Enter the Seductive World of Dark Romance
Hey bookworms!
Do you want to experience a passionate and ravishing romance without having to leave your bed?
Here’s your chance! I have been in a real dark romance mood lately so I decided to splurge a little and buy a small dark romance book haul. It finally arrived, so I’m super excited to start reading my way through the stack! I have a couple other books to read before I can get to this stack so I’ll be on a binge read streak for the next week. Now without further ado, here’s my book haul!
The Bargainer Series by Laura Thalassa
Synopsis:
Callypso Lillis is a siren with a very big problem, one that stretches up her arm and far into her past. For the last seven years she’s been collecting a bracelet of black beads up her wrist, magical IOUs for favors she’s received. Only death or repayment will fulfill the obligations. Only then will the beads disappear.
Everyone knows that if you need a favor, you go to the Bargainer to make it happen. He’s a man who can get you anything you want... at a price. And everyone knows that sooner or later he always collects.
But for one of his clients, he’s never asked for repayment. Not until now. When Callie finds the fae king of the night in her room, a grin on his lips and a twinkle in his eye, she knows things are about to change. At first it’s just a chaste kiss—a single bead’s worth—and a promise for more.
For the Bargainer, it’s more than just a matter of rekindling an old romance. Something is happening in the Otherworld. Fae warriors are going missing one by one. Only the women are returned, each in a glass casket, a child clutched to their breast. And then there are the whispers among the slaves, whispers of an evil that’s been awoken.
If the Bargainer has any hope to save his people, he’ll need the help of the siren he spurned long ago. Only, his foe has a taste for exotic creatures, and Callie just happens to be one.
Comments:
This synopsis is for the first book in the series but I got the omnibus of the complete trilogy which includes Rhapsodic, A Strange Hymn, The Emperor of Evening Stars, and Dark Harmony. This sounds like such a great mysterious romance and I love anything to do with a fae king and mythical creatures.
Desperate Measures by Katee Robert
Synopsis:
My Savior… Or My Ruin?
One night, and my entire life went up in flames. All because of him. Jafar. As my world burned down around me, he offered me a choice. Walk away with nothing but my freedom… Or rise to his challenge and win my fortune back.
I bargained.
I lost.
Now Jafar owns me, and even as my mind rails against his rules, my body loves the punishments he deals out when I break them.
But a gilded cage is still a prison, I’ll do anything to obtain my freedom.
Even betray the man I’m falling for.
Comments:
This is literally everybody’s childhood fantasy of Jafar and Jasmine coming to life and I’m so stoked to read this! This is the first book in Katee’s Wicked Villain series which features romances with your favourite childhood fairytales’ worst villains. Sounds scandalous and so tempting!
A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair
Synopsis:
Persephone is the Goddess of Spring by title only. The truth is, since she was a little girl, flowers have shriveled at her touch. After moving to New Athens, she hopes to lead an unassuming life disguised as a mortal journalist.
Hades, God of the Dead, has built a gambling empire in the mortal world and his favorite bets are rumored to be impossible.
After a chance encounter with Hades, Persephone finds herself in a contract with the God of the Dead and the terms are impossible: Persephone must create life in the Underworld or lose her freedom forever.
The bet does more than expose Persephone’s failure as a Goddess, however. As she struggles to sow the seeds of her freedom, love for the God of the Dead grows—and it’s forbidden.
Comments:
This is a Hades and Persephone romance and I am totally here for it. Hades and Persephone is my absolute favourite mythical couple to ever walk this planet. Any book that features them is an instant buy or add to TBR for me!
Savage Beginnings by J.L. Beck and C. Hallman
Synopsis:
It started with a single look, my obsession, my desire and need to possess the sweet, and incredibly naïve Elena Romero.
Like a thief I came in the dead of night and stole her away from her protected castle and placed her in a gilded cage made of gold.
The arrangement had been made. Her father knew I was coming, knew I had intended to make him pay.
His empire was crumbling. He had no money, nothing of value to me, nothing except... her.
Which is why he agreed.
His precious, virgin daughter in return for a debt paid.
He thought I would break her, kill her, he had no idea what I had really planned.
She would become my wife.
She would bear my children.
She would bend to my will.
And I would go to any lengths to keep her by my side.
*This is a dark mafia romance that contains mature themes, graphic violence, and sexual content. This is a standalone with a HEA.*
Comments:
@Princessreadsalot is on a mafia romance kick right now and inspired me to check out some of those books. I found this one and the synopsis sounds so perfect and alluring that I just had to add it to my haul. I’ve never read this trope of book before so I’m excited to see if I’ll like it.
The Moonfire Bride by Sylvia Mercedes
Synopsis:
Perfect for fans of A Court of Thorns and Roses and The Cruel Prince, this tale of a human girl stolen to be the bride of a doomed fae lord is irresistibly romantic!
