Book picks similar to
Pretty Girls Make Graves (Dark Academia, #1) by Steffanie Holmes
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A Ruin of Roses
K.F. Breene - 2021
We all have. A curse put upon us by the mad king.We are a kingdom locked in time. Shifters unable to feel our animals. Stuck here by a deal between the late king and a demon who seeks our destruction.The only one keeping this kingdom alive is Nyfain, the golden prince to a stolen throne. The last dragon shifter.He’s our hope.He’s my nightmare.When he catches me trespassing in the forbidden wood, he doesn’t punish me with death, as he’s entitled.He takes me, instead. Forces me back to the castle as his prisoner. Seeks to use me.Apparently, I can save him. I can save the whole forgotten kingdom, locked away by the demon king’s power.But it would mean taming the monster beneath his skin. It would mean giving myself to him.It would mean my ruin._ _ _ _ _ _This is a dark and sexy Beauty and the Beast retelling, featuring a strong heroine, a dangerous anti-hero, and a humorous supporting cast. It is a full-length novel at 80k words and suitable for 18+. This is the beginning of a trilogy and ends on a cliffhanger. Buckle up. The author was let off her leash.
Lilac
B.B. Reid - 2020
Or so the world keeps telling me. Every so often, gods walk the earth. This time they came as musicians. When Bound loses its lead guitarist, yours truly is chosen to fill his shoes. From dive bars to the big stage, my instant claim to fame is nothing short of a fairytale. The only problem? My new bandmates. Jaded, gorgeous, and ridiculously talented--they're determined to turn my dream into a nightmare. It's no secret I wasn't their first choice. I wasn't even their last. The label wants a new image, Bound wants me gone, but I've got my own agenda.To succeed I have to survive a world tour, public scrutiny, and idols turned enemies. But the biggest threat of all isn't a meticulous front man, a narcissistic bassist, and a drummer with too many secrets. It's me. Somehow, I must resist the temptation of Houston Morrow, Loren James, and Jericho Noble. It seemed easy enough when I boarded their tour bus, but it only took one city for the lines we'd drawn to blur. Only ninety-nine more to go.Lilac is a reverse harem and standalone suitable for ages 18+.
Freestyle
Bea Paige - 2020
Dance is in my blood.It’s what keeps me sane, out of trouble. It used to keep them out of trouble too. A group of boys I grew up with.Xeno, York, Zayn and Dax.We were a crew once and we ruled the clubs.Separate we were insanely good, together we were unbeatable. F*&ing on fire. I was their girl and they were my Breakers.Until they did something they promised they never would; break my heart.We were sixteen when they left me.You see, for kids like us, dance was all we had.Growing up in a rundown housing estate in London with no prospects can make you view the world differently.It can make you choose the wrong path.I chose dance, and they chose crime.Three years later I’ve won a scholarship to Stardom Academy. I try to forget my past.But how can I do that when the four boys who hurt me are back?And this time they won’t walk away even when I ask them too.Freestyle is book one of this new gritty, contemporary reverse harem academy trilogy for 17+ readers and deals with adult themes and some subjects you may find upsetting. If you love dance, your men on the criminal side, alpha hot holes and the enemies-to-lovers trope, this is for you. Contains foul language and sexual scenes.
Playing with Hellfire
Harper A. Brooks - 2020
I’ve bounced from house to house, living in foster care, with no true place to call home. And there’s an ancient darkness that follows me around where I go.They may be demons, but I’m no angel, and this darkness craves the Hell they give.Or maybe I’ve just been damned from the start.
My Bloodline
K.C. Kean - 2020
It doesn’t matter that I didn’t want to go to college, it doesn’t matter that I don’t want to be here.I’ll follow the rules or risk my life. The organisation that runs the criminal underworld is no joke. Apparently I’m an Ace now, but few are happy about my arrival. Secrets have me wanting to run for the hills.Boys have curly hair, skull tattoos, big mouths and gentle caresses.A diamond has me wanting to make the world a better place.For a lone ranger, my small world just got bigger. What are you willing to do to survive?#Aceholes My Bloodline is a 97,000 word novel, and the first book in the Featherstone Academy Series.This book contains dark content that may be considered a trigger for some readers. With that in mind it is recommended for readers 17+This is a full-length reverse harem college romance novel, meaning the main character has more than one love interest. It also contains M/M scenes.
