was a real romance guys, between me and Posy and Dario’s story. The author created a book that called me, spoke my language and made me fall in love with both imperfect main characters ❤️
It had some heavily damaged characters and of course, as the severe unstable person that I am when reading my books, his kind of psychopathy is everything I want to read about 😍
I’m gonna go to bed, buy the physical copy of the book and cry because the story is over and I don’t get to read it for the first time again.
Mkay, bye
![Profile Image for Lori [semi-hiatus].](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.gr-assets.com%2Fimages%2FS%2Fcompressed.photo.goodreads.com%2Fusers%2F1652024485i%2F125758944._UX200_CR0%2C0%2C200%2C200_.jpg&w=128&q=75)
May 12, 2021
Edit: It seems I've read another book by this author, and upon looking at the book's page (Hitting the wall) I noticed someone called her out for double standards for having an inexperienced heroine (and the author replying to it). If this is her trying to fix that by going 100% in the opposite direction then I have to say I've lost all respect for this author. It has nothing to do with my personal taste and the fact that I dislike promiscuous heroines in romance stories. Rather, this is again a case of authors caving in to popular (outside) demand rather than being truthful to their own stories. This has been an ongoing issue I've noticed with a lot of authors following readers' dictates rather than writing their own stories, and it's disappointing to say in the least.
-------------------
dnf + skimmed a lot
this had the type of heroine I abhor in my reading, so it may just be a me thing.
-------------------
dnf + skimmed a lot
this had the type of heroine I abhor in my reading, so it may just be a me thing.
July 13, 2022
This particular brand of messy, insane and sociopathic hero with psychopathic tendencies just speaks to me.
And then you give them a romance??
Yes. I just eat that up.
Differently.
And then you give them a romance??
Yes. I just eat that up.
Differently.
March 3, 2023
Well-adjusted women with happy childhoods don’t fuck mobsters.
Lana, you were right, this story was so good!
I know her perfectly. Better than she knows herself. She’s a tangled ball of self-doubt, foolish pride, dumb hope, brilliance, masochism, and blind affection. And I’m obsessed.
There are no victims here, there are no villains, there are simply two similarly broken puzzle pieces that fit perfectly together.
✔️Mafia
✔️Psychopath turned sociopath
✔️Really unique premise
✔️Dark elements
✔️Exploratory, hot sex
✔️Amazing character growth
I like this game. I like playing with him. There’s something wrong with me, but my mess fits perfectly against the jagged piece that’s missing from him. I’m needy, he’s heartless, and by some magical alchemy, this—this creature we become together—solves us both.
Lana, you were right, this story was so good!
I know her perfectly. Better than she knows herself. She’s a tangled ball of self-doubt, foolish pride, dumb hope, brilliance, masochism, and blind affection. And I’m obsessed.
There are no victims here, there are no villains, there are simply two similarly broken puzzle pieces that fit perfectly together.
✔️Mafia
✔️Psychopath turned sociopath
✔️Really unique premise
✔️Dark elements
✔️Exploratory, hot sex
✔️Amazing character growth
I like this game. I like playing with him. There’s something wrong with me, but my mess fits perfectly against the jagged piece that’s missing from him. I’m needy, he’s heartless, and by some magical alchemy, this—this creature we become together—solves us both.
September 11, 2022
wow this man is crazy. i love it
July 27, 2021
Ah well. This was fun
Posy(h) and Dario(H)
Posy and Dario are already dating. In the first chapter we see Dario accuse her of something she didn’t do and send her away.
Until he realizes that he was wrong and now he wants her back.
I want her back. I want to break her again and watch her cry. Hear her beg for mercy.
I want her terrified and cowering, covered in snot and her own piss.
He stalks her. He obsesses to find her. He finds her.
Brings her back except now she isn’t as “easy” as she was before.
I know her perfectly. Better than she knows herself. She’s a tangled ball of self-doubt, foolish pride, dumb hope, brilliance, masochism, and blind affection. And I’m obsessed.
Also did I mention Dario is a psychopath Mafia boss? He can only feel anger nothing more.
They have sex. Play chess (she destroys him). And figures out why he feels his stomach twist every time she cries.
“Everyone else is a piece. A pawn, a knight, a king. Not you.”
I snort softly. “Let me guess. I’m the queen?”
“Nope. You’re the one on the other side of the board.”
So yeah. Fun. Also there’s a moment where her stomach grumbles and he asks her to stop because it’s distracting. And I just think it’s hilarious.
Posy(h) and Dario(H)
Posy and Dario are already dating. In the first chapter we see Dario accuse her of something she didn’t do and send her away.
Until he realizes that he was wrong and now he wants her back.
I want her back. I want to break her again and watch her cry. Hear her beg for mercy.
I want her terrified and cowering, covered in snot and her own piss.
He stalks her. He obsesses to find her. He finds her.
Brings her back except now she isn’t as “easy” as she was before.
I know her perfectly. Better than she knows herself. She’s a tangled ball of self-doubt, foolish pride, dumb hope, brilliance, masochism, and blind affection. And I’m obsessed.
Also did I mention Dario is a psychopath Mafia boss? He can only feel anger nothing more.
They have sex. Play chess (she destroys him). And figures out why he feels his stomach twist every time she cries.
“Everyone else is a piece. A pawn, a knight, a king. Not you.”
I snort softly. “Let me guess. I’m the queen?”
“Nope. You’re the one on the other side of the board.”
So yeah. Fun. Also there’s a moment where her stomach grumbles and he asks her to stop because it’s distracting. And I just think it’s hilarious.
February 10, 2023
5 stars for the second half, 3 stars for the first half
When I started the book, I felt like I was missing something. Dario and Posy had already been together, so what was going on? I even peeked to see if maybe the H was a different character, but it wasn’t. The way that Dario was being in the beginning was making him unredeemable (but, obviously things changed).
Posy and Dario have been together for 8 months. Dario is deemed a psychopath- he’s not in tuned to people’s feelings or even his own emotions. He makes lots of money and is an integral part of the mob world, basically being the moneymaker and balancer of different businesses. Because of that, he tells Posy not to work. Posy has been around the block, dating a lot of mobsters/not good people. She finally found a man that treated her well enough and didn’t abuse her (Dario). Buuuut... things change. Dario and all the other men in the organization get a video of Posy basically being s@d@mized by one of her exes. He forces her to watch it with him, even though she’s clearly uncomfortable and suffering in the video. The time stamp shows it happened in December, not too long before, but it really happened 5 years ago, which means Dario thinks she cheated on him. She tries to reason with him, but he’s not having it. He already had all of her belongings packed and he kicks her out, only being able to leave with whatever she brought to his house when she moved in with him. He tells her to run, because if he catches her, she won’t like it.
