[ARC Review] Crossing the Line by Zoey Locke and Z.L. Arkadie

Paisley Grove and Hercules Lord cannot be together. For generations, for reasons unbeknown to most of the Grove and Lord families, they've been at war. But Paisley and Hercules have had feelings for each other since high school, and that one-night stand they had almost a decade ago? That didn't tame the fires burning at all. Now reunited, PG and Hercules can no longer deny their passion for each other, family feud or not. But with controlling parents and siblings trying to force them apart, and trying to force Hercules to marry someone he doesn't even like, their rendezvous officially has a time limit. If Hercules and PG are going to find their happily ever after, they must first end their families' decades-long feud. But as it turns out, love just might actually conquer all for the Lords and the Groves. 

Okay, first of all, you can cut the tension with a knife with these two. Paisley (or PG as Hercules calls her) and Hercules sizzle from their very first meeting in the very first chapter. Due to their families' feud, they are dark and dangerous from the very beginning, and I was immediately pulled into their romance. With money and power to both their names, Crossing the Line was very mafia romance without technically being mafia romance. I absolutely loved the rival families aspect of the story. And I especially loved that Paisley was intelligent and contributed to her family's company and Hercules was not at all put off by that; he openly acknowledged her intelligence, something that's not shown enough in these types of romances.

Locke and Arkadie did a fantastic job with these characters. Not only were they fire when together, but I really liked them apart, too. Being together meant dealing with impossible odds, but they both took the chance and fought for each other. Like any good Romeo and Juliet story, Hercules and PG were willing to put it all on the line in order to be together. Both PG and Hercules were dynamic characters, as any main characters should be, but I was surprised at how involved I became in the supporting characters stories, too. I could easily read stories based on all of PG and Hercules' family members and friends. No one was just background filler in this book, and that created such great world building. 

I honestly would have loved to see more happen between the big reveal and the story's wrap up. It felt a little sparse, a little rushed to me, like Hercules hatched his plan and then it was over. We spent the entire book hoping for a way for Hercules and PG to be together, and it felt like they finally found a way and then it was the end To me, it felt like Crossing the Line was more about the journey and not the destination, which is fine. I personally would have liked to see more plot between the reveal and the end of their story, but I did really enjoy the story as it was written. 

Crossing the Line is perfect for fans of feuding families, forbidden romance, and tension that drips off the page. 

A huge thank you to the authors and Grey's Promotions for providing an advanced copy of Crossing the Line for review. 

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Release date: 11/30/21
Format: eARC
eARC provided via: Grey's Promotions