Maksim (Korolov Bratva 1) by Katie Ashley-review

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date February 5, 2026

Because of the way I speak, everyone judges me the moment I open my mouth. Even though I’m 6’5 and two eighty, they see me as weak. They always have.
Even my father who passed me over as his heir.
Behind the mask with the automated voice, I’m not weak. Women desire me, and men fear me.

As fortunes change within my family, I need to correct my impediment. That’s why I seek out one of the best speech pathologists on the East Coast. On paper, Dr. Sarah Whitfield looks boring and rigid.

But the good doctor is hiding a secret: she has a kink for Masked Men. She sheds her professional facade on weekends when she attends Masked Events.

And I’m here to fulfill her fantasies of being kidnapped by a masked man.

But this time, it’s for real.

••••••

REVIEW: MAKSIM is the first instalment in Katie Ashley’s contemporary, adult KOROLOV BRATVA erotic, Bratva romance series, a spin off, set in the author’s THE IRISH ROGUES series. This is heir to the Korolov Bratva Maksim Korolov, and speech pathologist Dr. Sarah Whitfield’s story line.

NOTE: Due to the nature of the story line premise, there may be triggers for more sensitive readers.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Maksim and Sarah) MAKSIM focuses on the acrimonious relationship between our story line couple. Years earlier, at the age of eighteen, Maksim was passed over as his father’s heir-apparent due to his speech disorder, which his father had declared made his son look weak. Fast forward to present day, Maksim is determined to right his father’s wrongs, targeting speech pathologist Dr. Sarah Whitfield, a woman whose sexual kinks run close to his own but as Sarah struggled with Maksim’s unusual demands, it is The Beast that draws Sarah like a moth to a flame, a beast of a man what is more familiar than she could have ever imagined.

The world building focuses on Maksim’s struggle with speech therapy, rewiring his brain and his speech patterns in an effort to take back control what was his all along but as Maksim works behind the scenes, the family dynamics spin out of control as the hierarchy of power continues to transform

The relationship between Sarah and Maksim begins as an abduction. Maksim needs Sarah to help relearn and revise his method of speech but goes about asking for help in all the wrong ways. Sarah will find herself falling for a man she will discover is the Bratva heir but a man who hides behind a mask to get want he wants. The $ex scenes are intimate, provocative and intense.

There is a large ensemble cast of colorful, dangerous and energetic secondary and supporting characters with several cameo appearances from the author’s The Irish Rogue series including Maxsim’s sister Mila and her future husband Kellan (Beautiful Trauma), as Maksim’s other siblings Kira, Dima, Lev and Aleks, and their brutal father Danill Korolov. The requisite evil has many faces.

MAKSIM is a story of secrets and lies,betrayal and vengeance, power and control, family and relationships, acceptance and love. The character driven premise is dark, dramatic and edgy; the romance is fated; the characters are desperate, determined and charismatic.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Katie Ashley is a New York Times, USA Today, and Amazon Best-Selling author of both Indie and Traditionally published books. She lives outside of Atlanta, Georgia with her daughter, Olivia, and her spoiled mutt, Duke. She has a slight obsession with Pinterest, The Golden Girls, Shakespeare, Harry Potter, Star Wars, and Scooby-Doo.

With a BA in English, a BS in Secondary English Education, and a Masters in Adolescent English Education, she spent eleven years teaching both middle and high school English, as well as a few adjunct college English classes. As of January 2013, she hung up her red pen and expo markers to become a full-time writer. Each and every day she counts her blessings to be able to do her dream job.

Although her roots are firmly planted in the red Georgia clay, she loves traveling the country and world to meet readers and hang out with fellow authors. When she’s not writing or chasing down her toddler, you might find her watching reruns of The Golden Girls, reading historical biographies, along with romance novels, or spending way too much time on Facebook.

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