Oh My!!!! I am so loving this series. I only wish that the books were closer together. I have already pre-ordered the next book, Roses & Thorns: Conquer. Talk about cliff hangers…

Lacey is a badass survivor. I love her strength and her powerful heart. When she lets someone in, they are there for life and she is fierce in her loyalty to those people. Even when she is mad at someone that she cares about, she doesn’t quit caring. She may be angry, but she knows that they are in her circle for life. They will have to prove them self to her, but she will always care about them and be loyal to them. She has suffered so much in her young life, but in Roses & Thorns: Men, we see a completely different person emerge. She finds her strength and her power in this book and she grows even more. I love this character. She is perfect. Her scars inside and out have made her the powerful woman she is becoming and I only see her getting stronger and more fierce.

Boss is the same as he has been in the other books, but his soft side is emerging with watching Lacey come into her own in this book. We see his vulnerable side in this book and it only makes him more human. It is great to see that Lacey can make him such a humble man. Everyone has seen his fierce side in the previous books, but there is a whole new side of him in this book and I am liking him more now.

Sven, such a broken man. After Rose’s death he pretty much disappears into a bottle. It takes a while for him to find his way out, and that is only after Boss orders him to get help. We see a more mature and softer side to Sven in this book too. I love Sven, his cockiness, confidence, and brashness take a bit of a side trek in this book, but it will reappear towards the end of it.

I can’t wait for the next book to come out. This is a great series and I highly recommend it for readers who like dark love stories, and mafia men! I was crushed at the end of Roses & Thorns: Women, I am more hopeful now that I have read Roses & Thorns: Men.

Thank you Bry Ann for writing such great characters. I will say that this book had me in tears often and I was laughing at some of the lines as well. These characters are great together and I would love to read more about Cut as well. I enthusiastically give this story a 5 star review. It just keeps getting better with each book!

One kill is all it takes for her to be mine.

She’s just a pawn in the Bratva’s games. A virginal prize, exchanged from one boss to another. Her perfect curves and that sparkling smile, she’d be deadly if she hadn’t been sheltered from the mafia’s wicked world.

Now she’s being thrust into it.

A marriage to a man I know has a terrible temper and a cruel sense of torture.

She deserves better. Better than him.

Better than me.

But I never said I’d save her out of the goodness in my heart.

I’ll save her. I’ll protect her.

And I will claim her. Even if it means the wrath of every family in Brighton Beach descends upon me.

My Review:

The ruthlessness of Nikolai is so powerful in the beginning, but the sweet side to him is a whole different man. He’s a killer, but he’s only doing what he has to do.

I loved this story and loved reading Nikolai, Anastasia, and Maxym. The planning and the desire for revenge keep Nikolai going and help him to get through each day. When he has to take a detour from his plans though, he finds his light.

This was a quick paced book that kept me turning the pages. I hated to put it down I was sad when it was finished, but I loved the ending. I wanted more of Nikolai and Anastasia. I also wanted to know more about what happens to Nikolai’s friends. I look forward to more and hope that there is more to this story and Maxym.

Love, Life, and Sex. Definitely! This book had all of that and more. The characters were fun, sassy, loving, frustrating, and hatable. I found Aria and her girls to be the most fun to read and get to know. They are sassy, funny, and strong women. I love that about all of them. Aria had a few meltdowns, but that was understandable with all that she went through to find her man. Mia and Penelope, were fun to read. They are strong women who know what they want out of life and go for it.

Aria Davenport a recent college grad who thinks that the man she is with while in college is the one. Sebastian is a young man who has been given everything by his parents. He doesn’t know what it’s like to struggle or to make ends meet. His mother is a snob and doesn’t think that Aria is good enough for her son. What mother ever thinks anyone is good enough for their son? However, she looks at Aria as if she stepped in something smelly and brought the stench with her. A mistake of identity leads to a nasty confrontation between Aria and Sebastian, and they have a messy public break-up. Aria works as a waitress at a local night club and while working met a man who is rich and powerful. Their first meeting was both great and not so great, by the end of the evening.

Phoenix Prescott is a man who has made the Forbes 30 under 30 magazine cover, and his wealth has given him power in the city. He is a man who does what he wants and enjoys life. His relationship with Aria, when it finally happens, is a roller coaster ride for Aria. She isn’t sure that it’s a good thing at times, but at others, she can’t seem to get enough of Phoenix.

This story has a lot of twists, especially when Aria and Phoenix’s relationship gets going. Every time I thought they would make it something else would come up. The final chapter title made my heart drop, until I read it.

