Crime families and mob wars only exist in the movies. Betrayal. Violence. Murder. They don’t happen to ordinary people.

Right?

Wrong.

For Lincoln Hollis, this is his world, and there isn’t a clapperboard in sight. A trained killer and advocate of justice, he’s been sent to unravel the neat little bow tied around Kate Fletcher’s perfect life, exposing her to the brutal truths she’s been so meticulously shielded from, before delivering the ultimate punishment for her family’s sins.

There’s just one problem. They’re his family’s sins, too, and he must make a choice.

Who will he say goodbye to first?

Goodbye, Kate
by Nicola Haken

I haven’t read Romantic Suspense in a long while so I was looking forward to starting Goodbye Kate. It was also my first book by Nicola Haken – she is well known for her MM Romance which are very popular.

Kate’s rude wake-up from being a gullible young woman to being part of a mafia family she didn’t know she she belonged to, has her growing up fast. I saw some reviews mention that she was so naive but I actually thought that her growth was believable with all she experienced and endured. Not only did she have to come to terms with the knowledge that her father was a mobster but also grieve her fiance who she’d loved deeply. Kate was pretty resilient and I could see why Lincoln loved her.

The fact I am of sound mind and permitting her father to live is proof that I would do anything for this woman. I would lay down my life for her between heartbeats.

Lincoln was a little harder to fall in love with but I fell deeper when he started to actually let himself feel. Up to that moment he was a cold bastard but when he realized what a remarkable, strong woman Kate had become he was completely devoted to her.

There are only two ways this can possibly go. Sophia Prescott will either be my saviour, or she will destroy me.

The plot has a lot of twists, some of which I could guess but some where whiplash inducing…I definitely didn’t see the twist with Kate’s fiance. That one gripped me and had me reading on giddily. As much as I enjoyed the storyline I thought there were some parts that were a little slow. Both Kate and Lincoln spent a lot of time inside their heads. While some of those inner monologues helped me to understand the characters better others made the story feel a little dragged out.

I’m pleased that I got to read GOODBYE, KATE. Nicola Haken definitely made it on my “authors to watch for” list and I will pick up one of her MM books to see how they compare. She certainly has a beautiful writing voice. As for this story, it is a wild ride with some lulls in between that has a little bit of everything: suspense, romance, mobsters and some sort of a second-chance romance trope. If any of this appeals to you give this author a shot!

Love is giving someone the power to destroy you but trusting them not to. I trust you, Lincoln. I love you. I will take your pain. I’ll clean up your mistakes. I’ll make you smile, and laugh, and feel.