Reviewed by Annika
TITLE: Rialto
SERIES: Unbreakable Bonds #8
AUTHOR: Jocelynn Drake & Rinda Elliot
NARRATOR: Kenneth Obi
PUBLISHER: Self-Published
LENGTH: 7 hours, 14 minutes
RELEASE DATE: July 29, 2020
BLURB:
Someone has it out for Rialto.
Ian Banner is loving his hectic life. He’s newly married, ready to start a family, and opening a new restaurant. All his dreams are coming true.
The last thing he needs is a problem with his restaurant.
But when one attack after another comes, he grows convinced he has another enemy.
Ian tries to handle things by himself, but his friends are soon drawn in when the attacks become violent. That’s when Ian realizes the target isn’t Rialto. It’s him.
Rialto is the final installment in the Unbreakable Bonds series and features sexy times, Daciana snuggles, overprotective family, fire, and of course, code names.
REVIEW:
Before today I didn’t realise that Rialto would mark the end of this series, but there it was. Another ending. After finishing it I’m sad to say goodbye, but I’m also equally happy to leave them all on a high note. Leaving them healthy and happy, because when we first met them in Shiver they were anything but.
I love that this book was about Ian, he’s the one that captured my heart just a little bit more than the rest of the guys, the one my heart broke for so many times. Here we see him happy – and busy. It’s been about four months since he married Hollis, the love of his life and they are starting the process of becoming foster parents. And he’s also in the process of opening a new restaurant after his success with his first one; Rialto. The restaurant he poured his heart and soul into. But someone is trying to destroy the restaurant and everything he built, and soon it’s not only raids or bad reviews, someone physically attacks him. Naturally this makes the whole family to get involved…
I loved how fiercely protective they all are of Ian, but I love even more how far he has come from that scared kid they rescued years ago. We see him finally taking a stand against them, setting limits and making them see that he’s not that kid anymore, and that he’s fully capable to solve his own problems. He doesn’t need them to rescue him anymore, and it was great to see everyone finally realising and accepting that.
Story-wise this was more on the quiet side – going by these guys’ standards. Let’s just say that had any of it happened to me in RL, I would not have been as calm as any of the guys. Calm probably wouldn’t be in my vocabulary. Anyway… you could say that the events here forces Ian to deal more with his past and the stuff he’s been avoiding and has kept buried. But now it’s forced to the surface and I think that it’s something I think both he and Hollis needed.
Listening to Rialto was again bittersweet, knowing that this series has come to an end, but mainly for knowing that there might not be any more narrations by Kenneth Obi to come. I’ve spent today listening to the last two books in this series, listening to Obi and it’s been wonderful. I love how he brought this book to life, how he brought Ian and Hollis to life, as well as the rest of the cast. He made you feel the love between Ian and Hollis, how strong their connection was, even during their fight. Or maybe especially then, both hurt by the exchange and Obi made you feel it, but also the sweetness when they made up over brownies. Obi’s has become a part of this series and these characters and it’s been great to experiencing it all with him.
Rialto was a sweet end to this series. It’s been an intense and often dangerous journey to get to where they all are now, but it’s all been worth it to see them so happy.
RATING: 
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