35 Dark Romance Books: These Are NOT Your Mother’s Love Stories
Dark romance books are for the reader who loves things twisted, taboo, and the more wicked the better.
These dark romance books are NOT your motherโs clean romances and are not for the faint of heart. They are books filled with the irredeemable and the dark characters youโll hate to love.
Of course, every romance book has a happy ending, but for these dark romances, you have to get through abduction, stalking, bullying, pain, non-consent, or worse to get there.
If youโre ready and willing to cross way over the line into the dark side of romance, be sure to add these must-read dark romance books to your TBR list โ many of which you can read on Kindle Unlimited!
These are the dark romances FILLED with trigger warnings and antiheroes you canโt get enough of. Youโve been warned! ๐
*Disclosure: This post may include affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
The Best Dark Romance Books That Will Keep You Up at Night
Asking For It
by Lilah Pace
A Taboo Dark Romance
Graduate student Vivienne Charles is afraid of her own desiresโashamed to admit that she fantasizes about being taken by force, by a man who will claim her completely and without mercy.
When the magnetic, mysterious Jonah Marks learns her secret, he makes an offer that stuns her: they will remain near-strangers to each other, and meet in secret so that he can fulfill her fantasy.
Their arrangement is twisted. Their meetings incredible. Andโdespite their attempts to stay apartโsoon their emotions are bound together as tightly as the rope around Vivienneโs wrists.
But the secrets in their pasts threaten to turn their affair even darker.
OK, this dark romance book will lure you into the genre because it focuses on the taboo of the desire for non-consensual acts without being completely violent or dangerous or completely off the rails.
It is all about Vivienneโs fantasies and finding the man to give them to her and oh does he ever!
Until I Get You
by Claire Contreras
A Hockey Dark Romance
3 years ago, she ruined my life. Now I’m going to return the favor…
My reputation at Fairview University preceded me. I was the projected number-one pick in the NHL draft and the fan favorite at the rink. People wanted to be me or be with me.
Except for Lyla James Marichal.
She didn’t look at me like I was her next meal. She eyed me with disdain. Instead of vying for my attention, she ignored me and pushed me away.
She was completely unattainable, and I became obsessed with her.
When I finally got her, it felt like I was on top of the world. I was going to help the team win another championship, going into the draft, and had Lyla by my side.
And then, without warning, she left me. Vanished.
It took me three bitter, angry, long years to find her, but I did, and now she owes me a lot more than just an explanation.
Three years ago, she ruined my life. Now, I was going to become her worst nightmare.
Donโt let this book fool you into thinking itโs a simple college hockey romance. It may lull you into believing that at first but what you really get is a darker, more suspenseful read with a possessive alpha male.
For something on the lighter side of dark romance, give this 600-page book a go before venturing into the rest of these reads.
Prisoner
by Annika Martin and Skye Warren
A Forbidden Dark Romance
He seethes with raw power the first time I see him–pure menace and rippling muscles in shackles.
He’s dangerous. He’s wild. He’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.
So I hide behind my prim glasses and my book like I always do, because I have secrets too. Then he shows up in the prison writing class I have to teach, and he blows me away with his honesty.
He tells me secrets in his stories, and it’s getting harder to hide mine. I shiver when he gets too close, with only the cuffs and the bars and the guards holding him back.
At night I can’t stop thinking about him in his cell.
But that’s the thing about an animal in a cage–you never know when he’ll bite. He might use you to escape.
He might even pull you into a forest and hold a hand over your mouth so you can’t call for the cops. He might make you come so hard you can’t think.
And you might crave him more than your next breath.
This is the dark romance book to read if you like forbidden romance. Grayson is definitely a morally grey character considering his actions and those toward Abby at times, but this is a book where you see what made the man.
You have to be ok with some violence and non-consent but youโll be reading it from start to finish in one sitting!
Tears of Tess
by Pepper Winters
An Abduction Dark Romance
Tess Snow has everything she ever wanted: one more semester before a career in property development, a loving boyfriend, and a future dazzling bright with possibility.
For their two year anniversary, Brax surprises Tess with a romantic trip to Mexico. Sandy beaches, delicious cocktails, and soul-connecting time together to set the mood for a wonderful holiday.
With a full heart, and looking forward to a passion filled week, Tess is on top of the world.
But paradise is shattered.
Kidnapped. Drugged. Stolen. Tess is forced into a world full of darkness and terror.
Captive and alone with no savior, no lover, no faith, no future, Tess evolves from terrified girl to fierce fighter. But no matter her strength, it canโt save her from the horror of being sold.
Can Brax find Tess before sheโs broken and ruined, or will Tessโs new owner change her life forever?
