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Vitale Brothers #4
Never Say Never
I’d do anything for my family. Even go undercover and devote my life to the FBI so they can continue to thrive. Everything I do is for the Vitale name. I just have to focus, complete my job, divert attention and stay out of trouble.
But trouble finds me.
Not just me, but York Washington. He’s my boss, but more than that he’s my friend. When he and his daughters are thrown into danger I have no choice but to step into the light. Finally, I get to go back home.
But home is a strange hellscape I no longer understand.
While a war wages on, I’m caught between who I am and who I was with a man I’ve betrayed. There’s no happily ever after for me.
The fourth book in the Vitale brother series. Each book can be read as a standalone but best enjoyed read in order. HEA guaranteed. (Will be released beforePreOrder date)
But trouble finds me.
Not just me, but York Washington. He’s my boss, but more than that he’s my friend. When he and his daughters are thrown into danger I have no choice but to step into the light. Finally, I get to go back home.
But home is a strange hellscape I no longer understand.
While a war wages on, I’m caught between who I am and who I was with a man I’ve betrayed. There’s no happily ever after for me.
The fourth book in the Vitale brother series. Each book can be read as a standalone but best enjoyed read in order. HEA guaranteed. (Will be released beforePreOrder date)
437 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 15, 2024
About the author
Brea Alepoú
46 books1,149 followersBrea Alepoú realized her dream was to write and tell stories after spending five years in college getting a degree. She has since been writing and letting her imagination free. She thought she would only write contemporary at first but soon found her love for making worlds. So now she writes it all. With her wild imagination, expect lots of different stories, from fairies ruling to vampires killing everyone, to the sweet loving between two men, passion between two fierce women, or the love of multiple partners. She believes that everyone deserves love even if not all of her characters get it right away. Love is passionate, hot, needy, confusing, painful, fulfilling, and all-consuming.
(pnr, contemporary, fantasy, erotica, romance, shifter mpreg, & rh)
There will be a book for everyone.
Insanity is Contagious.
Brea Alepoú
(pnr, contemporary, fantasy, erotica, romance, shifter mpreg, & rh)
There will be a book for everyone.
Insanity is Contagious.
Brea Alepoú
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 379 reviews
May 8, 2024
I was the most curious about the mysterious Gianpaolo Vitale and his story does not disappoint. His story is nothing short of complicated, nearly impossible, and forbidden. His insane chemistry with his FBI boss, York while maintaining his connection to his mafia roots was such a delicate balancing act that I thought was well done.
I thought the stark differences in Paul and Paulo's personalities and demeanor were also fun to see. His ability to switch from dutiful agent to dangerously unhinged mafioso was brilliantly done and showed Paulo's intense commitment to the role he had to play.
There were many surprises throughout Paulo's story and many complications with his dueling loyalties to his brothers and York. Overall this story was a whirlwind that I could not get enough of and thought was executed perfectly. I cannot wait to get the grand finale next because my goodness was that one epic cliffhanger that left me desperate for the final installment.
Also... I loved getting to see all of the brothers again. They are all so much fun and I love their growing family in all its dysfunctional glory.
*** I reviewed a complimentary copy of this story.***
I thought the stark differences in Paul and Paulo's personalities and demeanor were also fun to see. His ability to switch from dutiful agent to dangerously unhinged mafioso was brilliantly done and showed Paulo's intense commitment to the role he had to play.
There were many surprises throughout Paulo's story and many complications with his dueling loyalties to his brothers and York. Overall this story was a whirlwind that I could not get enough of and thought was executed perfectly. I cannot wait to get the grand finale next because my goodness was that one epic cliffhanger that left me desperate for the final installment.
Also... I loved getting to see all of the brothers again. They are all so much fun and I love their growing family in all its dysfunctional glory.
*** I reviewed a complimentary copy of this story.***
May 13, 2024
When you infiltrate the FBI so you can sabotage any investigation into your psychopath brothers but you accidentally fall for the one person u cant have, your boss.
I knew id love this one . All of the Vitale brothers are insane and Gianpaolo is no different . If you enjoy the other books, I think you will like this one as well. At some points you don’t understand how they could possibly work through It . They are on opposite sides of the law.
That ending 👀
I need the last book!
Single dad
Possessive love
Lots of violence
Betrayal
I knew id love this one . All of the Vitale brothers are insane and Gianpaolo is no different . If you enjoy the other books, I think you will like this one as well. At some points you don’t understand how they could possibly work through It . They are on opposite sides of the law.
That ending 👀
I need the last book!
Single dad
Possessive love
Lots of violence
Betrayal
May 13, 2024
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
"Sanity was only a facade with me. I was born into chaos and I wielded mayhem freely."
I have no words, this book blew me away !!
The story follows Gianpaolo, Giancarlo's twin brother who has been acting as a FBI agent for 10 years to protect his family. But life as law abiding citizen is quite difficult as he longs to be with his brothers,
especially his twin. His boss at the office doesn't make things easier for him either when the said sexy man calls out to his inner demon to possess him and own him. Paolo is flirty, crazy, loyal, possessive, and an absolute delight on page.
York, his boss on the other hand despises the Vitales and made it his mission to bring them down, all the while trying to be the best dad for his twin girls.
He has avoided all sexual advances from Paul (Paolo) but it's really hard to keep the barriers up and temptations at bay when the pursuer is an unhinged, obsessive, psycho mafia.
This book was full of action with twists and turns at every corner. And the chemistry between the characters was off the charts. I was waiting for the moment when York will find out about Paolo's identity, cause I knew things will implode and boy, did the authors deliver on angst and drama.
I also really loved Paolo's relationship with the girls, it was so precious. And I'm glad both Paolo and York found their HEA even though it was a rough journey.
I highly recommend this and it can be read as a standalone, but I do feel some parts might be confusing if you haven't read the previous ones.
Tropes/Triggers
Dark Romance
Mafia/FBI
Secret Identity
Opposite Attracts
Possessive MC
Office Romance
Found Family
Suspense
Twins
*I was provided an Arc Copy by the authors*
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
"Sanity was only a facade with me. I was born into chaos and I wielded mayhem freely."
I have no words, this book blew me away !!
The story follows Gianpaolo, Giancarlo's twin brother who has been acting as a FBI agent for 10 years to protect his family. But life as law abiding citizen is quite difficult as he longs to be with his brothers,
especially his twin. His boss at the office doesn't make things easier for him either when the said sexy man calls out to his inner demon to possess him and own him. Paolo is flirty, crazy, loyal, possessive, and an absolute delight on page.
York, his boss on the other hand despises the Vitales and made it his mission to bring them down, all the while trying to be the best dad for his twin girls.
He has avoided all sexual advances from Paul (Paolo) but it's really hard to keep the barriers up and temptations at bay when the pursuer is an unhinged, obsessive, psycho mafia.
This book was full of action with twists and turns at every corner. And the chemistry between the characters was off the charts. I was waiting for the moment when York will find out about Paolo's identity, cause I knew things will implode and boy, did the authors deliver on angst and drama.
I also really loved Paolo's relationship with the girls, it was so precious. And I'm glad both Paolo and York found their HEA even though it was a rough journey.
I highly recommend this and it can be read as a standalone, but I do feel some parts might be confusing if you haven't read the previous ones.
Tropes/Triggers
Dark Romance
Mafia/FBI
Secret Identity
Opposite Attracts
Possessive MC
Office Romance
Found Family
Suspense
Twins
*I was provided an Arc Copy by the authors*
July 20, 2023
Edit: this review is for ‚Say I do‘. I accidentally left it here. This also explains why I thought I was the first to review. Now I’m laughing at myself, so I leave it here as advertisement for say I do. (You’re welcome to call me an idiot 😂)
Seems like I’m the first to write a review. That never happens 😂
I loved this book. Harlow is the absolute right amount of insane. I laughed a lot while reading this.
Brea Alepous are never for the delicate. I said it once and I say it again: she is the Quentin Tarantino of mm romance and I love it.
Also, how is it that the boss books in mafia romances are always the best? Anyways I can not only recommend this one but all of her other work as well.
Seems like I’m the first to write a review. That never happens 😂
I loved this book. Harlow is the absolute right amount of insane. I laughed a lot while reading this.
Brea Alepous are never for the delicate. I said it once and I say it again: she is the Quentin Tarantino of mm romance and I love it.
Also, how is it that the boss books in mafia romances are always the best? Anyways I can not only recommend this one but all of her other work as well.
May 7, 2024
Another amazing addition to the Vitale Brothers series! I loved Paulo and York's story so freaking much! It was hot and sexy, made me laugh, made me sad, was action packed, and full of excitement, just all the feels! Not to mention I loved seeing a bunch of familiar faces. I'm so into this series and am so happy there's one more book to come. Fabulous read, highly recommend!
May 17, 2024
I think I needed to see more domestic scenes between York & Paolo before things went to shit. It would have helped me believe that they had a proper connection.