I am so happy that this book was brought to my attention, I loved the story and the characters in it. I also love the cover! I hope to read more books with these characters and learn more about the lives of Mia, Riz, JC, and Penelope. I give this book 4 star review and highly recommend it to readers who enjoy a love story that has a lot of ups and downs, but a Happily Ever After.

This story tore at my heartstrings and then put me back together at the end. It was an emotional read, but it was so good. The ups and downs of both Jude and Portia’s lives were so natural and real that it felt as if I were living it with them. The love of Ernie and Hensley for both Jude and Portia was unconditional, true, and heartwarming. I loved that they accepted both of these children with open arms and open hearts. It is great to read a heartwarming story like this, even with the angst and heartbreak that was in the story.

Jude Thomas, a boy who was put into foster care by his mother voluntarily because she was going through heath problems. Jude is a young boy who is a bookworm, quiet, smart, and caring boy. He knows that his mom is sick but he hopes with all of his heart that he will be going home to her soon. His mother is his world, and at eight years old, he is scared and lonely when he goes to live with the Shaws. His life will go through so many changes throughout the next ten years, but the one constant will always be Portia.

Portia Shaw, a young girl who was living with the Shaws when Jude was placed there. She was also a foster child, but her circumstances were vastly different from Jude’s. Her being in foster care was due to her mother’s death. Portia and Jude find the common ground between them and their relationship is strong because they went through the tragedies of their childhood together. They were both there for each other. They were always the constant for each other along with Ernie and Hensley.

This was a beautiful book, but be prepared to cry and want to scream at both Jude and Portia through this book. I was not prepared for the crying, but the frustration that I felt at some parts were as if I were looking at two people that I had in my life and I wanted to shake them and say open your eyes. I did not want to put this book down, I wanted to know what was going to happen next. I may have stayed up too late last night trying to finish it, but it was worth the lack of sleep. I loved it and I give it a 4.5 star review. I would love to read more about Bart, Jet, Carson and Ethan. I think they each have a good story to read as well.

Another great story of SEAL Team 3 and the men who put their lives on the line everyday for their country and families. I love the characters in these books and I always enjoy reading how the men find their HEA. Tucker is another great character who shows that he is an honorable soldier and was made to be a SEAL. Sharon Hamilton does a great job writing these stories and bringing out the best in these men and women.

Tucker Hudson is a man who wants to get back onto the SEAL Teams. He is 39 years old and in order to get back on the Teams is to go through the BUD/s training again. His body does not bounce back the way it did the first time he went through the BUD/s training. He knows it won’t be easy since he is not a young man anymore, but he is determined to qualify and get back onto the Teams. He knows where he belongs and works very hard to get back to it. Along the way he also finds the woman that he wants by his side to go through this. Brandy is a young woman that Tucker met at his buddies wedding. She’s supportive, yet scared of how things will work out. She is new to relationships and is all in with Tucker.

I loved this story and the determination of Tucker to get back on the Teams was inspirational. He proves that just because he is no longer in his twenties he still has what it takes to be a SEAL and work with his training Team to attain his goal as well as help them attain theirs. He has become an inspiration to a lot of the guys in training as well. I love Kyle Lansdowne and his Team, and I love reading all the stories involving them. I devoured this story the same as I have done with others before it written by Sharon Hamilton. I give this story a 4.5 star review and look forward to more in the Bone Frog Brotherhood.

Mathias a young man who has lived a whole life in his young years. His childhood was beyond corrupt and his start in life was not great. His mother and he are moved to the compound of the Family. He is a smart child and notices things that are going on around him. This only helps him in knowledge of life. He knows that he has to get away from the Family if he wants a real life. He finds a reason to keep going when Gigi is moved to the compound to repay a debt to the Family for her father. Mathias finds that his purpose to survive is to protect Gigi.

Gigi, Gemma, is a young woman who finds herself back with the Family to get information for ORUS. She has knowledge of the Family and can get close enough to get information for her new boss. Gemma finds herself in a tough place working for both organizations though. She is sent on a mission for the Family only to find that the person that she is to attain for the Family is the very person that she thought was killed years ago and that he is more powerful than she was prepared for.

This book was great! I loved the entire duet and prequel. I loved the twists that were in this story and how things turned out. I loved reading Mathias’ story and learning more about him and his life. He has a lot of secrets that come out in this final book. I think I love him more now. He always kept himself at a distance from everyone, but his new family of Blake Security were really getting through without him even realizing it. When Gemma came along, he thought she was the only one he was letting through his barriers, but little did he know that she was just one person who cared about him and broke through his barriers. He thought the men and women of Blake Security were being kept behind the barrier, but each one actually made their way through before Gemma came back into his life. Mathias finds himself protecting his “family” from the Family, and he will do anything he can to make sure that they are protected from the evil that he knows is coming for him. He is such a strong character and his life was so messed up. Gemma’s story is just as great. I give this story a 5 star review. I loved it and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves a brooding alpha male who finds his light in a woman that comes back into his life.