This is another popular, dark romance that starts off like the movie, Taken. Tess thinks sheโs just going to enjoy a vacation with her nice and safe boyfriend but oh how plans change.
Despite being kidnapped and forced into the bed of another, sheโs finally able to unleash the cravings and feelings sheโs always had but could never explore with her boyfriend.
How will it end? Youโll just have to read it to know!
Corrupt
by Penelope Douglas
A Dark Romance Set on Revenge
Erika: I was told that dreams were our heartโs desires. My nightmares, however, became my obsession. His name is Michael Crist. My boyfriendโs older brother is like that scary movie that you peek through your hand to watch.
He’s handsome, strong, and completely terrifying. The star of his collegeโs basketball team and now gone pro, heโs more concerned with the dirt on his shoe than me.
But I noticed him. I saw him. I heard him. The things that he did, and the deeds that he hidโฆFor years, I bit my nails, unable to look away.
Now, Iโve graduated high school and moved on to college, but I havenโt stopped watching Michael. Heโs bad, and the dirt Iโve seen isnโt content to stay in my head anymore. Because heโs finally noticed me.
Michael: Her name is Erika Fane, but everyone calls her Rika. My brotherโs girlfriend grew up hanging around my house and is always at our dinner table.
I can always feel the fear rolling off of her, and while I havenโt had her body, I know that I have her mind. Thatโs all I really want anyway. Until my brother leaves for the military, and I find Rika alone at college. Unprotected.
The opportunity is too good to be true, as well as the timing. Because you see, three years ago she put a few of my high school friends in prison, and now theyโre out.
Weโve waited. Weโve been patient. And now every last one of her nightmares will come true.
Weโre getting right into it when it comes to irredeemable characters in this dark romance book that will push your limits.
Heโs all about revenge and though Erikaโs a strong heroine, she takes what Michael gives and you might not like it. Then again, maybe you will.
Douglas brings the steam, the mystery, the suspense, and the dark in this romance!
The Risk
by S.T Abby
A Mindf*ck Dark Romance
I didn’t expect him. I didn’t want to fall in love. But I can’t let him go. Logan Bennett makes the world a safer place.
He’s brilliant. He’s a hero. He locks away the sick and depraved. But while he’s saving lives, I’m taking them. Collecting the debts that are owed to me.
Ten years ago, they took from me. Now I’m taking from them. One name at a time. They never see me coming, until I paint their walls red.
Logan doesn’t know how they hurt me. He doesn’t know about the screams they ignored. He doesn’t know how twisted that town really is.
He just knows people are dying. He doesn’t know he’s in love with the one taking their lives.
But in the end, will Logan choose them? Or will we watch them burn together?
This book is SO addicting and it is only book one in the Mindf*ck series!
Seriously, the fast pace of the writing, the suspense of the story, and the complete craziness of an FBI agent falling for a woman dropping men like itโs nobodyโs business will have you reading this in one setting and scrambling for the next book.
Itโs no wonder this dark romance book is so popular with over 140K ratings on Goodreads and taking over #Booktok!
Captive in the Dark
by CJ Roberts
An Abduction Dark Romance
Caleb is a man with a singular interest in revenge. Kidnapped as a young boy and sold into slavery by a power-hungry mobster, he has thought of nothing but vengeance.
For twelve years he has immersed himself in the world of pleasure slaves searching for the one man he holds ultimately responsible.
Finally, the architect of his suffering has emerged with a new identity, but not a new nature. If Caleb is to get close enough to strike, he must become the very thing he abhors and kidnap a beautiful girl to train her to be all that he once was.
Eighteen-year-old Olivia Ruiz has just woken up in a strange place. Blindfolded and bound, there is only a calm male voice to welcome her. His name is Caleb, though he demands to be called Master.
Olivia is young, beautiful, naรฏve and willful to a fault. She has a dark sensuality that cannot be hidden or denied, though she tries to accomplish both.
Although she is frightened by the strong, sadistic, and arrogant man who holds her prisoner, what keeps Olivia awake in the dark is her unwelcome attraction to him.
Just knowing that a girl is kidnapped to be trained as a pleasure slave should be an indication enough of how dark things get right off the bat in this dark romance book.
Caleb is a man on a mission and heโs taking Olivia with him on this dark and twisted journey.
If you want to feel uncomfortable, distressed, and addicted so that youโre scrambling for book two in this duet, this should be your pick. And donโt even get me started on this cover โ brilliant!
Captive Prince
by C.S. Pacat
MM Dark Fantasy Romance
Damen is a warrior hero to his people, and the rightful heir to the throne of Akielos, but when his half brother seizes power, Damen is captured, stripped of his identity, and sent to serve the prince of an enemy nation as a pleasure slave.
