Book Review | Loving Smoke – Barbara Nolan (The Royal Bastards MC: Tijuana, Mexico, Book One)

Loving Smoke
By: Barbara Nolan

Series: Royal Bastards MC: Tijuana Mexico
Book # in Series: 1 of 2
Trope(s): Dark MC Romance, Enemies To Lovers, Age Gap,
Publisher: Self Published
Publication Date: April 16th, 2024
My Rating: ✮✮✮✮½

Synopsis:

The fine line between love and hate is broken when Smoke falls hard for the enemy and puts his club and everything he values at risk.

Smoke~~

I screwed up bad—So bad the chapter prez of the Royal Bastards banishes me and my VP to a beat-to-shit strip club in Tijuana to take down a cartel boss who’s been screwing with our gun supply. I was pissed off big time until—a sweet, hotter-than-hell woman walks into the club, and turns my life sideways.

Marisol~~

I’ve lived a privileged life—private schools, European vacations, a villa on the Baja Coast. Everything my father’s illegal cartel money could buy until—the unspeakable happens.

His violent lifestyle resulted in my mother’s murder.

Now I’m out for revenge and I’m targeting the outlaw MC responsible—

The Royal Bastards.

honey-script.light

Loving Smoke by Barbara Nolan is the first book in the Royal Bastards MC Series: Tijuana, MX. Be prepared. When you finish Loving Smoke, you may feel the sudden urge to read this series in its entirety! And believe me when I say there are a ton of books to read in this series! I’m excited for what’s to come after reading Barbara Nolan’s Loving Smoke!

I’m new to the Royal Bastards MC Series, and I don’t usually read novels placed in the middle of a series out of order. But the moment I read the synopsis for Loving Smoke by Barbara Nolan, I knew I had to skip the series and dive into Smoke and Marisol’s story. Truth be told, I’m a sucker for an age gap romance. Then you add the need for revenge to the table with a strong Motorcycle Club vibe, and I’m sold.

First up, we have Marisol. Marisol is on a mission, and her main goal is to seek vengeance towards those who took her mother’s life. She’ll do whatever it takes to see that the men who carried out this task pay in the worst way possible. But what happens when dark secrets crawl out from their depths? Marisol will do everything to hold the one who took her mother’s life accountable. I’m here for the revenge plot where Marisol is concerned. I loved the fierce vibes this woman threw off. I also loved the protective, ride or die, role she naturally stepped into. She definitely brought the fire to this novel!

And then we have the President himself, Smoke. Everything in Smoke’s life went up in flames the day his club was arrested, and he was nowhere in sight. He knew shit was about to hit the fan when he walked into his clubhouse and found the Royal Bastard’s National President sitting in his seat at the head of his table. Being told his club has been disbanded was a shot to the heart, but to make matters worse, Smoke and his vice president are being sent to Tijuana, Mexico to start a new charter and to find out information on the cartel. What more could possibly go wrong in Smoke’s life…… Smoke is an anomaly! Here is a man who exudes danger with just one glance. But, if you get beneath the surface, you’ll find a vulnerable person who fears losing the one thing he can claim as his, and that’s his position in the club. This may just be my opinion, but I loved the fact that the more he became attached to Marison, the stronger that vulnerability showed. What can I say, I have a soft spot for males who would do anything for their leading lady. Also, let’s not forget to mention that Smoke brings the spice to this novel. Although, I was hoping for a little more kink. I still loved the sexy time moments all the same!

Now, for the reasoning behind why I dropped a star on my rating. I gave Loving Smoke by Barbara Nolan a four star rating because, even though I loved the romance aspect, I found the suspense leading up to the climactic point to be a bit predictable. I predicted the climactic end early on in this novel. When I pick up a novel that features suspense and dark vibes, I want to be swept away by the mystery of it all. Due to not wanting to further spoil future readers, I won’t go into further discussion about slimy characters and their need for control and power!

Overall, I really enjoyed Loving Smoke by Barbara Nolan. I loved the spice, the heart, and the danger that this story brought. I have to say, I’m looking forward to diving into Blood’s story! This man is gruff, and I’m looking forward to him being brought to his knees and surrendering to love!

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