Blurb:

The moment I witness a murder, my quiet, careful existence goes up in smoke. I’m thrust into the world of Santiago Hernández, Central America’s most ruthless cartel leader.

In exchange for my life, I’m placed under his watchful eye. Day in and day out, he waits for me to betray my promise of silence.

The longer I stay in his world, the deeper I fall for the glimpses of the man beneath that handsome yet cunning exterior. The man whose possessive touch ignites a long-lost part of me.

But I should know better than to open my heart to a cold-blooded criminal with a laundry list of deadly sins and secrets. Especially when he has no idea who I really am.

Because when the lies unfold, he’ll discover I have a list of sins and secrets of my own.

🌟”𝐂𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐟𝐢𝐠𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡.”
𝐇𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐬𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐩. “𝐁𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐦𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐚 𝐝𝐨 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞”—𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬, 𝐩𝐢𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐲 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲—“𝐛𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬.” 𝐀 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐜𝐥𝐞 𝐟𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐞𝐤. “𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐩𝐢𝐝 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐭.”

𝑫𝒐𝒏’𝒕 𝒂𝒔𝒌, 𝒅𝒐𝒏’𝒕 𝒂𝒔𝒌, 𝒅𝒐𝒏’𝒕 𝒂𝒔𝒌— “𝐋𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭?” 𝑫𝒂𝒎𝒎𝒊𝒕.

𝐇𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐟𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐢𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐰𝐞𝐫. “𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐦𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐚 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞 𝐚𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐚𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐢𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐝𝐚𝐲.”

My 5* Review:

When Lies Unfold by RC Bold is a romantic suspense set in Costa Rica. It is a thrilling enemies to lovers romance between Santiago Hernandez and Lola Arias. This couple are both haunted by their past, brought together unexpectedly and then fall in love and manage to heal each other. 

It is a captivating story with so many twists and turns as their romance develops. Santiago has to battle to keep hold of his empire while struggling with his feelings for Lola. She has to decide if she could sacrifice all she’s worked for and accept she’s fallen for Santy – the ponytailed narco. 

Lola has been living a quiet life for five years. While doing her cleaning job she witnesses a murder involving the local cartel. She is hiding when the leader finds her and puts a gun to her head. She has endured too much to get murdered for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Santiago is Central America’s notorious cartel leader, a known killer and criminal. He’s proud of the empire he’s built and the man he’s become. He hates loose ends and usually doesn’t leave witnesses alive but she intrigues him. He needs her to keep silent so moves her into his house.

While their relationship develops, Santiago has to deal with a Colombian cartel leader who is seeking revenge and sort out problems with Andro, his nephew.

To her he is a bully, controlling and arrogant, and she doesn’t want to be drawn into his world. She hates all his threats as it brings back painful memories so she refuses to let him intimidate her. They challenge each other and she gives as good as she gets. She presses his buttons and gets under his skin. He is suspicious of the mysterious tattooed woman and is shocked when she shows skills a cleaner shouldn’t know.

Their banter is amusing and very entertaining as they fight their feelings. I laughed how he always manages to get the last word. Both see the other as the enemy and a complication neither need. There is a weird pull between them that they both feel. She has an intense reaction to him and can’t believe the compelling attraction she’s feeling. 

Gordo, Santiago’s second in command, is brillant. I laughed at how he teases Santiago over Lola. Alma is adorable and her connection with Lola was amazing and so sweet . Her story is heart breaking but she helps Lola see Santy’s softer side. I thought Lola’s connection with the jungle and its inhabitants was lovely and it brought another dimension to the story. 

Events with Hidalgo escalate and Andro causes more problems for Santiago. Lola has a difficult decision to make, can she reveal her secrets or is it better for her to leave. When lives are put in danger, trust is broken and betrayal comes thick and fast, help come from a surprising place.

As it says on the cover of the book – No secret can be hidden forever. Things might not go as planned and the author certainly leaves you hanging right to the end but I was so pleased this couple got their HEA. Lola has survived so much and Santiago definitely wouldn’t have been her first choice as the man to fall in love with but he ended up proving he was the right choice. It was wonderful how he always saw her as powerful and strong, beautiful and brave.

Another superb book from this author which I thoroughly enjoyed. I did guess her secret early on but it didn’t spoil the rest of the story.