PART 1 OF A TRILOGY Beauty and the Beast. Everyone knows how that fairytale goes, right? How an egotistical motherfucker gets trapped into a spell by a wicked witch, because he looked down upon her, judging her by how she looked before even knowing her. Then having to break that spell, by having a woman fall in love with him in his monster form. Except, I’m no fairytale prince. We all know that all the happily ever after’s from the movies are bullshit. Happily ever after’s don’t exist. Especially for a motherfucker like me. A man who’s done so much wrong, seen things he shouldn’t have seen. Watched men and women get tortured, murdered, be ripped away from their goddamn families. My name is Luca Costello. I grew up in the toughest streets of South Manchester, you know, the area stretching from Hulme to Moss Side up until Longsight. I know there’s that fucking cliché that everybody spits out from around here. “I didn’t choose this life, this life chose me.” “Kill or be killed, eat or be eaten.” Except, I didn’t choose this life. Growing up, I was forced into this way of living. Postcode wars, Turf wars, competing for territory, gunning down any bastard who got in the way of business… It was all I knew. And it was all I was ever going to know. You can’t just leave the streets behind. Once you’re in, there’s no way out. Your past follows you wherever you fucking go. You don’t know how many enemies you’ve made. You don’t know whether the person staring at you from across the street is a stranger, or someone connected to somebody that you’ve crossed in the past. I wanted better for myself. Heck, I needed better. And I knew from the minute I met Zara Amelle, my life was going to turn upside down. She was sexy, bold, confident. A woman who knew what she fucking wanted. Too innocent for my world. But that didn’t stop me. I should have left her alone. I should have left her to live her life. Live her life without me. But she was like a fucking drug. Once I got one taste of her, I kept going back for more. Even if it killed us. They say if you keep dancing with the devil you’ll get burned. I’d been destined for hell my whole damn life. Living a life of sin, hurting so many people who didn’t deserve to be hurt. Except she was the opposite of me. She was like an angel. Who was going to save her from me? This is my story. She was the Beauty… And I was the Beast.

Beauty and the Beast. Everyone knows how that fairytale goes, right? How an egotistical motherfucker gets trapped into a spell by a wicked witch, because he looked down upon her, judging her by how she looked before even knowing her. Then having to break that spell, by having a woman fall in love with him in his monster form. Except, I’m no fairytale prince. We all know that all the happily ever after’s from the movies are bullshit. Happily ever after’s don’t exist. Especially for a motherfucker like me. A man who’s done so much wrong, seen things he shouldn’t have seen. Watched men and women get tortured, murdered, be ripped away from their goddamn families. My name is Luca Costello. I grew up in the toughest streets of South Manchester, you know, the area stretching from Hulme to Moss Side up until Longsight. I know there’s that fucking cliché that everybody spits out from around here. “I didn’t choose this life, this life chose me.” “Kill or be killed, eat or be eaten.” Except, I didn’t choose this life. Growing up, I was forced into this way of living. Postcode wars, Turf wars, competing for territory, gunning down any bastard who got in the way of business… It was all I knew. And it was all I was ever going to know. You can’t just leave the streets behind. Once you’re in, there’s no way out. Your past follows you wherever you fucking go. You don’t know how many enemies you’ve made. You don’t know whether the person staring at you from across the street is a stranger, or someone connected to somebody that you’ve crossed in the past. I wanted better for myself. Heck, I needed better. And I knew from the minute I met Zara Amelle, my life was going to turn upside down. She was sexy, bold, confident. A woman who knew what she fucking wanted. Too innocent for my world. But that didn’t stop me. I should have left her alone. I should have left her to live her life. Live her life without me. But she was like a fucking drug. Once I got one taste of her, I kept going back for more. Even if it killed us. They say if you keep dancing with the devil you’ll get burned. I’d been destined for hell my whole damn life. Living a life of sin, hurting so many people who didn’t deserve to be hurt. Except she was the opposite of me. She was like an angel. Who was going to save her from me? This is my story. She was the Beauty… And I was the Beast.

I was a monster, and she was too innocent for my world. But that didn't stop me. One taste of her kept me going back for more... Even if it killed us. PART 1 OF A TRILOGY