So she runs. Not just because Dario is a threat, but because other men want her dead, more specifically, the capo who doesn’t like loose ends- and she’s a loose end that needs to be tied up (killed). She’s limited on lots of things, but she runs. She runs away from the life she’s known, from the mafia, from Dario. She uses a different name and gets a new life. Then, Dario discovers it was all a lie, that the time stamp was photoshopped, and it was done because he makes them money and he got “distracted” by her. Now, he wants her back, and he will go anywhere to catch her.
He finds her, forces her to come back, but things are different. Not only is he different, but she is as well. In order for them to be together, lots of things have to change. This time, Posy puts up a fight- what made her happy before doesn’t anymore, and somewhere along those lines, Dario realizes he cares.
The first third/half of the book was tough. I get it- Dario is a psycho and doesn’t understand what feelings are or what it means to love. But man did I have a hard time! I thought about DNF this one, but I’m glad I continued. The second half was 1000 times better for me. At first, I didn’t know if he could be redeemed, but he definitely turns the tide. I wanted to hold him sometimes, especially when he discovers he has feelings and starts to understand what it means to love someone. Many times I wanted Posy to keep running (I love the title!); it’s probably because I love a good chase and when the h doesn’t sit idly by. She fought Dario when he caught her (you go girl), but then he overpowered her easily (mmm yes). He’s faithful (👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻) and is basically obsessed over her (😉). There weren’t too many sexy times, but the ones that appeared were 🔥🔥🔥. I loved how Dario used to be a taker, but he quickly started loving being a giver 🥵😅.
I liked that the lack of excitement and passion in their sex life was deferred to. We actually get an mc couple that struggled in the bedroom- and Dario learned from his mistakes 💅.
⚠️safety squad⚠️
-no cheating/sharing/owd
-the h has exes that cause problems for them
-violence/bloodshed
-revenge p0rn/rough handling of h/assault ish
-the s@d@my video is with the h who’s clearly in pain with OM (so r9pe ish- but it happened in the past)
-h used to be with many mafia men (doesn’t bother me but might bother others)
When I started the book, I felt like I was missing something. Dario and Posy had already been together, so what was going on? I even peeked to see if maybe the H was a different character, but it wasn’t. The way that Dario was being in the beginning was making him unredeemable (but, obviously things changed).
Posy and Dario have been together for 8 months. Dario is deemed a psychopath- he’s not in tuned to people’s feelings or even his own emotions. He makes lots of money and is an integral part of the mob world, basically being the moneymaker and balancer of different businesses. Because of that, he tells Posy not to work. Posy has been around the block, dating a lot of mobsters/not good people. She finally found a man that treated her well enough and didn’t abuse her (Dario). Buuuut... things change. Dario and all the other men in the organization get a video of Posy basically being s@d@mized by one of her exes. He forces her to watch it with him, even though she’s clearly uncomfortable and suffering in the video. The time stamp shows it happened in December, not too long before, but it really happened 5 years ago, which means Dario thinks she cheated on him. She tries to reason with him, but he’s not having it. He already had all of her belongings packed and he kicks her out, only being able to leave with whatever she brought to his house when she moved in with him. He tells her to run, because if he catches her, she won’t like it.
So she runs. Not just because Dario is a threat, but because other men want her dead, more specifically, the capo who doesn’t like loose ends- and she’s a loose end that needs to be tied up (killed). She’s limited on lots of things, but she runs. She runs away from the life she’s known, from the mafia, from Dario. She uses a different name and gets a new life. Then, Dario discovers it was all a lie, that the time stamp was photoshopped, and it was done because he makes them money and he got “distracted” by her. Now, he wants her back, and he will go anywhere to catch her.
He finds her, forces her to come back, but things are different. Not only is he different, but she is as well. In order for them to be together, lots of things have to change. This time, Posy puts up a fight- what made her happy before doesn’t anymore, and somewhere along those lines, Dario realizes he cares.
The first third/half of the book was tough. I get it- Dario is a psycho and doesn’t understand what feelings are or what it means to love. But man did I have a hard time! I thought about DNF this one, but I’m glad I continued. The second half was 1000 times better for me. At first, I didn’t know if he could be redeemed, but he definitely turns the tide. I wanted to hold him sometimes, especially when he discovers he has feelings and starts to understand what it means to love someone. Many times I wanted Posy to keep running (I love the title!); it’s probably because I love a good chase and when the h doesn’t sit idly by. She fought Dario when he caught her (you go girl), but then he overpowered her easily (mmm yes). He’s faithful (👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻) and is basically obsessed over her (😉). There weren’t too many sexy times, but the ones that appeared were 🔥🔥🔥. I loved how Dario used to be a taker, but he quickly started loving being a giver 🥵😅.
I liked that the lack of excitement and passion in their sex life was deferred to. We actually get an mc couple that struggled in the bedroom- and Dario learned from his mistakes 💅.
⚠️safety squad⚠️
-no cheating/sharing/owd
-the h has exes that cause problems for them
-violence/bloodshed
-revenge p0rn/rough handling of h/assault ish
-the s@d@my video is with the h who’s clearly in pain with OM (so r9pe ish- but it happened in the past)
-h used to be with many mafia men (doesn’t bother me but might bother others)
September 29, 2023
Was this book realistic? No.
Would I want the hero IRL? Hell no.
Did I devour it in one night like a toddler left unsupervised with a cake? Yes.
4.5.
Would I want the hero IRL? Hell no.
Did I devour it in one night like a toddler left unsupervised with a cake? Yes.
4.5.
July 21, 2021
This was really good and so unique! I loved that it was kind of a second chance romance and a misunderstanding forced our characters to finally talk to each other and truly get to know each other. Dario has no emotions towards people, but he starts really growing attached Posy, especially when she starts to push back and he realizes he can't have her. I really enjoyed Posy's character rand how she challenged Dario and was even better at him in strategy and games (like chess). Dario is definitely a "touch her and you die" hero and I enjoyed watching his realization that he truly cares for Posy and isn't as emotionless as he thought. Dario is such a unique hero and I'd definitely recommend checking this out!
