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Irish Roulette #1

How Did You Survive Without Us?

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The Charming Yet Clueless Professor
Dr. Vail Mifflin loves the history of organized crime. Teaching and writing about the adventures of mobsters are his life’s work. To Vail, the stories he tells are just that—fun accounts he doesn’t think of as real. When Dr. Mifflin gets too close to the modern-day mob truth while researching a book he’s writing, his life begins to fall apart.

The Irish Mob Killers
Rowen, Cillian, Aspen, and Fallon work for the Killough Company, the Irish mob that controls the Eastern Seaboard of the US. They go to one of Dr. Mifflin’s lectures to hear a few stories about the old-timers. That day, the men save Dr. Mifflin from an Italian mafioso, who didn’t like the things Dr. Mifflin lectured about. With this one unintended kind act, these killers become entangled in Vail’s life.

Death and Danger in Unexpected Places
As the band of killers get to know Vail, they realize that instead of focusing on the history of the mob, he’s trying to write an up-to-date account. Normally they would murder a man who planned to divulge their secrets, but it’s clear Vail doesn’t truly understand the danger he’s in. Their only choice to keep him alive is to protect him and convince him to stop. Vail struggles with ADHD and is reluctant to let go of his career, the one thing he feels he is good at. Unfortunately word is already out that Vail knows things he shouldn’t, and keeping him safe won’t be simple.

How Did You Survive Without Us? ends on a small cliffhanger for Vail, but the next book is already written, so you won’t have to wait to find out what happens next!

317 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 23, 2021

303 people are currently reading
1109 people want to read

About the author

Ki Brightly

90 books701 followers
I spend most of my days writing, editing, and perfecting the craft of storytelling.

A note to readers: I don't hang out on Goodreads or social media, so if you have any questions about my books, please check out my website, which I host with M.D. Gregory.

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5 stars
487 (38%)
4 stars
434 (34%)
3 stars
227 (17%)
2 stars
83 (6%)
1 star
36 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 161 reviews
Profile Image for ⋆˖⁺‧₊☽ cal.
726 reviews316 followers
April 16, 2022
*changed to four stars


❝ Family shared, and if Vail wanted all four of us, I´d accept a quarter of his attention. His focus seemed to shift faster than my brain could keep up with, and that wasn't a bad thing. It just meant he had more needs than even Cillian and I together could provide for. Between the four of us, we could keep him happy. ❞


oh my goodness. this was filthy, steamy, and overall just heart-stopping. i love it to bits. funny because my first 5 star read last year was from this duo too! im grabbing the next one right immediately. now that i finished it, the story was more of a harem style than a poly. i think in poly all the characters have emotional feelings with one another but in this four men shares one guy without falling for one another in the process. we follow dr. vail mifflin with his ADHD as he was mixed up in this irish mob shenanigan because of his book research. the best thing here for me and this is without being shady was how vail was jumping from one guy to another and no one bats an eye. it was kinda hilarious but i dig it.
Profile Image for Imme van Gorp.
784 reviews1,838 followers
August 9, 2025
|| 1.0 star ||

no no no no no. NO.

This was so bad.

The plot is completely nonsensical; it was so stupid. And not only was it ridiculous, I also nearly fell asleep multiple times.
Boring and dumb? Worst combination ever.

The characters were extremely unlikable and irritating as well:
Vail might possibly be the most oblivious person on the planet. Seriously, the guy is dumb as rocks and comes across as if he does not possess more than two braincells total.
And Rowen was just incredibly weak. He was in desperate need of a backbone because he genuinely let everyone walk all over him. He didn't appear to ever really think for himself.
But out of the three, Cillian should definitely be the worst since he is so cruel and mean, yet he somehow irritated me the least. I mean, honestly, if I were surrounded by people as dumb as he was, I might possibly grow to be at my wit's end as well. Doesn't change the fact that he's truly a bossy motherfucker with no respect for other people and a nasty sadistic streak, though.

Apart from the fact that they all suck so much, there was also literally zero, absolutely zero, chemistry between any of the main characters. NONE.

Seriously, why was everyone so obsessed with Vail?? God knows. I can't understand it at all.
A clueless 38 year old college professor who can't seem to be able to focus on anything but ride as many dicks as he possibly can..? Yup, sure. Sounds like a catch.

