His Little Spitfire by Nyla Lily

• Facebook
• X
• ShareCopied to clipboard

INITIAL THOUGHTS

I opened this Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) expecting a high-heat enemies-to-lovers mafia romance with emotional undercurrents and intense tension. What I got was sex-heavy, plot-light, and often confusing. From the first page, it felt like I was in the middle of an unfinished story. I wanted to know who the characters were or what the stakes were. Only that there was a lot of heat and a lot of history I didn’t understand.

WHAT IT IS ABOUT

Eliza tries to rescue her sister from the mafia, but instead, she must marry Urzo, Don’s icy younger brother. As they clash, compete, and fight their attraction, they must navigate power dynamics, family expectations, and the strange tension between hatred and desire.

MY REVIEW

Writing Style

The story was disjointed and inconsistent. Scenes felt like puzzle pieces from different boxes, especially between sex scenes and backstory reveals. The lack of clarity and transitions made it hard to follow the emotional arc or timeline. The ARC also had multiple typos and formatting issues that made it feel unpolished.

Themes & Messages

Underdeveloped emotional conflict and excessive focus on lust overshadow the attempt to establish loyalty, power, and identity themes. The “fake marriage to real feelings” trope was present but lacked the build-up and nuance needed to make it hit.

Characters

Urzo is supposed to be cold and dominant, but his swift emotional attachment to Eliza feels out of character. Eliza didn’t feel fully fleshed out for her part. I struggled to visualize or understand her motivations. The author dropped in side characters without explanation. Who is Tommy? Why is Val mentioned at the end?

Vibes, Settings, and Tropes

This book leaned heavily on popular tropes such as forced marriage, mafia families, and enemies to lovers. However, it didn’t do the groundwork to make these tropes satisfying. The author mentions the garden often, but it never develops. The boxing and violence scenes felt randomly inserted rather than part of a larger world.

Favorite Quotes

None stood out due to the disjointed narrative and lack of emotional clarity.

What Worked For Me

• The sex scenes were undeniably hot, with a strong focus on mutual pleasure and power-play dynamics.
• I enjoyed the softer scene where Eliza reads romance books and bonds with Urzo’s mother. It hinted at the emotional development I wanted more of.

What Didn’t Work For Me

• The lack of context made it hard to care about the characters or story.
• Pacing issues: Lust bloomed before hate had time to root.
• The author abandoned many storylines, such as the wedding, the honeymoon, Val, and Tommy.
• The writing style lacked polish, and the ARC had many typos.
• There was little physical or emotional description of the characters, especially Eliza.

Final Thoughts

If you’re here for pure smut and don’t mind skipping over confusing backstory, His Little Spitfire might work for you. But if you want a mafia romance with deep emotion and satisfying character arcs, this one misses the mark. A great editor could help tie the threads together and elevate this from chaotic heat to compelling dark romance.

Let’s Talk

Do you need strong emotional arcs in your romance reads, or is fiery chemistry enough? Drop your favorite Mafia romance recs below!