Rating: āāāā
Ilarion Zakharov is dangerous in all the ways that ruin you just right. Heās not soft, heās not safe, and thatās exactly why I couldnāt look away. And Taylor? Sheās a mother first, a fighter second, and a mess of loyalty and regret tangled up in one bleeding heart. I loved her. I yelled at her. I rooted for her even when I wanted to shake her.
This book has teethāitās got stakes, real consequences, and a love story thatās more battlefield than fairytale. The family trauma, the impossible choices, the emotional wreckageāit lands. You feel it in your gut.
Why not five stars? Honestly, the middle dragged a bit. Some scenes overstayed their welcome, and I found myself itching for the plot to stop circling the same emotional drain and just move. But when it did? Whew. It hits like a freight train made of feelings and fury.
Still, the ending delivers. The emotions pay off. The tension never really lets go. And if you like your romance bruised, blistered, and begging for redemption, Diamond Angel is worth the bruises.
Bonus Thoughts ā Mila & Celine Deserve Their Flowers Too
Milaās arc quietly stole a piece of my heart. Watching her wrestle with the pain of her pastāthe trauma, the shame, the fear of being too brokenāand then slowly, bravely choosing to let someone in? That hit deep. She didnāt just surviveāshe softened without shattering, and that kind of healing is its own love story.
And Celine? Whew. Her journey is a reminder that sometimes, the person you thought you loved was really just someone who helped you survive the version of yourself you used to be. Letting go if what you thought was love wasnāt weaknessāit was clarity. And when Ashton walked in? She knew. Thatās the kind of love that doesnāt whisperāit knocks you clean off your feet. No bitterness. Just truth, and a new beginning.