And honestly, I don't think any of them know why they even like each other either. There was no depth to anything. All they did was have sex and be ridiculous.
I mean, okay, maybe I could see Rowen and Vail be a thing: yes, they're annoying and bland, but they at least seemed to somewhat like each other and match well: both stupid and idiotic.
But Cillian with them??? No. It made no sense.
And when at the end Fallon and Aspen also randomly became a part of the "we all fuck Vail club" for no conceivable reason, I was honestly just having a major brainfart. It was sooooo odd.

Some of the sex also felt weirdly non-consensual when it came to Cillian; he didn't seem to care about Vail's pleasure or if he even wanted it or not. It kinda made me uncomfortable at times.

I think the only person I somewhat liked in this book was Fallon, and he was completely ignored and treated like trash. Ugh.

Anyway, long story short, this was just a big fat NO from me.


Ki Brightly books:
‘The Kings of Men MC’ series - var. ratings
How Did You Survive Without Us - 1.0 star
Profile Image for Ki Brightly.
Author 90 books701 followers
Read
March 2, 2022
Hi! This is a quick update to let you know that Book 3, How Did You Survive Alone? is going into the editing stages!

M.D. and I are working around the clock to get the book ready.











A big thanks goes out to our vast team that works on our books.
Line Editing by Susan Reeves.
Sensitivity Reading and Early Reading by Trezlen Drake.
Early Reading by Jennifer Griffin, LoLo, and Julie Hanson.
Irish Accuracy and Early Reading by Jo McCorkell.
Early Reading, Developmental, and Line Editing by Anita Ford.
Copy Editing, Proofing, and Editing Coordination by Kiyle Brosius.
E-book Formatting by Meg Bawden.
Cover Design by MiblArt.

Thanks!

Ki
Profile Image for yaishin.
894 reviews115 followers
May 2, 2024
I. Am. Speechless. That was bloody awesome. I've always been a fan of reverse harem and it was one of the only things I regretted leaving after turning to MM because the one or two MM harem books that exist that I know of were absolute shit.

And I'm even more of a fan of the Killough Company as evidenced by the rereading i did of Conall and Sloan's story and here's another masterpiece and exactly my definition of what mob life should be like in books.

Only wished Fallon and Aspen made more of an appearance here but I'm at least glad the authors didn't only focus on the smut and abandon the storyline like many books where the main relationship is unconventional.

Also I was so looking forward to Sloan Killough and Vail meeting so fuck you for that ending book but on that note I'm going to jump right into the next one.
Profile Image for Saimi Vasquez.
1,902 reviews90 followers
July 27, 2022
Dr. Vail Mifflin le encanta la historia de la mafia, hasta tal punto que tiene un doctorado y da clases en la universidad de ese tema. Pero con su problema de "Deficid de atencion por Hiperactividad" su mente olvida cosas, y no es capaz de mantener la atencion mas de un momento en un tema, pero cuando lo hace, se enfoque es casi fijo. Eso le causa problemas para entender la interaccion entre las personas, entre ellos y los pequenos gestos que podrian ser la clave para mantener una relacion sana, asi que a sus casi 50 anos, vive solo para su trabajo. Pero cuando un dia al salir de clases un hombre lo golpea hasta casi matarlo y despues es rescatado por un grupo de irlandenses, no puede creer su suerte, sobre todo cuando por lo menos 2 de los cuatro quieren estar con el, sexualmente, ademas de ayudarlo, protegerlo y cuidarlo. El problema es que su fijacion con la investigacion de la mafia actual esta llevando problemas a su puerta, de esos que pueden acabar con su vida y solo con la ayuda de "sus" cuatro irlandenses podra salir con vida del embrollo que el mismo se metio.