August 27, 2021
Surprisingly, it was good. I didn't expect it to be a Mafia book but it turned out something new which i'm not complaining about at all.
H is a Sociopath, he doesn't feel anything except anger so it was great to see him struggling with his lack of emotions and lack of relationship mannerism around h. It was so hilarious to read him say the wrong thing. Even his POV seemed robotic channeling his inner sociopath. 👀 It felt like DARIO IS NINO 2.0 ON STEROIDS. 💦
h is not our typical mafia princess (which i loved by the way), she had multiple partners in her past, she did some stupid things for "LOVE" (don't be like posy, i was posy once and i know). Posy finally realizes that what she have been doing 'pleasing all these men' is not doing anything good for her and she starts anew, fighting for what pleases her instead (which turns Dario crazy and lowkey cute 😛).
I loved their banter, their struggle to understand each other. Specially Dario smacking (not literally) her around without realizing that he is hurting her.
"He doesn’t love me despite my checkered past, my weaknesses, my mess and my desperation. He loves me with them."
It was a safe fun read, i enjoyed it. 🙌
H is a Sociopath, he doesn't feel anything except anger so it was great to see him struggling with his lack of emotions and lack of relationship mannerism around h. It was so hilarious to read him say the wrong thing. Even his POV seemed robotic channeling his inner sociopath. 👀 It felt like DARIO IS NINO 2.0 ON STEROIDS. 💦
h is not our typical mafia princess (which i loved by the way), she had multiple partners in her past, she did some stupid things for "LOVE" (don't be like posy, i was posy once and i know). Posy finally realizes that what she have been doing 'pleasing all these men' is not doing anything good for her and she starts anew, fighting for what pleases her instead (which turns Dario crazy and lowkey cute 😛).
I loved their banter, their struggle to understand each other. Specially Dario smacking (not literally) her around without realizing that he is hurting her.
"He doesn’t love me despite my checkered past, my weaknesses, my mess and my desperation. He loves me with them."
It was a safe fun read, i enjoyed it. 🙌
February 20, 2022
4 STARS
And so my Cate C Wells binge continues. After devouring The Tyrant Alpha's Rejected Mate, I immediately jumped on this book. Why? Well, because I love me a morally gray hero, and it doesn't get more morally gray than Dario.
Now look, if sociopath mafioso heroes aren't your cuppa, you won't like this book. They happen to be my book crack so I devoured this in one sitting. Posy is not a heroine I'd generally like, but I really enjoyed her. She's got issues galore; daddy issues, abandonment issues, looking for love in all the wrong places issues. When the man she thought she was going to marry thinks she cheated on him, he cruelly throws her out on her ass. When his protection is gone, her uncle's betrayal in the mafia puts the target right back on her and so she runs. Except then her mafia boyfriend realizes his mistake and wants her back. But not in the traditional grovel for here back. Oh no. In the chase her, kidnap her, and force her to be his sort of way. And this girl? SO HERE FOR IT.
This book was a touch dark, and a lot fucked up and I enjoyed every page of it. Dario is a true sociopath, a man without feeling or emotion...except when it comes to Posy. I loved watching them rediscover each other but with their masks now fully off. A deliciously dark romance that I enjoyed form beginning to end.
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Dario and I aren’t a love story. It’s the other kind. Girl meets mysterious, brooding mafioso. Convinces herself they’re in love. Lets him take over her life. And in the end, mysterious is criminal. Brooding is cruel. And the mafioso is a monster.
And so my Cate C Wells binge continues. After devouring The Tyrant Alpha's Rejected Mate, I immediately jumped on this book. Why? Well, because I love me a morally gray hero, and it doesn't get more morally gray than Dario.
Now look, if sociopath mafioso heroes aren't your cuppa, you won't like this book. They happen to be my book crack so I devoured this in one sitting. Posy is not a heroine I'd generally like, but I really enjoyed her. She's got issues galore; daddy issues, abandonment issues, looking for love in all the wrong places issues. When the man she thought she was going to marry thinks she cheated on him, he cruelly throws her out on her ass. When his protection is gone, her uncle's betrayal in the mafia puts the target right back on her and so she runs. Except then her mafia boyfriend realizes his mistake and wants her back. But not in the traditional grovel for here back. Oh no. In the chase her, kidnap her, and force her to be his sort of way. And this girl? SO HERE FOR IT.
This book was a touch dark, and a lot fucked up and I enjoyed every page of it. Dario is a true sociopath, a man without feeling or emotion...except when it comes to Posy. I loved watching them rediscover each other but with their masks now fully off. A deliciously dark romance that I enjoyed form beginning to end.
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March 17, 2025
very odd, but highly entertaining.
i like how the heroine knows she dumb bc she is, but she have common sense too. eventually she loses it bc “she’s a tangled ball of self-doubt, foolish pride, dumb hope, brilliance, masochism, and blind affection. And I’m obsessed.”
dario, idc for him and he's likable. i just dont think he;s a “psychopath.”
“Posy Santoro isn’t in my system. She burst into life in my empty shell and made it into something. She is my system. Maybe I didn’t understand that before I lost her. I’m a man. I can be a cliché. Still, it’s true, and I know it now, ever since the moment I caught her. I don’t just get off on what she is—I need it.” - Dario
i like how the heroine knows she dumb bc she is, but she have common sense too. eventually she loses it bc “she’s a tangled ball of self-doubt, foolish pride, dumb hope, brilliance, masochism, and blind affection. And I’m obsessed.”
dario, idc for him and he's likable. i just dont think he;s a “psychopath.”
“Posy Santoro isn’t in my system. She burst into life in my empty shell and made it into something. She is my system. Maybe I didn’t understand that before I lost her. I’m a man. I can be a cliché. Still, it’s true, and I know it now, ever since the moment I caught her. I don’t just get off on what she is—I need it.” - Dario
August 26, 2024
1 star
he treated her like shit and guess what? I DON'T EVEN BLAME HIM 😭
in the end when she was giving birth, he literally said it again that even if the 'midwife' is treating her badly inside, she wouldn't even say a word because 'she's accustomed to being treated like shit' 🤡
at first, the way she was resolute in her povs about not giving a damn about him was sounding too good to be true, but i believed it because why not? *reddit said that it has groveling*
Guess what? REDDIT FUCKING LIED.