The shift from lovers to being in love felt sudden. I didn’t get how Paolo could already consider York to be his or how he was calling York’s daughters “My girls” as quickly as he did. I can’t figure out if I’m supposed to assume that there were off-page moments between them that spurred the relationship on?
I also wasn’t buying York caring for Paolo all that much. Up until the halfway point, I felt he’d only seen Paolo as a means to explore his sexuality and more like a convenient fuckbuddy. There wasn’t much evidence to suggest York felt a deep connection. It felt more like he was begrudgingly attracted to him. It took half the book before I began to see York romantically caring for Paolo.
The shift from lovers to being in love felt sudden. I didn’t get how Paolo could already consider York to be his or how he was calling York’s daughters “My girls” as quickly as he did. I can’t figure out if I’m supposed to assume that there were off-page moments between them that spurred the relationship on?
I also wasn’t buying York caring for Paolo all that much. Up until the halfway point, I felt he’d only seen Paolo as a means to explore his sexuality and more like a convenient fuckbuddy. There wasn’t much evidence to suggest York felt a deep connection. It felt more like he was begrudgingly attracted to him. It took half the book before I began to see York romantically caring for Paolo.
July 6, 2024
Not the date being pushed to may from april 11....this has been too long of a wait already.
Update: after actually reading it.
Disappointing. I waited a year for this book only for it to not work. At all. The story started all wrong and the dynamic was lacklustre. Tony and Benito have more chemistry than this. And the author mentioning his brown skin every other page? Like yes dude we get it. He has deep brown skin and two kids who took up 25% of this book. Where was the mafia aspect in their chemistry? Even the boss subordinate trope wasn't carried out well. I cannot believe we got this after the exquisite story benito had. Also giancarlo and gianpaulos dynamic didn't get any depth?? Like you mean to tell me actual twins separated like they were with kne thinking he was dead and then apparently going crazy in prison and we get no proper explanation?? York was boring as hell you want me to believe the guy who sacrificed his identity for his family for years fell for a bore who thought he would marry his female nanny even tho he knew he was gay and then also took her side over his love interest. Bro claimed to love his children so much but didn't his nanny he would have married if he was straight was abusing them? Gianpaulo would have been better with tony lol they already have a better story than this mess. Icb this is the sequel to say i do. What a waste.
The damn nanny of the 2 kids of the love interest got more pages for her. This felt like a book where they couldn't decide what to write and hence came up with this disaster after a year of keeping us waiting.
Update: after actually reading it.
Disappointing. I waited a year for this book only for it to not work. At all. The story started all wrong and the dynamic was lacklustre. Tony and Benito have more chemistry than this. And the author mentioning his brown skin every other page? Like yes dude we get it. He has deep brown skin and two kids who took up 25% of this book. Where was the mafia aspect in their chemistry? Even the boss subordinate trope wasn't carried out well. I cannot believe we got this after the exquisite story benito had. Also giancarlo and gianpaulos dynamic didn't get any depth?? Like you mean to tell me actual twins separated like they were with kne thinking he was dead and then apparently going crazy in prison and we get no proper explanation?? York was boring as hell you want me to believe the guy who sacrificed his identity for his family for years fell for a bore who thought he would marry his female nanny even tho he knew he was gay and then also took her side over his love interest. Bro claimed to love his children so much but didn't his nanny he would have married if he was straight was abusing them? Gianpaulo would have been better with tony lol they already have a better story than this mess. Icb this is the sequel to say i do. What a waste.
The damn nanny of the 2 kids of the love interest got more pages for her. This felt like a book where they couldn't decide what to write and hence came up with this disaster after a year of keeping us waiting.
May 21, 2024
✰4.5 stars✰ rounded up
Damn. I feel like I've probably started every review for each book in this series that way. But seriously, damn.
York and Paulo are the perfect push and pull. There was just the right amount of fight and tension in this one at the right moments. It's hard to give a lot of detail on these without spoiling anything, but there were always twists and turns that I hadn't expected.
This was a great installation to this series that ended with a lead up to the next book for the overall Vitale Brothers universe. I'm so so so excited to see where Brea takes us next.
"I like what's mine, to be mine. And when I care, I really fucking care. You like your freedom, right?" When I nodded, he smiled once more, but it was disconnected from his eyes. "If you were mine, I wouldn't give it to you. I don't give a damn. I would want you near me every single day and night. I would consume you. Most people can't handle that."
Damn. I feel like I've probably started every review for each book in this series that way. But seriously, damn.
York and Paulo are the perfect push and pull. There was just the right amount of fight and tension in this one at the right moments. It's hard to give a lot of detail on these without spoiling anything, but there were always twists and turns that I hadn't expected.
This was a great installation to this series that ended with a lead up to the next book for the overall Vitale Brothers universe. I'm so so so excited to see where Brea takes us next.
May 31, 2024
After book 3, this series had lost its spark for me. The books were starting to feel a bit too long and the storyline repetitive. I was apprehensive to read book 4 and have been avoiding it for a while. Now I'm annoyed with myself because this book was BRILLIANT and my favourite in the series!
I absolutely devoured this book.
I adored Gianpaulo x York, both as a couple and separate characters. The storyline, the pacing, the relationship development were so well-done and this is easily the best book in the series. Tex x Enzo will always be my favourite couple but Paulo x York came very close!
I also loved every single interaction Paulo has with York's kids. They were such a great addition to the series and I'm excited for the last book in the series!
Favourite Couple :
1. Enzo x Tex (Book 1)
2. Gianpaulo x York (Book 4)
3. Giancarlo x Ash (Book 2)
4. Benito x Harlow (Book 3)
Favourite Book :
1. Never Say Never (Book 4)
2. Take Me Apart (Book 1)
3. Paid in Full (Book 2)
4. Say I Do (Book 3)
(Is it obvious I didn't like Book 3...)
I absolutely devoured this book.
I adored Gianpaulo x York, both as a couple and separate characters. The storyline, the pacing, the relationship development were so well-done and this is easily the best book in the series. Tex x Enzo will always be my favourite couple but Paulo x York came very close!
I also loved every single interaction Paulo has with York's kids. They were such a great addition to the series and I'm excited for the last book in the series!
Favourite Couple :
1. Enzo x Tex (Book 1)
2. Gianpaulo x York (Book 4)
3. Giancarlo x Ash (Book 2)
4. Benito x Harlow (Book 3)
Favourite Book :
1. Never Say Never (Book 4)
2. Take Me Apart (Book 1)
3. Paid in Full (Book 2)
4. Say I Do (Book 3)
(Is it obvious I didn't like Book 3...)
May 19, 2024
I devoured this one. York and Paolo had insane chemistry, and of course, they are now one of my favorite couples. I wasn't sure if I'd love this book like the other books because Paolo was like a new character to me, and I had no idea what to expect from his character. Initially, I thought he would be the sanest of the brothers, but he's just as crazy.
The twins were so damn lovely, and I loved how instantly they and Paolo got along.
I feel like there should have been more scenes of Gin and Paolo, considering they've been apart for so long—years, in fact—and that's my only complaint. And Yeah there are tiny teeny flaws here and there in the story, but I am kind of biased when it comes to this series, so Idc🏃🏃
And I can't wait for Quincy's book!
The twins were so damn lovely, and I loved how instantly they and Paolo got along.
I feel like there should have been more scenes of Gin and Paolo, considering they've been apart for so long—years, in fact—and that's my only complaint. And Yeah there are tiny teeny flaws here and there in the story, but I am kind of biased when it comes to this series, so Idc🏃🏃
And I can't wait for Quincy's book!
May 16, 2024
Tropes: boss/employee, mafia, secret identity, age gap
Feels: 3.5/5
Steam*: 3.5/5
Kinks: dirty talk, toys, DP with toy
Angst: low
HEA: yes
Pairing: MM
Triggers/potential icks/content warnings: murder, violence, abduction, noncon unsafe sex
Paolo is 35. Years ago, he faked his death and went undercover into the FBI. He's a Vitale brother and his father wanted him to protect the family and be a mole within the fbi. He is an unhinged character, bi or pan, and a man w****. He's got a reputation at the FBI for sleeping with everybody and pissing everybody off. He's had a friendly flirty relationship with his boss and superior York. He's always kind of hit on him, but he ramps up his efforts when York accidentally reveals that he's gay and might be attracted to him. They start up hooking up and it's close to a relationship but York is hesitant because he has a lot of responsibilities, with his job and also with his single parenting twin 10 year old daughters, and Paolo is not a great safe relationship bet.
York is 46. His wife died a few years ago. He's head of organized crime in the FBI and he's trying to bring down the Vitale family and investigating two other crime families. There's been a lot of blood on the streets with fighting between the families and he wants to crack down on it. As they start investigating the Vitale family, Paolo is playing both sides and trying to keep secrets and keep everyone he cares about safe which is also including York and his daughters who have wormed their way into his heart. When York finds out Paolo's true identity he is pissed and it takes a long time for them to build trust between them again.
