A Cruel Arrangement is book 2 in the Kings Of New York series from Tijan. This book was so amazing and worth the wait. This stand alone mafia romance features a great plot, action, suspense, and interconnecting characters. This book will be hard to put down as it holds all of your attention. This book was simply amazing!!

I didn't realize this was a second book in a series, but i didn't feel like i missed anything. To me, it gave standalone story in a series. I loved the banter between the characters in this book and i like that the characters stayed very true to who they were. I liked that Molly really kept Ashton on his toes - overall, really enjoyed this one!

A Cruel Arrangement is the second book in Tijan's Kings of New York and just as fantastic as the first.

Tijan is a magician with her words. She knows exactly how to grip her readers right from the start and keep them entertained through the end. However, she also knows how to weave a story that is completely different even though it’s within the same series. Molly and Ashton's story is completely different than Trace and Jess's.

Molly may come across as this timid rabbit but she was pretty much raised on the streets. Her interactions with her Father, Shorty, only added to her difficulty upbringing and molded her into who she is today.

Ashton has no qualms about getting his hands dirty. He doesn't even flinch at any violence; he pretty much wears it like armor. He's a man of action and has no remorse for it. He purposely has kept a wall up and doesn't allow himself to have any weaknesses for others to use against him. Until Molly.

I love how this story played out. Tijan kept these characters true to who they are and yet they evolved too. The banter between them all was perfection and I loved that Molly kept Ashton on his toes. He never knew what to expect from her and that helped bond them even more.

I highly recommend this series so much! You will not regret it.

4.5. I didn’t know what to expect going into this because I admit I hadn’t read the first book or any other Tijan’s books but I absolutely loved this! After finishing this, I really want to go back and read book one to get Jess and Trace’s story and the backstory on what happened between Ashton and Jess. (I do wish that I would’ve read the books in order to get the whole effect of Ashton redeeming himself. That’s my bad though.)

I really loved the balance between suspense/mystery and romance/spice. I enjoyed Molly’s character a lot. She really played into the mafia role well once she met Ashton and was fearless even if it meant putting herself in danger. Molly and Ashton’s character really complimented each other perfectly. She was this ball of sunshine and he was this grumpy closed off alpha. I also really enjoyed that Ashton grew to understand the consequences of his actions and how to own up to what he’s done in the past. That being said, he also didn’t apologize for being himself. He was able to open up to Molly and to help her understand what he had done and that he realized he hurt Jess and was truly sorry for it.

Overall, I felt that the character development was amazing, the beginning felt a little slow but eventually I didn’t want to put it down.

I really wanted to like this story more than I did. Ashton was a typical mafia bad a*s, but Molly got on my nerves at times and she seemed childish at times. Narration of the audiobook could have been better and maybe would have made the story come across better.

Okay, so I might have did not read the book but it's on my TBR. I was going through some major book-slump on that time period which lasted more than six months. I could not pick up books. I did not have it in me to force myself either as it would lead to a bad mood and a bad review. Hopefully I will pick this book up soon.

A Cruel Arrangement is the second book of the Kings of New York duet and is the perfect ending to a wonderful and captivating story. Tijan has done it again! I just love her work as she is so talented and has gained a new fan!

This story unfolds with the after effects of the previous book's cliffhanger ending, so as soon as I received this one, I had to read it to find out what happens next! The darkness of this story drew me in immediately, but what I loved the most, was the light and warmth this story brought to the table.

Molly and Ashton's story unfolds before the readers eyes, which had a slow burn to it that I just devoured. Their mafia romance trope was filled with gritty suspense, with moments of passion and thrills. I loved this book so much! The storyline had me hooked from the very first page.

If you're a fan of dark romance suspense, with moments of heat and passion, I highly recommend this one!

Like every book I have read by Tijan I enjoyed A Cruel Arrangement.
This was definitely not my favourite book by the author but it was a good read.

A Cruel Arrangement is the second book in the Kings of New York series by Tijan. You can NOT read this book as a standalone so if you haven’t read A Dirty Business… go one-click it now. These kings of New York are 🔥.

