Review of Deathless & Divided by Bethany-Kris

Lies and love. This is how a war starts.

A life for a life. That’s the mafia way. Damian Rossi owes his life to a man who is ready to collect. That payment comes in the form of an arranged marriage to the daughter of another leading family in the Chicago Outfit. He’s ready to follow through, even if that means making sure Lily knows she’s his.

Lily DeLuca isn’t being given a choice. Forced home to marry a man she doesn’t know and back into a life she’d rather forget, her world is full of half-truths, buried pain, and uncertainty. But Damian is nothing like she expects. His motives aren’t clear. Her beliefs are being tested.

When it comes to this world, no man can be trusted. Someone is ready to flip the Chicago Outfit on its side all for the promise of something better. But no one runs a clean game and these men play for keeps. When blood begins to paint Chicago red, four families will be divided by loyalty, hatred, and revenge. There is no hiding. There is no safety.

No one is deathless. No one.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Holy shit this book was great. No lie.

We're talking about complicated characters, complex storylines, compelling drama, violence, family, love and panty-dampening sex. All the best parts of the Godfather movies and all the best parts of the Sopranos television show in a near perfect book that for once gives a realistic feminine perspective of life within la famiglia. So often - in my experience - the women in mafia fiction are portrayed one dimensionally in unfair and unattractive stereotypes: the suffering wife, the sexy mistress, the drug addled daughter, and so on. Their roles are set by what happens to them as they sit on the sidelines of their men's lives.

Not so with the daughters of the Chicago Outfit - especially Lily DeLuca.

She demands equality she'll never receive in a patriarchal society. But Damian Rossi was given about as much choice in their arranged marriage as Lily. A pragmatic man – as I would expect a hitman to be – he was determined to make the best of it. However, amidst bloodshed, rivalries, power struggles, drive-bys, etc., the couple is surprised to learn that love, honesty and respect can be found in the most dangerous and deceptive of environments.

Oh I loved it! Loved it! And I can’t wait to read Book 2!