Friday 10 February 2017

Blog Tour, Review, Excerpt & Giveaway ~ Worth of Waste (The DeLuca Duet #2) by Bethany-Kris


WORTH OF WASTE: 
DeLuca Duet, Part Two
by Bethany-Kris 
 Publication Date: February 6, 2017 
Genres: Adult, Organized Crime, Mafia Romance


Book Description:

The Chicago Mob is the same as it has always been—violent, greedy, and excessive. The Outfit families have turned their backs when they were needed the most one too many times, but Dino DeLuca didn’t expect anything different. 

His whole life has been lived for the Outfit—for his family.

He has a whole new set of reasons to live and fight now.

Karen Martin makes Dino change all the rules.

He’s finally ready to show everyone just how much waste is truly worth in the mafia, and just how far one will go for freedom from it all.

He’s learned these lessons well.

Too well.

Author’s Note: The DeLuca Duet is a standalone duet with a HEA ending that can be read independently.

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Our Review:

Reviewed by Donna ~ 4 stars
***ARC received for an honest review***

(Spoilers for book one, Waste of Worth)


“I’m only doing what one of us won’t, right?”


I had been itching to read this book, Bethany-Kris left us on a doozie with book one, Waste of Worth, and although the time between books was short, my powers of patience were running very thin. As I said in my review for book one, Bethany-Kris has become a go to author for my Mafia men fix and she certainly delivered once again with Worth of Waste. Worth of Waste is the concluding part to Dino De Luca’s story.


“…his home was where his heart was, and his heart was with the people who made it beat.”


At the end of Waste of Worth Dino was in prison, set up cruelly by his uncle, Ben DeLuca, a man with no scruples and no family loyalty when it came to the mafia and money. Dino had done a fantastic job keeping Karen a secret from the family and as he plans to spend his next eighteen months behind bars the one thing that keeps him going is keeping Karen safe and revenge on the man that had taken him down. All that time with only your thoughts for company leads to one hell of a retribution.


“It seemed like when he was the quietest, his thoughts betrayed him the worst.”


Dino had spent the past few months leading two separate lives, the life he had with Karen, where he could be himself and the part that he tried hardest to keep secret, the life of a made man. Dino never wanted a part of it, but being born into it, left him no alternative. Dino only cared about three people, his sister, Lily, his brother, Theo and Karen and he as ever is the sacrificial lamb. However, they didn’t bank on Dino’s tenacity and inner strength as Dino prepares to fight for what he has always wanted, freedom.


“I’m not going to prison.”


This book is action packed, however I loved the scenes with Dino, Karen and JD. This showed a totally different side to Dino and really gave us an insight as to the man he really was. We have seen it throughout this duet, however, Dino still didn’t believe it. Dino’s loyalty and protectiveness over his siblings was as admirable as ever and went a long way to show just how much thought had gone into the best laid plans.


“Love stared back. Need watched her.”


With the FBI still breathing down his neck and the family forever at each others throats, everyone has to watch their backs, no-one is safe. With loyalties tested and revenge administered on both sides there is something for everyone in this book. While those people that have read the Chicago Wars series know how this story ends, from what I have been told, it wasn’t what you thought. Bethany-Kris managed to side swipe everyone. Having not read the Chicago Wars series I felt this gave me that little bit extra in emotional connection and that feeling of not knowing what to expect. I was on tenterhooks throughout with my heart firmly lodged in my throats as these mafia families went into battle.


“It means you’re important, that’s all.”


I have the Chicago Wars series downloaded and now I will be devouring them with a passion. I didn’t want to ruin this duet for myself, but now having read both books, wild horses won’t keep me away.

Once again Bethany-Kris nailed this mafia based romance, action packed, suspenseful, intriguing and totally swoony, a perfect balance for us hopeless romantics that love a little bit of action too. Karma is certainly a bitch.