Molly is a fierce independent woman who has lived her life in survival mode. She was Shorty Easter’s daughter after all. A man owed by the mafia and not just any mafia, the Walden’s. The man had nine lives. Molly wanted nothing to do with her father. She bought him out of Easter Lanes and the bowling alley was her life. She had a few friends and her lanes. That’s all she needed. So when a man comes in to rob her at gunpoint, she flipped her switch. She won’t show fear. She will make him fear her. She ended up in the hospital but her biggest shock was where she was when she woke up… in Ashton Walden’s home.

Ashton needed her. He needed her for information and she needed him to get her life back. A cruel arrangement is made. Promises are made. It was dangerous. It was sexy. It was life-changing. There will be blood. There will be lust. There will answers. There will be love. It’s an epic mafia romance I will never forget. I am so hoping it’s not the end of the series. I still have love for another character. ♥️

Quotes:

When he was a teenager, he’d been hot. But now, my mouth was almost watering, and I hated that, but I couldn’t deny it. Now he was a masterpiece to look at, and my stomach dipped because I knew how ruthless he could be at the same time.

She owned me, and god help anyone who tried to take her away from me.

“You run and I’ll burn the world down for you.”

A Cruel Arrangement is the second book in the Kings of New York series by Tijan. As usual, Tijan brings us an amazingly well-written and well-thought-out story that is totally unputdownable! Just as A Dirty Business was such an amazing story, this one follows that same path and is in the same world.

I loved Molly's personality, and she and Ashton were scorching hot together! I also loved being back in this world, and can't wait for more of these stories by this amazingly talented author, but in the meantime, this one is highly recommended with more than five stars!

A Cruel Arrangement is a mafia romance novel and it is the second book in a series (duet?). I did not read the first book, and I feel like I would have been more into the book if I HAD read the first book. The story jumps in with Molly's business, a bowling alley, getting robbed. We quickly get introduced to the characters Ashton, Trace, Jess, and we learn about Jess and Molly's friend unfortunately getting murdered. We also learn that two of the mafia families recently had quite a few members of their family pass away, leaving Ashton to lead the Walden mafia family and Trace leading the West mafia family. I feel like even 30% into this book, there was not enough world building for me to really feel engaged with the characters. It felt like to me, they were just trying to explain everything that happened in the last book, but the cliffs notes version. I felt myself not really caring what happened to the characters. Maybe I would be more invested in the characters and this world if I read the first book, but also, maybe mafia romance just isn't my cup of tea. I would not recommend someone read this book as a standalone, but I would recommend they start with book 1 and then read this one as a followup. #ACruelArrangement #NetGalley

Tijan is quickly becoming one of my auto buy authors. The way her writing takes over whole brain while I’m reading, truly makes it feel like I’ve entered the fictional world I’m reading about. This book was no different. I loved these characters, I loved the slow burn, I loved the tension and the emotion. This felt more “adult” that Tijan’s other books and that’s why I loved it so much, I think. It’s a typical mafia romance so it was fairly predictable, but I had so much fun with Jess and Trace.

I started reading it with a lot of expectations because I loved the synopsis and well, I like a mafia daddy in any dark mafia romance (taking into account that I haven't read the first book before).
So, slowly I began to understand and like the characters, it's difficult to not become involved with them and the plot. I loved the way they completed each other, even when they had opposite personalities.

I also loved the writing, I had never read anything by this author but now I want to read more in the future, because THIS ONE was addictive.
And well, sometimes this type of book is just the perfect spicy romance to read.

So, if you are into mafia romance, with action and even suspense (oh and don't forget the spice) this book is great for you.

Molly owns a business. A robbery will change her life in crazy ways. The day after the robbery, Molly wakes up at Ashton Walden's home. Ashton is the head of the Walden crime family. Another problem is Molly's estranged father owes the family a considerable debt that Ashton expects her to pay. Molly is a strong, determined woman that will let no man keep her down. The sparks between the couple fly in this story.

I received a copy of this book via Netgalley.

I love Molly! She’s insane in the best way. She had me cracking up through the whole book.

