I enjoyed the writing and the story flowed extremely well. I loved the characters but right from the beginning I could sense exactly where the story was heading.

My first book by this author, but it won’t be my last as I did enjoy the emotion she puts into her storytelling.

Valeria left Russia for a better life, but what she found wasn’t what she’d hoped. Crime boss Sirvan offered her a life of security, and a salon of her own (even though he controlled it). She lives by his rules and doesn’t love his business practices, but what can she do? When Athena, and undercover cop, takes a job at the salon, a tentative friendship grows to attraction and a dangerous affair. When Athena reveals her true intentions, to take Sirvan down, the betrayal leaves her reeling. She wants a life without Sirvan, but can she trust Athena after her deceit?

I’m a sucker for an opposite sides of the law romance. The added layers of danger and intrigue really appeal to my drama-loving brain. I read through this one in a day and enjoyed it. Valeria’s struggles with security and morals as well as her growing rebellion against her husband provided an interesting character development, and I like that even though it was 3rd person, it was still told kind of Valeria’s point of view, so that, even though we know Athena is a cop, we didn’t know much about her aside from Valeria’s interactions with her. It made for more drama as the reveal is made. Do recommend.

Here is how the story goes. Valeria is married to a crime boss. He must be a crime boss because he owns things, like his wife's hair salon. She loves the money his ‘job’ brings to keep her living a comfortable life.
Athena is an undercover cop. She’s on the hunt for info on Valeria’s husband, Sirvan and working at the wife's shop should give her enough to help the police put him away.
Problems begin when the two women can’t keep to themselves. Valeria cheats on her husband, they run into trouble and don’t know for sure if they’ll even live for another day. That’s it. Not my cup of tea but perhaps I’m just not giving the story it’s due.
ARC via NetGalley/ Bold Stroke Books

My first book by Cathy Dunnell, and she's definitely piqued my interest for any future releases.
I did enjoy A Cutting Deceit, I enjoyed the storyline, but do feel like there was too much revealed in the blurb. I got about 2 chapters in and saw where the story was heading. The storyline itself is decent, with a bit of crime, and a bit of romance., there's chemistry there too with the main characters... I Would absolutely love to see a sequel for this book, it has such a premise for a series.

Anyway, I've given A Cutting Deceit a 3.7 out of 5.

Really good book. Quite a it of crime and drama in this story. I felt that the relationship between Valeria and Althena aka Andrea was really interesting, because there was a lot of deceit on both their parts, so the relationship suffered because of that. The criminals in this story were really bad people and most of the time I was in disbelief, because of some of the horrible things that were happening. The supporting characters were well placed and written to move this story along and sometimes they would push the main characters into impossible situations. I would definitely recommend this book to my friends and family, and I look forward to what's coming next from this author.

I thought the book was written well. it kept my attention. The characters were quite interesting, and I enjoyed it. I would recommend. 4 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for this ARC.

This is a really interesting book which is a little outside the lesfic formula and all the better for it. Because of the blurb, we know that Athena is an undercover cop who takes a job in a hair salon owned by a mob boss but run by his wife. Valeria, the wife, knows her husband is a criminal but tries to keep it separate from her safe little world. That isn’t possible when Athena rocks the boat.

The culture and setting are interesting and the book is well written, if a little slow to start. There is good tension and the love angle feels credible. I would read more from this author.

I was given a copy of this book by Netgalley

Let’s start by saying that the current blurb gives away too much. You could have a little more suspense when just one sentence is changed so I hope that will happen.

Because of the blurb I thought the story would develop differently, it’s either a missed opportunity on the storytelling to go that way or it’s just me and the blurb that messed it up. Valeria is married to a crime boss, what he does exactly isn’t 100% clear, but what we do know isn’t pretty. Valeria knows what her husband does and for years she looked the other way in favour for her own (financial) security and safety. That is until recently. This coincides with the start of a new employee in Valeria’s salon. And here is where the current blurb spoils the story with just a couple words, I’ll refrain from saying anything in hopes of a changed blurb.
This new employee and Valeria have a connection and they start an affair. I don’t like cheating, even if it’s a crime boss who gets cheated on. There is actually very little I do like about this story.

