Mafia and Protector

Marchiano & Petrov Mafia

by Isa Oliver

She was the plain sister, the unpretty sister…and the sister who had a dark secret.
Jessica
I don’t know how to stop feeling scared.
I don’t know how to stop feeling unlovable.
And I don’t know how to trust again…
An incident before my marriage takes away any safety I've ever known.
I’ve always known that I would have to marry a man chosen by my family, but from that moment on, I realize that monsters lurk in both suits and the shadows.
My future husband, Rafael, is a powerful Mafia man.
And he's just one more man who wants to hurt me.
Or so I think…until Rafael touches my heart and brings me back to life.
His words make my pulse flutter too fast, and his looks make shivers skate down my spine.
He tells me that he loves me.
And that he’ll always protect me.
But I shouldn’t have believed him.
I should have known that life isn’t a fairy-tale.
That my happily ever after could be snatched away from me in the blink of an eye.
Because I’m wounded and fragile.
And the darkness is always lurking where you least expect it, waiting to strike me down.
A full length, standalone novel within the interconnecting Marchiano Mafia Series, with a HEA, no cheating, and no cliffhanger. This is a dark arranged marriage romance, featuring the Italian Mafia. Contains sensitive topics (please refer to the Author’s Note in the Look Inside feature).

Genres: Mafia Romance, Dark Romance, Romance, Dark, Contemporary, Forced Proximity, Abuse

324 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 11, 2023

Reviews

[Aubrea · Rating 1 out of 5]

I just wrote a whole review and it didn’t save…. Basically Rafael sucks and it was kinda the Walmart version of Nino and Kiara’s book in the Camorra Chronicles (12/10 recommend this book). Not a good mafia book compared to the other ones I’ve read and I didn’t like that Rafael was a little butthole. He didn’t protect her and he didn’t care about her and was a dick until he found out his dad raped her. And then he still left her alone in the same building as his dad. He’s stupid. Also not just killing his dad to begin with was so stupid. Make a statement. I skimmed most of it and only read it bc I held out hope that it would get better but it didn’t.

[Valerie · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was AWFUL! I read it based off a series of TikTok’s, I thought it would be good. I was wrong. This book was extremely difficult to finish because it was just bad, the plot sucks and, even if the plot was good, it is not well written at all. This book had me cringing the whole time because of how bad it is. It clearly did not go through a revising process, they should have at the very least used grammarly if they were going to publish.

[ChasxSabri💗🫧 · Rating 2 out of 5]

The whole time I read this I kept thinking, “This is such a Wattpad story”
And like not in a good way
The things the FMC had to go through was very sad, but other than that the story felt very….flat?
It was just boring at times and I found myself skimming

[Hilal Kahraman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m gonna give 4 cause I are this one but it was basically Nino Falcone and Danilo Mancini fanfic so rip cora reilly you wouldve love this

[Alina Kravets · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ця історія нагадала мені Кіару і Ніно.🫤
Це друга книга з серії , і вона розповідає нам про сестру Джуліани, Джессіку.

Джессіка Бонарді - 18 р, донька одного з молодших босів мафіозної родини Сантіно. Після викрадення Джуліани, вона має вийти за одного с Сантіно, і це брат Габріеля, Рафаель.

Рафаель Сантіно - 25р, після того як його брат стане Капо, він займе місце Консільєрі.

Виходить так що Джессіка приймає свою долю, і за тиждень до весілля, її відвозять до лікаря, щоб назначити їй пігулки, але там її гвалтує батько Рафаєля. 🤦🏼‍♀

І в нас з'являється дуже травмована героїня, звісно Раф про це дізнається, і хоче вбити батька разом з братом, але якщо вони це зроблять, то Габріелю не бачити статусу Капо.

Тому вони вирішують лишити помсту на потім.
Наш такий мафіозі одразу "питает слабость" до дівчини.


Короче тут був абсурд.

Плюс ще її вагітність від батька🤦🏼‍♀🤦🏼‍♀🤦🏼‍♀

[erin herrington · Rating 1 out of 5]

so let me get this straight. he was straight up fantasizing about how he was going to fuck her whether she wanted to or not, but then is disgusted by his father? as if he didn’t contemplate doing the same? his entire personality changed from before he knew to after. also what italian mafia families name their kids jessica and jacob? her mom was supposedly a traditional italian mob wife yet wouldn’t have named her kids accordingly??

