Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher for the eARC!

I love Sophie Larks writing, so it’s a no brainer for me to rate this 5 stars! The way she writes makes you captured by the first chapter. The forbidden love trope really makes this a top read for me as well. And even though that this series is it’s own, it’s interconnected with her other mafia series which I love.

J'avais lu ce roman il y a 3 ans et j'étais curieuse de me replonger dedans, je n'ai pas été déçue !

En bref, ce premier tome nous entrainde à Kingmakers à la suite de Leo, Anna et Dean. C'est la guerre entre les mafias, j'ai adoré la façon dont l'autrice nous fait vivre leurs relations, les hauts et les bas et les caractères entiers de nos héros. Leo et Anna se connaissent depuis toujours donc leur relation est très forte et quand les choses finissent par exploser, c'est forcément de manière violente. Dean vient se placer au milieu de tout ça, il a un caractère vraiment spécial et je ne sais toujours pas si je le déteste ou si je lui laisse le bénéfice du doute... On ne s'ennuie pas une seule seconde, les événements s'enchainent rapidement et le final est pour le moins intense. Je suis curieuse de lire le second tome (sur des personnages différents).

How have I never read a Sophie Lark book before now? This was soooo incredible!!

I was so hooked and captivated from start to finish! I loved the story and the dynamic between Leo, Dean and Anna!!

I loved learning about the school and how it all works!!

I can’t wait for the next book! I wish I had it now because I believe Sophie describes this book series as more of a Tv Show and she’s so right! And with that I love to binge a good tv show so GIVE ME GIVE ME GIVE ME PLEASE!!

love sophie lark's writing so much. i love this new series and all the characters are just so likeable. a quick spicy read i couldnt put down!

4.5 stars.
I devoured this book. I really enjoyed the storyline, the characters and just how different the story was to other books.

Kingmakers is an Academy for Mafia kids to go and learn the tricks of the trade to then take over for their parents in the near future. The story is based around Leo and Anna and their relationship (technically cousins, but also not?!?), its about their growth as young adults and finally being able to tell each other what they really mean to each other.

I thought the character development was great. First reading about Leo I felt he was cocky (no pun intended!) and arrogant, but the way he grew throughout the book was - chefs kiss.

This was my first read from this author - although I do have a few of her books in my TBR pile, and I will definitely be devouring them too.

Oh my goodness! This was so much fun to read. I live the dark undertones, the spice and the characters. The writing is almost cinematic which gives the book a nice reading flow. Sign me up for book number two!

2.5 stars. I just didn't understand the need for a 3rd POV, when it's not part of the couple. I understand wanting to introduce the character for future stories, but I feel like it was unnecessary. Overall, enjoyed it, I was happy to have glimpses of the OG characters and see how parenthood treated them.

I am a big Sophie Lark fan. She’s one of my go-to slump buster authors. I have been excited for this next generation series and how it mashes up her Brutal Birthright and Underworld series.

It started out a little too NA for me. It definitely was a smidge too long. But by the second half, I was in it for the tension and the triangle and the what’s next. Even with a slower start, it has me itching for book two!

I always finish any Sophie lark book in less than 24 hours!! As soon as I pick them up I get sucked into the world!

Wow I love this universe SO MUCH! The fact that Kingmakers Academy is Hogwarts for mafia kids, is everything I want and more!

This was such a great start to the Kingmakers series! With every chapter I was on the edge of my seat, waiting for more. I really like Anna and her character—how incredibly strong and powerful she is. Leo was so charming and sweet, and I loved his development over the course of the story.

Without spoiling anything…I really got myself invested in one of the MMCs being the right guy for our FMC and then was totally shocked to find out that noooooo he was not haha. It was an absolute emotional and relationship rollercoaster for me. I thought I knew who the right guy to choose was and boy was I wrong. It was a fun story, I liked the academia setting on an isolated island but I felt like the actual school part and different factions could have been expanded a lot. The story was completely revolved around the love triangle and I feel like the academy could have been much more flushed out, but overall it was good. Lark is a good author and I enjoy her writing. I only read “Ivan” before starting this series and thus far haven’t come across anything that makes me think I’ve missed anything by not finishing that series first. I think they could be read independently if wanted. This book at least doesn’t need any books before it to understand.

Sophie Lark's writing makes me feel like Goldilocks. That author's writing is a little too this, that author's writing is a little too that, Sophie Lark's writing is juuuuuust right.

I hesitated to read the Kingmakers series because I didn't believe all the "Hogwarts but make it mafia" claims. Surely, those two worlds just don't make any sense. How can all these rival family members be in the same school and NOT destroy each other? Don't they all now know each other's secrets, their tells, their weaknesses? Well, I was wrong. Somehow, Sophie makes it believable. And not just believable, but addictive. I can't wait to get into the next book immediately. T

The trials found in this story were fantastic. I loved that there was a balance of conflict within the relationship but also outside of it. Sometimes yes, I do want to read a book that purely focuses on the relationship. But sometimes I want to read a book with competitions, alliances and rivals, secrets and lies, debauchery and shenanigans.

If you were dragging your feet on starting this series after the Brutal Birthright series, quit that. Learn from my mistakes.

Thank you to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books for a digital advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Love the artwork 👌 An interesting book with children of the mafia attending college to learn how to rule. I haven't read the other books by the author, but there's several hints of many backstories of Anna, Leo, and Dean's parents. Anna and Leo are sweethearts. Their chemistry and each other’s understanding is great. Dean's story must be for another book. I enjoyed this friends to lovers theme. Recommended for the romance fans. One star for the art. Beautifully drawn. Thanks a lot to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC.

