11 Best Taboo Romance Books

Looking to push some limits with your romance reading? These are some of my favorite taboo romance books that take forbidden romance to a new level. We’re not just talking age gap romance or an office romance that is frowned upon. Oh no – these romance books focus on relationships that are more often than not considered taboo for pushing boundaries of the norm.

Romance books with a step uncle, stepsibling, priest, babysitter, or fiance’s father – yep! You’ll find those and more below.

Ready to dive in? Happy reading…because life is better with a love story.

*Disclosure: This post may include affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Credence
by Penelope Douglas

Tiernan de Haas doesn’t care about anything anymore. The only child of a film producer and his starlet wife, she’s grown up with wealth and privilege but not love or guidance. Shipped off to boarding schools from an early age, it was still impossible to escape the loneliness and carve out a life of her own. The shadow of her parents’ fame followed her everywhere.

And when they suddenly pass away, she knows she should be devastated. But has anything really changed? She’s always been alone, hasn’t she?

Jake Van der Berg, her father’s stepbrother and her only living relative, assumes guardianship of Tiernan who is still two months shy of eighteen. Sent to live with him and his two sons, Noah and Kaleb, in the mountains of Colorado, Tiernan soon learns that these men now have a say in what she chooses to care and not care about anymore.

As the three of them take her under their wing, teach her to work and survive in the remote woods far away from the rest of the world, she slowly finds her place among them. And as a part of them.

She also realizes that lines blur and rules become easy to break when no one else is watching. One of them has her. The other one wants her. But he…He’s going to keep her.

Priest
by Sierra Simone

There are many rules a priest can’t break. A priest cannot marry. A priest cannot abandon his flock. A priest cannot forsake his God. I’ve always been good at following rules. Until she came. Then I learned new rules.

My name is Tyler Anselm Bell. I’m twenty-nine years old. Six months ago, I broke my vow of celibacy on the altar of my own church, and God help me, I would do it again. I am a priest and this is my confession.

How to End a Love Story
by Yulin Kuang

Helen Zhang hasn’t seen Grant Shepard once in the thirteen years sincethe tragic accident that bound their lives together forever.

Now a bestselling author, Helen pours everything into her career. She’s even scored a coveted spot in the writers’ room of the TV adaptation of her popular young adult novels, and if she can hide her imposter syndrome and overcome her writer’s block, surely the rest of her life will fall into place too. LA is the fresh start she needs. After all, no one knows her there. Except…

Grant has done everything in his power to move on from the past, including building a life across the country. And while the panic attacks have never quite gone away, he’s well liked around town as a screenwriter. He knows he shouldn’t have taken the job on Helen’s show, but it will open doors to developing his own projects that he just can’t pass up.

Grant’s exactly as Helen remembers him—charming, funny, popular, and lovable in ways that she’s never been. And Helen’s exactly as Grant remembers too—brilliant, beautiful, closed off. But working together is messy, and electrifying, and Helen’s parents, who have never forgiven Grant, have no idea he’s in the picture at all.

When secrets come to light, they must reckon with the fact that theirs was never meant to be any kind of love story. And yet… the key to making peace with their past—and themselves—might just lie in holding on to each other in the present.

Babysitting the Baumgartners
by Selena Kitt

Ronnie, now a college freshman, has been babysitting for the Baumgartners so long, she’s practically a member of the family.

When Mrs. Baumgartner—who insists on calling her Veronica—invites Ronnie along on their yearly vacation, the nanny jumps at the chance.

There’s no way she’s going to turn down an opportunity to work on her tan in the Florida Keys with Doc and Mrs. B! But Ronnie isn’t the only one with ulterior motives.

The young co-ed discovers that the Baumgartners have wayward plans for their au pair that are going to lead places she could only have imagined.

Wrong
by Jana Aston

I have a history of picking the wrong guy. Gay? Player? Momma’s boy? Check, check and check. Now I can’t stop fantasizing about one of the customers at the coffee shop I work at between classes. It’s just a harmless crush, right?

It’s not like I ever see this guy outside of the coffee shop. It’s not like I’m going to see him while attempting to get birth control at the student clinic. While wearing a paper gown. While sitting on an exam table. Because he’s the doctor. Shoot. Me. But what if, for once, the man I’ve had the dirtiest, most scandalous fantasies about turned out to be everything but wrong?

