The Pawn is the final book in this amazing duet, filled with secrets, lies and betrayals. The only thing that holds true is the feelings that Allegra and Cassian hold for each other…a not to be missed story🙌

I received an advanced copy and willingly leave my honest review❤️‍🩹

4-4.5 STARS!

The nail-biting suspense that had been gradually building in The Villain has not only detonated in the first third of this book, but it prompted a second heaping of anxiety as the next set of plot twists unveiled itself.

I love that this is the second half of the story and yet we’re still getting plenty of uncertainty amongst the entire cast of characters. Knight has masterfully created suspicion, secrecy, and deception that had me constantly trying to figure out the end game.

Similar to the first book, this also had some questionable developments amongst the characters that I was not a fan of, but also not completely surprised by it either, as it is within Knight’s wheelhouse. It’s not my reading preference, but I know there are plenty of romance readers who are fans and may enjoy this detail a lot more than I did.

If you want morally grey characters, you got it. This story is full of them. They know what they want. They’re unapologetically striking, and their actions speak for themselves.

Although I didn’t totally love every aspect of this book, I did enjoy the overall storyline. Cassian and Allegra are two complex characters and together, the drama intensified tenfold. There’s a lot of push-and-pull, and back-and-forth between the two, but it only heightened the ominous circumstances taking place.

This book is significantly more graphic than the first one. The content is dark and some readers may find it triggering. It contains kidnapping, isolation, taunting and intimidation, SA, and includes vivid scenes of torture and death, reigniting past trauma. It’s intended for readers 18+ only.

As this is the second book in the War of Hearts duet, it goes without saying The Villain needs to be read prior to starting this one as it’s a continuous storyline. Cassian and Allegra have always had an invisible pull towards one another. The sexual tension was fiery in the first book, but the spice level has turned up a couple of notches since, especially now that they’re no longer denying their feelings.

As with the first, the storytelling is steadily-paced and flows well into this book, which I like. It doesn’t feel rushed through, and any unanswered subplots were eventually divulged or at least acknowledged. The secondary storylines were equally intriguing.

This is a dark mafia romance with so much appeal. The highlight is undoubtedly the thrills and spills. It’s twisted, it’s gritty, it’s kinda grimy, and Cassian and Allegra take you on a dizzyingly emotional rollercoaster. I love a good adrenaline-charged dark mafia and overall, this story was a page-turner!

Avid fans of Knight’s writing will not want to sleep on this one. I recommend fellow romance readers who are addicted to the dark mafia romance sub-genre to add it to their TBR.

I was provided a copy by the author.

Reviewed by Rina | (booksofthemuggleborn)

Well written book by very talented Natasha Knight. I couldn’t put this book down until very last page. The plot was so unpredictable , full of actions, I actually put my life on hold to finish reading the book. Doesn’t happen very often.

Highly recommend, truly enjoyable. Thank you Natasha

Stayed up all night reading this one! I just was in total shock that no one is safe in this book. I wanted to cry for the trauma and cheer for the MMC finally recognizing that she was right there needing him! Also, that ending was intense!

I felt that the spice in this one was not as scorching as the Villain but totally understandable after all that happened.

The whole arc with his dad touched me deeply too as I’m there with my own family members so I could totally understand how he was coping with it!

I was bummed to have it hit The End as I was really engaged with the characters!

I really enjoyed this story. It was only supposed to be a week for Allegra to be a pawn as a collateral for her brother’s money issues. But Cassian was never going to let her go.

This was a very good story that I couldn’t put it down. I loved the ending and everything about it!

Really good story. Love the mafia parts it what makes her writing so much better then others. Lots of romance don't make enough good story with the HEA but I always get that with Natasha's books. Highly recommend

Ich fand den ersten Teil sehr gut, aber der 2. Teil enthielt für mich zuviel Gewalt. Teilweise habe ich Seiten übersprungen, da ich diese Folterszenen nicht lesen konnte. Es wurde auch zu oft erwähnt, was der Fmc (Allegra) und ihrer Mutter angetan wurde. Die Krankheitsgeschichte von Cassians Familie und sein Umgang/ Problem damit kam im 2. Teil nur mehr Richtung Schluss vor und es gab überraschenderweise eine absurd leichte Lösung dafür. Also nicht nachvollziehbar, dass er sich doch fortpflanzen kann. Die Liebesgeschichte zwischen Allegra und Cassian war nicht mehr nachvollziehbar, Szenen wiederholen sich, um seinen besitzanspruch zu zeigen, lässt er wiederholt seinen Stiefbruder bei sexuellen Handlungen zusehen, Dialoge wiederholen sich.

Another amazing series by Natasha Knight.

The Villain and the Pawn were two dark, sinister, sexy, brutal, fantastic beautiful beasts of books.

They are intricately woven stories about desperation, jealousy, and hope.

Cassian and Allegra are perfect for each other. Their hard fought love story isn’t easy and at times pretty difficult to watch.

I can’t wait for next story in the series. Jet, Amal, Severin, Vivi,