Broken Vow by Sophie Lark

★ ★ ★ ★ | 🌶🌶

18+ check TWs

Note: I try my hardest to not include spoilers in my reviews. However, spoilers and how you define a spoiler is subjective. Proceed with caution.

*A special thank you to Netgalley and Bloom Books for early access to this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*

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I have to say, after the last few books, I wasn’t sure this series was for me. But, Raylan and Riona have taken me for spin.

If you would’ve told me while I was reading “Brutal Prince”, that I would end up loving Riona, I wouldn’t have believed you. But, I actually think she’s my favorite character so far. I loved how much of a baddie she was, and the way she was only soft for Raylan. Which is a trope that is stereotypically male.

Don’t even get me started on Raylan. He’s such a dreamboat. The protectiveness and the way that he broke down Riona’s walls made me swoon. I lived for their interactions.

This book, and the series as a whole, is more character driven than plot driven. So, if that’s not your cup of tea, this might not be for you. But, if you love a story with huge character evolutions where plot is more background, this is definitely for you.

I’m so looking forward to finally getting to read more about Sebastian.

Series Ratings:

Brutal Prince— 4 Stars
Stolen Heir— 4 Stars
Savage Lover— 3.5 Stars
Bloody Heart— 3 Stars

Every time I read a Sophie Lark book, I feel like I’m watching an amazing TV show!! The drama is absolutely delectable and the romance keeps you hooked all the way through the story. Add the mafia world into the mix, and you have a rich, heart pounding read! I highly recommend this series to anyone looking to branch into the mafia romance genre with relatable characters and a sizzling romance!

Thank you NetGalley for this arc in return for an honest review.

This was not for me. If I see the words “creamy skin” one more time I will vomit. This mafia book forgot it was a Mafia books for 50% of it. It just wasn’t giving anything at all.

Broken Vow by Sophie Lark is the fifth installment of the Brutal Birthright series. We follow Riona Griffin, a tough lawyer from a mafia family who works hard to make an impact in the world and for her family. Life changes suddenly when a hitman attacks Riona, and she barely makes it out alive. Raylan, a rancher turned soldier, is called in to keep Riona safe while the family hunts for the hitman and individual who planned the attacks.

In Broken Vow, Riona and Raylan are not just intelligent and caring but characters with depth and emotional complexity. Their journey together, filled with challenges and growth, makes for a truly immersive read. The book beautifully balances sweet moments of emotional connection with spicy sexual scenes, creating a perfect blend for a romance novel.

Here are a few additional reasons that I loved this book. I have yet to read the first four books, but I was able to enjoy Broken Vow without a ton of background information. I plan on reading the first four now that I have enjoyed this novel so much. Lark nailed all the tropes I love, which may be a turn-off to other readers, but it was perfect for me. I love the mafia and cowboy romances, and having them set together is fabulous. I am also automatically sold on the grumpy x sunshine and he falls first.

The one negative that stood out was that the storyline was predictable. I was able to call everything that happened. While it was a great storyline and plot, I wanted more from Riona's story.

Overall, I would rate Broken Vow by Sophie Lark a 4 out of 5 stars. If spice, cowboys, and mafia are your favorite things, I highly recommend reading. Thank you to Sophie Lark, Sourcebooks Bloom Books, and NetGalley for a copy of Broken Vow for a voluntary and honest review.

Broken Vow is officially my second favourite in this series, so far! If you love either mafia romance or cowboy romance, this one is both!