Excerpt:

Karen leaned against the metal fence, tucking her own coat closer to her body to combat the chill. She watched J as he pushed himself up to a standing position, and tried to take a step forward. In his heavy boots, he struggled and fell, catching himself easily.
He didn’t try to walk again, though, instead crawling to where the sandbox was.
Another one of his favorite spots in the park.
Knowing her son would be fine to play, and seeing as how the park was mostly empty of children, given it was school day and not even noon, she found one of the park benches to sit on and try to relax.
While her attention was on her son and making sure he didn’t wander off or stick something in his mouth, her mind was somewhere else entirely.
He should be out.
His sentence is served.
Is he out?
Those questions plagued her as she watched J throw a handful of sand up into the air.
Karen had asked one thing of Dino’s lawyer, and that was to let her know the official date of his release. She had never gotten that phone call, and for good reason. When she called the office where Mike Hardy had worked, she learned exactly why she hadn’t been contacted by the lawyer.
He was dead.
Murdered, apparently.
It made her sick all over.
“Careful!” Karen shouted to her son as Junior balanced on the edge of the sandbox and leaned forward, trying to grab something from the ground. “Sit down, J!”
The baby plopped down on his butt with a laugh, but didn’t turn to look at his mother. So was their routine when they came to the park—he was always trying to get into some kind of trouble, and Karen damn near had a heart attack every time. She was sure the older he got, the worse it would be for her.
She still loved him for it.
He was far more adventurous than she had remembered being as a child.
Karen wasn’t quite sure what it was that made her feel like someone was watching her, but the hair on the back of her neck prickled. Strangely, it wasn’t a bad thing. She didn’t feel … unsafe like maybe she should have.
She didn’t even get the chance to turn and see if someone else had parked in the park’s lot before she felt his presence. And she knew in an instant exactly who it was.
Maybe it was the way his shadow fell over hers, the sizeable shape swallowing her whole. He had always been larger than her, making her feel so small but so important in his world.
Maybe it was the sound of his throat clearing, something he’d done time and time again when he felt like he was inserting himself into her time and life and didn’t deserve to be there, so he tried to give her warning.
Maybe it was the way her heartrate picked up.
Or the shaky breath she released.
Karen couldn’t pinpoint exactly what it was that explained how she knew, she just did.
Dino.
“I met a girl once,” he said behind her, “and she only had to talk to make me smile.”
Karen didn’t know what to say, but she knew he was talking about her. “Oh?”
“Fascinating woman, really.”
“I bet.”
“I fucked it up, though.”
Karen blinked, her vision cloudy from gathering wetness. “You don’t know that.”
“Don’t I?” he asked softly. “I’m still trying to figure out how to tell her I’m sorry.”
Jesus.
Karen patted the seat beside hers on the bench. “Sit.”
Dino didn’t make her tell him again. 




DON'T MISS WASTE OF WORTH, PART ONE IN THE DELUCA DUET!


Book Description:

Ask anyone and they will all say the same thing about just who Dino DeLuca is. A criminal, the son of a traitor, and a mafia Capo who can’t be trusted. His past has shaped his life, creating demons he can’t escape from that live in his mind day and night. 

He is all too aware of just how people see him. 

Closed off. 
Cold. 
Different. 

He doesn’t care—keeping people out means no one can get close enough to hurt him again, and he already has one too many monsters with their claws stuck in his back that he’s still fighting off. His walls are so high, no one is climbing over them. Or so he thinks … 

Karen came into his life like a spring shower, her light shining through the darkness and making him see something other than the hell that surrounded him for so long. She doesn’t know who he is or what he has done to become the man he is today. If he can help it, she’ll never know, and his monsters will never hurt her. 

She sees his differences as beauty. 
She never asks for more. 
She is perfect. 

The problem with happiness for Dino DeLuca is that his monsters don’t mind taking away what makes him happy. After all, what isn’t given cannot be kept. 

These lessons will be the hardest he has ever learned. 


AUTHOR’S NOTE: The DeLuca Duet is a two book tale following the same couple through their journey. It is a standalone Duet that can be read independently with a HEA ending.

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About the Author:

Bethany-Kris is a Canadian author, lover of much, and mother to three young sons, one cat, and two dogs. A small town in Eastern Canada where she was born and raised is where she has always called home. With her boys under her feet, snuggling cat, barking dogs, and a hubby calling over his shoulder, she is nearly always writing something … when she can find the time. To keep up-to-date with new releases from Bethany-Kris, sign up to her New Release Newsletter here: http://eepurl.com/bf9lzD


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