Book picks similar to
BEAUTY: Part 1 by Kirsty Dallas
dark
abuse
romance
revenge
Made of Steel
Ivy Smoak - 2020
The only thing she knew for sure was that she was going to marry him. Just as soon as she could convince him that she didn't have cooties. But tragedy tore her away from him before they ever got a chance at their happily ever after. And the worst part? He forgot all about her.Ten years after Summer lost everything, she's given a fresh start in the witness protection program. The only rule: don't speak to anyone from her past. A rule that's hard to follow when she finds out that the boy next door is living right down the hall. Unlike him, she never forgot. But she knows that the future she once dreamed of is no longer an option. And if she reveals her identity, she could get them both killed.Miles fell in love with the girl next door when he was eight-years-old. When she disappeared in the foster care system, it felt like a piece of him was missing. So when she shows up in his life again with a different color hair and a new name? It doesn’t fool him. And this time he'll do whatever it takes to keep her.
Still Beating
Jennifer Hartmann - 2020
This book contains subject matter that may be sensitive for some readers, including rape, as well as strong language and explicit sex. 18+ only. Please read responsibly. When Cora attends her sister’s birthday party, she expects at most a hangover or a walk of shame. She doesn’t anticipate a stolen wallet, leaving her stranded and dependent on Dean—her arch nemesis and ultimate thorn in her side. And she really doesn’t anticipate waking up in shackles in a madman’s 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 they’d end up killing 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.
Destructive
Jessica Prince - 2014
I live my life by these five words. For me, they have always proven to be true. Men have only brought hurt and suffering my entire life, leaving nothing but devastation in their wake. I fear them. I hate them. Until him. Gabriel forced his way into my life, ripping down the walls I’ve built around myself. He wants me, and he’ll stop at nothing to have me. I should be terrified of what he makes me feel. So why do I crave him anyway? I see the red flags and warning signs, but I just can’t help myself. I’m his obsession. I thought he was my salvation. But now I know his love could destroy me.
Amnesia
Cambria Hebert - 2017
A place where everyone knows everyone, yet…No one knows me.I don’t know me.If a woman doesn’t know her own name, does she really exist?I don’t know my natural hair color, my birthdate, or where I live.I am invisible.To everyone, to everything, even to myself.Except to him. I see the recognition deep in his stare, the way it lingers on my face as if I’m a puzzle he’s desperate to put together.I just want answers, the truth… knowledge. His lips are sealed. Still, his eyes beguile me.I can’t trust anyone, not even myself. Someone wants me dead, the same someone who tried to bury me in a watery grave. They’ll come for me again… I won’t know their face.I don’t even know mine.I am amnesia.
Illusion
J.S. Cooper - 2014
Cooper introduces the Swept Away series—three new, dark and sexy romances about a woman marooned on a desert island with a mysterious stranger—but is he friend or foe?The day started like every other day... Bianca London finds herself kidnapped and locked up in a van with a strange man. Ten hours later, they’re dumped on a deserted island. Bianca has no idea what’s going on and her attraction to this stranger is the only thing keeping her fear at bay. Jakob Bradley wants only to figure out why they’ve been left on the island and how they can get off. But as the days go by, he can’t ignore his growing fascination with Bianca. In order to survive, Bianca and Jakob must figure out how they’re connected, but as they grow closer, secrets are revealed that may destroy everything they thought they knew about each other.
Violent Delights
Jessica Hawkins - 2019
An untouchable among thieves. Heiress to a life others have killed for, and one I'd do anything to escape. I vowed not to leave without Diego, my first love and best friend, but if his ruthless brother has his way, I won’t leave at all.Cristiano de la Rosa is a man as big and bold as his legend. Once upon a time, he was our cartel’s best soldier . . . until he became my family’s worst enemy. And a man like Cristiano will bend fate to his will to get what he wants—even if it means tearing me from another's arms.Because in the de la Rosa family, old grudges run deeper than loyalty, and betrayal is a three-letter word: war. But this feud isn’t between enemies—it’s between brothers. And I’m the prize.
A Harmless Little Game
Meli Raine - 2016
Of course it would. A Senator’s daughter on camera? Wouldn’t you click “share”? Besides, that’s what three of the four guys in the video did.Share.They shared me.But that fourth guy? The nondescript one in the background in the upper left corner of the screen, just sitting on the couch? The only one who did nothing?Not one single thing.That was my boyfriend, Drew.And that was the last time I saw him.Until today, when my father—now on a path to the White House—hired him as head of security for my new team as I return home after four years of “recovering” in an undisclosed location that involved white lab coats, needles, pills and damage control.You see, the other three guys never went to jail. Never had charges pressed.Never faced consequences.Until today.Game on.* * *A Harmless Little Game is the first in this political thriller/romantic suspense trilogy by USA Today bestselling author Meli Raine.
The Don: The Oath Duet
Serena Akeroyd - 2021
How could my Lady be anything other than a silken promise taunting me with every breath she takes?A new Don reigns over Manhattan.But though I won the war, peace isn’t easily brokered.Over a decade of avenging my father’s death, I made many enemies.To each and every one, Jen’s a target.But I’ll paint NYC red before I let them harm her.I just never imagined I’d be in the line of fire first… A heart broken by grief can feel no guilt or shame with the brutality in which vengeance is delivered. This is the first part of ‘The Oath’ duet in The Valentini Family series.