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he treated her like shit and guess what? I DON'T EVEN BLAME HIM 😭
in the end when she was giving birth, he literally said it again that even if the 'midwife' is treating her badly inside, she wouldn't even say a word because 'she's accustomed to being treated like shit' 🤡
at first, the way she was resolute in her povs about not giving a damn about him was sounding too good to be true, but i believed it because why not? *reddit said that it has groveling*
Guess what? REDDIT FUCKING LIED.
Bookstagram 🚩
Reddit 🚩
Quora?
March 28, 2023
This review isn't going to add anything to the multitude of other reviews, positive and negative, for Run Posy Run. I put this book on my TBR, took it off, put it back on a couple of times before I committed to reading it, because I thought Dario (H) and Posy's (h) relationship was going to be too dark for me. While some parts were hard to read and their romance isn't flowers and rainbows, not by a long shot, I ultimately found myself enjoying how their pieces and cracks lined up to form a relationship that worked for them. Also, one that made them happy, well, as happy as Dario is able to feel because dude is a psychopath. I loved that Posy was this bright pop for him and so different from how he saw everyone else. I think that after reading this and The Bad Guy, I like these dark romances when the h inspires these previously unknown feelings for the H and the reader gets to experience the bafflement, the frustrations, the failures to act a "normal" way, and finally the finding of their footing.
I also liked how Posy has heart eyes at the start and once the rose tinted glasses are ripped off, she's wary and more critical, but also developing self-awareness of why she fell into the poor relationships she did. She developed a backbone and stood up for herself as much as she was able to, because Dario was pretty committed to never letting her go again. Posy also has to realize that she has power, when she's only always given others power over herself. How the steaminess developed fit how her perspective had changed and I thought the author incorporated Posy saying "no" to Dario a couple of times well along with when she says "yes", esp since prior to him accusing her of cheating, she'd always said yes.
Run Posy Run does have some triggers, so please be mindful. There's violence, nonconsensual sharing of a sex tape, death of side characters, and the h does get injured at times due to the H's actions. This is written in first person, dual POV. No ow drama, some om drama because H initially thinks that h has cheated on him but he's been tricked, and neither are virgins (no history given for H that I can remember but h's history of having been with multiple members of the crime family before H is mentioned often).
The book ends with a jump ahead several months into the future and I loved the ending of them married and having a baby. It was sweet and a great HEA that fit the personalities for both main characters. I don't plan on reading book 2 in this series, but I believe these two feature in that one as side characters, although I could be wrong.
I also liked how Posy has heart eyes at the start and once the rose tinted glasses are ripped off, she's wary and more critical, but also developing self-awareness of why she fell into the poor relationships she did. She developed a backbone and stood up for herself as much as she was able to, because Dario was pretty committed to never letting her go again. Posy also has to realize that she has power, when she's only always given others power over herself. How the steaminess developed fit how her perspective had changed and I thought the author incorporated Posy saying "no" to Dario a couple of times well along with when she says "yes", esp since prior to him accusing her of cheating, she'd always said yes.
Run Posy Run does have some triggers, so please be mindful. There's violence, nonconsensual sharing of a sex tape, death of side characters, and the h does get injured at times due to the H's actions. This is written in first person, dual POV. No ow drama, some om drama because H initially thinks that h has cheated on him but he's been tricked, and neither are virgins (no history given for H that I can remember but h's history of having been with multiple members of the crime family before H is mentioned often).
The book ends with a jump ahead several months into the future and I loved the ending of them married and having a baby. It was sweet and a great HEA that fit the personalities for both main characters. I don't plan on reading book 2 in this series, but I believe these two feature in that one as side characters, although I could be wrong.
December 19, 2021
Whew!! What an awesome story, and I am officially still in love with this author's writing!! I can definitely see why the Safety Chicks hated this one-this is absolutely not a safe story for that crowd. But for me??? I adore horribly misjudged heroines, harshly getting cast out of their homes by their Hero, for something they were accused of-but never did. That's one of my all time favorite themes in Harlequin stories, but make no mistake. This is NO Harlequin story, is it?
Holy hell. Dario is every bit the cruel asshole hero I crave in these stories, but he's also a scary, brutal, mafia man. There's no sugar coating our hero. He's badass and deadly, entrenched in the mafia lifestyle, and he has power.
Posy is an awesome character too. She's had a rough life, and been with a few men in her past who treated her like shit while she was with them. Her past definitely created some self esteem issues. For the short while she was with Dario, she finally started getting a bit of self confidence and happiness in her life. Posy was completely down to earth, honest and she's is one of the most realistic heroines I have eve read.
Once Posy is kicked out of Dario's life and is on the run trying to stay alive, she has an epiphany. Posy realizes she had deluded herself. Dario never loved her and the happiness she's felt all these past few months, was all just an illusion.
There were so many angsty feels in this story. I loved them all, as much as I loved Dario and Posy finally finding their way back to each other and finally becoming honest about their feelings for each other. I adored every second of this story, from the first word to the very last. This one is definitely going on my re-read shelf!
June 13, 2021
Everything about this mafia romance should’ve worked for me: morality chain, sociopath hero who messes up and wants the heroine back. He misinterprets something and throws the heroine out, but quickly realizes his mistake and immediately tries to find her to bring her back. I appreciate the heroine making him work for it, but I really wasn’t sold on the hero. He just didn’t do it for me. And random, but there’s a scene where the heroine’s stomach growls and he’s confused about what that noise is. Do sociopaths not… understand hunger? Lol. I did like the author’s writing though and would try her again.
June 22, 2021
I’ve been hurt so many times, but it was worth it because it led me to him.
I picked this book up because one of my harder to please (in my opinion) book friends read it and loved it. At first I was a bit concerned I wouldn’t enjoy it, but I quickly fell for Posy and even Dario and wanted to know where their story was going. I didn’t see it ending where it did, and I think that adds to the allure of it all. It really is a book that’s not complicated, but it feels complex in so many ways.
All in all a good read.
I picked this book up because one of my harder to please (in my opinion) book friends read it and loved it. At first I was a bit concerned I wouldn’t enjoy it, but I quickly fell for Posy and even Dario and wanted to know where their story was going. I didn’t see it ending where it did, and I think that adds to the allure of it all. It really is a book that’s not complicated, but it feels complex in so many ways.