Ashton Blackthorne, a very rich man who has it all, wealth, women, and power. His world is blown wide open after his father’s death and his mother comes back into his life at his father’s funeral. Little does he know that his father had some secrets. Ashton thinks that his father was the best father ever and that they had close relationship. He thought he knew everything about his father. However, he finds out that his father had a wild life when he was younger and that he has siblings that he was not aware of. Ashton feels that his world was destroyed because his mother left when he was young, but he will find out that it was the best thing she could have done for him. He finds that he has an older sister, Amelia, and a younger brother, Ayden.

Amber a beautiful young woman who worked as Ashton’s Administrative Assistant. She’s a close friend to Ashton as well as his assistant. They have an agreement that it will only be business between them, even though they both feel the draw of wanting more. Amber has a relationship with Ayden Donovan, a man she meets in a bar one night. He looks like Ashton, but he is different. Little does Amber know that he is closer to Ashton than she thinks. Ayden is Ashton’s little brother, someone he never knew about until he kidnapped Amber and tried to kill Ashton.

This book was full of twists and surprises, as well as some very dark scenes. If you like dark stories of love, family, power, and redemption then I recommend this book. However, I will warn you that it is darker than some I have read before. I give this book a 3-star review, mostly because there was so much in it that I really had a hard time accepting. I realize this is a book, but it was farfetched in some places.

Philip Hennessey, a British Intelligence Officer is set up by someone who he thought was a friend. His place is raided by Military Police, who find files in his possession that say, “Top Secret – Not to be Taken Out”.  He knew that he had some files, but no Top-Secret files in his possession. Who could have planted them, and why? He knows he has a tendency to be too rough when he gets angry, but that would not be a reason for someone to plant files and contact the Military Police. James takes his punishment for the files, even though they were not put there by him. He knows they were planted and asks a friend, Ali to see if he can figure out who put them there, by seeing who the last person was to have the files.

Greta Satchwell, a woman who needs someone to help her figure out why her father died. She believes he was murdered and needs someone who can investigate his death and find out why he died. He went to the hospital for a routine surgery and ended up dead. He was a wealthy man who worked with some questionable people in Greta’s eyes. She believed they had him killed because he had some trouble with a project they were working on together, he had lost some money on it. Greta was given James’ name by Sally, his ex-wife. Greta and Sally had gone to school together and Sally felt that since James is no longer in the military, he would have some time on his hands and be able to help Greta.

The death of Mr. Satchwell will lead Philip into a world of trouble with his investigation. He will travel to Africa, Malaysia, and South Africa to chase down the real culprit for Mr. Satchwell’s death. He will be pulled into a world of counterfeit prescriptions and the underworld of drugs and drug cartels. The path to find the drugs is a scary path and his intelligence training will come in handy while he is investigating where the drugs came from.

I liked this book, but it was not a favorite of mine. There were a lot of twists and turns in the book which kept my interest, but the book did not draw me in all the way. I give this book a 3.5 star rating.

Kai Mori, did his time and has now returned to Meridian City with his sights set on revenge. He has a lot of darkness inside him though and is better off when he is alone. He hides away from his friends because he needs the space to find himself and to hide from the shame he feels for all of his bad decisions. Kai is ashamed of his bad choices he has made in life and the dishonor he has brought to his family and the disappointment he feels from his father. His sole purpose becomes finding Damon and getting the information that Damon has that could destroy him and send him back to prison. He has an idea to get Damon, but will it destroy Kai instead? Will he be able to get out of the darkness?

Banks works for Damon Torrence’s father. Which is unusual because she is a woman, and according to Gabriel Torrence, women were only good for sex. They had no power in his life or household. How did she work for him and have any power or control over anything? She was a woman that had more power than most would know. She had her own secrets and her control was only over one person. She needed to find Damon and make sure that he had control over himself and then they could continue on with their plan to rule their own world and lives. It would just them against the world. The biggest question was who was she to Damon?

Kai and Banks met six years ago when Banks snuck into the confessional. She was a mystery to Kai then and now she is a bigger mystery. Can he find out what power she has over Damon, who she really is, or how her life fits into Damon’s?

I bought this book once I finished Corrupt because I became so engrossed in the storyline that I had to read the next book in the series. I really liked this story as much as I did Corrupt (Devil’s Night #1), and I look forward to the next book in the series. These stories are dark, but they are about love, loyalty, friendship, and family. Kai will do anything in his power to keep the people he loves safe and out of harm’s way. I give this story a 4.5-star review.