I listened to the audiobook of It Kills Me in two sittings. It was so good and I was invested from the very beginning. This book is a forbidden romance between a drug lord’s daughter and one of his biggest clients. Scarlett grew up being told not to mix business and pleasure, but it’s hard to stick to the rules once she gets involved with Axel. This book is full of twists and secrets and had my full attention from the very beginning. Thank you NetGalley, Dreamscape Media, and Penelope Sky for sending me a copy in exchange for my honest review.

It Kills Me by Penelope Sky doesn't leave much to the imagination in the first book in the Betrayal series. Scarlette has always been the apple of her father's eye. Dante never thinks that the men that Scarlette dates are good enough for her. In walks Axel, Dante's new buisness partner. The only thing Axel can think about is Scarlette and how he can make her his. The only thing coming between them is Dante. Just like her other books this one is hot and steamy. If you like Katee Robert, Mia Sheridan,Emily McIntire, or Geneva Lee you will love this book. I would like to thank both NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for giving me an advanced copy of this audio book.

While this book has the passion and romance a reader looks for when reading this type of book I did not feel very connected to the story. The characters were fine - although most of the time the focus was simply on describing their physical appearances over and over again, especially with Axel. There is a strong intensity of passion and desire that revolves around Scarlett and Axel which is very clearly portrayed to the reader. However, almost every display of their intense love to each other ends up being expressed in very graphic details. The smaller moments are missed. Finally, there is not much depth to the story itself. The plot is very weak and hardly noticeable since the main focus is the intensity between Scarlett and Axel.

I did enjoy both the narrators for this story. I think each portrayed their character well. Their voices match the personalities of the characters and the narration flowed along easily.

"Attention all book lovers! I just finished my first audio book by Penelope Sky and I am completely hooked. This forbidden romance featuring Axel is an absolute must-read. The narration is expertly done, with the different character voices bringing the story to life. I don't want to give anything away, but I can't wait for the second book to be released. Trust me when I say that you won't be disappointed - this book is truly amazing. So, what are you waiting for? Dive into this captivating tale and experience the magic for yourself!"
Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscap for this opportunity to listen to this audiobook.

The audio was so cringey I got the ebook from my library to finish the story. It was in fact the story that was cringey, the narrators just made it a little worse.

Overall rating 3.5 stars
I would have rated this five stars if it had a little bit more depth and if I was warned about the cliffhanger.

The chemistry and general connection between Axel and Scarlet was palpable. I enjoyed their banter, steamy scenes, and the growth between the characters.
I would have liked more exploration into the mafia side of things - an explanation into the business,

Narrated by Ramona Master and Michael Ferraiuolo
*Both narrators were new to me but I adored both voices. They did a great job portraying the angst in the final 15% of the book.

* Forbidden romance
* Mafia
* All the secrets
* Crime boss daughter x business partner

I was able to review this audiobook thanks to NetGalley, Penelope Sky, and Dreamscape Media.

Sometimes you just need a “my daddy is a drug lord and I love his hot younger business partner” book to cleanse the palate. Not sure if this fully did it, but it sure was spicy! 4/5 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

I’m not a fan of cliffhanger endings, so that irked me a bit (I don’t like waiting for sequels!), so I guess I’ll just sit here sulking until book two comes out… hopefully soon?

(Thank you, Dreamscape Media and NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.)

I’ve not read mafia romance before so I wasn’t sure if this type of MMC could make me overlook his illegal activities to be drawn in. But after the touch her and die moment, I was fully on board. Then we have forbidden romance, which I’m also a sucker for so I was still very interested. Finally, I caught feelings for this couple right when the MCs realized they had as well.
There are so many different levels of moral grayness and yet Penelope Sky found just the right level for each of the characters to appeal to me. It was also impressive how well she crafted an MMC who was hard and masculine but had a soft side. The spicy scenes were great and the romance was sweet.
The ending killed me! I was not expecting a cliffhanger!