Beautiful, manipulative and dangerous, his new master Prince Laurent epitomizes the worst of the court at Vere.
But in the lethal political web of the Veretian court, nothing is as it seems, and when Damen finds himself caught up in a play for the throne, he must work together with Laurent to survive and save his country.
For Damen, there is just one rule: never, ever reveal his true identity. Because the one man Damen needs is the one man who has more reason to hate him than anyone else…
And on the topic of pleasure slavesโฆ.if you like dark romance books in fantasy then this is THE book. I was so wholly uncomfortable reading this book about Damen and his situation at the hands of Laurent.
But know that youโll need to continue with the Captive Prince trilogy to see how this MM enemies to lovers romance relationship really gets down and dirty between these two men.
Fear Me
by B.B. Reid
Bully Dark Romance Book
I don’t believe in fairy tales and Prince Charming. I believe in fear. He taught me how to be afraid.
We first met on a playground on a wonderful summer day. It was the first time he hurt me and it wouldn’t be the last.
For ten years, he’s been my tormentor and I’ve been his forbidden. But then he went away, and yet I was still afraid.
Now he’s back and wants more than just my tears. You see…he thinks I sent him away so now he wants revenge…and he knows just how to get it.
Enemies to lovers you say? A high school romance? Well, it may be both as well as completely whacked in that the psychotic, possessive bully is relentless when it comes to the submissive heroine.
Definitely check out the trigger warnings for this dark romance book!
Ruthless People
by J.J. McAvoy
Mafia Dark Romance Book
To the outside world, they look like American Royalty, giving to charities, feeding the homeless, rebuilding the city. But behind closed doors is a constant battle for dominance between two Bosses, cultures, and hearts.
Melody Nicci Giovanni and Liam Callahan are rivals by blood and leaders through fear. Their marriage was arranged by their fathers in hopes to end years of bloodshed between the Irish and the Italians.
Liam, next in line to lead the Irish, believes heโs getting a simple-minded wife, one he can control, one who bends to his every need . . . the complete opposite of Melody.
Bred to be a Boss, a world-class marksman, master of disguise, with no mercy and no fear. Twenty-four years later, she has achieved more than any man could even dream of, killing anyone who steps in her way.
She knows exactly what type of man Liam is, and she would rather die than give up the power she has spent her whole life building.
But with no other family left, she must not only learn to work with Liam, but the whole Callahan clan.
The Mafia of the past is evolving, and with rival bosses gunning for them, Melody and Liam will have to figure out how to work as one to take down those who stand in their way, all while keeping up appearances.
Reading this mafia romance book, I remember thinking that I had never read a romance book where the heroine was so trigger-happy!
Itโs actually kind of comical how these two mafia leaders try to one-up each other despite being forced into an arranged marriage. But bodies drop around them like flies. LIKE FLIES!
Sinners’ Playground
by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti
Reverse Harem Dark Romance
I hate the Harlequin boys. Fox, JJ, Chase and Maverick. The four names tattooed onto my heart more permanently than the ink on my skin.
Once upon a time, they broke my heart, stole my life and sent me away from everything Iโd ever known.
But they donโt just live in this town anymore, they rule it. And the view here may be beautiful, but the sun, sea and sand hide dark secrets.
The gangs. The lies. The violence.
It all lurks beneath a veil so thin that once youโve seen through it, you can never close your eyes to the truth again. But I donโt plan on closing my eyes.
I have four devils set in my sights. And this girl no longer has anything to lose.
Peckham and Valenti are no stranger to reverse harem romance and they bring it with this enemies to lovers series.
Rogue used to be best friends with Fox, JJ, Chase and Maverick but then something went down and sheโs back to enact her revenge and then some.
If youโve loved the authors’ Zodiac Academy series but want something more contemporary but just as dark, then check out this dark romance and the rest of The Harlequin series.
Haunting Adeline
by H.D. Carlton
A Fantasy Dark Romance
The Manipulator
I can manipulate the emotions of anyone who lets me. I will make you hurt, make you cry, make you laugh and sigh.
But my words don’t affect him. Especially not when I plead for him to leave. He’s always there, watching and waiting. And I can never look away. Not when I want him to come closer.
The Shadow
I didn’t mean to fall in love. But now that I have, I can’t stay away. I’m mesmerized by her smile, by her eyes, and the way she moves. The way she undressesโฆ
I’ll keep watching and waiting. Until I can make her mine. And once she is, I’ll never let her go.
Not even when she begs me to.
This is the first dark romance book in the popular Cat & Mouse duet that readers canโt get enough of if you love alpha males who are pretty much stalkers.
