Shattered Cradle

Makarova Bratva Duet #2

by Nicole Fox

I joined the Mile High Club and ended up pregnant.
If only the story stopped there.
But no. It gets worse.
It gets so much worse.

Because the man who swept me off my feet thirty thousand feet in the air didn’t pick me at random.
He chose me for a purpose.
A very specific purpose.

And when Aleksandr Makarova decides he wants something…
He gets it.
No matter what… or who… he has to break in the process.

SHATTERED CRADLE is Book Two of the Makarova Bratva duet. Aleks and Olivia’s story begins in Book One, SHATTERED ALTAR.

Genres: Dark Romance, Mafia Romance, Romance, Dark, Enemies To Lovers, Contemporary Romance, New Adult

396 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 29, 2022

About the author

Nicole Fox writes smart, sexy mafia romance novels. She is a crazy cat lady in her late 30s with a coffee addiction, an overactive imagination, and a husband who somehow puts up with her impulsive need to keep buying new plants for their house.

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Reviews

[Carole Hancock · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mild Entertainment

Found book to be verbose . Author seemed to string plots out with unnecessary filling material. Olivia was still weak, naive and childish. A lost ball in high weeds so easily led and manipulated by everyone. There was a little suspense, certain twists, family breakups and weird references to nonessential subjects. Sex scenes were stilted. Aleks kept everything to himself and remain the super hero tough guy. The ending pulled the disjointed plots together so most questions were answered. Figured out Yulia's back stabbing and quest for power early in story. Enjoyed byplay between Jennifer, Alek and Demyan .

[Debbie DiFiore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thrilling conclusion

I really did enjoy this one too. Aleks though, was so hot and cold, it really bothered me. But I did see what was coming and I knew what was going to happen until I didn't. I was absolutely shocked at something that happens at the end. It was a doozy. I love that her heroes are faithful this series and how much they do to protect their woman. But honestly this isn't real life. It's total fantasy. I don't know if there is a Bratva but I don't think loving someone who kills people is going to ever be this sweet but I will still read them and enjoy the fantasy.

[Deb · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars

Great story, well written, I guessed at who was who before the end, but I still enjoyed seeing the bad guys lose

[Ash · Rating 1 out of 5]

the worst duet I’ve ever read

I wish I never read this. Give me my hours back. This was atrocious. The characters are god awful. There wasn’t a single, likable character in the ENTIRE duet. Not one. I hated and loathed the main character, Olivia. She is a worthless doormat; I can’t even describe how weak willed she was. She is a pushover, ridiculously easy to manipulate. And lets not forget, extremely slow and unintelligent. Aleks had zero redeeming qualities. He NEVER becomes a likable character. He is a complete a $$ to Olivia for the whole duet. Right up until the very end. He’s cruel, patronizing, and—to be completely honest—boring. They all were. I love a good, dark romance with dominant alpha holes, but this wasn’t it. The plot was painfully predictable. I had the plot figured out early in the first book. Unfortunately, I do not recommend this duet.

[Fabienne · Rating 3 out of 5]

long winded

This story could have been written in one book of 400 pages. The story dragged so much that I skipped of the book to get to the end. Some of the dialogue is long and feels dragged just to add more pages to the book. The heroine’s internal dialogue is repetitive.

Trough the hero the author tries to make us see how the heroine gets stronger when actually she remains naive. We don’t understand how they fall in love. Lets just say I prefer my heroine with more strength.

[Princess J. Antoinette · Rating 3 out of 5]

Long Sigh....

I really did like this little duet as a whole... However, (sighing) I think it could've been better..

I just feel like there was some holes in this storyline that was left unanswered.. Like what happened between Rob and Jen? Did Liv, make up with her sister Mia? And when did Liv, give birth to her baby and what did she have?

