REVIEWED by Jen B.
TITLE: Between Bloody Lips
SERIES: The Valentino Family #2
AUTHOR: Sai Fox
PUBLISHER: Sai Fox
LENGTH: 269 Pages
RELEASE DATE: May 11, 2019
BLURB:
Who is Nicolai Valentino?
Some think him a devoted son, a ruthless killer, a vicious monster. The heir of the infamous Valentino family, Nico is a man with blood-stained hands and a heart of ice.
To Gabriel Delatto, Nico is more than that: a childhood friend, a passionate lover, a misunderstood soul, a man whose cold, calculated outward exterior protects the broken man inside. Nico is his best friend, his lover, his other half—his better half.
But how much of that is true? And how much is just lies whispered between bloody lips?
New York to Tokyo—Gabriel is willing to follow his lover to the ends of the earth to find out what Nico is running from.
Or, maybe, what is Nico running to?
REVIEW:
This is the continuation of Gabriel and Nico, whose story must be read in “On Hands and Knees.” I was sucked into their world from the get go in that book, though this installment takes us on an entirely different trip. There, we leaned about Gabe and Nico’s roles within the Valentino family, how they were best friends from childhood and still right by each other’s sides. Gabe is the only one how truly knows and sees the real Nico, the only one who can safely give him what he needs, and they long to find a way to just be together without all the stress of the family business.
The last book ended on a pretty big cliffy, and it had been a while since I read it. I wish I had the time to read it again before jumping into this one because I felt a bit lost for much of the story. Gabriel was in the same boat, however, so I didn’t feel too bad and just kept reading on waiting to find out what was really going on. Gabriel is so in the dark as he chases after Nico wanting to just keep him safe and bring him home. It never feels as though Nico is on the same page as Gabriel as far as that goes, and indeed, claims he is trying to do the same for Gabriel. There is so much mystery and deception going on at this point that you don’t know what or who to believe. Even by the end, when things play out, things are still a little muddy. I think I know what is going on, but don’t have any solid intel to back that up. The mantra for them is “we do what we need to do (for the family),” and that leads to some pretty violent, can’t come back from that the same altercations. There is also a lot of symbolism used which I found quite interesting.
There were things mentioned in this book that I really hoped for more clarification on, either here or in the previous book. This felt almost like a different story to me at times, but I was so invested in learning the details, I found myself at the end before no time. The guys spend much of this book physically apart, but mentally and emotionally, they are right next to each other. While both of them (myself included) have doubts about various things and feelings, they don’t last long before you can see the love is still there shining through. I so badly want things to be right for these guys to find peace with what has transpired, and believe me, there has been a lot. I hope we get to see them again before too long and that they are finding their way to be “normal.”
This story has been dark, gritty, suspenseful yet hot and steamy at times with a side of romance, and I have really enjoyed the heavier tone. If you like things a bit light on fluff like I do, be sure to check this series out. I’m definitely looking forward to reading more by this author.
RATING:
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