Carlton herself says that she loves characters who are morally grey so youโve heard it from the source and have been warned about this dark fantasy romance.
Related: Cat and Mouse Duet Order: The Complete Guide
Darling Venom
by Parker S. Huntington
An Enemies to Lovers Dark Romance
I wasnโt supposed to be on that roof on Valentineโs Day. Neither was Kellan Marchetti, the schoolโs designated freak.
We met on the verge of ending our lives. Somehow, the tattered strings of our tragedies tangled and tightened into an unlikely bond.
We decided not to take the plunge and agreed to check on each other every Valentineโs Day until school ended.
Same time. One roof. Two restless souls. We kept our promise for three years. On the fourth, Kellan made a decision, and I was left to deal with the consequences.
Just when I thought our story ended, another one began. They say all love stories look the same and taste different.
Mine was venomous, disgraceful, and written in scarlet scars.
My name is Charlotte Richards, but you can call me Venom.
This dark romance deals with some heavy topics but OMG is it steamy too! Iโll just let you know that Kellenโs older brother is a gynecologist so stew on that a bit and let your mind have fun thinking where a scene with Charlotte might (and does!) goโฆ.Yowza!
Den of Vipers
by K.A. Knight
A Reverse Harem Dark Romance
Ryder, Garrett, Kenzo, and DieselโThe Vipers.
They run this town and everyone in it. Their deals are as sordid as their business, and their reputation is enough to bring a grown man to his knees, forcing him to beg for mercy.
They are not people you mess with, yet my dad did. The old man ran up a debt with them and then sold me to cover his losses.
Yes, sold me. They own me now.
Iโm theirs in every sense of the word. But Iโve never been meek and compliant. These men, they look at me with longing.
Their scarred, blood-stained hands holding me tight. They want everything I am, everything I have to give, and wonโt stop until they get just that.
They can own my body, but they will never have my heart.
The Vipers? Iโm going to make them regret the day they took me. This girl? She bites too.
We know reverse harem books are probably going to be pretty hot, but if you also like them dark then this is the dark romance book for you.
With over 600+ pages, not going to lie that itโs pretty polarizing and full of triggers but if you like mafia romance books you may like it!
The Ritual
by Shantel Tessier
A College Dark Romance
Barrington University is home of the Lords, a secret society that requires their blood in payment. They are above allโthe most powerful men in the world.
They devote their lives to violence in exchange for power. And during their senior year, they are offered a chosen one.
People think growing up with money is freeing, but I promise you, itโs not. My entire life has been planned out for me.
I never got the chance to do what I wanted until Ryat Alexander Archer came along and gave me an option for a better life. He offered me what no one else ever hadโfreedom.
I chose to be his. He made me believe that anyway, but it was just another lie. A way that the Lords manipulate you into doing what they want.
After being sucked into the dark, twisted world of the Lords, I embraced my new role and allowed Ryat to parade me around like the trophy I was to him.
But like all things, what started out as a game soon became a fight for survival.
First off, if this book cover doesnโt captivate you to read this dark romance Iโm not sure what will. I love a good new adult romance and I love that this is a college romance on steroids.
Donโt read this if you canโt take explicit and very steamy romance books. This one is full of all the kinks youโd find with a secret society where youโre considered owned.
Buckle up for this ride!
Hooked
by Emily McIntire
A Twisted Fairy Tale Dark Romance
He wants revenge, but he wants her moreโฆ
James has always had one agenda: destroy his enemy, Peter Michaels. When Peterโs twenty-year-old daughter Wendy shows up in Jamesโs bar, he sees his way in.
Seduce the girl and use her for his revenge. Itโs the perfect plan, until things in Jamesโs organization begin to crumble.
Suddenly, he has to find the traitor in his midst, and his plan for revenge gets murkier as James starts to see Wendy as more than just a pawn in his game.
Wendy has been cloistered away most of her life by her wealthy cold father, but a spontaneous night out with friends turns into an intense and addictive love affair with the dark and brooding James.
As much as she knows James is dangerous, Wendy canโt seem to shake her desire for him.
But as their relationship grows more heated and she learns more about the world he moves in, she finds herself unsure if sheโs falling for the man known as James or the monster known as Hook.
Hooked is book one in McIntireโs popular Never After series and its starts off letting you know right from the get-go how dark and twisted James is.
You wonder if this man has a moral compass but maybe you wonโt care after he sets his sights on Wendy.
I love that McIntire twists the Peter Pan story for this dark romance book!
Crowโs Row
by Julie Hockley
An Abduction Dark Romance
For college student Emily Sheppard, the thought of spending a summer alone in New York is much more preferable than spending it in France with her parents.
Just completing her freshman year at Callister University, Emily faces a quiet summer in the city slums, supporting herself by working at the campus library.