I just didn't feel like we got a complete story and the author's, epilogue was like a after thought to a link you had to click on and then sign up for her newsletter to read said epilogue.. Where we do that at? I mean come on seriously? I'm not going through all those changes.. Just No!🙄

Overall Rating:
3* ~ A Okay Read

[Beau · Rating 1 out of 5]

She’s the most SPINELESS character I’ve ever fucking read about and he’s actual fucking ass cheeks.

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! This book begins right where the last one ended. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it was so good I finished it in a couple of hours.

Olivia really begins to come into her own in this one. She starts to fight for herself and for Aleks, which I loved. My heart broke for her at times because her siblings treated her absolutely awful. She's trying so hard to keep her voice but she struggles a little. But thankfully Aleks is there to help her.

I really like Aleks. He's exactly the kind of guy I would expect in the Bratva. I'm not going to lie, there were times he said things to Olivia that made me want to scream. Mainly, this was because we know he doesn't truly feel this way, but he's keeping up a front. I think as the book goes on, I started to understand why he would.

About mid-way through, I was pretty sure I figured out who the groomer was. There was one sentence that caught my attention and at the end, I was right!! I wasn't mad I figured it out. I still kept searching for clues to confirm if I was right or not.

I've been rooting for Aleks and Olivia. I was happy they got their HEA.

[hannahreadsbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

the male love interest was actually unironically hilarious

[Debra Johnson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Finished Reading July 19, 2022

2 Stars
DNF

By chapter 10, 25% through I was excruciatingly BORED!
This is Very drawn out. Nothing happening except a ton of 'Mental' drama with her thoughts.
A truck load of 'Cry Me a River' crap. Got on my last nerve.
I can't believe how different this one is from the 1st.
Good Lord! Give us some action already! And I don't mean the sex.
I needed it to MOVE but it never did & I finally gave up.

DE BR 7/8/22
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

Prch June 26, 2022 ZL

[Craving Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love the second book and how oliva finally stands up to her crazy family. The fact that they treat her like she can’t make a decision, irritated me so much. But I love how she finally found her fire and fought for what she believe was right. I do wish there were more sweet moments between the characters. There was just so much secrets and so much hate that it kinda overshadow both of the characters that I still loved it. It was five out of five.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[lara · Rating 1 out of 5]

terrible

[L.M D.S · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would recommend this book to those who read the first installment and to those lovers of dark romance, however to appreciate this book, you really need to read the first one.

Heroine: 3.5/5
Hero: 4/5
Story: 4/5
Story Telling: 4/5
Background Characters: 2.5/5
Overall rating 3.6


In this book installment, I did not find the hero as dark as the first book, Aleks didn't have a 180 turn of attitude, but he wasn't a complete asshole to Olivia for majority of this book. I found myself enthralled with this book until about 60% where I struggled to finish reading it. The book's paced picked up again at around the end.

My rating for this book is comparatively lower than its predecessor, nonetheless, this story is still a great read and pretty enjoyable.
In the first book, I loved Olivia's family, especially Mia. But in this installment, I wanted to throttle her along with Rob. Rob, for the life of me, as a policeman is pretty gullible, to think that he was the head of investigation about the Bratva yet still believed mere hearsay is a little off-putting. While Rob is annoying with his gullibility, I was still rooting for him and Jennifer. Their conclusion in this story, satisfied me. In some parts of this story, I was looking forward more to their conclusion rather than Olivia and Aleks'.

For Olivia, I was a little disappointed with her but also tried to be sympathetic to her character after the trauma her family put her through. But I think she had no staying power and she was quick to think ill and give up on her brother and sister and even the hero. In her defense, what Mia, Rob and her mother planned was too whacked and for me, is a little out of character for them. I don't think the Mia in the first book would have hurt her little sister like that.

While, I've had my issues with some of Olivia's family, the author wrote this book well, I was able to get into reading it and feel for her characters. B the time you know who the real antagonist was I was waiting for a very nice reveal, which the author delivered.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Renee · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my review for the Makarova Bravata duet because I'm way too lazy to write two reviews and honestly these duets feel like one book.