This was a good story. I like these authors world building. There's a lot of plot going on the characters are compelling. The side characters add depth and humor and move things along. The feelings and attraction between Paulo and York were deep and decently developed though you could say Paolo jumped pretty quickly to claiming York's daughters as his too. It was sweet though to see his relationship with the girls. And I loved us getting to see all the other characters from previous books. Gin and Harlow in particular are two characters that I really love personality wise.
This book is full of bloodthirsty murder so if you're squeamish this probably isn't for you. This book is a pretty good example of dark romance done in a palatable way where the characters are still likable and they still have a moral code. So it doesn't irk me like some other dark romances. One thing that did annoy me though is there were a handful or so typos, but that's a minor thing. Another thing that bugged me was Paolo ignoring York's request to use a condom and going bare with him. Paolo was a man w**** before they got together, York has every right to want to practice safe sex. Though with all this blood that was spilled that's the more risky thing for their health I guess comparatively. By the way there was no cheating, and no other men or women after they got together.
Some notable moments:
""Look at that," Paul mumbled. "My boss is moaning for me in the backseat of my car. Fuck, that's so hot." "Every time you speak, I regret this," I informed him."
Gin is unhinged and I love him for this. "Gin grunted. "Ash would die without me, and we're in the middle of trying to have a baby." My brows nearly kissed my hair line. "You have a surrogate?" "A what now?" Gin asked. Enzo shook his head "Don't get him started, he's an idiot who refuses to understand he cannot carry a baby." "It's worth a damn try." I didn't even know what to say to my twin."
""You'd be surprised how many of these guys are in therapy on the side. Giancarlo's therapist only takes him as a client and no one else. I don't blame the man. Can you imagine trying to wrap your head around another kind of crazy besides Gin?" I stared at her in shock. Giancarlo was in therapy? Maybe they should fire his therapist, because clearly, something wasn't working."
*FYI about steam: I rate steam based on a combination of quality & quantity. I note kink separate from steam because I don't want to underrate steamy reads that don't have much kink.
**Note about spoilers: I like to comment on the plot of a book in reviews, so I almost always mark my reviews as containing spoilers. But I try to avoid spoiling the big dramatic moments! As a reader, I personally like to know what I'm getting into before I read a book so I know more about the content and if it's to my taste/mood, so I try to give that information in my reviews for myself when I'm considering rereading and also for other readers.
Feels: 3.5/5
Steam*: 3.5/5
Kinks: dirty talk, toys, DP with toy
Angst: low
HEA: yes
Pairing: MM
Triggers/potential icks/content warnings: murder, violence, abduction, noncon unsafe sex
Paolo is 35. Years ago, he faked his death and went undercover into the FBI. He's a Vitale brother and his father wanted him to protect the family and be a mole within the fbi. He is an unhinged character, bi or pan, and a man w****. He's got a reputation at the FBI for sleeping with everybody and pissing everybody off. He's had a friendly flirty relationship with his boss and superior York. He's always kind of hit on him, but he ramps up his efforts when York accidentally reveals that he's gay and might be attracted to him. They start up hooking up and it's close to a relationship but York is hesitant because he has a lot of responsibilities, with his job and also with his single parenting twin 10 year old daughters, and Paolo is not a great safe relationship bet.
York is 46. His wife died a few years ago. He's head of organized crime in the FBI and he's trying to bring down the Vitale family and investigating two other crime families. There's been a lot of blood on the streets with fighting between the families and he wants to crack down on it. As they start investigating the Vitale family, Paolo is playing both sides and trying to keep secrets and keep everyone he cares about safe which is also including York and his daughters who have wormed their way into his heart. When York finds out Paolo's true identity he is pissed and it takes a long time for them to build trust between them again.
This was a good story. I like these authors world building. There's a lot of plot going on the characters are compelling. The side characters add depth and humor and move things along. The feelings and attraction between Paulo and York were deep and decently developed though you could say Paolo jumped pretty quickly to claiming York's daughters as his too. It was sweet though to see his relationship with the girls. And I loved us getting to see all the other characters from previous books. Gin and Harlow in particular are two characters that I really love personality wise.
This book is full of bloodthirsty murder so if you're squeamish this probably isn't for you. This book is a pretty good example of dark romance done in a palatable way where the characters are still likable and they still have a moral code. So it doesn't irk me like some other dark romances. One thing that did annoy me though is there were a handful or so typos, but that's a minor thing. Another thing that bugged me was Paolo ignoring York's request to use a condom and going bare with him. Paolo was a man w**** before they got together, York has every right to want to practice safe sex. Though with all this blood that was spilled that's the more risky thing for their health I guess comparatively. By the way there was no cheating, and no other men or women after they got together.
Some notable moments:
""Look at that," Paul mumbled. "My boss is moaning for me in the backseat of my car. Fuck, that's so hot." "Every time you speak, I regret this," I informed him."
Gin is unhinged and I love him for this. "Gin grunted. "Ash would die without me, and we're in the middle of trying to have a baby." My brows nearly kissed my hair line. "You have a surrogate?" "A what now?" Gin asked. Enzo shook his head "Don't get him started, he's an idiot who refuses to understand he cannot carry a baby." "It's worth a damn try." I didn't even know what to say to my twin."
""You'd be surprised how many of these guys are in therapy on the side. Giancarlo's therapist only takes him as a client and no one else. I don't blame the man. Can you imagine trying to wrap your head around another kind of crazy besides Gin?" I stared at her in shock. Giancarlo was in therapy? Maybe they should fire his therapist, because clearly, something wasn't working."
*FYI about steam: I rate steam based on a combination of quality & quantity. I note kink separate from steam because I don't want to underrate steamy reads that don't have much kink.
**Note about spoilers: I like to comment on the plot of a book in reviews, so I almost always mark my reviews as containing spoilers. But I try to avoid spoiling the big dramatic moments! As a reader, I personally like to know what I'm getting into before I read a book so I know more about the content and if it's to my taste/mood, so I try to give that information in my reviews for myself when I'm considering rereading and also for other readers.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 7, 2024
another crazy Vitale bro and I love him
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Another crazy Vitale brother for me to fall in love with. This series is still my favorite MM Maria series!! Paolo and York’s story was definitely a roller coaster. I was worried that the fbi agent and mafia brother story wouldn’t work well but I think Skyler and Brea did a great job. Plus I love York. His backstory was sad but he was such a great character and a great dad. I just loved him. Glad he found his insane mafia pit bull to watch over him.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Another crazy Vitale brother for me to fall in love with. This series is still my favorite MM Maria series!! Paolo and York’s story was definitely a roller coaster. I was worried that the fbi agent and mafia brother story wouldn’t work well but I think Skyler and Brea did a great job. Plus I love York. His backstory was sad but he was such a great character and a great dad. I just loved him. Glad he found his insane mafia pit bull to watch over him.
May 12, 2024
**I received and arc of never say never and these are my honest thoughts**
”York would willingly sacrifice himself for the world, but I'd burn the world down for him.”
Kicking my feet like a school girl omg. I didn’t think that any book in this series could top my love for Benito and Harlow but here I am falling head over heels for Gianpaolo and York.
The mysterious twin Gianpaolo comes out to play in this story and let me just say I didn’t except to feel so sad for him. Away from his brothers and his life to protect them Paolo was lonely. Except for the one person he couldn’t have, his boss at his undercover FBI job. What could go wrong?
***
Honestly kudos to Brea and Skyler because at no point did I know what was coming next. Stayed up until 4am finishing this story because I could not put it down. The writing is so good and the story telling and the characters we all know and love. That ending? Excuse me what.
Was not prepared for the announcement of one more book?!
Honestly I’ll take 7 more of these book at this rate because they make my heart so happy.
”York would willingly sacrifice himself for the world, but I'd burn the world down for him.”
Kicking my feet like a school girl omg. I didn’t think that any book in this series could top my love for Benito and Harlow but here I am falling head over heels for Gianpaolo and York.
The mysterious twin Gianpaolo comes out to play in this story and let me just say I didn’t except to feel so sad for him. Away from his brothers and his life to protect them Paolo was lonely. Except for the one person he couldn’t have, his boss at his undercover FBI job. What could go wrong?
***
Honestly kudos to Brea and Skyler because at no point did I know what was coming next. Stayed up until 4am finishing this story because I could not put it down. The writing is so good and the story telling and the characters we all know and love. That ending? Excuse me what.
Was not prepared for the announcement of one more book?!
Honestly I’ll take 7 more of these book at this rate because they make my heart so happy.
