Book picks similar to
Damaged Dreams by Kris Butler
reverse-harem
dnf
rh
contemporary
Masks & Mayhem: The Hannover Heathens Book 1
Lauren Ellis - 2021
I mean, I get good grades, and I’ve never been arrested, but it’s not for lack of a little law-breaking. I don’t have the time or luxury of a moral compass--not when I have someone counting on me. So, I’ve been keeping my head down, getting everything ready for us to flee this place as soon as I turn eighteen. But the past has a way of catching up to us. And mine drags me kicking and screaming into the dark world of the Hannover Heathens, the gang that rules this city and everyone in it. While they debate whether to use me or kill me, I’m assigned some semi-psychotic, heavily tattooed babysitters to watch my every move. They think they’ve got my secrets all figured out, that I’m just some innocent, naïve girl who stumbled into the underbelly of this city.But I’m familiar with their dark world, and it’s not a scary place for the reasons they think. It’s scary because this kind of darkness fits me all-too-well. But if it’s one thing I’m counting on, it's being the kind of girl they underestimate. So, go ahead, boys--wear your masks. You haven’t realized just yet, but I’m wearing one too. **Warning: This is a SLOW-BURN RH/#whychooseromance, meaning the FMC will date more than one guy and won't have to choose between them. This series contains potentially triggering content, including but not limited to: sexual scenes, dark themes, love of the 'f' word & other foul language, gang violence, torture, and abuse. Even though this is a high school setting, this is recommended for readers 18+ and is considered NA romance. This will end in a cliffhanger, BUT this is only book one and there will be a HEA (eventually).
Let There Be Light
A.M. Johnson - 2018
Hard work and drive kept Royal O'Connell one step ahead of his competition. His spot on the swim team, keeping his scholarship, was the only plan that mattered. His world was ebony and ivory. Natural talent and ambition set Camden Morgan apart from the other music majors. His dedication scoring him a full ride. Normally, their paths would have never crossed….But when Royal meets his best friend's new roommate, his big plan and Camden’s controlled environment faces a variable that could destroy it all. Attraction. The world they live in had no room for error. That undeniable pull between them was dangerous and neither one of them could've prepared for the choice they'd have to make. Love isn't always an easy road and, when everything they've worked for is on the line, they'll have to decide if being together is worth the risk. Let There Be Light is a full-length standalone.
Chasing Chance
M.E. Parker - 2019
They become so ingrained in your memory that you can’t let them go, no matter how hard you try. Some may seem small and insignificant when they happen. Others are so big and important that you know, even while you’re in the moment, that your life will be forever changed. For me, almost all those moments—both the small and insignificant as well as the big and important—were moments I shared with Chance Wyrick. If I were in a support group for hopelessly pathetic gays, I’d have to introduce myself by saying, “Hi, I’m Andy Michaelson and I can’t stop myself from thinking about Chance Wyrick.” From the time we met, when we were only six years old, and for the next twelve years, he was my best friend. I fell in love with him along the way. I couldn’t say exactly when it happened, only that it happened. Words of advice: Never fall in love with your best friend, especially if he’s one of the most popular kids at school, the best high school quarterback in the state, or if he happens to be your next-door neighbor. But most of all… Never, I repeat never, fall in love with your best friend if he’s straight. Nothing good can come of it. Trust me. Our friendship was over before we finished our last year of high school. My best friend became my ex-best friend. I hoped to forget about him when I went off to college. But Chance followed me there. So did all the memories. I tried to forget him. I did. But he was more beautiful than ever. He was the starting quarterback for Gilcrest University. He was larger than life. He was impossible to ignore. We hadn’t spoken in years, but the memories still hit me out of nowhere, and they still hurt. By the time I started my third year at Gilcrest, I was beginning to think I’d never be over him. As it turns out, I was right… Chasing Chance is the first book in the Gilcrest University Guys series. It’s a full-length, “friends to lovers” romance novel. It has “coming out” and “first-time gay” themes, is stocked full of STEAM, heartache, and laughter, and it has a guaranteed happy ending. The series will follow the love stories of four college friends. Chasing Chance is the first of two books that will tell Andy and Chance’s love story. Look for book two, Catching Chance, to come out next month!
Boys of Brayshaw High
Meagan Brandy - 2019
I didn't listen, and now I'm on their radar. They expect me to play along in their games of hierarchy, to fall in line in the social order they've deemed me fit. Too bad for them, I don't follow rules. Too bad for me, they're determined to make sure I do. Inconceivably attractive and treated like kings...these are the boys of Brayshaw High.And I'm the girl who got in their way.
