"Love is the one thing you can't steal, you can't create it, either. It either exists or it doesn't and if it exists, you can't take it by force."

SOPHIA LARK HAS DONE IT AGAIN! I love her. This is a mafia meets beauty and the beast story, and I didn’t know I need that combination!!! Nessa & Mikolaj had an amazing opposites attract trope going on and I ate that stuff up. I love the character development in this book a lot. As well as a lil bits we got of Callum & Aida in the book, from the first book, which made my HEART SO HAPPPPYYY!!! I 100% will be continuing this series. ❤️❤️❤️
Also the artwork added into these books are everything and such a lovely touch!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Publication date: August 25, 2023

Stolen Heir is the second book in the Mafia romance series by Sophie Lark. I read and reviewed the first book a couple months ago.

The Griffins and Gallos have created a tentative truce in the Chicago Mafia underworld. The Griffins are head of the Irish and The Gallos are Italian. After the arranged marriage of Aida (Gallo) and Callum (Griffin) things are quiet on the mafia front but Miko hasn’t forgotten how the two families betrayed him and his father (the head of the Polish mafia).

Nessa Griffin is the youngest of the family and kept protected and away from the brutal life of the family business. Nessa is attending college but her passion is ballet and she has been working with the local ballet company for several years.

In an attempt to get back at the Griffins, Miko arranged to kidnap Nessa and use her as collateral to hurt the two families that betrayed him. After several weeks of being held like prisoner in Mikos home, Nessa finally gets the opportunity to explore the old house she is being held captive. She also gets a chance to spend more time with Miko.

Without warning, both Miko and Nessa start to fall for each other. Nessa is horrified that the person who kidnapped her and is out to destroy her family has also captured her heart. Can beautiful warm hearted Nessa melt the ice around Mikos heart and convince her parents that a marriage pact is the best way to bring all the families together?

This is an enemies to lovers mafia story with a decent amount of spice. Great follow up to the first story and I will definitely be reading the next instalment! This is a four star read for me!

#NetGalley #stolenheir #sophielark

Entertaining, spicy, fast-paced retelling of the Beauty and the Beast in the mafia world. Miko's switch from 'I hate you' to 'I love you' happened too sudden and a bit out of nowhere, the ending of the story is SO tooth-achingly sweet, and I missed the craziness and the humor of the "Brutal Prince", still I'm looking forward to read the rest of the series. By the way, I never knew I need illustrations in my romance books until now, it was such a nice touch to the whole reading experience. And I absolutely enjoyed learning Polish with Nessa.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange of honest review.

Another dark and stormy mafia romance! This one was a beauty and the beast retelling and had me captivated from the very beginning! I think I read this one in a day!

Thank you for the ARC. I just want to say that I loved everything about this story. I'm so in love with Nessa and Miko. Nessa is so sweet and cute. I love how Miko changed for better, how protective and soft he is with Nessa. My girl deserves the best. Only the best.

Their chemistry is chef kiss. I love when Nessa danced for Miko. Awwww, so lovely.

The storyline was good. I love the main characters, the side characters and the hot time between leads, so the final ranking is 5/5.

Beauty and the Beast has been one of my favorite movies since I was a child. This book was such a beautiful retelling of it - it held true to the storyline but was a modern interpretation. The blend of fairytale and mafia was a much better combination than I had anticipated! Usually, I am a mood reader and will jump from genre to genre, but I can already tell that I will be rushing into the next book in this series very quickly....

This was also my first Sophie Lark book and oooooooooh goodness, I can feel an auto-buy author coming on....

I did not read the first book in this series, and I started with Stolen Heir. I do not feel that this hindered my enjoyment of the book in any way and I do not feel like I missed any key aspects of the storyline or characters.

Big thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review!

I mean it's Sophie Lark. What's not to love? This book is amazing and I am so thankful that I was able to read this!

5⭐️

Stolen Heir is a beauty and the beast re-telling, and I loved every page of this book. I'm really enjoying this series and can not wait to read more.

Thank you to Sophie Lark and SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Sophie Lark does not disappoint! This is my third read from her and she continues to surprise me. This author has such a compelling writing style that creates vivid characters you can’t help, but be compelled to love. The storyline of the book also keeps you on the edge of your seat and hoping for the best. We also can’t forget about the dark and angsty chemistry between the main characters, which had me completely hooked from beginning to end. I will definitely be continuing this series by the author! Highly recommend this read to anyone who is a fan of dark, mafia romance books.

Nessa has been kidnapped by Miko, who's hard for revenge because her family killed his father. But he's finding it hard to keep his eyes, and hands off of her.
This enemies to lovers mafia romance is book 2 in the Brutal Birthright series, a Beauty and the Beast loose retelling, and I loved it! I loved how beautiful and complex the characters are, and the development is on point. The burn is slow, but the spice is there! This is the first book I read in the series, and although it can totally be read as a standalone, I enjoyed it so much I'm definitely going back to read the first one as well as the rest of the series!
I received an advance review copy of this book for free and I'm leaving this review voluntarily.

