Well I honestly love this book. I was aware of this book when it was indie published and I thought I'll try again since I've got the review copy. Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for a copy in exchange for an honest review. I'll start by saying this is such a true enemies to lovers book. It was honestly everything I truly loved. Mafia romance done to perfection. I love the visual artwork as it enhanced the story.
The plot gave it great pace and made the romance truly deeper.

Read this for dual POV, TRUE enemies to lovers and amazing banter.
I'll highly recommend this to anyone who is a big romance fan, especially mafia romance lover and would like to read something slightly darker.
Can't wait to read more books by Sophie Lark

I loved this book. One of my favourite mafia romances. I feel like this is a good introductory novel for the mafia genre.

Tropes:
- Enemies to lover
- Mafia
- Age gap
- Marriage of convenience
- Forced proximity

I loved Aida, she definitely has personality and is a unique character who can be underestimated. Callum has hidden layers and some great interactions with Aida.

"Brutal Prince" by Sophie Lark is a captivating journey into a world of power, passion, and complex characters. Lark's writing style is engaging, and she effortlessly draws readers into a dark and alluring realm.

The characters are undoubtedly a highlight of the novel. The protagonist's multifaceted personality adds depth to the narrative, and the dynamics between the characters are intriguing. Lark excels at crafting a web of relationships that keeps the reader invested in the story.

The romantic elements are intense and passionate, contributing to the overall allure of the book. The chemistry between the characters is palpable, and the author doesn't shy away from exploring the complexities of desire and dominance. The love story is a driving force in the narrative, providing emotional depth to the overall plot.

However, "Brutal Prince" isn't without its flaws. The pacing, at times, felt a bit uneven, with certain scenes dragging while others rushed forward. Additionally, some plot points seemed predictable, and I found myself wishing for a few more unexpected twists to keep me on my toes.

Despite these minor issues, the novel succeeds in delivering a compelling dark romance with well-crafted characters and a passionate storyline. If you enjoy intense romance with complex characters set against a dark and intriguing backdrop, "Brutal Prince" is definitely worth a read. Sophie Lark has created a world that will leave readers eagerly anticipating her next literary endeavor.

Ok this was my first book by Sophie and it blew me away!!! How have I left it so long to read a book by Sophie? !!! Callum and Aida have my heart!

I love Sophia lark after reading this her writing style is well done and I love how she makes all her characters chemistry feel real believable

The illustrations and that shower scene were 🔥🔥

Not sure if I loved any of the main characters as they were both pretty immature lol. But this was a pretty fun experience with some action and intrigue. Not as "brutal" as I thought it would be.

This was a was my first read by Sophie and what started me into being addicted by her work. I’m a sucker for a great steamy, mafia romance and this is definitely great, I mean enemies to lovers where they actually try to kill one another at one point, Aida and Callum are a great match for each other, so much banter between them too, just watching them fall for each another is gorgeous, fantastic!

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

Now I can say I have read a Sophie Lark book. I’ve had my eyes on her books for a while and I was really happy to be able to read this one.

While this wasn’t the most amazing book ever it was fine. I felt like Aida and Callum were a little 2D for me. I didn’t connect with them and all. I enjoyed the ride as a whole but really was let down during a lot of the scenes. Something would happen and then it would just fall flat. Aida has a whole bad ass scene but it’s “off camera” and she tells him about it? Lame.

Yes I will read more from her. Yes I will also read the next book.

3.5 stars

4.5
This was my First Sophie Lark and it definitely won’t be my last! i loved this one! I thought for mafia romance it was done so well and so many elements I love in a mafia romance. Action, but sweet and touching at times. big tight families, billionaires, morally grey MMC and a strong as hell FMC. I loved adia so much, her character was so great. You could really tell how strong she was in the writing and i loved all her parts. And the banter/relationship between her and callem was so good, I will never look at a strawberry the same way again with out laughing out load. I can not wait to continue on with this series!

I have very mixed opinions about this book. I loved that it had my favourite trope of enemies to lovers, and felt that this was executed very well. I mean, it felt so realistic that they HATED each other. However, the overall plot didn't quite hit the mark for me.

Brutal Prince is a decent romantic suspense novel involving organized crime families in Chicago. Enjoying it does require an acceptance that both the good guys and the bad guys are criminals. Once you get past that, it’s an engaging story.

This was a new to me author but I’m so glad I was given this one to read! I love a good steamy, mafia romance! Bonus that it was an enemies to lovers where they try to kill one another at first! This book was so great! Aida is a force and I adored her! Callum was a great match for Aida! I loved the banter and pace of them! This book also had lots of drama! Watching these two fall for one another was so amazing! I’m looking forward to the next one! Highly recommend!

aida & callum

at first i really did not like this book but thankfully it turned around! callum is the sweetest protector and i love how aida handles herself. they are so cute but i wish we hadm ore casual scenes between them.
the rating is so low because i think callum in the beginning is low key abusive and his mindset was disguisting

Obsessed!! I absolutely fell in love with this series! Tension throughout the whole book and the spice was immaculate

I did not finish this one, it was not for me, I couldn't relate to the characters, and just did not care for the story.

please note that the trigger warnings and topes/themes may contain spoilers
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
HEA: yes
spice: several open-door spicy scenes
TWs: violence, murder, house fire (non-lethal), sexual assault (off page), attempted murder, kidnaping, torture, drugging, death of a parent (recounted), stalking, manipulation
standalone: book 1 in the Brutal Birthright series
final thoughts: this book was a rollercoaster of a read! At first it seemed slow, but it picked up quickly. I love a good enemies-to-lovers with true enemies and trying to murder each other and this book didn’t disappoint LOL I loved seeing the FMC really come into her identity and getting the MCs POVs to show how he was warming to her.
The illustrations added throughout were SO GOOD and helped keep you inside the storyline

read this book if you love

🖤 dark romance
😬 angst
🧑‍🤝‍🧑 great side characters
🏝️ forced proximity (forced roommates)
🌍 world building
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 found family
💖 marriage of convenience
💖 arranged marriage
🤜 enemies-to-lovers
😳 forbidden lovers (rival families)
🔫 mafia

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy. I really enjoyed this and will be getting copies for my shop.

i absolutely devored this book, the enemies to lovers was perfection and i couldnt put it down! the banter was perfection and i loved the flow of the story - kept me intrigued and drawn in until the end! the plot was fantastic and what i loved most was that they were actally enemies to lovers! cant wait for the rest of the series!

Brutal Prince by Sophie Lark is book 1 of the Brutal Birthright series. If you love a good enemies to lovers book, this is for you! And I mean legit enemies to lovers. If they aren’t actively trying to kill each other then get out of here. Perfect amount of plot and spice and a very easy read. I'm looking forward to this series as I love this author!