All in all a good read.
June 2, 2021
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5 stars!
A gripping dark read that sucked me in gasping and spit me out smiling.
I inhaled Run Posy Run in one sitting. Sleep? Who needs it. Bah!
It's been eons since I've done that, but I had no choice. This story instantly drew me in.
I closed my kindle with a huge smile on my face in the wee hours of the night.
I went in blind and it was fresh, original, and very well-written.
I think you should go in blind like I did, but if you absolutely need a bit of info....
The book begins with Posy - who seems like a gold-digging mafia girlfriend - thinking she's about to be proposed to by her latest mob boyfriend (she gets around, though no slut-shaming here because this is not for lack of trying to find love... she's kind of idealistic and naive when it comes to love) but then her house of cards caves in. Posy is a victim of her upbringing in a volatile world where women are a commodity and where a sullied name because of what a relative did can stain your reputation and limit your prospects.
She doesn't know her worth. Her mob boyfriend doesn't either, not until that all changes with a sinister plot from someone in Dario's world.
Dario starts off cold, robotic, a sociopath/psychopath without empathy. He's like a gorgeous, dark, and unfeeling robot, but an invaluable player in the underworld, so everyone gives him a wide berth. Nobody ever really gets close to him, not even Posy, who lives with him.
That's all about to change when his carefully constructed bubble gets popped by an accusation of infidelity.
His relationship with her changes as soon as he wrongly thinks she's made a fool of him.
She'd better run far and wide because when he catches her.....
Oooh eeeee
Posy is not only in danger of being caught by Dario, the rest of the 'familia' is after her too.
There was chasing. There was capturing. There were mind games. Epiphanies. Bloody mafia battles with guns blazing. And there was this sexy, powerful guy who is incapable of love finding his way through the confusing labyrinth of his changing emotions that resulted in some off-the-charts sexy, possessive alpha behaviour.
Chess pieces moved continuously throughout the story, especially once Dario figures out Posy is the most valuable piece on the board, his queen.
But that takes a while...
Posy is a girl who has felt like she's worth nothing most of her life but she completely comes into her own.
This was my first Cate C. Wells read and it will absofuckinglutely NOT be my last.
A gripping dark read that sucked me in gasping and spit me out smiling.
I inhaled Run Posy Run in one sitting. Sleep? Who needs it. Bah!
It's been eons since I've done that, but I had no choice. This story instantly drew me in.
I closed my kindle with a huge smile on my face in the wee hours of the night.
I went in blind and it was fresh, original, and very well-written.
I think you should go in blind like I did, but if you absolutely need a bit of info....
The book begins with Posy - who seems like a gold-digging mafia girlfriend - thinking she's about to be proposed to by her latest mob boyfriend (she gets around, though no slut-shaming here because this is not for lack of trying to find love... she's kind of idealistic and naive when it comes to love) but then her house of cards caves in. Posy is a victim of her upbringing in a volatile world where women are a commodity and where a sullied name because of what a relative did can stain your reputation and limit your prospects.
She doesn't know her worth. Her mob boyfriend doesn't either, not until that all changes with a sinister plot from someone in Dario's world.
Dario starts off cold, robotic, a sociopath/psychopath without empathy. He's like a gorgeous, dark, and unfeeling robot, but an invaluable player in the underworld, so everyone gives him a wide berth. Nobody ever really gets close to him, not even Posy, who lives with him.
That's all about to change when his carefully constructed bubble gets popped by an accusation of infidelity.
His relationship with her changes as soon as he wrongly thinks she's made a fool of him.
She'd better run far and wide because when he catches her.....
Oooh eeeee
Posy is not only in danger of being caught by Dario, the rest of the 'familia' is after her too.
There was chasing. There was capturing. There were mind games. Epiphanies. Bloody mafia battles with guns blazing. And there was this sexy, powerful guy who is incapable of love finding his way through the confusing labyrinth of his changing emotions that resulted in some off-the-charts sexy, possessive alpha behaviour.
Chess pieces moved continuously throughout the story, especially once Dario figures out Posy is the most valuable piece on the board, his queen.
But that takes a while...
Posy is a girl who has felt like she's worth nothing most of her life but she completely comes into her own.
This was my first Cate C. Wells read and it will absofuckinglutely NOT be my last.
October 8, 2022
Plot:
H thinks his mistress has cheated on him based on a very crude porn video sent to him by a rival mob guy. I would like to say it was a fake, but no, our little heroine has made some poor decisions in her past that include being filmed as well as staying with some of her abusers. H kicks her out, says mean things…she flees the city pursued by mafia types that want to kill her. The usual drill. The H did NOT send out the hit men.
H wants her back and isn’t sure why, but his tummy hurts and…again, you know the drill.
Bad people die. HEA with a very amusing hospital scene at the end. Turns out, the cold as ice H that can gut a rat at the drop of a hat gets a little faint in the maternity ward when the doula is doing things…down there.
I don’t know why I liked this so much as I dislike Mafia romances, mistress romances (please ignore the, at a minimum, 95 books with mistress in the title in my Read column, 40 of which the heroines were toostupid clueless to even know they were mistresses), but this book worked.
The heroine is most definitely a mistress and not for the first time, and not for the first time with a Mob guy. The hero is a shut-down, cold Mafia investment savant. Surprisingly he is not that good at sex! Wow, there’s a first. Anyhow, on the surface too potentially unlikeable characters to turn my nose up at.
Didn’t work out that way. Posy (awesome name) is a lot smarter than anyone gives her credit for despite putting up with awful behavior from awful men. The H is the quintessential meanie until his heart grows…okay his heart doesn’t grow, but he is happy to declare to the heroine that he’s jumped from being a psychopath to being a mere sociopath. I think he’s fooling himself.
The author does a nice job tying Posy’s skill at chess with how she is used as a pawn in the this particular mob group’s power struggle. I wish she had worked with this a little more as it was a strong element in the book.
So 4 stars for keeping me riveted, making pretty much all the characters interesting, and providing a reason for poor decisions and life choices.
Another book that makes a hypocrite of me. I have hopes for a happy ending for these two, but there will be bodies strewn along the way.
H thinks his mistress has cheated on him based on a very crude porn video sent to him by a rival mob guy. I would like to say it was a fake, but no, our little heroine has made some poor decisions in her past that include being filmed as well as staying with some of her abusers. H kicks her out, says mean things…she flees the city pursued by mafia types that want to kill her. The usual drill. The H did NOT send out the hit men.
