I was really excited for this book because of all the great reviews I’ve seen… but it fell short for me. Firstly, as a reader, we never actually saw the development of the relationship. We saw the hatred and the attempted murder when then suddenly they save each other and now they’re in love?? There was hardly any wholesome moments between the couple so it’s a bit jarring when suddenly they love each other. Both characters made me mad and I feel that they were lacking depth. Also any time Cal mentioned that he kíłłed people, I was just confused. They live in Chicago, he’s rich and running for alderman and then suddenly he’s a “gangster” too? It felt more like a Wattpad book than I would have liked. All in all, I was a bit disappointed.

I don’t like mafia tropes
I find this trope offending and shallow my opinion
Said so tho was a nice captivating read with smut and nice banter
Enjoyed this
Thanks net galley for the Arsc
Ps this is an arranged marriage I could not resist

I'll be honest, I'm new to the world of dark romance, but I still feel like this is pretty light in comparison to what's out there. Callum and Aida are the true definition of enemies to lovers, seeing as they're actively trying to kill each other throughout the first half of the book. Sadly, I didn't find the progression to lovers to be very convincing. With how much they hated each other I think the book needed to spend more time in that transition phase. I spent much of the book just feeling "meh" about the characters and the storyline because it just seemed like something was missing.

Aida's fiery, rebellious attitude compared to Callum's icy, structured one was so fun, and one of the biggest redeeming factors about the book. The spice is frequent and detailed, but just like the rest of the book, sometimes it just felt like something was missing. There are also illustrated photos throughout the book, which at first was fun and exciting, but eventually it felt like it took away from my enjoyment of the story. The characters didn't match what I pictured in my head even a little bit and it really threw me off.

I think this was a fun read, and the plot and characters have a lot of potential. Unfortunately I think it suffers from mostly "telling" rather than "showing" and the character development falls short because of it. Not sure if I'll carry on with the series.

Brutal Prince was originally self-published, and was recently picked up by @read_bloom and republished on 7/25/23. Thank you to the publisher for my advanced reader copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Super quick read. Had just enough spice. Definitely think I’ll pick up the sequels.

I did think it felt a little rushed especially Callum and Aida’s relationship and I wish it was drawn out just a little bit more.

This was my first Sophie Lark book, but I do have her other books downloaded and ready to be read. I felt like I was in the world of Brutal Birthright and I was ready to fight for both families. I loved the banter between Callum and Aida, and I loved that it didn't end when they fell in love. I love when writers keep the banter even when the MCs fall in love and Lark did it perfectly. Plus I loved how they both challenged each other and grew together. I will be picking up the next book ASAP.

thank you, NetGalley for letting me read this book in exchange for an honest review

Rating: 3.5/5

Honestly, this book is pure chaos in the best way. Is this my new favorite series? Probably not but the pure ride of this read kept me so entertained.

Aida is a firecracker, my god the strawberries! I enjoyed the ride of those two finding their way. I’m a big fan of an arranged marriage/marriage of convenience and I love the add of enemies to lovers. I would say this is dark romance light.

This one was ok. It's the first book I've read by Sophie Lark but I would be interested in trying something she has done. This one a little on the slow side and felt very indie. Even though it's from bloom books. Which wasn't bad per se. I think that the story and characters needed a little more work as there were parts where their relationships felt forced and not fluid. And the story felt kind of slow and the writing didn't feel like other books I've read that this type. Overall I did enjoy it for the most part and would recommend this to others if I think they would enjoy it.

Thank-you to Net Galley, Bloom Books, and author Sophie Lark for an ARC of this book. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to finish the ARC before it released. However, I purchased a copy and read the book!
I loved this book! First, make sure you check any triggers before you read this book.
What did I love the most about this book: was the way Sophie Lark wrote their characters. The characters were bigger than life but yet down to earth and I felt they were truly equals. The chemistry was hot between the two.
The story opens with Aida and Callum. Aida sets Cal's family's library on fire and Cal gets revenge. From there, a wedding is arranged and both are tested at the beginning of the marriage.
Towards the middle and end of the book-you can see that they balance each other out.
I highly recommend this book!

I really enjoyed my first Sophie Lark book! I do wish that we could’ve gotten more on page development in terms of Aida and Callum falling for each other, because to me it felt like they fell in love a bit abruptly. Overall though, this was a really fun enemies to lovers arranged marriage, especially during the first half. I’m looking forward to reading more from this author.

**thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-arc in exchange for an honest review**

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for providing me this Advanced Readers Copy of Brutal Prince by Sophie Lark!

Sophie Lark is hands down one of my favorite authors. Brutal Prince is excellent. I was instantly addicted and my love for mafia romances was born. Aida is my absolute favorite character. She kicks ass, takes names, has your back, speaks her mind and never apologies. This book is a true enemies to lovers and I ate it up! Highly recommend reading!!

i was so excited for this to be my first mafia romance… but it was such a disappointment, especially because i love all of the tropes included.

Brutal Prince just did not deliver. it was weird, i didn’t understand what the point was, how the characters bonded when everything was just explained to have happened and happened so fast. the only scenes that were played out were the smutty or fighting scenes. we don’t even get slow burn, don’t have any character development, no interesting interactions, and the characters were so flat and immature.

i love an arranged marriage trope but this was just… not great. the reasons behind it was out of the blue and doesn’t make sense. and where is the enemies to lovers?? they literally fall in love in a day basically.

I've heard so many good things about Sophie Lark which made me so excited to read this book!! And although I didn't completely love it, I can definitely understand why people love this book.

