Brutal Prince

Brutal Prince is a contemporary romance by Sophie Lark, first published in 2020, and the opening novel in a series about two crime families in Chicago.

The Griffins and the Gallos have been rivals for control of the city's underworld for generations, and the feud reignites when Aida, the youngest and wildest of the Gallo siblings, crashes a party at the Griffin mansion and accidentally burns down the library. To keep the dispute from turning into open war, her father arranges a marriage between Aida and Callum Griffin, the eldest son and heir. Callum is cold, ambitious and accustomed to being obeyed, and he is determined to bring his headstrong bride to heel. Aida is equally determined to give as good as she gets, and she starts by poisoning him on their wedding night.

The novel is a battle of wills between two people who have been raised to treat each other as the enemy, and much of its pleasure comes from watching a marriage of convenience turn into something neither of them would have chosen. The other siblings take their turns in the books that follow.