Sebastian Gallo has had a number of disappointments in his young life. It began when his knee was destroyed so his basketball life came to an abrupt end. Now is seems that he is being lined up to become the heir apparent to his mafia family.  It is a HEAVY CROWN that he is being handed and not all that eager to accept.

Yelena Yenin’s life is far from the perfect life as the daughter to a vicious Bratva boss she has had to fight. However, she is sure that no matter what she does, she will end up forced into being a chess piece or bargaining chip for her father. Then she meets Sebastian Gallo when she is being kidnapped and thrown into a trunk. She belongs to a family that hates his and she will never submit to the whims of any man. Fate has plans for these two strangers.

The HEAVY CROWN is Sophie Lark’s Brutal Birthright finale, and it is filled with twists and turns that are completely unexpected. If you were used to Sebastian being the voice of reason you will find that he changes, and his darker side comes out. He and Yelena seem to be a mismatch at times, and their instant-love doesn’t quite feel realistic. She starts out as a fighter but around him she lets him lead – in all aspects of their relationship.

If you are a reader of this series, you might find that some things do not add up as Dante and Nero’s personalities in HEAVY CROWN don’t seem to match up in their previous books.

HEAVY CROWN is a very good mafia read with a lot of revenge, danger, drama, and the steamy romance that is expected. It's not the best of the series, but it's still an intriguing read.