Thank you to the publisher, and net galley for the opportunity to read this arc.

This is only my second book by Ana Huang but I really enjoyed it. It had just enough spice but also a great plot. It follows an arranged marriage between Dante & Vivian mixed with “enemies” to lovers. I’m definitely going to need to dig more into Ana Huang’s book.

I was really drawn in the story. The writing is beautiful and catching.
Dante is a billionaire who is very controlling. He doesn’t want to get married but someone blackmail him to marry his daughter. Vivian. She’s not happy about the wedding but she’s going to do it for a family.
Until they all in love until.
I loved the character and their backgrounds, all the things they shared together, seeming them falling in love even if Dante knows theirs story is not going to end well.

What a great book!

Vivian's father has decided it's time for her to get married and arranged the engagement himself. The groom? None other than New York's most eligible bachelor. Dante doesn't believe marriage is for him, but when a business rival blackmails him into marrying his daughter, it doesn't look like he has much of a say.

This was a wild ride! Here's what I loved.

Vivian and Dante. She was strong and independent in all the right ways. But she was also so relatable. I loved her humor and caring nature. Dante was cold and heartless, but learned to warm up thanks to Vivian. I loved seeing them together. Their relationship really worked.

Arranged marriage for the win. Most arrange marriage books I've read have to do with the mafia, but not this one. I liked how this played out a lot. They both learned from each other and you could literally see them falling the whole time.

New York Setting. I really liked the different settings the book took you to. All of the NY landmarks were featured and well drawn out.

The spice. Um yes. The limo. Chef's kiss.

King of Wrath had me hooked and it was so sad when I had to sleep halfway through the book. The arranged billionaire marriage trope is one of my favorite tropes and yet I so rarely read it, maybe that is why i end up loving every book with that trope, or if they are all just that good.

Dante and Vivian had the perfect amount of disdain, reluctance and pining that made the first half of this book so good. I love the fall in these books, it is easily the best part for me, and for Dante is was absolutely spectacular to read. He fought his feelings for a while and I loved it, it made for some great emotional scenes between him and Vivian. Vivian is so strong, she knows what she wants and the way she commands control from her conversation was so fun to read!

This was my first Ana Huang book and I loved so much that I’ll be continuing this series!

I remember when the twisted series had those male models on the cover and I can't believe Ana Huang has come this far!! King of Wrath is everything you want in a billionaire romance, just angst and passion really. This was so good and can't wait to recommend it!

I now know what all the hype is about with respect to this talented author. Ana Huang wrote King of Wrath with readers like myself in mind. A broody billionaire CEO who is blackmailed into an arranged marriage with a smart and determined event planner. Two people who on the surface truly don't like one another but with time find that they are not only perfectly matched but truly bring out the best in the other like no one before. I fell hard for the dominant Dante Russo and the way he saunters through life with a powerful gait that is both intimidating and beyond sexy. The way he does business is ruthless at its core but he does everything to protect his family, his name and his legacy. When Vivian Lau enters his well-guarded and rigid world, I couldn't help but grin right alongside her as she rocks his very soul meandering through a year of engagement, each finding their other half when they least expected it.

Oh my swoon! This is the kind of well-crafted and engaging kind of story I can't help but devour. Everything about the premise intrigued me right from the start and as the book progressed, I found myself rooting big time that Dante would get his proverbial head out of his gorgeous arse and realize that Vivian was the best thing to ever happen to him. Sure, his disdain for her father was warranted and the fact that Dante wanted nothing more than to stop the social climber in his tracks was most definitely needed. But it was beyond heartwarming as Dante starts to feel protective over his fake fiancee and will destroy anyone who even thinks of making her upset, including one Francis Lau. I feel as if Huang wrote Dante's uncomfortable feelings of slight guilt when it came to wanting to take down Lau perfectly. Dante never really lost his edge but it softened a bit when it came to Vivian and I was pleased that he could still maintain his gruff demeanor while still finding a way to allow her into his heart.