I miss the suspense that I could see happening with just some slight changes here and there. For instance getting Athena’s perspective or even some of Valeria’s clients. We only get Valeria’s third person POV. Instead we are only told about fear, we don’t experience any of it. Even the ending is a bit lacklustre and feels like the author is only telling us things instead of taking you on the journey.

I don’t know, this book seemed to have work for some others so please read more reviews.

This is the first book I've read by this author and I enjoyed it. I did feel as though the story was interesting enough to keep my attention, and I'm glad it did. It was thriller-ish so there's a noticeable tension that builds throughout. I like the characters and the writing. I'd say give it a shot if you're on the fence.

Valeria’s life of security and safety begins to unravel when undercover policewoman Athena starts working at her hair salon. Athena is there to gather information on Valeria’s crime boss husband. Their lives are placed in danger when Valeria and Athena act on their mutual attraction.

A Cutting Deceit is Dunnell’s second published novel and you can see the positive growth in her writing. The story is compelling in the set up to the action that occurs in the last quarter of the novel. The build up of tension is wonderfully orchestrated and drives you to keep the pages turning. Valeria’s personal growth as she removes her blinders to her husband and his businesses is fascinating to read.

A Cutting Deceit is a solid 4 out of 5 star read which definitely walks a different path to romance.

I received a free advance review copy from Bold Strokes Books through NetGalley. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This ARC was provided to me via Kindle, from Bold Strokes Books and #NetGalley. Thank you for the opportunity to preview and review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Fast-paced and easy read. Characters that are more interesting than most.

Athena gets a new job at a salon, working for Valeria. Valeria's husband is a dangerous man and everyone in the neighborhood fears him, including Valeria. As Athena and Valeria spend more time together they find sparks flying in more ways than one but Athena has a secret.
This was a good thriller with a show burn romance. There was a lot of focus on Valeria's husband Sirvan and his various business dealings too really make you dislike him and his employees. I liked the evolution of Valeria's feelings as the book progressed but it was also mentioned that she had been married for 15 years which feels like an awful long time to have been ignoring Sirvan's business. The build up at the end was great though and definitely kept me speeding through to the end. This was the first book I've read by this author and I'd definitely pick up anything she writes in the future.

I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.

Valeria thought marrying Sirvan will get her the security she needs but it’s comes at a price. She only feel like herself running her salon which really own by her husband. Athena gets a job at salon she uncover cop she there gather info on Sirvan and his business take him down. Valeria and Athena forms a friendship that’s turns into something more.

This was ok read but some things fell flat like Athena just really came out nowhere we didn’t get more development on her. I like that I felt Valeria anxiety as she starts to see and begin to change her stance from willful denial to actually fighting back the only way she could.

Valeria “owns” a hair salon, or rather her gangster husband does. An undercover cop gets a job in the salon in order to get information on the husband’s criminal activities. The story is interesting and reasonably exciting for the most part.

A Cutting Deceit by Cathy Dunnell

Thank you Netgallery and Bold Stroke Books for an arc for an unbiased review.

This is a book where Valeria owns a hair salon. Or rather, her mob boss husband Sirvan owns the hair salon, and in one corner away from the womens section, it obviously has an area where the men who gather for barber services discuss 'business.'

Athena arrives, and immediately slots into the role, but as an undercover cop, is quietly gathering intel towards bringing Sirvan and his empire down.

This book, while it has some great parts, also, for me at least, fails in some areas too. And it is a shame because it probably would've been a fairly easy fix.
So what did I like and what didn't I like?

The overall themes of the crimes plot were done well, and i certainly felt the anxiety that Valeria felt. Her overall demeanour was one you could certainly understand and was consistent with the criminal aspects going on around her. Seeing her begin to change her stance from willful denial to active fightback in a way she felt she could, was realistic.
The tension as Sirvan began to question who was leaking information, when Valeria genuinely had no idea herself, yet you could see his suspicion grow, was handled well.
My biggest complaint here was how Inna was able to neatly find an escape option with her help. It all seemed just too convenient and didn't gel for me.

