You can read this book as a stand alone but I felt personally I would have enjoyed it more if I had read the interconnected books in the series. That being said Sawyer and Jake are great characters. Both Sawyer and Jake go through some pretty big changes, so there is plenty of character growth. Since a lot of their growth is happening together the banter is great. And of course it's the Mafia so there is action of all varieties.
I have voluntarily left this review.

So so good. Tijan has an amazing way of capturing the audience and pulling them into her worlds. A Captive Situation is definitely a favorite read of 2025.

I might have understood the characters more had I read the first two books in the series, but I didn’t enjoy this one enough to go back and read the others. Sawyer ends up in the wrong place at the wrong time with Jake and they both have a contracted hit on them. Jake is trying to find out who did it and apparently is head of his mafia family now, but he doesn’t really act like one. The dynamics of the families was hard to follow - again this probably wouldn’t be the case if I had read the first two books.

The characters had chemistry, but it’s a hard sell for me to buy into a romance when our hero continually kidnaps her and even goes so far to drug her and her response is to sleep with him. Yeah sure - and the way she “gets him back” at the end is frankly a little disturbing. I did find Sawyer’s family a good comedy relief in this book and think maybe a series set in their Montana town would be awesome.

Thanks to the publisher for a review copy via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Tijan is one of my favorite authors and you can’t go wrong with her books. With that being said I found this book very interesting and intriguing, I was hooked since the beginning and loved the tension and chemistry between the two main characters. I almost forgot to mention this is book 3 in the series and although it can be read as a standalone I highly recommend reading the books in order so you can get a better sense of the story and characters, you’ll enjoy the story a lot more and of course you’ll love the other books too. All her books are full of suspense, drama, spice and action and this book wasn’t an exception.

ᴀʀᴄ ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ:
#repost

ʙᴏᴏᴋ: ᴀ ᴄᴀᴘᴛɪᴠᴇ ꜱɪᴛᴜᴀᴛɪᴏɴ (ᴋɪɴɢꜱ ᴏꜰ ɴᴇᴡ ʏᴏʀᴋ #3)
ʀᴀᴛɪɴɢ: ★★★★★
ʀᴇʟᴇᴀꜱɪɴɢ: 6/3

𝘛𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘴:

🖤𝘔𝘢𝘧𝘪𝘢 𝘙𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦
🖤𝘖𝘯 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘙𝘶𝘯
🖤𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘤 𝘗𝘢𝘴𝘵
🖤𝘊𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘹𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘺
🖤𝘈𝘯𝘨𝘴𝘵𝘺
🖤𝘙𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘚𝘶𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘦
🖤𝘛𝘰𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘏𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘋𝘪𝘦
🖤𝘒𝘪𝘥𝘯𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘥

ᴍʏ ᴏᴘɪɴɪᴏɴ ⋆⭒˚.⋆

I was so ready for Jake book and I absolutely loved it! I went through so many emotions especially when Justin was mentioned (THEY DESERVED BETERRRRR) but overall this book was so good!

They were so many things to unpack in this book and so many things happening I was losing my head these two had to be my favorite couple from this series yet their banter and chemistry was just amazing! And their little meet cute was hilarious

Sawyer has gone to New York to meet her cousin after everything fell apart at home she needed space, when she runs into Jake for the second time somebody is trying to kill him and he takes her for her safety cause now they after both of them

Their chemistry and banter throughout the book was top tier I went through a lot of hurt for them to find their happy ending and it was everything! Jake finally got his boy in his life and his women

Jake comes from a mafia family but he was a cop until his family wanted him to be the head of the mafia after his cousin death but they are complications with one of his family members put a hit out on him Jake was only working for the family for his brother but now that Justin is gone there’s nothing left for him

I have a feeling who the next book is going to be about but I’m kind of iffy about it but I hope we see Blake again!

Sometimes the mafia romance hits and sometimes it doesn’t, the chemistry between Sawyer and Jake was too insta-love and not solid enough to back it up.

A CAPTIVE SITUATION Kings of New York by Tijan
Jake and Sawyer meet after one of the worst days of her life. He is a former cop with mafia family members. Things snowball quickly for them after they meet a second time at the police station. It doesn’t take long for the angst, and the suspense to ramp up. These two have lots of chemistry and her family is awesome with the banter. I didn’t quit reading until I finished it. This was 5 stars.