May 18, 2024
2.5 Eh, I guess. So much to say. So, clearly, I'm in the minority on this one because there are five star reviews out the wazoo, but mama said there'd be days like this. :)
First off, thank you to the authors for giving us a love interest of color. I asked at the end of my last review, but this book was already written so the writers were way ahead of me. Yay! Having said that, while I appreciate that the authors tried to broaden the characters, this book is exactly the type of book that makes me go 'be careful what you wish for' after wanting a black love interest to be added to a series. York had brown skin and literally nothing else to indicate that he was any different from a non melanated character. I still don't know what race/ethnicity he was - we know that he had brown skin, warm brown skin, deep brown skin, dark brown skin...Ok! Anything else? Oh yes, he had brown eyes, soulful brown eyes....and that's it! That's all the description we get, along with him being 6'6, in 437 pages. We don't know if he was black, or Latino, or Indian. He had zero identity. And for those going, "I mean, does it matter?" Yes! Yes, it does! Gianpaolo's Italian heritage is a HUGE part of who he is! He felt fully back to his true self when he shed the contacts and bleach blond hair, and went back to his natural eye and hair color. It was part of who he is; it linked him to his brothers, his heritage. I still don't know if York even had hair. Shaved head, curls, locs? Did he have parents/family that could give us some clue to his heritage like we know about Gianpaolo? Or did the stork just drop him off at the Federal Bureau of Investigations fully grown? Lol, but seriously, this graying out of melanated characters is worse than just not writing black and brown people at all. And I'm not saying every series has to have black and brown people, I'm saying it's NICE when we are included. But when we are, include fully actualized characters. Don't just make a character brown and that's it. What is his culture?? Apart from that, literally no one mentioned his skin color EVER. It's like it didn't exist outside of Gianpaolo's need to wax poetic about him. I guess it's supposed to be progressive, but it's just weird! It's an Italian, crime family. He and Melony meet and never acknowledge each other as two brown people in a sea of non black/brown people (and Harlow - who by the way we know all about, down to his long flowing hair). I need to be able to 'see' my characters and not being able to do that with York was frustrating.
Let's talk about the storyline. This book was about 200 pages too long. It doesn't even remotely get interesting until after the 50% mark, and that was largely due to the fact that the authors tried to write 'Paul' as a hugely different personality from 'Gianpaolo' so the change would be dramatic. Well, I spent the whole first half of the book wishing for the reveal because Paul was such a court jester that I couldn't take anything about him seriously, including that bleach blond hair. It made the odds of York giving him the time of day slim to none. Nothing York did in the start of the book made sense given the way York was written, and this meant the whole relationship didn't work. There was zero chemistry between them for me. None. The sex scenes were mediocre and I was just praying to move things along. At 50% the sole interesting thing in this book was York's relationship with his daughters and 'Paul' meeting them.
Then, 'Paolo' is revealed and THANK GOD because I finally felt like I was reading the book I signed up for. The chemistry between Paolo and York was MUCH better. Loved the girls, and Paolo's fierce protective streak, even though him calling the girls his daughters was a bit 'huh' after such a short time. I do like that York put up a decent fight to hold onto his dignity, eventually succumbing to the attraction, but this couple never really reached the level for me that the authors tried to convince me they were at. They were cool; I just never saw them as madly in love and needing each other. Maybe on Paolo's part. I don't know. I think the lame start spoiled things.
As for the story itself, this book suffers the same fate as all books post Book 1. I don't need to be told how crazy the Vitale brothers are at every given turn. Just write them doing violent, possessive things that don't feel solely gratuitous. We are an intelligent audience. I promise you; we get it. Harlow playing such a prominent role in this book, le and sigh. He was such a wasted love interest for Benito that I can't even. When the triad demanded he be handed over to avoid a war, I was like yes, please! Then Benito can get a real husband. Alas, my pleas fell on deaf ears.
Surprisingly, Giancarlo was funny and provided great comic relief in this book; I can do him in small doses. The ending was a bit fantastical. It wasn't like Tex and Enzo where you could see things working out. Nothing about York's personality said this ending would work. But whatevs.
2.5 and as usual, I am promptly re-reading Book 1 as a palette cleanser. It is the lowest rated book in this series (still 4 stars +) but my absolute favorite.
First off, thank you to the authors for giving us a love interest of color. I asked at the end of my last review, but this book was already written so the writers were way ahead of me. Yay! Having said that, while I appreciate that the authors tried to broaden the characters, this book is exactly the type of book that makes me go 'be careful what you wish for' after wanting a black love interest to be added to a series. York had brown skin and literally nothing else to indicate that he was any different from a non melanated character. I still don't know what race/ethnicity he was - we know that he had brown skin, warm brown skin, deep brown skin, dark brown skin...Ok! Anything else? Oh yes, he had brown eyes, soulful brown eyes....and that's it! That's all the description we get, along with him being 6'6, in 437 pages. We don't know if he was black, or Latino, or Indian. He had zero identity. And for those going, "I mean, does it matter?" Yes! Yes, it does! Gianpaolo's Italian heritage is a HUGE part of who he is! He felt fully back to his true self when he shed the contacts and bleach blond hair, and went back to his natural eye and hair color. It was part of who he is; it linked him to his brothers, his heritage. I still don't know if York even had hair. Shaved head, curls, locs? Did he have parents/family that could give us some clue to his heritage like we know about Gianpaolo? Or did the stork just drop him off at the Federal Bureau of Investigations fully grown? Lol, but seriously, this graying out of melanated characters is worse than just not writing black and brown people at all. And I'm not saying every series has to have black and brown people, I'm saying it's NICE when we are included. But when we are, include fully actualized characters. Don't just make a character brown and that's it. What is his culture?? Apart from that, literally no one mentioned his skin color EVER. It's like it didn't exist outside of Gianpaolo's need to wax poetic about him. I guess it's supposed to be progressive, but it's just weird! It's an Italian, crime family. He and Melony meet and never acknowledge each other as two brown people in a sea of non black/brown people (and Harlow - who by the way we know all about, down to his long flowing hair). I need to be able to 'see' my characters and not being able to do that with York was frustrating.
Let's talk about the storyline. This book was about 200 pages too long. It doesn't even remotely get interesting until after the 50% mark, and that was largely due to the fact that the authors tried to write 'Paul' as a hugely different personality from 'Gianpaolo' so the change would be dramatic. Well, I spent the whole first half of the book wishing for the reveal because Paul was such a court jester that I couldn't take anything about him seriously, including that bleach blond hair. It made the odds of York giving him the time of day slim to none. Nothing York did in the start of the book made sense given the way York was written, and this meant the whole relationship didn't work. There was zero chemistry between them for me. None. The sex scenes were mediocre and I was just praying to move things along. At 50% the sole interesting thing in this book was York's relationship with his daughters and 'Paul' meeting them.
Then, 'Paolo' is revealed and THANK GOD because I finally felt like I was reading the book I signed up for. The chemistry between Paolo and York was MUCH better. Loved the girls, and Paolo's fierce protective streak, even though him calling the girls his daughters was a bit 'huh' after such a short time. I do like that York put up a decent fight to hold onto his dignity, eventually succumbing to the attraction, but this couple never really reached the level for me that the authors tried to convince me they were at. They were cool; I just never saw them as madly in love and needing each other. Maybe on Paolo's part. I don't know. I think the lame start spoiled things.
As for the story itself, this book suffers the same fate as all books post Book 1. I don't need to be told how crazy the Vitale brothers are at every given turn. Just write them doing violent, possessive things that don't feel solely gratuitous. We are an intelligent audience. I promise you; we get it. Harlow playing such a prominent role in this book, le and sigh. He was such a wasted love interest for Benito that I can't even. When the triad demanded he be handed over to avoid a war, I was like yes, please! Then Benito can get a real husband. Alas, my pleas fell on deaf ears.
Surprisingly, Giancarlo was funny and provided great comic relief in this book; I can do him in small doses. The ending was a bit fantastical. It wasn't like Tex and Enzo where you could see things working out. Nothing about York's personality said this ending would work. But whatevs.
2.5 and as usual, I am promptly re-reading Book 1 as a palette cleanser. It is the lowest rated book in this series (still 4 stars +) but my absolute favorite.
May 9, 2024
Another amazing book in this series! I am obsessed with Paolo and York, what a couple of cuties 🥰🤣 I hope you aren’t expecting a normal review for this because that won’t happen. I can’t talk about this series without being weird okay so just go with it. Never Say Never made me giggle and kick my legs and also made me cry. It was perfect.
I’ve been so excited for Gianpaolo, SO EXCITED. Gin is forever my number one man ever and I needed them reunited desperately. Nothing means more to me than Giancarlo and Gianpaolo being back together 😭😭 except maybe Gianpaolo and York, obviously.
“Paul Gallo” has been undercover for ten years, working for and protecting the Vitale family, but sheet is heetting the fan and a war is coming. He has essentially worked hard and slept his way to the top 😂 but there’s one he can’t stop thinking about - his boss, York. And York has a lil soft spot for him too yaaaaaay (it’s maybe 50% hate and 50% lust) but what a Vitale wants a Vitale gets.
Their relationship grows really quickly, especially when Paul meets the twins. He is desperate to get back to his own twin, and his immediately relationship with Yorks children just killed me 😭😭 I love Nyra and Navy so much. They were both so brave and took everything in their stride. They’ve been through so much and I love that they now have a big mad family to spoil them!
