Review: Bound by Honor by Cora Reilly

4.5 stars! ***** 

 

Author: Cora Reilly

Title: Bound by Honor (Born in Blood Mafia Chronicles, #1)



While I normally don't enjoy mafia kind of books I loved this one.

There was everything I hate in novels like these. The violence is exused, it's like police doesn't exist  and boys have to kill someone before they even reach puberty. And everyone acts like it's okay, like it's normal - which in their world is, I guess, but still..

While there were all these things and lot more it didn't disturb me as much as it normally does.

Engagement between Aria and Luca is forced and is a mean to end the war between two rivaling "families", so that they can fight against their ever growing enemies.

They get married as soon as Aria reaches her 18th birthday. Luca doesn't force her on her wedding night and even helps her hide the fact. It seems they are getting closer but then she refuses him (yet again) and he goes and cheats on her. His cousin betrayed him and slip Aria a note, that lead her to an apartment where she caught him sleeping with another woman.

At normal novels, this would be either the prologue (the heroine finds that her husband cheated on her, they break up and she finds another playboy who changes his ways only for her) or one of the lasts chapters (it's a misunderstanding, the hero grovels and they made up). But not in this one. Here it only makes Luca and Aria bond.

 There are some really disgusting and nightmare inducing parts:

“I hope you’re hungry,” Luca snarled. “Because I’m going to feed you your cock.”

SPOILER: Someone rufied Aria. An eye for an eye - well, in this case it was more like an eye for a life, because he didn't only lose his jewels, but they killed him too.

And it's also filled with cute, romantic, steamy scenes which makes this book so alluring to me.

Another thing I enjoyed was the progress we see in the characters. Aria transformed from scared
mouse into a brave young woman. Luca on the other hand changes from a ruthless, emotionless murderer into a less ruthless, less emotionless husband/capo/murderer.

“But you are my first choice, Aria. I’ll burn down the world if I have to. I’ll kill and maim and blackmail. I’ll do anything for you. Maybe love is a risk, but it’s a risk I’m willing to take and as you said, it’s not a choice."