Dirty Promises (Dirty Angels #3)

Javier is a broken and bloodthirsty man. He has nothing left to give Luisa from his empty soul that craves destruction. Distracted, he leaves that opening for Esteban to work his plan. Este wants everything that Javier has. He’s waited for his chance to be King. Drive a wedge between Luisa and Javier…check. One after another, things fall into place and will it be too late for Javier to see what is happening to his kingdom?

“I thought for a moment that perhaps I had lost my mind. Never mind the needless, senseless deaths that were at my hands over the past few months. Never mind that I had broken promises to others and to myself. Dirty, filthy promises. It was then and only then that I knew I had lost who I was. That every moral fiber that I based myself on was threadbare, and I was close, oh so close, to losing all sense of myself forever.”

This is probably one of the most intense trilogies I have ever read. The brutality in the story not only against Luisa but also the men involved in the cartel livelihood is shocking. I could not put the story down with all of the twists that came flying at me. I always crave stories that are unpredictable, and Dirty Promises definitely delivers. Esteban is a man who is pure evil incarnate. No matter how many times Javier became violent, I’ve always loved him. Granted, he was a little more unlovable in this story than his normal egomaniac self but I’ll let that slide. My favorite scene deals with Javier being height challenged, and we’ll leave it at that.

I will say that if you have issues with violence against women and being held captive and tortured then this book is probably not one for you. Don’t subject yourself to being an unhappy camper. I am a sick individual and enjoy disturbing myself. The writing and story idea is phenomenal, and I highly recommend this series and the Artist Trilogy to anyone who enjoys suspenseful and gritty stories that keep you guessing. I still have a book hangover!

This book was amazing. Think Tarantino mixed with Almodovar. It was brutal and dark, heart wrenching and tragic - yet also somehow pulls off humorous and sexy in the way we've come to expect from Karina Halle at her best.

Set against the backdrop of the Mexican drug cartel wars, there's a brutality to the setting that just is. These characters are murderers and drug lords, but that's not the point. This is a tale of grief and love, envy and betrayal. Rage, revenge.

This story picks up after Dirty Angels and Dirty Deeds. Javier is drowning in the grief over his sister's death, and the knowledge that it was not only his fault, but that he could have prevented it. He has turned inwards, and away from his wife, betraying her in the most appalling ways possible in an attempt to cut her out of his life. His wife Luisa is grieving the total loss of her husband and her failing marriage, and Javier's right hand man is waiting in the wings, ready to swoop in when she is at her lowest.

Parts of this story shocked me - jaw dropping, gasping shock. It's really, really brutal. But mostly it just made my heart hurt, that kind of aching, chesty sadness when you're really invested in the characters and they're hurting so badly. And isn't that the mark of a great book? One that makes you feel it the hardest, hold onto it long after it's over? It was a roller coaster, but ultimately satisfying in the best way, and I can't recommend it enough.

Karina Halle never ceases to amaze with her writing! She can take a reader from swoony, sexy contemporary romance, to stories like Dirty Promises, a brutal, rough, gritty and violent story that is incredibly gripping, sexy and readable.

Javier Bernal is a cruel man. Yet I still felt sympathy for him (it's true!) because if you have taken the journey with this character, you will know he is the product of his history and background. But make no mistake, this book is violent and is set in the world of drug cartels. If you are looking for a different read, with fantastic writing, then I highly recommend this series.

Javier and Luisa have a marriage that is on the brink of falling apart. Their story here is an incredibly wild ride and is most definitely NOT for the faint of heart. But if you are willing to take a risk with your reading, then you will be immensely rewarded. I did not know what to expect with DIRTY PROMISES because I knew this would be a gritty story, maybe even more so than the other books in this series. Karina Halle really delivers the goods with this book and if you are a fan of dark, action-packed stories with a very damaged "hero", then please read this series. The books and the characters are unforgettable!!

Received a copy in exchange for an honest review

“She’d undone me many times in the past but I wasn’t sure I could piece myself together again. Not now. I was ruined over what she’d done to me and I was ruined over what had been done to her.”

5 brilliant, dark stars!! Wow, heed that warning, this book is dark, but so deliciously dark!! This series and book are so d@mn good!! It’s hard to pull yourself out of the book once you’re in!!

I won’t be giving anything away with this review and I’m going to leave it short and sweet! This book was so good!!! You really need to pay attention to the warning that is given at the beginning of the book, this book isn’t all sunshine and flowers. Such a great book!!! I loved it!!!

