Book picks similar to
North of the Stars by Monica James


historical-romance
historical
romance
dark-romance

The Sweetest Oblivion


Danielle Lori - 2018
    . . Nicknamed Sweet Abelli for her docile nature, Elena smiles on cue and has a charming response for everything. She’s the favored daughter, the perfect mafia principessa . . . or was.Now, all she can see in the mirror’s reflection is blood staining her hands like crimson paint. They say first impressions are everything . . . In the murky waters of New York’s underworld, Elena’s sister is arranged to marry Nicolas Russo. A Made Man, a boss, a cheat—even measured against mafia standards. His reputation stretches far and wide and is darker than his black suits and ties. After his and Elena’s first encounter ends with an accidental glare on her part, she realizes he’s just as rude as he is handsome. She doesn’t like the man or anything he stands for, though that doesn’t stop her heart from pattering like rain against glass when he’s near, nor the shiver that ghosts down her spine at the sound of his voice.And he’s always near. Telling her what to do. Making her feel hotter than any future brother-in-law should. Elena may be the Sweet Abelli on the outside, but she’s beginning to learn she has a taste for the darkness, for rough hands, cigarettes, and whiskey-colored eyes. Having already escaped one scandal, however, she can hardly afford to be swept up in another.Besides, even if he were hers, everyone knows you don’t fall in love with a Made Man . . . right?This is a standalone forbidden romance.

Stoned


Mandi Beck - 2016
    For as long as Stone can remember, Willow has been his music – the notes that weave his soul together. His rhythm. Until he threw her away. All he has left is a handful of pills and a few lines of powder to make him forget her. And he tries, over and over. Clean and ready to make things right, he’s faced with the fact that Willow’s moved on. She’s not the same girl he cast aside. Willow’s a woman sure about her purpose in life. Sure about who she’s meant to love. Stone may be lost without his rhythm, but Willow has found so much more.

His Hollow Heart


Rachel Leigh - 2021
    Two orphans who vowed to never part. I was selfish. For once, I had to be. The last time I saw Callum he was standing at the dormer window as I sat in the back seat of the car. His dark eyes foreign to me. The hatred that radiated from his glare shot through me with more force than a silver bullet. In a matter of minutes he had become a stranger. No longer my best friend. He was now a boy with a hollow heart who was headed down a dark path. A path I knew I’d never cross again. Or, so I thought. CallumWe had a deal—always stay together. The day Bella left, I vowed I would find her. And when I did, she would feel what I felt as I watched her pull away into a new life, with a new family. Leaving me behind to endure a life that was wrapped inside the hands of a monster.It’s been twelve years, but I’ve finally found her. Now it’s time for her to bask in the darkness she’s created inside of me.

Harley & Rose


Carmen Jenner - 2016
    So what if this isn’t her actual wedding day, and that she’s only here because Harley was left at the altar just a few hours earlier? Trading San Francisco for paradise and swapping her bridesmaid’s bouquet for a Blue Hawaii, Rose hopes she can finally escape the friend zone. Once upon a time they had been more than friends, but life got in the way. She’s spent every day since wishing Harley would get a clue. She’s always been his best friend. He’s always been hers. She’s in love with him. He’s … not in love with her. He’s … marrying someone else. He’s … hiding something. He’s … well—it’s complicated.

Junkie


Heather C. Leigh - 2016
    A junkie. A whore. I'll do anything to get my next fix.Anything.Including walking right onto the property of Austin's most ruthless and feared drug lord to beg for some H. I don't know his name, only that people call him Boss. Oh, and that he won't think twice to put a bullet in my head.But like I said, I'll do anything to get my next fix. Even if it costs me my life.Or changes it forever.

Chasing Love


Kat T. Masen - 2020
    So when the ever-so-perfect Julian Baker proposes marriage, I'm ready to forget the past and move on with my new love.In a cruel twist of fate, my past and future collide. I'm forced to face the man who destroyed my heart back in high school.Lex Edwards, turned billionaire tycoon, is ruthless, cunning, and will not stop until I'm his.A complicated love triangle was never something I imagined when Julian proposed to me. Especially not involving Lex.Hearts and egos are bound to be broken.But whose heart will capture mine when the darkness fades? **This title was previously published as Into the Darkness. It has been extensively rewritten, re-edited, and has a steamy new cover**