I loved the beginning of this book! The characters were interesting and I really enjoyed learning their dynamics, especially towards the family war/drama! It's also a quick and easy read, and super fast paced!

I would have liked a little more development in the transition from enemies to lovers, Aida and Callum go from despising each other to completely trusting and falling in love, very quickly! But with that being said, I am a sucker for a slow burn romance.

I think the plot could have been fleshed out a little more too, by that I mean that any time there's a plot twist it gets resolved very quickly, so there's no build up of tension to really sink your teeth into.

Overall, I'd say this was a decent mafia romance book and definitely worth checking out if you're interested/heard about the author!

Two powerful factions of the Chicago underworld find themselves embroiled in an impending war that started with a little fire, a little theft, and crashing a little party.

Callum Griffin is the eldest brother of the Griffin crime family. He’s running for alderman and focused on his future. He doesn’t have time for games or relationships. Aida Gallo is the youngest sibling of the Gallo crime family. She’s not quite sure what she wants out of her life except that she wants to be more involved in the family business.

When the Gallo siblings decide to crash a Griffin party, none of them are prepared for the events that are set into motion. Aida’s decisions that night lead to a marriage between the families meant to prevent a war and make amends. Aida and Callum’s nuptials become the talk of the town. What no one sees is the hatred brewing between the couple.

This book had it all. Banter between the characters. Lots of action. Twists and turns. And so much steam! This book was spicy! Thoroughly enjoyed the love story between Aida and Callum. Can’t wait to read the rest of the series!

The first half of the book was addictive and I was captivated. I adored Aida and Callum, their banter, tension, was everything!

I really enjoyed Aida's relationship with her brothers, despite the fact that we didn't get to witness it as much as I would have liked. Their friendship, laughs, and obvious love for each other was just so good!

The second half was... alright. I was so engrossed in Aida and Callum's love that I didn't care about the Polish gangster or the Oliver drama. It was fairly predictable and boring and I would've enjoyed it more if it wasn't there at all.

I definitely can't compare it to there are no saints which was my first Sophie lark novel and made me fall in love with her writing

Oh, brace yourself for this literary masterpiece! I was utterly captivated, unable to tear my eyes away from the brilliantly crafted characters by the talented Sophie Lark. She has officially earned a spot on my instant favorite author list, and her series is pure gold!

Let’s talk about the explosive chemistry between Aida and Callum – it sizzled like fireworks on the Fourth of July! Their banter? Pure perfection, giving the story an electrifying edge. And can we talk about the fact that they actually disliked each other and were forced into marriage? Oh, talk about a rollercoaster of emotions!

Aida is an absolute queen! Her strength and fearlessness stole my heart. This is a woman who knows how to take charge, and I couldn’t get enough of her!

Sophie Lark’s writing style is a spellbinding delight – it never disappoints! Every time I delve into her work, I’m whisked away on an unforgettable journey. Trust me, this book is already climbing the ranks to be one of my top reads of 2023! You don’t want to miss it!

I thought I was going to like this book more than I did. I'm all for a forced proximity, arranged marriage with a badass female protagonist story and this trying to be that. Where this fell short was our FMC Aida who, while she does possess some hand-to-hand skills and know hers way around a gun, is more hotheaded and the spoiled youngest sibling than anything else.
The MMC Callum comes off as more of an overconfident asshole than a powerful, self-assured soon-to-be mafia boss.
The pair constantly vie for the upper hand in their arranged marriage by being cruel to each other including attempting to kill each other, her via poison and him via drowning. The only thing they seem to like about each other is their bodies, and that is very reluctantly.
I think the thing that really disagreed with me was that Aida "discovered" that she was into some kinkier aspects of sex, but only because Callum chose to punish her for one of the perceived slights they were always inflicting on each other. There was definitely not consent, but since she liked it in the end it was okay and Callum got to smirk about getting one over on his wife.
I really like some of the secondary characters, including the siblings of the main characters and wish they had gotten more page time (although I think some of them become the focus in other novels in this series).

I could not put this down, the characters were so well written and wonderful!!!! Sophie Lark is an instant favorite and this series is, without question, a masterpiece!

This was my first Sophie Lark and Mafia romance. Maybe I hyped myself up too much, but I was expecting it to be darker, raunchier, and with more bloodshed.

Summary:
Aida Gallo is the wild child, the youngest and the only daughter of the Italian mob boss of Chicago. Callum Griffin is the oldest and heir to the Irish mafia, who have been battling the Gallos for over three generations. Aida's antics finally go too far when she accidently sets fire to Callum's library. As punishment and a way to unite the rival families, their fathers have a agreed to a wedding. What takes both Aida and Callum by surprise is how quickly they go from sworn-enemies to lovers.

Don't get me wrong, I liked the story and do not regret reading it, but it felt like it should have been longer to tease out some of the details. As it is, I loved the tension when they hated each other and felt they capitulated way too fast to ' I love you'.

The side characters were great and I wished we saw more of the brothers interacting with Callum.

Thank you #NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

🧐 my thoughts:
Why did I wait so long to 1) read a Sophie Lark book and 2) a mafia romance? I need more of these in my life! So good!!

👌🏻what i liked:
Literally from the start, there was excitement in the book. Every chapter there was a reason you didn’t want to put it down. It can be hard to be hooked right from the start, but this was definitely one you can count on to be in it from page one to the very last page. I am still speechless over this one!

🥰 special thanks
Thank you to NetGalley, Sophie Lark, and Sourcebooks Bloom Books for granting me this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review!