The Camorra Chronicles

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1. TWISTED LOYALTIES by Cora Reilly

SYNOPSIS

Fabiano was raised to follow in his father’s footsteps as Consigliere of the Chicago Outfit – until the man abandons him. Left to fend for himself, Fabiano is forced to fight for a place in the mafia world. As a ruthless street fighter, he quickly earns his place as the new Enforcer of the Las Vegas Camorra – a man to fear.

Leona wants to build a decent life for herself, away from her drug-addicted mother. But soon she catches the attention of a dangerous man – Fabiano Scuderi. Staying out of trouble and living a normal life are near impossible with a man like him. Leona knows she needs to avoid Fabiano, but men like him aren’t easy to shake off. They always get what they want.

Fabiano cares about only one thing: the Camorra. But his attraction to Leona soon puts his unwavering loyalty to the test. Is Leona worth risking everything he’s fought for, and ultimately his life?

BOOK REVIEW

Twisted Loyalties is the spin-off series of the Born in Blood Mafia Chronicles one and a decent introduction to the new Camorra Chronicles. The book is deliciously slow-burn and sexy and focuses on Fabiano, the younger brother of Aria, Gianna, and Liliana, but now a part of the Camorra (why? Well, you should definitely read the original series first in order to understand the general dynamics and story flow along with the development of characters, despite the fact that the novels can be read as standalones).

“There was only him...That man. He was mine. I had never been worth anything, but one look from him made me feel like the center of the world.”

Fabi was amazing! He was dangerously void and even hollow in certain aspects but magically irresistible. There was something magnetic in his nature that drew me to his character. So, I cannot really blame overly innocent Leona for falling for the ruthless enforcer of the Las Vegas Camorra.

Something about her trustful innocence drew me in like a moth to the flame. It was the thrill of the hunt, no doubt. I’d never hunted someone like that.

Leona was the damsel in distress. Drug-addicted mother and alcoholic gambler as a father. No so desperately needed money, no decent background, no bright future… Only a kind soul and a pure heart, neither in demand nor of much help in bloody Las Vegas. At least not until Fabi…

There’s not much I can share not spoiling the plot. I’ll be honest here, there was nothing super special in this book but it was still an enjoyable read. The fans of the Born in Blood Mafia Chronicles will be more than happy with Fabiano’s love story.

2. TWISTED EMOTIONS by Cora Reilly

SYNOPSIS

Nino Falcone is a genius and monster. As the right-hand man and brother of the Capo of the Camorra, his lack of feelings is a blessing, not a curse – until his brother asks him to marry for the sake of the Camorra.

Kiara Vitiello, a cousin of the Capo of the New York Famiglia, is chosen to marry Nino Falcone to prevent war with the Camorra, but what she hears about Las Vegas makes her veins pulse with terror. After her father betrayed his Capo and paid with his life, her family thinks marriage is her only chance to bring honor to her name, but only Kiara knows she’s a faulty prize given in return for peace.

A man incapable of emotions and a woman scarred by the past – an arranged marriage with the potential to unite, or destroy…

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BOOK REVIEW

In Twisted Emotions, I started my true journey with the infamous Falcone brothers.

“She fought the demons of her past and made me realize that I, too, was shackled by memories, controlled by something I thought I had put past me.”

Nino Falcone, a tortured soul with a traumatic past that blocked out his emotions and made him a logical to an extreme man, and Kiara Vitiello, an innocent girl who fell prey to cruel idiots of ‘adults’ surrounding her, were so precious. I absolutely loved the slow burn of them getting to know each other and discovering their feelings along the road of their arranged marriage. I also loved seeing these two characters come together despite the differences in their human nature and grow as a real couple, not a pretend-to-be one. The chemistry was definitely there. The interactions felt tender and not rushed at all given the delicate situation they were in together (SPOILER and TRIGGER WARNING! Cora Reilly did an amazing job describing the feelings and possible physical reactions of a victim of sexual assault and abuse, in my opinion). Nino was so understanding and supportive… Amazing!

“We had both been scarred by our past, but together we fought our demons and came out as the champions. Never had a victory felt better.”

This book deliberately focused on the relationship development between Nino and Kiara for the most part, but there was also a bit of mafia action thrown in between. Not going to lie, the story itself felt somewhat incomplete, sufficiently lacking Nino’s individual character development... But I guess, it was acceptable since there’s one more book, Twisted Bonds, with Kiara’s and Nino’s POVs.

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3. TWISTED PRIDE by Cora Reilly

SYNOPSIS

Remo Falcone is beyond redemption. As Capo of the Camorra he rules with a brutal hand over his territory – a territory the Chicago Outfit breached. Now Remo is out for retribution.