[Chrissy Russo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great story. I loved the previous book and this one had a different vibe but was just as good. This one was more romance focused and I enjoyed that. Jessica and Rafael had some major bumps to get through especially considering the trauma she went through at the start of the book. I liked the way the story flowed and there were some interesting interactions with side characters.
I love that there was no OW drama at all, in this book or the one before it (Marco and Juliana’s story). I always appreciate when authors avoid those kind of cliche tropes. The sexy times were plentiful and handled well in relation to everything that was happening with the couple too. One thing that kinda bugged me was how Jessica basically gives Raf permission to sleep with other women at the beginning and then the topic is never brought up between them again. Like we the readers know that he won’t sleep with others because he thinks to himself that he would feel wrong to do it. But they never talk about it again so is she just assuming that he’s getting laid elsewhere? And then shortly after they start sleeping together and it still doesn’t come up. I just think a simple line or two of dialogue would have cleared that up and made it make more sense.
Other than that the story was awesome and still definitely deserving of 5 stars. I hope that there will be more books in this series I will be lining up to read them.

[Mal Weaver · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was the worst book I think I have ever read. And I didn’t even get half way.

[Brynn Masker · Rating 2 out of 5]

Guys. This book was just bad. Not terrible or horrible just bad. It makes me feel for the author because I really believe that they put their best effort into it but overall it was just bad. It took me too long to read for a 300 page book. TikTok suggestions did me way too dirty. I knew it had a “dark” (term used very lightly) theme, but the only “theme” of the book was the FMC feeling bad that she wasn’t a virgin on her wedding night. Now this will come across insensitive on my end because if you’ve read the book you know why she wasn’t, but if the author is going to write this book with this storyline there is a better way to do it. If you’ve read the book (which I don’t recommend. Again sorry author) I feel like you get what I mean. Make FMC powerful. Have her grow. Show that this doesn’t define her and she can get through hard times. But even in the last chapter it was brought up. It was just bleh and boring and there was zero character growth and just nothing HAPPENED. In 300 pages we really didn’t get the story going anywhere. We got her cooking and cleaning and we learned that she loved lilac. But no action that I can remember. I think that’s where I’m saying it’s a snooze and bad but not a terrible book. It just needed to be thought out and planned better. It didn’t seem like a first draft like other books I’ve read. It just kinda put me to sleep at the end.

[Dee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This part of the Marchiano Mafia series each book can be read as a standalone however connect via the families each with a sexy broken made man and the girl who brings it all together standalone hang on and buckle up this is a wild ride, dangerous men, alpha’s personified, possessive, oh, gorgeous, brooding all the makings of a story consisting with three D’s (dark, delicious, and dirty) 😊. There will be suspense, betrayal, death, darkness, secrets reveled, violence, hope, forgiveness, and maybe even love (ALL THINGS TO EXPECT FROM THE MAFIA WORLD). By the time you’ve figured out who is who and what is what, you’re already hooked, and you may as well give up the fight and prepare yourself for an all-nighter! CAN’T SAY YOU WEREN’T WARNED!!!!!. Jessica I just wanted to give her a hug the family she has isn’t the best an absolute horrid father, a mother who thinks only of herself, and being called plain compared to her sister at every turn so when her sick father calls her into his office telling her she is arranged to be married to Rafael surprise is an understatement. Rafael sexy as all get out son of the Capo ruthless, heartless at times but will give everything he is to those he love and follows the rules as he father makes although don’t get it twisted there is no love lost between his father and him because is just as sick as her father. Right before their wedding his father rapes her taking her virginity rules of their world is that she has to remain intact to be an acceptable bride but with a sicko like his father that wasn’t possible so on their wedding night the truth comes out about what happens and I can say this is where you need to buckle up it is a very interesting ride he feels like it is all his fault because he didn’t protect her the minute the contract was signed she became his responsibility but he failed and she blamed herself for it all the hurt of her parents not caring, and now her husband having been tricked into marrying her but do they make it through it all, will his brother who is next in line support his decision, will his father get what’s coming to him, will her father be allowed to continue, will she be okay with medical help, and is there happiness for these two although, if it is they will have to fight for it?.

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

[SGetch · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the first book in this series Mafia and Captive and was looking forward to reading Mafia and Protector ,which focuses on Jessica Bonardi, the sister of Juliana, the heroine in Mafia and Captive .

Jessica's timid demeanor immediately captured my attention while reading book 1. She isn't your typical mafia princess trying to alter her fate and escape her arranged marriage.

To demonstrate the Società Mafia's strength, the Capo proposes a marriage bond between his son, Rafael Santino, and Jessica. Rafael and Jessica are strangers but understand their obligation to marry. While Rafael is commanding and icy during their initial meeting to discuss the marriage, he doesn't come across as scary. Jessica wants to be a good mafia wife to her husband, determined to work hard to build a happy family life. She is hopeful that their arranged marriage will turn into love over time. But in a cruel twist and only days before her wedding, Jessica is raped by a powerful man within their organization.

