4.5 The Darker Brother Revealed Stars
* * * * 1/2 Spoiler Free
In 2015, Katee Robert presented us with the Underworld of 3 Boston Irish Crime families posed to attack each other at any given moment. I had been a fan of Robert's other books, yet this was a bit of a departure from the ones I had read. This new series had the feel of an Odyssey in the making and I was on board from the start.

In Undercover Attraction we finally are given Aiden's story...and we have been interested about this conflicted brother for a while now. Aiden stepped up to take his father's place in running the O'Malley's business and family. Left with the mess his father's manipulations had caused, Aiden decides on a plan to save his family, his sister Keira and extract revenge on his closely held targets.

In order to accomplish all of his goals....he is going to mix with the enemy, an ex cop. He needs her cooperation. It will be tricky as she has no desire to be anywhere near him if she can help it...But Aiden has the one lure to reel her in...The mutual hatred and wish to nail Dmitri Romanov will be the hook to cause Charlotte Finch, now known as Charlie March, to agree to make a deal with this devil.

Charlie had remade her life after it had been destroyed by one obvious enemy, Dmitri and another not so obvious, her brother cops. She was hung out to dry when she refused to be on the take...and in retaliation, she was thrown under the bus twice... publicly, losing the only career she every wanted and then physically when the dirty cops decided to exact their own punishment by doing their worst in an alley.

Charlie recovered from her injuries but mentally, she was scarred. Her father, the one influence, the one who she wished believed in her...turned his back believing his brothers in blue than his own daughter. As an FBI agent, her father only saw black and white...and Blue.

When Aiden approaches Charlie, she has been living as a poker hustler. She runs some of the most wanted games in town...she has reinvented herself in a way to bid her time until she can figure out a way to pay back all of those who destroyed her reputation.

Aiden and Charlie know of each other...and when Aiden pulls Charlie out of the bar she works...she is on guard in more ways then just her safety...there has been an undercurrent between them...and Aiden being close physically to Charlie causes all kinds of rumblings for the both of them.

Aiden gets right to the task at hand...He tells Charlie he wants her to assist him in taking Dmitri Romanov down...This catches Charlie's attention... but when he explains how it needs to be done, Charlie is ready to walk away...

Aiden explains the only way to distract Dmitri from figuring out Aiden is setting him up for a fall is for Aiden to be in love, seemingly distracted from business and engaged...To HER!

What he wants is crazy...
It makes no sense, is ridiculous and seriously dangerous...

Yet...All Charlie can think about is taking down the one responsible for her losing her father's regard and getting even. With this clouding all of her judgement... along with this unwanted attraction to this mobster...Charlie agrees.

Aiden is also playing with fire by agreeing to another proposition with Dmitri... one he has no intention of keeping. All of these subterfuges cannot be shared with anyone except his partner in this... Charlie.

Both Aiden and Charlie have to play their parts perfectly; Aiden cannot reveal all of his plans to his brothers or even his sister...and Charlie must convince the O'Mally Clan this is real...easier said then done...

From the start, both Aiden and Charlie realize the want, the lust they have for each other is off the charts. It makes no real sense looking from the outside in... but these strange bedfellows start to feel for each other sincerely ... and it scares the hell out of both of them...

It goes without saying... But I am...is these two are smokin' hot and have no qualms in letting others know it... by public displays of affection, by loud coupling (good for the fake engagement), and slamming good yum, yum times....

Neither Aiden nor Charlie are prepared for the feelings they develop...and all of this is done with the backdrop of Aiden's scheming and planning...Some going as planned and then some turning out to be more complex then Aiden could have anticipated.

Robert's give both of these characters personal issues that run deep...the feeling of isolation and even abandonment are critical to Charlie's reasoning for all that she does...all her life she was an outsider, trying to prove to her father she deserved his love. All Aiden had known was his destiny...and his vicious and manipulative father made it very clear...Do things the O'Malley way or pay the price. Aiden's price was having to take over and wear his Mask, hiding all he ever felt...

Charlie allowed Aiden to drop the pretense and reveal himself to her...Aiden showed Charlie she was worth so much more than she thought... that a man and family could make her feel wanted and loved.

This book had more than just Aiden's story... it also had the ramp up of what was to come...There was more of Keira and Dmitri...and seriously... their story and book will be off the charts... I just know it...February 6, 2018 cannot come soon enough.