H wants her back and isn’t sure why, but his tummy hurts and…again, you know the drill.
Bad people die. HEA with a very amusing hospital scene at the end. Turns out, the cold as ice H that can gut a rat at the drop of a hat gets a little faint in the maternity ward when the doula is doing things…down there.
I don’t know why I liked this so much as I dislike Mafia romances, mistress romances (please ignore the, at a minimum, 95 books with mistress in the title in my Read column, 40 of which the heroines were too
The heroine is most definitely a mistress and not for the first time, and not for the first time with a Mob guy. The hero is a shut-down, cold Mafia investment savant. Surprisingly he is not that good at sex! Wow, there’s a first. Anyhow, on the surface too potentially unlikeable characters to turn my nose up at.
Didn’t work out that way. Posy (awesome name) is a lot smarter than anyone gives her credit for despite putting up with awful behavior from awful men. The H is the quintessential meanie until his heart grows…okay his heart doesn’t grow, but he is happy to declare to the heroine that he’s jumped from being a psychopath to being a mere sociopath. I think he’s fooling himself.
The author does a nice job tying Posy’s skill at chess with how she is used as a pawn in the this particular mob group’s power struggle. I wish she had worked with this a little more as it was a strong element in the book.
So 4 stars for keeping me riveted, making pretty much all the characters interesting, and providing a reason for poor decisions and life choices.
Another book that makes a hypocrite of me. I have hopes for a happy ending for these two, but there will be bodies strewn along the way.
April 28, 2022
**** 4 stars ****
I really liked this one.
Strong characters combined with a very solid and convincing storyline.
I really liked this one.
Strong characters combined with a very solid and convincing storyline.
March 4, 2023
I didn’t like the story, characters…
Unfortunately.
Unfortunately.
January 10, 2026
Okay, I accept that I am messed up. But only for a fictional H.
Because no way (hopefully) will I start buying a cold, chilling, borderline psychopath guy's cute and cuddling transformation.
The h is a silly floozy sort and the mistress of the H, the cartel's bookkeeper/moneymaker. He's a cold, nerdy guy who's responsible for growing the mob money exponentially (and making it vanish too if the mood gets him). He's a nerd but doesn't look like the copybook nerd, in case you are wondering.
Because no way (hopefully) will I start buying a cold, chilling, borderline psychopath guy's cute and cuddling transformation.
The h is a silly floozy sort and the mistress of the H, the cartel's bookkeeper/moneymaker. He's a cold, nerdy guy who's responsible for growing the mob money exponentially (and making it vanish too if the mood gets him). He's a nerd but doesn't look like the copybook nerd, in case you are wondering.
May 15, 2022
4 stars, idk what I was expecting, but not this. There are so many mixed reviews, I somehow expected to like this less. Also, I really really REALLY am not a fan of mafia romances usually. Maybe having low expectations going into a story helps me enjoy it more. 🧐🤔 Whatever the reason, I really did enjoy this book, and I think it was very worth the read.
Full disclosure - this review is going to contain lots of spoilers, so if you plan to read this book, I think it's better to go in blind or only with safety spoilers (at the bottom) if you need them.
So this story is about Posy and Dario. Dario is a psychopath, or a sociopath, or some kind of path. Def not an empath though. He and Posy are living together at the start of the story. She’s in love with him, thinking life is finally going her way, she’s happy. Meanwhile he…uses her for his own pleasure. He considers her a possession, convenient but disposable. He’s sent a video of Posy being sodomized by an unknown man - he is enraged thinking that she cheated and immediately throws her out of his house. She is forced to run for her life because without Dario’s protection, the mafia don will kill her, or maybe Dario himself will kill her if he sees her again. So she runs, but it doesn’t take Dario long to want her back.
While Posy is on the run, her illusions about Dario and her life with him are finally broken. She realizes that she made excuses for him and allowed herself to be used by him. It’s actually kind of sad - her realizing what kind of life she had been living. In the past, she allowed men to use her indiscriminately, and she sees that she has allowed the same thing to happen with Dario.
After reading a few reviews, I noticed that Posy is really seen as very different depending on the reader. Personally, I saw her as a very tragic figure. This isn’t some woman who’s empowered by her sexuality. No, she’s a woman with no power who uses sex as a means of surviving. For a long time, she was willing to do anything, be anyone, to survive. She didn’t have great sex, or enjoy her life to the fullest. She just made her body available to the use of others, if only they would show her a small amount of affection/support. She had no family, no one to love her, and her self-esteem was so low that she tried to find love any where and in any way.
Over and over, Posy is shown as being pathetic, with loose morals, worthless. Most of Dario's thoughts about her are less than flattering right from the start of the book. However, in juxtaposition to her lack of self-worth - she is also extremely smart. Once the fog of her love for Dario clears, she really sees him for who he is. And she begins to understand just how she enabled her own poor treatment and she's determined to get away from him.
OFC, this is a romance, so she doesn't get away from him. But I spent at least 50% of the story wishing and praying that someone would take Dario out and that Posy would move on with someone better. Surprisingly, I think the author did a decent job of redeeming Dario. I don't think it's possible to fully redeem a psychopath or sociopath, but I definitely felt that Dario greatly valued Posy by the end. My favorite part of this book was HOW the author went about forcing changes in the MCs. It wasn't some deliberate attempt by either of them to change or to be better - but rather that they were both forced to realize uncomfortable truths about themselves.
I really liked this book overall. I also really liked the heroine - she's such a contradiction of qualities that I found to be very human. And I even ended up liking the hero, go figure. I am actually questioning if I should have rated this higher now - which ALMOST NEVER happens.
Safe for me; The heroine isn't a virgin, she has a lot of past experience, but none of it was really good, she just allowed herself to be used. Hero's past isn't really discussed in detail but he does mention that in the past he had girls sent over for him to fuck when he was in the mood (a perk of the mafia life, I guess). I saw some people considered him less experienced than Posy, but I didn't really feel that way since we don't know how many of these women there have been. Plus, I think it's safe to say that his experiences with sex have probably been mostly pleasurable, while she was used and abused by the men in her life. In many ways, this is yet another slightly misogynistic book, where the woman has a past of suffering while the men were all getting exactly what they wanted. It might make sense for mafia romance, but it still grates. Anyways, there's no OW drama, but there is some OM drama. The hero sees a sex tape of her being sodomized by OM and thinks she cheated, but she didn't - it's an old video. Neither of them are with others after becoming a couple, and both stay celibate during their separation. No cheating.