Tropes:
Mafia
Frenemies to lovers
Touch her and die

I can’t believe I didn’t post a review here. But late is better than never. Right.

Welcome to the Kings of New York! A Cruel Arrangement is the second installment to the Kings of New York series. With that said, make sure you read Dirty Business before heading into this book. You’ll thank me afterwards.

This book is dark, violent, and twisty and the plots from both books intertwine nicely. Lots of secrets were revealed and heart wrenching moments that dealt with past family trauma and business (Mafia) drama happened.

The story starts off with a kick rump Molly and then escalated from there with twists and secrets that became revealed throughout the book. Ashton our man comes in to save the day. From the start you can see he’s your ultra bad boy, the anti- hero, the above the top mafia man that knows what he’s doing and nothing gets in the way when it comes to Molly. And the more I read the more I loved how they were able to peel back the other’s layers and understand the deepest part of them. Now I can't help but wonder... third book? Cause I need it now! I can't get enough.

I read A Cruel Arrangement and now I have my usual problem after reading Tijan’s books: book hangover! I had no idea how Ashton’s book would turn out, since he’s dark and likes to hurt people. But then the author made a brilliant move, she gave him Molly Easter, a girl who is flaky, kind, gutsy and caring.

Her thought processes are so foreign to Ashton that she kept him on his toes all the time, she very easily disobeyed his rules, had a perfectly logical (to her!) reason for doing so, and got spidey senses when there is something wrong and won’t back down from helping. She’s a wonderful person with a dark side (she calls it “the switch”) and completely perfect for Ashton. She broke through his defenses and obliterated the wall he had around his heart.

The book is fun, funny, steamy and as always, includes characters who are a delight, family to Molly. Pialto and Sophie love Molly like family, are completely loyal and are completely complicit in any mayhem she comes up with. Jess starts a little distant but comes closer as she sees how much Molly cares and looks out for her. I saw in this story that Jess has started to laugh and enjoy life, even with the weight of Kelly’s death on her. And I loved seeing Trace so completely in love with his woman!

Molly is magnificent, she truly has had an effect on everyone, and no wonder Ashton, who is like an icicle at the beginning, melts into goo with her, but only with her and only in private. I loved the scenes where he would carry her around because she was freaked out and only he could make her feel safe. He would say hop on and she would climb him like a monkey! I also loved how Molly was nosey and escapey. She would appear behind bushes, hiding in the stairs, behind a wall, eavesdropping and generally minding others’ business. And unrepentant too! She was a delight and I found her adorable.

I also loved seeing Ashton fall like a ton of bricks for this quirky, wonderful woman. From confusion, to fascination, to love, it was wonderful to see his heart engage.

And let’s not talk about Molly’s theory of their group: Trace is the thinker, Jess and Ashton are the doers and thus compete with one another, and she’s the go-between, the glue that keeps them together. “I’m like added sealant.”

Entertaining, riveting, multi-layered and fantastic! Now I don’t know how to leave this world of Tijan!

This is Book 2 in the Kings of New York Series by this author. It is a dark mafia romance between Molly and Ashton. These flawed but likeable characters and the unique plot make for an intriguing read. It is a love story peppered with drama, danger, suspense, violence, action, steam, family dynamic, twists, and passion, plus appealing secondary characters to keep the reader interested. The main characters share an undeniable chemistry and connection. An emotional roller coaster. It can be read as a standalone but you enhance your reading pleasure if you read the other book in the series.

This is Ashton and Molly's story. We pick up where we left off, trying to figure out who killed Kelly and Justin. Molly finds herself deeper than she expects and catches feelings for Mob boss Ashton. I found her character to be somewhat flighty at times but also complex. She confused me often. Ashton seems pretty straightforward in his actions. He is a doer. He doesn't falter.what he doesn't expect is to fall for Molly. He tells her he will burn the world for her. We interact with Jess, Trace and the rest of the crew throughout in this complex world of twists and turns.

I love reading anything of Tijan's and I will continue to read anything of her. I really enjoyed reading this book and loved reading Molly and Ashton's story!