We saw so many old and new faces (Harmony💕) and I LOVED THAT, so many names popped up, so many Gin/Paolo moments that healed my soul, double twin hijinks and rapping to Eminem, so much filthy talk from both sides and possessiveness and smutttttttt and GIN and when Paolo drops his Paul mask it is beautiful and wonderful. “Sweet cheeks” 🥹🥹🥹😭😭😭 reading all four brothers back together was just 👩🍳💋🔨 and there is still a book to come!!!!! Which I will go feral for too. Loved it loved it loved it and super recommend this series!
I received an ARC from Skyler Snow and this is my honest review ❤️
I’ve been so excited for Gianpaolo, SO EXCITED. Gin is forever my number one man ever and I needed them reunited desperately. Nothing means more to me than Giancarlo and Gianpaolo being back together 😭😭 except maybe Gianpaolo and York, obviously.
“Paul Gallo” has been undercover for ten years, working for and protecting the Vitale family, but sheet is heetting the fan and a war is coming. He has essentially worked hard and slept his way to the top 😂 but there’s one he can’t stop thinking about - his boss, York. And York has a lil soft spot for him too yaaaaaay (it’s maybe 50% hate and 50% lust) but what a Vitale wants a Vitale gets.
Their relationship grows really quickly, especially when Paul meets the twins. He is desperate to get back to his own twin, and his immediately relationship with Yorks children just killed me 😭😭 I love Nyra and Navy so much. They were both so brave and took everything in their stride. They’ve been through so much and I love that they now have a big mad family to spoil them!
We saw so many old and new faces (Harmony💕) and I LOVED THAT, so many names popped up, so many Gin/Paolo moments that healed my soul, double twin hijinks and rapping to Eminem, so much filthy talk from both sides and possessiveness and smutttttttt and GIN and when Paolo drops his Paul mask it is beautiful and wonderful. “Sweet cheeks” 🥹🥹🥹😭😭😭 reading all four brothers back together was just 👩🍳💋🔨 and there is still a book to come!!!!! Which I will go feral for too. Loved it loved it loved it and super recommend this series!
I received an ARC from Skyler Snow and this is my honest review ❤️
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 30, 2024
What do you do when the person you trusted suddenly became the person you questioned? The answer? Fuck him, apparently.
Full honesty. I didn't like this book until like 40% in. Gianpaolo seemed too crazy. At the time I thought this was either much darker than the other 3 books or I was sanitizing them with hindsight.
'The thought of running them over, even the sweet old lady, was tempting, but then I'd be even later than I already was.'
"Well, breathing isn't a requirement. Just as long as you're pretty enough, I'll breed a corpse too."
Sigh. Why am I hearing this from a romance MC 🤦🏾♀️
"You liked bashing that man's brains in," I said, disgust dripping into my voice. "I watched you smile."
"We all have our issues."
💀Um.
Anyway. Like I said. Wasn't really into the book. Then shit hit the fan. The betrayal was discovered, the pace picked up. Giancarlo showed up🙈
'Gin picked up a charred brick and threw it. The damn thing hit one of the men in the back of the head and he went down. "Get him the fuck out of here. Who the fuck passes out from a small ass brick?"
OH MY GOD?????????? 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Not this being the thing that made me realize I don't mind lunacy, I just never bonded with Paolo.
Because honestly? Giancarlo is a lot more unhinged, now that I remember. But his crazy was somehow endearing. Yes. I know how that sounds. And the book isn't even about him.
Sidenote- The Giancarlo cameos go hard in this one. 10/10. Still our sweet baby psycho killer that's trying to get pregnant.
Back to the book. I kind of got onto the Gianpaolo train after being reminded that he's actually no worse than his brothers, really.
"Shelly, calm down, he's not going to hurt you." York glared at me.
"Are you, Paolo?"
"I am."
😂😂😂 No fucks given. No thought to minimizing the fallout from his cover being blown.
But honestly, it's an okay book. Not my best in this series by far, but I liked it more than Benito's. Mostly because that one had two psychos. I like a calming influence. Though these Vitale love interests tend to lose the plot too, at a point. Because....
"I didn't have to stay in organized crime. It was fun, but I had plenty of interests elsewhere."
Wonder which bits were the fun ones for York. When his wife and best friend was killed as a result of him working with the organized crime unit of the Feds, or the time two collaborating mafia families broke into his home and almost killed his kids? Or maybe it was the time they all got kidnapped and his lover was beaten to within an inch of his life, and his daughters threatened with guns.
Either way, like he said. Wholesome family fun. Great 😬
Also this man kissed him after he'd been unconscious for MULTIPLE days? Nah, I KNOW his mouth tasted like death.
"I will never let you leave me. I'd rather kill us both than let you go. Mine for eternity."
Yes. This also contains the on-brand slightly scary Vitale type of love.
Also, Melony is a weird ass name. Right?
I hate that I was too impatient to wait for the audiobook because I KNOW Declan Winters would (will!?) kick it out of the park like with the others.
Full honesty. I didn't like this book until like 40% in. Gianpaolo seemed too crazy. At the time I thought this was either much darker than the other 3 books or I was sanitizing them with hindsight.
'The thought of running them over, even the sweet old lady, was tempting, but then I'd be even later than I already was.'
"Well, breathing isn't a requirement. Just as long as you're pretty enough, I'll breed a corpse too."
Sigh. Why am I hearing this from a romance MC 🤦🏾♀️
"You liked bashing that man's brains in," I said, disgust dripping into my voice. "I watched you smile."
"We all have our issues."
💀Um.
Anyway. Like I said. Wasn't really into the book. Then shit hit the fan. The betrayal was discovered, the pace picked up. Giancarlo showed up🙈
'Gin picked up a charred brick and threw it. The damn thing hit one of the men in the back of the head and he went down. "Get him the fuck out of here. Who the fuck passes out from a small ass brick?"
OH MY GOD?????????? 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Not this being the thing that made me realize I don't mind lunacy, I just never bonded with Paolo.
Because honestly? Giancarlo is a lot more unhinged, now that I remember. But his crazy was somehow endearing. Yes. I know how that sounds. And the book isn't even about him.
Sidenote- The Giancarlo cameos go hard in this one. 10/10. Still our sweet baby psycho killer that's trying to get pregnant.
Back to the book. I kind of got onto the Gianpaolo train after being reminded that he's actually no worse than his brothers, really.
"Shelly, calm down, he's not going to hurt you." York glared at me.
"Are you, Paolo?"
"I am."
😂😂😂 No fucks given. No thought to minimizing the fallout from his cover being blown.
But honestly, it's an okay book. Not my best in this series by far, but I liked it more than Benito's. Mostly because that one had two psychos. I like a calming influence. Though these Vitale love interests tend to lose the plot too, at a point. Because....
"I didn't have to stay in organized crime. It was fun, but I had plenty of interests elsewhere."
Wonder which bits were the fun ones for York. When his wife and best friend was killed as a result of him working with the organized crime unit of the Feds, or the time two collaborating mafia families broke into his home and almost killed his kids? Or maybe it was the time they all got kidnapped and his lover was beaten to within an inch of his life, and his daughters threatened with guns.
Either way, like he said. Wholesome family fun. Great 😬
Also this man kissed him after he'd been unconscious for MULTIPLE days? Nah, I KNOW his mouth tasted like death.
"I will never let you leave me. I'd rather kill us both than let you go. Mine for eternity."
Yes. This also contains the on-brand slightly scary Vitale type of love.
Also, Melony is a weird ass name. Right?
I hate that I was too impatient to wait for the audiobook because I KNOW Declan Winters would (will!?) kick it out of the park like with the others.
May 29, 2024
5 crazy stars ✨🤪
I literally love this book so much, my favorite out of the series
I literally love this book so much, my favorite out of the series
June 1, 2024
3.75⭐ and rounding it up, because for me this was a step up from the previous two installments and I'm looking forward to the final one.
The story is interesting and has a hot, spicy dynamic between the two main characters who are fleshed out and eventually immersed into the family, but they had more potential than the last two couples and weren't awarded with a more fitting ending or epilogue, at least for my taste.
🔵 Both characters FBI agents
🟣 Paolo is undercover and falls for his boss
🟠 Age gap - 11 years (35/46)
🟡 The family business makes them go into hiding where Paolo's cover is blown
🟢 Palpable chemistry
🔵 Gay/straight married-->gay
🌶️ The sex is great, the intimacy has passion and depth; one mmc is gay but inexperienced; both vers
I was waiting for Gianpaolo's story for a long time and it didn't disappoint. Paolo is an undercover agent working for the FBI, has a different identity and in the office he's a blonde, blue eyed hunk who fucks whatever crawls left or right, but he's a good agent and is essentially protecting his family from the inside. Paolo hasn't seen them in a decade, most of them think he's dead so to believably make this happen for them, his best bet is to hop into the sack with York, his boss who's a widower, presumably straight and wants nothing to do with Paul.
