REVIEWED by Jen B.
TITLE: On Hands and Knees
SERIES: The Valentino Family #1
AUTHOR: Sai Fox
PUBLISHER: Sai Fox
LENGTH: 214 Pages
RELEASE DATE: June 1 2018
BLURB:
Nicolai Valentino is the almost perfect heir to the Valentino Family—impeccably dressed, devilishly handsome, impossibly cold, and absolutely dedicated to a family that scorns his very existence. Born to the infamous Boss and a Japanese woman of no consequence, Nico must fight for respect in a blood-thirsty world that would be much happier to see him with a hole in his head.
Blood runs thick in the Valentino Family. To them, Nico’s little better than water.
Gabriel Delatto is Nico’s right-hand man, his childhood friend, and under the darkness of their ruby red sheets, his lover. But more than that, Gabriel holds the secret to unlocking who Nico really is—the true Nico, not the mask beginning to crack around the edges.
But there is a pleasure in that pain, he knows. There is only ever pleasure when it comes to Nico, even if it comes from the crack of a whip or on the edge of a blade.
But there’s someone lurking in the darkness, something that neither Nico nor Gabriel truly understand, But there is one thing they do know—
It isn’t afraid to bite.
Nicholas and Gabriel have been friends since childhood when Gabriel was taken in by Nicholas’ family. They’ve been best friends and much more to this day. Gabriel is the only one who sees Nicholas in ways no one else ever sees. Nicholas is being poised to take his place as the head of the Family and Gabriel is his right-hand man and the only one Nicholas truly trusts, in more ways than one.
On the outside, Nicholas must keep up a facade, be strong and not show any weakness to be respected. With Gabriel, he can put that all aside for a bit. Gabriel can give him what he dare not allow himself to experience anywhere else – giving up control. For those same reasons, the two much hide their relationship. Both are happy existing in their own bubble, so long as they can be there together.
But, there are some shady things afoot, and before you know it, the story is turned on its head with many questions as to what direction things are taking. There are a few twists, but even in the end, Gabriel seems to be as much in the dark as we are. This was an interesting start to the series that really picked up steam by the end, but be warned, it ends on a pretty big cliffy. This is a new-to-me author, and I liked the style and edgy feel this had. I was not ready for it to end when it did, but I will definitely be ready to jump right into the next one as soon as it’s ready.