The Nanny
by Lana Ferguson

Suddenly unemployed and on the brink of eviction, Cassie Evans is left with two choices: get a new job (and fast) or fire up her long-untouched OnlyFans account. But the job market is terrible, and as for OnlyFans. . . . Well, there are reasons she can’t go back. Just when all hope seems lost, an ad for a live-in nanny position seems like the solution to all her problems. It’s almost too perfect—until she meets her would-be employer.
 
Aiden Reid, executive chef and DILF extraordinaire, is far from the stuffy single dad Cassie was imagining. He shocks her when he tells her she’s the most qualified applicant he’s met in weeks, practically begging her to take the job. With hands that make her hindbrain howl and eyes that scream sex, the idea of living under the same roof as Aiden feels dangerous, but with no other option, she decides to stay with him and his adorably tenacious daughter, Sophie.
 
Cassie soon discovers that Aiden is not a stranger at all, but instead someone who is very familiar with her—or at least, her body. Given that he doesn’t remember her, Cassie is faced with what feels like an impossible situation. As their relationship heats to temperatures hotter than any kitchen Aiden has ever worked in, Cassie struggles with telling Aiden the truth, and the more terrifying possibility—losing the best chance at happiness she’s ever had.

Stepbrother Dearest
by Penelope Ward

You’re not supposed to want the one who torments you. When my stepbrother, Elec, came to live with us my senior year, I wasn’t prepared for how much of a jerk he’d be. I hated that he took it out on me because he didn’t want to be here. I hated that he brought girls from our high school back to his room. But what I hated the most was the unwanted way my body reacted to him.

At first, I thought all he had going for him were his rock-hard tattooed abs and chiseled face. But things started changing between us, and it all came to a head one night. Then, just as quickly as he’d come into my life, he was gone back to California. It had been years since I’d seen Elec. When tragedy struck our family, I’d have to face him again. And holy hell, the teenager who made me crazy was now a man that drove me insane. I had a feeling my heart was about to get broken again.

The Pool Boy
by Nikki Sloane

Nothing says happy birthday like catching your husband in a compromising position with his boss. His male boss. Why, hello, midlife crisis. I’m starting over, but this time I’m doing it right. Or at least I’m doing what I want.

Taking the day off from work to hang out poolside? Yup. Do I leave the swimsuit in my house? Sure. Does my very hot, twenty-something pool boy happen to catch me naked? Oh, yeah, he does. And he likes what he sees… a lot.

My best friend keeps telling me to have a fling and get back out there. But I’m not so sure she meant for me to do it with her son.

Liar
by Fiona Cole

He was my uncle’s friend, and I was too young for him.But in the heat of the moment, against the wall in a darkened hallway of an illicit club, none of those things mattered. It was just one night of giving in to what we both wanted.

I never expected to see him two years later, sitting across me during a family dinner, encouraging me to do my internship for his business.

On day one we both agree that repeating that night would be a mistake. But it’s a mistake we can’t help but make again and again.

The rules are simple. We can’t tell my uncle. We have to be content with our hotel rendezvous. And we won’t fall in love. But we both know we’re liars.

Torn
by Carian Cole

When I was five years old, I told Toren Grace we were going to get married someday. He’d been my closest friend, my protector, and my rock since the day I was born. But during my senior year, our relationship slowly changed. Silly conversations morphed into serious heart-to-hearts. Innocent friendship turned to stolen glances.

Then one day, an unexpected kiss changed everything.
 
While that kiss was all I’d ever dreamed of, it knocked Tor clear off his axis. His strong moral compass makes it impossible for him to accept our feelings for each other. Because, not only am I eighteen and fifteen years younger than him, I’m the one person he should never, ever want.

Tor is my father’s best friend—my pseudo uncle.

Neither one of us can stand to betray or hurt my dad, but we can’t keep our relationship hidden forever. Will there be a way for us to find our happily-ever-after? Or will we all be torn apart?

My Fiance’s Dad
by S.E. Law

Cora knows she’s lucky to be engaged to the handsome Marky Harrison, a former high school football player. As a curvy girl, she knows her place in life and landing a man like Marky is sheer good fortune. But when her fiancé blows up their engagement, Cora retreats to a cabin to cry and rage.

Matt Harrison has been attracted to his son’s beautiful, sassy fiancée for a long time, but he was determined NOT to be that douchebag father-in-law. The alpha male tamped down on his attraction to Cora while his son was in the picture, but now that Marky’s gone, why not act on his deepest desires … even if it means giving Cora a baby?

Related Book Lists:

• Best Age Gap Romance Books
• Best Forbidden Romance Books
• Best Spicy Romance Books
• Best Steamy Romance Novels
• Best Romance Books With Kink

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