{ARC Review} Fight For You by Magan Vernon

Title: Fight For You
Author: Magan Vernon
Published: 11th April 2014
Age Group: New Adult
Genre: Mafia Romance
Source: eARC provided by author for fair & honest review
Rating: 4/5
Goodreads  |  Amazon

BLURB:
A mafia prince who doesn't want the crown.
A girl who has secrets of her own.
One love that they'll both have to fight for.

Nicky Ragusa lives his life inside the cage, circuiting the underground ring to escape his fate as the mafia prince. When Jackie Marks crashes into his life, he’ll take the fight outside the cage.

But the battle for Jackie’s heart comes with a steep price. Nicky’s father has wanted him to take over the family business for years, and the time for running is over. Now Nicky is right where his father has always wanted him: in the middle of a war.

All Nicky has ever wanted to do was fight. Now all he has to do is fight for her.

Not your regular fluffy romance!

REVIEW:
The story:
Fight For You is not your average NA romance. We have a Mafia prince, cage fighting, drugs, and gang wars with shootings and murder. Nicky Ragusa is the son of the Mafia boss and is expected to take over the family business. He has family money, an expensive car and a lavish apartment. The problem is Nicky has no interest in it all and would rather continue his career in cage fighting. But after Nicky hits Jackie with his car and takes her to hospital his life things gets even more complicated. And soon his not only fighting in the cage, but fighting for his family and for the love of Jackie. The question is, how far will Nicky go to protect the ones he loves?

The characters:
Nicky, son of a Mafia boss, is a total bad boy. Now I'm not talking about a guy with a few tatts that's man whored it around a bit, but is essentially a big softy. That's not Nicky. He has done some very bad things in the past and even more throughout the story. He's a complicated character, often having to make to decision between doing the right thing or the doing the right thing for his family - two very different things. Let's not forget he is in the Mafia after all.

Jackie, the ex girlfriend of a rival gang boss, is a pretty tough chick on the outside. She doesn't take anybody's crap and doesn't like to rely on anybody, especially not a man. But Nicky brings out a vulnerable side to her - one of which I wanted to see more of.

The romance:
I felt the romance was a little quick to develop. While it certainly wasn't insta-love, I would have liked to of seen them spend more time together and develop their feelings more. But once the romance got going you could really start to feel the connection between them. I like that Jackie doesn't let him call all the shots, they where equals in the relationship, and that's always important for me!

The writing:
I commend Magan for taking somewhat of a risk with this book. It doesn't follow the usual conventions of the NA romance genre and she pushes the limits with Nicky's character. Being written from Nicky's POV worked beautifully, as it gave a real insight into his thoughts and reasons behind his actions. I also loved the Mafia 'voice' she used. Whenever Nicky's father talked I swear I could hear Marlon Brando speaking it in my head! 

FINAL WORD:
This is not your regular fluffy romance. Fight For You is dark and gritty and challenges the reader with unconventional characters and a gutsy storyline. Read at your own risk Capeesh?

CONTENT:
Sexuality: medium-strong / sex scenes
Violence: medium / gang violence, shootings and murder (not overly descriptive)
Language: strong / frequent f words
Drugs & alcohol: medium / several references to drug dealing and use



4 comments:

  1. Great Review Amy! I love that this is not your average fluffy NA romance, that the author pushed the limits with Nicky's character, and that he's a different type of bad boy than I'm use to reading about. I love it when you can visualize characters and even hear their "voice." Thanks for sharing!

    Lindy@ A Bookish Escape

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah, it's always great to see authors trying something different and now just following to usual genre conventions, it's keeps thing interesting!

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  2. Hi Amy!
    I've never read Mafia Romance but your review has left me wanting to read this book.
    Thanks:) kisses

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  3. ooo oo mafia, drugs, gritty and dark. yes please!

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