This series is best read in order:
The Marriage Contract (The O'Malleys, #1) by Katee Robert The Marriage Contract (The O'Malleys, #1)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Wedding Pact (The O'Malleys, #2) by Katee Robert The Wedding Pact (The O'Malleys, #2)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
An Indecent Proposal (The O'Malleys, #3) by Katee Robert An Indecent Proposal (The O'Malleys, #3)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/edit...
Forbidden Promises (The O'Malleys, #4) by Katee Robert Forbidden Promises (The O'Malleys, #4)
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

~~~~~ Before Reading ~~~~~
Oh Aiden, how we have wondered about you....
What makes you tick...
How you hold it all in for the Good of the Family...

Now you have put all the pieces in place...
You just need the last one to make your plotting and scheming work...
Will she agree to work with you...
Go Against Everything she has been taught...

Only you hold the key to her heart's desire... Revenge...
Together you will stand against the enemy...
Only will this cross the lines you both know shouldn't be crossed...
●•●•●•●•●•●•●•
April 9, 2017
Better Buckle Up Buttercup...
This is it...
Everything we have been waiting for...

Crime Family Drama...
Confrontations with the Law...
Lovers who should never be...
Sacrifices and Endings...

All of it at the hands of Katee Robert...

Undercover Attraction (The O'Malleys, #5)- November 2017


An arc was provided by Forever (Grand Central Publishing) via NetGalley for an honest review

One I've been waiting for. Its so good to see Aidan finding his way and how he lives for family. They have no idea how much he does for them all. I'm glad he met his perfect match!

Undercover Attraction isn't much to be honest. I feel like I have read this story already by another author only neither one was able to pull off the story well enough.
This book is full of sexual encounters that pull away from the story. If Katee Robert had taken out half the sex scenes the story would have been a short one instead of a full length novel.
The two characters never stay true to what the author presents at the beginning of the story and they falter many times throughout the book. Their plans fall apart so many times leaving readers wondering if the book isn't more than erotica with a story that is as flat as all the characters.
While readers do not read for realism this story makes sure to though out the real world at every turning point.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for an advance copy.

Sexy, captivating, and full of suspense, Undercover Attraction by Katee Robert is mafia romance at its absolute finest. Aiden and Charlie's story was one that I've been anticipating for a long time, and Robert delivered yet another fantastic addition to this incredible series. The mafia prince and the former cop joined together to create an explosive force, leaving me on the edge of my seat the whole way through.

"The man was an inferno. One wrong step and he'd incinerate her."

One of the things that drew me into the story the most was the progression of the main characters' relationship. I loved how Robert built things up with them, and I knew that when they fell, they would both fall hard. What started out as a mutually beneficial arrangement turned into so much more as the two of them navigated the precarious world they were a part of. Both characters were very well-written and likeable despite their faults. Charlie had been through so much and had been let down by so many close to her. She remained strong even though she was vulnerable, and had a spirit that couldn't be broken. I loved how she could hold her own, regardless of the situation. We got to see Aiden in a whole new way in this story. We learned about the sacrifices he's made for his family, and with Charlie's help he was able to see things in a new light. The emotion involved with the story made the connection between Charlie and Aiden feel that much more real. They really were a power couple, whether they were playing their roles in front of their enemies, or coming together in the bedroom. The sexual tension between them was unreal, and each time they came together was even better than the last. Robert is skilled at both creating friction between characters and having it play out in the bedroom in a way that is both intimate and sizzling hot.

"Take off your panties. Now."

"I'm not wearing any."

"Good girl."

The author wove together the romance and suspense elements seamlessly, creating a story that flowed incredibly well. I loved seeing the other O'Malley's again, this time at different stages of their lives. I really enjoyed the shift in family dynamics, facilitated by a determined Charlie. This family has been through so much, and it was really great to see the attempts at mending fractured relationships. I am beyond excited for D'mitri and Keira's book, which is my most anticipated read for next year. The parts of their story that we were given in this book were phenomenal, and I am sure that their story will be just as amazing as the rest of the books in the series have been.

Undercover Attraction is a stunning story and we continue on with the O Malley clan, and in this wonderful book we have AIDEN’s story—yep you heard me….the eldest and the biggest baddass of them all. I honestly didn’t know how I would feel about this book, to be honest. Aiden is the one sibling I have really really struggled with through this series. He is the one sibling that never says no to their parents, always falls in line and does what is necessary. But in this book, we see a whole new side to his character, and that is what really made this book fantastic. Aiden has burned quite a few bridges with his siblings. But we see how has had to, because he bears every weight on his shoulders. He is the epitome of being the oldest child, taking responsibility for his siblings and looking out for them even if it doesn’t look that way. But in Undercover Attraction we see how he has a plan, a devious plan to save his youngest sister from marriage, it has one draw back, he will have to keep the truth from his family, only a few people can know including the one woman that he is drawn to and he knows she is perfect. Our heroine reluctantly agrees to pose as Aiden’s fiancee to get justice for how some dirty cops turned on her, and her life fell apart. Everyone sees her as a bad cop, even though she is innocent even her own family rejected her. But as she works with Aiden, and gets to know his siblings, she starts to see what “family” is really about and what has been missing in her life.

