Can't Walk Away - Ashlee Taylor (Thomas Family Chronicles #1)

I really enjoy mafia family books, I think they are some of my favorite no matter which character perspective I read them from. They tend to have a different tone and the characters radiate authority, which always makes for an interesting read. Can't Walk Away is a new take on the erotica mafia romances out there and the story line is what grabbed my attention. I left the big spoilers out of this review, but if you head to my Goodreads review you can click view spoiler and see them there.

Rating: 3 Stars
Published: July 2015
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC copy in exchange for my honest review.

Christianna wakes up in a hotel room with little to no memory about what happened the night prior, she knows there was a handsome man and that he won't ever leave her mind.

Nicholas has thought of a beautiful girl for over a year, he thinks of her when he's with other women, yet he has no idea how he knows her or what she means.

Nico and Christianna come from powerful families, powerful in different ways. Nico is set to take over his family's business and Christianna has a blooming writing career, but when they cross paths again everything changes. After realizing how much they mean to each other, even after one night so long ago, they give romance a shot. With that romance comes danger though, as the past and their powerful ties come back with a vengeance.

This one has a lot more suspense than you would think and kept me reading till the very end, even when I was ready to put it down. With a vague summary, everything in this book will come as a surprise to readers and I promise to keep it that way. There is a lot of family drama intertwined and the characters are dealing with not so favorable circumstances when they find each other again. While Christianna runs away easily, Nico pushes and shows both a dangerous side and a loving one. He puts Christianna and his family above anything else, even power. There are some serious smut scenes in this one, keeping the fiery draw between Christianna and Nico burning strong. There are also adorable moments that will just make you say "awe."

Character development was severely lacking for me, Ashlee Taylor is really good with detail, providing a lot of it for day to day life, but not enough for the characters. I wanted to know Nico and Christianna as individuals, but I feel like a lot of the character is more visible in the minor characters. The bad guys really come across as bad, as the vile characters you don't want to know, but Nico and Christianna are just two people who deal with each situation in a flat way and love each other. That's another thing, this is a serious case of insta-love, in such a way that I really wasn't sure why they loved each other and if I'd missed some important moment somewhere. Unfortunately, it is entirely possible that I may have, as it is easy to start skimming in this book, as the details take up pages and pages. I literally felt like I was in the shower with Christianna at one point, which might have been exciting had Nico been in there as well, but really we (since I was in there too) just showered and shaved. Additionally, this is a book that switches POV and when it switches from character to character each scene is taken back about halfway into what you already read to see if from their perspective. This got frustrating, I could understand taking it back to the last big emotional moment, but sometimes it went back to just eating lunch.

Overall, it is an enjoyable mafia style story. I would like more mafia moments, especially with the positions that both families hold. I would like to read the other family member stories, even Christianna's dad sounds like he could have an interesting one based on his past and where is family used to be in the Italian mafia. I will be hanging around for book two and look forward to the Thomas family and their role in everything.