I do like reading Nicole Fox's books and will continue to do so because the Bratva romances just have me in a chokehold.

I also stayed up all night reading this duet despite knowing better; I am not a youth anymore and my sleep needs to be more than a two-hour nap before a full day of adult responsibilities.

There is not a single character in this book that I liked, rooted for, wanted something good to happen to. Somehow, every single character just managed to be annoying or a POS, with very little wiggle room in-between.

We have our MMC Bratva boss and douche canoe extraordinaire who gets his HOSTAGE pregnant, emotionally confuses her until she's going mental, oh and let's not forget forces her into marriage and somehow gets between her and her close family. But don't think our FMC Liv is innocent. Nay. there are no survivors here. This 25-year-old literally can't make a decision or trust herself to save her life. She just let's all these dumbos manipulate her.

It's giving toxic.

But I wore my gas mask and ate this up.

IDK.

This man is emotionally stunted and has like ZERO redeeming qualities. This FMC is a trash bag of no personality. But this would still be my choice for girl dinner.

Don't ask how but it works. Do not second guess the magic just enjoy it as you read it.

[Sarah Anguish · Rating 4 out of 5]

A loyalty that her father instilled into Livia was the importance of family. This is why she finds herself trusting their judgement and reaching out to them for help. Sadly this is misplaced when they attempt to force her to abort her baby with her asking for Aleks help to protect their child. An altercation at the hospital leads to her family unit fracturing.

Still unable or unwilling to accept the feelings he has for Olivia he tells himself and her that he is only there for the baby. Despite them growing closer he attempts to keep things at arm’s length seeing love as a liability in the Bratva. As things progress with intel coming in against Hargrove, Aleks keeps things close to his chest until he has all his aces lined up.

Struggling with her place in the world, Olivia is heartbroken by how things have soured with her siblings. Disappointed that no matter how much she loves Aleks he appears to be unable to return her love. Is there any way for their marriage to work? Will Aleks ever be free from the false accusations regarding the missing girls?

[Carolyn Norman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I will admit that I finished book 1 at 1ish am and IMMEDIATELY started book 2 because the story had me totally enthralled.

In Book 2 - Olivia and Aleks are falling for each other. Olivia has fallen out with her family over her marriage and pregnancy. The suspense has been ramped up with the FBI situation. And there are so many twists and turns that you read with baited breathe.

It’s all resolved in the end. The badder bad guy is caught. Olivia reconciles with her family (that’s mostly in the extra epilogue) and Aleks and Olivia have a healthy son and get their HEA.

But the twists, the revenge aspect, trying to overthrow the Bratva leadership and how Aleks and Olivia’s relationship is so back and forth before it settles down. I will say that I figured out a few things before they were exposed in the book, but it was fun to wait for the exposures.

I sped through this staying up way to late but it was so worth it. Read this from KU.

[Lori Tremain · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aleks and Olivia continued in book 2. We see a little more mafia. Aleks is a cruel human. Olivia is a beaten down female by her husband and her family which means everything to her. Basically alone and pregnant, surrounded by people who gaurd her. Aleks continues to hold her as insurance against her FBI brother. But also continues to prove himself innocent.
Unfortunately, these books fall short. She is pregnant but never goes to a doctor. The twist in the story I had figured out in book one. The author could have had her run at one point to enhance the story after he told her how useless she is. So there was drama without drama.

[Lucy wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

loved it

Ok I mean Im still a little in book land to write this review so I may come back to it but for now

Mafia
Russian
4.5⭐️
Jp H
I just have one thing to really say first about this book I LOVE ALEKS!!!!!
Devoured this second book in the duet hope rob and Jennifer get a book or already have one. Would also like to see demyan get a book. I felt it ended with more to be updated or said like Mia and the gender of ALEKS and Olivia’s baby.
Great story line and well written can’t wait to read more from Nicole

[Misty Schott · Rating 5 out of 5]

You never know who you can trust!