Paolo finds out York came out later in life, he's gay, so they finally start hooking up with York being a complete beginner, but a quick learner, so the more they spend time together, the more Paolo gets a front seat to York's very guarded private life, access to his family and the hooking up strictly for business purposes becomes something more.
"I don't know, you looking like a sex god, but being virtually untouched makes my dick so fucking hard for you, I just want to slide myself in your ass until my balls touch your skin, and fuck you until you cry for me." He licked his lips. "Respectfully.""
They have really good sex, scenes well described, some things were explored in this book that I really liked (like both penetrated with the double dildo, Paolo DP with the dildo and York, I loved the fact they were vers, it really spiced things up), so the chemistry between them was undeniably good. I loved it. They really fit together and Paolo's possessiveness wasn't OTT or out of place, it grew gradually and developed into a deeper love that's still growing at the end of the story, so everything was definitely believable, made especially so because York was 46 years old and a father, so a really mature character that went into this not only with his dick and his heart, but his head too.
When York gets attacked for trying to clean up the streets of the three mafia families who are at war, Paolo saves York and his daughters, his cover is blown and that's when the real guy comes out - and I liked him much more than I did Paul.
York went from kind of liking Paul to dead on being strongly attracted to Paolo, although he felt betrayed and found himself in the middle of the very mob family he was supposed to be working against.
"Gianpaolo. Whoever the fuck he was. I didn't even know the name of the man that I had been screwing. The person I fell asleep with at night, his arms wrapped around my body. The guy that had made his way into my life and made my daughters fall in love. He was a stranger that I had touched, and kissed, and fucked, and thought about wanting more, and all this time, he was the person I was after. My enemy."
Paolo and York's dynamic worked really well for me, the time they spent apart was necessary and even though they switched to love pretty soon considering, I thought it was fine, they professed it at the end of the book, so that was believable.
Even though Paolo was the bad guy here and the more powerful one, York seemed to be the stable, mature, protective guy that centred Paolo, he was Paolo's very good match - I won't say perfect, but definitely something Paolo very much needed.
"My obsession only seemed to grow by the day, and I was fully aware as to why. He was the one person that made me feel whole when I felt like I was losing all sense of myself. York recognized parts of me that not even my brothers could see. York Washington was my everything. I had no idea when he took a piece of me but I wasn't ever getting it back."
The daughters weren't a problematic addition to the story, but they bothered me a little bit. They were always in the background, I didn't feel that amazing connection it was told they had with Paul, so with him calling them his daughters and his kids that early on was a little bit OTT. I didn't like it. That should've come at the end.
The story had a satisfying ending, I'm glad York didn't quit his job at the FBI, but they still don't have a home of their own, so that was left out. There was no engagement or anything like that and then Paolo's brother Giancarlo bringing a baby home that he bought off some woman kind of dampened the mood for me.
This definitely could've been much better if the story focused even more on Paolo and York, simply because they were really good together. I liked the family drama and the fighting, but there was no resolution to Paolo's and York's absence at the office, no conclusion there, Shelly was quickly killed off and nothing is said about their life after the mob war that went down.
An interesting twist comes in the form of another unknown brother (or son?), so I'm definitely looking forward to the final installment.
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The story is interesting and has a hot, spicy dynamic between the two main characters who are fleshed out and eventually immersed into the family, but they had more potential than the last two couples and weren't awarded with a more fitting ending or epilogue, at least for my taste.
🔵 Both characters FBI agents
🟣 Paolo is undercover and falls for his boss
🟠 Age gap - 11 years (35/46)
🟡 The family business makes them go into hiding where Paolo's cover is blown
🟢 Palpable chemistry
🔵 Gay/straight married-->gay
🌶️ The sex is great, the intimacy has passion and depth; one mmc is gay but inexperienced; both vers
I was waiting for Gianpaolo's story for a long time and it didn't disappoint. Paolo is an undercover agent working for the FBI, has a different identity and in the office he's a blonde, blue eyed hunk who fucks whatever crawls left or right, but he's a good agent and is essentially protecting his family from the inside. Paolo hasn't seen them in a decade, most of them think he's dead so to believably make this happen for them, his best bet is to hop into the sack with York, his boss who's a widower, presumably straight and wants nothing to do with Paul.
Paolo finds out York came out later in life, he's gay, so they finally start hooking up with York being a complete beginner, but a quick learner, so the more they spend time together, the more Paolo gets a front seat to York's very guarded private life, access to his family and the hooking up strictly for business purposes becomes something more.
"I don't know, you looking like a sex god, but being virtually untouched makes my dick so fucking hard for you, I just want to slide myself in your ass until my balls touch your skin, and fuck you until you cry for me." He licked his lips. "Respectfully.""
They have really good sex, scenes well described, some things were explored in this book that I really liked (like both penetrated with the double dildo, Paolo DP with the dildo and York, I loved the fact they were vers, it really spiced things up), so the chemistry between them was undeniably good. I loved it. They really fit together and Paolo's possessiveness wasn't OTT or out of place, it grew gradually and developed into a deeper love that's still growing at the end of the story, so everything was definitely believable, made especially so because York was 46 years old and a father, so a really mature character that went into this not only with his dick and his heart, but his head too.
When York gets attacked for trying to clean up the streets of the three mafia families who are at war, Paolo saves York and his daughters, his cover is blown and that's when the real guy comes out - and I liked him much more than I did Paul.
York went from kind of liking Paul to dead on being strongly attracted to Paolo, although he felt betrayed and found himself in the middle of the very mob family he was supposed to be working against.
"Gianpaolo. Whoever the fuck he was. I didn't even know the name of the man that I had been screwing. The person I fell asleep with at night, his arms wrapped around my body. The guy that had made his way into my life and made my daughters fall in love. He was a stranger that I had touched, and kissed, and fucked, and thought about wanting more, and all this time, he was the person I was after. My enemy."
Paolo and York's dynamic worked really well for me, the time they spent apart was necessary and even though they switched to love pretty soon considering, I thought it was fine, they professed it at the end of the book, so that was believable.
Even though Paolo was the bad guy here and the more powerful one, York seemed to be the stable, mature, protective guy that centred Paolo, he was Paolo's very good match - I won't say perfect, but definitely something Paolo very much needed.
"My obsession only seemed to grow by the day, and I was fully aware as to why. He was the one person that made me feel whole when I felt like I was losing all sense of myself. York recognized parts of me that not even my brothers could see. York Washington was my everything. I had no idea when he took a piece of me but I wasn't ever getting it back."
The daughters weren't a problematic addition to the story, but they bothered me a little bit. They were always in the background, I didn't feel that amazing connection it was told they had with Paul, so with him calling them his daughters and his kids that early on was a little bit OTT. I didn't like it. That should've come at the end.
The story had a satisfying ending, I'm glad York didn't quit his job at the FBI, but they still don't have a home of their own, so that was left out. There was no engagement or anything like that and then Paolo's brother Giancarlo bringing a baby home that he bought off some woman kind of dampened the mood for me.
This definitely could've been much better if the story focused even more on Paolo and York, simply because they were really good together. I liked the family drama and the fighting, but there was no resolution to Paolo's and York's absence at the office, no conclusion there, Shelly was quickly killed off and nothing is said about their life after the mob war that went down.
An interesting twist comes in the form of another unknown brother (or son?), so I'm definitely looking forward to the final installment.
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May 23, 2024
Gianpaolo's circumstances are imo the most interesting of the Vitale brothers, and I was not disappointed. I will never not love hidden-identity plotlines.
I kinda enjoyed the taboo workplace romance dynamic they had in the beginning a lot and the second half felt a little stale with the limited setting. I do wish we had gotten to see a proper conversation between the Vitale brothers about Gianpaolo's sacrifices (and Benito's part in it), but I suppose I shouldn't expect civilised conversations when reading a mafia book.
I kinda enjoyed the taboo workplace romance dynamic they had in the beginning a lot and the second half felt a little stale with the limited setting. I do wish we had gotten to see a proper conversation between the Vitale brothers about Gianpaolo's sacrifices (and Benito's part in it), but I suppose I shouldn't expect civilised conversations when reading a mafia book.
May 17, 2024
3.5 stars. Feeling a bit underwhelmed by this one. I have absolutely loved this series but this was my least favorite. The plot and cameos of all the Vitale family were my favorite part but I felt that the chemistry between the main characters was a bit lacking even though there was so much potential.
July 3, 2024
Never Say Never is the fourth book in the Vitale Brothers series. This MM mafia romance story is about Gianpaolo and York.
Paolo is Gin’s twin and has been working as an agent in the FBI to protect his family. He has a thing for York, a widower with twin daughters. He also happens to be Paolo’s boss that is looking to put the Vitales behind bars.
I really enjoyed Paolo, but unfortunately I wasn’t a big fan of York. I had a hard time with their connection. I can understand York struggling with his feelings for Paolo, but I think I just needed more from him in order to feel like he truly fell in love with Paolo.
