Review: Poison and Wine (The Irish Rogues, #1) by Katie Ashley

    

Print Length:  409 pages

Publisher: Kindle Direct Publishing (May 9, 2024)

From Goodreads.com: 

Caterina

As the only daughter of a formidable capo, my existence unfolded within the confines of a gilded cage. At eighteen, I would become a pawn in the intricate game of power, destined to be wed to a high-ranking member of my father’s regime. My fate oscillated between my father's grasp and that of my future husband. Fleeing was not an option; they would track me down relentlessly. In an act of both self-preservation and rebellion, I sought refuge in a local convent—the sole sanctuary untouched by the shadows of the mafia. Yet, before I could take my final vows, the devil himself knocked at my door — a devastatingly handsome blonde-haired, blue-eyed rogue. With an Irish accent that sent shivers down my spine, he declared me his future wife. No one had touched me; no one would. But despite my aversion to a forced marriage, an irresistible attraction brewed between us— for he was both poison and wine.

Callum
When I abducted a nun, my expectations were simple—she'd be submissive, pliable, the ideal mafia wife. Little did I imagine that the fiery brunette would wield a mouth and body I craved, both in and out of the bedroom. She was a means to an end—a marriage forged out of convenience, a strategic alliance with an enemy family to solidify our standing in the underworld. Tradition dictated that I claim her, yet the last thing I'd do is coerce her. She won't be forced. I promised she would beg me to take her, and anyone who dared to touch her would die. For she was mine and mine alone.

                                                         *******************

My Rating: 1 star out of 5

Good lord almighty this story was an absolute nightmare to get through. In fact, more often than not I debated on just shelving this one as a DNF and moving on with my life. In retrospect, I don't know why I didn't as there was very little redeemable about this story at all in my opinion. 

Part of the main issue that I had with this one is that there were numerous instances where the author seemed to forget details they had already established.

To begin with, Callum and his brothers break into the mission where Caterina is living at in the dead of night in order to kidnap her, and his first thought upon meeting her in the flesh is to immediately sexualize her in his thoughts AGAIN (as he had already done so when shown pictures of her prior to this). Of course, she fights back, kneeing him in the family jewels and biting his hand hard enough to draw blood (both of which he has the audacity to get angry about like he didn't just break into her room while she was sleeping with the intent of kidnapping her). 

But then she shoots him - and once again, here is where details matter and this author obviously either didn't remember what she wrote, or didn't bother doing any research into gunshot wounds. You see, Caterina says that because her hands were shaking so badly, she only manages to GRAZE Callum with the bullet. Even Callum calls it a graze, yet a few paragraphs later he is thankful one of his brothers knows how to tie a torniquet. Something that is definitely not needed for a graze wound. By the time a doctor gets around to looking at it (during which time said torniquet would have been on for far too long which would result in nerve damage, tissue death or loss of limb not to mention the fact Callum has been walking on it and even carried dear Caterina up the stairs), the doctor is able to patch him up with nothing more than gauze and some tape. No stitches needed, ergo no reason for a torniquet in the first place. 

Another example of this author's failure to pay attention to their own details comes from Caterina when she wakes up in a private jet. You see, the nightgown she had been wearing was soaked through to the point "nothing was left to the imagination" (although Callum said if he thought his brother's could see he would have put his coat on her, but it was too dark for all that even though they were going onto a plane, but I digress). So Callum stripped her from her wet things and dressed her in a dry robe before covering her with blankets. When she regains consciousness, Caterina is obviously distressed and worries that she may have been assaulted by the four men she finds herself alone with. So she tries to discreetly check her thighs for any signs of blood. When the men tell her they didn't touch her, she yanks the slit on the robe closed. Except, wouldn't you know, a few scant paragraphs later when the plane lands, she is absolutely horrified to see she is wearing a robe and demands to know why she is. Miss ma'am. You already knew you were wearing one so the time to be outraged about it has passed. 

Now I was hoping once these two got settled and started getting to know one another, the story would improve. However, I couldn't be more wrong. And I think this is in part to the fact that neither of these characters are even remotely likable. 

Callum is a disgusting pig who if he isn't sexualizing Caterina in his thoughts, he is being downright vile towards her (in fact at one point despite knowing he had you know kidnapped her from her way of life as a nun in training he yanks her to her feet from where she had been praying telling her that the only time she should be on her knees in their bedroom is when she is performing oral sex on him. Of course, he puts it in a much more vulgar way than that). 

Caterina for the most part isn't any better, in fact the phrase insufferable shrew comes to mind. In fact, she even goes so far as to argue with him while they are being shot at and trying to flee from her murderous father. Then even when they are married, she tries to argue with him about sharing a bed, even though he's not pressuring her to have sex with him, merely sleep in the same bed. I get it, she claims she doesn't know him that well, but then she doesn't make an attempt to get to know him. Sadly, throughout the first part of book she had better interactions and more chemistry with every single one of Callum's brothers than she did with Callum himself. 

Even when there were moments of promise between them (like that scene in the dining room when he made promises to her than no self-respecting mafia man never would have made, and no true mafia wife ever would have demanded), they still end up arguing with each other and Callum once again leaves the conversation utterly enraged with his wife, but that doesn't stop him from being horny for her as well. Only on this particular instance, the reason he is so enraged at her is because she asked him to respect her one tradition and not kiss her until they were married. Hardly something to get that upset over. 

Eventually, they do try to put the events of the past behind them and try to at least find some common ground. Caterina even goes so far as to buy a sexy dress in order to impress her husband at the opening of his new club that she had to beg him to take her to, only to be insulted by him. Of course, she then takes offense to him telling her that she's his. God these two made me want to rip out my hair more than root them on. 

Of course because this is supposedly a romance novel, the two eventually find their way and start claiming to be in love with one another. Eventually they consummate their marriage, over and over until you guessed it Caterina becomes pregnant. And on this joyous day, she holds her driver and body-guard at gunpoint and forces him to take her to the strip club that she didn't know her husband owned alongside his brothers. She storms in, takes something completely out of context and makes a scene. Finally she yells her secret out at him, then screams about how "disgusting and demoralizing it was that" she was "reduced to" telling him he was going to be a father in a strip club. I'm sorry sweetheart, but you made that choice all on your own. She then runs out of the club despite knowing her father is looking for her. So naturally, she gets kidnapped. 

There is a scene of violence against women that occurs during her kidnapping, but we never actually see her get rescued. As soon as Callum and her brothers arrive, she blacks out so of course we don't actually get to see the fire-fight that must have occurred. We just find out after the fact that happened (or will happen as the case may be). And of course, in true Caterina nature, despite it being her fault she was kidnapped for running off unprotected in the first place, she still has the audacity to scream at Callum, and shove him away from her hospital bed while cursing at him. 

Yeah, looking back over all of that ... it really is a miracle that I made it through this novel. 

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel from the publisher. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.