This is book two in the Makarova Bratva duet, please be sure to read book one Shattered Alter before reading this book. Olivia is torn between her family and her husband, Aleks Makarova and she doesn't know what to believe. Betrayal and heartbreak hit real close to home in the conclusion of Aleks and Olivia's story. This is a great duet that will keep you guessing until the end.

[Kim Whitehead · Rating 5 out of 5]

Omg! What a twisted web!! I think the most unexpected thing was the way Nicole Fox kept being so evasive , which had my curiosity through the roof! I devoured this book! Just enough clues to keep you hooked and then Bam! The truth is revealed and ended with a wonderful HEA! Fantastic book!

[✨natalie✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

All the heroines in the books I’ve read lately have annoyed me. Seriously, Olivia was so clueless and gullible. The plot keeps you reeled in, but other than that I couldn’t stand. The heroine was so sure at times that her family was right about everything, despite things telling her differently.

[Naomi Black · Rating 4 out of 5]

<3

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️ a bit long winded but I did enjoy this book.

[My Little Nook · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a hot duet!! Loved it!

[m · Rating 2 out of 5]

this book had absolutely nothing to do with the bratva/mafia/anything whatsoever. #falseadvertising also, he was a “don” of the bratva??? make it make sense.

[• Maryjuana • · Rating 4 out of 5]

For the enjoyment 🙊🤭
This was so cute man. The plot was decent too and our man was 🫦🙆‍♀️

[Ana Beatriz Cunha · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,85/5⭐️

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good conclusion

It was a quick read with lots of strands running through the story. The build-up to the end was well done and the reveals were seamless. I still didn’t connect to Olivia and Aleks as a couple emotionally, but the story was still enjoyable.

[Hallie Vasell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this series. There was romance, of course, and danger as only the Bratva can provide. But under it all is a mystery that I thought I’d solved a few times. In the end, there was a surprise for the reader.