A wedding is sacred, stealing a bride sacrilegious. Serafina is the niece of the Boss of the Outfit, and her hand has been promised in marriage for years, but kidnapped in her wedding dress on her way to church by Remo, Serafina quickly realizes that she can’t hope for saving. Yet, even in the hands of the cruelest man she knows, she is determined to cling to her pride, and Remo soon understands that the woman at his mercy might not be as easy to break as he thought.

A ruthless man on a quest to destroy the Outfit by breaking someone they are supposed to protect. A woman intent on bringing a monster to his knees. Two families that will never be the same.

BOOK REVIEW

“Don’t you think that submitting to my will would make things less painful for you?”
“Yes... But I’d rather take pain than submit to your will, Remo.”

Remo Falcone was such a unique and complex character. I was intrigued by and scared of him all at once. It was fascinating and extremely enjoyable to discover every single twisted facet of his innermost darkness that hid the sins beyond redemption. The Camorra Capo was definitely a crazy asshole but a loyal to the bone one who would bleed and die for the people dear to his black heart. Ever since Twisted Emotions, I knew I never stood a fucking chance and fell really hard for Remo (not as hard as for Luca Vitiello though haha).

Serafina Mione was the strongest female character in the Cora Reilly universe, I think. There was so much more beyond her natural beauty, she was both pure-hearted and strong-willed-and-minded. In every single book in the series, it’s understandable that it takes a lot of courage and determination to love such ruthless people who are used to taking and not giving back. But loving Remo is on a completely different level, and for that alone, I absolutely adored Fina.

We were both caught in an undercurrent, dragging us down into its unforgiving depth, unable to swim to the surface on our own. The only people who could save us only wanted to save one of us and see the other drown, but we were entangled. One of us would have to let go first to reach the surface.

I was seriously obsessed with Remo and Fina, a forbidden but oh so desired union between a fallen angel with burnt wings and a completely black heart and a soulful and prideful angel with innocent blue eyes! What started as a battle of hate and desire soon turned into fatal attraction and overflow of feelings both were unable to either ignore or resist. Serafina was a mafia princess of some sort and thus well aware of the fact that giving in to Remo was an ultimate betrayal of the Outfit and her family (her loving relationship with her twin brother made me smile from ear to ear, I beg for a separate book for Samuel please), but with every day her resolve to fight the supposed enemy crumbled and the defenses lowered, followed by pleasure and pain she’d never experienced before… The chemistry between the two was dangerously explosive! At a certain point, I honestly couldn’t take so much angst and filth any longer…

In conclusion, I must say that Twisted Pride is not for the faint-hearted. It’s my most favourite book in the entire series! Definitely check it out!

4. TWISTED BONDS by Cora Reilly

SYNOPSIS

Can you ever truly leave the past behind in a house full of haunted souls?

Kiara always wanted a loving family she could take care of. She never thought she’d find it with the Falcones.

Nino and Kiara both lost part of themselves in their traumatic childhood. Together they’re trying to recover the missing pieces, but they aren’t the only broken souls in the Falcone mansion; Kiara fears that not all of them can be saved. Determined to protect her new family and the future of her dreams, she’s on a mission to help each of them in her own way, even if it means stacking up secrets.

Four brothers bound together by an unbreakable bond forged in their dark past. If one of them falls, will they all?

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BOOK REVIEW

“Sometimes I feel like my insides are a raging flood of emotions when I look at you, but I don’t mind drowning.”

Twisted Bonds is a continuation of Nino’s and Kiara’s love story from Twisted Emotions, but covers the majority of events of Twisted Pride from a completely different perspective. This time around, I was happy with the character development of both Kiara and Nino, it finally felt complete. They were still pretty much damaged but not completely broken beyond repair. They continued to be the strength of one another, and their love bloomed beautifully, transforming the nature of their relationship yet again. There were so many emotional scenes illustrated and heavy topics discussed in the book.

“Life’s fucking unfair. It wants to crush you, but you can’t let the bitch win. You’ve got to force her to play by your rules.”

I was very happy to see how every character from previous books got an important cameo in this one and really enjoyed seeing how the four brothers managed to face the ghosts of their past and overcome the difficulties together. The change in the dynamics among the Falcones brought their connection to a completely different level. They went through a lot in this book but never lost sight of what was important in life (well, maybe except for Adamo). The family aspect was strong as ever on the foreground. I’m sorry and not sorry to say that the highlight of Twisted Bonds was definitely the relationship between Kiara and Remo (OMG my baby was so precious). It felt significant to get to know Savio and Adamo a little bit better, and that made me really excited about their respective books.

“All of us have experienced horrors in our past but we’ll create a beautiful future together.”

