Reviewed by Dee

TITLE: American Yukuza II: The Lies that Bind

SERIES: American Yukuza

AUTHOR: Isabella

PUBLISHER: Sapphire Books Publishing

LENGTH: 281 Pages

RELEASE DATE: June 12, 2013

BLURB:         

Luce Potter runs her life and her business with an iron fist and complete control until lies and deception unravel her world. The shadow of betrayal consumes Luce, threatening to destroy the most precious thing in her life, Brooke Erickson. Brooke Erickson finds herself on the outside of Luce’s life looking in. As events spiral out of control Brooke can only watch as the woman she loves pushes her further away. Suddenly, devastated and alone, Brooke refuses to let go without an explanation. Colby Water, a federal agent investigating the ever-elusive Luce Potter, discovers someone from her past is front and center in her investigation of the Yakuza crime leader. Before she can put the crime boss in prison, she must confront the ultimate deception in her professional life. When worlds collide, betrayal, dishonor and death are inevitable. Can Luce and Brooke survive the explosion?

REVIEW:      

This story is told in third person and from Luce’s point-of-view. It opens on a sad note, and that sadness hangs around like a dark cloud for most of the plot. Not that I’m saying that’s a bad thing, just don’t open this book expecting rainbows and sunshine. For me, this story was a welcomed change from the usual romance tropes.

Luce has a lot going on. Not only is she dealing with the grief of burying a loved one, but also has to step up in rank while dealing with debilitating feelings of betrayal. I say debilitating as all of those things had an impact on her love life. In this instalment, Luce keeps Brooke at an arm’s length. While I understood Luce’s reasoning for alienating herself, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for Brooke, and I kept wishing Luce would just tell her what was going on. But, that was my wish, and had the story been written differently Luce’s character wouldn’t have rang true.

The suspenseful plot kept me glued to the pages, the amount of page time given to the BDSM club was unexpected, but far from unwanted. Be still my heart and girlie bits. The lap dance made me feel conflicted and not because it was hot as hell. Cryptic words, I know, but I can’t say more without spoilers

When Russian Mafia are involved, alliances are bound to be tested, and true to form, in this installment they most certainly are.

In summary, this story is raw, it’s gritty, it’s sexy, it grabbed me from the get-go and didn’t let up. The ending left me desperate for more. I can’t wait to get my hands on book three, thank goodness I don’t have long to wait.

RATING:  

BUY LINKS: 

Sapphire Books

Amazon