During one of her jogs through the nearby cemetery while visiting her brother Bills grave, Emily witnesses a brutal killing and then she blacks out.
When Emily regains consciousness, she realizes sheโs been kidnapped by a young crime boss and his gang.
She is hurled into a secret underworld, wondering why she is still alive and for how long.
Held captive in rural Vermont, she tries to make sense of her situation and what it means. While uncovering secrets about her brother and his loss, Emily falls in love with her very rich and very dangerous captor, twenty-six-year-old Cameron.
She understands its a forbidden love and one that wonโt allow her to return to her previous life.
But love may not be enough to save Emily when no one even knows she is missing.
This dark romance book has definitely captivated readers with over 20K ratings on Goodreads.
It pulls in abduction, falling for your captor, mafia underworld, and all the trappings for a slow burn romance.
But be warned that it does end on a cliffhanger!
His
by Aubrey Dark
An Abduction Dark Romance
I never meant to be here: tied up in bed next to a serial killer.
When I followed him home, I was just playing Nancy Drew. Trying to find out his secret. His kiss was intoxicating, and I thought he was harmless.
I was wrong.
Nancy Drew never ended up in a basement, handcuffed to a radiator, teased to the edge of insanity, begging to be let go.
Soon, I stopped begging to be let go. Soon, I started begging to be HIS.
The โdarkโ in this dark romance is obviously the fact that Gav is a bit of a psychopath given that he can only โfeelโ when heโs torturing and taking someoneโs life.
I donโt know if these victims are scum or not but ok โ thatโs a different kind of hero than I normally read ๐.
Kat is a quiet and submissive heroine whose life is pretty boring despite being a librarian. To say things change for her after running into Gav is an understatement however this one isnโt as dark as the blurb insinuates it to be.
Broken
by W Winters
An Abduction Dark Romance
I never thought of life like the petals of a rose before. But theyโre so alike. Delicate and easily crushed. Brokenโฆ just like he made me.
He could pluck away and there was nothing I could do except be destroyed and accept my fate.
Thatโs what he does, he ruins what he touches. Ruthless and cold hearted.
They gave me to him. To break. To do as heโd like. All because I was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
He grew addicted to the feel of plucking away at me. At leaving me bare and taking control over every piece of me.
And if Iโm honest with myselfโฆ I grew to love it too.
When an author describes her book as DARK in capital letters then I guess thatโs really saying something.
If youโre cool with abduction due to wrong place wrong time and the subsequent training to be a pleasure slave then have at this dark romance book, especially if you like BDSM romances.
It Ainโt Me Babe
by Tillie Cole
A Motorcycle Club Dark Romance
Many years ago, two children from completely different worlds forged a connection, a fateful connection, an unbreakable bond that would change their lives forever.
Salome knows only one way to liveโunder Prophet Davidโs rule. In the commune Salome knows nothing of life beyond her strict faith, nor of life beyond the Fenceโthe fence that cages her, keeps her trapped in an endless cycle of misery.
A life she believes she is destined to always lead, until a horrific event sets her free.
Fleeing the absolute safety of all she has ever known, Salome is thrust into the world outside, a frightening world full of uncertainty and sin; into the protective arms of a person she believed she would never see again.
River โStyxโ Nash knows one thing for certain in lifeโhe was born and bred to wear a cut. Raised in a turbulent world, Styx unexpectedly has the heavy burden of the Hades Hangmen gavel thrust upon him.
Haunted by a crushing speech impediment, Styx quickly learns to deal with his haters.
Styx has one rule in lifeโnever let anyone get too close. Itโs a plan that he has stuck to for years, that is, until a young woman is found injured on his lotโฆ a woman who looks uncannily familiar, a woman who clearly does not belong in his world, yet a woman he feels reluctant to let go.
Iโm actually surprised that I read this one because it has some triggers warnings that I steer clear of but I admit that I was hooked from the authorโs note where she talked about her focus on religious studies and how she came to meet real survivors of cults.
If you love motorcycle club books you will definitely enjoy it and fall for Styx and all the men in the Hades Hangmen series.
I thought the connection between Styx and Mae was the best part of the book where the darkness really only sits with her past and the actions of the cult she was a part of.
Vicious
by L.J. Shen
An Antihero Dark Romance
Emilia
They say love and hate are the same feelings experienced under different circumstances, and itโs true.
The man who comes to me in my dreams also haunts me in my nightmares. He is a brilliant lawyer. A skilled criminal. A beautiful liar. A bully and a savior, a monster and a lover.
Ten years ago, he made me run away from the small town where we lived. Now, he came for me in New York, and he isnโt leaving until he takes me with him.