Check out my more detailed thoughts below…
Characters: Riona Griffin’s story has been one of my most anticipated since I started reading the Brutal Birthright series. I knew early on I was going to love Riona, in the other instalments she is presented as the workaholic, ice queen sister to Griffin. Being in her head allows the reader to really understand how she balances her fierceness and determination with a whole lot more to it. She’s one of Sophie Lark’s most flushed-out characters, Riona is so focused on taking care of everyone else and her career that she has little left to care for herself. Enter Raylan, her new bodyguard and a bit of a cowboy! I loved him and his family so much, he is a very different hero for this series as he is the first and only one who is not in the mafia directly himself. Rather, he is hired to be Riona’s bodyguard because her life is in danger. He was the perfect counterpart to Riona, ready to match her fierceness.
Setting: The setting is such a fun part of Broken Vow. Early on it is apparent that the city of Chicago is not safe enough for Riona so they must escape to Raylan’s family ranch. I loved the little, small-town cowboy romance inside a larger mafia romance series, it was like an escape inside an escape.
Pacing: Sophie Lark writes these incredibly easy to breeze through books. This series is just so damn bingeable to read, I basically read Broken Vow back-to-back with Bloody Heart in the same night. The pacing is so strong in the first two thirds, due to their length these books often need to be wrapped up rather quickly at the end. Yet I can overlook that in the instalments that really shine bright like this one and Brutal Prince.
Romance: The relationship is very opposites attract, with grumpy sunshine vibes. Riona is the grump, and Raylan is the sunshine. Both characters really push each other because of this and bring out the best in each other. The sex scenes in this book are on another level for this series, with some light BDSM elements for those who are into reading that. Of course, I have always been a sucker for bodyguard romance in each and every form it has come in and this was a great take on it.

Raylan was what Riona needed in her life and vice versa. Even though rhey didn't know it she was a strong FMC which is nice in. story but sometimes that can be a curse and a blessing. Because one finds it hard to let someone else be their strength. This was actually my first read by this author. I was inspired after meeting her at a book event in October.

I loved and enjoyed this book more than I originally expected to. I didn't really like Riona until now, so in the beginning of this book I wasn't a fan of hers. But Riona and Raylan are endgame. I couldn't stop reading this, it was incredibly hard to put down. I was waiting for Raylans story and I very much enjoyed it

Thank you to Author Sophie Lark, Bloom Books & Netgalley for providing me with this review copy. Broken Vow is book 5 in the Broken Birthright series; a mafia family series full of unexpected twists, violence & happily ever afters.

Love a strong, independant woman? What about when she's a badass member of a mafia family who survives an assassination attempt? Riona is such an intriguing character and after seeing snippets of her throughout the series, I appreciated getting to learn more about what makes her tick and why she's determined to prove her worth.

When we're introduced to Raylan; the military x rancher turned bodyguard recommended for Riona by Dante Gallo (past series MC), the instant enemy vibes were 🔥 Raylan is strong in his own right, but shifts Riona's Type A rigidity into a strength rather than attempting to change who she is. Their personalities equally clash and complement which was a lot of fun to read!

I'll be continuing the series with the final book and then moving on to binge the rest of the Author's series! I highly recommend for anyone who likes a mafia 🔥 romance!!

I so wanted to read more about Rayland and Riona now we got their story. Riona finds herself in a dangerous situation, Dante calls Rayland and assigns him as her bodyguard. Their connection is intense, their interactions make you feel the sexual tension between them. I love Riona so much, she is a strong, independent, and intelligent heroine. The book is narrated by the very talented Wen Ross, his accent is brilliant for Rayland, and P.J. Morgan did also f fantastic job with the audiobook, I can say I have enjoyed the audiobooks of this series more than just reading, it gives you a different experience so I totally recommend them.

I was in love with how Sophie Lark was writing this series of mafia family falling in love but adding the cowboy element to the story?...makes me wish she wrote a whole series of cowboy romances, I don’t know if she already did but I plan to read all her backlist
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Raylan and Riona blew my mind, they were incredible together and every time they interacted they left me addicted to continue reading more
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Riona is the middle child of the Griffin family, a workaholic lawyer who handles contracts and family businesses for the Griffins and the Gallo´s
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When a hitman comes after her, Dante Gallo gets her the perfect solution, his former army partner Raylan Boone
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Raylan had already seen Riona and despite her beauty, it was her strength and bossy attitude that he couldn't get out of his head
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As he tries to keep her safe and spends every day together, the attraction grows and Raylan will do everything possible to keep her safe and stop the hitman.
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I love this edition with the illustrations of the characters and that cover is so cute that I want to have the entire series in my library to look at it and sigh remembering its stories
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They are all worth sighing, the most steamy, sexy and romantic scenes full of adrenaline that I have read this year
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Thanks to Sophie Lark and Sourcebooks Bloom Books for give a copy of this beautiful book in exchange for my honest and voluntary opinion

