Stockholm Syndrome is Totally Out… Right?

Stockholm Syndrome is

totally out… right?

by Charlotte Brandman

When I envisioned this blog, I didn’t see myself being a mouthpiece for Mafia romance books but J.T. Gessinger continues to rope me into loving crazy plotlines. I was scrolling through TikTok last week when I stumbled upon a BookToker’s post about Mafia kidnapping romances. As a disclaimer, I don’t normally read dark romances because I’m an incredibly sensitive crybaby who only likes sappy, sensitive romance novels. You know, the type where the male lead fills rooms with flowers and chocolate to propose to the female lead? But, these books changed my perspective a little bit—partly due to the killer female leads that Gessinger writes in every single novel. And also the super rich Irish mafia men that they go went weak in the knees for. Whoof. Delicious stuff.

For those of you who aren’t familiar, the Queens and Monsters series is considered an interconnected stand-alone series, which means that all of the books could be read as separate novels but all of the novels also feature characters from the series. The timeline also works chronologically from the first book to the fourth book. The Queens and Monsters series is ordered from Ruthless Creatures to Carnal Urges, Savage Hearts, and Brutal Vows being the fourth and final book. And, because we’re friends, I’ll be honest with you - I started on the second book. Oops. It was purely accidental because the BookToker recommended Carnal Urges and I assumed it was the first book. But I read the two books following Carnal Urges and still have a good grasp on the universe in which the series takes place.

Carnal Urges starts with Sloane, bad-bitch extraordinaire, on a private flight to visit her best friend, Natalie, in New York. Natalie is the protagonist in the first book, Ruthless Creatures, and is engaged to the American head of the Bratva - the Russian Mob. When Sloane arrives, there’s an instant shoot-out in the parking garage of Natalie’s apartment. And who grabs Sloane and shoves her into a Cadillac in the middle of the gunfire? Only the deliciously tall, perfectly sculpted, entirely Irish Declan O’Donnell, interim head of the Irish Mob.

Note: To be clear, I do NOT condone kidnapping. But for a good enemies-to-lovers, angsty, banter-heavy novel, I fully endorse it. 

The reason this book stood out to me wasn’t because of Declan’s funny accent (and trust me, I laughed multiple times trying to decipher what this man was saying), it was Sloane’s personality that really kept me turning the page. Even with her hands bound behind her back and a gag in her mouth, she was still thinking of how she would knock Declan in the balls for kidnapping her. She’s strong, fierce, and super petty, always finding a way to bite back at people who hurt her throughout the novel. The banter between her and Declan is fantastic and will literally have you flipping through the pages like a madman (my roommate was concerned at the rate that I was tearing through my Kindle’s battery life). Do they fall in love? Duh. Is it awesome and amazing and everything I could’ve wished for and more? Also duh. Would I read another Mafia romance? Unless it was written by J.T. Gessinger, no. I need the female lead to have autonomy. I want her to want the guy that she’s with for a reason other than he kidnapped her, even if it’s nonsensical and a little crazy.

Just when you thought we were done with kidnapping plots, Gessigener hits us with the third book, Savage Hearts, which takes the kidnappee-turns-fiancé pipeline and amplifies it by one hundred. Riley, the bratty and often described as a “hobo” looking sister of Sloane (she just wears sweatpants when Sloane wears mini skirts) gets kidnapped by Malek, the Russian head of the Bratva in Moscow. There’s also a subplot of one of Declan’s guards, Spider, being helplessly in love with Riley and trying to get her back from Malek. Essentially, Riley and Malek fall in love and she manages to break through his psychopathic-killer-man tendencies and into his big heart. Swoon.

The final book in the series has no kidnapping but jeez Louise this is one of the best enemies to lovers, fake marriage books I’ve ever read. And I have read an obscene amount. Reyna is the fiercest female protagonist I have ever come across and she takes no shit from the several men who try to push her around. She kills at least four men (that we know of) with her bare hands. We also get a re-entrance of Spider, the bodyguard who was obsessed with Riley, who’s still angry that he let her get kidnapped. Spider and Reyna’s relationship is spicy, fiery, and incredibly satisfying to watch play out. This was definitely my favorite storyline of the series, mainly because Reyna is that bitch and Spider gives Declan and Malek a run for sexist male lead in the series.

I hope that this week’s post gives you new Mafia men to obsess over and badasses to look up to. Here’s to all of us being a little more like Reyna and taking life (and mean men) by the balls.

See you next read,

Charlotte

Photograph: Pinterest