Severed by Vengeance: The Severed Signet, Book 1 (Unabridged‪)‬

I enjoyed this book immensely, the story hooked me in right from the start and captivated my attention the entire time. Elle Maldonado is a “new to me” author and consider me impressed, even more so when I heard this was her debut novel. She is a gifted author with a creative mind, her storylines and characters are original and easy to connect with. Derek Cain is out for vengeance, to get the man who ruined his life, his biological father, and plans to end his life. Then he sees an opportunity to take his vengeance even further, on someone who meant something to his father, Evangelina “Eva” Cruz, and he plans on making her his and then ruining her. Except not everything goes as planned, and the unexpected happens. Eva is a police detective and Derek is a trained killer, a hit man, but he is a smooth operator and he finagles his way into Eva’s life. Adding to the excitement is when one of Eva’s informants, who is in deep trouble, brings that trouble to her door. A possessive and over protective Derek gets involved, and he comes head to head with the Russian Bratva. Eva on her own is in way over her head, especially when she has nobody to turn to, at work or at home. I loved the mystery behind Derek, would have loved some more details of his younger days, but this is the first book, so maybe that is yet to come. The chemistry between Eva and Derek is smoking hot and burning through the roof. These two were opposites in so many ways, good vs. evil, but they were drawn to each other. Derek hits her with so many truths, and life as she knew it was no more. Can she accept that and how will she deal? There is never a dull moment in this book, it is a cleverly plotted dark and twisted story and has plenty of drama, angst, action, mystery, thrilling take you to the edge of your suspense, heartfelt emotions and steamy romance. The world building and character development is great, and so are some of the secondary characters. Elle Maldonado, thank you for this fantastic story and the wild ride. 

🎧📚🎧 Janine Granda and Bryant Walker did a fantastic job bringing these characters to life and did so with a complete understanding of who they were portraying. They took their roles and made them their own, sounding believable and just as I pictured they would sound. Granda nailed it as Eva, grasping every aspect of her personality and was as fierce in the role as Eva was in the book. Walker’s Derek was spot on and he too nailed it as the smooth talking bad boy. They set the perfect tone for the story, captured all the characters’ emotions and had you feeling each one. These entertaining storytellers are talented voice artists and a pleasure to listen to. Thank you for another amazing listen.

Let me take just a minute to say 𝙬𝙝𝙤𝙖. I think I found my new favorite mafia book! I mean, seriously, y'all. 𝙴𝚕𝚕𝚎 𝙼𝚊𝚕𝚍𝚘𝚗𝚊𝚍𝚘 created a magnificent story. She hooked me instantly and the ride was literally wild.

Let's talk about hit man Derek Cain. Can we say 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒚!? He sought vengeance against his bio dad but what he found was so much more.

Evangelina "Eva" Cruz is a diabetic, strong female detective trying to uncover crimes, especially one close to her. Things take a turn for her though when she meets Derek Cain.

Derek....that man is obsessed with Eva and 👏🏼I👏🏼was👏🏼there👏🏼for👏🏼it! Lord. *swoon* That man can do what he wants to the world for me at anytime he wants. I loved the intensity of his personality. From the moment he met Eva to the very last word, his protectiveness and all the sexiness rolled off the page.

The narrators for this one are both new to me. I have to tell you, I loved them! I loved how they portrayed these characters. The intensity of mafia, the cluster of being a detective, the chemistry that flows between these characters....you can 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡 it as they breathe life into Derek & Eva. I am adding them to my list of favorites and can't wait to listen to more from them!

This story has so much sizzle, so much banter, so much angst within it. I loved everything about this soul stealing novel & can't wait for more from this author!