This book was right up my alley. Loved it. I will be reading more and re-reading with my friend! She also enjoys this stuff!

This is dark romance done right. It wasn't dark for the sake of being dark. It was the perfect blend of a mafia romance and a Beauty and the Beast retelling.

After his adoptive father and mentor was killed, Mikolaj vows revenge on the families responsible. He sets his sights on Nessa, the innocent daughter of the Griffins and beloved sister-in-law of the Gallos. He'll be able to strike back against both families by kidnapping her. It's the perfect plan. But what Miko didn't factor on was Nessa's beauty and allure. She may be his prisoner, but she's capturing his heart.

This book was addicting; like seriously addicting. I didn't want to put it down. Stolen Heir was my first Sophie Lark book but it will not be my last. I really enjoyed all the unique ways she included nods to Beauty and the Beast throughout the book. For example, Nessa seeks out a library and then uses the books to secretly learn Polish. And speaking of Nessa, she was surprisingly brave and refreshingly smart. And Miko was strong and decisive. I enjoyed that he listened to both his heart and his gut throughout the book.

I enjoyed this installment of the series but I just wish their romance had been built up a bit more, they really didn't interact that much during her captivity and then suddenly they were in love which made it less believable.

Star Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice Rating: 🌶.5

Sophie Lark’s books are always a good time to read! This series is so dramatic and entertaining and spicy 🥵

I’m absolutely obsessed with Sophie Lark’s works! This book is perfectly aesthetic. Think dark, gothic manor with ballerina beauty and the beast vibes. Super sexy and well written.

This book is so good! I loved book one but this one is even better! I have unlocked a new trope...dark Mafia romance. Loss and shutting yourself out from the idea of love only to be awaken by someone completely unexpected. A true nod to Beauty and the Beast. Sophie Lark is the queen. Thank you for the opportunity to read this!

Stolen Heir by Sophie Lark

“I see her, and she sees me. I was death, and she was life. I thought I’d had stolen her, brought her down to the underworld. All the while she was waking me up. Stirring the blood in my veins. Breathing air into my lungs.”

4 ✨ Review
I really thought it was going to be terrible but I devoured this book in one setting.
The writing - as is usual with Sophie Lark - is engaging and there is plenty of action to hold the reader's interest. She always creates these badass strong female MCs and as a woman, I will always stand by this and say thank you!! The Enemies to Lovers/Beauty and the Beast storyline in this one is a winner.

I loved their push-and-pull relationship, it was so realistic how emotionless Miko was towards Nessa at first, she really was his revenge. I found it charming and intense at the same time. I loved the whole "if you really love something you must let it go" nod to the original story. This definitely is a book I got completely lost in and I loved it. Stockholm syndrome at its finest!

The amount of history research for all the rival mafias in Chicago and attention to detail was great.

Nessa was a total sweetheart, she was just so kind and good-hearted you can't help but fall in love with her, she really grew and developed herself and I pretty much enjoyed reading about it! Loved to see her flourishing and beating her own wings. Miko had a traumatic experience that really changed his life and in turn made him into the emotionless robot that’s just surviving rather than living, until little Nessa falls under his attention, suddenly sparking him back to life.
My only negative point was that I wish we got a few more intimate scenes and conversations during Nessa's captivity where she learns about his history.

This edition comes with some brand-new illustrations by Line M. Eriksen (@linemeriksen) and they were just stunning and incredibly beautiful!

So, if you like: 
- mafia romance 
- forbidden love
- revenge missions 
- Beauty and the Beast  
- dual pov 
- ballet/dancing 
- gothic homes  

This is definitely the book for you but please make sure to read the TW before reading!
 
TW’s: captive/Stockholm syndrome romance, rape, graphic physical violence , suicide, loss of loved one, and kidnapping  
 
Overall this was a really entertaining book! I had a great time reading it and I'm looking forward to seeing the other siblings find love!

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebook Bloom Books for providing this eARC.
This book follows Callum's sister Nessa and the criminal Miko. It's sort of a Beauty and the Beast retelling. I really liked how the characters started to trust each other. Even though they should hate each other.

Everything I want from a mafia kidnapping romance. Sophie Lark held my mind captive from the very start. I will definitely continue reading this series.

I loved this so much and it is definitely my favourite of the series so far. I completely fell in love with this story from the beautiful writing style and intricate, complex characters. I loved the between Miko and Nessa and they reminded me a lot of the 'Devil's Night' characters especially with all the tension. I think if you are a fan of dark romances this will be a massive hit for you and I really recommend, I didn't want to put this down and I can't wait for the next instalment.