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REVIEW: Mafia Target by Mila Finelli
The Kings of Italy: Mafia Target – Mila Finelli
GIULIO I’ve renounced my birthright as the heir to an Italian mafia empire, but no one leaves the brotherhood without paying a price. To evade my enemies, I stay on the move. Now a new man is stalking me, watching me. But there’s something else in his eyes, a hunger that sets me on fire. He’s rough and dangerous, all the things I crave in the dark. Except he’s been hired to kill me.
I shouldn’t want him. But I do.
They say to keep your enemies close. So that’s exactly what I’m planning. Beware the hunted who becomes the hunter…
ALESSIO I live in the shadows, the assassin they never see coming. I’m the best, but Giulio is my weakness. I need him in ways I can’t begin to explain. He might run, but I’ll follow him to the ends of the earth. And if others try to hurt him, I’ll protect him with my last breath. Except I’m hiding a secret, one that will cost me everything. I should walk away, but I can’t.
Even if it’s my undoing.
Mafia Target is the fourth book in the Kings of Italy series. It’s a stand-alone male/male romance, complete with two hot and dangerous Italian men. HEA and no cliffhangers guaranteed!
To say my interest was piqued would be an understatement. My guts was screaming for me to read this book!
Mafia Target is an enemies-to-lovers story between the scion of a top mafia family and the assassin hired to kill him. It certainly ticked all my boxes and then some! It’s the 4th book of The Kings of Italy by new-to-me author Mila Finelli. The rest of the series are mf romance.
This installment can be read as a standalone since the backstory can be effortlessly put together. Giulio Ravazzani is the gay son of Don Fausto Ravazzani. He was supposed to marry Francesca in Book 1, but the don ended up marrying her instead. Giulio’s former lover was killed in a car bomb intended for him, and the young mafioso decided to leave home to carve his own path away from his father’s shadow.
The story starts when Alessandro Ricci, an ex-military turned assassin, was hired by a rival Family to kill Fausto. He was about to pull the trigger when he spotted Giulio. The world’s top assassin was so awestruck, he missed!
He likened the experience to being struck by a thunderbolt, which I think is a very apt description of him falling in love at first sight. This was also mentioned in Godfather, so the thunderbolt must be an Italian thing. Because of his fuck up, he was tasked to kill Giulio instead.
The enemies-to-lovers aspect was chef’s kiss! Just pure perfection! The air between Alessio and Giulio practically hummed with electricity and anticipation! The stalking, the buildup, the accidentally-on-purpose meetings, and the halcyon days of fucking and feeding sheep had that elusive, much sought after ZING only the best and most unforgettable romances have.
Between the two MCs, Alessio immediately won me over. He’s a man of few words with an intensity that radiates off the page. Watching him unerringly stalking Giulio as a target and then turning that into a single-minded determination to protect his beloved Principe, even at the cost of his life and limb, even with Giulio’s rejection, Alessio was both a force of nature and a man badly in need of a hug.
Giulio took a while for me to warm up to, mainly because he had his walls up. I can’t blame him for not jumping into the relationship head first. He’s still grieving his late boyfriend. But I loved how everytime Alessio does or says something endearing, his cold, dead heart melts little by little. He’s ambitious and resourceful, slowly carving out his little empire on his own. He and Alessio make a great team. He brings out the assassin’s human side.
This is one of the swooniest books I’ve read this year! The separation scene that wrecked our MCs emotionally and physically brought the already potent brew up to another level! And that’s not all. The cherry on top of this already exquisite treat is the writing.
The setting is in Italy and various parts of Europe. Typically, authors would use a couple of native phrases and leave it at that. Here, almost every other dialogue is spoken with Italian sentences and phrases. The way the prose seamlessly flows between English and Italian, with a smattering of Gaelic and Russian, the bilingualism of this book was pure eargasm! I highly recommend audiobooking this.
I am especially ecstatic about the multi-lingual prose because it’s exactly how I want to write my book if I know how to write a story. I loved how the author pulled it off in a way that remains true to the characters’ nationality yet still relatable to an international, mostly American, audience.
Mafia Target is a book that will grip you hard till the end, and as it is a long one, best read during weekends. It’s dark yet surprisingly fluffy, often heart-wrenching but just as incredibly squee-tastic, with prose that speaks to me. All in all, a thunderbolt to the kokoro and music to the ears!
Rating:
5 Stars – absolutely perfectSoundtrack: Danger
Artist: Etro Anime
Album: See the Sound
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MAFIA TARGET: Kindle | Audiobook
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One Line Reviews Of Some Books I Read This Year (January – June 2023)
This is a round up of the books I read on the 1st half of this year that I’m too lazy to do a full review.
