Aida and Cal are interesting characters. They are both very headstrong and I loved seeing them work together. Near death experiences are just such a good alternative to third act breakups. Seeing Cal rush after her was so much fun.

This is my first ever mafia book and wow I was impressed. I’ve seen similar stories all over my instagram so when I was sent this book I was super excited!

I enjoyed the build of the relationship which felt natural and not forced, but I do wish it had been at a slightly slower pace.

I’m unsure whether this is a genre that I am just unused to reading, but I was slightly put off by the toxic nature of their relationship.

The spice was amazing, and I enjoyed that the enemies to lovers was true enemies at the start! Can fully see why this book is rated so highly!

This is my third book by Sophie Lark and she is becoming a favorite! I can't wait to read the read of this series.

Enemies to lovers, protective, spicy...what a story.

I was pulling for Aida and Callum the entire time.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this story!

Loved this one!! Love enemies to lovers when it is done well and this one was perfectly written. Love the strong female lead as well. The spice level was great!! I will be reading more of this series for sure.

My first mafia romance and I found the FMC an interesting and different voice for a lead which I enjoyed. I just found that half way through I sped read as not loving the plot and wasn't keeping my interest.

While I enjoyed the Brutal Prince and was hooked through the story, I never really connected with it. Something was missing, whether it was more emotional depth or a deeper dive into the mafia. I found Aida to be immature for the majority of the book. The second half definitely picked up with both story and spice.

I will continue the series, but I hope the other reads are MORE.

I struggled to enjoy this right from the start. My main problem was the writing. It all felt so incredibly basic.
The whole plot felt rushed as if this was an extended short story and crucially I never once felt any connection, romantic or otherwise, between the two main characters Aida and Callum.
There is also a complete lack of banter or humour to this story. I really feel if there was some of this between the two characters it would have helped me enjoy this more.
I also did find Aida to be incredibly annoying and immature, which didn't help.
I won't be continuing this series as this it really didn't work for me.

This is my first novel by Sophie Lark and my first mafia romance and I devoured it. I went into it blind not knowing what it was about and I’m glad I did. It was a fun book and I was a huge fan of Callum and Aida. Although it was mafia based it had the fun tropes I usually gravitate towards. Legit enemies to lovers, forced proximity and arranged marriage and that banter was phenomenal. The spicy scenes once they finally found that attraction was done so amazing. I’m very eager to read another book by Sophie.

Many thanks to Netgalley, publishers and Author for the opportunity to read and review.

Gut geschrieben jedoch war der plott sehr vorhersehbar. Für jeden etwas der eine mafia Romance sucht, wie man sich sie vortellt.

This marriage of convince book really hit the spot. It was a fast paced story of opposites attracting with a good amount of wit and banter. I enjoyed a strong female lead who refuses to let herself be held back by the overbearing members of her family.

Thank you NetGalley and sourcebooks bloom books for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

I adore this book! Aida is such a relatable character and her relationship with Cal is so beautiful!

This was my first Sophie Lark book. Didn’t really know much about this before going into just that it had mafia & dark romance themes. And with dark romances I have 50/50 feelings. There are some books I’ve enjoyed, but some not so much.

With this one, I didn’t really connect with it. It definitely was entertaining & fast paced so it kept my attention but for the romance I didn’t really care that much.
For me, I think it lacked the emotional aspect of the relationship between Aida & Callum. Felt like it grew from purely lust. Wanted them to have more meaningful & deep conversations.

One thing I can say, that this book definitely was STEAMY. Gotta admit that Sophie Lark knows how to write good smut.

Also the mafia stuff was pretty boring to me & I skimmed through that a lot. So yeah I don’t think this series will be for me. At least for now, I’m not planning to continue the rest of the series. Especially after reading the synopsis of the second book lol

Thank you to Sophie Lark, Bloom Books, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was my first Sophie Lark book, but it definitely will not be my last.

I am just getting into the Mafia genre but so far this is one of my favorites. Callum is words that I cannot even say here because I would get flagged and probably thrown off this site. Just enter a bunch of "fire emojis" lol.

Sophie Lark's writing was so compelling that I could not put this one down. I must have said "one more chapter" 25 times.

Random sidebar, but why do I want to get this quote tattooed?:

"trust is rarer than love.
it's putting your fate, your happiness, your life
in someone's hands. hoping they keep it safe"

Can Sophie Lark ever do any wrong? Another fantastic book, fantastic cover, addicting characters that I can’t get enough of…

First off: I absolutely adored the illustrations! I wish more authors would do this, as it gave such fun insight into the author’s world-building.

This book had me hooked from the get-go at the potential for an angsty arranged marriage mafia romance with political intrigue. Aida, the take-no-prisoners daughter of Chicago’s Italian family was a clear match-made-in-hell for the stoic, proper, and politically ambitious Callum, only son of Chicago’s Irish family.

The pacing felt rushed in their enemies-to-lovers journey, and the angsty push-and-pull that one expects with this trope didn’t have the depth it could have given the characters initial meeting and insta-hate. The tension just seemed to dissipate so easily and quickly. Though this absolutely does not stop the spice from being out of this world.

Plot-wise, there was a lot going on at once, and some of the conflicts resolved a little too cleanly given the drama of the situations/surrounding circumstances. That said, the supporting characters and overall “gangs of Chicago” story had me going straight to the next book in the series.

I devoured this book when it was available indie. Do your self a favor and get the illustrated edition. Spicy romance that just is a fun read I need to finish the rest of the series

This was such a good story. The characters were so enticing and the book was gripping from page to page. It was so dark and steamy that I needed to keep reading. I loved this one!

A fun read . I loved the family drama and dynamics in this story. I also found the romance to be very steamy and entertaining. This book will keep you laughing and make you excited to read the next book in the series. There were times the leads were a bit childish but overall a fun read. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is my first book from author Sophie Lark and I'm truly impressed. I'm new to the world of dark-romance and this book felt like the perfect introduction to the genre. Brutal Prince is such an easy read to get through in one sitting. I was immersed into Sophie's world and style of writing. This book has some of my favourite tropes including enemies-to-lovers, arranged marriage, mafia romance, dual POV and spicey scenes. I love when books have dual POV as it gives you a wider insight into the characters and makes it easier to connect with them. The characters felt very well developed and I loved the stable progression of the relationship between the two. It read as very believable and relatable, I loved how witty and strong Aida was, and I'm always a sucker for a broody male main character which is exactly what Cal is. Their tension and chemistry was palpable through the pages, and I genuinely enjoyed the journey that this book took me on. A solid and enjoyable read, and I look forward to reading more from Sophie Lark in the future.

Thank you to the publishers for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Brutal Prince by @sophie_lark_author is a dark and seductive beginning to a well-loved mafia romance series!

Blurb: A Match Made in Hell

The Griffins and the Gallos have been battling for control of Chicago’s underworld for generations.

Their bitter rivalry reignites when Aida, the youngest and wildest Gallo sibling, crashes a party at the Griffin mansion, accidentally setting fire to the library.

To stave off all-out war, her father arranges a marriage with Callum Griffin, eldest son and heir.

Cold, ambitious, and brutal, Callum is determined to tame his headstrong bride. Aida is more than capable of giving as good as she gets – starting with poisoning Callum on their wedding night.

In their struggle for dominance, who will break first?

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

This book was fantastic and delicious!!! Loved the relationship between Callum and Aida, the sexual tension was SO GOOD!!! Hands down, one of the best enemies-to-lovers books I have ever read. Cannot wait to read the next installment in this world!!! Thank you to @netgalley for allowing me to read this ARC of Brutal Prince, out 7/25.🤩🍓❤️✨

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