Feyness
E.S. Carter - 2016
I don't see dead people.I see you.I see every incarnation of you.I see the history of your soul.I can see your aura soaked in the blood of your previous lives.Most people are inherently good or evil.Some flit between darkness and light.Few can change the fabric of their essence; it's a fight that most are too weak to win.He was once darkness.An evil so pure that his very soul is black and yet I am drawn to him like a moth to a flame.Some days, I feel like I am drowning, the waves of my feelings stealing the very air from my lungs.Other days, I feel nothing at all.I'm unsure which is worse; gasping for air or dying from this thirst.Can you learn to breathe underwater when you find someone worth drowning for?Feyness is a dark standalone.Readers of a sensitive disposition may want to step away from the book.Step away, nothing to see here.Readers who like to dance on the dark side, come on in and enjoy the ride.
First Touch
Laurelin Paige - 2015
Though the two were once notorious party girls, they haven't spoken in years. Although the message might sound benign to anyone else, Amber uses a safe word that Emily recognizes, a word they always used to get out of sticky situations during their wild days. And what's more chilling than the voicemail: it turns out that Amber has gone missing.Determined to track down her friend, Emily follows a chain of clues that lead her to the enigmatic billionaire Reeve Sallis, a hotelier known for his shady dealings and play boy reputation. Now, in order to find Amber, Emily must seduce Reeve to learn his secrets and discover the whereabouts of her friend. But as she finds herself more entangled with him, she finds she's drawn to Reeve for more than just his connection to Amber, despite her growing fear that he may be the enemy. When she's forced to choose where her loyalty lies, how will she decide between saving Amber and saving her heart?
The Unfortunates
Skyla Madi - 2014
Kade Sario was supposed to vicious and cruel. He was supposed to be a monster, to hurt and chastise me for the smallest things... but he didn't. I didn't understand it... until I found out what he really wanted from me.He wants to use me. He wants to hold me high above the lion's den and wait for the strongest lion to offer him something he can use...He won't hurt me and he won't take from me, but he keeps me close... So close I can smell him on my skin even when I'm alone. Growing up it was ingrained in me that I do whatever I can to please my Fortunate. It was ingrained in me that I be loyal and faithful, and that I love my Fortunate more than I love myself. I expected that I'd want to please him. I expected that I would be loyal and faithful, just like I was taught... But I didn't expect to fall in love with him.Time is running out. Things are changing, the balance of power is shifting and if I'm going to survive in this world, I need Master Kade on my side…
Obsidian Liquor
Scarlett Dawn - 2014
But when she’s caught red-handed by a man who kills for a living, her enmity rapidly turns to fear. Daniil Kozar isn't a man to trifle with, and Elizabeth is forced to strike a deal with the mafia king. Her every action is watched, and she needs to decide how to handle the gun-toting criminal--and his seductive charm.Daniil may be the devil her father warned about. Or he may be the sensual awakening Elizabeth never knew she needed. Somewhere, Elizabeth's dad is screaming a prayer...*Originally published in The Obsidian Collection**This work contains sexual material intended for readers 18+*
Handfuls of Shattered Pieces
Kerry Taylor - 2020
With no memory of how, she has now escaped and finds herself running for her life, fleeing eight years of darkness, pain and silence, suddenly terrified by every sound and movement around her. Rescued by police, she finds the life she left behind long gone. Instead, surrounded by a world she now has very little knowledge or experience of, she is lost, scared and alone, drowning in a sea of harrowing flashbacks and soul destroying nightmares. Just when her terrifying memories threaten to pull her under for good, a light appears, in the shape of Dr Xander King. He has been where she is, scared and alone and he wants to do all he can to help her, including bringing her into the amazing family that, years earlier, had rescued him. In a home she does not know or want, Olivia finds a family she didn't realise she needed, and four men who will forever change her life. They do all they can to show her the way out of the terrifying darkness and into the light, and to help her discover who she is now that she is free. Kade, Kyle, Cole and Matt all have dark pasts of their own, which they still fight every day to survive, but they are determined to show Olivia that together, they can all find a way to repair their shattered pieces and find some happiness. But with the kidnapper's whereabouts unknown, and a serial killer lose on the streets of Chicago, keeping Olivia safe is their first priority. This proves harder than they ever thought, when it becomes obvious Olivia is the key to stopping a series of brutal murders. Now they must do all they can to protect the woman they are all falling fast for, from the evils of this world.This is a reverse harem story with one woman and four loving, protective men. It is the first book in the Pieces of Us series.
Fearscape
Nenia Campbell - 2012
She trusted him because she wanted excitement. There's a saying that curiosity can kill … but Valerian Kimble is beginning to learn that satisfaction might just be worse.Fourteen-year-old Valerian lives in an age where antiheroes and bad boys are portrayed as the romantic ideal, and good guys are passe and boring. So when Gavin Mecozzi, the school's brilliant but twisted loner, begins to show an interest in her after a chance meeting in a pet store, Val is intrigued. He's charming and poetic and makes her feel things that she thought were only possible in books--Fear.Because somebody is stalking Val. Somebody who wants to hurt her. Own her. Possess her. Maybe even kill her.As her meetings with Gavin unravel into a more complex and frightening relationship, Val can't help but wonder if the new boy in her life is her depraved and obsessive stalker.And whether he's capable of murder.Time is running out.