This was the longest nothing happening romance book I have ever read. I am a bit upset because it gives harry potter but adults vibes.. that dark academia world.. which maybe actually isnt my vibe since I also didnt care for Zodiac Academy. This world is about the kids of mafia leaders finding their way into their own kingdoms. It was just slow and unneccarily long.

Year One is a dark contemporary romance that takes place in a college of sorts specifically for those in mafia families. It is told through three different POVs - Anna, Leo, and Dean. This was a smart, strategic choice on Lark’s part as all three POVs were necessary to understand all the aspects of the story. If Dean’s POV had been left out, there would’ve been too many missing plot holes for readers. I don’t particularly enjoy love triangles but this was fascinating to watch play out since there were aspects of both MMCs that I didn’t love. I really enjoyed Anna’s character and thought she was really well developed as well as an interesting juxtaposition between the dancer side and mafia heir side. Additionally, I liked the side characters Leo and Anna surrounded themselves with. They added a much needed balance to the intensity between Anna, Leo, and Dean. I also found the entire set up of the Kingmakers school to be interesting. It’s broken down into mafia roles and the classes are targeted based on their future role: Heirs, Accountants, Spies, and Enforcers. The other element I really enjoyed was the tournament held between the different classes. While the outcome was predictable, I found the challenges themselves to be interesting. Overall, I found the story interesting, and I’m excited to see how the next book plays out.

What in the world. This just was not for me. Such whiny and childish characters. I was not a fan of any character or of any plot point.
The thing that earned the 2.5 was the world and the school. A very interesting concept and I enjoyed the mafia/mob world. That’s it though y’all. No thank you :)

THE HEIR (Kingsmaker) by Sophie Lark
Sophie Lark has delivered a very solid, well written new series that is totally intriguing, this is the story of Kingsmaker where the kids of the mafia go to learn how to be ready to take over the family business. Wow! This is dark, gritty, captivating, angst filled, with plenty of danger, deception, twists, turns, suspense, mystery, and plenty of intensity. This story is told in three points of view, Leo Gallo, Anna Wilk and Dean (Dmitry) Yenin. I highly recommend this story to everyone. Sophie has such a vivid imagination and she comes up with very special books. I love that this is following the next generation. This is a definite 5 stars since I can’t give it 10.

I absolutely love Sophie Lark she is always a vibe. Every one of these mafia books I eat up. She does it to me every time


This one is no different *I did read this one when it was a different title* but a reread is always a plus with Sophie.
Kingmakers the school not for the bad kids but kids of the bad people. & it has the coolest feel. If only my parents weren’t such squares, right :P
Anna & Leo are end game goals and I love the bff to lovers trope. While part of me wanted to root for Dean I knew where we were going. But that’s okay because I can not wait to get to his story later in the years.

I had a great time reading this. It's the book 1 in the series and the characters were well drafted and penned to introduce to the readers. The plotline was well paced and written well. I finished it in two sittings, thus I can easily say I enjoyed reading it and excited to read the next part now.

Drama, drama, drama!

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/5 (rounded up for Goodreads and Netgalley).

At a glance:
▪️Next gen! (I do recommend reading the Brutal Birthright series first).
▪️Mafia families
▪️Love triangle (three POV’s)
▪️Childhood friends to lovers
▪️Elite college setting
▪️Slow burn romance
▪️Explicit 🌶️

My thoughts:
📍I love a good next gen series and this did not disappoint! The little nods to and cameos from the Brutal Birthright characters were epic. By this book, the world has real depth.

📍Though this is a next gen series, the setting is totally different and I appreciated that. The isolated, elite college for the children of the world’s most powerful mafia families was original. I did find the concept a little bit outside of the realm of believability but it’s fiction, I can forgive that.

📍I loved the three main characters. I felt they were each fleshed out well. I clearly understood their motivations and individual natures.

📍I enjoyed the fast pacing of this book. Something dramatic, violent or sexual was always happening making for book worth binging!

📍I liked the romance. It was clear from the beginning that the childhood best friends, Anna and Leo, would be our end game pairing but the added obsessive interest Dean had for Anna definitely upped the stakes. While I did like having Dean’s POV I thought it took up a bit too much page time and detracted from Anna and Leo’s romance. I think I would have felt more invested in their relationship and titillated by their chemistry had Dean been less in the forefront of the story. That being said, it did make me keen on Dean’s future book.

📍As with all Sophie Lark books, I love love loved the music suggestions and character art incorporated in the story!

📍Will I carry on with series? Absolutely. Would I recommend Sophie Lark to new readers? Absolutely.

Other: Thank you to Sophie Lark, Sourcebooks Bloom
Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

I absolutely loved this book by Sophie Lark. She is a favorite author of mine. This is the first book of the series. The bar was set high for the second generation/children of the previous mafia romance series!! It has not disappointed! I was completely invested and immersed in the storyline. I was holding my breath, and ready to throw my Kindle several times! My heart was pounding, my anxiety high. This was a slow burn, friends to lovers, triangle genre and had me tied up in knots. I typically hate triangles, but this one just grabbed at me! I cannot wait for the next book!

Thank you NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books for the ARC of this book. This is my voluntary and honest review.