Ruthless Heir
by Sasha Leone
My review:
“Ruthless Heir” is the first book in the Ruthless Dynasty series by Sasha Leone. It’s a dark Mafia story that combines themes including enemies-to-lovers, a forced marriage, and some unexpected twists and turns.
In high school, Gabriel tormented Bianca, and when he was gone she was glad she’d never see him again. However, it turns out that they were from rival Mafia families, although only he was aware of that. I don’t want to give away the plot, but when he comes into her life again, it’s for the ugliest of reasons. Although he’s supposed to kill her… he doesn’t. Instead, he feels compelled to abduct her and decides to use her for his own purposes, partially for a power-play he intends to carry out involving other Mafia organizations. Bianca has had a difficult and brutal life, and her reactions and her responses to everything are not at all what you might expect.
This story is filled with violence, betrayal, and behavior no “normal” people would tolerate. You have to remember it’s fiction. Bianca is an atypical leading lady in just about every possible way, but she evolves from a person beaten down by the life she’s been forced to lead, into a young woman determined to take control. Gabriel is always determined to get his own way and will manipulate the world around him to achieve his goals. They are ruthless and bloodthirsty pair, who also happen to be intensely and often inappropriately passionate. They achieve an ending that is happy for them, but not happy for a lot of other people along the way.