The author takes us on an emotionally gritty journey as Rafael and Jessica work together to overcome the fear, anger, shame, and guilt that such a violation can invoke. Their hard-won Happily-Ever-After was so satisfying and sweet after the many cruel twists this couple endured.

Mafia and Protector by Isa Oliver is a dark and steamy mafia romance with compelling characters that I could not put down. I commend the author for her well-executed and bold storytelling!

Dual POV
A standalone novel - interconnecting series

Safety Spoilers / Content Warning: mafia violence and murder, on-page SA (not committed by the hero), victim shaming, pregnancy, discussions of pregnancy termination, miscarriage, profanity, open-door sex scenes, virgin h. 7 yr age gap (h is 18 and H is 25). No cheating. No sharing. No ow/om drama. Epilogue.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Sophia Smith · Rating 1 out of 5]

..

garbage. crappy. misspelling. hate jessica. don’t bother reading. waste of time and i hope we didn’t kill trees and waste ink on this book.

[Kiki · Rating 1 out of 5]

Literally, I dont know who recommended this or how it ended up on my tbr, but I'd like my time back, with interest.

I pushed through to finish this book because I was hoping for some character development, or plot twists, or SOMETHING. I got a whole lot of nothing. Firstly, Jessica is the worst FMC/mafia wife I've read about. yes Jessica, we get it. You were r*ped and therefore were not a virgin on your wedding night. 🙄 I have sympathy for her in that regard. Having that done to you is traumatic. But when your husband tells you he doesn't want an annulment, and he wants to protect you and have a family with you .... why do you continuously bring it up. I felt like every other page was Jessica's internal dialogue about how she wasn't good enough for Rafael because she wasn't a virgin on her wedding night. The ONLY person who was making her feel bad about it was herself. Rafael and his brother both tried to make her feel safe.
IDK, maybe im being too harsh because Jessica was just really annoying to me. She would never have made it as a Mafia daughter, let alone a Mafia wife.
This book literally had nothing going for it. I was hoping for a moment where Jessica would grow a backbone and become the badass FMC, and for Rafael to sit back and watch her burn the world down for what happened to her. but instead, Raf kills his dad in the first like 20% of the book, and the rest was just Jessica being a baby about not being a virgin for her wedding.

Let's also talk about the writing! There were so many parts repeated. Like word for word repeated stuff just a couple pages away from each other. And if I heard "made man" one more time, I was going to vomit. Let's not forget that this is supposed to be italian Mafia, and the names are just awful. I dont know about you, but i dont know any first gen italian-Americans with the name Jessica or Jacob? Even Gabriel was a stretch. I dont know, this book just did nothing for me.

I do not recommend this book. at all. 😭

[Delaena · Rating 5 out of 5]

THIS BOOK ATE DOWNNNNNNNN UGH 😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨😮‍💨

[Juliaa · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75⭐️

[sab]

dnf — @ 50%

i’ve read enough. this is terrible.

[Riah · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was awful and I usually hold books like this to a looser standard, given that they are meant to be fun reads. The writing was half assed and elementary at points. The MMC himself did a complete 180 in his character to absolutely disgusting to a compassionate night in shining armor within 20 pages. Making it not only unbelievable but hypocritical as he condemned the very things he wanted to do to her himself. I have no problem with a morally grey MMC but this was just horrendously done.

[bun reads · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m about 90% done and I can safely say I want my time, money, life back this book tried so hard to be everything and nothing at the same time.
She’s painted as this fragile mouse of a girl, plain Jane if you will. He’s never really given a foundation we just know sometimes he’s supposed to be the big bad wolf other times he is the epitome of wisdom and guidance to his douche knuckle of a brother he’s also supposed to be severely unhinged and protective but dominating and every single trope ever written. To say just the premise of this book is exhausted is an understatement.
The fmcs mother is actually is 90’s mafia gangster Italian mobster wife trash is sad and honestly it has taken sooooo long for someone to put her in place I’m afraid it was more infuriating that whatever it was intended to be to the dogpile of themes I’m not even going to speak on the 🍇 scenes because it actually makes me want to dnf and IN MY OPINION wasn’t handled with the care it deserved.

Overall a third of a star.