Es una historia que no me esperaba y que disfrute muchisimo. Me la recomendaron por lo divertido de sus personajes, y es totalmente cierto. Los primeros capitulos no deje de reirme con Vail y lo que salia de su boca, asi como de las reacciones de Rawen y Cillian. Pero lo que mas me gusto, es que la historia es logica, los personajes tienen capas y son interesantes y bien estructurados. El 80% del libro es erotica, pero esta suficientemente bien llevado como para uno divertirse y hasta reirse con las interacciones en esos momentos. La trama de la mafia es entretenida, real y bien llevada. En fin, es un buen libro y al parecer una muy buena trilogia, que espero se mantenga igual o mejore en los proximos libros.
Profile Image for Simona.
679 reviews61 followers
July 13, 2022
It seems so chaotic 😭 sometimes I don't know if the problem is my english knowledge or the writing (probably both) but I found it really confusing. Plus, all the characters are so dull I would like to smash their heads
Profile Image for Gustaf.
1,444 reviews187 followers
June 24, 2022
I don't know how to rate and review this one. Did I like it? Yes. Did I love it? No. Will I read the other books in the series? Heck yes.
Profile Image for Drusilla.
981 reviews382 followers
October 21, 2022
I really liked it, but I have to drop a star for the stupidity with which Vail is portrayed, that was a bit over the top. I'll come back to this.
Rowen, sweet and actually way too soft-hearted to be an Irish mobster. But he is the best balance to his brother (adopted) Cillian, who embodies the real bad boy image. Bloodthirsty and brutal and anything but gentle in his dealings with Vail, perfect for me... I'm blown away once again 😍 Fallon is flirting all the time and doesn't get that much attention yet in this first book, however I find the little glimpses of him very appealing. And Aspen gets even less text if only because he's the quiet type. I'm very curious about him.
So those are the four men who are magnetically attracted to Vail. Rowen falls head over heels for him and Cillian's icy cold heart melts very slowly for him.
Vail, well. I found him funny and absolutely lovely at the beginning of the story.

The soft joy of the dopamine rush was addictive, and that was also precisely why I couldn’t work at home. I pleasured myself off and on all day long when I didn’t have a compelling reason to keep my hand out of my pants.
Or a vibrator out of my ass.
😳

After events thicken, he is portrayed more and more as stupid and out of touch with reality. It became annoying. Because I think just because he has ADHD and is therefore often confused doesn't make him otherworldly. Grumble. The more I think about it, the angrier it makes me. I think the author could have quietly allowed Vail a little more maturity, because he's just not as stupid as he's portrayed. But well, maybe that's important for the further development of the series. I'll be happy to judge that later.
So, regardless, the book was wonderful. In terms of the polyamory, it's quite well done so far. I hope the love interests stay evenly matched.

Family shared, and if Vail wanted all four of us, I’d accept a quarter of his attention. His focus seemed to shift faster than my brain could keep up with, and that wasn’t a bad thing. It just meant he had more needs than even Cillian and I together could fully provide for. Between the four of us, we could keep him happy. 🥰
Profile Image for Amur Thera.
560 reviews71 followers
December 14, 2022
During the first sex scene between Vail and Rowen, in like the third chapter or something, the following things happened:
- Vail was injured after being beaten up and in no state to have rough sex, or honestly any sex at all.
- Vail had admitted to being dizzy and there was a possibility of him having a concussion.
- When Cillian intruded, Rowen made it clear he did not like his brother's interference. Vail completely ignored this and demanded he stayed and joined them regardless.
- Rowen and Cillian were more focused on one-upping each other than making sure Vail was having a good time.
- Cillian tried to go bareback without Vail's consent.
- Cillian forced his dick down Vail's throat, and when Vail tapped his thighs (universal sign to let up), he was ignored and Cillian continued his assault.
- Whenever Rowen brought up an issue with consent, Cillian completely ignored him and continued what he was doing.

Needless to say, I was not interested in the rest of the book.

DNF 22%
Profile Image for Book Binge: Reviews by Melissa DaSilva.
927 reviews90 followers
March 8, 2024
I’m not a huge fan of mafia stories but I love all male reverse harem’s and I’ve had this one on my list for a while so decided to give it a try! It was a different mafia story for me because the one MC is not in the mob and actually studies it. That was quite neat.

Vail was a very interesting character and it took a little while for me to like him. I think it was how much the other characters liked him that changed my mind. I loved that they had feelings for him because of the way he was, not in spite of it!