Fractured Heart
Mia Harlan - 2019
Homeless and rejected by the school of my dreams, I somehow find myself at LUV Academy, crashing in a dorm room with an a cappella group of gorgeous, rich, talented men. They each bring their own brand of sexy and I want them all: The relentless flirt The sophisticated mountain-man The sweet boy next door And the bad-boy bully who hates me with a passion But with the college a cappella auditions fast approaching, can I write a song that’s good enough to secure these talented guys a place in the competition? And will I be able to secure a place in their hearts and get my own happily ever after? Author’s note: This is a slow/medium burn reverse harem story intended for audiences 18 years and older. #whychoose
The Tracker Hive Academy: Year One
Avery Song - 2019
I've endured being the bad gal in the room. I’ve taken a lot of life’s punches on the chin. But never did I expect to be forced to attend an academy full of power-hungry delinquents. Born with powers far too great to control, I ended up homeless at eight years old. With my family gone, I lived on the streets, learning quickly that the world was just as cold as my beating heart. Because I carry all eight magic elements, enemies sought me out from every dark corner. Luckily, I was saved and taken in by Alaric Masters, headmaster of Tracker Hive Academy. My name is Jade Storm, and I’m the youngest recruit to become a Tracker. Now that I'm eighteen, Alaric is insisting that I attend the academy. I’ll do it, but on my own terms. My only goal is to learn just how powerful I am and breeze through the next four years. I have no interest in joining any cliques, and I’m not here to make friends. If there’s one thing life has taught me, it’s that I work best alone. However, the Troubled Four — Zeke, Zion, Zackery, and Zeus — have other plans. Quadruplets who together carry all eight elements, the boys are desperate to make me submit to their trickery. They’re stupid to think I’ll play by anyone's rules but my own. I can handle whatever threats, traps, bullying, and schemes are thrown my way, because I'm not here to be a good student. I'm here to keep my secret safe from those who will do everything to see me perish. Game on. This is an 18+ Academy Romance.
In The Dark
Rosie Alice - 2021
Except, Blackmore brings more than a placeholder life. It brings secrets, truths, games and them.Kaiden Thorne, Beckham Bentley and Vincent Donahue.They’re no strangers to the darkness - and this year, they’re taking Sage in the dark with them.**In The Dark is a dark, erotic romance novella introducing you to the Hallows Boys series and is for mature, 18+ readers only. This book has scenes that some readers may find triggering or offensive including menage with MM, BDSM and noncon themes.
Thief
C.L. Stone - 2014
The only way she scrapes by is to utilize her one skill: pickpocketing. But even though she’s a thief she has a moral code: no kids or old ladies, only targets who can defend themselves. Not that they see her coming…Thinking she’s been working under the radar, Kayli has no idea The Academy has been watching and taking notice. Now a team that needs her skill has offered her a way out of her predicament and it’s her last chance: work with them, or face jail time. Kayli resists at first, but slowly the boys reveal they can be trusted. With Marc, the straight man, Raven, the bad-boy Russian, Corey and Brandon the twins as different as night and day, and Axel their stoic leader, there’s a lot Kayli can learn from these Academy guys about living on the edge of the law. If only she can stay on the good side instead of the bad.Especially when the job they offer her is more than any of them bargained for. After it’s done, the hunters have become the hunted and their target is now after Kayli. The Academy boys do their best to keep her hidden, but a thief like Kayli will never sit still for long.Meet an all-new Academy team in Thief, the beginning of the Scarab Beetle series.Warning: This is a new adult series. Readers of the other Academy series may need some caution as this series will contain mature sexual and violent situations and themes.
A Study in Seduction
Eva Chase - 2019
Three brilliant, passionate detectives who stand in her way. Let the seduction begin... My family expected me to play sacrificial lamb for their supernatural cult. Through a desperate bargain with a demonic fiend, I escaped—into a criminal underworld that saw me as easy prey. I’ve proven them wrong a thousand times over. These days, what I want, I get, by whatever means necessary. Now my fiendish friend is coming to collect its fee: my soul. I don't intend to pay. Unfortunately, the key to my freedom lies just beyond my reach. To steal it before my time runs out, I’ll need to con the finest investigative minds in London into executing a perilous heist. Sherlock Holmes. John Watson. Garrett Lestrade. Each at the top of their game; each with a weakness I can exploit. Each so passionate both in the field and between the sheets. I answer to no one and I left my conscience behind years ago, but the more time I spend with them, the more the edges of my steeled heart soften. We could rule the world if we worked together. But these men will never see the real me as anything but a villain. When the chips are down, I have to betray them—or I’ll lose myself to a greater horror than they could believe exists. *What if the infamous Professor Moriarty was a woman—and she met Sherlock Holmes and his colleagues as young men? Wits clash and sparks fly in Moriarty’s Men, a modern paranormal spin on the classic characters. This reverse harem series comes with fast-burn steam, a slow-burn romance where the main character doesn’t have to choose, and M/M themes.* Warning: Heroine of extremely questionable morality.