The pace is really great as Huang doesn't bore us with every single day and/or month that Dante and Vivian get closer to their supposed wedding date. Instead, Huang moves the story along well and we only glean what is necessary in the daily lives of our couple, highlighting the important moments as they slowly fall in love. Yes, there are glittery events that Vivian and Dante attend, which are truly something, allowing us a glimpse into the very top echelon of high society. But it's those smaller scenes where they go on dates that made me sigh like a fool. Vivian knew that Dante was trying and she said more than once how she knew deep inside the stoic man was one who honestly did care for others and wasn't always merely trying to get the best of someone. With the push of well-meaning family members and associates (since the term friends seems a bit over the top when it comes to Dante lol) Vivian got to see the man behind the facade and gives her all no matter what may transpire. And trust me, plenty does happen to threaten their burgeoning romance but Huang plays out times of hurt and disappointment beautifully, offering up tender solutions in order for both Dante and Vivian to move forward together. You just have to wait it out. But trust me, it's all worth it in the end.

I can honestly say that I loved this book from beginning to end and adored the bonus chapter about our lovebirds and how they continue to delightfully rattle the devoted and strict housekeeper that is Greta. I have to add that all of the secondary characters, even Francis and his despicable ways, added the right touch throughout this wonderful journey and I can't wait to read the next book in the series since Ana Huang most definitely has a new fan in me.

King of Wrath features two characters who are both strong in their own ways, act their age and won't stop until they get what they rightly deserve in both business and in pleasure. With steamy sex scenes that are ideally timed and full of the kind of passion that literally leaps off of the pages, the love story of Vivian and Dante is one I won't soon forget. Each possesses a strength that only gets more formidable with each passing day. And once they are together, they are unstoppable both privately and professionally and I loved every single minute.

5 huge stars!

Oof, I was not prepared for Dante. He might even replace Christian. This book is really fast moving for a romance. Loved every minute of it. Can't wait for the next!

I ate this book up! Vivian comes from a "new" money-wealthy family, while Dante comes from "old" money, Vivian is committed to having her own company and money, however, her family is set on marrying her off to someone who comes from old money. When Vivian's dad, Francis, finally sees the opportunity, he forces Dante and Vivian into an engagement. The angst in this book is perfect. I love the "touch her and die" personality from Dante and the independent boss lady personality from Vivian. We also see a glimpse of Dante's bestie Kai Young and Vivian's girls Isabella and Sloane. I am super excited for the next book which is featuring Kai and Isabella!!

If you love a forced proximity, arranged marriage, family drama, billionaire romance then this book is right up your alley. Thank you NetGalley ,SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books, Bloom Books, and Ana Huang for this ARC! I am super excited for King of Pride!

King of Wrath ticks all the boxes for a billionaire, forced marriage book. Vivian is a strong leading lady with a sassy streak who is dedicated to her family despite what it costs her. Dante is a stoic, emotionally stunted billionaire with no plans to get married - ever. A twist in their circumstances leads them into an arranged marriage situation where they slowly start to actually fall for each other despite their best efforts and hesitations. After overcoming many issues and a couple other classic romance novel tropes that I won’t name because #spoilers, Huang wraps up the book into a neat happily ever after package.
Overall, I enjoyed this book. Despite following the plot formula for a book like this, it still grabbed my attention and left me wondering how the different elements were going to play out or resolve. Vivian and Dante were well developed, but I wish some of the secondary characters had had more time on the page and been a little less one dimensional. I look forward to seeing some of these characters fleshed out in the future books of this series!

ARC was given by NetGalley & Bloom Books in exchange for an honest review.

This review is being published before the release date (April 25, 2023)

Content/Trigger Warnings: Mentions loss of loved one (in the past), manipulation, scene of murder recounted, scene of gun violence, scene of near death situation, scenes of trauma, violence, depictions of blood, child abandonment, mentions of bullying (in the past), toxic parental relationships, mentions of alcoholism & drug use (in the past)

Author’s CW/TW (can be found at the beginning of book): Explicit sexual content, profanity, mild violence, and topics that may be sensitive to some readers.



“We’d exchanged only a handful of words, yet I already knew two things with gut certainty. One, Dante was going to be my fiancé. Two, we might kill each other before we ever made it to the alter.”