TW: some instances of noncon (not between MCs) and dubcon happening, the book begins with a somewhat graphic scene of the heroine being sodomized, lots of violence, blood, gore, heroine is a victim of revenge porn, and plenty of slut-shaming.
Full disclosure - this review is going to contain lots of spoilers, so if you plan to read this book, I think it's better to go in blind or only with safety spoilers (at the bottom) if you need them.
So this story is about Posy and Dario. Dario is a psychopath, or a sociopath, or some kind of path. Def not an empath though. He and Posy are living together at the start of the story. She’s in love with him, thinking life is finally going her way, she’s happy. Meanwhile he…uses her for his own pleasure. He considers her a possession, convenient but disposable. He’s sent a video of Posy being sodomized by an unknown man - he is enraged thinking that she cheated and immediately throws her out of his house. She is forced to run for her life because without Dario’s protection, the mafia don will kill her, or maybe Dario himself will kill her if he sees her again. So she runs, but it doesn’t take Dario long to want her back.
While Posy is on the run, her illusions about Dario and her life with him are finally broken. She realizes that she made excuses for him and allowed herself to be used by him. It’s actually kind of sad - her realizing what kind of life she had been living. In the past, she allowed men to use her indiscriminately, and she sees that she has allowed the same thing to happen with Dario.
I’ve been here before. I’ve been ghosted, slow faded, two-timed, dumped, and kicked to the curb enough times to know the drill. This relationship was no different than every other disaster I’ve thrown myself into. Dario and I aren’t a love story. It’s the other kind. Girl meets mysterious, brooding mafioso. Convinces herself they’re in love. Lets him take over her life. And in the end, mysterious is criminal. Brooding is cruel. And the mafioso is a monster.
After reading a few reviews, I noticed that Posy is really seen as very different depending on the reader. Personally, I saw her as a very tragic figure. This isn’t some woman who’s empowered by her sexuality. No, she’s a woman with no power who uses sex as a means of surviving. For a long time, she was willing to do anything, be anyone, to survive. She didn’t have great sex, or enjoy her life to the fullest. She just made her body available to the use of others, if only they would show her a small amount of affection/support. She had no family, no one to love her, and her self-esteem was so low that she tried to find love any where and in any way.
Every boyfriend I ever had has gone on about how pretty I am, but that didn’t stop them from fucking other women or treating me like shit. And I took it. Because at least I was wanted for something. Because I knew what it was like to lose all your friends and get pushed to the outside, and if I was with a man, I was in. Home free. At least for however long it lasted.
Over and over, Posy is shown as being pathetic, with loose morals, worthless. Most of Dario's thoughts about her are less than flattering right from the start of the book. However, in juxtaposition to her lack of self-worth - she is also extremely smart. Once the fog of her love for Dario clears, she really sees him for who he is. And she begins to understand just how she enabled her own poor treatment and she's determined to get away from him.
OFC, this is a romance, so she doesn't get away from him. But I spent at least 50% of the story wishing and praying that someone would take Dario out and that Posy would move on with someone better. Surprisingly, I think the author did a decent job of redeeming Dario. I don't think it's possible to fully redeem a psychopath or sociopath, but I definitely felt that Dario greatly valued Posy by the end. My favorite part of this book was HOW the author went about forcing changes in the MCs. It wasn't some deliberate attempt by either of them to change or to be better - but rather that they were both forced to realize uncomfortable truths about themselves.
I really liked this book overall. I also really liked the heroine - she's such a contradiction of qualities that I found to be very human. And I even ended up liking the hero, go figure. I am actually questioning if I should have rated this higher now - which ALMOST NEVER happens.
Safe for me; The heroine isn't a virgin, she has a lot of past experience, but none of it was really good, she just allowed herself to be used. Hero's past isn't really discussed in detail but he does mention that in the past he had girls sent over for him to fuck when he was in the mood (a perk of the mafia life, I guess). I saw some people considered him less experienced than Posy, but I didn't really feel that way since we don't know how many of these women there have been. Plus, I think it's safe to say that his experiences with sex have probably been mostly pleasurable, while she was used and abused by the men in her life. In many ways, this is yet another slightly misogynistic book, where the woman has a past of suffering while the men were all getting exactly what they wanted. It might make sense for mafia romance, but it still grates. Anyways, there's no OW drama, but there is some OM drama. The hero sees a sex tape of her being sodomized by OM and thinks she cheated, but she didn't - it's an old video. Neither of them are with others after becoming a couple, and both stay celibate during their separation. No cheating.
TW: some instances of noncon (not between MCs) and dubcon happening, the book begins with a somewhat graphic scene of the heroine being sodomized, lots of violence, blood, gore, heroine is a victim of revenge porn, and plenty of slut-shaming.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 22, 2022
3 Stars
Overall Opinion: I enjoyed the overall uniqueness of the story, but it fell a little flat at times. It felt like we were told about their great connection through game playing but I never felt that connection. I think a big part of that is because they already had their feelings developed before the story begins, and that is typically my favorite part! While I was rooting for them, I also was disappointed that certain things didn’t happen like I had hoped. I think it’s just another case of my expectations getting the best of me! I still, however, would recommend other readers to go into this blind like I had and try to avoid too many spoilers. Overall, this was just okay for me.
Brief Summary of the Storyline: I’m going to keep this short/vague in hopes of not ruining it. This is Posey and Dario’s story. They’ve been together and things change drastically when Dario is shown a video of Posey with another man and is told that she cheated on him. Posey is then on the run from the mobster when he realizes that he made a mistake and tries to find her...and they eventually get a HEA ending.
Point Of View (POV): This alternated between Posey and Dario’s POV.
Overall Pace of Story: Good. I never skimmed and I thought it flowed well.
Instalove: No, but feelings were already developed when the story begins.
H (Hero) rating: 4 stars. Dario. I liked him. He was hard to like at first but once you realize that he cares for the h the only way he knows how, it was easier to like him.
h (heroine) rating: 3.5 stars. Posey. I liked her, but I wanted her to be more upfront about her needs and feelings.
