Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for providing me this Advanced Readers Copy of Brutal Prince by Sophie Lark!

Sophie Lark is hands down one of my favorite authors. Brutal Prince is excellent. I was instantly addicted and my love for mafia romances was born. Aida is my absolute favorite character. She kicks ass, takes names, has your back, speaks her mind and never apologies. This book is a true enemies to lovers and I ate it up! Highly recommend reading!!

i was so excited for this to be my first mafia romance… but it was such a disappointment, especially because i love all of the tropes included.

Brutal Prince just did not deliver. it was weird, i didn’t understand what the point was, how the characters bonded when everything was just explained to have happened and happened so fast. the only scenes that were played out were the smutty or fighting scenes. we don’t even get slow burn, don’t have any character development, no interesting interactions, and the characters were so flat and immature.

i love an arranged marriage trope but this was just… not great. the reasons behind it was out of the blue and doesn’t make sense. and where is the enemies to lovers?? they literally fall in love in a day basically.

I've heard so many good things about Sophie Lark which made me so excited to read this book!! And although I didn't completely love it, I can definitely understand why people love this book.

I loved the beginning of this book! The characters were interesting and I really enjoyed learning their dynamics, especially towards the family war/drama! It's also a quick and easy read, and super fast paced!

I would have liked a little more development in the transition from enemies to lovers, Aida and Callum go from despising each other to completely trusting and falling in love, very quickly! But with that being said, I am a sucker for a slow burn romance.

I think the plot could have been fleshed out a little more too, by that I mean that any time there's a plot twist it gets resolved very quickly, so there's no build up of tension to really sink your teeth into.

Overall, I'd say this was a decent mafia romance book and definitely worth checking out if you're interested/heard about the author!

Two powerful factions of the Chicago underworld find themselves embroiled in an impending war that started with a little fire, a little theft, and crashing a little party.

Callum Griffin is the eldest brother of the Griffin crime family. He’s running for alderman and focused on his future. He doesn’t have time for games or relationships. Aida Gallo is the youngest sibling of the Gallo crime family. She’s not quite sure what she wants out of her life except that she wants to be more involved in the family business.

When the Gallo siblings decide to crash a Griffin party, none of them are prepared for the events that are set into motion. Aida’s decisions that night lead to a marriage between the families meant to prevent a war and make amends. Aida and Callum’s nuptials become the talk of the town. What no one sees is the hatred brewing between the couple.

This book had it all. Banter between the characters. Lots of action. Twists and turns. And so much steam! This book was spicy! Thoroughly enjoyed the love story between Aida and Callum. Can’t wait to read the rest of the series!

The first half of the book was addictive and I was captivated. I adored Aida and Callum, their banter, tension, was everything!

I really enjoyed Aida's relationship with her brothers, despite the fact that we didn't get to witness it as much as I would have liked. Their friendship, laughs, and obvious love for each other was just so good!

The second half was... alright. I was so engrossed in Aida and Callum's love that I didn't care about the Polish gangster or the Oliver drama. It was fairly predictable and boring and I would've enjoyed it more if it wasn't there at all.

I definitely can't compare it to there are no saints which was my first Sophie lark novel and made me fall in love with her writing

Oh, brace yourself for this literary masterpiece! I was utterly captivated, unable to tear my eyes away from the brilliantly crafted characters by the talented Sophie Lark. She has officially earned a spot on my instant favorite author list, and her series is pure gold!

Let’s talk about the explosive chemistry between Aida and Callum – it sizzled like fireworks on the Fourth of July! Their banter? Pure perfection, giving the story an electrifying edge. And can we talk about the fact that they actually disliked each other and were forced into marriage? Oh, talk about a rollercoaster of emotions!

Aida is an absolute queen! Her strength and fearlessness stole my heart. This is a woman who knows how to take charge, and I couldn’t get enough of her!

Sophie Lark’s writing style is a spellbinding delight – it never disappoints! Every time I delve into her work, I’m whisked away on an unforgettable journey. Trust me, this book is already climbing the ranks to be one of my top reads of 2023! You don’t want to miss it!