Vicious
She is a starving artist. Pretty and evasive like cherry blossom.
Ten years ago, she barged into my life unannounced and turned everything upside down. She paid the price.
Emilia LeBlanc is completely off-limits, my best friendโs ex-girlfriend.
The woman who knows my darkest secret, and the daughter of the cheap Help we hired to take care of our estate.
That should deter me from chasing her, but it doesnโt. So she hates me. She better get used to me.
Vicious is another widely popular romance that earned a Goodreads Choice Awards nomination for best romance in 2017, and is the first in Shenโs Sinners of Saint series.
What starts as a high school romance but then jumps to years later, itโs the kind of enemies to lovers, bully romance that many readers crave with an antihero you canโt help but fall for.
Give it a try and check it out for yourself.
Still Beating
by Jennifer Hartmann
An Enemies to Lovers Dark Romance
When Cora attends her sisterโs birthday party, she expects at most a hangover or a walk of shame.
She doesnโt anticipate a stolen wallet, leaving her stranded and dependent on Deanโher arch nemesis and ultimate thorn in her side.
And she really doesnโt anticipate waking up in shackles in a madmanโs basement.
To make matters worse, Dean shares the space in his own set of chains.
After fifteen years of teasing, insults, and practical jokes, the ultimate joke seems to be on them.
The two people who always thought theyโd end up ending each other must now work together if they want to survive.
But Cora and Dean have no idea their abductor has a plan for them. A plan that will alter the course of their relationship, blur the line between hate and love, and shackle them together with far more than just chains.
For a bookโs description to start off with a trigger warning you know itโs going to be one dark romance.
Itโs an enemies to lovers story with lots of non-consensual acts where two people bond over similar trauma.
It takes some pretty crazy sh*t to get these two to get over their issues with each other, just saying.
There Are No Saints
by Sophie Lark
A Steamy Dark Romance
Cole Blackwell values control. Heโs the hottest sculptor in San Francisco, wealthy, successful, and respected. His only weakness is the dark impulse he carefully concealsโฆ
Mara Eldritch is a nobody. Broke and damaged, she works three jobs while creating paintings no one will ever see.
A chance encounter throws Mara into Coleโs path. When Mara escapes what appears to be certain death, Cole is intrigued.
He starts stalking her, realizing thereโs more to the struggling misfit than he ever would have guessed.
Cole becomes obsessed with Mara, breaking the rules that keep his true nature hidden. Mara knows heโs dangerous, but Cole is the only person whoโs ever recognized her talent.
Cole is teaching Mara to get what she wantsโฆ what does he want in return?
There are books you read and then there are books you read and youโre like โwhat the heck is happening?!โ
This is a steamy dark romance that follows the twisted mind of an artist on the brink of madness. If youโre up for a thriller, put this on your TBR list.
Does It Hurt
by H.D. Carlton
An Enemies to Lovers Dark Romance
Who am I? I’ve forgotten the answer to that question long ago. Ever since I ran from that house, so desperate to escape, I left with only the clothes on my back and socks on my feet.
After that day, I’ve only ever walked in stolen shoes.
Could I be a girl who is searching for the meaning of life in faceless men? They were all so forgettable. Until he came along.
He took me under a waterfall and made me forget my name, and in return, I took his instead.
Enzo Vitale.
An enigmatic man that will only ever love the deep sea. Or rather the predators that inhabit it.
Turns out, he’s not so different than the monsters he feeds. He lured me onto his boat like a fish in the ocean, seeking vengeance for my crime.
Had I realized his intentions, and that a massive storm would leave us shipwrecked, I would’ve run.
Now, I’m a girl who’s seeking refuge in a decrepit lighthouse with a man who loathes me almost as much as he craves me.
He wants to hurt me, but the old caretaker of the abandoned island may have intentions far more sinister.
It’s no longer a question of who I am, but rather, will I survive?
I absolutely love this book cover and the title is so captivating for what is already billed as a dark romance.
Throw in A LOT of trigger warnings and a girl who gets off with lots of men then steals their identities until the one who makes her pay.
Itโs got suspense, it sure has steam and itโs a thriller dark romance youโll either love or hate.
Related: H.D. Carlton Books in Order
God of Malice
by Rina Kent
A College Dark Romance
I caught the attention of a monster. I didnโt ask for it. Didnโt even see it coming. But the moment I do, itโs too late.
Killian Carson is a predator wrapped in sophisticated charm. Heโs cold-blooded, manipulative, and savage.
The worst part is that no one sees his devil side. I do. And that will cost me everything.
I run, but the thing about monsters? They always chase.
Thereโs just something about certain college romances that make the best dark romance books. Is it the age or stage of life that I can understand how things can go completely off the rails?