This is the 3rd book in this gripping series and I loved it! I was hooked from beginning to end and devoured each word!

Sawyer is in New York to get over a betrayal from her ex-fiancé and best friend and to meet her estranged cousin but she ends up mixed up in some mafia drama. Jake is an ex-policeman who has always skated the line between good and bad but has now become the reluctant mafia Boss. When he meets Sawyer he is attracted to her but tries to keep his distance till she unwittingly becomes embroiled in an attempt on his life he takes her to keep her safe.

I so loved the push/pull love/hate Sawyer had for Jake in this one. You could really feel the fight with her attraction and feelings but their connection was always inevitable. Honestly they were perfect for each other. He needed someone to challenge him and she needed someone to fight for her.

I loved seeing Ashton and Trace again and i adored Sawyers family they were totally nuts. My only criticism and its a small one is that i would have loved for her ex to come face to face with the upgrade 🤣

After the way this one has sort of left off I am hoping to read more from this series and characters.

While written as a standalone, I really think this book is best enjoyed after reading the first two books in the series. I loved revisiting Jake and seeing Ashton again. Tijan's female characters are all a bit quirky and Sawyer was no exception. I enjoyed how Jake saw her crazy and was drawn to it, calling her his lunatic. This story had a faster pace and I occasionally felt some whiplash when it switched gears, but overall I enjoyed it. I will definitely be coming back to this world when the fourth book comes out.

Thank you so much to Montlake & NetGalley for this e-arc.


This was not what was expecting. It was a compelling tale that had my attention from start to finish. The romance, the plot, and the overall feel of the story were all amazing. Tijan made it even better by adding a found family element. The way our primary characters are introduced to one another is fantastic. I can't wait to read the next book.

Yikes. Maybe this is what "dark romance" is supposed to be? I stuck with it, but wish I had cut my losses early.

Some notes I took as I was reading:
- Jake's POV is gross. Every woman is just a place to put his dick. His only reaction is whether or not they get him hard.
- The grammar is not great. Maybe the goal was to be very colloquial?
- The story moves quickly and is easy to read.
- The lack of backstory to Jake's drama is frustrating and limiting.
- Zero chemistry, zero personality.
- Sawyer is very immature.
- Dialogue is minimal and disconnected. Plot and action are scattered.
- Sex is written with so much dramatic hyperbole that I was cringing through the corniness.

In conclusion, YIKES.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Just wasn't my cup of tea. The writing was good but I ended up dnfing it due to not being able to get into the story.

A Captive Situation is book three in the Kings Of New York series by Tijan. This time we have an opposites attract, bad boy / good girl, romantic suspense between Jake Worthing and Sawyer. This is a weird mixture of romcom and dark rmafia romance as Sawyer is hilarious and quirky and Jake is an ex-cop and a mob boss. Their relationship is full of sexual tension and drama, with danger round every corner, gun fights leading to him kidnapping her, so they both try to stay alive. This can be read as a standalone, but Jake was in the previous two books and some events that took place are mentioned in this one.

Sawyer has left her small town for New York in an attempt to recover from a devastating turn of events. Her fiancee dumped her just before their wedding after admitting to having an affair with her best friend. She has a bucket list of touristy things to do, a cousin she has never meet to find and a family feud to fix. The only problem is she can’t find the enthusiasm to actually do anything on that list, however, she has decided she wants to stay and not return home. She wonders if she is having a mid life crisis and while nearly having a panic attack a very handsome man catches her eye on the subway. He offers to help her as worried she’s not well. When she picks up the courage to meet her cousin, things don’t go as planned and she ends up at the local police station. Fate or bad luck brings her face to face with her stranger again when he comes to pick up his cousin to take her to rehab. One thing leads to another and Sawyer finds herself leaving with them. This is the start of the crazy journey she is taken on.

Detective Jake Worthing has just retired from the police force. His family is divided between the cops in New York and the mafia side in Maine. Events have led to him being named as the new head of the family. He was attracted to Sawyer when he first saw her and was enjoying her company when an assassin tries to take him out. He shows her the other side of him as he saves them and then kidnaps her. Their lives end up entangled as they go on the run when he finds out there is a contract out on his life. When things escalate and her life is in danger because she’s become a way for them to get to Jake.

