Review: Inheriting The Mafia (Mafia Mayhem – The Italian Connection Book 2) by Aja Foxx

Rating: 4.5🌈

Aja Foxx just got me even more pumped about this series after reading the new book, Inheriting The Mafia.

I’m such a sucker for a super competent character, even more for one that’s surprisingly so, both to the reader and the other characters in the storyline. That’s one of the elements of the plot that makes this so easy to become involved in the characters lives and developing narrative. The twists and revelations that Foxx has in store with regard to Anthony “Tony” D’Angelo, a character that will still leave the reader wondering about him and his adolescence after the book is done.

Much like the first series, Foxx is working through the major crime families, with each one represented by one of the main characters getting their own romance while connecting with the other families and couples.

It’s a terrific format and helps establish a universe of relationships and foundation of histories that each story can use as part of their own story. It enriches the narrative and makes the environment more interesting and immersive.

Vito as the one to usher Tony into his new role and life as the head of the D’Angelo mafia family is wonderful. A made man, brought up within the family, he’s flexible enough to give Tony the opportunity to reveal surprises of his own when the opportunity presents itself.

Tony is that author’s gift that immediately connects with the reader and then continues to show chameleon qualities that make him even stronger and intriguing. Just know that I love him.

Foxx came up with so many great elements here that the story length wasn’t long enough to fully appreciate or explore some of the best of them. That includes the uncle’s past, a few of the more engaging bodyguards, etc.

Perhaps, those will be revisited in future books. I can hope.

Inheriting The Mafia (Mafia Mayhem – The Italian Connection Book 2) by Aja Foxx is an absolute favorite. I wonder what the next book will bring.

Until then, I’m happy to recommend this series and definitely this story.

Mafia Mayhem (4 book series)

The Capo’s Boy #1 (Nicky & Vinni)

The Boss’s Boy #2 (Dimitri & Eiji)

The King’s Boy #3 (King & Spencer)

The Jefe’s Boy #4 (Alejandro & Delancy)

Mafia Mayhem – The Italian Connection :

Bound To His Oath #1 (Nico & Luca)

Inheriting The Mafia #2 (Tony & Vito)

Buy link

Inherting The Mafia (Mafia Mayhem – The Italian Connection Book 2)

Blurb

~ Anthony ~

They were dead, all dead, an entire mafia family…except me. The bastard son of mafia boss Anthony D’Angelo, and that made me the new head of the family. But inheriting the mafia is not all it’s cracked up to be. People want me dead. I don’t know if it’s the same people that killed my family or someone new, and I wasn’t sure it mattered. I had no plans to die anytime soon. I just wasn’t sure how to prevent it.

~ Vito ~

I was the underboss of a mafia family and when they were all taken out in a bombing, I wanted revenge. Before I could do that, I needed to track down the illegitimate son of my boss, a man I never knew about until now. I wasn’t sure what to think of Tony when I found him, but I did know I had to keep him alive. He was the head of the family now and I was duty bound to serve him. I just wished I wasn’t so attracted to him.

Warning: Gay erotic romance. The material in this book contains explicit sexual content that is intended for mature audiences only. All characters involved are adults capable of consent, are over the age of eighteen, and are willing participants.

Publication date: September 29, 2024
Language: English
Print length: 202 pages

Review: Disrupted Engagement (Valor and Doyle Mysteries, #6) by Nicki James

Rating: 3🌈

I have been invested in Nicki James’ characters and their evolving relationship since I read Temporary Partner, the first book in the series. That was our introduction to the highly complicated men , their emotional histories, and the meeting that launched their relationship.

Each novel has charted the tumultuous path they’ve had to navigate in order to move forward in their relationship. In each new book, through various issues and stages of in their lives, whether it’s Aslan’s alcoholism and family issues, Quaid’s perilously fragile ego with regard to men and his poor history of relationships, his recurring insecurities, and Quaid’s struggles to connect with others. With all of this folded in, their own relationship has been realistically defined but also made them relatable.

As they worked together to solve the different cases that came up, some horrific and beyond disturbing, there’s been some real growth demonstrated in their personal lives and relationships, at home and at the workplace.

If you sense a “but” coming, you’re correct.

After the devastating events of the last book, I was wondering what the author had in store for the couple next.

It wasn’t an agonizing half of a book that felt like both men had reversed any growth in communication and maturity in their lives and were back to their own respective ways. Aslan saying he “knew” his lover/partner and then proceeding to prove to everyone he didn’t, putting Quaid and himself, but mostly Quaid through immense emotional distress. Unnecessary, intentional, and preventable pain and suffering. For 56 percent of this book.

Over a proposal. That’s actually causes a breakdown.

Disrupted Engagement (Valor and Doyle Mysteries, #6) by Nicki James is a novel that I put down multiple times as a DNF because of the dysfunctional nature of the relationship between Aslan and Quaid in the first half of the story. The murder mystery, which is fascinating, isn’t fully complex enough, nor is the author’s “happy “ resolution for the couple a satisfying explanation for the narrative mess made of the dynamic between Aslan and Quaid throughout the storyline, primarily the first half.

This is the penultimate story, I believe. Matrimonial Merriment is listed as the next and last. It’s definitely mine as it feels like the series has run its course or lost its charm. At least for me.

Read it for the series, if you’re a fan of the author , and love this couple.

Valor and Doyle:

✓ Temporary Partner #1

✓ Elusive Relations #2

✓ Unstable Connections #3

✓ Inevitable Disclosure #4

✓ Defying Logic #5

✓ Disrupted Engagement

◦ Matrimonial Merriment #7

Buy Link:

Disrupted Engagement (Valor and Doyle Book 6)

Blurb:

The ring has been bought, and all Aslan has to do is create the perfect setup for a proposal. No problem. Nothing to it. Quaid deserves the best, and he plans to deliver.