Wow, friends! I absolutely loved this freaking book. Even when I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking of just reading more of this book, one more chapter please! But alas, sleep and taking breaks were necessary. Yet, I couldn’t stop talking about this book to friends and my spouse in my down time. I’m just amazed because I wasn’t expecting to love this as much as I did. Even now, I’m bursting with excitement to continue with this series! This book was sexy, spicy, had some amazing themes and discussions, and this book has found a home on my top books for 2023.

Vivian is at the height of her career, owning her life and paving a path all for herself, despite the constant pressures from high society and expectations from her parents. Though things are going well, when Vivian receives a phone call summoning her to her family home, Lau manor, a dreadful feeling begins to settle in her bones. And she wasn’t wrong, when her family thrusts an arranged marriage to Dante Russo at her. Dante isn’t thrilled to be in this situation. Everything was fine until he’s forced to clean up the aftermath of his younger brother and now he finds himself in an arranged marriage to the daughter of the man he despises. Left with no choice, Dante has to go through with this marriage. Little do the two of them know, chemistry is brewing and they might be more of a match than either of them thought.

“My eyes dipped to her mouth. The heat from my gut spread to my stomach. She wore the same lipstick from the exhibition. Bold, red, and seductive, like a siren’s call amid a sea of tranquil calm.”

Can we take a moment to appreciate how much better romance books are with both perspectives? If we didn’t have Dante’s perspective in this book, I may have ended up despising his character. Plus, the steamy scenes with Vivian and Dante probably wouldn’t have been so impactful without his perspective. Both, Vivian and Dante, together has really great chemistry and truly felt like the perfect match for each other. Their small, wholesome moments they have together felt really special and really memorable. I think one of my favorite moments they shared was when they were reminiscing about their favorite places to eat. It such a common thing that couples do, but it just made my heart feel so full and warm. Also, the ice cream cuff links scene has my whole dang heart! I also want to say that Vivian was such an incredible character and such an easy character to fall in love with. She’s independent, so driven in her career, but she’s so full of love, care, and determination. Watching her character growth and watching her come to terms with her toxic relationship with her parents was probably one of my favorite things about this book, as a whole.

“Kai Young, you deserve all the goodness in the world.”

I just want to go on a tangent about some of the side characters, as well. I don’t think there’s a single char- I retract that statement. I strongly dislike Vivian’s father. Outside of him, I loved everyone even Vivian’s mother. There were some really great side characters like Greta, who’s Dante’s housekeeper and someone who has taken care of Dante and Luca since they were children. I loved her so much and I wish we could of had more scenes with her and Vivian cooking together. It was so wholesome! I also adored Vivian’s two best friends; Isabella, who’s Filipina Chinese, and Sloane, who I wish we had even more details about other than the fact that I freaking adore her with every fiber of my soul, and if she doesn’t end up with Christian then I may have to riot. I adored them both and I hope both of them get happy endings because I loved how much they rallied, supported Vivian, and were just ready to raise all kind of chaos for their love of Vivian. It has my whole heart! Out of all the side characters though, Kai was everything. There were so many moments with Kai that made him the most wholesome side character and I'm so glad book two is going to have him in it! Plus, that moment where he’s talking to Dante about how he would have married Vivian, if you know you know, literally stole my breath away. Thank you Ana Huang for blessing us with Kai’s character!

We also see some really important themes throughout this book. There’s so many themes about family especially when it comes to Vivian. How sometimes we set aside what we want or what would make us happy as an individual, to please our family or follow their expectations even to the point of hiding our voices. We see that journey with Vivian and how she comes to terms with finding the courage to stand up herself, for Dante, and how she decides enough is a enough. As a whole, both, Dante and Vivian, go to great lengths when it comes to their families and we see character growth on both sides. We see the roles flip with Dante and his younger brother, with Luca confronting Dante and picking him up at his lowest moment. It was so nice to see a little reverse in their dynamic. There’s also a theme about how money can change things in a family and how such a change can have an impact on your future, how money holds such an importance among the wealthy in where you stand among them, and how sometimes you don’t want that wealth to define you or the people around you, you want to see people for who they truly are outside of their wealthy.

