Reaper by A. Zavarelli

​CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

Publication date: 05/19/2016
Kindle Unlimited: Yes
Cliffhanger: No

There’s a lot of things that make this book pure catnip for a certain type of romance reader. The hero is a hot, Irish mobster who has a tortured past, is a socially awkward virgin, and who also happens to be an assassin. He’s complicated, OK? I would’ve read this one for “hot and Irish” alone, but all the other stuff? Pure gold, even for readers like me who don’t normally go for books with the darker themes.

Ronan makes this book for me. If there had been no romance at all, just stories about Ronan doing his job, interacting with his mafia brethren, and taking care of the dog he picked up from a dude he killed, I would’ve been happy. (And yes, he takes care of a little dog that he rescued from that very situation and it was ADORABLE.) But getting to see him find his HEA with the woman of his dreams? Priceless.

I’ll warn y’all, though. Ronan is not an easy guy to get to know. He makes Sasha, the heroine, REALLY work for it. It’s not his fault (which you’ll learn pretty quickly as you’re given little glimpses of his truly awful anti-childhood), but his relationship with Sasha isn’t always easy to read about. Ronan says and does things that would make just about any rational woman run for the hills, but still, this book is well-written enough that it never trips my bullshit meter. Even when Sasha and Ronan have what could be considered an instalove moment or two, I overlook it. Why? Because these are two of the most tortured, damaged, messed-up people I’ve ever found in romance land. And it seems perfectly plausible to me that a woman who’d been through what Sasha had been through would immediately fall for a guy who rescued her with no regard for his own personal safety. In other words, you couldn’t really say that there’s anything unrealistic about Sasha and Ronan’s relationship because exactly what WOULD be normal for these people?   

This book can also be read as a standalone. Just because it’s part of a series, you won’t feel like you’re missing anything if you haven’t read book 1. (Although I highly recommend book 1, too) 

Long-story-short, this is a story that has LOTS of yummy Irish mafia dudes with hearts of gold (tarnished gold, but gold nonetheless), and I absolutely dare you to read this series and NOT get totally sucked into it. It’s highly 1-clickable.    

Does this book contribute to or help crush the romance stigma?
It’s clean and sober. No rehab needed.

Other reading suggestions
Definitely check out the author’s backlist. And for more sexy, mafia men, you’ll want to check out this list. We also have a sexy assassins list, if you’re into that kind of thing. (And who isn’t?)

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