What really let it down for me was I felt we had so little of Athena's development. I felt we knew more about Katya than we did her, so the romance felt clunky as a result. Her full motivations, while we got some part of it, also felt incomplete. As I was reading, I kept expecting to have a chapter shift perspective from Valeria to Athena, to show her leaving the salon and then give us a glimpse into her life, yet we never got that in-depth look, and that really was the biggest disappointment for me in the book.

This also was apparent in the ending, that all felt wrapped up neatly, but no depth to it, with Athena (although now Andrea) only giving some basic information about her life, but only in context of Valeria being there, and us not being shown her life.

So how to rate this? I'm struggling on this somewhat, because when the book got it right (as it primarily did with Valeria) it was great. Sadly, the lack of depth on Athena's character meant the crime/romance part just didn't have the impact I felt it should have done.

I'm hitting this at 4/5, although I'd classify it more a 3.5/5 stars 🌟
Having a strong storyline of Valeria with Sirvan especially is the one reason I'm giving it a tentative 4/5 stars. But I would say, don't go into this book expecting it to be a strong book for all main characters, as I feel it falls short. Strong in places, but missing in areas where it was needed.

Present day Valeria is known in her area. People who come to her salon know who she is. For someone who started out with her background and circumstances, she seems to have made it. Known as Sirvan’s wife, it’s a title that carries weight but Valeria knows better. While brewing in her discontent, she chanced her employment of Athena; someone who quickly proves to be a perfect fit for her salon but also one that could land her in further turmoil and danger. When Valeria’s admiration for Athena turns passionate, she is caught in a precarious situation that could make her the next on Sirvan’s list.

This was a fast paced book that kept me engaged and fearful for the fates of the leads. When more of Sirvan’s business came to light, it piled on an already shaky connection that could break and end in dire results. Betrayal, deceit, passion and danger. Good read, I like the leads but wish I knew more about Athena.

I just reviewed A Cutting Deceit by Cathy Dunnell. Thank you NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for the ARC.

A Cutting Deceit by Cathy Dunnell really held my attention throughout the entire story.
Valeria and Athena are well developed, interesting characters.
A story of betrayal, lies, and love this book hooked me from the beginning.
Well written, hooking and interesting. Dunnell did a great job of creating a tense atmosphere.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Bold Strokes Books,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
I will post my review to my blog, platforms, BookBub, B&N, Kobo and Waterstone closer to pub date.

A Cutting Deceit is following Valeria, after she married Sirvan a crime boss, to escape her less than stellar life and find some sense of security. To do so, she must live by his rules. This isn’t all bad, she gets to own and run a salon, which fills her days with something she enjoys.

Enter Athena. She begins working at the hair salon, but she’s really undercover and trying to catch Sirvan breaking the law. Athena never thought that she would begin a relationship with Valeria though.

I was so happy to read an unexpected romance between Valeria and Athena. #sapphicromanceforthewin! This made me enjoy the story about a million times more, and the fact that it was set in a hair salon. This was such a fun time for me!

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for my early readers copy of this book!

This was an interesting read. I couldn’t relate to the romantic storyline as I couldn’t buy into the idea of the characters falling in love given they hardly managed to spend much time together and they came from vastly different worlds. It would have been good if the latter portion of the book had been told from Athena’s point of view as we didn’t get to know her much. And the abrupt ending didn’t help. However, the suspense kept me on edge, and Valeria was an intriguing character. As the crime plot started moving and the anxiety level ramped up, I literally felt Valeria’s claustrophobia for being stuck in Sirvan’s world with no way out. I wouldn’t pick this up expecting a romance but it’s definitely a book worth reading.

Valeria is a young woman married to a crime boss. She runs her own business, or so she thinks. Sirvans goons seem to spend a lot of time at her salon which makes her uncomfortable.
A job opening brings in Athena who quickly inserts herself into Valerias life. As they build their friendship there is a hint of romance between them but Valeria knows that Sirvan is dangerous and tries to keep her in a safe place.
Sirvan and his crew are about to be taken down with Athenas help but who is she?

The story idea seems very interesting but I felt like there was little development of the characters, especially Athena. She is just dropped in with no mention to the readers of who she is or what her true motive is to be there until well into the story. I was a little disappointed.

Other readers may enjoy this but if you're looking for a strong crime fiction/romance story this may not be for you.
Thank you #NetGalley #BoldStrokesBooks for this ARC