Sweet Mercy

Empire Nightclub Series, Book 1

De: K. A. Tucker

Narrado por: Alex Kydd, Ada Sinclair

From internationally bestselling author K. A. Tucker comes the dark and steamy Dirty Empire series.

One visit to my father in prison—convicted for a murder he didn't commit—and I've attracted the attention of the last man I'd ever want knowing that I exist.

Gabriel Easton. Son of an infamous crime boss. Deplorable womanizer. Scoundrel to the core. Worse, he has figured out how desperate I am to protect my father from brutality behind bars. He has the power to grant that protection, and he has offered it . . . for a price.

Me. I am to become a "guest" in his mansion, to live with him until he tires of having me around. I'll do anything for my father, including agree to Gabriel's cruel game. But I won't comply with his every whim and wish. Not when he taunts me with that ruthless spark in his cold blue eyes. Not when he requires that I share his bedroom at night.

Unfortunately for me, I think my loathing for him is what he's enjoying most. That's fine. By the time I'm through with him, he'll be crying my name. Mercy.

Contains mature themes.

©2019 Kathleen Tucker (P)2022 Tantor

Gabriel and Mercy

*****SPOILER ALERT*****

Dual POV. Empire Nightclub Series, book 1 of 4. Both narrators read well. Content warnings: murders; prison corruption; money laundering; drug trafficking; and h mom overdosed.

Mercy Wheeler (25; aka Merce) is an only child whose mom died of a drug overdose when Mercy was 1o years old. She is in college and working for a drug and alcohol addiction center. Mercy's father is in prison for killing his former co-worker, the man who assaulted Mercy. Mercy faithfully visits her father in prison every weekend which is where she crosses paths with Gabriel. Gabriel Easton (29) has an older brother, is a nightclub owner, runs an underground fight ring, and he has an abusive father who is in prison for witness tampering and money laundering. Caleb is Gabriel's older brother, co-owner of their nightclub and their home. The Easton family have been in the drug trade for their entire life but both brothers want to be free of it. Gabriel is immediately attracted to Mercy and offers to help her father, who is being beaten in prison, if she moves in with him for one week.... JP

Spice rating 2 out of 5 on my scale.

1st listen 02-03-22
2nd listen 08-16-23

Hot scenes

We love a bad boy who can’t resist our fmc. She was a bit “pick me girl” at times but I liked her sarcasm. Great smut!

Captivating !!!

Book 1 of 4 in the Empire Nightclub Series. The story is complete, display of greed. deception, power struggle, love conflicts and hot sex🔥 . Great narrators that bring it to life.

female narrator ruined it

Story intriguing, male narrator ok. but female narrator over enunciated and drama whines. couldn't listen to rest of story.

Good Start

If you like KA Tucker books I feel like you'll like this one. It has the mafia aspect but there is a build up to it. Mercy and Gabriel meet in a prison each visiting there father's. Mercy's father is in prison for protecting his daughter and Gabriel's father because he is the head of a mafia family. Gabriel strikes a deal with Mercy, stay with him for a week for her father's protection in prison. She begins to see Gabriel in a different light the more time they spend and she is feeling a little less like it is because of their deal and beginning to want to actually spend time with him. Their spice level when they are finally together is great. In order to get her to stay beyond the length of their deal, Gabriel strikes another deal with her about her father but also lies about what he actually does and then starts to scramble to get out the business they actually belong in.

A Hot 🔥 arrangement 🤭

Nice Story... writing & Narration were good. I like how they showcased the various characters. At MFC work, interaction in the prison system & MMC where they met. Not sure if I will check out Book 📚 2 yet.

Great relief for Wolf Hotel hangover 😂

I read this whole series and I really liked it. I loved the mafia angle. I felt like things that irritated me about the Wolf Hotel series were fixed here - alternating narrators, better storyline, better character development. I think a small increase in spice would’ve been great (especially in later books).

I thought the female narrator was great, but male tried to sound too “Soprano” family vocationally. Overall, I liked them both.

Fabulous story

I would give this series 10 stars if I could! It made me cry, laugh,and the best kind of goosebumps. If you are reading this review. Read the whole series. LOVED IT!

Mercy and Gabriel, book 1 of 4

The following ratings are out of 5:
Romance: 💙❤️💚💜
Steam: 🔥🔥🔥
Story/Plot: 📕📗📘📙📔
World building: 🌏🌍🌏🌎🌍
Character development: 😊😄😘😍🥰
Narration: 🎙🎙🎙🎙🎙
Narration Type: Dual Narration

The heroine: Mercy - she is twenty-five years old and works as an Administrative Assistant at an alcohol and drug rehabilitation center. She has also been studying to become a substance abuse counselor whenever she is able to take night classes. Her mother died of a heroine overdose when she was just twelve years old and her father, who was an auto mechanic is now in prison for Murder. Mercy has a lot of guilt because her father accidentally killed a coworker of his when he tried to sexually assault Mercy, and he was convicted of murder because they spent their entire savings on hiring a shyster lawyer who was incompetent.

The Hero: Gabriel - His seventy-five-year-old father Vlad Easton, is one of the biggest mob bosses in Phoenix and is in prison for another six years. He basically runs the prison and likes to think he is in charge of Gabriel and his brother Caleb as well. Though in the three years he has been in prison so far, Gabriel and his brother have opened a successful nightclub that looks like a legitimate business, although it does launder millions of dollars of drug money from his father and uncles side of the business.

The Story: On Mercy’s first weekly visit to see her father in prison, she is distressed to find out that a member of the family of the guy her father killed is locked up with her father and attacked him. She is very worried about her father, especially when he tells her a bit about how the prison works. He points out one guy who can get anything he wants from the outside and can get to anyone on the outside or inside. He also points out a mob boss who has the warden and a bunch of guards in his pocket. Mercy looks over to the mob bosses table to see who he is visiting with, and her eyes meet Gabriels.

Gabriel has no shortage of females at his beck and call. Though lately he has been getting a bit bored of those kinds of girls. He sees Mercy and instantly wants to get to know who she is and get her into his bed or on her knees. He finds out that she will be back to visit her father the following week and shows up again (though he usually only visits his father once a month). He finds out that someone has been beating up Mercy’s father. He knows that he can help offer protection for her father and uses that as a way of getting Mercy to do what he wants.

I liked the fact that Gabriel has power but wants to go legitimate. He doesn’t want to go the route of his father and end up in prison himself. Though he was a massively arrogant jerk the first half of the book. He was used to women falling at his feet and doing anything he wants, and he has a pretty low opinion of women in general. When he bribes Mercy into coming to stay with him, he says it is only for a week or so, because he is sure that he will grow bored with her in that amount of time.

I was half-way through this book when I saw that it was book 1 of 4 in the story of Mercy and Gabriel. I most likely would not have started it if I had known that. Though the premise was good, and the story and romance held up to my expectations, I am not sure if I want to listen to three more books about this one couple, though this one was good enough for me to go on to the next one.

This audiobook was told in dual points of view via dual narration and was narrated by Alex Kydd and Ada Sinclair. Alex Kydd is a good narrator; I like the voice he uses for Gabriel; it is kind of low and gravelly. He is great at using completely different sounding voices for other characters as well. Ada Sinclair has a clear, feminine voice which is very pleasant as well.

REALLY?????

This story is unbelievable. The lead female is a whiny idiot of the “woe is me” category. The kind who thinks the universe has had her in its throes from day one.