PART 2 OF TRILOGY Beauty and the Beast. Everyone knows how that fairytale goes, right? How an egotistical motherfucker gets trapped into a spell by a wicked witch, because he looked down upon her, judging her by how she looked before even knowing her. Then having to break that spell, by having a woman fall in love with him in his monster form. Except, I’m no fairytale prince. We all know that all the happily ever after’s from the movies are bullshit. Happily ever after’s don’t exist. Especially for a motherfucker like me. A man who’s done so much wrong, seen things he shouldn’t have seen. Watched men and women get tortured, murdered, be ripped away from their goddamn families. My name is Luca Costello. I grew up in the toughest streets of South Manchester, you know, the area stretching from Hulme to Moss Side up until Longsight. I know there’s that fucking cliché that everybody spits out from around here. “I didn’t choose this life, this life chose me.” “Kill or be killed, eat or be eaten.” Except, I didn’t choose this life. Growing up, I was forced into this way of living. Postcode wars, Turf wars, competing for territory, gunning down any bastard who got in the way of business… It was all I knew. And it was all I was ever going to know. You can’t just leave the streets behind. Once you’re in, there’s no way out. Your past follows you wherever you fucking go. You don’t know how many enemies you’ve made. You don’t know whether the person staring at you from across the street is a stranger, or someone connected to somebody that you’ve crossed in the past. I wanted better for myself. Heck, I needed better. And I knew from the minute I met Zara Amelle, my life was going to turn upside down. She was sexy, bold, confident. A woman who knew what she fucking wanted. Too innocent for my world. But that didn’t stop me. I should have left her alone. I should have left her to live her life. Live her life without me. But she was like a fucking drug. Once I got one taste of her, I kept going back for more. Even if it killed us. They say if you keep dancing with the devil you’ll get burned. I’d been destined for hell my whole damn life. Living a life of sin, hurting so many people who didn’t deserve to be hurt. Except she was the opposite of me. She was like an angel. Who was going to save her from me? This is my story. She was the Beauty… And I was the Beast.

FINALE OF TRILOGY Beauty and the Beast. Everyone knows how that fairytale goes, right? How an egotistical motherfucker gets trapped into a spell by a wicked witch, because he looked down upon her, judging her by how she looked before even knowing her. Then having to break that spell, by having a woman fall in love with him in his monster form. Except, I’m no fairytale prince. We all know that all the happily ever after’s from the movies are bullshit. Happily ever after’s don’t exist. Especially for a motherfucker like me. A man who’s done so much wrong, seen things he shouldn’t have seen. Watched men and women get tortured, murdered, be ripped away from their goddamn families. My name is Luca Costello. I grew up in the toughest streets of South Manchester, you know, the area stretching from Hulme to Moss Side up until Longsight. I know there’s that fucking cliché that everybody spits out from around here. “I didn’t choose this life, this life chose me.” “Kill or be killed, eat or be eaten.” Except, I didn’t choose this life. Growing up, I was forced into this way of living. Postcode wars, Turf wars, competing for territory, gunning down any bastard who got in the way of business… It was all I knew. And it was all I was ever going to know. You can’t just leave the streets behind. Once you’re in, there’s no way out. Your past follows you wherever you fucking go. You don’t know how many enemies you’ve made. You don’t know whether the person staring at you from across the street is a stranger, or someone connected to somebody that you’ve crossed in the past. I wanted better for myself. Heck, I needed better. And I knew from the minute I met Zara Amelle, my life was going to turn upside down. She was sexy, bold, confident. A woman who knew what she fucking wanted. Too innocent for my world. But that didn’t stop me. I should have left her alone. I should have left her to live her life. Live her life without me. But she was like a fucking drug. Once I got one taste of her, I kept going back for more. Even if it killed us. They say if you keep dancing with the devil you’ll get burned. I’d been destined for hell my whole damn life. Living a life of sin, hurting so many people who didn’t deserve to be hurt. Except she was the opposite of me. She was like an angel. Who was going to save her from me? This is my story. She was the Beauty… And I was the Beast.

When I was sixteen, a gypsy fortune-teller told me my future held darkness and death. She was right. But what she didn’t tell me was I’d lose all my memories and I wouldn’t recognize the devil when he came to steal my life. Lucca Dyshekov—the Bratva assassin they call Merciless—rose from hell and turned my world upside down. On our wedding day, he taught me real monsters aren’t the ones who hide in the dark. They’re the ones who stare you in the face and steal your soul. On a quest for revenge, he takes me and unearths secrets from the past that will cause a war. When death lies on the horizon, the enemy of my enemy becomes my friend. In this instance, he’s my husband. The real question is when he finishes uncovering the truth, will he keep me or kill me. Merciless Vows is a dark mafia arranged marriage romance. It contains dubious situations, mature content, and graphic violence some readers might find offensive and/or triggering. This book is part of a duet and is not a standalone.

Betrayal can destroy everything we've built... My fiancé is a tyrant, a monster dipped in gorgeousness with the power to make women melt at his feet. Including me. As the newly crowned boss of the Mulligan crime family, he never shows signs of weakness. Only dominance. When the sensual beast inside of him roars to life, I am his target. His release. He expects me to submit to him, to unleash the darkness buried down deep so he can temper his control in other areas of his life. His steamy threats make my blood simmer, his strong hands and rough touch make my flesh sizzle. But while fury powers him, revenge drives him. And since I'm the only one who can help him control his inner beast by providing an outlet for his darkness, that makes me a very dangerous weapon. VICIOUS VOWS, the second book in the RECKLESS REIGN series by USA Today Bestselling author Kristen Luciani, is an enemies-to-lovers arranged marriage dark mafia romance. This epic saga follows one couple through a steamy, pulse-pounding trilogy with a guaranteed HEA in book three. It is not a standalone. Scroll up and one-click to lose yourself in the dangerous and deliciously deviant Irish mafia underworld starring savage alphas and edge-of-your-seat-gripping suspense! CAUTION: Contains scorching hot bedroom scenes for mature readers only!