There are books with antiheroes and then there are books with psychopaths. If you like the latter, then read this book.
Raze
by Tillie Cole
A Revenge Dark Romance
Conditioned in captivity to maim, to slaughter, to take life without question, prisoner 818 becomes an unrivaled and unstoppable fighter in the ring. Violence is all he knows.
After years of incarceration in an underground hell, only one thought occupies his mind: revenge… bloody, and slow revenge on the man who wronged him.
Kisa Volkova is the only daughter of Kirill ‘The Silencer’ Volkov, head of the infamous ‘Red’ bosses of New York’s Bratva. Her life is protected. In reality, it’s a virtual prison.
Her father’s savage treatment of his rivals and his lucrative and coveted underground gambling ring-The Dungeon-ensures too many enemies lurk at their door. She dreams to be set free.
Kisa has known only cruelty and loss in her short life. While working for her church-the only reprieve in her constant surveillance-Kisa stumbles across a tattooed, scarred, but stunningly beautiful homeless man on the streets.
Something about him stirs feelings deep within her; familiar yet impossibly forbidden desires. He doesn’t talk. Doesn’t communicate with anyone.
He’s a man beyond saving. But Kisa becomes obsessed with him. Yearns for him. Craves his touch. Needs to possess this mysterious man… … this man they call Raze.
I had to include another Tillie Cole dark romance because I think her stories are just so freakinโ unique. And with such high ratings on Goodreads, thereโs a reason readers are loving this book!
Cole must love the idea of brainwashing because itโs been a focus on several of her books Iโve read and this one is no different.
Itโs dark because of what you learn that Raze had to go through but I love it when these heroes with wounded hearts find the woman who helps heal them.
Sicko
by Amo Jones
A Motorcycle Club Dark Romance
He was my foster brother. He swore to protect me. He failed. They all failed.
Iโm an open box of passรฉ photographs, snapped in chaste daylight, but filtered in sepia. Iโm the past that he tried to forget, and he was the future I needed.
When he left four years ago, I screamed for him every night. But then it all stopped. My screams were suddenly muffled by cruelty, and further coaxed by pain.
But he has come back. Heโs not the cute big brother I had a furtive crush on, or the bad boy, rich brat that I hated to love.
Heโs the ruthless vice president of Wolf Pack MC, and he doesnโt answer to Royce Kane anymore.
He answers to Sicko.
With all the trigger warnings in this one, Iโm honestly not sure I can even stomach this dark romance book.
If you are OK with a lot of forced, nonconsensual actions then have at it or maybe you just want in because itโs a motorcycle club romance. But be warned Royceโs dad is one ugly dude.
Desperate Measures
by Katee Robert
A Fractured Fairy Tale Dark Romance
On the night Jafar takes everything from my father, he offers me a devilโs bargainโwalk with my freedom and nothing else, or attempt to best him and regain my inheritance.
In my arrogance, I play right into his hands. I foolishly assume I have a chance to come out on top. Iโm wrong.
Now Jafar owns me, body and soul.
We fight during the day, but when night comes, we play out every fantasy Iโve never allowed myself to admit to having.
I canโt hide them from Jafar, though. We know each otherโand the dark desires we shareโfar too well. He sees to my every need, no matter how carnal or extravagant. Itโs almost enough for me to be happyโฆ
But a gilded cage is still a prison, and Iโll do anything to obtain my freedomโeven betray the man Iโm falling for.
I love Katee Robertโs books because they always deliver a lot of steam and I love that she plays on traditional Disney stories but has the heroines falling for the villains.
This isnโt a super dark romance but Jafar takes what he wants when it comes to Jasmine. She just happens to like it and calls him Daddy ๐.
Raw
by Bella Aurora
An Erotic Dark Romance
Growing up the way I did, youโd think Iโd be more screwed up than what I actually am.
Soon as I turned sixteen, I left that bump in the road I called home and took my chances on the street. Best decision I ever made.
Now, at the age of twenty six, Iโm educated, employed and damn good at my job. My friends have become my family. Like me, they know what itโs like to grow up unloved.
But the saying is true. The world makes way for those who know where they are going. Thatโs me.
I know where Iโm going and Iโll get there eventually. On my own terms and at my own pace.
But then thereโs him. I feel his eyes on me. I see him hiding in plain sight. He watches me. He makes me feel.
Itโs unconventional. But itโs real. Iโm sure youโre wondering how a person falls in love with their stalker.
So am I. This isnโt a story. This is my life.
For something dark, intense and wellโฆraw, then give this dark romance a go. If you like your heroes intense and those who cross the line into stalkerish territory, then youโll love Twitch.