Scarlett's father asked her to succeed him as the mafia boss. Axel is their new partner. But Scarlett's dad made it very clear that she should never mix business with pleasure...
This "dark" mafia, forbidden romance is book 1 in the Betrayal series. I feel like this tried to be a dark romance and failed. You can't simply say the FMC and her father are at the head of a gang and call it dark. And the spice was comical at best. It was so cringy, it felt borderline like a parody. The story was redundant and nothing big really happens. Axel was an ass. "She was stubborn, like a man." I'm sorry. What? The most stubborn people I know (including myself) are women. What a weird thing to say... And girl, we get it, he has a big dick, no need to repeat it 50 times... They had dub con sex a few times, and yet she belives him instantly when he tells her he didn't do what he did time for? And the FMC saying "He wouldn't hurt a fly" when talking about Axel, WHO IS IN THE MAFIA?!?! Anyway. I have read many fantastic reviews about this, so clearly, it was not for me. Also, know that this ends on a cliff hanger.
I received an advance review copy of this book for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

𝟜 𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕣𝕤 🌟 𝕣𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨

🄸🅃 🄺🄸🄻🄻🅂 🄼🄴 - 🄿🄴🄽🄴🄻🄾🄿🄴 🅂🄺🅈

👠 𝔉𝔬𝔯𝔟𝔦𝔡𝔡𝔢𝔫 𝔩𝔬𝔳𝔢
👠 𝔐𝔞𝔣𝔦𝔞
👠 𝔖𝔢𝔠𝔯𝔢𝔱𝔰
👠 𝔄𝔩𝔭𝔥𝔞 𝔪𝔞𝔩𝔢 𝔙𝔦𝔟𝔢𝔰

Scarlett the only child and successor of a Drug lord Catches the Eye of Axel her fathers business partner, they work together but don't like each other.

Scarlett and Axel fall hard and fast while in a secret forbidden romance - sneaking around is obviously the answer.... but is it?

Thank you to @netgalley and @dreamscape_media I really enjoyed the audio I adored the female narrator she seemed to fit well, the Male Narrator sounded a bit too posh for the type of guy I was reading about.... and the cover photo... but other than that the story brilliant I finished in two days!!!!

It Kills Me is the first book in the Betrayal series which is a dark mafia romance and I was here for it. I was so consumed by their story and I just kept wanting more and more. It was high tension, high heat, high angst, danger, forbidden, it was just everything. I am obsessed with these 2.

I loved the banter between Axel & Scarlett. Their chemistry was undeniable. The way Axel pushed Scarlett to go after what she wanted and the way she believed in him, was always there for him was so swoony. He is just all alpha male, will do anything for his girl and only has eyes for her, i'm in love.

I can't wait to start book 2 this ended on a cliffhanger that just shattered my heart in a million pieces and I need to know what happens.

🎧 The narration by Ramona Master & Michael Ferraiuolo was great. It took me a few chapters to really love his voice but then I got used to it and it fit. I really enjoyed their performance, they kept me hooked and engaged through it all.

✨️ Thank you to @netgalley, @dreamscapemedia & @penelopesky for my gifted audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

It Kills Me is my first mafia romance book. I feel like it’s a good gateway read for those looking to get into the mafia romance genre since it’s more heavily focused on the romance with the mafia being in the background. However, I will say, I wanted the mafia element to be a bigger focus in the book. Given this is part of a series, I’m hoping it will become more prominent in the next installment. Scarlett and Axel had sizzling chemistry with great banter. The spice was incredibly well done. Although the primary focus of the plot was the relationship between Scarlett and Axel, I’m hoping to get further into Scarlett’s backstory and her involvement with the family business. Despite what Scarlett’s father told her of how things went down with her mother, I believe there’s a lot more to the story that we aren’t being told. I’m also team Axel in his take on Scarlett’s role in her father’s business and his succession plans. Something is suspect, and I want to know more. I think that’s my general feel with this book - I want more - more information, more mafia, more intensity. That’s not to say it wasn’t an enjoyable read. In fact I quite enjoyed it and found it to be an easy story to listen and follow. I also enjoyed the narrators and how they brought Scarlett and Axel’s chemistry to life. The one critique I had for the narration is that I felt more emotion could’ve been injected in their performance at times. Overall, though, I don’t believe it took away from my enjoyment of the book.

3.5 stars

What’s it about?

Mobster boss, Dante, has a sexy 20 year old daughter, Scarlet (who is also is sole heir) and doesn’t think anyone is good enough for her, especially not Axel, his new business partner.

But the two have wild chemistry and are soon meeting up behind Dante’s back for steamy nights together.

My thoughts:

Excellent chemistry and steam between Axel and Scarlet. I love how she loves him for who he is, all the good and the ugly. I love how Axel takes care of her. His back story is sad, but interesting.

There were a lot of parts to this story that were unclear for me. For instance, I never understood why Dante needed Axel as a business partner, nor what either man actually did for “work” besides have clandestine meetings about money.

And the cliffhanger ending was rough.

Over all, a quick, fun, steamy read. It just needed a little more depth.

