I want recommend a book series that I could not put down because it was too good to stop! The book series is called The Bleeding Hearts by Michelle B. and is a 4-part spicy dark romance series written over the last 3 years. Each book is a stand-alone romance but takes place in an interconnected mafia world, so you can see old characters and their relationships in other books. Of course, it doesn’t matter which book you read first, but personally, I think it is nice to read the romances chronologically so you can delve deeper into the world as you read more. I enjoyed this series so much that I had to share my thoughts about it with you!
The first book is Smoke and Mirrors detailing Antonio and Lilah’s love story as they meet each other at Antonio’s club and are instantly attracted to one another. However, Antonio needs to focus on protecting his family and mafia empire, so he decides against getting involved with Lilah. Antonio can’t seem to stay away from Lilah, and the story evolves as they both get more involved in each other’s lives, unable to fight their growing relationship. This book has so many lies and secrets to be revealed that you can’t stop reading until you’re done. I gave it a 5 out of 5 stars because the story was so intriguing and well-written plus there was no cliche third-act breakup.
One Fateful Night, the second book in the series, is about Giovanni and Isabelle who want to be with each other but are prevented by circumstances. Isabelle is married to an abusive husband with a child, but has a one-night stand with Giovanni. Giovanni is instantly attracted to Isabelle and wants to be in a relationship with her, but when she says no, he steps away, choosing to protect and help her from far away. This book is about how they love each other through these obstacles and choose to fight together instead of suffering alone. This book is full of twists and turns as you learn more about a dangerous situation from the previous book coming to the forefront. I gave this book a 5 out of 5 stars because it hooked me in so quickly as I wanted to learn more about Isabelle and Giovanni’s personal lives and how they would get across these roadblocks.
The third book is Shattered Diamonds about Demitri and Haven, an unexpected love story from an arranged marriage. Demitri is told to marry the princess of the Irish Mob and has to court her into this arranged marriage that Haven knows nothing about. Haven thinks Demitri is marrying her because he loves her and when she finds out the truth about their relationship, it takes a whole new turn. I expected Haven and Demitri’s relationship to be tame, but it was not, and I love that. This book was the craziest one because the evolution of the relationship is very unexpected and different from the relationships in the other two books. However, I gave this book a 4 out of 5 because while the story developed very nicely, I felt that the ending was rushed. It wasn’t a proper closure of their relationship, and there was no epilogue which made me upset.
Some things I loved about the entire series are: the dual points of view (specifically the focus on the male main character’s point of view which is refreshing in a romance book,) the theme of family being prevalent, and the beautifully written lines that make you think more. Also, I loved the trust between the main characters that they don’t give up on each other over misunderstandings. There are no third-act breakups; rather, the main characters will take the time to think and understand what happened, and then talk to each other instead of just giving up and leaving. The books are beautifully written and are refreshing reads that can take you out of a reading slump so please give this book series a try.
P.S. The books have trigger warnings so please read those before reading the books since it is a dark mafia romance series.