Just want something extremely hot and an erotic read? Then this is for you but its not a love story as Aurora says, itโs a love story gone wrong.
Pennies
by Pepper Winters
An Abduction Dark Romance
Once upon a time, I was an eighteen-year-old psychology student. Now, Iโm a manโs property.
Stolen and sold, Iโve been decorated in bruises since the day my world changed two years ago.
I suffer in silence, I crave freedom, but I never break. I canโt. Until he arrives.
Elder Prest, the only man to look at me and see me. The only man more ruthless than my owner.
He wants me for reasons I donโt understand. He claims me for one night then leaves and never looks back.
Until he returns. And life becomes much more complicated.
Abduction is such a common topic when it comes to dark romance books and Winters doesnโt shy away from it in Pennies.
This book has trafficking, humiliation, abuse, and the like at its core making it one dark read!
Crow
by A. Zavarelli
A Mafia Dark Romance
When I walked into his club looking for a job, I had no intention of capturing the attention of the notorious Lachlan Crow.
His reputation has been known to send a shiver down most spines. Now the Irish mafia overlord is my new boss.
He doesnโt trust me, and I donโt trust him. But it doesnโt matter because I have a job to do.
I canโt let him distract me. Even if he burns hotter than the sun.
And all those growly commands and dark looks he tosses around? I wonโt let them get to me.
Heโs used to everyone falling in line, obeying his every command. But Iโm not one of his soldiers. And he doesnโt know why I really needed this job.
Lying to him was supposed to be easy. But the longer Iโm near him, the harder it gets.
It doesnโt feel like a game anymore because now my heartโs on the line. And when the web Iโve spun begins to unravel, it could destroy us both.
Now Lachlan has a choice to make. Let me go foreverโฆ Or burn his world to save me.
Mafia romance books make the best dark romance books because you can really play into the dark underworld and the morally grey or completely antiheroes of the story who like to do bad, very bad things.
Mack has no qualms about infiltrating the Irish mafia to find answers about her friendโs disappearance but sheโs going to see some darkness the deeper she gets in.
Ruthless King
by Meghan March
An Antihero Dark Romance
New Orleans belongs to me. You donโt know my name, but I control everything you seeโand all the things you donโt.
My reach knows no bounds, and my demands are always met. I didnโt need to loan money to a failing family distillery, but it amuses me to have them in my debt. To have her in my debt.
She doesnโt know she caught my attention. She shouldโve been more careful. Iโm going to own her. Consume her. Maybe even keep her.
Itโs time to collect what Iโm owed. Keira Kilgore, youโre now the property of Lachlan Mount.
If you love anti-heroes who may not have any redeeming qualities, come and meet Lachlan. Heโs a man who loves power and what he can do with it and when it comes to Kiera heโs going to take and take.
This is book one in Marchโs dark romance Mount Trilogy so it does end on one heck of a cliffhanger.
Twist Me
by Anna Zaires
An Abduction Dark Romance
Kidnapped. Taken to a private island.
I never thought this could happen to me. I never imagined one chance meeting on the eve of my eighteenth birthday could change my life so completely.
Now I belong to him. To Julian. To a man who is as ruthless as he is beautifulโa man whose touch makes me burn. A man whose tenderness I find more devastating than his cruelty.
My captor is an enigma. I donโt know who he is or why he took me. There is a darkness inside himโa darkness that scares me even as it draws me in.
My name is Nora Leston, and this is my story.
This dark romance is another that plays on the captivity trope where the young heroine falls in love with her captor. Itโs got some major Stockholm Syndrome action.
Itโs hot, thereโs non-consent and itโs twisted but thatโs what dark romance is all about.
Pen Pal
by J.T. Geissinger
A Dark Romance of Suspense
The first letter arrived the day my husband was buried. It was postmarked from the state penitentiary, and contained a single sentence:
Iโll wait forever if I have to.
It was signed by Dante, a man I didnโt know.
Out of simple curiosity, I wrote back to ask him what exactly he was waiting for. His reply? You.
I told the mystery man he had the wrong girl. He said he didnโt. I said weโd never met, but he said I was wrong.
We went back and forth, exchanging letters every week that grew increasingly more intimate. Then one day, the letters stopped. When I found out why, it was already too late.
Dante was at my doorstep.
And nothing on earth could have prepared me for what happened next.
I had to include Pen Pal, not only because Geissinger is one of my favorite authors but because she writes books that are such a mindf*ck in a really great way that it made my list.
Now this dark romance book is not one that deals with being taken or being forced or being violent but itโs truly dark and twisted and you donโt know what to expect until the very end. Itโs awesome. Check out my book review of Pen Pal.
Related Book Lists:
Pin This for Later:
