Happy release day to the next installment in the Darkest Dance series!
Thank you Valentine PR for the gifted ebook copy and having me on the tour
DANCE OF RUIN – Jagger Cole (Releasing April 24th, 2025)
You can see my thoughts on book one, DANCE OF DECEPTION, here!
Now available for download and on Kindle Unlimited!
Book Description:
He’s my villain, my ruin, my sweetest damnation.
I’ve always been the good girl. The brilliant ballerina. The perfect politician’s daughter. That is, until my father declares war on the Barone Mafia family, and I become the price to pay. Now, the devil himself has his claws in me.
Nico Barone is a beautiful nightmare wrapped in leather and ink. A criminal genius with malice in his veins and destruction on his lips. He promises to break me. To strip me until there’s nothing left. To be the composer of my symphony of sin and ruin.
He thinks I’m the pawn in his game. But this pawn will bring a king to his knees. Even if it kills me.
Dance of Ruin is a standalone dark mafia romance with a smart heroine, and an ultra possessive hero with “look at her and I’ll unalive you” energy. Readers are STRONGLY advised to read the TW inside. No cliffhanger; HEA included.
My Thoughts: 4/5 stars – We are two for two on this series and now the wait begins for book three! The next installment in the Darkest Dance series, and while it CAN be read as a standalone, I’d recommend reading book one (DANCE OF DECEPTION) first for some context. It’s going to be harder to talk about some aspects of the story because I don’t want to give away too much from book one. Like with book one – this is the perfect combination of ballet, mafia families, secret societies, violence, and oh boy, the SPICE.
Naomi has just landed the lead role in her ballet company’s Black Swan ballet, but life outside of the studio is less than perfect. As the daughter of a politician, she lives under a microscope by the public and by her father. Her relationship with him is, understandably, not the best and finds she is just a pawn for him to use. I felt so bad for her, she was continuously dealt a bad hand over and over again and all because of what an awful man her father was. She gets into a bad situation with some horrible people that have a bone to pick with her father and that leads to a horrific assault.
Nico Barone is the younger brother of the Don, Carmine (who we met in book one) and he is everything I hoped he’d be based off the little intro in book one. This man is as smart as he is dangerous and that makes for one hell of a combination when he is out for revenge after his family is attacked. Being under the impression that Naomi’s dad is behind the attack, he finds something to blackmail them with (a tape that he doesn’t know is actually of her assault), and uses her as the bargaining chip.
If you don’t want something violent and with a LOT of spice, then this might not be the series for you. Always good to set those expectations before starting! I feel like the connection between Naomi and Nico wasn’t as emotionally connected as Carmine and Lyra’s story was, but that’s not a bad thing. Some people show their love in other ways and this works for them. Like some other reviewers said, I do agree that she should have made him suffer a little longer when it came to a certain situation, but I’m not mad about it. I can’t wait for the next book and to see what else happens with the Barone family and more about the Black Court – because I’m all about the secret societies and mafia stories.
About the Author:
A reader first and foremost, Jagger Cole cut his romance writing teeth penning various fan-fiction stories years ago. After deciding to hang up his writing boots, Jagger worked in advertising pretending to be Don Draper. It worked enough to convince a woman way out of his league to marry him, though, which is a total win.
Now, Dad to two little princesses and King to a Queen, Jagger is thrilled to be back at the keyboard.
When not writing or reading romance books, he can be found woodworking, enjoying good whiskey, and grilling outside–rain or shine.
Connect with Jagger:
Website — Goodreads — Amazon — Facebook — Facebook Group — Instagram — TikTok — Bookbub — Pinterest
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