**Received a copy in exchange for an honest review. Read and reviewed by Melissa for Alpha Book Club**

Karina Halle is a freaking evil genius! We fell in dirty, angry lust with Luisa and Javier in Dirty Angel and they're back in their twisted, dark glory in Dirty Promises. With the king and queen seated at the throne of their cartel, there's only one way to go... Down.

After Alana's death, Javier and Luisa's marriage is crumbling and they both know it. Enter Esteban, who we know was responsible for the ship explosion in Dirty Deeds. He wants to take what he believes is rightfully his and the next step in his evil plan is Luisa. 

Let's talk about Javier. I love him because as sick and twisted as he is, he loves his wife. He thinks he's protecting her. Luisa... She loves her husband and rules beside him, carving out her own place in a man's world. But can they get back to good?  They hurt each other over and over, when they really just want to be with each other.

Dirty Promises will absolutely leave you satisfied, no doubt about that. I still want more Javi and Luisa,  but I'm greedy like that. 5 stars

5 dirty stars

Luisa's life as wife to Javier Bernal, one of the greatest drug lords in Mexico, had been nice, until a tragic loss in Javier's family. Javier is now changing, becoming more cruel, more souless, but mostly what hurts the most is that he becomes distant.

She used to be his partner in crime, helping him with his business, but now Luisa feels lonely and betrayed by the man she loves and vowed to stay by his side for the rest of their lives.

Esteban's plan is working and Luisa is going to fall into his arms, while she's seeking for the things she's missing with her husband.

How do I begin to describe Dirty Promises? I've been trying for days to put my emotions into words, but they seem to fail me. I'll start saying that this book was very intense, the suspense was killing the ever loving life of me, the frustration hitting high.

While Esteban was plotting behind Javier's back, I was very worried, but I was trying to sooth myself with the knowledge that nothing would escape Javier's notice, especially by someone like Esteban. But Javier wasn't the same man after the latest loss in his family. He is a changed man and Esteban takes advantage of this.

I was so torn, so sad to see this amazing couple drift away slowly but steadily. I couldn't believe that Esteban would succeed and as the book progressed I was getting more and more antsy and frustrated. My emotions were all over the place, because things were changing and I didn't like that.

I'm not going to say any more about the plot, but I will just say that I really enjoyed this wonderful journey. Karina has a real talent when it comes to words and her magic writing took me with her once again. I especially loved her aknowledgements note and the little surprise that she's planning for us. I can't hide my excitement & my impatience now that I know about this future project.

”After everything, he was still everything.”

Please take Karina Halle’s warning in the beginning of this book very seriously. This is the most brutal and disturbing novel she has written to date. No joke friends.

"Check your morals at the door, keep an open mind and enjoy the ruin and resurrection of Javier and Luisa Bernal."
This was a great final installment that at times I had to take a breather from the torture scenes and and well I’m just going to say it, I waited the whole book for an Ellie and Cam cameo and sadly there isn’t one. I just wanted to stick it to Ellie and show off Javier’s kick ass wife, Luisa, The Queen.

Javier is my favorite character of this series and The Sins and Needles Trilogy. I can pretty much forgive just about anything this villain does. His arrogance, the way he speaks and carries himself, is so very damn sexy and pretty funny as well.

”Orange flattered me anyway.”

Javier is crippled by his sister’s death and has pulled completely away from Luisa. He has taken up with other women for sex and torture time. His grief, anger, and blood lust is uncontrollable.

”They all died because I kept climbing.”

The story is told mainly in Javier and Luisa’s POVs with a few scattered chapters from Esteban. Esteban has big plans for himself and he manipulates Luisa’s grief and makes the ultimate play to be the Patron.

Javier and Luisa’s trust in one another is shattered and our drug power couple fall completely apart.

”I hated her, yet I still loved her. And if I dwelled on it anymore, it was going to tear me apart. But maybe I needed to be torn apart, just for a minute, because I deserved s*** just as much as she did.”

The story is very intense and fans should leave a good chunk of time aside because this is a story you will frantically be reading while taking the much needed gore breather breaks. There’s so many shocking scenes that will have you reaching out to friends to discuss and then there’s some very hot intimate scenes.

No one is quiet like Javier when they are being tender. I think it's because he catches you totally off guard. Even though he’s a really bad guy, there’s still something so very endearing about him that makes me swoon. Even if a reader isn’t a fan, you have to admit he’s a man of his word and never lies. He loves family, he loves his wife, and he loves power, and not in that especially in order.

”You know that you could never be ugly to me.”

I can’t stress how much I truly love this couple. Their destruction was so very crushing especially after all that they had have faced in the past. Yet, their resurrection was remarkable. I’m hoping that this isn’t the end and that somewhere in the future these characters will stalk Karina Halle and have more to share with fans.