Tormented Royal
Lily Wildhart - 2021
Only now they’re my worst nightmare. There’s something sinister writhing beneath the surface of Echoes Cove. Tangled up in the web of deadly secrets, a wicked game of survival, these people are about to learn, the venom that runs through this town, runs through my veins too…And I’m not going anywhere.This series is a new adult, dark contemporary romance with off the charts angst, enemies to lovers themes, some scenes of bullying, along with four hot guys and one girl. The book contains sexual scenes, mature language and some violence. Please read the content warnings included in the book, because this book is dark. A full list of trigger warnings can be found at the front of the book.
Winging It
Ashlyn Kane - 2015
It doesn’t include being the first out hockey player or, worse, getting involved with one of his teammates. But things change.Dante Baltierra is Gabe’s polar opposite—careless, reckless… shameless. But his dedication to the sport is impressive, and Gabe can overlook a lot of young-and-stupid in the name of great hockey. And Dante has a superlative ass in a sport filled with superlative asses.Before Gabe can figure out how to deal, a tabloid throws him out of his comfortable closet into a brand-new world. Amid the emotional turmoil of invasive questions, nasty speculation, and on- and off-ice homophobia, his game suffers. Surprisingly, it’s Dante who drags him out of it—and then drags him into something else. Nothing good can come of secretly sleeping with a teammate, especially one Gabe has feelings for. But with their captain out with an injury, a rookie in perpetual need of a hug, and the race to make the playoffs for the first time since 1995, Gabe has a lot on his plate. He can’t be blamed for forgetting that nothing stays secret forever.
Fortune Academy: Year One
J.R. Thorn - 2019
I have a feeling he was supposed to take me to the monster holding arena to fight and die. Instead, I'm Fortune Academy's newest student. I can relate to the monsters in ways the other students can't. My mentor, who is way too hot for his own good, tells me my behavior is the result of my memory loss and that I'm just trying to identify with a past pain that I've buried too far to feel. I think he's wrong. I think the reason I can't relate to any of the students is because I'm one of the monsters they're trained to kill. I don't fit into any of the supernatural cliques, but that doesn't stop me from collecting bullies. A brawny alpha shifter, a moody dark mage, and a playboy demi-god have decided to break me. They think I don't have any powers and that I was recruited by mistake. It'll be their funeral if they push me too far, because this girl isn't taking any of their shit. My name is Lily Fallen, but don't let my pretty face fool you. I'm a monster in a school uniform and it's only a matter of time before I teach my bullies a lesson they won't forget.
Fortune Academy: Year One is the first of three novels in an upper YA/NA paranormal academy series. Expect a slow-burn enemies-to-lovers romance where there are five guys and no choosing required!
The Dragon Mistress: Book 1
R.A. Steffan - 2018
Too bad they’re stuck with us instead.The angry drunk. The shameless man-whore. The coward who ran away and got his comrades killed. The ice-cold assassin for hire. And me, the girl with abandonment issues as deep and wide as the Southern Sea.I left home in search of adventure. Instead, I stumbled into the middle of a desperate struggle for survival.Five people. Five mythical beasts.If we manage to get through this mess, it’s going to be a miracle.* * *
The Dragon Mistress
by USA Today bestseller R. A. Steffan is a medium-burn fantasy romance series where the heroine doesn’t have to choose one person at the end. It is part of the Eburosi Chronicles, along with The Horse Mistress and The Lion Mistress. It’s not necessary to have read any of the other books in the series before starting The Dragon Mistress arc.A special note for Fantasy readers: herein, you will find explicit love scenes in several interesting and unconventional permutations. If your gut reaction to that is “Eww” or even “Meh,” you probably won't enjoy this series.
Unbroken Promises
Nikki Ash - 2018
We promised to always be best friends, to always put each other first, and that no matter what, no one would come between us. Little did we know that life had its own plans. We grew up and reality set in. We realized that not all love lasts forever, and some promises are meant to be broken. It’s ironic that the promises we made as kids, the ones we thought would hold us together, might just be the very thing that could tear us apart.
Outing the Quarterback
Tara Lain - 2014
He meets his wealthy father’s goals as both the quarterback for the famous SCU football team and a business major, but secretly he attends art school and longs to live as a painter. And he's gay. But if he can win the coveted Milton Scholarship for art, he’ll be able to break from his father at the end of his senior year.In a painting master class, Will meets his divergent opposite, Noah Zajack. A scarred orphan who’s slept on park benches and eaten from trash cans, Noah carefully plans his life and multiple jobs so he has money and time to go to art school. Will's problems seem like nothing compared to Noah's. Noah wants the scholarship too and may have a way to get it since the teacher of his class has designs on him, a plan Will isn't happy about.When a gossipmonger with a popular YouTube channel finds evidence that Will is gay, the quarterback’s closet doors begin to crumble. Hounded by the press and harassed by other players, Will has to choose. Stay in the closet and keep his family’s wealth, or let the doors fall off and walk out with nothing. Nothing but Noah.