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5. TWISTED HEARTS by Cora Reilly

SYNOPSIS

Savio Falcone has a few non-negotiable rules when it comes to girls. They need to be hot as f*ck.
Spread their legs without much prompting. And leave as soon as the fun is over. Preferably minus any bitching or tears.

With his easy-going bad boy attitude, the last name that rules over Las Vegas and a body to die for, girls have always been at Savio’s disposal. Unfortunately, the hottest girl in Vegas comes with a price Savio isn’t willing to pay. For Savio to get Gemma he’d need to seal the deal and put a ring on her finger. Settling down is out of the question, no matter how hot a piece of ass waits at the altar.

Gemma Bazzoli has had a crush on Savio from the first moment she came face to face with his arrogant smile, but for him, she was always his best friend's annoying little sister—until her hard-earned curves catch even his attention. But Savio likes it easy, and Gemma is anything but. When she’s promised to another man, Gemma resigns herself to the fact that the man she’s wanted all her life, doesn’t want her badly enough. Savio has to decide how much work he’s willing to invest because bending the rules in his usual style might not be enough to get the girl that haunts his wet dreams.

BOOK REVIEW

Twisted Hearts was not what I was expecting…

“Crushing girls’ hearts was practically my special skill set, but knowing I had to break Kitty’s innocent little heart actually caused me a flicker of qualms.”

Savio Falcone was such an unapologetically arrogant ass. He made me want to rip my precious hair out and shout at him for his unacceptable presumptuous attitude. I wanted to just wipe his what seemed to be like a constant smug from his pretty face and slap some damn sense into him, but at the same time, his childish behavior still made me laugh out loud (quite ugly, I must add, mostly because of his ridiculous logic though). Long story short, I wasn’t a fan of Savio at all. Even his supposed ‘redemption’ and ‘maturity’ in the very end felt rather rushed and simply unconvincing…

“Still such a good girl, my Gem. How long would it take for me to lick, fuck and finger that out of her?”

Gemma was an innocent church girl with pretty strong beliefs and some sass in her, but that’s it. I didn’t get a hold of her uniqueness if you may… It felt like Kitty’s infatuation with Savio was the sole indicator of her personality throughout the whole book, while the exploration of her sexuality was the major driving force behind the overall character development.

Even the chemistry seemed a bit off. With Nino and Kiara, as well as Remo and Fina, I could see some solid groundwork and feel tension and progression. With Savio and Gemma, I was honestly bored, well aware of what was coming next…

On the bright side, Twisted Hearts contained the appearance of my oh so beloved characters from previous books (especially my babies, Luca and Remo *heart emojis). But the feature that made me squeal like some crazy lady was the frequent cameo of the kids who instantly brightened the mood. Excuse me, devilish Nevio and angelic Greta? Beautiful Marcella? Do we get a spin-off series with the second generation? Sign me up, please!

In conclusion, I was clearly frustrated with Twisted Hearts, but if you are as invested in the story and characters of both series as me, you don’t want to miss this book.

6. TWISTED CRAVINGS by Cora Reilly

SYNOPSIS

As the youngest brother of the notorious Falcone clan, Adamo grew up surrounded by blood and violence. Drugs soon became his way of coping. Becoming a Made Man like his brothers was his destiny but never his passion. When he becomes the organizer of his family’s successful illegal street races and one of their thrill-seeking drivers, he finally asserts his own path in the harsh mafia world. His purpose isn’t the only thing Adamo discovers on the fuel-soaked roads he calls home…

Dinara Mikhailov is one of the few female race drivers and hard to ignore. Not only because of her flaming red hair and ruthless driving style, but also because the Bratva princess is allowed to drive in enemy territory.

Soon Adamo and she find themselves entangled in a passionate game that goes beyond the race track. Yet, both haunted by events of the past, their dark cravings put everything on the line. As what they crave the most comes with a brutal price.

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BOOK REVIEW

Twisted Cravings was… bad.

I’ve always had a strong sense of protectiveness over Adamo’s character. Throughout all the prior books in the series, he was an interesting mix of glimpses of innocence and less than stellar sides of just being human. And I was so excited to finally see him grow from the youngest Falcone and turn into someone worthy of his name. But Twisted Cravings had different plans for me…

I saw no character development whatsoever. As if there was no build-up for him in previous books at all.

And the romance was fucking cringey and annoyingly repetitive. I felt nothing. NOTHING.

You know how oftentimes you can find ‘I’m not like other girls’ kind of a thing in romances? Twisted Cravings gave out ‘We’re not like our families’ kind of vibes. It was more ‘telling’ than ‘showing’, as well as very descriptive explanations for absolutely everything. Like c’mon, I’m not stupid.

No chemistry. Period.

The end result—I’m just sad.