After choreographing a romantic evening to officially pop the question, Aslan is ready.

But things don’t go as planned, and the evening is ruined. Quaid’s insecurities rear their ugly head, making him suspicious. He knows Aslan is hiding something, but pessimism insists it isn’t a good thing.

When Aslan gets called out of town to hunt down a long-acting serial killer, there is no time to soothe his overanxious boyfriend’s worries or make a new attempt to propose.

Torn between a complicated case and figuring out the perfect way to ask Quaid to marry him, Aslan is left scrambling. Every idea falls flat. Every attempt fails. The more pressure he puts on himself, the more unsuccessful his efforts, and Quaid’s fears grow.

Aslan needs to solve this serial killer case and get home to straighten the mess he’s made.

**Disrupted Engagement is the sixth book in the Valor and Doyle mystery series. It is a same-couple series and should be read in order. Although each book has a self-contained mystery with no cliff-hangers, the romance is overarching.

• Publisher: (September 7, 2023)

• Publication date: September 7, 2023

• Print length: 372 pages

Review: Prince of L. A. (FBI Files Book 1) by Patricia Logan

Rating: 3.25🌈

I’m a fan of law enforcement romances and police procedural fiction so Patricia Logan’s FBI Files series seemed just the thing for me.

On the surface, the pairing and theme is intriguing and the author’s background for Special Agent Leo Reeves is one that has the potential to make the series and character.

Prince of L.A. was an interesting read.

The romance was very much an instant attraction, instant love relationship. One that occurs between two men, both FBI agents, in an established team, newly professionally paired up and then almost immediately romantically so.

Agent Leo Reeves, newly arrived from VA , looking for a new start, and is an outstanding profiler. He’s out, handsome , and young. He’s sent asap to a sickening crime scene where he meets his new team, including experienced field agent Max Prince. A man who he connects with on every level.

Logan has created a horrifying, and powerful backstory for Leo’s character. But oddly, it’s, imo, not used as realistically one might think for a law enforcement agent or agency. Perhaps the details and exploration is coming in another book. That backstory includes the fact that Leo’s father was a notorious serial killer.

Leo’s new team is unaware of his background as the son of a notoriously evil serial killer but other sketchy agents there know , publicly taunting Leo in Max’s (and others) presence. Does this make sense? Would a team leader not have had a meeting with Leo to discuss the matter prior to his arrival ? Its procedures such as this that kept me from being totally committed to the story and, relationship.

The investigation into the deaths and criminal “ring” did have some realistic aspects to it, there’s another side that feels just as manufactured, less law, more plot driven, then necessary. There’s several more things that I took note of about the FBI office, team, and investigators that contributed to removing me from the story. I had to check to see when the book was published (2022) so that shouldn’t have made any difference. But there’s overt homophobia/racism displayed towards a fellow agent, loud commentary, etc in a FBI office, agency building, workplace etc, that something that would see them removed/reported to HR. Especially in California. But here, for plot purposes, it’s not only tolerated but shrugged off in a pair of unlikable agents. That is the same knowledgeable pair taunting Leo about his parentage.

Fast, sort of jerky interactions, not a smooth flow, but a definite sense of instant lust/instant love that a reader either gets into or doesn’t. I prefer to see a slower realistic development, where the characters proceed to actually get better acquainted, especially when there’s a complicated investigation in progress. That’s not this one.

Logan has either let the story go the way of “as told to”, an on page investigation with vaguely realistic or unrecognizable protocols, or forgone them altogether.

While I liked some of the things about the Prince of L.A. such as side characters (drag queens, pet bull dog, strong woman agent), there’s an even larger amount of under realized elements (the team, their chemistry and dialogue, the main characters instant live in relationship including jealousy , and quickly resolved investigation that left me feeling unconnected and underwhelmed.

I’m not sure I’ll continue with this series. There’s so many other law enforcement stories to read that it might be a while if I decide to circle back.

FBI Files:

✓ Prince of L.A. #1

◦ Leo On Fire #2

◦ A Thousand Vermilion Stars #3

◦ Life On Mars #4

◦ A Clown Car Full of Sovereigns #5

◦ Stag Queen #6

Buy Link

Prince of L.A. (FBI Files Book 1)

Blurb:

Special Agent Leo Reeves is new to the FBI’s L.A. field office. His career has been on track since the day he joined the bureau. He loves his job as a profiler and being assigned to a new team in one of the busiest offices in the nation will be the opportunity of a lifetime…if he can put the past behind him. The face Leo shows the world is strong, focused, dependable, and capable. The long list of citations in his file only serve to prove how good he is.

If he could only forget he was sired by a monster.

Former Marine Staff Sergeant, Max Prince, leads by example. Whether it means protecting men in battle, working for the US Marshal service, or being the best damn field agent the FBI has ever seen, he brings a special kind of bravery to the job. His teammates depend on his ready smiles, his funny jokes, and know him as the excellent agent he’s proven to be. They never see the man who buried his heart eight years ago.

The last thing he wants is to fall for the new guy.

When a serial killer suddenly starts targeting innocents, both men have trouble pinning down who they’re dealing with. With victimology all over the place, Leo can’t make sense of a profile, and Max simply wants to put the bastard away before he murders anyone else. The case is maddening but worse, the attraction the two men find every time they look at each other, is beginning to get in the way.

• Westburg Publishing Corp. (August 24, 2022)

• Publication date: August 24, 2022

• Print length: 357 pages

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