REVIEW: Surrendering to the Vengeful Italian by Angela Bissell

Surrendering to the Vengeful Italian: Angela Bissell’s debut novel is a sexy enemies to lovers romance that takes the reader on an emotional voyage through betrayal, loss and redemption.

When Leo Vincenti finally has the power to take down the man who caused him and his family to suffer bitter losses, he doesn’t expect to find the daughter of his enemy pleading for time before he enacts his revenge.Seven years earlier, Helena Shaw had cast him aside, breaking his heart. But it was only part of the pain he suffered when her father destroyed his business plans and left him financially unable to pay for the surgery that would have kept his sister out of a wheelchair. Since then he’s painstakingly rebuilt his reputation and his financial empire, enabling him to become the chief shareholder of Helena’s father’s company, with an eye on tearing it down. Helena will do anything to make Leo delay his plans, including pretend to be his girlfriend in the eyes of an important client whose daughter has been making advances on Leo. For four weeks they agree that she’ll play the part of an adoring partner while he holds off on his final plans for the company. From London to Rome, their close quarters and public performances soon lead to a heated rekindling of their earlier affair. Can they learn to trust each with all their secrets? And will it be enough to put them on the path to a new future together?

This story had me enthralled as Leo and Helena delve into the reality of what happened after their first split, one which took place because Helena’s father threatened her if she didn’t break off the relationship and Helena loved Leo enough to let him go. But unbeknownst to her, her father had enacted his plans anyway. She’d mourned the loss of Leo, and another, more painful loss. Her father had always been abusive, but when it became worse, she shunned him and his money, moving out on her own. As such, the society girl Leo knew no longer exists. Helena is now a working class woman with a small apartment, living on a limited budget. Her goal now is to get her mother to leave her father before he discovers that it is Leo that has taken over his company, fearing the worst. She just needs the time from Leo to convince her mother that she can’t wait any longer.

Leo is shocked to discover that Helena’s circumstances have changed so drastically from when they split, and it makes him realize that his single minded focus on revenge will have consequences not just for her father, but for all the employees at the company. She eventually reveals to him the truth of her relationship with her parents, and her worries about her mother’s situation. As they spend time together, the attraction between them can’t be denied and they share some sensual love scenes, ones in which they put aside their differences and remember what it was like when they were first together. The setting moves from one luxurious locale to the next – expensive hotel rooms in London, a penthouse suite in Rome, a gorgeous country villa in Tuscany, and combined with the elegant clothing and gourmet dining makes for a far cry from what Helena has gotten used to. But while everything appears to be a fantasy, Helena doesn’t forget that their time together is limited and like Cinderella, will disappear once the clock strikes twelve.

This story takes the reader on an emotional roller coaster as Leo and Helena work through the past and open up to each other, eventually leading to a cathartic happy ending and a lovely epilogue. The writing style, the characters and the setting combine to make a story that’s hard to put down and I’ll be keeping an eye out for more from this author!
 

Book Info:

Publication: Nov 22, 2016 | Harlequin Presents | Irresistible Mediterranean Tycoons #1

One step from surrender

For seven years, formidable Leo Vincenti has planned his vengeance on Douglas Shaw and nothing will stop him. Not even Shaw’s stunning but treacherous daughter, Helena, who—right now—is pleading for leniency. Grim satisfaction spreads through him as he knows she would willingly never take up his challenge to return to his side.

But he has greatly underestimated Helena. Secrets drive her as if the very devil were on her heels. And suddenly the passion that left them undone years before is forcing them both to the brink of surrender…