Review of Luca by Sarah Castille

Review by: April Hughes

Luca is the second novel in the Ruin and Revenge series by New York Times bestselling author Sarah Castille. After reading the first novel Nico, and being completed awestruck by how amazing it was, I had high hopes for the second one…and I was not disappointed. Luca continued its fascinating dive into the dark underworld of the Las Vegas mafia, with its charismatic characters and ominous rules and “guidelines”. Luca’s intensity, wickedness, and deep sense of loyalty and family made him an instant favorite of mine. In fact, I believe Mr. Luca Rizzoli- a Toscani crime boss- has the honorary position of being my current book boyfriend *sigh*

As for Gabrielle Fawkes- a narcotics (and theft) detective for the LVPD- well, I simply adored her. In fact, should I ever create a book bestie list, she would be right there near the top. Gabrielle, still recovering from the violent murder of her husband David, starts the story off by getting herself shot during her quest for revenge against the drug lord who killed him. Thankfully, this near-death experience places her in the hospital right next to the equally indisposed Luca Rizzoli. So, this cop and a mafia boss are wheeled into a hospital room…sounds like the start to a joke, right? You couldn’t be more wrong. It’s the start to an explosive, fiery, and all-consuming story of tragic loss, quests for revenge, fierce loyalty, and heart-stopping passion.

Despite being on opposite ends of the law, Luca and Gabrielle are clearly perfectly matched. Luca is feared and respected in his line of work- he has no qualms about decimating his enemies and protecting his family. Gabrielle is equally fierce about protecting those she loves- this is seen multiple times throughout the novel. She didn’t hesitate to protect her best friend from a threatening altercation with a man twice her size, and she didn’t hesitate to throw herself into a precarious situation to protect Luca (probably one of my favorite scenes in the whole book). It’s clear these two are meant to be together. They make one badass couple.

As for the rest of the novel- the secondary characters contributed wonderfully to the story. I enjoyed getting to know the unique and dynamic members of Luca’s crew. I was also intrigued by the mystery behind the drug lord Garcia, and found myself anxious to put all the pieces together with Gabrielle and the Toscani mafia.

And- I just love a good surprise ending!

All this story has done is make me hungry for the next one titled “Rocco”, which is scheduled to be released January 2^nd of 2018. Do I have this book pre-ordered? Why yes, I do.

If you haven’t read the first novel of this series, Check out my review of Nico!