Book safety, content warnings, and tropes down below.

“What was that, grumpy?” I asked, raising my brows. “I’m not grumpy,” he huffed, his gaze flicking back to me. “And I said I don’t deserve you.” […] There was no point in arguing with him, let alone trying to explain that love was one of those things in life that was supposed to be given freely, unconditionally. And for reasons I couldn’t answer, I loved him with all of my heart.

Oh what a lovely ending to Roan and Sasha’s story. It was fucking rough getting there, but these guys got a truly lovely ending and HEA. I really wanted everything to be okay for them.

This book was angstier than the first one for me because a lot of the issues were internal, both independently for the characters and in their relationship. They’re trying to heal from and get through the aftermath of Roan’s assault in book 1, and they can’t quite seem to get it right. It felt like a realistic portrayal of dealing with that kind of physical and emotional trauma. Unfortunately that also means shit communication, anger, jealousy, lashing out at each other, etc. They are still very much in love with each other and they stay together, but it’s not smooth.

I really loved that there was no ‘one moment’ or specific happening that made Roan better. It was super gradual and it required time and safety.

It was awesome to see Roan plot and plan his revenge, and I think he really needed that too. Slowly seeing Sasha open up a bit (very little, he is still a stoic Russian who pretends he doesn’t have feelings) was also neat. He found a way to give Roan enough of himself. To be a little vulnerable when they needed it.

He was going to kill me. I knew it. In the time we’d been together, the orchard checked off almost everything Sasha hated: people (specifically children), dirt, Halloween, and anything that brought a normal person joy, like apple pies and pumpkin candles.

There’s also just something about Sasha’s unapologetic dickishness and deadpan delivery that cracks me up a lot.

I wasn’t ready to walk away from Sasha—especially when none of this shit was his fault. But it seemed like no matter what I did, I couldn’t pull myself out of my own misery. I knew I was drowning both of us, yet there was nothing I could do to stop it.


⬇️ Blanket spoiler warning ⬇️

⚠️ Tropes & content tags ⚠️
Mafia romance
Duology, book 2
Past trauma
Morally black
Relationship in crisis
Possessive and protective
Dark romance
Secret relationship
Musician MC
Size difference

⚠️ Content warning ⚠️
Explicit sexual content
Verbally abusive parent (on page)
References to past SA (MC)
Gun violence
Homophobia
MC hospitalized
Homophobic slurs
Racial/ethnic slurs
Graphic violence
Jealousy and possessiveness
PTSD symptoms
Suicidal ideation
Arguably dubious consent
Hand-collaring/choking
Slapping
MC spitting in other MC’s mouth
MC killing people (including pregnant woman, off page, not willingly)
Fatshaming
Detained by police
On-page killing
On-page decapitation and evisceration
Injured MC and SC (gunshot wounds)
Penetration without prep

⚠️Book safety ⚠️
Cheating: No
Other person drama: A little. Roan has a friend at work who wants to date him and he’s a little pushy, and Sasha finds out about it in a way that makes it angsty and makes the reader think there might be more drama there (reading Roan’s texts). Roan is not at all interested in this work-friend. Sasha also has a colleague who Roan is briefly jealous of and has a few moments of insecurity because they have to spend a lot of time together, including in clubs. Sasha does not even look at this person like that and most of the drama/problems stem from their rough patch after Roan’s assault.
Breakup: No
POV: 1st person, dual
Genre: Dark romance (mafia)
Pairing: M/M
Strict roles or versatile: Strict roles, but Sasha mentions he would bottom for Roan
Main characters’ age: 22 and 35
Series: Duology, book 2
Kindle Unlimited: Yes
Pages: 368
Happy ending: Yes


“Even after the body heals, the mind still carries the injury. All you can do is be there for him, no matter what he does to try and push you away. He may lash out at you, but in some way it’s because he knows you can take it. And you have to take it, Sasha. If you want him to move forward, he has to know you can handle anything — like he had to. Otherwise, there is no future for the two of you.”

“You know, I’m not going to think less of you if you say something about your feelings once in a while.” “I’m not a fucking greeting card,” I muttered.



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