Is Ida Lupino: A Biography Worth Reading?

"You were promised to me, Alessia, not even death can change that." Alessia Capone was born a mafia princess, powerful last name, perfect future and zero control. At just fourteen, her parents sold her into a blood-soaked engagement with Rino Lombardi, the cold, dangerous heir of Italy’s most feared criminal empire. He was obsessed from the moment he saw her. She hated him before he even spoke. To escape that fate, she ran straight into the arms of another man. A man who turned out to be worse than her worst nightmare. Now, decades later, Rino Lombardi is back. Widowed. Ruthless. More powerful than ever. And still maddeningly obsessed with the one woman who got away. He made a vow to himself. If he can’t have her willingly, he’ll burn the world until she begs to come home. But Alessia is no longer the young girl he once knew. She’s a queen in her own right. She’ll never kneel, never submit, not even to the devil she once escaped. ...Or will she? Because the man she swore to hate may be the only one she’s ever truly belonged to. And this time, he’s not asking.

One heartbreak. Too much wine. And a one-night stand with one of the most dangerous men in Sicily. Ada’s anniversary vacation was supposed to be a romantic dream. Instead, it’s a living nightmare. When her boyfriend’s "best friend" crashes their trip, Ada trades her heartbreak for a lot of wine and a messy, public breakup. She’s ready to be the "psycho ex." She isn’t ready to stumble into the arms of a man who looks like a god and kisses like a sinner. Dario is dark, tattooed, and—unbeknownst to Ada—part of the Italian Mafia empire. He’s also been drugged, sent into a predatory haze that only Ada’s fiery spirit and curvy silhouette can soothe. Their night is a blur of desperate heat and hungover promises, but by morning, Ada is gone, leaving only a "walk of shame" and a very confused heart behind. But in the Mafia, you don’t just walk away from a Made Man. Dario woke up with a clearer head and a singular obsession: finding the woman who "serviced" him while he was at his most vulnerable. He thinks she was part of the setup. He thinks she’s a spy. But the more he tracks her, the more he realizes she’s just a heartbroken woman drowning her sorrows in the Mediterranean. Now, the "trouble in paradise" is just beginning. Dario doesn't care about her ex-boyfriend, her flight home, or her plans for the future. He’s decided she belongs to him, and in his world, what the Mafia claims, the Mafia keeps. Ada wanted a vacation to remember. Now, she’ll be lucky if he ever lets her leave.

Seven years of marriage and Adrian Reeds never once bought his wife a gift. But he spent ten thousand dollars on a diamond bracelet for his secretary. Elise Vitale found it in his jacket pocket on a Tuesday. By Friday she had signed the divorce papers, boarded her private jet and left without a single tear. What Adrian never knew — what nobody in his world knew — was that the quiet, obedient wife he had neglected for seven years was the only daughter and heir of Don Victor Vitale, the most feared mafia boss in the country. She had hidden it to protect him. He had used her silence to humiliate her. Now the gloves were off. Adrian thought divorcing Elise would free him. Instead it started a war he had no weapons for — because the moment Elise walked back through her father's doors, she stopped being a wife and became what she was always born to be. A queen. And queens do not forgive. "You wanted a housewife. Congratulations — you had one. Now meet what I actually am."

Luciano Everyone thought my wife was dead, but I never stopped searching for her. When I finally found her, the timid young woman I forced to marry me was all gone. In her place was a fiercely independent woman who hated my guts. I might have deserved it. But did it stop me from dragging her, her secret child and her best friend back to New York City with me? Absolutely not. My wife belonged with me and it was time I proved it to her. Grace Life on the run had some benefits. Your mobster husband could no longer use you. Nor could your rotten family who wanted you dead. Instead, I was living my best life ever in a tiny Sicilian village with my son and best friend. Until we were found. My husband dragged us all back, but this time I was determined to fight him. I wouldn’t fall for his charms and hot kisses again because I had so much more to lose this time around. If only my heart would get on board with my plans.

From frying pan to fire was the story of Isadora's life. In the space of a day, her hopes and dreams of going to college are taken from her, she is sold to a cruel don, kidnapped and then thrown into a world full of lies, greed and deceit. Isadora isn't supposed to trust anybody, and yet she finds herself unable to resist her new husband, even knowing that he may be the very enemy that seeks to destroy her.

His gun-roughened hands burned against my waist, every breath laced with the cold, unyielding possession that had made him the most feared Cosa Nostra Don in all of Sicily. A shrill ring sliced through the haze. He answered in guttural Sicilian. It was the dialect I’d learned years ago to fit into his world, so I caught every word. His consigliere was screaming down the line at him for filing a valid, legally binding marriage license with Sofia Lombardi, the woman who’d abandoned him when a bomb left him mute for seven years. Luca’s order was cold as a trigger pull. “Secure the original license in the family vault. Draw up a forged, null-and-void marriage license for Isa to keep her compliant.” In the eyes of the law, of his entire crew, I was nothing but his mistress. After seven years of laying down my life for him, I’d been reduced to nothing but his mistress. Another call flashed. Luca turned to me, the lie already shaping his mouth. “Family matters. The guards will see you home.” Without a word, I stepped out into the Palermo night, my hands shaking as I dialed his mother, Anna Vitali. “I’ll take your fifty million euros. I’ll leave Luca. For good.” Anna once said Luca and I were worlds apart. I had to admit she was right. This time, I want to leave with dignity.