A new figure has decided he wants to change which family rules New York and Jake and Sawyer have got caught up in the power struggle. Jake’s relationship with Ashton is interesting as one minute they are friends and the next enemies. The dynamics between him and Trace is a whole different matter but he needs both their help to keep Sawyer safe.

They are both dealing with emotional trauma but neither can deny the chemistry between them. He has a power over her and she’s put him under her spell. Although it’s the most exciting thing that has happened to her, she has no idea who he really is. He has put her in danger, killed for her and kidnapped her but she still falls for him. For a mid life crisis she is certainly going for it. Jake has kept what he endured buried down deep but somehow she manages to break down his walls and he finds himself revealing his tragic history.

Sawyer is just hilarious. Her quirky family members, the dogs and especially her aunts provide a lot of entertainment to lighten the story. Jake has to revert back to who he used to be in order to save everyone. Manipulation, threats, more kidnapping and revelations of Jake’s past see them fighting for survival. Can they get rid of the contract on their heads and get their lives back? Not as good as the first two books but an interesting ending, as there is obviously more to come for this couple. Another cruel arrangement and more dirty business in Tijan's mafia world.

Wow! I absolutely loved this book. Amazing characters and wonderful plot. Very beautifully written and easy to read.

I did like Jake and Sawyers story. She’s in New York taking a break after finding out her fiancé has been cheating on her with her best friend who is now pregnant. Jake has just retired and his family is expecting him to take his place as the head of the family. Sawyer ends up entangled with Jake after their paths cross. A stranger she doesn’t know. When she ends up being kidnapped by Jake. Because that’s the only way that Jake can keep her safe, since she was spotted with him and now is a target. I don’t know how I feel about Sawyer, she’s a funny character. But on the other hand she seemed immature for her age. I did like Jake. This was an entertaining read.

This latest instalment of the Kings of New York series is by far the best (though I said the same about the last one haha). But I promise, this one is even better. I absolutely loved the plot, the romance, and how wholesome the entire story felt. Tijan added a found family element that made it so good, so believable. The characters really made sense, I just love them. I have aunties like that, so it hit close to home. And the fact that it ends in a happy ending for the main characters just makes me so happy.

I wasn't sure what to think of this one. It wasn't hard to get through, but the story was all over the place and the chemistry just wasn't there. I felt like there were all these elements that should go together to make sense, but they didn't. It may not have worked for me, but if you like mafia romance give it a try.

When everything is going wrong in a hurry!

One little trip to NYC, one chance meeting, one innocent run-in with the police, that's all it takes to shake up Sawyer's world so thoroughly that she will never be the same! This is a wild, action-packed story that has more twists and turns than I could keep up with.

Jake is running from contract killers and realizes that his chance meeting with Sawyer put her at risk of being used as collateral, so he does whatever he needs to in order to keep her safe. Yep, that includes kidnapping her. Forcibly. Against her will, at first anyway. But she's not going to make it easy for him, even when she realizes why he's doing it all. She proves to be every bit the fighter that he is, and when they finally join forces they're truly unstoppable.

At first I thought I wouldn't be able to get on board with the romance with such a power imbalance, but this author's writing is subtly brilliant enough to bring out all the emotional intensity and self-awareness necessary to make falling in love with both Jake and Sawyer inevitable. I loved the way the story included both their families, showing what and whom they care about, and providing much-needed humor from time to time.

This story is more mob-adjacent than the earlier two books, but Jake still utilizes every skill and advantage he has in order to stay alive. I honestly could not put this book down, and loved every bit all the way to the triumphant HEA. I'm officially hooked on this author's stories and I'm looking forward to reading more in this fascinating world.

this story was everything. I devoured this book in mere days. what a fabulous story. I devoured this book

This book was hilarious!! Loved Jake & Sawyer. Jake is an @hole but you just can't help but be drawn to him and Sawyer was not immune to that attraction. The suspense!!! And just when you have an idea of something, everything changes. This book kept me on edge the whole time. I loved it!!! The story starts with Sawyer trying to find herself in NY while also trying to find a relative. Here she unexpectedly meets Jake. Jake, is an ex cop with Mafia ties, who ends up with a hit on him. Since he was photographed with Sawyer, her life's in danger and Jake feels the need to protect her, even against her will. The banter, their fights, it's been a while since a dark romance had me laughing this much. First time reading this author & definitely won't be my last! 100% recommend 🔥❤️