There were so many fun and thrilling aspects to this story. The first was the trope that we get introduced to here. Its the whole fake engagement which is so great to see and rare in a contemporary romance and boy Robert’s wrote it so well. Then we get more exciting moments with this family. I swear the O’Malley’s are one of the most memorable families that I have ever had the opportunity to read. We get see all of our old favorites of course and side plot line with the youngest sister Keira and our nemesis of the series Dmitri. And boy I so can’t wait for their book!!!

Now the romance that builds between Aiden and Charlie starts off as chemistry. They are really opposites in most ways except when they touch and then is like fireworks. So yeah the sex in this book is hot and off the charts. What really proves them though is the emotional build up. They have to overcome some obstacles and start to let their emotions take over. They do learn to accept that what is between them is stronger than sex, it’s more binding. And they go from a fake engagement to building something more real. As both Charlie and Aiden starts to grow more into themselves, and change in some positive ways, we see how in touch they are with each other. We learn that Aiden isn’t the bad boy he appears to be and that Charlie has a vulnerable side despite how tough she tries to appear on the outside. But honestly what I really enjoyed about Charlie’s character was how she handles Aiden. She isn’t afraid of him and that really makes a different. She talks to him and fights with him when she believes he is wrong and I do think that she is exactly what he needs.

And what a teaser at the end….man I want book SIX like NOW!!! But sadly we have to wait until February 2018. This is where these authors test our patience right? hehe

A truly good story with a excellent romance. Liked it totally!

I like Katee Robert's books.  She's very good at creating complex and compelling characters, intriguing moral situations, sexy relationships and loads of suspense.  The O'Malleys epitomize the reality that very few people are either all good or all bad.  They're a major crime family but they're also very loyal and loving to each other, care about the less fortunate, are kind and loving.  Charlotte's father is on the "right" side of the law and yet lacking in kindness and caring.  Being a cop doesn't make him a great guy and being a criminal doesn't make Aiden a bad person.

I really enjoyed watching Charlotte and Aiden deal with their preconceived notions that they can't be together while becoming more and more attracted to each other.  They are so good together despite a lot of back and forth.  The tension was delicious.  Charlotte's relationship with Aiden's family was heartwarming.  Watching her heal old, deep wounds that had eluded Aiden was touching.

The fake engagement, the real relationship, the family dynamics would have been enough for a good book but Robert adds tons of suspense to keep the reader biting fingernails.  It seems there is no way everyone can come out of this unblemished and indeed there is a lot of physical and psychological damage but all can be healed with love.

Woven throughout is the budding relationship between Kiera and Romanov and another instance of "he can't be all bad".  I can't wait for their story.

reviewed by Jem

This series just keeps getting better and better. I could not put it down! It didn't matter that I was super exhausted and tired I stayed up late in to the night reading it anyway. While I deplore crime in real life, I love reading books about the dark side. Robert does such a great job with making these true bad boys desirable without losing their bad boy appeal. I found Charlie to be the perfect match for Aidan. She can go head to head with him, she's not submissive to him, and gives her opinion when necessary. She's also one of the few women that can handle living in his world.

I love that we're seeing the O'Malley family grow and change. They're dealing with a lot of things and everything is still shifting, but you can see that it's coming together for them and that in the end they will be stronger than ever. Aidan strugglied with how his decisions effect the family and doing what's right for the family and I really felt that struggle. He was a real as they come.

If you haven't checked out this series I suggest you do!

I REALLY don’t like to DNF any book. It makes me feel like a big ole quitter. A failure. A reader with a weak constitution. A fair-weather reader, if you will. But in reviewing books for this blog, I’ve come to accept that I simply can’t afford to finish every book I start. In the interest of maximizing my reading time, sometimes I just have to let a book I’m not enjoying go so that I can move on to book that’s more my speed, you know? And sadly, that’s what I had to do with Undercover Attraction.