The plot was interesting and I absolutely loved all the scenes with the other Vitale brothers and their partners. Overall, this was a great story in this amazing series. I definitely look forward to reading the last book when it gets released.
Paolo is Gin’s twin and has been working as an agent in the FBI to protect his family. He has a thing for York, a widower with twin daughters. He also happens to be Paolo’s boss that is looking to put the Vitales behind bars.
I really enjoyed Paolo, but unfortunately I wasn’t a big fan of York. I had a hard time with their connection. I can understand York struggling with his feelings for Paolo, but I think I just needed more from him in order to feel like he truly fell in love with Paolo.
The plot was interesting and I absolutely loved all the scenes with the other Vitale brothers and their partners. Overall, this was a great story in this amazing series. I definitely look forward to reading the last book when it gets released.
May 7, 2024
"Don't worry, I'm a Vitale. I have bloody hands and a blackened soul."
They have done it yet again.. but I never doubted them at all.
Where do I even begin?
I read this book 3 times and skimmed through again a 4th time, I didn't want to let them go!
This book has made it my most highlighted book coming in hot at 273 highlights 😏
So damn good, it was worth the current book hangover I am currently in.
I expected this book to be addicting to read and not be able to put down and it delivered and then some. This has been a long time coming since I found this series and have been waiting forever for Paolo's book. Now that I got it, I want to go back and stay!
Paolo & York are EXPLOSIVE like mind blown, holy shit that is damn good.
Their dynamic is what builds and makes everything that much more intense. It's a thrilling ride to go on and to get both POV at just that right moment makes their relationship hit where it needs to.
When that pivotal moment comes and everything comes to light its like you hear harmonizing angels and we get the full effect of Paolo, unmasked. IT. IS. FANTASTIC.!
Now to all the things that always must be listed.. Paolo & York both have got mouths on them and phew did they get it right 🥵
Praise.. but of course we have this!
Degradation.. this was 🤤 York does it so well!
That special surprise that was so damn DELICIOUS 😉 IYKYK (ahem 37)
We get an age gap that adds in the tad bit of humor cause you know balance and shit 🤣
Possessiveness & Jealousy
You're Mines.. SWOON 🥰
YOU. GET. IT. ALL. IN. HERE.
Of course we get to see everyone else and even some I never expected to see in this series but from other books by these two. I most enjoyed seeing Gin the most, I just love him and his way with words 🤣
I will end this here because honestly I could go on forever about this book & series. If you are on the fence about this series you are missing out.
The wait was well worth it.. but also how dare you end it that way!! I have questions, I'm with Harlow on this one!
They have done it yet again.. but I never doubted them at all.
Where do I even begin?
I read this book 3 times and skimmed through again a 4th time, I didn't want to let them go!
This book has made it my most highlighted book coming in hot at 273 highlights 😏
So damn good, it was worth the current book hangover I am currently in.
I expected this book to be addicting to read and not be able to put down and it delivered and then some. This has been a long time coming since I found this series and have been waiting forever for Paolo's book. Now that I got it, I want to go back and stay!
Paolo & York are EXPLOSIVE like mind blown, holy shit that is damn good.
Their dynamic is what builds and makes everything that much more intense. It's a thrilling ride to go on and to get both POV at just that right moment makes their relationship hit where it needs to.
When that pivotal moment comes and everything comes to light its like you hear harmonizing angels and we get the full effect of Paolo, unmasked. IT. IS. FANTASTIC.!
Now to all the things that always must be listed.. Paolo & York both have got mouths on them and phew did they get it right 🥵
Praise.. but of course we have this!
Degradation.. this was 🤤 York does it so well!
That special surprise that was so damn DELICIOUS 😉 IYKYK (ahem 37)
We get an age gap that adds in the tad bit of humor cause you know balance and shit 🤣
Possessiveness & Jealousy
You're Mines.. SWOON 🥰
YOU. GET. IT. ALL. IN. HERE.
Of course we get to see everyone else and even some I never expected to see in this series but from other books by these two. I most enjoyed seeing Gin the most, I just love him and his way with words 🤣
I will end this here because honestly I could go on forever about this book & series. If you are on the fence about this series you are missing out.
The wait was well worth it.. but also how dare you end it that way!! I have questions, I'm with Harlow on this one!
May 24, 2024
A MM Enemies to Lovers Mafia Romance with an undercover mafioso x his single-dad boss! It's dark, fun, dramatic, angsty, cute, action-packed, & sexy AF.
This series has been so entertaining to read (TW tho)! I loved Gianpaolo & York. Devoured my #ARC in 10hrs!
“York would willingly sacrifice himself for the world, but I'd burn the world down for him.”
Gianpaolo/Paul is a Vitale (aka Mafia) but undercover as cop in FBI. He's flirty (& a manwhore), playful, stubborn & can be obsessive, ruthless too. Poor man misses his bros but does this for fam.
York is the boss of Paul's division. He's a workaholic, private, bossy (lol), & so sweet, caring of his daughters! York's lifework is to stop mafia in NY - the Vitale.
(There's a ~10yrs age gap, as the MCs are in their 30s & 40s! Still there are first times 😉)
Paul's "crush" is sweet lol. York has WALLS, but it's fun to see Paul break em. It's forbidden romance in so many levels 🥵. When all the secrets come to light, obviously, it's angsty, mad, messy! I loved that P didn't give up 🙌. Hot possessive-ness. Love me a vers couple 😋. Kinky 🔥 (That DS dildo 😭🔥). The action's GOOD. RTC.
There were quite a few minor typos, which hopefully were corrected. I'm excited to see the last V book 👀. Benito maybe in trouble 🤣.
POV: 1st person, Dual POV
1) Overall Enjoyment—> 5+/5
2) The Characters: 5/5
3) Top feels: 😆🥺😏🤐😬😟🤨🤕😅😍😋😳🥶🥵😢🥰😔👊☺️
4) Steamy scenes: 4/5
5) Levels: Cute+Swoon: 4/5
Angst: 3.5/5
Dark+Action: 3.5/5
6) Creativity + world: 4.7/5
7) Plot arc: (Mafia, Enemies, Love) 4.75/5
8) Writing style + pace: 4.7/5
This series has been so entertaining to read (TW tho)! I loved Gianpaolo & York. Devoured my #ARC in 10hrs!
“York would willingly sacrifice himself for the world, but I'd burn the world down for him.”
Gianpaolo/Paul is a Vitale (aka Mafia) but undercover as cop in FBI. He's flirty (& a manwhore), playful, stubborn & can be obsessive, ruthless too. Poor man misses his bros but does this for fam.
York is the boss of Paul's division. He's a workaholic, private, bossy (lol), & so sweet, caring of his daughters! York's lifework is to stop mafia in NY - the Vitale.
(There's a ~10yrs age gap, as the MCs are in their 30s & 40s! Still there are first times 😉)
Paul's "crush" is sweet lol. York has WALLS, but it's fun to see Paul break em. It's forbidden romance in so many levels 🥵. When all the secrets come to light, obviously, it's angsty, mad, messy! I loved that P didn't give up 🙌. Hot possessive-ness. Love me a vers couple 😋. Kinky 🔥 (That DS dildo 😭🔥). The action's GOOD. RTC.
There were quite a few minor typos, which hopefully were corrected. I'm excited to see the last V book 👀. Benito maybe in trouble 🤣.
POV: 1st person, Dual POV
1) Overall Enjoyment—> 5+/5
2) The Characters: 5/5
3) Top feels: 😆🥺😏🤐😬😟🤨🤕😅😍😋😳🥶🥵😢🥰😔👊☺️
4) Steamy scenes: 4/5
5) Levels: Cute+Swoon: 4/5
Angst: 3.5/5
Dark+Action: 3.5/5
6) Creativity + world: 4.7/5
7) Plot arc: (Mafia, Enemies, Love) 4.75/5
8) Writing style + pace: 4.7/5
July 7, 2024
Vitale Brothers Series:
1.
Take Me Apart
-
Enzo & Tex's Story
- 5,0 stars
2.
Paid in Full
-
Giancarlo & Ash's Story
- 5,0 stars
3.Say I Do - Benito & Harlow's Story - 5,0 stars
4.Never Say Never - 4,7 stars
Next Blake & Quincy's Story:
5. End It All - Slight Delay - Update 29/06/2024: Officially in the works, live on Patreon (only the Prologue [2 ch] available).
Bonus Shorts:
👉1,5/2,5.Vitale Brothers Bonus Shorts Vol.1 👈(freebie link)
1,5.Story 1: Tex and Enzo go meet Tex's parents. - 4,5 stars
2,5.Story 2: Ash must get answers about the man in the picture - 4,0 stars
👇👇👇👇
SPIN-OFF Series The Hitters MC Club 1st Book:
👉3,5. Bad Habits - Caleb & Tony's Story
1.
2.
3.
4.
