Mafia Romance

Synopsis:
A dark Swan Lake retelling where the ‘villain’ steals the girl, set in a world of secret pacts, feuding families, and primal obsession.

He’s her curse, but she’s his salvation, and he’ll do anything to keep the ones he loves safe.

Rebellious ballerina Luna Bordeaux may be the darling of the New Orleans elite, but she’s destined to dance in her parents’ shadows. Her twenty-second birthday was supposed to be her escape. One last performance, one necessary breakup, then? Freedom.

Except her white knight of a boyfriend just proposed on stage.

And now her masked stalker has crashed the engagement party…

Orion Fury has protected Luna for years, counting the seconds until he can claim his future wife, honoring a vow made between their fathers decades ago. His discipline has only ever slipped once, but his enemy just crossed the line. All bets are off, and a night that began with a party ends in kidnapping and murder.

Now Luna is a stolen bride with blood on her slippers and a target on her back, trapped in the wilderness with the man who hunted her. But Orion isn’t the only predator in these woods, and the men coming for her will do anything to stop the Fury-Bordeaux alliance.

Her villain may be the one person she’s determined to hate, but is he the only one dangerous enough to keep her alive?

Review:
“Once again, I blame dark romance books, and maybe the fact this so-called “meet-cute” runs in the family.” (Page 122)

This book had me from the very beginning. Greatly paced with lots of action–both dangerous and dangerously romantic. I loved the Swan Lake tie in and the ballet, and how Luna wants to set herself apart from her mother. There are so many intricate thoughts and feelings of someone trying to find their place and not see themselves through another’s eyes or in another’s shadow that is very relatable. This book also touches on the serious topics of parental loss and mental health disorders, in a respectful and believable manner. As with previous Greer Rivers novels, I absolutely love Masque and that sort of masked connection–masterfully done. A mixture of Phantom of the Opera and Appalachian mountains/being in the outdoors was pure perfection. That being said, while this is a dark romance, there were some aspects that I didn’t personally resonate with regarding certain red bodily fluids. There was also a bit less build up/connection between Orion and Luna than most Tattered Curtain couples have, leaving a little too much potential Stockholm Syndrome. Regardless, a fabulous book, and great seeing the Tattered Curtain couples with their families a bit later in life.

I would recommend this book if you’d like a dark romantic Phantom of the Opera retelling, entwined with ballet (Swan Lake), mixed with the mafia where the villain gets the girl.

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯

Synopsis:
A dark, modern, romantic retelling of the musical classic, Phantom of the Opera.
But this time, the man behind the mask won’t stop until she is his.

She is my muse, and I am her demon of music.

A year ago, I witnessed sweet Scarlett Day’s dark side. She’s been my obsession ever since.

I was content with being her secret. Content with protecting her from afar… until an enemy from my past sets his sights on her.

Our families have a deep history of hatred, and Scarlett is caught in the middle.

Meanwhile, her mind plays tricks on her. When a panic attack goes horribly wrong, I emerge from the shadows to save her.

Now that she’s mine, I can’t let her go.

I’ve mastered the darkness. She tempts me with her light.

But when my mask is gone, will she fear the monster underneath?

PHANTOM is a spicy story set in modern-day New Orleans and a complete STANDALONE in the Tattered Curtain series. Guaranteed HEA.

Author’s Note: All CWs/TWs can be found in the front of the book, the author’s website, or on Goodreads. Mature readers only.

Review:
I love the Phantom of the Opera. I have since I was 13 years old. I’ve liked a few retellings, but this, this blew me away! Firstly, the location and use of French was spot on and absolutely splendid. Rivers did an excellent job of describing an opera house, the costumes, the performances, and what goes into music as well as the musical connection between our phantom and ingenue. The characterizations and descriptions of them, ailments, and distinguishing features was perfect.

Wasn’t sure I’d be alright with the name change but it was spot on, especially the connection between Scarlett’s father’s nickname for her and a certain poser. Seeing how people who believe they have power will do anything and everything in their power to manipulate someone, both because of age and/or gaslighting and how hard it can be to see that and get away was really well written. Recognizing that what you thought you want may not be what actually makes your heart sing is a lesson that not many get until they’re in a position that they can no longer leave to go do whatever would have made them happy, so it was really interesting to see multiple people’s takes on that, and how someone supportive versus controlling reacts.

I loved how our two main characters call to each other, both darkness and light. This is certainly a very hot read, and I thought the spice was absolutely perfect. While their connection is instant, our ingenue can be quite dense and overtly naïve. I do think the characters grew quite a lot during the story, more our Phantom than Scarlett. While I likely wouldn’t want to encourage falling into this type of relationship, I can’t deny that I found this book to be absolute perfection, and may have cried when it was over because I wanted more.

This book was everything I wished POTO the musical gave you; the spice, the tension, the desire. I highly intend to read more of Greer Rivers’ novels, if this is any indication of how brilliant she is.

Edit to add (January 4, 2022): I love how perfectly morally grey our Phantom is, as well as what he means by she’ll sing only for him.

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯

Amy S. Brown

Review of Unveil by Greer Rivers

Review of Phantom by Greer Rivers