★★★★☆
🌶🌶🌶🌶
Review:
First, I would like to thank the author and DS Book Promotions for providing me with a free advanced review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
A dark mafia Edgar Allan Poe retelling
When Alessia’s heartless, abusive father arranges her marriage to someone even more evil, Alessia wants nothing more than the freedom to live her own life. Her new husband, Valentino, is a sexual sadist and completely ruthless in his desire for power and control. His cousin, Antonio, has always been loyal to the family. Despite his love for Alessia, he must not reveal his feelings. However, the more he learns about Valentino, the more determined he becomes to exact revenge for those he holds dear.
Beneath the Shadows by Tara Conrad is an extremely dark mafia romance with many instances of abuse, and its trigger warnings should be consulted. Always protect your mental health.
A retelling of Edgar Allan Poe’s
The Cask of Amontillado and published on his birthday,
Beneath the Shadows is a tale of betrayal and retribution interwoven with dark mafia romance. Valentino’s unyielding need to assert control compels him to commit unspeakable atrocities against women and his family. Tara Conrad crafted a fantastic revenge plot that improves upon Poe’s short story.
The romance is a little rushed, especially given what Alessia has gone through and continues to go through. I would have loved for there to be more written about her bond with Antonio in school and their reconnection. The story is much more suspenseful than it is romantic, but it is very well-written. Told through multiple points of view, it’s easy to connect with Alessia and root for Antonio. If you enjoy dark romance and have a high tolerance for triggering content, definitely check out this book!
Audience: adult
Trigger warnings: rape (on page), sexual sadism, knife play (non-con), blood play (non-con), murder, domestic violence, abuse, patricide, misogyny, torture, sodomy, forced marriage, imprisonment, kidnapping, violence
Recommended for fans of: dark romance, mafia romance, arranged marriage, Edgar Allan Poe retellings, gothic fiction, romantic suspense, friends to enemies to lovers
Publisher's Synopsis:
In a world ruled by betrayal, love may be the deadliest trap of all.
In the dangerous and often deadly world of the mafia, staying loyal to the family is rule number one. Antonio learns this firsthand, abandoning the luxury of emotions when his cousin, Valentino, son of the current boss, marries the girl he loves.
Trapped in an arranged, loveless marriage to Valentino, Alessia hides her fears behind obedience. She yearns for a life free from the dark underworld that surrounds her..
When Valentino is murdered, Alessia runs away, believing she can finally live the life she’s dreamed of. When ominous notes start mysteriously appearing, she realizes danger is now closer than ever.
Antonio is sent to find and return her, but when their worlds collide, so do the feelings they once had for each other. He’s determined to protect her at any cost, but will he be able to before it’s too late?
Step into a dark mafia retelling of Edgar Allan Poe’s
The Cask of Amontillado—where love, betrayal, and danger intertwine.
Source:
DS Book Promotions
©Tara Conrad: January 19, 2025
Edition: Digital ARC
504 pages
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