I received this advance copy through netgalley and realised this was book 2 so definitely check out dirty business prior to reading this.

We start off where book 1 leaves us and now we are following the dual POV of Molly and Ashton. I liked this change as we have a new perspective as we begin to search for the killer whilst also having the story of Jess and Trace continue as side characters.

The dynamic of Molly and Ashton's relationship develops well and we slowly see Ashton's hardened Mafia exterior opening up and he becomes very protective of her.

As you'd expect with a mafia plot there is plenty of rivalry, politics and twists and turns with some spicy scenes as well.

Overall a nice read.

Enjoyable but lacking any substance or believable characters.

5/5 for mindless reading
2/5 for plot

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. Great 2nd book in the series about Molly and Ashton. I liked their connection and how mafia bosses can be good guys. Perfect mix of hot, danger and love

Firstly I wanted to thank NetGalley, the publishers and Tijan for the opportunity to read and review this story.

I have heard a bit about this author; their books have been sitting on my TBR for a while, so I was excited to read this book. This book was the second book in this world, and I will preface by saying I have not read the first book (which is based on a different couple in the same world), and I managed fine with reading it. There were a few things I assume would have made understanding a little easier if I had read the first one beforehand, especially since the first book ended on a cliffhanger which is followed in this second book.

I was hooked and interested by the title "A Cruel Arrangement". Then you read the blurb "... I won't let my livelihood be threatened." and "...a man I remember from when we were kids. Even back then, I could tell how dangerous he would be one day."

Do I need to continue, or are you already in love with the story? Because same.

Dark protective alpha male Ashton
Cute sunshine-loving Molly
They grew up together
MAFIA ROMANCE
Dual perspective

I was utterly immersed in the story, there were a few questionable moments where I wanted to yell at certain characters for being stupid, BUT that's just part of the experience. I love being emotionally invested in a storyline and its characters, and this book utterly sucked me in. There was beautiful growth within the characters across the story, with Ashton wanting to use Molly in the beginning and the enemies or angst-to-lovers vibes coming through. And then, the spice within the story did not disappoint!

Now my final thoughts are this. It was a great book that I believe would have been even better if I had read the first book beforehand. Now it was doable, and it didn't take me long to pick up what happened in the story before. But I have come to find out that the first book ends on a cliffhanger which is answered and followed on in this book, even though they follow two separate couples. So if you can I could recommend picking up "A Dirty Business" before "A Cruel Arrangement".

This book picks up not long after Tijan's previous novel, A Dirty Business. I would not consider this book a stand-alone. While this story ties up loose ends from the previous one, it also focuses of Molly and Ashton. As the key players' relationship is defined, there are twists and turns and a surprising guilty party at the end.
I very much liked this book, and hope that there is another story focusing on Jake Worthing. If I had any criticism, it's that I think the final chapter ended a bit abruptly.

A Cruel Arrangement - Tijan
⭐⭐⭐⭐

"I want to take you away, push you against a wall, and slide so deep inside you that it's only me in there. Forever."

The second installment of Kings of New York! I loved Ashton and Molly and their love/hate relationship. Grumpy Ashton in denial and positive Molly seeping into his blood.

I think this book fell a TAD flat for me. I was reading it and thinking that something was missing. I feel that the explanation for the cliff hanger in the first book could have been more obvious? I feel that there were a few side stories (that did tie in) that maybe were not needed? Or could have been incorporated a little better?

I LOVE Tijan and her writing is addicting. This wasn't BAD by any means. I am glad I read it and I did love the characters. The banter and the swoon factor of Ashton finally admitting his feelings were done very well. Possessive and in love is my kind of story.

"You are mine...Never run from me again. Do you hear me? You run and I'll burn the world down for you"

I loved Trace and Jess's story in "A Dirty Business" plus it ended on a cliffhanger...so I was very excited to see "A Cruel Arrangement" come up.

This was my second book by Tijan and have found I love her writing and storytelling style. I especially enjoyed getting into the head of Ashton. He was somewhat dark in the first book, but with this one we found out how dark he really was as well as the whys. I enjoyed Molly in the first book and was anxious to know her story and it was quite a story. I really felt for this girl and all she went through in her life.

This read was quite the roller coaster ride and I had a very hard time putting it down. I was occasionally forced to put it down (damn work and chores) but did stay up late to finish and it was a very satisfying conclusion.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Tijan Meyer for allowing me to read this book before publication in exchange for an honest review.

