Reviewed by Jen
TITLE: Bratva’s Mercy
SERIES: Bratva’s Undoing #3
AUTHOR: Gianni Holmes
PUBLISHER: Self Published
LENGTH: 374 pages
RELEASE DATE: July 21, 2025
BLURB:
Leo Cavanagh lost his husband less than a month ago.
A brutal murder I helped cover up for the Morozov Bratva.
That should’ve been the end of it.
Instead, I watch him.
Wait for the moment he looks at me and doesn’t see a monster.
When he finally gives me a chance, I take it.
And for the first time, I give someone everything—my heart, my body… my soul.
But nothing about Leo is simple.
Everyone thinks he’s using me.
I say his feelings are real.
But even if they aren’t, it’s already too late, because he is mine.
REVIEW:
I have been looking forward to Sergei’s story for a while now. He has been Maxim’s head of security and right-hand man for a long time. At the end of the last story, Maxim made Sergei a Brigadier of one of the territories after that spot opened up after a betrayal. Sergei was taking this as a sort of demotion, but his real purpose was to get closer to the other Brigadiers to scout out the loyalists.
In the meantime, he has been following/stalking Leo to make sure he isn’t a threat to Maxim after Leo’s husband died in the last book. As you can see, there is a lot of puzzle pieces to this story that brought us to this point, so it really is important to read the previous books. Leo blames Maxim for Brad’s death, and Sergei by association. His animosity/hatred towards Maxim was furthered when was basically forced to treat Wren basically at gunpoint. So, there are some big hurdles here.
Sergei has never had a relationship. He has a bad childhood/past that led him to simply keep everyone at a distance. When he meets Leo though, he falls head over heels. Add to that the fact that he is able to fulfill his submissive needs with Leo, and he is done for – total obsession. Leo, on the other hand, is dealing with getting over the death of his husband, even though they were apparently on the outs when that happened. He is determined to take Maxim down and sees Sergei as a means to accomplish that. But, he is getting feelings too, so he is at quite the crossroads. Maxim is concerned, and rightly so. Will Sergei have to choose between the blood oath he has with Maxim or the only actual relationship he has ever had? Will he make the right choice? Is there heartbreak or betrayal in his future? We have to wait and see.
I will say that this story was a little disappointing for me in that I struggled with the obsessive nature, the way Leo treated Sergei, Leo’s issues, etc. They are definitely explosive together, and their sexual chemistry is undeniable. However, the distrust and scheming was giving me really bad vibes throughout that kept me from loving this one as much as the previous two. This is only part one though, so I will hold final judgment until it all plays out. Things appear to be really heating up when this one ends, so I hope we don’t have to wait too long to see it through.
RATING: 
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