I thought I was going to like this book more than I did. I'm all for a forced proximity, arranged marriage with a badass female protagonist story and this trying to be that. Where this fell short was our FMC Aida who, while she does possess some hand-to-hand skills and know hers way around a gun, is more hotheaded and the spoiled youngest sibling than anything else.
The MMC Callum comes off as more of an overconfident asshole than a powerful, self-assured soon-to-be mafia boss.
The pair constantly vie for the upper hand in their arranged marriage by being cruel to each other including attempting to kill each other, her via poison and him via drowning. The only thing they seem to like about each other is their bodies, and that is very reluctantly.
I think the thing that really disagreed with me was that Aida "discovered" that she was into some kinkier aspects of sex, but only because Callum chose to punish her for one of the perceived slights they were always inflicting on each other. There was definitely not consent, but since she liked it in the end it was okay and Callum got to smirk about getting one over on his wife.
I really like some of the secondary characters, including the siblings of the main characters and wish they had gotten more page time (although I think some of them become the focus in other novels in this series).

I could not put this down, the characters were so well written and wonderful!!!! Sophie Lark is an instant favorite and this series is, without question, a masterpiece!

This was my first Sophie Lark and Mafia romance. Maybe I hyped myself up too much, but I was expecting it to be darker, raunchier, and with more bloodshed.

Summary:
Aida Gallo is the wild child, the youngest and the only daughter of the Italian mob boss of Chicago. Callum Griffin is the oldest and heir to the Irish mafia, who have been battling the Gallos for over three generations. Aida's antics finally go too far when she accidently sets fire to Callum's library. As punishment and a way to unite the rival families, their fathers have a agreed to a wedding. What takes both Aida and Callum by surprise is how quickly they go from sworn-enemies to lovers.

Don't get me wrong, I liked the story and do not regret reading it, but it felt like it should have been longer to tease out some of the details. As it is, I loved the tension when they hated each other and felt they capitulated way too fast to ' I love you'.

The side characters were great and I wished we saw more of the brothers interacting with Callum.

Thank you #NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

🧐 my thoughts:
Why did I wait so long to 1) read a Sophie Lark book and 2) a mafia romance? I need more of these in my life! So good!!

👌🏻what i liked:
Literally from the start, there was excitement in the book. Every chapter there was a reason you didn’t want to put it down. It can be hard to be hooked right from the start, but this was definitely one you can count on to be in it from page one to the very last page. I am still speechless over this one!

🥰 special thanks
Thank you to NetGalley, Sophie Lark, and Sourcebooks Bloom Books for granting me this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Sophie Lark is a new author to me and I wasn't sure what to expect. With a title like BRUTAL PRINCE, I expected something darker going in. But I thoroughly enjoyed BRUTAL PRINCE and found it to be an amazing read. Can't wait to see what happens next.

Reviewed by Annetta Sweetko for Fresh Fiction

https://freshfiction.com/review.php?id=83114

Cal and Aida were a fun couple to read. I enjoyed their banter and the hate vibe at the start was cool. The love story was alright, kinda had its moments, and the plot was average. This book was a nice, short romance with a bit of a good spicy thrown in.

Aida & Callum were explosive together. I’m so obsessed with them . Their banter was everything & i mean everything!! I loved that fact they disliked each other & were forced to get married! I loved Aida because she was strong and fearless a total queen!!

The rivalry between the Griffins and the Gallows is legendary, they’ve been battling for control of Chicago’s underworld for generations. The rivalry is put to the test when Aida, the wildest Gallo is set up with Callum Griffin the heir to the Irish mafia over a misunderstanding.

Callum is all about taming his wild and headstrong bride, but Aida is going to put up a fight. In their struggle for dominance who will win?

My friend @j.j.smeck lives and breathes Sophia Lark and is always raving about her books. So, when I saw that she and some of my other friends devoured Brutal Prince not long ago I told myself that if I could get my hands on it, I would read it. Lucky for me it is being rereleased under the Sourcebooks Bloom publishing house and I was able to grab a copy on @netgalley.