There Are No Saints
Sophie Lark - 2021
Until the night we both laid eyes on Mara Eldritch.Shaw wants to use her as a pawn in his twisted game.I’m fixated on her for a different reason…She makes me feel things I never thought I could feel. Want things I never wanted.Only she can make me lose control.I don’t know if I should protect her at all costs… or destroy her before she ruins me.Mara knows I’m no saint. But she has no idea she’s dancing with the devil…
The Lark Notes:
I have always been fascinated by true crime, as well as by villains and anti-heroes. A serial killer is, of course, the ultimate anti-hero — the baddest of the bad boys. Redeeming a character who starts so evil was a challenge that inspired me to entirely new heights and entirely new depths. Come on this darkly sensual and utterly brain-bending ride with me! — Sophie"There Are No Saints” is the first book in the Sinners Duet. Reader be warned: this is a dark and steamy serial killer romance that will take you on a journey through the twisted mind of an artist on the brink of madness.
Den of Vipers
K.A. Knight - 2020
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.I’m theirs in every sense of the word. But I’ve 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 won’t stop until they get just that. They can own my body, but they will never have my heart.The Vipers? I’m going to make them regret the day they took me.This girl? She bites too.18+ Reverse Harem Romance. Warning this book contains scenes and references of abuse/assault that some readers may find triggering. Along with graphic sex scenes and violence. This is a dark book.
Scars
Dana Isaly - 2021
One day I was the sole inheritor of my family’s fortune. The next I was diving out my bedroom window, leaving everything behind.I’ve been hiding for years, successfully outrunning my demons. I was getting by, making a life of my own. Until the Triad came for me. Dangerous. Wealthy. Corrupt. The Triad run this city. And they think I’m the key to getting my family out of their way. The plan is to exchange me for a truce.But if I go back, I’m as good as dead. Convincing them to keep me is my only chance.They have no clue just how valuable I can be.I am so much more than they bargained for.
A Lesson in Thorns
Sierra Simone - 2019
It should be easy enough—keep her head down while she works in the house’s crumbling private library and while she hunts down any information as to why this remote manor tucked into the fog-shrouded moors would be the last place her mother was seen alive. But Thornchapel has other plans for her... As Poe begins uncovering the house’s secrets, both new and old, she’s also pulled into the seductive, elegant world of Auden and his friends—and drawn to Auden’s worst enemy, the beautiful and brooding St. Sebastian. And as Thornchapel slowly tightens its coil of truths and lies around them, Poe, Auden and St. Sebastian start unravelling into filthy, holy pleasure and pain. Together, they awaken a fate that will either anoint them or leave them in ashes… *** From the author of the USA Today bestselling New Camelot series comes an original fairy tale full of ancient mysteries, lantern-lit rituals, jealousy, money, murder, sacred torment, and obsessions that last for lifetimes... ***A Lesson in Thorns is the first of four books in the Thornchapel series.***
Broken Trust
R.A. Smyth - 2021
Today I start school at Pacific Prep. This is my new lease on life, and I won’t be wasting it. I need this, now, more than ever. I need the education, the promise of a future that I wouldn’t get anywhere else. These rich kids don’t like me though. When Hawk Davenport decides he doesn’t want me here, his friends back him. Along with Hawk, Westley Warren, Cam Rutherford, and Mason Hayes rule this school and nobody dares go against them. They don’t know the real me. I won’t back down.***This book is a reverse harem, meaning the FMC will have three or more love interests. The book also has trigger warnings for emotional/physical bullying, abuse, violent scenes, reference to self-harm and mature content/swearing, so please do not read if you are easily offended or have the mentioned triggers.This book is intended for 18+
Fated Magic
Callie Rose - 2020
And three alphas have claimed me as their mate.For years, I've been kept prisoner by my uncle, hidden like a piece of trash in the basement of his house. Beaten, broken, and neglected, hated by him for reasons I can't even understand.But one night on the back roads of rural Montana, I see a chance for escape.And I take it.I run....straight into the arms of a naked man.No. Not a man. A wolf.Ridge, the man with dark hair and honey-colored eyes, is the alpha of the North Pack. I can hardly believe shifters are real, but how can I deny it when I've seen him transform with my own eyes?I don't trust him. I don't trust anyone. Still, that doesn't change the overwhelming pull I feel toward him. And when the alphas of the East and West Packs step forward and claim me as their mate too, I feel that same desperate urge to claim them back.But the part that scares me most?There's only one reason all three of them could form a mate bond with me.I'm a shifter too.Fated Magic is the first book in the Claimed by Wolves series, a reverse harem paranormal shifter romance. It contains cursing, violence, growly alpha males, steamy sex, and a heroine who finds her strength in the midst of it all.