”I wanted him forever or I wanted nothing.”

There isn’t always the typical fairytale ending. For when one book ends, there’s always a story of more. There’s always another struggle. At the end of Dirty Angels, we saw Luisa and Javier get their happily ever after. Or so we thought. But that story ending was just the beginning. It was the beginning of something that. Will. Break. Everyone.

The story of Luisa and Javier isn’t pretty. It’s brutal and war-torn, and never-ending. For a man with power, who is higher than those beneath him, always has a great length to fall. Even a man such as Javier who is unapologetic, blood-driven, and harsh; he, too, will know what it means to lose everything. When he spirals out of control, stuck in grief and anger, people will bleed. He will bleed. Being wrapped in emotion, blind from grief, will set in motion a chain of events. Events that will rip Luisa from him, rip her soul from deep inside her, and set Javier to smash into the cold, hard ground with no parachute.

I literally just finished this book, and am still trying to wrap my head around it. Halle has a dark, perverse writing style that caters to this genre. She will make you squeamish, make you second guess your feelings, turn you both away and further in. I won’t lie and say there weren’t times I had to step away, because there were. Luisa and Javier become broken, sometimes beyond repair, and you’re just simply along for the ride. But through the ashes, they’ll persevere, and along with them you will too. And even if this is dark, and far from the bright, sexy romances we normally read, the brutality is not without forward movement. We see them be pulled apart, piece by piece, to be made whole again, to be made better. There is light at the end of the tunnel, and I think you’ll see that they’ve earned it.

**Received an early copy in exchange for an honest review**

This book was INSANE and I LOVED every single page!
I finished this book all in one sitting within a couple of hours I was done, I simply could not put the book down. It was an insane and gruesome ride...but revenge never tasted sweeter! I loved this last epic ride Karina Halle gave us on this trilogy...it was EPIC! I can't say that enough!! Javier still remains one of my favorite antiheroes and this book proves why! This book will make you appreciate his dark and tortured soul. Luisa and His story is one of a kind and you must enter this book and be prepared that things will get ugly...and fast! I love how Karina Halle was true to their story despite it being horrible and crazy. I appreciate that she took the time to learn about the cartel because it gives her book an authentic feel that most books lack when writing about this type of lifestyle.

Great ending to an EPIC trilogy.

This book is seriously intense, raw, violent, dark, twisted but I loved and kept me captive until the last page!
Is my kind of story, where I can see myself thinking about what's next to come.
The characters are real, in a way that you can see yourself in their skin. Javier is so arrogant but so sexy, Luisa is such a strong, decided woman. Together they are a power, carried by their love and lust.
The plot is well constructed, and never have I thought about the things that can be read here... how cartels work...
Now, I cant wait to delve into The Artists Trilogy so I can learn more about Javier!

Great conclusion to the series. Javier pulls himself and his Queen out of the ashes. Not without the scars of their past but stronger than before.
Can't wait to see what is in store for the promised Vincent Bernal/Violet McQueen love story!

Excessive. Just excessive. Having read and liked Dirty Angels I was prepared for dark and gritty but this sort of went beyond that. Not to say it isn't a good thriller/fiction but to bill this as a romance is one hell of a stretch. Not only did she cut back on what was already arguably an iffy romance but then threw in an extra dose of just horrific acts and behavior from all parties involved. What i mean to say is - it was excessive. Just a whole lot of extra that pushed it across the line of dark, gritty romance to shock factor ugliness. I mean points for realism because Mexican cartels are no joke but would not call it a romance. By the end I wasn't even rooting for the couple I was just traumatized.

Karina does it again in this nonstop punch you in the face novel. This story is definitely not for the faint of heart. From the first pages you will be sucked in, chewed up, spit out...and you'll love every minute of it. An absolute page turner from start to finish, this is a must read. Just when we thought we had seen Karina at her best, she pulls this out of her completely insane hat and NAILS IT.

Wow!! This was an Fantastic end to a Dark, Twisted, and Violent Series..
Dirty Promises was the most dark book of the 3.. This book will blow your mind and have you cringing at all the violence.. It's also filled with passion and heartache.. It will definitely push your boundaries/hard limit for what you will tolerate in a book.. So Reader Beware!!

Karina Halle BRINGS IT in this story!
Dirty Angels is dark, violent, slightly horrifying. Dirty Promises is 100 times crazier. Make no mistake, this is not for the squeamish.
What makes this work is Javier and Luisa. No matter what they do together, no matter what insane thing Javier does, you never stop rooting for them. Luisa is hands down one of the strongest female characters I've read in a long time.

