REVIEW: Savage Lover by Sophie Lark

Savage Lover by Sophie Lark: Camille Rivers likes the simple life, she has never wanted to get involved with the rich and dangerous people around her, but with her father falling ill, their family mechanic shop barely making ends meet and now her younger brother getting himself tangled in the wrong crowd, Camille cant help but feel like her entire life is spiralling out of control. Things only get more complicated when a local cop offers her a way to ensure her brother remains safe, the only problem is if Camille takes up the offer she is putting herself in a dangerous position and her only ally might just be the guy that she really shouldn’t trust at all…

I have been avidly reading the Brutal Birthright series and when I was that Nero had a book I was super thrilled to get my hands on his story, more so when I read that it had been marketed as a James Dean meets Fast and the Furious vibe. Now I will say I that I enjoyed Savage Lover but personally I just don’t think it was as good as the other two books in the series. Savage Lover was a lot lighter to read, this wasn’t as dark as the pervious two books and to be honest I was actually expecting Nero to have a more dark and dirty book. Nevertheless I did really liked the cute more wholesome vibe that came with this book.

I really liked Camille, she is painted as the black sheep in the family, but really she is the one that holds the family together. I really liked that she was not afraid to get her hands dirty, literally, she was a grease ball with her head stuck under cars more often than not. She truly was an sweetheart that would do just about anything to insure the safety of her loved ones. Now from the first two books we have been given to understand that Nero is a love em and leave em, hot headed mafia prince, for the most part I really liked his character and getting to see a bit more of his personality. I loved that he was basically the guy version of his sister Aida, pure crazy mayhem. He was the act first and think later kind of guy, not afraid to stand up for his family or what her believes in. Though I will say that I had expected a bit more for him, he fell pretty fast for Camille after being a so called player that doesn’t do relationships.

I loved the connection between Nero and Camille, these two go from zero to one hundred in a hot minute. I loved the love hate vibe that they had going on for the first part of their relationship, it was almost as if they were trying to fight their attraction for each other but gosh was it hot. I liked that their relationship had a decent amount of build up and that they grew to trust and relay on each other.

As much as I enjoyed Savage Lover, I cant help but feel that this book really wasn’t as much of a mafia romance and could have maybe had a bit more drama or build up. I did enjoy it none the less. If you are looking for a bad boy falls of the unconventional girl romance then this would definitely be a good pick. I will say that I’m looking forward to reading the next book in this series, hopefully Dante will bring the angst and drama in his book.

Book Info:

Publication: August 1, 2023 | Bloom Books | Brutal Birthright #3

Two people who believe they’re unworthy of love… until they meet each other.

Camille Rivera is drowning. Her father’s sick, her brother’s in deep with a dirty cop, and her mechanic shop is failing.

Nero Gallo is the neighborhood psychopath. As vicious as he is gorgeous, Camille has watched him burn through every girl in a ten-mile radius, breaking hearts and never, ever getting attached.

Which is why she can’t believe it when Nero saves her from a seriously sticky situation. They’ve lived next to each other all their lives — is it possible she never really knew him at all?

Camille is about to learn that the only thing more dangerous than trusting Nero is falling for him.