I’ve been looking forward to Riona Griffins story since I read Brutal Prince, and she stood out there for me as a character. She was a serious, workaholic lawyer who could be a b!tch and seemingly was envious of her older brother who would claim leadership of their family simply because he was a man no matter she was probably just as capable if not more so than him. Her role in the family would working on all their legal matters at her uncle’s firm. When there is an attempt on her life, her overprotective family bring in a friend of Dante Gallo’s to protect her. Raylan Boone is her complete opposite, blue jeans to her Armani. When the assassin escalates his attacks on Riona, Raylan reacts by removing her from the danger zone and taking her home to his family ranch in Tennessee where the city girl is definitely a fish out of water but somehow, she manages to fit right in with his family and somehow becomes a slightly softer character despite the danger hanging over her. Of course, things getting seriously hot and steamy between them when Raylan lets his dominant cowboy side loose on her with a riding crop in a barn would be enough to make any girl relax and forget her troubles.

Broken Vow did not disappoint me. I loved the whole bodyguard/protectee trope and when you take into account that the hero and heroine were so different with absolutely nothing in common, well that just added to the tension between them. I also loved seeing a different side of Riona’s relationship with her brother. The villain of the piece was a bit predictable, but the overall story had enough twists to keep me engaged from the start. Definitely my favourite book in the series.

There wasn't a lot of development in this book, but I had fun. Riona and Raylan work well together. Seeing her with his whole family was really cute. I also need a short story or something about Bo and Duke.

Thank you NetGalley and Bloom books for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.

I was really excited about this one because most people said it was their favorite of the series. Unfortunately that wasn’t the case for me. I enjoyed the first few chapters a lot. The opening chapter was very captivating, as were a lot of the action scenes.

I didn’t like the FMC. Her personality wasn’t “attractive” for me personally, and I had a hard time connecting with her. I did enjoy the MMC, though I wouldn’t say he was a stand out.

The storyline kept my attention. The spicy scenes didn’t work for me, I felt the word “c*ck” was overused. I checked, 56 times.

I did guess the big reveal at the end as soon as the person was introduced in the story, though the way they were revealed (and the following scenes) was entertaining.

All things considered, I’m glad I read it but it wasn’t a favorite for this series.

A predictable, but engaging, romance novel. Raylan and Riona definitely have a lot of chemistry and it’s impossible not to pull for this couple to fall in love. I love that the novel has a playlist and cues while reading for specific songs. That really added to my reading experience. The sex scenes are very spicy and also a bit cringey, especially the scene in the barn. There’s one sex scene with such bad timing, I almost DNF’d Broken Vow. However, I am glad I stuck with it and overall enjoyed this bodyguard romance. Even though Broken Vow is a part of a series, it can be read as a standalone novel (it was for me).

This has got to be one of my top read this month!!!!! Riona and Raylen are my new favorite book couple❤️ The plot and the spice in this book were “chefs kiss”. I will definitely be recommending this to my other bookish friends.

📖 𝘽𝙧𝙤𝙠𝙚𝙣 𝙑𝙤𝙬 𝙗𝙮 𝙎𝙤𝙥𝙝𝙞𝙚 𝙇𝙖𝙧𝙠

"𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳. 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘭 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘦𝘭𝘴𝘦."

Riona Griffin is the resolute and strong willed lawyer of her Irish mafia family. She has built a wall around her heart to keep anyone from getting too close. When someone hires a professional hitman to kill her, her best friend Dante and her older brother Callum enlist Raylan to protect her. Raylan is a cowboy who served with Dante and will do everything in his power to keep her safe. From their first encounter in Bloody Heart, the heat and tension between them is palpable. Can Raylan keep her safe and break through her walls?

I was so excited for Raylan and Riona’a story. It’s the perfect blend of mafia and cowboy romance! Raylan is such a solid man who lives to protect others. The way he builds his relationship with Riona was perfect! Riona is such a badass woman, she needed someone that could go up against her. This is a hella spicy book full of some kinks! 🥵 My favorite line from Raylan was “OGGGTC” 🫠 (IYKYK)

Spice Level: 3.5 🌶️

The suspense was pretty good overall, but I did guess early on who hired the assassin.