[Kirsten_BookRants · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book took a minute for me to get into. And that's probably because I did not read book one first, so it was like I was jumping into an already established story. For example Juliana's kidnapping, I was all kinds of confused when she magically appeared at Jessica's window a couple of days before her wedding. And I thought to myself these kidnappers aren't very good, if Juliana could leave so freely. Plus I couldn't understand why Jessica's father was so upset with Juliana when she was a victim of a kidnapping. But now that I know she's basically the Serafina of this universe, he's just dealing with some misdirected rage. However he can still go to hell for being a complete asshole. And take Emmanuel and Jessica's mother with him.

So while this was marketed as a standalone, I would definitely recommend reading book 1 first. Because now I understand why some reviews were saying the MMC was giving off both Nino and Danilo vibes from Cora Reilly's Camorra Chronicles.

***Spoilers Ahead***

Gabriel and Rafael whining over not having spaghetti and meatballs for Monday dinner, was by far the craziest thing I have read this year. Grown ass men crying over something like that. After Jessica spent hours preparing dinner. 🥴

Shout out to Jacob for being the only one to have a normal reaction to learning about Jessica being assaulted. Too bad he couldn't have been apart of Emmanuel's downfall.

And I'll give points back to Rafael for being patient with Jessica and not sleeping with other woman in the meantime.

Jessica's mother's obsession with her clothes felt out of place to me. Especially after she got married. And I actually laughed at the idea that 8 inch heels are considered normal evening attire.

I will never forgive the author for making Emanuel the father of Jessica's first baby 🥴. I literally throw my kindle across the room, I was devastated 😭. And I'm calling BS on the false negative excuse. Then homegirl has a miscarriage, what are you talking about!!! Why cruel world why 😫😫.

Despite all the suffering Jessica went through in this book she got her happy ending. And good for them for going to therapy, especially couples therapy. Because they definitely struggled with lack of communication. A happy ending with a beautiful baby boy.

Wasn't my favorite book, too similar to others I read. And it reminded me more of fanfiction, than an original story.

[Tiffany · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rating: 2 stars.

Better than the first book but the pregnancy popping it's head into the plot really drove me mad. I do like that Rafael is more caring and naturally a kind protector. However, he was definitely terrible at communicating and really nurturing Jess's broken soul. Jess was raped by his father and then forced into this marriage with his son, Rafael, after the engagement contract was signed. Also, Jess ended up being pregnant with her rapist's child and then lost it and then became obsessed with getting pregnant again. The unattended trauma floating about wasn't really resolved or treated until it is later revealed in the epilogue that they go to therapy.

Gabriel, Rafael's brother, threw me for a loop because one second her was angry on Jess's behalf and protective of her but once Jess moved in he was extremely cold and almost hated her. I didn't understand why he was so hot and cold.

Another good steamy shower scene.

[Jesmin Nawaz · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don't know why I had high expectations for this book after how bad the first one was. This was just as disappointing. Started off strong and the initial chemistry between Rafael and Jessica was good. That changed rather quickly though. I did not expect Jessica to tell her parents and Rafael the truth about her rape. What was even worse was how Gabriel treated her despite knowing what his father did to her. Him snapping at her for making chicken instead of meatballs for Monday dinner was so unnecessary. He was an asshole to her and then suddenly he accepts his fault and then it's all good. Rafael takes after Marco in book one in terms of constantly - and I mean constantly - saying Jessica is his to protect, his to keep blah blah blah. Just like book one, I don't see the need for all the siblings running in the family - they really did nothing for the story in my opinion. Lackluster story and characters.

[Steph · Rating 2 out of 5]

I DNF at 60% because the whole “he can’t love me I’m impure” was getting annoying.

Also, I’ve seen this happen a lot in arranged mariage mafia romances, but in the first few MMC’s POV he’s all “she will obey me and do what I tell her to blah blah, she will be in my bed tonight even if I have to force her blah blah” but then all of a sudden they’re Mr nice guy and they would never hurt a women. Like, my guy, if she didn’t tell you your father raped her you would have done it yourself. Who are trying to fool, when 4 pages ago she had to submit to you??

You know I get that in the first few chapters we have to see the MMC as this big tough mafia guy, but there are other ways to do that than a misogynistic inner monologue.

Anyways, the writing felt like an okay wattpad story and I wasn’t in the mood for weird grammar.

[Kathyjacks · Rating 5 out of 5]

This author is fast becoming a favorite of mine. This book is an arranged marriage mafia romance . Jessica and Raphael go through a trauma together and even as strangers are husband and wife. They find a way to work together and find healing to get their HEA. There isn’t a lot of mafia action in this one but it was heartbreaking and I read it all in one sitting. I really like the characters and can’t wait to see Gabriel get his HEA.

[Kait · Rating 2 out of 5]

The writing was off. I couldn't get into the story as it felt stale. Like the author was just telling me what was happening, but not showing me, not letting feel the characters pains and suffering.