Sadness level: Low, no tissues needed
Push/Pull: Yes
Heat level: Good. They have some good tension, chemistry, and scenes -- but not so much it takes away from the story.
Descriptive sex: Yes
OW (Other Woman)/OM (Other Man) drama: Yes
Sex scene with OW or OM: No
Cheating: No
Separation: Yes
Possible Triggers: Yes
Closure: This ends in a pretty good place with what I would call a HEA ending . I would’ve really liked to have in the end though.
Safety: This one should be either Safe or Safe with exception for most safety gang readers depending on personal preferences
Overall Opinion: I enjoyed the overall uniqueness of the story, but it fell a little flat at times. It felt like we were told about their great connection through game playing but I never felt that connection. I think a big part of that is because they already had their feelings developed before the story begins, and that is typically my favorite part! While I was rooting for them, I also was disappointed that certain things didn’t happen like I had hoped. I think it’s just another case of my expectations getting the best of me! I still, however, would recommend other readers to go into this blind like I had and try to avoid too many spoilers. Overall, this was just okay for me.
Brief Summary of the Storyline: I’m going to keep this short/vague in hopes of not ruining it. This is Posey and Dario’s story. They’ve been together and things change drastically when Dario is shown a video of Posey with another man and is told that she cheated on him. Posey is then on the run from the mobster when he realizes that he made a mistake and tries to find her...and they eventually get a HEA ending.
Point Of View (POV): This alternated between Posey and Dario’s POV.
Overall Pace of Story: Good. I never skimmed and I thought it flowed well.
Instalove: No, but feelings were already developed when the story begins.
H (Hero) rating: 4 stars. Dario. I liked him. He was hard to like at first but once you realize that he cares for the h the only way he knows how, it was easier to like him.
h (heroine) rating: 3.5 stars. Posey. I liked her, but I wanted her to be more upfront about her needs and feelings.
Sadness level: Low, no tissues needed
Push/Pull: Yes
Heat level: Good. They have some good tension, chemistry, and scenes -- but not so much it takes away from the story.
Descriptive sex: Yes
OW (Other Woman)/OM (Other Man) drama: Yes
Sex scene with OW or OM: No
Cheating: No
Separation: Yes
Possible Triggers: Yes
Closure: This ends in a pretty good place with what I would call a HEA ending . I would’ve really liked to have in the end though.
Safety: This one should be either Safe or Safe with exception for most safety gang readers depending on personal preferences
December 1, 2021
I liked this one a whole lot it’s mafia romance and features an unconventional heroine and hero. I loved that Posy had a sexual history mostly due to her background and personal insecurities and that history didn’t bother Dario. Posy really just wants to be loved she craves it and searching for this rainbow has contributed to her making some very bad choices along the way. Allowing those in her life to walk all over her and treat her as less than she deserves. Posy now thinks she’s found this holy grail in Dario but when things go south posy is left out on her ear with some very powerful individuals seeing her as a loose end.
This had a very unusual start beginning eight months into Dario and Posy’s relationship and when her house of cards comes crashing down she’s left disillusioned and hurt, scared for her life she runs. It doesn’t take long for Dario to realise he’s made a miscalculation and allowed himself to be played he’s now inadvertently destroyed any progress and the carefully crafted illusion he’s orchestrated all these months now all he wants is her back and safe where she belongs even if that’s not something posy herself wants.
Dario is far from normal he’s a cold collected genius the money man of the organisation he doesn’t feel emotion like other people a psychopath to his core but with Posy there’s a spark she’s his one exception and this roadblock means he can finely reveal to her just who he truly is and not who he has been portraying for her these past few months.
This had action danger and plenty of chemistry it was well written and I really liked how different Posy and Dario were from your typical romance book characters. Posy has had her eyes cruelly opened and Dario what he feels for posy now even he doesn’t quite know this is all new to him, but whatever it is it’s an obsessive possession that is all-consuming and Dario would literally burn down the world to keep Posy safe. Which for him is kind of romantic. I definitely recommend this one especially if you like mafia it was such a page-turner and not your typical mafia romance
either.
Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
https://www.facebook.com/beckiebookworm/
www.beckiebookworm.com
April 25, 2022
Well...that was fun.
This story is about Posy and Dario. It starts out with Posy and Dario already dating and they've been together for awhile. But Dario accuses her of something and throws her out...quite dramatically for a psychopath I might add.
But then...like...he changes his mind and wants back what is HIS.
Romantic...
Soooo he stalks her, obsesses over her and when he finally finds her...well he tosses his b*tch into the back of the trunk and takes her home.
Dario is a psychopath or maybe he's a sociopath because Posy now brings out that side of him? According to him, he can only feel anger. The whole story is about them having sex, Dario just being a cold asshole and Posy being whatever the f*ck she is.
Whatever that means.
Some of the crap he says and the way Posy responds is just utterly ridiculous. I love a sociopath hero but Dario was just...maybe too much of a sociopath? Or maybe Posy was just too weak minded or had too many issues. I don't know. Giving these 3 stars for keeping me entertained.
This story is about Posy and Dario. It starts out with Posy and Dario already dating and they've been together for awhile. But Dario accuses her of something and throws her out...quite dramatically for a psychopath I might add.
But then...like...he changes his mind and wants back what is HIS.
"I want her back. I want to break her again and watch her cry. Hear her beg for mercy. I want her terrified and cowering, covered in snot and her own piss."
Romantic...
Soooo he stalks her, obsesses over her and when he finally finds her...well he tosses his b*tch into the back of the trunk and takes her home.
"I know her perfectly. Better than she knows herself. She’s a tangled ball of self-doubt, foolish pride, dumb hope, brilliance, masochism, and blind affection. And I’m obsessed."
Dario is a psychopath or maybe he's a sociopath because Posy now brings out that side of him? According to him, he can only feel anger. The whole story is about them having sex, Dario just being a cold asshole and Posy being whatever the f*ck she is.
“Everyone else is a piece. A pawn, a knight, a king. Not you.”
I snort softly. “Let me guess. I’m the queen?”
“Nope. You’re the one on the other side of the board.”
Whatever that means.
Some of the crap he says and the way Posy responds is just utterly ridiculous. I love a sociopath hero but Dario was just...maybe too much of a sociopath? Or maybe Posy was just too weak minded or had too many issues. I don't know. Giving these 3 stars for keeping me entertained.
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