This series is absolutely fantastic, and if you can handle the dark and crazy, this is a must read.

I could talk about how the narrative is skimpy. Hell, some books overcome that by being strong in other areas. I could also go on a little about how, despite being skimpy, it still manages to spin its tires in place for far too long. This is much harder to overcome but still doable if there's a certain significance in a point to be made. That is not really the case here.

But really the worst thing about this book is that it is irredeemably disgusting. Take all the ickiness of torture porn, combine it with domestic abuse, add a dash of power fetishism, and finally sprinkle a bit of the ol' 3edgy5me zest: bam, Dirty Promises is born. If that sort of thing is your cup of tea, then have at it. Otherwise, the emergency exits can be found on your left and your right.

*This review may contain mild spoilers for some*

Well, this is the worst book I've read all year. I can't even believe Karina Halle would write this monster. She's trying to pretend it's dark and edgy, but it's disgusting and repulsive. She tried way too hard, and is way too over the top. This book was so bad, this is going to be a rant more than a review with everything I'm feeling right now.

The amount of rape in this book is insane. She could have cut the number in half and the readers would have gotten the point. Every other chapter someone was getting raped and making me feel like I was going to throw up. It was completely unnecessary.

This is barely a story and what little story there is, it is completely insignificant because of it being so pointless. This whole story could have been prevented if Alana from Dirty Deeds wrote to Javier sooner and let him know she was still alive and that Esteban was bad. When Javier got the postcard at the end of the book, I wanted to throw my Kindle across my bedroom. Was that supposed to make us smile? Maybe give us reassurance? Because the only thing it did for me was make me rage even harder than the rest of the bad story.

The saddest part of this whole story was that Luisa didn't feel like Esteban raped her the first time they had sex. I felt as if I took a time machine with my women's rights. It broke my heart, and it never got clarification. It's almost like Halle believes that Luisa was a willing participant also, which is even more sad.

Just because Esteban was the devil in this story, does not make Javier any less of a demon. Plus, the lesser of two evils is still not good. Javier is just as disgusting and I would have cut his penis off right beside Esteban, and smiled while doing it. I'm not sure I've ever felt more sadness for any character the way I do for Luisa. What a bad life she has had and will continue to have.

Javier Bernal and his queen, Luisa are finally sitting on the throne of one of Mexico's largest drug cartels. As happy and in love as they are, it is a brutal place to be sitting and there has been way too much death and destruction along the way to allow them to sit upon their thrones unscathed. Javier has suffered the loss of yet another sister and this one almost brings him to his knees. He is consumed by uncontrollable rage and the obsessive thought that no one that he loves is safe to around him. He pushes his queen, Luisa away to protect her, but she doesn't understand his distance or why he is doing all of the horrible, hurtful things he is.

Feeling alone, hurt and betrayed, Luisa turns to the one and only person who is showing her any attention, Javier's second in command, Esteban Mendoza. What follows is an extremely dark and brutal tale of Javier's quest to remain on top of his cartel while battling his demons and the outside forces that are trying to tear his cartel apart.

This is definitely a story that is very graphic in nature, more "real" than I really wanted to know, but it is a stark reminder that the events in this book really do happen in the world. Javier will stop at nothing to get what he wants, whether it be information from a source or access to a shipping lane to transport his drugs. His methods are often brutal but very effective.

Underneath all of the blood and gore and ugliness of their way of life is the love between Javier and Luisa. They have not had an easy road to get to their place at the top of the cartel. There is betrayal and lies and everything you can think of that should pull two people apart. But Luisa is having none of that and literally fights tooth and nail to bring Javier back to her, all while he is fighting tooth and nail to hold on to his seat at the top and get rid of the one man who is trying to take everything Javier holds nearest and dearest to his heart.

A very gripping story, one that made me very queasy at times, madder than anything the next, but then laughing right after that at the comments and antics of Javier Bernal. Oh Javier, there really is no one else out there like you! Karina was a queen herself with the way she spun this story and held me completely captive until the very last line of the book! Her versatility as an author amazes me, how she can write something as dark and ugly as a drug cartel but then announce her upcoming love story about a hotter than heck Scottish rugby player who rescues dogs.

I am a Karina fan for life!! She somehow managed to get me through a story so brutal in places that I should have put down my book and run the other way. But I found myself secure in the knowledge that she would somehow lead us to a very satisfying conclusion (for now) of Javier and Luisa's journey.

Exceptionally well written, Dirty Promises is one dark, depraved finish to the Dirty Angels trilogy. Twisted, sick, and one of the most vicious stories I've read, Javier, Luisa, and Esteban are frightening in their actions. Excellent trilogy and excellent ending!