Let me start with - I liked Jess from book 1. I LOVE Molly. I think that one of the things that the author did amazing with in this book was making Molly feel like someone you could be friends with in real life! Watching the relationship grow and develop between her and Ashton was so rewarding. The book really makes you feel like Molly deserves the absolute world. No matter what she’s gone through at the hands of her parents or even the world in general, Molly will always persevere. Seeing her self confidence grow and her friendship with Jess deepen was beautiful.

A truly great book with lots of twists and turns that I did not anticipate. This book makes for an incredible read.

I thought I loved Trace but Ashton tops him in everything!!!

First things first, I'm glad the mystery of Justin & Kelly (does that name combo make anyone chuckle too?) is solved by the end of this book. I'm glad Jess gets over herself ( I personally never thought she should have been mad at Ashton after her apologized I mean you know that world and the consequences). I'm glad Trace and Ashton worked everything out ( but again it was Trace's fault since he did not handle his business and left Ashton to do it). I'm glad for all of the things I mentioned but I am super glad that Ashton will put his money where is his mouth is and that Molly loves him for it. In my opinion Molly & Ashton are couple goals and work better than Trace & Jess because Molly has no issue stepping out of situation she's not suited for. What I want to see is some crossover books featuring the Bennetts, Cole, Carter, Ashton, Kash, Chase, and Trace actually helping/interacting with each other. In fact i'd be happy with more books in each of those worlds under one series callAll in all I enjoyed this book more than I enjoyed A Dirty Business and I enjoyed the heck out of that book too.

I will tell you what’s cruel…. Cliffhangers. So we met Ashton in book one when he tortured Jess. He was so hard to redeem! I needed some time to make him more human…. Any one else?

What did I like? I’ve read books by this author but these mafia ones are wrecking havoc on my emotions. I had to go through it because I needed justice for Justin and Kelly. What a horrible reminder that we don’t all get our HEAs. Molly was a great character though. I didn’t fully get her emotions with Ashton but I could certainly see why he would be paired with her.

Would I recommend or buy? I’d recommend starting with book one and reading both books. It’s not all sunshine and roses but if your an avid reader of Tijan you know that. She specializes in drawing out the hard life with angsty repercussions. I enjoyed book two but loved Jess and Trace!

I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley to read and offer an opinion. Fours stars!

I have loved this author’s work in the past but this one unfortunately wasn’t for me.
I didn’t feel the connection beetwen the main characters, their relationship just felt off.
The story progresses at a good pace and you are not bored so maybe I wasn’t in the mood.
If you like mafia romance you’ll probably enjoy this more than I did.

I'll preface this by saying that I have not read the first book whish could have contributed to the disjointed feeling I had throughout reading.
I liked the characters but I didn't quite love them. We just didn't quite click.
The storyline is fast paced and engaging.

This is a fierce and feisty four-star read. It is number two in the Kings of New York series, and the story flows from the first, I loved the first and I don’t know if my hatred of Ashton blew over from that first story was why I loved this one most of the time, but not all of the time. Molly was just such a great character, there was something about her that just won me over and made me smile so bright. There was just something about Easter Lanes and the environment she creates there, I would love me some Sunday night bowling, it feels like a special place to be.

Thank you NetGalley!

I love this author so much and this book did not disappoint one bit!
Such a hot and enjoyable read. The characters were perfect for one another and I couldn’t have asked for more honestly.
I loved it so much.

This is a quick read that takes you through a rollercoaster of events involving murder, a mafia war, and romance. Enjoyed the overall theme of a Mafia romance and their journey towards uncovering the truth. Unfortunately, it felt as if some characters were introduced, forgotten about and then reintroduced as “crucial” to the plot. The predictable romance was a bit of a bore. There were some interesting twists but overall the read left you wanting more in order to truly feel invested in the storyline.

Thank you to Netgalley for the eARC.

‘A Cruel Arrangement’ is the second book in Tijan’s Kings of New York series. It picks up the threads of the story that began in ‘A Dirty Business,’ but focuses on the characters of Ashton and Molly instead of Trace and Jess.

All Molly Easter wants is to run her bowling alley in peace. But her life is upended when Ashton Walden bursts into her life and her business. As the new head of the Walden mafia family, Ashton is set on using Molly as a tool to help him find a killer. With ghosts from their pasts constantly at their heels, and a mystery antagonist set on destroying them all, Ashton and Molly will find themselves constantly thrown together, their growing attraction something neither of them can continue to ignore.

