Devil of Dublin

After reading the foreword on this book I was surprised that this book was not as black as it was painted. A boy who lived with a priest and brutally abused loved hiding in the woods in order to gain peace. He meets a younger child who is visiting her grandfather. She is American and chatters all the time. Every year they meet and he asks if she will "never forget him". The story begins. A good book. There is laughter, love, danger and murder in this book but it is an awesome read.

This is a story of trauma, survival and discovering how to love for American Darby Collins, and Irishman Kellen ‘Devil of Dublin’ Donovan.For several years, from the age of eight, Darby Collins and her mother would take a trip to Glenshire Ireland to visit her Grandfather farm where she would discover a young battered ten year old mute boy she believed lived with the fairies in the woods …. Kellen Donovan. A bond is formed, a unique love grows despite Darby being Forbidden to play with him by her family, she would secretly continue to meet him in those exact woods, the magic woods.To Kellan, a boy of very few words, Darby was a breath of fresh air. A ray of sunshine in his darkness. A salvation from the horrors that awaited him at home. Horrors that no child should have to go through.Tragic Circumstances separates them from one another for many years.When they finally reunite their past and present collide Darby can see Kellen is no longer the boy he once was….What once was is no more.This story is completely heartbreaking, it's, tragic. Your heart will ache for them both. You will find yourself sitting on the edge of your seat with your heart in your mouth. It’s gripping, it’s traumatic but beautiful at the same time.

Wow. Just wow. This is an absolutely heartbreakingly beautiful read.It’s my first of BB Easton’s books but it won’t be my last.Kellen and Derby’s stories are heartbreaking, they endure so much throughout it’s soul destroying.They have been friends since children but didn’t really know all there was to know. Circumstances take them far away from one another. When they are reunited it’s under a very dark cloud.They both have to learn how to trust one another and in doing so they learn the worst of all that’s happened and it breaks them.This is a story of trauma, survival and learning to love even when it comes at a price.A tragically beautiful read with a touch of Irish magic. 🍀

I think it would be wrong to call this a dark romance as, even though both characters experience tragedy, their relationship doesn't feature the elements we usually associate with dark romance, such as a hero that is cold and callous or darkly possessive over the heroine. Kellen is a tortured soul, but his love for Darby is pure and constant throughout the story. That in itself is no bad thing, but it might not be what readers look for when they seek out a dark mafia romance.I enjoyed the first part of the book, describing how the two characters met as children and fell in love. My enjoyment lessened in the second half of the story which felt overblown, implausible and a little too sugary sweet at times.

After reading about this book, it wasn't at all what I expected. I thought it was about the Irish mafia, but that was a background story compared to the sadness of darby and kellen. She went looking for fairies and believed she had found a prince in the ruin by the lough. Little did she know as a child, she had started a connection that the lake spirit deemed worthy of her blessing. The hurt and anguish the two of them suffered over the years, managed to bring them back together and defy all odds to beat the devil's at their own game. Great read, really pulls at the heart from what they went through.