Cillian was the crazy one who never gets feelings for anyone and even though their relationship starts quickly it was believable. Rowan was a sweetheart and I loved that he was a good balance to Cillian for Vail. We didn’t get to see Aspen or Fallon too much so I’m excited for book 2 in hopes we get to learn more about them! This book does end on a bit of a cliffhanger so I’ll definitely be starting book 2 soon.
Profile Image for M.I.A.
412 reviews90 followers
January 31, 2022
3.5 Stars

I love the Cover Art! Seriously great work.
First time I am reading the work of KI Brightly & M.D. Gregory.

Contemporary, MMM+ Romance with Mob/Organized Crime Theme.

It's a fast-paced, sexy read. The Main Character, Dr. Vail Mifflin, is a memorable character, incredibly lovable, vulnerable, and insatiable. The rest of the love interests bring in some pretty aggressive, protective Alpha Vibes and sexy Irish accents that came across beautifully in the written work.

Dr. Vail, the Irish-talk, and the scorching sex scenes made this an enjoyable read; the rest of the book is not bad, nor is it great. Unfortunately, I'm challenging to please now, and my reader-mood isn't reliable. Nevertheless, the fact that I finished the book is an accomplishment in itself since I've begun and put aside more books than I can count over the past couple of days.
Profile Image for Jenny (Nyxie).
898 reviews67 followers
August 11, 2022
I enjoyed parts of this book, but overall I don’t think it was really for me. The (center) MC felt too naive for words at times, and while I was starting to come around to like him more - the book ended rather abruptly at a cliffhanger (Whyyyyy). I also struggled with keeping up with the characters, although that might have been an issue with the audio and my memory more than the book. Overall it was fine, I could see it working for some folks it just wasn’t for me.
Profile Image for Kaity.
1,919 reviews24 followers
March 30, 2022
2.5-3 stars

Hmm… there were parts I enjoyed and some that I didn’t.

There was WAAAAAY too much sex happening when I wished for mob things or Vail teaching… and speaking of teaching.. Dr.Vail… you are very very very oblivious to what is in front of your face. The fact that you literally research and are currently writing a book about the mob.. you somehow couldn’t figure out that the guys you are playing hide the penis with are mobsters?! 🤦🏽‍♀️🤦🏽‍♀️

I know that this is going to become an MMMMM book.. but this book was an MMM. It felt more like a harem (reverse harem…?idk what the term would be but it was mainly Vail being the main guys all the mob bros were wanting a part of)

The one really good thing that came out of this is I found a new Narrator Mac Rae, they have only done these two books but narration was great!
Profile Image for Steph (Teacups & Tropes).
859 reviews127 followers
Read
May 7, 2022
DNF @ 25%

The sex is 🔥 But something just isn’t connecting with me right now. I think I’ll eventually come back to this though.

Being a mood reader sucks sometimes 😂
Profile Image for Tia.
730 reviews
dnf
December 28, 2021
DNF @ 54%

Cillian is totally just ruining the vibe for me. He’s an asshole and whilst that can be endearing I don’t appreciate how he acts uncaring during the more intimate scenes.
There was a scene where he scolded another character for checking in on the person they were having sex with - big red flag. The dubious consent that came from that was just gross and icky, it made it not fun to read for me.
Profile Image for Yanet.
207 reviews
June 3, 2024
Did not like cillian..
But you're telling me that the mob keeps track on books that are potentially being written about them? Do they have a cozy book club where they get together to discuss current events, in between all the torturing and killing they do?
And how coincidental everything was. They all just got together to watch the lecture of a mob target.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Natalie  H.
3,632 reviews30 followers
March 22, 2022
Oblivious MC, Two possessive guys treating him like a damsel in distress, two on the sidelines. A lot of sex. Didn't see much about Aspen but favourite of the guys was Fallon, the only one that seemed focused on Vail's needs. Up and down but Sloan's appearance made me get the next one.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for cass.
35 reviews3 followers
did-not-finish
June 28, 2022
This was fine, I just wasn't particularly in the mood for it. IDK, maybe I didn't like the main character much... his character was just kind of weak. (not physically, but like his character wasn't as fleshed out as everyone else.)

Plus, waaaay more graphic depictions of torture than I was ready for.

But I liked the concept.
Profile Image for Pingmg.
576 reviews26 followers
April 28, 2022
So so good! Reverse Harem done well!