The first red flag was thrown up VERY early on in the story, not even at the 10% mark, I think. Charlotte, our heroine, an ex cop, strolled out to talk to our hero and she was wearing...6-inch heels. Now, I don’t know about you, but I can stroll in 4-inch heels. I can wear 5-inch heels if I don’t have to walk around a bunch. But 6-inch heels? That’s venturing into stripper territory, and it takes a special kind of woman (with incredible balance and ankle strength who isn’t bothered by her toes being crammed ruthlessly into the pointy tips of her shoes by gravity) to stroll in 6-inch heels. And since Charlotte was an ex cop and not, say, a retired supermodel, I was instantly thrown off guard in a that-wouldn’t-happen-in-real-life kind of way.

So then, the hero, Aiden, proposes a plan to Charlotte—a plan that would allow her to get even with the crime boss who ruined her cop career. And even after pages and pages of description about how untrustworthy and crooked and generally unpleasant Aiden is, Charlotte quickly agrees to his plan. Hmmm...seems unrealistic. Red flag #2 has been thrown at this point.

What’s Aiden’s plan to take down the big bad mob boss, you ask? Well, pretend to be engaged to Charlotte, of course! Again...really? That’s Charlotte’s part in the plan? To play your fiancee? That seems not only unrealistic, but also highly ineffective. How would Aiden’s dating status mean a damned thing to a rival mob family’s boss? What’s that sound you hear, folks? It’s the sound of red flag #3 being tossed into the air. (Note to all of you who enjoyed the book and are hating me right now: I realize there was probably much more to Aiden’s plan that played out over the course of the book, but I didn’t have the patience to wait around for it. The whole “pretend engagement” plan seemed like such an obvious, ham-handed way to set up a romance that I was instantly bored and yawning as soon as I read it. If things got better later on in the story, well...I’m still not sorry I quit reading. So we’ll just agree to disagree, m’kay?)

And that’s when Charlotte goes to Aiden’s house (you know, Aiden, the dangerous, ruthless crime dude that Charlotte has been talking about nonstop, saying how untrustworthy he is?) and casually suggests that they should have sex, because no one will believe they’re engaged otherwise. Sexy shenanigans ensue on the desk in Aiden’s office. That one didn’t even throw up a red flag for me, folks. I just quit reading at that point. That’s when I decided I didn’t even care what happened to Charlotte or Aiden. I would recommend that Charlotte look into getting counseling for her split personality disorder, though. Her shift from oh-my-God-this-dude-is-scary to hey-let’s-bang-to-help-sell-the-plan was NOT normal. Not. At. All.

Long-story-short, this one just wasn’t my cuppa. Maybe it’d appeal to someone who isn’t bothered by completely unrealistic plots and moody heroines in stripper heels. (*shrugs*)

Full disclosure: We received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

There has been something about Aiden since the start of this series that I just haven’t been able to shake off and now I know why.

Portrayed as another cold and ruthless Mafia family leader, Aiden will and does, anything necessary to protect his family. Despite being broken apart from recent events, Aiden struggles to try to bring his family back together but it’s without success until Charlie Finch comes into the picture. Only then do the pieces start to fall into place.

Aiden approaches Charlie with an opportunity of revenge against the man who brought about her “dirty cop” label, Dmitri Romanov. What Charlie doesn’t foresee from the offer Aiden makes her is that she will have to become his finance in order for his plan to work and be being his finance, she needs to make it believable.

Once under the same roof as Aiden, Charlie, who has been fighting her attraction towards him, knows that to make the family believe their lie, she has to sacrifice her need to keep Aiden at a distance and to “take one for the team”, so to speak! What Charlie doesn’t expect is that the minute she gets close to Aiden, her body overrules her sensibilities and suddenly she can’t get enough of him.

Whilst living under Aiden’s roof, Charlie befriends the broken Kiera and despite their unorthodox friendship, they bond and slowly Keira starts to become herself again. That said, Keira still has the threat of Dmitri looming over head and with him determined to marry her and Aiden looking to offer her to him as part of a deal, Keira’s future looks bleak. Or does it? Has Keira been secretly harbouring feelings for Dmitri all along or is it another ruse thought up to protect her family? That story looks to be unveiled next in this amazing series.

I have also had a secret obsession with Dmitri and I can’t wait to see how his story with Keira pans out. I’m sure the devil is not as fearsome and dangerous as he is portrayed, at least to Keira. The next book title, “The Bastard’s Bargain” seems very apt though!

This series is one of my all-time favourites. Yes, I love Mafia/mob/organised crime family books but this has an edge to it that is rarely equalled. The writing is strong and the storyline compelling. It’s beyond amazing!

Cops. Mob bosses. Lies. Sex. And enemies. Great storyline and awesome characters. I felt like I was right there with them. I really enjoyed this book.

Charlie comes from a long line of cops. She gets branded as a "dirty cop" and realizes the brothers in blue will not stand by your side. Aiden the the head of the O'Malley crime family. He wants to take out a rival and convinces Charlie to be his fake fiancée. She wants to take down the man who was instrumental in her downfall and they happen to be the same man.

But Charlie finds out there are other colors besides black and white and good and bad guys. Aiden is not as bad as she thought and starts to fall for him. Between Aiden's father trying to separate them and another crime boss trying to kill her, maybe they'll figure out their feelings or go their separate ways after the threat is handled. There is a slight cliffhanger but nothing that won't be explained by the next book ( I hope 🤞).

* VOLUNTARILY READ AND REVIEWED THIS FOR NETGALLEY *