A killer without a master.

A monster without a leash.

Xavier “X” Blood is a contract killer. Cold, calculating, devoid of feeling.

He knows the best way to drive the life from another human beings eyes, but what he doesn’t bargain on is wanting to save a life he’s meant to take.

Mercy Reid was good at running from her demons. That was until she met X and her life was thrown into chaos.

Mercy finally has him on her side…and in her bed, but it’s at a cost far greater than she could’ve anticipated.

On the run, they must learn to trust one another beyond their burgeoning love if they want to get through the coming chaos. Revenge, truth, lies…heartache…insanity. All of it threatening to drive them apart.

Mercy will do whatever it takes to avenge the horror that Sykes put her through. Anything. Even if she has to drown the last of her soul in the bad blood that threatens to destroy the last thing she holds dearest in her heart.

X.

GOODREADS LINK:  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23614867-bad-blood

I’ve been waiting to see how Amity Cross planned to continue X and Mercy’s story. At the end of Royal Blood, they are on the run, vowing the revenge that Mercy desperately needs in order to move forward with her life. But that promise comes with a number of repercussions, most of which could get them both killed.

Bad Blood is broken up into two parts; part one focuses on training, regrouping, fracturing, and transforming. Both Mercy and X are adjusting to their new connection and close quarters, and they are slowly becoming different people as Mercy is trained to exact her revenge and X is regressing back to his old self – the man he was before he was programmed…conditioned to become a killing machine. There’s nothing easy about these changes; the situation is dark, dangerous, and devastating because as X comes back to himself, his mind gets bogged down with memories that threaten to not only destroy him but his connection with Mercy.

Part Two has one clear objective – revenge, but to get to the end game, there are so many things that could go wrong, leading to multiple conclusions. X’s diverse skill set is showcased as the plan plays out to exact Mercy’s revenge on Sykes. This is a task that’s supposed to be emotionless, but when it comes to the way Mercy and X feel about each other, that’s easier said than done, which means the risk of death is even greater.

Royal Blood seemed to be a complicated game of cat and mouse with X trying to figure out who his mark is and Mercy working to not make another misstep. Bad Blood ups the stakes, and it’s no longer a game but a hunt, and even if X and Mercy’s prey momentarily alludes them, with a little help from one of X’s contacts, everything Mercy’s trained for comes to fruition but it’s unclear if she’ll be able to follow through with her plan.

Amity Cross gives readers a play by play of X and Mercy’s transformative journey by giving us their dual perspectives and forcing us to understand what every action means for them, both individually and as a couple. Although the story doesn’t end in a cliffhanger, there’s more to tell when it comes to X and Mercy’s story because there’s still others to be dealt with. But as the series continues, it has definitely been made clear that both X and Mercy can be whoever they want to be now.

A complimentary copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 poison apples