Cruel Lies

Messina Crime Family, Book 2

By: Lilian Harris

Narrated by: Troy Duran, Brooke Daniels

Length: 9 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's summary

She’s forbidden. Untouchable. My late wife's little sister. And my kryptonite. Now I'm forced to protect her in a cabin with only one bed.

When Nicolette was 17, she kissed me. And I did the only thing I could do—I pushed her away, even when it was the last thing I wanted.

I’m the son of a crime boss. Too old for her—and much too dangerous.

I only married her sister because I had to, not because I loved her. But Nicolette hates me for it.

She's 21 now, and no longer the girl I remember. She's all woman, right down to her curves. But she's still too innocent for a man like me.

When her life’s in danger, my brother brings her to me for protection.

But when I see her again, protecting her isn’t the only thing on my mind.

©2023 Lilian Harris (P)2023 Lilian Harris

10/10 highly recommended

I absolutely enjoyed every bit of this books and this is one you definitely don’t want to sleep on!
Age Gap, Mafia, possessive, forbidden (EXsister-in-law), slow-burn. This is book two in the Messina Crime Family and it is absolutely amazing! The narration by Brooke Daniels and Troy Duran made me feel like I was reading the book again for the very first time. I loved this book narration team, they did it so well, that I listened to this book twice!

The narrator’s are Perfect!

I have loved this book for a good while, but this audio! Putting a voice to Raphael was genius! Troy Duran really brought him to life! Troy voicing Raphael was a perfect match! Plus that man was able to voice the other males voices in this book with absolute perfection! The Irish voice to Patrick was spot on and caught me surprise! Hearing Troy voice Raphael gave me goosebumps! Both voice actors did an amazing job! Brooke Daniels was a perfect match for how I'd think Nicolette's voice would sound like! Her voicing Bianca was spot on how I'd imagine. Bianca is just so evil, vile and disgusting, Brooke Daniels voiced her perfectly. Troy and Brooke gavea 5 star performance!

Very good…

This is a pretty solid listen for a second book in a series. It keeps the momentum going and offers an alternate perspective to the big events from book one.

Really Enjoyable !

I really enjoyed this one , it was filled with angst and so many emotions. I liked how as a reader we get a backstory into how they first met. I enjoyed Raph being protective of Nicolette and how you get to know more about his feelings towards Nicolette. Their story is explosive and chaotic. There are so many surprising reveals that leave you shocked. It was truly an amazing story.

I got to listen to the audio for this one as well and it was really good. The narrators were really interesting and fun to listen to. Nicolette and Raph were so adorable together and I really liked their pairing. The audiobook made the characters more appealing. The ending was so satisfying.

Troy and Brooke are PERFECT!!!!

I listened to an ALC of this book and holy crap!!! Go buy this baby right now!!!!!

Cruel Lies is book #2 in the Messina Crime family series. The audio is narrated by the amazing @duran.troy and Brooke Daniels and can I just say....they are absolutely PHENOMENAL!!!!!!

Rafael and Nicolette have my heart. I think they might be my favorite couple (just pretend I don't say that about every book of @lilianharrisauthor 🤣🤣

This one is a must read and a must listen!!! I am OBSESSED and I can't wait for the rest of the series in audio!!!

The ones who almost got away

5/5⭐️ 2.5/5🌶️ 5/5🎧
This series has me in a chokehold with all the twists and turns and mind blowing action. Nicolette and Raph’s story was tragically beautiful. The one who almost got away. Their connection from the beginning was iron clad only to be thwarted by age, morals, and deception. When they find themselves stuck together while Nicolette is on the run, old sparks ignite into full blown flames that neither of them can ignore, although Raph definitely tries. Once all the lies and betrayals are uncovered, it diminishes any guilt or doubt either of them had. Ahhh it was so so good!

Brooke Daniels and Troy Duran did SUCH an amazing voice performance. I felt everything the characters were feeling. Definitely recommend this series!

Just listen to the end

This is the second book in the series. At first, I didn't really like the female voice. I thought it was rushed, but then, as you listen, the reason why is because the character, Nicolette, is always in danger or being messed with. Her parents hate her. Her sister is the worst. Then Raph comes and sees what is going on and starts to show her that someone cares about her. He backs off for years and even marries her sister. Then Bianca is murdered and Nicolette has the evidence. She goes on the run before Raph catches up with her. Now that they are together, will he finally give in? The narrators did a good job. The story was good.

The Twists Keep Coming!!

The twists in this one!!

So much was revealed about the Messina Crime Family as a whole in this book. I was so engaged with the story and it was hard to take any breaks. I listened to this one and the narrators were excellent. They were so engaging and kept me listening all afternoon.

I was very curious about Raph & Nicolette after how book 1 ended. In this story we went back to the beginning of their story and saw what leads up to them being in hiding together. Much of this is running parallel to book 1 so we see bits of Michael and hear what he's doing as well.

In terms of the romance, this is a forbidden age gap and Nicolette is also Raph sister in law, but his wife is dead. Said dead wife was cheating on him with his father, so there's no love lost. It is also some forced proximity as they are stuck together in a one room cabin in hiding.

The stakes were very high in this book and I knew it was going to be gut wrenching in certain places. I was hooked from the very beginning and I can't wait to see what happens next!

Soooo much angst

(Audiobook review with original ebook review attached)

OMG, the narrators did soooo well with this book. I really love this series, so I was super excited to get them on audio. This was my first time hearing Troy Duran & Brooke Daniels narrating but it won't be my last time.

Raph & Nicolette were always meant to be. Hearing their story come alive was a treat and added that extra bit of angst that the author always gives us in her stories.

If you're a dark romance reader who enjoys the spice & a great plot, you HAVE to check out the Messina Crime Family series. The first 3 books are available on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited.

(Ebook review)
5/5 stars
4/5 spice

Good Lord, the tension and angst in this book could set you on fire, it was so hot.

Tropes:
Forbidden romance
Secret pining
Age gap (17 years)
Forced proximity
Mafia romance
Virgin FMC
Widower MMC
Dual POV

"I loved him in silence then, and I continue to love him in silence now. Love doesn’t simply cease to exist just because we want it to."

Raph and Nicolette are my new favorite book couple. The angst and pining these two had for each other was so heart breaking to watch. I was right there with Nicolette wondering if it was all real when they finally gave in to their attraction.

The plot was slow in this one compared to everything that happened in the first book. But once it hit the plot twist it was an avalanche of "OMG moments" and things unraveled quickly. I actually loved how the majority of the book centered around the growing relationship with Raph and Nicolette. You got to see how much they meant to each other from the very beginning, and neither one of them knew... uuuugh the pining.

Overall, this was a sexy, romantic, love story that was full of emotions and twists. I highly recommend for fans of forbidden romance and age gap.

I received an ARC by the author. All thoughts and opinions are my own and offered freely.

Trigger/Content warnings:
Violence, murder, blood, fighting, emotional abuse, manipulation, gaslighting, bullying, mentions infertility, cheating, adultery, death, graphic sexual content, explicit language

5 stars!!!

omg the audible version is insane! The characters are hot and intense in the book but 1000x better on audible!

Damn addicting!!!! This age gap mafia romance at its best!!! I couldn’t put the book down and omg the insane spice! Wow! Am incredible read!!!