Also killing off the main villain at 30% kind of killed the story for me and there was a severe lack in angst and chemistry between the two love interests for me.

[farzana ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

this is c. reilly Nino and Kiara core but lowkey i ate it up because it was better than the first book lol

[Maskedblogger51 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too much connection for a "stand alone" and way to bullet pointy

The topic is a hard one to cover in a romance....but that's not even the problem here. Honestly its was spiking my adrenolin looking forward to getting vengeance for the femail lead but once that is delt with (very quickly) the rest of the characters are almost too "ratonal". The leads just talk and communicate and end any tension or emotional drama.(honestly i always thought that would be good but turns out it makes for a boring romance) half way through the main antagonist is delt with and then it's nothing but filler fluff relating to characters from other stories trying to get me interested in reading a half dozen other books to find out the other half of what the characters are talking about in an expanded univers of bordom where 70% is just talking about other characters i don't know? Why would I bother reading about these dozen other subplots that keep putting into this story when you can't even focus on the actual plot of this book? It's like the rest is rushed throught "then this then this then this happened then boom its all sorted" like bullet points of a generic mafia plot.....yeah just skipped this one unless you are invested in a series of "stand alone" (cough) not (cough) romances that leave you feeling like you read a book report and summary about a romance novel instead of the actual novel.

[Stacey · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF-ing a book because:
1. She grew up in a mafia family and complains that her mother is domineering and won't let her dress the way she wants and her father is too high handed and controls her life.
Uhhhh, I grew up in an Italian American family that wasn't in any way associated with the mob. My mother never met an outfit of mine she didn't hate. She and my father literally made me model every single bathing suit and every single formal dress for them and I needed a unanimous "pass" vote to wear it. I remember a strapless dress that I wore to a winter formal and my parents having a fit because I was "too busty" for it. (They weren't wrong.) The only way I got away with it was that they made me wear a short jacket out of the house and made me promise to keep it on all night.
Yeah. Uh.... didn't happen. But my date did make me regret it when he proceeded to throw change down my dress all night.
2. At her wedding, the groom -- the son of the Capo -- complains that the church was "rammed with people".
Uhhhh.... If you're the son of the head of the family, you can bet your butt the church is crowded. Did you not see The Godfather?
Bottom line: Don't write Italian families if you can't handle Italian families. If she grew up in one, she would not be shocked by anything (except one horrible scene) that happens in the first 50 pages.

[fxa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay first off, I never realized I already read one book in this series. So when I came across this, I was so confused why some characters were familiar. I never did get to updating my goodreads, or somehow I accidentally deleted it from my READ list. Anyhow, I enjoyed “Mafia and Angel” more than this, although MC in “Mafia and Protector” is more loving from the get go (as loving as a mafia made man is lololol). I didn’t really enjoy the FMC and MC’s chemistry. They were cute yes, but it lacked some sort of depth. The first “I love you” took me by surprise & did not really feel that love. I know Jess went through something traumatic, and it’s part of her personality throughout, but I just felt her whole character was flat, even all the way to the end. There was something lacking to really draw you in to her.

[Chloe Humphreys · Rating 2 out of 5]

A frustrating read

The storyline was good but I felt that some parts of the timeline were quite rushed and unbelievable. I also felt parts of the text were quite repetitive which became annoying. Some of the writing was not very concise, things were being over-explained when the reader could gather what was meant from the initial sentence. I also disliked it was written in the past tense but following present events, it just didn’t make sense. However, as previously mentioned I did like the storyline and the characters but I did not enjoy this book as much as Mafia & the maid, which was the first book I’d read by this author and the deciding factor on me choosing another of hers to read. I think if I had of read this book first, I wouldn’t have carried on reading her books, but I am open to reading her other work to see if they are as good as the first one I read.

[B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sa aurait put être un 4 étoile mais sa me soûlais grave comment elle fessait que dire que elle se était moin bien a cause du râpé or que c’était pas de sa faute, que Raphaëlle méritais mieux que elle était pas ce ont lui avait promit et pour elle fessait que elle était less mais elle le disait tout le temps. Mais par contre j’ai aimer comment Raphaël il était là pour elle comment il voulais la protéger et tout j’ai kiffer aussi le fait que c’était sa priorité. J’aurais aimer que elle voie que c’était pas de sa faute mais elle fessait que se blame herself et je sais pas pk l’autrice elle a ChoiIr de faire sa parce que elle chaque fois sa me souler.
Si j’aurais su que le livre était comme sa je l’aurais pas lu parce que elle m’a briser le coeur