Next Blake & Quincy's Story:
5. End It All - Slight Delay - Update 29/06/2024: Officially in the works, live on Patreon (only the Prologue [2 ch] available).
Bonus Shorts:
👉1,5/2,5.
1,5.
2,5.
👇👇👇👇
SPIN-OFF Series The Hitters MC Club 1st Book:
👉3,5. Bad Habits - Caleb & Tony's Story
August 10, 2024
3.25⭐️
3.75🌶️
This Book Was Good Y’all, But Definitely Not My Favorite In The Series. This Book Is My Least Favorite In The Series Because I Just Didn’t Really Click With Gianpaulo And York Then With The Other Couples, But This One Was Still Really Good And I Do Have Hope The Last Book In The Series End It All Will Be A lot Better And Also A Really Great Finally To The Series. Overall DEFINITELY Recommend The Vitale Brothers Series If You Want A Really Good Dark Mafia Romance Series.
3.75🌶️
This Book Was Good Y’all, But Definitely Not My Favorite In The Series. This Book Is My Least Favorite In The Series Because I Just Didn’t Really Click With Gianpaulo And York Then With The Other Couples, But This One Was Still Really Good And I Do Have Hope The Last Book In The Series End It All Will Be A lot Better And Also A Really Great Finally To The Series. Overall DEFINITELY Recommend The Vitale Brothers Series If You Want A Really Good Dark Mafia Romance Series.
May 10, 2024
The Vitales are mine!!!
First, I need to squeal about how freaking amazing a mafia/federal agent pairing is. Talk about fierce opposition and heated exchanges. Paolo and York have insane chemistry, and really feel each other on a level like none other, even as, especially as, they fight, mostly York what is inevitable.
“Paolo, York's getting a boner. Hurry up so we can keep going! You might get laid."
Gianpaolo stood up and turned to face me. His eyes ran down my body and back up again, before he grinned.
"I guess I better work hard, huh sweet cheeks?"
Yeah, I was in love with a psycho.
Second, I need to crow about how intense this book is. It’s not just the fireworks that explode between York and Paolo. It’s also how the controlled chaos that is the Vitales ramps up like a thousand, and I was here for. Every. Single. Hit. I love this family, from how deeply they love to how possessively protective they are of what’s theirs. It’s an unpredictable wild ride that utterly unforgettable. I cannot wait to see what’s next.
First, I need to squeal about how freaking amazing a mafia/federal agent pairing is. Talk about fierce opposition and heated exchanges. Paolo and York have insane chemistry, and really feel each other on a level like none other, even as, especially as, they fight, mostly York what is inevitable.
“Paolo, York's getting a boner. Hurry up so we can keep going! You might get laid."
Gianpaolo stood up and turned to face me. His eyes ran down my body and back up again, before he grinned.
"I guess I better work hard, huh sweet cheeks?"
Yeah, I was in love with a psycho.
Second, I need to crow about how intense this book is. It’s not just the fireworks that explode between York and Paolo. It’s also how the controlled chaos that is the Vitales ramps up like a thousand, and I was here for. Every. Single. Hit. I love this family, from how deeply they love to how possessively protective they are of what’s theirs. It’s an unpredictable wild ride that utterly unforgettable. I cannot wait to see what’s next.
June 11, 2024
This book was hidden identity mafia son acting as fed x his single dad boss done P E R F E C T L Y! I absolutely loved Gianpaolo and York. Their whole dynamic, paolo's bond with nyra and navy, the betrayal when york realizes who paul actually is and paolo just being the standard otp and obsessed guy for his man and his girls was exactly what I had expected from this story and dayuuumm me, was it flawlessly done
May 23, 2024
4.0 🌟
I was looking forward to this since EVER, and I want to be completely honest. In the beginning, I wasn’t hooked like I thought I would be. I didn’t feel the connection between York and Paolo that much at first, but I kept reading because I love this series. I think I started liking it more when York found out about him and the rest of the family came along, the book felt too empty without them. If it was the story of just the two of them, I probably wouldn’t have read it.
God, I love the brothers so much. Seeing Gianpaolo blend back into the family was so good, I can see how much Gin missed his twin. We didn’t get to see him before, so at first it was awkward, but it came along well.
One thing I have to say about the couple is that I love how possessive Gianpaolo is of York and the girls. From the get go, he was like “they are MINE and I WILL PROTECT THEM”, and I admire him very much for it, especially when York kept rejecting and ignoring him.
York is a great character, I love seeing him cave and accept the family, and most of all, Harlow, which was such a surprise with the girls!
In my opinion, however, Gin shines the most out of all, and the most memorable thing in the book to me was him buying a baby (What’s up with him and buying humans?), and the quote where he said him and Ash are trying for a baby.
Anyways, I’m so excited for End it All, and I’m glad that the authors chose a close releasing date!! They are so thoughtful, especially with the BOMB they dropped at the end.
I was looking forward to this since EVER, and I want to be completely honest. In the beginning, I wasn’t hooked like I thought I would be. I didn’t feel the connection between York and Paolo that much at first, but I kept reading because I love this series. I think I started liking it more when York found out about him and the rest of the family came along, the book felt too empty without them. If it was the story of just the two of them, I probably wouldn’t have read it.
God, I love the brothers so much. Seeing Gianpaolo blend back into the family was so good, I can see how much Gin missed his twin. We didn’t get to see him before, so at first it was awkward, but it came along well.
One thing I have to say about the couple is that I love how possessive Gianpaolo is of York and the girls. From the get go, he was like “they are MINE and I WILL PROTECT THEM”, and I admire him very much for it, especially when York kept rejecting and ignoring him.
York is a great character, I love seeing him cave and accept the family, and most of all, Harlow, which was such a surprise with the girls!
In my opinion, however, Gin shines the most out of all, and the most memorable thing in the book to me was him buying a baby (What’s up with him and buying humans?), and the quote where he said him and Ash are trying for a baby.
Anyways, I’m so excited for End it All, and I’m glad that the authors chose a close releasing date!! They are so thoughtful, especially with the BOMB they dropped at the end.
May 16, 2024
OMG, it was so GOOD!!! Like, I'm not surprised. I loved all the previous books in this series, so I knew this one is also going to be fantastic, and it did not disappoint! I just love Vitale brothers and how totally unhinged they are! They would do anything for their family and I'm so here for it 💕
I loved this book! Paolo and York are absolutely perfect for each other! York acted so uptight in the beginning but he obviously got some craziness in him, and he's not afraid to let it out when someone threatens those he loves (it's not a match to the Vitales, but it's still there 😏). Gianpaolo, a perfect mafia boyfriend, being so possessive and super protective of his man and his daughters! LOVE! He would literally burn the world for them, and his brothers would hand him the match! I adore their family and how York and his daughters are now a part of it ❤️
Okay, so now I'm obviously intrigued about the next book! A secret Vitale brother, that no one knew about? Sign me up! And his love interest is going to be Quincy! I literally cannot wait for it to come out! I know that this book only came out yesterday, but I really need the next one asap! I NEED more of the Vitale world ✨️
I loved this book! Paolo and York are absolutely perfect for each other! York acted so uptight in the beginning but he obviously got some craziness in him, and he's not afraid to let it out when someone threatens those he loves (it's not a match to the Vitales, but it's still there 😏). Gianpaolo, a perfect mafia boyfriend, being so possessive and super protective of his man and his daughters! LOVE! He would literally burn the world for them, and his brothers would hand him the match! I adore their family and how York and his daughters are now a part of it ❤️
Okay, so now I'm obviously intrigued about the next book! A secret Vitale brother, that no one knew about? Sign me up! And his love interest is going to be Quincy! I literally cannot wait for it to come out! I know that this book only came out yesterday, but I really need the next one asap! I NEED more of the Vitale world ✨️
May 15, 2024
It suprised nobody that this is another 5 star banger from this duo but by the stars I did not see that cameo for this next book coming!!😭
OMG!!! Can I have it now????!! Please
___________________
I don’t even know where to start on what I love about this.
Is it the Vitale brothers reunion?
The fact that Paolo understood York’s’ twins as soon as he met them cause he was a twin himself?
The fact that he calls Yorks twins his girls??
The fact that the Yorks twins call Benito “uncle Benny”?
HARLOW!!!! Omg it’s still obsessed with our unhinged princess😭
Insert York and Paolo! Ahh I love them!!! (I’m tired rn so maybe I’d think of more things in the morning after my class but this is definitely part of my top reads this year!!)
OMG!!! Can I have it now????!! Please
___________________
I don’t even know where to start on what I love about this.
Is it the Vitale brothers reunion?
The fact that Paolo understood York’s’ twins as soon as he met them cause he was a twin himself?
The fact that he calls Yorks twins his girls??
The fact that the Yorks twins call Benito “uncle Benny”?
HARLOW!!!! Omg it’s still obsessed with our unhinged princess😭
Insert York and Paolo! Ahh I love them!!! (I’m tired rn so maybe I’d think of more things in the morning after my class but this is definitely part of my top reads this year!!)
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