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BLOG TOUR: When a Man Loves an Alien by Chloe Archer (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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NEW RELEASE BLITZ: A Love So Dark by Rien Gray (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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COVER & EXCERPT REVEAL: Reluctant Renegade by Garrett Leigh (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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BOOK TOUR: Dead Generations by Anne Russo (Excerpt & Giveaway + Guest Post)
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RELEASE BLITZ: Mafia Target by Mila Finelli
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COVER REVEAL: Mafia Target by Mila Finelli
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RELEASE BLITZ: Can’t Help Falling In Love With An Alien by Chloe Archer (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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REVIEW: Why the Devil Stalks Death by L.J. Hayward
Death and the Devil: Why the Devil Stalks Death – L.J. Hayward
Jack Reardon uncovers secrets for a living, and the Meta-State spy is pretty good at it. Or rather he thought so until he met Ethan Blade—assassin, warrior, enigma. The unlikely pair have decided to give living together a shot, but Jack’s not entirely certain what he’s gotten himself into—or exactly who he’s in it with.
Jack’s worries are compounded when he’s assigned to a police strike force hunting a serial killer. With each new puzzle piece, Jack considers the true nature of a serial killer—and how similar it is to an assassin. To one particular assassin who’s having trouble adjusting to retirement. Jack’s unsure how to help Ethan—or if he even can.
When the killer strikes close to home, Jack must race against the clock to stop another murder, despite the price someone has put on his head. Could the matters be connected? Is a certain assassin at the centre of both? Surrounded by killers, the only one Jack wants near disappears, leaving Jack drowning in secrets. He’ll have to do what he does best—unravel the secrets, including Ethan’s—to stop the killer and save the life he and Ethan have only just begun to build.
**Content Warning**
Child abuse and child sexual abuse in a character’s history and not depicted directly on the page.
Back in 2018, the Death and the Devil series exploded in the MM romance scene in the most epic way, bringing us one of the most beloved characters of the genre. The cinnamon roll assassin, Ethan Blade.
I love his character so much. I vowed to name my firstborn after him. I even got goosebumps just anticipating the next installments’ releases. I also promised myself to patiently wait for the audiobooks no matter how long it took just for the sheer pleasure of hearing his character speak.
And here we are, finally, with the complete audiobooks!!!
With a magnificent opener in Where Death Meets the Devil, my expectations of Why the Devil Stalks Death were sky-high, so the last thing I expected was to be…bored. Because it pains me greatly to admit it wasn’t the riveting one-sitter I wanted it to be.
This is because of how the story was written. In keeping with the 1st book’s style, the chapters alternated between past and present events, labeled “Before” and “After”. It made things pretty convoluted instead of suspenseful. The serial killer plot is better served by linear storytelling, which should trim down some of the more drawn-out drama.
But our boys are still their gloriously flawed selves, navigating a fragile relationship built on a connection that managed to be both tenuous and deep. Jack, from whom most of the story is told so far, is human enough to be affected by an ex-hookup-turned-co-worker’s incessant flirting but remains staunchly loyal to a difficult and all-too-frequently absent boyfriend.
Just like in the first book, Ethan comes and goes. His appearances are marked by mysterious bruises he refuses to tell Jack where he got them. The man has always been an enigma to all. Most of the things Jack, and us readers, know about the assassin are gathered from meager crumbs thrown our way. So I’m thrilled to see major reveals on his past here. I’m also sad, but not surprised, to learn it involved child abuse and bullying.
Ethan’s character development comes from his involvement with Jack. While I speak of Jack being human as him being vulnerable and hurting (being an ass, really), cold and deadly Ethan being human is him being this completely endearing child-like creature who adores animals, reads action thrillers, wears socks to bed, names his cars after women and goes to zen mode when driving at ridiculously fast speeds. Ethan being human is a bomb detonating inside Jack’s chest. I was blown into smithereens right there with him!
Why the Devil Stalks Death brought Jack and Ethan closer in more ways than one in a complicated web of secrets, sex, serial murders, espionage and siblings. The storytelling might be confusing but the book packed enough intrigue, sizzle, and danger to carry me over this hurdle into that spectacular third arc! It’s all bullets, knives, car stunts, edge-of-your seat assassin vs. assassin action in a fucked up family reunion of killers. I live for every death-defying moment of it!
And our boys are at a happier place. For now. We’ll see what havoc the 3rd book brings. And I stand by this, Death and the Devil is the next mega-blockbuster action franchise, if only Hollywood has the balls to bring it to screen!
Rating:
4 Stars – minor quibbles but I loved it to bitsSoundtrack: Chaos
Artist: Mutemath
Album: MutemathP.S.
Death and the Devil should be read in order. Find out why I love Ethan Blade so much I’ll name my progeny after him in Book 1, Where Death Meets the Devil. Gushy review here.
If you like my content, please consider using my Amazon affiliate links below to buy your copy of Death and the Devil. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying Amazon purchases at no additional cost to you.
You can also use my Bookshop affiliate links to buy paperbacks and MP3 CD audiobooks and help support independent bookstores.
WHERE DEATH MEETS THE DEVIL
WHY THE DEVIL STALKS DEATH
WHEN DEATH FREES THE DEVIL
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