[Lisette · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book picks up where the other left off. Olivia has escaped from Makarova mansion with the help of Yulia, Aleksandr's mother. Immediately after she's out she contacts her brother, Robert. He goes to meet her to bring her to the family's newest safehouse The Imperial, a very swanky hotel. Before they get to the hotel, Olivia confesses to him that Isabella was a spy inserted into Robert's life by Aleks to spy on him; that she is still alive and not kidnapped or being held hostage by Aleks. He doesn't believe her and still insists that she was probably forced to say these things to Olivia. They stop for gas before reaching the hotel and Olivia scurries quickly into the gas station where she secretly buys a pregnancy test. She goes to the bathroom and her worse fear is realized, it's positive. They get to the Imperial and she's introduced to it's owner, Donald Hargrove, who has taken it upon himself to house and protect her mom and sister. She doesn't understand why this stranger would do such a thing. She's reunited with her sister and her mom who do nothing but put down and criticize Aleks. She makes the mistake of informing them that she's pregnant with Aleks' baby. She learns from Rob that according to Donald, Aleks supposedly kidnapped his goddaughter and abused her. She ended up going back to her parents a broken shell with only Aleksandr Makarova's name from her mouth, otherwise she's refusing to talk; an unreliable witness in the judicial sense. Olivia doesn't bring this and just wants to go back home to the family house but everyone feels unsafe there so they've taken the protection offered to them by Donald Hargrove. Olivia also finds out that her brother has been taken off of the FBI's investigation of Aleks. He's now combined forces with Donald to find a way to bring Aleks to supposed justice for stealing young girls. She goes to sleep in her suite afforded to her by Donald, each of her family members have one. Later she is out and gets escorted to a room in the hotel where she discovers Aleks is there. She tells him that Rob has joined forces with Donald and they are both gunning for him. She tells him Donald is after him because of what happened to his goddaughter and that they have proof. He asks her why have they not gone to law enforcement with this supposed proof. She explains that she's been deemed an unreliable witness. He retorts to her that somehow she said his name as who did this to her. He gets her to really think about it and she finally realizes that Donald is using this as a justification to go after Aleks. They converse more about the entire situation from him first getting to her at the airport then kidnapping her from her family home to the war waging between him and Donald. She then tells him that she's pregnant and he's thrilled. He promises to protect her till his dying breath. He discovers everyone knows about the baby. Before leaving the room he declares that he will protect the baby, he'll be back to claim what's his and even though she doesn't see him he will be watching her. She has breakfast the next morning with her mom and sister. She discovers that her sister Mia has taken a break from her medical career because she had to take care of their mother f during the three months Olivia was with Aleks. She explains that their mother was distraught and had stopped taking care of her self; that the whole trauma had adverse effects on her. Rob enters the room and spies them talking in the corner. He informs Olivia that Donald has a big dinner planned for everyone tonight and that he needs to head out, that he's working on something big. Olivia tells him that he better not be working on anything related to Aleks because his bosses wouldn't like that and he'd get into a lot of trouble. He tells her that by the time they find out he'll have enough evidence to put him for life and nothing else will matter. She excuses herself from breakfast with the excuse of morning sickness but instead of going back to her room she visits the hotel greenhouse atrium. While there she encounters Aleks who offers to take her on a drive. She accepts his invitation as long as he's not taking her back to his mansion to secret her away again. They end up driving for quite a while and talking about what's going on with her and her family. She tells him that they pity her, that she's somehow tainted because she told them that he hadn't raped her. He tells her that he sees her as brave and not the weakling her family chooses to treat her as. They end up kissing and one thing leads to another. When they're finished Olivia declares that they can't do that again. She's feeling all sorts of conflicted emotions. It's raining now and she should be soothed by that but instead she having a panic attack. She gets out of the car into the rain and begins walking away. Aleks runs after her, ends up picking her up and strapping her back into her car seat. She's uncomfortably cold with her teeth chattering. He drives her to a cute little house that she discovers is a safehouse for his Bratva. She takes a hot shower and warms up. She steps into the bedroom and sees her clothes on the bed. He explains to her that she left these things at his mansion when she escaped so he brought them to her for her to have . He also brought her sling bag in, she rummage through it, finds her her phone where she discovers many missed calls from Rob and her sister. She ends up calling her sister and explains that she went for a drive because she was feeling claustrophobic at the hotel. He brings her back to the hotel but before he leaves her there he programs her phone with his number with explicit instructions that if she needs anything to call him. She agrees. She gets to her room, she tucks the duffel Aleks gave her under the bed and before she knows it the door to her room opens. Rob and Mia stride in and start questioning her about where she went and why. She and Mia begin to argue between themselves and Rob interrupts it. He tell Mia that Olivia has been through a lot and she needs to be sensitive to that. He turns to Olivia and tells her that of course they're going to be anxious when she disappears without telling anyone especially since they just got her back. Plus tonight was important to Mia and Olivia just blew her off. She discovers that Mia is now engaged to Donald Hargrove. They also say that Akeks is trying to frame Donald instead of the other way around. They convince Olivia to take a little trip with them and before she realizes it they're at a hospital, one that Donald is a very large contributor to. Meanwhile, Aleks is dealing with some Bratva business when his phone rings and he answers it without even checking to see who the caller is. It turns out that it's Olivia and she's calling from Cedar Crest Memorial with Rob, Mia and her mother. She tells him that they brought her there for her to abort their baby and she needs him to come save her. Here is where I'll leave you and you'll have to get the book to find out what happens next. Let's just say that it is a definite thrill ride from here on out. The chemistry between Olivia and Aleks continues hot and heavy. There's more than meets the eye with Donald, Rob's ex fiance reenters the picture in a thrilling way and we finally discover the whole missing girls plot. I can definitely highly recommend this book for the intrigue along, but let's not forget the passion between Olivia and Aleks, it's nothing to sneeze at. This duet of books will grip you from beginning to end with it's fascinating original storyline and strong characters. A thrill ride definitely worth the price of admission!! Definitely not to be missed by anyone seeking a thrilling, high heat romance story.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.