Hers is a life without magic or romance. Until the night he whispers her name.
For years, Valera has worked weary hours as a seamstress just to keep food on the table. She would give her all to protect her little sister from the cruelties of the world . . . and the tantalizing lure of the fae forest. One day, she fears, the fae will spirit her sister away, and how can Valera hope to stop them?
Then the fae come. Not for her sister . . . but for her.
Trapped in a magnificent palace far from her own world, Valera finds herself the unwilling bride of an enigmatic fae lord. He claims he won’t harm her and vows to return her home after a year and a day if she honors one rule: she must never see his face.
Determined to return to her sister at all costs, Valera struggles to unravel the mystery of her so-called husband. Why does he so desperately need a wife? And why her specifically? Torn between love, duty, and the unexpected freedom she finds in this strange new world, Valera must fight to find her place.
But will a burgeoning passion for the unseen figure in the shadows be her undoing?
The Moonfire Bride is book one of a two-part fae romance inspired by the myth of “Hades and Persephone” as well as “Eros and Psyche.” Read today if you’re craving a dark, swoon-worthy hero and a sweet, slow-burn romance with just a touch of steam!
Comments:
When I first saw this book on Amazon I was heartbroken because the synopsis sounded like everything I’ve ever dreamed a romance could be, but then I saw it was only available for Kindle…which I don’t have 😭 But then I checked a couple days later and it was available for paperback so all my dreams came true and I bought it. I really hope the story is just as great as the synopsis because I think this book might be a 5/5 for me. I got high hopes people!
Hades and Persephone: Curse of the Golden Arrow by Heidi and Erica Hastings
Synopsis:
A Cursed Love...When Persephone is forced into the Underworld, she fears the Dark Lord who rules the shadowed kingdom. A curse has brought them together, and the Goddess of Spring wars against Hades, the King of the Dead. But as time passes, she begins to wonder if he is truly the monster she fears or if he may be the very answer her soul calls out for. Lies, jealousy and betrayal combine to keep them apart. Together, they battle against an unknown foe, but is there enough time to reveal the dark truths of the God before his kingdom falls?
Comments:
Another Hades and Persephone romance so I’m so excited to see how this one turns out! Also it has gorgeous illustrations which obviously makes this book 10x cooler.
Of Goblins and Gold by Emma Hamm
Synopsis:
To save her sister, she must beat a goblin at his own game...
Freya knows the sound of goblin bells. She knows to move to the side of the road and let them pass. Never buy any of their wares. And above all else, never make a deal with the monstrous beasts.
But when her sister takes a necklace and is kidnapped, Freya knows there is no other choice. She must journey to the realm of the fae where the Goblin King himself has stolen her sister. Once there, she must perform four tasks to save the only family she has left.
The Goblin King won't make this easy, however. He always seems one step ahead of her. To defeat him, she'll have to put everything on the line.
Even her heart.
Fan of Sarah J. Maas and Ursula K. Le Guin will be left guessing at every turn!
Comments:
So I already read this book as an eARC from Booksprouts and Emma and I absolutely loved it. The worldbuilding in this book is so magical and I really enjoyed the plot and build-up of attraction between Freya and the Goblin King. I definitely needed more of that action so I bought the next book in the series as well, Of Shadows and Elves. I highly recommend this series especially if you love the Goblin King and his bride story trope.
Someday My Duke Will Come by Christina Britton
Synopsis:
Lady Clara Ashford's world changed fifteen years ago at the hands of a rogue who took her innocence. Determined never to give into temptation again, she settles into a life as caregiver for her family. With her younger sister recently engaged and about to embark on a life of her own, Clara feels adrift and without purpose―until Quincy, the new Duke of Reigate, arrives on her doorstep in need of a fake fiancée.
When Quincy Nesbitt unexpectedly inherits a dukedom, he's determined to do his best by the title. One thing he won't do? Marry a woman he's never met just because she was engaged to his older brother. So, he enlists Lady Clara's help, since he can't marry another when he's engaged to her. But as they pretend for the ton, Quincy finds himself falling for real. Now, he just has to convince Lady Clara to take a chance on him.
Comments:
So I didn’t realize this at first, but this is the second book in the Isle of Synne series. These books can be read as standalones but some people recommend reading them in order because the characters in this book are introduced in Book 1 so you get more background. Because of this, I think I might be ordering Book 1 now 😅 This is also a Regency romance so not so much in the dark romance category, but it’s the only other adult romance I have to read so I just added it to this list. I also really wanted to read this because I watched Bridgerton and needed more of Regency romance.
That concludes my list! I hope you found some tantalizing romances to read to get you through the monotony of quarantine. Add some spice in your life and read these stories!
Let me know in the comments if you’ve read any of these so we can discuss after I’ve read them 😊 Also if you have any more dark romance recommendations please let me know because I’d love to add them to my TBR!
Happy reading!