Gild
Raven Kennedy - 2020
And the ones with power rule.Gold.Gold floors, gold walls, gold furniture, gold clothes. In Highbell, in the castle built into the frozen mountains, everything is made of gold.Even me.King Midas rescued me. Dug me out of the slums and placed me on a pedestal. I’m called his precious. His favored. I’m the woman he Gold-Touched to show everyone that I belong to him. To show how powerful he is. He gave me protection, and I gave him my heart. And even though I don’t leave the confines of the palace, I’m safe.Until war comes to the kingdom and a deal is struck.Suddenly, my trust is broken. My love is challenged. And I realize that everything I thought I knew about Midas might be wrong.Because these bars I’m kept in, no matter how gilded, are still just a cage. But the monsters on the other side might make me wish I’d never left.The myth of King Midas reimagined. This compelling adult fantasy series is as addictive as it is unexpected. With romance, intrigue, and danger, the gilded world of Orea will grip you from the very first page.Please Note: This book contains explicit content and darker elements, including mature language, violence, and rape. It is not intended for anyone under 18 years of age. This is book one in a series.An alternative cover edition for this ASIN can be found here.
Red Handed
Kate King - 2021
Name your price.”At twenty-three, you would think I could say no to being traded to the enemy, but that’s not how life works when you grow up in an organized crime family. I consider myself lucky to have grown up at all.Ten years ago, my brother was murdered in the gang war that split the city of St. Adrian down the middle. My family took the South Side, and the North Side went to them. The Gentlemen.Now the leader of the Gentlemen is asking for my help and my father has been nice enough to agree to his terms. In exchange for my sister’s protection, I need to cross the divide and live with the family that killed my brother.Too bad I’ve never been great at playing nice.Nico, Beck and Rush are the enemy. The leaders of the Gentlemen. They’re conceited, lying, murderous assholes and they’re the reason I’ve been trained all my life to cheat, steal, and shoot my way to the top.I’m ready to take them down from the inside. I just hope they don’t get to me first. After all, a truce between two enemies is a promise waiting to be broken.Red Handed is an enemies to lovers contemporary mafia romance where the female main character will end up with multiple love interests by the end of the series. All the characters are in their mid-twenties. There are dark themes and graphic violence, but no bullying or violence toward the main character. This is book one of three.
Make Me Lie
C.R. Jane - 2021
And I may have been his accomplice.But no one knows for sure except for me.The dangerous, cruel men of the Sphinx secret society intend to uncover my secrets…and break me.Stellan, my childhood crush who lost his sister to the Demon.Cain, the boy with the face of an angel to who manipulation comes as easy as breathing;Remington, the playboy soccer star full of secrets.Pax, the dark psycho who hides behind his fists.I hoped for a second chance at Darkwood University, only to have my dream ripped away the first time I kissed one of the handsome bastards.They know who I am.And they're determined to make me pay.They should have thought twice about who they were playing with.Because I am the demon’s daughter. And just because they have the power, the connections, the faces and bodies of gods… do they really think they’ll win?I wanted a new life, not a war.But if they insist, we’ll see who ends up playing.