Oh boy I was not prepared for how much I would love this book. I had an idea, but my socks were still blown off. It was so hot! Hot with a capital H. I devoured this book in one setting. I am not always a fan of enemies to lovers, it must be done right for me, oh and this one was. It was perfect. The tension was so real and vibrant and just jumped off the page. The sparks between Callum and Aida could set a forest on fire, and when they came together, oh boy watch out. I loved this entire book until the epilogue. There is a bonus epilogue with this release, though I would have preferred the original ending.

I can’t wait to read more by Sophie Lark and will continue to look to @j.j.smeck for spicy recs.

Thank you so much to the publisher Sourcebooks Bloom Books, @read_bloom and Netgalley @netgalley for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Great book to kick off a series, devoured it in one sitting! Enemies to lovers, arranged marriage, forced proximity, grumpy/sunshine (kinda), badass heroine! Plus to top it off the spice phenomenal. Can't wait to continue with the rest of the series and hopefully catch back up with Callum and Aida. Also lovely to read a mafia book where the main characters actually have good relationship with their family members, and the fathers aren't total abusive pieces of shit.

I absolutely love Sophie lark and her books and writing style . It never fails every time I read something of hers . This is definitely one of my top books of 2023 !!

3.5⭐️ 3🌶️
- MF
- Enemies to Lovers
- Arranged Marriage
- Mafia
- Hate Sex

When I think of baddies in mafia romance I think of Aida Gallo. Strawberries always make me think of her and I can’t help but smile.

Aida and Callum grew up in rival families with years of bad blood between them. After crashing a party ends up with a minor house fire and confrontation , the patriarchs of the family have had enough and arrange for Aida and Callum to be married. To say that water and oil get along better would not be an exaggeration. Although their animosity does lead to some pretty scorching spice. But when faced with a common enemy they find they can work well together and might actually care for each other.

I loved the chemistry between the two of them and the banter back and forth. Neither of them wanted to back down and I loved it.

What I didn’t love was that in the beginning of the book there was a lot of bigotry. I feel like maybe Sophie was trying to emphasize conflict that has been going on for generations, but it still made me a bit uncomfortable.

Aida Gallo is the only girl in a family of boys. Her mother passed away years ago so it’s just been her dad, brothers and herself. They are part of a prominent Italian mafia. Aida, a college student is smart, passionate, protective of the ones she loves, and is very vocal.
Callum Griffin is the heir to the Irish Mafia in Chicago and an up and coming politician. Callum is arrogant, violent, and very dominating.
Aida and her brothers crash a party by the Griffins stealing a pocket watch and starting a small fire to the library. This almost starts a war between the families. Callum and his body guard attacks her brother Sebastian stomping on his knee and put him into the hospital ruining his chance at a scholarship.
There is a Polish Mob trying to take whatever they can, because of this their fathers force Aida and Callum into an arranged marriage as punishment and to bring the families together. The sparks fly immediately, I mean that scene where he punishes her after she feeds him strawberries not knowing how deathly allergic he is to them is crazy. I love how we get to watch their relationship slowly grow from hate to lust to love.
Thank you to Bloom Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. I cannot wait to read many more books by her.

Both the hero and the heroine are from mafia families. Residing in the same city, both mafia families are pitted against each other for the control of the city's underworld. In the current generation, the rivalry arises to great heights when the heroine accidentally set fire to the library of the hero's family to escape after crashing a party with her siblings. There was retaliation and the war between the families would escalate if dire actions weren't taken. To stave off the situation, the hero and the heroine entered a marriage-of-convenience. Thus begins the romance between the hero and the heroine amidst the mafia world.

This is the first book in the BRUTAL BIRTHRIGHT series by Sophie Lark. It features the enemies-to-lovers romance between an older hero and a younger heroine in the dark world of the mafia underworld. This book is a good beginning to the series, though in my eyes it needed a bit more details to the story. I enjoyed the beautiful extras of the book, including the cover that has significance to the main characters. The book also has a good variety of interesting secondary characters, some of which will have future books in the series. Overall, an enjoyable beginning to this Sophie Lark series and I look forward to reading more books in the future from the author.

** Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. All opinions and thoughts in the review are my own. **