Tropes:
👊🏼 Bodyguard Romance
⭐️ Reverse Grumpy Sunshine
👑 Cowboy x Mafia Princess
🥵 Spicy Romance

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloom Books for my digital copy of the rerelease of Broken Vow so that I could share this honest review! If you love cowboy romances with a bit of a darker side, this story is for you!! 🫶🏼

Broken Vow stands out in this series as it's still got all the suspense and mafia storylines, but adding in a cowboy too? It was perfection for a cowboy romance, I loved the balance of the ranch duties and the romance between the main characters. It was so different than any other cowboy romance in that way.

The suspense storyline was amazing, I saw none of it coming and the assassin was fantastic. I love when the assassin is the best in their field because it makes the suspense that much better.

The romance in this book was so good, as Raylan did a fantastic job at loving Riona in the only way she could handle. I loved their push and pull, and everything about their story.

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

Publication date: December 19, 2023

Broken Vow is the 5th instalment of the Brutal Birthright series by Sophie Lark. I have loved this series so far and this one did not disappoint.

Riona Griffen is the eldest daughter and middle child to the Irish Mafia family the Griffen’s. The previous books detail the interlock and intertwined relationships between the Griffens and Gallos.

Riona is a beautiful, intelligent, iron willed lawyer taking care of all the business transactions for her family. She is referred to as the ultimate ice queen and she doesn’t care. She never wants to get married or have children, rarely stays in a relationship and is hyper focused on her career and moving her practice forward.

After someone nearly kills her in a planned assassination, her family hire a body guard. Not just any body guard but Dante Gallos closest friend and ally Raylan Boone. Dante and Raylan were in the military and he would trust anyone in his care.

Riona hates the idea of having a shadow around her constantly but after another failed assassination, Raylan whisks her away to his ranch in Tennessee where his family lives.

While spending all this time together, they get to know each other and see that they aren’t as different as they may have thought. Can Riona see past the vow she made to herself and finally let love in her life?

I really enjoyed Riona and Raylan’s story! This is a 4 star for me and includes lots of spice!

#NetGalley #brokenvow #sophielark

If you like the bodyguard trope, this book is for you!

The Broken Vow by Sophie Lark follows Riona Griffin, the daughter to an Irish Mafia family in Chicago. She's a lawyer working her way up to partner in her firm when someone tries to kill her while swimming in her apartment building's pool. Riona is very independent and can hold her own but her friend hires her a bodyguard nonetheless and she is very reluctant. Enter Raylan Boone. He's not reluctant about this situation at all! The murder attempts start escalating until Raylan whisks Riona away to his family's farm in Tennessee, where no one would be able to find her, and I think you can guess what happens next haha

I really liked the mystery behind who was trying to kill Riona, Lark did keep me guessing, and there's a final twist at the end! The romance unfurled much faster than I thought it would, Riona is dead set against love but she falls almost immediately with Raylan hardly doing anything!

I have no problem reading books with basically the same plot over and over again if it's done well but this was not one of those books. I can definitely see it working for a lot of library patrons that check out similar titles but it wasn't for me!

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“Sorry, darlin.’ I’m your bodyguard. That means anywhere you go, I go, too.”

🎧enemies to lovers
🎧bodyguard and cold princess
🎧mafia family

I was addicted since the beginning of the book because somehow I identified myself with Riona.

“How attributes are viewed in men versus women. How women are criticized for behaviors that might be seen as virtues in men.”

I loved the main characters, Riona and Raylan, and the way they are just perfect together. I liked to see them grow and develop their true selves and experience new things because of the other.

Well, the plot was incredible and really interesting… I was saying “just one more chapter” like always ahah, because I needed to know more.

I can say that it surprised me a lot, I was not expecting that final discovery at all but I loved it (and felt truly heartbroken).

“Takes a lot more than a plate of breakfast to feed this body, darlin’.”

I really likes this book and I’m excited to read more books written by Sophie Lark. The mystery and romance in her books is just perfect!

So if you like dark romances, with mafia families, trying to murder her and bodyguard trope, you have to read this book!