“I’d never get tired of making her smile and blush. She was my wife, my partner, my guiding star. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Even though I loved this book with my heart, there were a few things I had issues with that other readers may not like, as well. My first real issue is something that happens within the first few chapters of the book. There’s a scene where Dante and Vivian get into a heated discussion, and Dante grabs Vivian by the throat to assert boundaries, and to basically get a point across. I had a lot of issues with this scene. I’m not a big fan of love interests using violence as a means to get a point across to someone. It just hits a little too close to home of things I’ve experienced in the past, but even if that wasn’t the case, it left a really bad impression taste in my mouth. Not just with Dante as a whole character, but it made me constantly think of whether or not the author could even redeem his character for me. This whole scene was challenged, but the person who challenged Dante was met with threats of losing their job. All around it wasn’t the best way to kick off the start of this book. And my last issue with this book was the direction the conflict took. It’s not a secret what it is, lies, deceit, and secrets. This is just a personal preference for me. I put honesty on a very high pedestal, not just with myself, but in all types of relationships including my marriage. So it wasn’t a surprise that I just wasn’t a fan of this especially when there were so many opportunities for the truth to come out and the truth doesn’t really come out until the 75% mark of the book. It was a bit frustrating, but I feel like the author does do a good job of trying to make up for it.

Overall, I just had such a wonderful time reading this and I have no doubt I’m going to continue talking about this book, this series for the rest of the year. It completely stole my heart and I can’t wait to read the second book. Book two follows Kai and Isabella, my two favorite side characters, and I just can’t wait for it to come out. If you were thinking about picking this book up or starting this series, please consider giving it a chance. I had such a blast in my time reading it and if you find yourself with similar reading taste to mine then you might really enjoy this book!



The quotes above were taken from an ARC and are subject to change upon publication.

This took me time to get in to, but once I did I enjoyed it!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️

Forced into an arranged marriage, neither Dante nor Vivian expected anything more than living their lives separately, together, and putting on a show in public.
Dante Russo, the billionaire CEO, is threatened with blackmail by Vivian’s father. Vivian Lau does as she’s expected, to honour her family.

I loved that this wasn’t a quick love story. Their relationship and connection really developed slowly, and more naturally, over time.
I also appreciated that regardless of wealth, Vivian had her own ambitions and career, that Dante supported.

Read if you enjoy:
⭐️ Enemies to lovers
⭐️ Arranged marriage
⭐️ Forced proximity
⭐️ Grumpy Sunshine
⭐️ Billionaire hero
⭐️ Slow burn
⭐️ Dual POV/first person

Thank you to NetGalley & Sourcebooks Bloom for an advanced copy for review. All opinions are my own.

To start, I did a squeal of excitement when I saw that I was approved to read King of Wrath. I was so excited and couldn’t wait to start reading it.

Unfortunately, I was a little disappointed by the book. Considering Ana Huang has the Twisted series that is really popular, I had high expectations for this book. And they weren’t really met. I thought the writing was fairly cringey. It was mostly just the parts between Dante and Vivian. All of the scenes, not just the romantic ones. Their interactions with each other were really mid and gave me secondhand embarrassment.

I did appreciate the use of another language in the book but I didn’t really think that any of the times it was used was appropriate. Like it was just silly phrases in Italian. I would’ve liked it better if the language used was constructive to the book. It kinda felt like it was just there to remind us that Dante is Italian.

Lastly, there were so many instances in the book where dialogue was repeated in a later scene but as a memory. If that makes sense. Like Vivian and Dante would remember things that the other had said to them and they would be italicized. These parts made it feel like the book was written with a movie adaptation in mind because it just felt unneeded in a book format.

Despite all of my comments, the book was pretty good. I just had a few problems with it that really lowered my rating. I think if you are a fan of Ana Huang though, you should still check out the book!

This is the first book I have read from this author. It was a good enjoyable read. I haven't really read a lot of this genre, arrange marriages, Billionaire, etc trope. It was interesting. The story was good and I could relate to Vivian. Who has such an obligation to her family, and also just wants to make a not-great situation better. Dante was okay. I felt he was a bit over the top with his violence and that left a bad taste in my mouth.



From the publisher:
She was my North Star, the brightest jewel in my sky.