Immersed in the audiobook experience, the characters came to life through the narration, their emotions and struggles vividly portrayed. The forbidden romance and its intense emotions captivated me throughout the story, keeping me eagerly listening.

The pacing of the narration was spot-on, maintaining my engagement and leaving me eager to uncover the next twist. Each plot development added to the suspense, heightening the excitement of the narrative.

As the audiobook drew to a close, the cliffhanger ending left me hanging, craving resolution and eagerly anticipating the sequel.

The audiobook was a thrilling journey, seamlessly blending skilled narration with a gripping storyline. It kept me hooked from start to finish, and I can't wait to continue the adventure with the sequel.

Wow. Just wow.

So, first thing, I didn't realize this was part of a series. So, go in prepared. I desperately need to go read the rest of this series.

This has several layers to it. At first, it seemed like a typical bad boy falls hard for the girl, but then there are several more layers to it. I can't wait to see what happens with her father.

I really did like Axel in the second half of the book. As stated above, in the first half, he was crude and obnoxious but became more of a well-rounded character by the end. I will definitely be reading the rest of this series. I recommend this!

Audio Review

This is my first book by Penelope Sky. Wow what an intro I couldn’t stoped listening, I believe if I was reading I would’ve had a hard time putting it down too! I figured I’d like this but I REALLY liked this. The MMC just had me 😭🥹 I was so obsessed right away. Idek if there’s a reason.
Scarlett is the forbidden women, the business partners daughter of a drug lord who is learning to take over the family business. Axel makes it hard for her to not mix the her personal life into the situation, making this a hot mafia romance that I highly recommend you read! The banter & story line is really just so good! I can’t wait to dive into book 2!!

4 stars!

"It Kills Me" by Penelope Sky is one of the first mafia forbidden/dark romances I have read, and I really enjoyed it! I think audiobook narrators Ramona Master and Michael Ferraiuolo truly bring the characters of Scarlet and Axel to life in a big way. I *love* Ramona Master, and she is one of my favorite working narrators. She can truly do no wrong. I found myself immersed in the story of these characters and the drama that follows them in their seedy underworld of crime. Scarlet works for her father, who is a mafia boss. She believes she is going to take over the family business at some point, so she's learning the tricks of the trade, starting with the books. Her father recently hired Axel, who is instantly drawn to Scarlet even though her father forbids them from seeing each other. Their chemistry is undeniable and teeming, and their connection is sizzling. Their passion for one another is clearly more than just s3xual in nature. There are real feelings there between the two of them, not that they can ever be public or out of the shadows. There is A LOT of spice in this book, so much so that it becomes wholly consuming of any other plot points. Still, there are a few genuine, tender moments between Axel and Scarlet here, enough to keep readers interested past their more intimate moments. The tension while they sneak around feels palpable, like the stakes are high for both of them. I have a hunch everything is going to be doubled in the rest of the series: more tension, more stakes, more spice, more drama, more crime. "It Kills Me" ends on a cliffhanger, so be aware of that before reading!

Thank you to NetGalley, Penelope Sky, and Dreamscape Media for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

Five stars are not enough and Axel will become an instant favorite male character of all time!! This forbidden romance involves not only the daughter of a drug lord but the man who has been told to never touch her. But Scarlet and Axel cannot stay away from each other. Just wait until you see what her father does when he finds out they are together. And that ending will leave you wanting more. Outstanding!!

I love the whole mafia boss's daughter enters secret relationship vibe, but this was not it. I was really intrigued at first, but there were so many spicy filler scenes that it was annoying. To add to this annoyance, right when the plot thickens, the book abruptly ends. It isn't really even qualified as a cliffhanger. It literally ends in the middle of the story, which to me feels like a cash grab for the next book or set of books. Don't waste your time on this one.

First off, thanks so much to NetGalley, author Penelope Sky, and publisher Dreamscape Media for free access to this audiobook.

Wow. This book was hot, but also complicated, frustrating, tense, cute, and so much more. I literally gasped out loud when the female main character made a bold move on the male main character. I laughed at some of the sweeter moments. And I groaned when it ended on a big question mark that left me needing to know what will happen next. The cover may look like this book is all smut without substance, but don’t let it fool you. There is definitely plot, and complex relationships between many of the characters. It has tension. The dual POV writing leaves you, the reader, knowing things that snakes you want to shout out at the FMC to open her eyes. It was a captivating read that I really enjoyed. I will definitely be reading the next in the series, as I simply must know what comes next.

The audiobook narration was well done. It used different voice actors for each of the two POVs, which made it easy to keep track of whose eyes the story was being told through. Both voices fit the characters and the story well.