I enjoyed the push-pull dynamic between Molly and Ashton, and how both grow as characters throughout the narrative arc. There’s a heavy dose of enemies-to-lovers vibes, which I very much enjoyed. It makes for some delightfully steamy scenes, if you know what I’m saying. (I think you know what I’m saying.)

Because ‘A Dirty Business’ ends on kind of a doozy of a cliffhanger, I was expecting ‘A Cruel Arrangement’ to continue to follow Jess and Trace’s story. I was pleasantly surprised when Tijan went an alternate route and focused on Molly and Ashton instead, while still addressing the cliffhanger from the previous book. This cliffhanger is the driver behind the conflict in the novel, and it totally worked for me. And Jess and Trace pop up plenty in this story, though they are definitely secondary characters.

If you enjoyed the first book in this series, you will not be disappointed. And if you haven’t, I would definitely recommend reading it before diving into this one. I always appreciate how Tijan constantly pushes the envelope in style and narrative expectations, and have enjoyed her foray back into more mafia-style books.

Thank you to Montlake and NetGalley for the ARC.

This is an intensely passionate story of a man trying to make amends and the woman who makes him want to keep his promises. Absolutely amazing read! Such a captivating read! Amazing cover art that was super eye catching would definitely recommend to all!

[arc review]
Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.
A Cruel Arrangement releases April 25, 2023

*second in the Kings of New York series*
*review contains a spoiler for the ending of the first book*

First of all, that dedication? Absolutely ruthless.

A Cruel Arrangement picks up 3 months after the ending of A Dirty Business, and tries to focus on the investigation of who killed Justin and Kelly. I say try, because there really wasn’t much direct active investigating in my opinion.

Told in dual pov from Ashton and Molly, who we got to know in book one — Ashton, head of Mafia, and Molly, owner of Easter Lanes, a bowling alley.
Similarly to Jess and Trace’s story in book one, Ashton and Molly seemed to have a past where their family history intermingled.

I really struggled with reading this. I found that the writing just wasn’t up to par, the maturity wasn’t there, and the characters barely had any personality.
We didn’t get any depth or development — the “why’s” and “want’s” that are supposed to bring together two people in a relationship. The initial forced proximity was not enough, especially given the fact that Ashton struggled to keep Molly safe when he was the one to put her in the line of danger in the first place. The whole situation just wasn’t thought out well and Molly’s reasoning of “fuzzies” was not enough for me to believe in their supposed sexual tension.

There were a few brief mentions of Molly having some sort of “switch”, but it’s never explained further. A switch to what? Dissociative identity disorder? To me it felt like “switch” (whatever that is) was used as an excuse to justify doing “stupid things”.
I also wasn’t really a fan of all of the casual use of claiming insanity.
Additionally, did Jess have to be referred to as “Trace’s woman” or “the love of his life” every single time? We get it, they’re together. Just use her name, Jess. It’s that simple.

I was eager for Ashton’s pov coming from the first book in this series but the lack of strong characters and depth paired with the casual and lackluster writing, had this feeling really detached.

CW: gun violence, trauma, death, grief, torture, mafia, bombs

This was so good!

It's been awhile since I've read a mafia book, and this book definitely had me wondering why I hadn't picked one up sooner.

Molly was fabulous! I loved that she had her own mind and was so willing to put herself out there for those she cared about. Seeing her and Ashton get their HEA was an enjoyable experience. Nerve-wracking at times, but enjoyable.

I'd read this again!

The second in the ‘Kings of New York’ series, this book follows on from ‘A Dirty Business’ from the point of view of Ashton and Molly.

I knew I’d like Molly from book 1 and she did not disappoint. Ashton I struggled to warm up to but you know, it is the mafia so…. Let’s just say I imagined myself punching him in the face if I was Molly. I will say he showed his heart as the story progressed but sorry… punch!

In true Tijan fashion there were many twists and turns that left me guessing until the end. It was also nice to see some more of Jess and Trace. The book provided some much needed answers after the first instalment but I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw more from this series. Maybe even a novella?

Overall I’d give this book 3.5. I enjoyed ‘A Dirty Business’ more but as a follow up ‘A Cruel Arrangement’ provided entertainment and some much needed answers.