The Heist (Tainted Blood, #1)

MYSTERY:  The Belcastro family murdered Alicia Carberletti’s family in an attempt to gain control of their Mafia territory. However, they failed to kill her and now she’s out for revenge. When the Belcastro holdings start getting hit by a master thief and they can’t seem to catch the culprit in-house, they hire Commander Xavier Raige and his team to catch and deliver the culprit. Xavier has a reputation for getting the job done, but when he finds himself pitted against Alicia this may be the one job he doesn’t complete. 

One lone survivor bent on revenge against the Mafia Don who murdered her family, versus the specialist they hire to stop her should make for a thrilling ride in this paranormal romantic suspense. Unfortunately, there are issues that prevent it from really getting off the ground. Xavier is a one-dimensional, foul-mouthed narcissist who has an annoying habit of ending his sentences with “yeah.” His Lieutenant, Hugh “Shuggie” MacAndrew, is a well-developed character, except his dialogue (in a thich Scottish brogue) is nigh impossible at times to decipher. Alicia is a delightful character with plenty of spirit, intelligence and humor; however her enjoyment of the torture she and Xavier perform on the enemy is extremely off-putting. Signore Belcastro and his henchmen are caricatures of a Mafia family and as such are laughable as the villains in this tale. The ending is a head scratcher. In addition, there are several editing errors that need to be corrected. 

The perfect cannoli shell is here. It just needs a sweet creamy filling to make it delizioso! 

Carol Conley