I loved the premise of the story! The characters grow on you, Dr. Vail Mifflin and his four mafia men and by the end, I was rooting for them. I know this is just the first in the series but I couldn't put it down. Real life got in the way for a few hours or so but I was so excited to continue that I took advantage every chance I got. This was steamy, sweet, and satisfied my craving for a series at the right time. I switched between listening and reading and the narration just blew my mind! Fantastic overall! Diving into book 2 now!
Profile Image for Janet (iamltr).
1,220 reviews81 followers
May 15, 2022
Audiobook review

I'm going to be honest, when I read this in ebook form, Vail drove me crazy. Reading this in audio made it easier to understand how he really was. It also made me like Cillian more, which was weird.

I'm going to spoil this a bit and warn those leary of harems that it only lasts for the first couple of books, then it turns into a true poly family. I had a hard time with it changing because my expectations were set in getting a harem.

Ok onto the story. This is a multi book story about how Dr Vail ended up with 4 boyfriends and joining the Irish mafia. They have threats on Vail's life and find love/lust.

I loved the mob bits. They are so over the top and wonderful. I suggest reading The Killough Company series along with this one to get the full information needed.

One last thing, I freaking got teary and might have cried during the scene after the bombing. I was that emotional and it was all due to a new to me narrator, Mac Rae. They did a wonderful job and I will definitely be listening to him in the future.

_____________________
752 reviews6 followers
January 13, 2025
This is awful absolutely horrendous. It’s sooo boring and wtf and no.

Vail who has ADHD seems more like he is brain damaged. He is overly scattered can’t remember shit, even if it was just said multiple times. He is obviously a sex junky who literally just lets men touch and fuck him and complete zones out in seconds. Realistic? Not at all.

Rowen is meh, and Cillian is wtf. They ducked him with a concussion? And Fallon just gets bulldozed over and over.
The writing is over all bad, and the harem isn’t a fucking harem it’s Cillian rules and decides and the others might get a touch or two in.

Vail who is almost 40 is also such a pushover.
And literally they broke in tho is apartment and shot and vail is just like oh okey. Totally oblivious to anything.

I really tried but gosh this one was hard
Profile Image for Natalie.
326 reviews3 followers
December 24, 2021
This was a one click download on the morning of release for me. I hadn’t even read the blurb. I trust these two authors to take me wherever their books go.
Vail was adorable and a complete contrast to the Killough men.
Sloan and Connell themselves were only part of the scenes a couple of times but they commanded the page when we did see them.
I really liked the relationship dynamics and am excited for the next book to see how this develops further.
The sex scenes were smoking hot. There were mob style scenes that were quite brutal. There was also some tender moments.
Loved it. Highly recommend.
Profile Image for Patsy .
89 reviews33 followers
April 16, 2022
So as my stars say, it was okay. Everyone raved about it so I gave it a whirl. It just wasn't for me. The other reviews show that its a more "its not you, its me" thing. The writing was fine (although I didn't get into the written accents), and its an intriguing poly story. I also did enjoy how the main MC with ADHD character was portrayed, much more accurate than most books. But I think it was just that the characters didn't vibe with me. This book does end on a slight cliffy, which may make me eventually read the next. If your into poly relationships and bad ass mob dudes, then this is the book for you! But meh!
Profile Image for Shelby.
357 reviews45 followers
May 11, 2022
How is it possible to write a book with so many unlikeable characters? The only person who wasn't a complete asshole was Rowen, who seemed like he should be teaching a culinary class instead of being in the Irish mob. Cillian was a dickhead who didn't seem to understand what 'consent' means (seriously, dude?) and Arden and Fallon were just... there. No importance to the story whatsoever.

Not that there was much of a story to be had, anyway.

Very disappointing. I was looking forward to a good mafia story and this was just... not what I was searching for.
Profile Image for book_reader_addict.
556 reviews28 followers
dnf
February 6, 2023
I’m.. well not my kind of book. I really don’t like mafia books.. the spice is good, I like that one character have ADHD.. but so much of the book is descriptions of the house, the room, the clothes, the food, where they sit.. so DNF from me at 71%
Profile Image for Emmm.
327 reviews5 followers
April 22, 2025
The pacing was interesting but the ADHD rep wasn’t what I feel like it should have been.
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