Ruthless. Meticulous. Arrogant.

Billionaire CEO Dante Russo thrives on control, both personally and professionally.

He never planned to marry…until the threat of blackmail forces him into an engagement with a woman he barely knows.

Vivian Lau, jewelry heiress and daughter of his newest enemy. The wife he never wanted, and the weakness he never saw coming.

It doesn't matter how beautiful or charming she is. Dante will do everything in his power to destroy the blackmail and their betrothal.

There's only one problem: now that he has her, he can't bring himself to let her go.

***

Elegant. Ambitious. Well-mannered.

Vivian Lau is the perfect daughter and her family's ticket into the highest echelons of society.

Marrying a blue-blooded Russo means opening doors that would otherwise remain closed to her new-money parents.

While the rude, elusive Dante isn't her idea of a dream partner, she agrees to their arranged marriage out of duty.

Craving his touch was never part of the plan.

Neither was the worst possible outcome: falling in love with her future husband.

King of Wrath by Ana Huang is the first novel that I have had the pleasure of reading by Ana and I’m glad to say that she lived up to my expectations and more. In King of Wrath we meet Vivian Lau, a woman of Chinese descent who has chosen to pursue event planning for the wealthy instead of working in the family’s jewel business. We also meet Dante Russo, the CEO of his company: dark, enigmatic, and dangerous.

When Vivian’s father blackmails Dante into an arranged marriage with Vivian, Dante has no choice but to comply until he can get the upper hand. But he doesn’t expect to fall for the strong, independent woman that turns into a shell of herself around her family.

Vivian states it best in the one quote that I believe perfectly summarizes this book: “We’d gone from strangers to roommates to adversaries to friends to lovers to exes….the list went on.” With enough sweetness to keep you loving Dante, enough dirty talk to make you want to reread the fun scenes, and enough angst to make tears come to your eyes, this book is a must read.

Bonus points for this book featuring a Chinese FMC and an Italian MMC, with supporting Chinese characters throughout!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloom Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for a review.
I was so excited to be approved for this read, I dove right in and could not put it down! I absolutely loved this book and can’t wait to read more by this author!

The cover makes so much sense now and makes me want to cry because pisces and Magda strikes again!
Enjoyed this book very much, great way to start off a new series but still have nods to the original one this is a spin-off from. Have been looking forward to Dante and Vivian's story and it did not disappoint.

Genre: Romance
Rating: 4/5 ⭐️
Recommended: Yes!

While I liked the Twisted series more, I did enjoy this book! I am not a big fan of billionaire romance, but was surprisingly into it in this book. I love that this book sets up a new series while also being somewhat connected to the previous series.

Read if you like…
* Arranged marriage
* Forced proximity
* Billionaire
* Age gap
* Dual POV

Vivian and Dante were messy and ridiculous and obsessive and I was SOLD. This book was a classic marriage-of-convenience with the usual suspects for tropes, but a classic is a classic for a reason so I still had a good time. This story was nothing revolutionary, but I thought Vivian and Dante had great banter and chemistry so it felt fresh enough for me to have tons of fun reading it, which is exactly what you want from a book like this!

This is a winner in my books. It’s steamy , it’s page turning and love all the tropes. Enemies to lovers, one bed scene, mafia implications, talk to her and you die vibes. Dante was perfection. It did lag in a few spots and some of the sex scenes were a bit cringe. But nothing to bad as to dnf the book. I’m excited about this series.

4⭐️
This book was really good! I liked the pacing of it and I thought it was cute. I liked seeing the other character appearances from the Twisted Series. However, this wasn’t my fav. I definitely liked the twisted series more, and this is at the bottom of my ranking out of all the authors books. It was still good, but the combination of not being mind blowingly good like the twisted series, and not loving the MMC (I’m sorry guys) makes it last. Vivian did WAY more for this man that she should have. Right before the third act breakup he completely ignored her and sucked so much and she was still trying to help him (which I fully understand) but it was going on for too long man. He did make up for part of it at the end with his groveling but it was more for their relationship than a ‘I’m sorry’. There was also one scene (that shall remain nameless) that I didn’t like about 2/3 through the book and it really just grossed me out.