Broken English


Marita A. Hansen - 2016
    The first was the epic depictions of Hell from Dante’s Inferno, with people burning for their sins. The second image was a sexual depiction. I don’t know where it came from, but as far back as I can remember, I had always associated the name Dante with a beautiful and sexy man. I'd imagined a dark-haired, dark-eyed, gorgeous lothario, the type who could capture a woman’s heart with just one look. Dante was the Fabio of my generation, the heartthrob that got women’s hearts beating fast, made us want this man to rip our clothes off and to throw us onto the bed.Little did I know that the Dante that walked into my life was very different from the one I’d imagined. Oh, he was dark-haired, dark-eyed, gorgeous, even a lothario ... just ... he wasn’t a man. Instead, he was someone who was going to send me to the Hell his namesake had written about.And I was his teacher.Tags: Taboo, Literary Fiction, Teacher/Student Relationship, English Teacher, Male Student, Mental Health Issues, Abuse, Poetry, Gangs, High School.The BROKEN LIVES series will be broken up into two sets (duets). Each set (duet) has a self-contained, standalone story. Broken English (part 1) and Shattered Poetry (Part 2) are the first set, finishing the high school stage of Clara’s and Dante’s lives. The next set, books 3 and 4, is a new story, taking their relationship to another level.

Vicious Prince


Lili St. Germain - 2018
    A brutal abduction.And a love so forbidden, it might destroy them both.Avery Capulet is missing.Taken by a madman. Kept in the dark.She might not survive.He’ll use her body. Destroy her mind. All before he ever lays a hand on her.Rome Montague is a drug dealer. A criminal. A thief.And he needs the secrets Avery and her family are keeping – even if it means cutting them out of her pretty Capulet flesh.Rome Montague is missing – but nobody will miss him.Not that it matters; After the things he’s done to this girl, he doesn’t deserve to be found.Vicious Prince, set in the criminal underbelly of San Francisco, follows two warring families who are ruled by blood, power and twisted desire.Please note this book was formerly titled Verona Blood.

The Conqueror


Brenda Joyce - 1990
    Lauded for his bravery in France, in England he was the hated enemy. Once ensconced in his new domain, Rolfe became determined to tame the Saxon beauty Ceidre, Alice’s illegitimate sister, whose spirit and sensuality made him risk treason to have her—not Lady Alice—in his bed.The PrizeMysterious and seductive, she was no lady but a spy for the rebel cause of her noble half brothers. Refusing to bow to this arrogant warrior who ignited her forbidden passion, Ceidre was swept into a dangerous liaison tied to the fate of England and kings. Yet with his kisses on her lips, his skilful hands on her body, she would have to struggle not to surrender to…The Conqueror.

Distorted


Nyla K.Nyla K. - 2021
    And trust me, you’ll wish you were. We’re the stain on society. The freaks, the creeps, your favorite Netflix documentaries come to life. They lock us up and throw away the key, because we deserve it. But not me. I’m just a lowly bank robber. I don’t belong here, surrounded by psychopaths and killers with no remorse… At least, I don’t think I do.Getting by unscathed is my top priority. Unfortunately for me and my fellow prisoners, those in charge are more dangerous than we are. You see, the guards run the show, and I seem to have caught the attention of the most twisted one. He has a name, but it might as well be Officer. We move around one another like a sun and a moon, revolving in an axis of confused lust and torment until the truth is distorted, and the thing I once feared becomes that which I crave; my vile addiction, somehow so exquisite. Reality warps in the dungeon, and I’m left wondering which prison is worse… the one holding my body, or my mind. *DO NOT READ OR POST SPOILERS! I am begging you to think of your fellow readers, in your reviews, your posts… everywhere. Revealing plot twists is a dick move. And I promise, it’ll be fun to go in blind. **Distorted is the first book in the Alabaster Penitentiary series. It is a full M/M romance, with HEA. Each book in this series is technically a standalone, though they are interconnected, so it will be recommended to read in order, as references to this story will be made in future books. Distorted is intended for mature audiences and open-minded readers ONLY! If you prefer the same old story, this book won’t be for you. This story is dark, probably darker for some than others, so please proceed with caution, and if you’re easily triggered, steer clear. You’ve been warned.

The Maiden


Celia Aaron - 2018
    But I've discovered so much more, and the darkness here is seducing me, pulling me down until all I can think of is him. Adam Monroe, the Prophet's son, a dark prince to an empire that grows by the day. He is tasked with keeping me safe from the wolves of the outside world. But the longer I stay at the Cloister, the more I realize the wolves are already inside and under the Prophet's control. If Adam discovers the real reason I'm here, he'll bay for my blood with the rest of them. Until then, I will be Delilah, an obedient servant of the Prophet during the day and Adam's Maiden at night.Author's Note: If you have a trigger, this book will pull it. The Maiden is the first book of The Cloister Series. The Prophet will release in May, and the conclusion to the series, The Church, will release in June.

Luca Vitiello


Cora Reilly - 2019
    Cruelty ran in my veins like poison. It ran in the veins of every Vitiello man, passed on from father to son, an endless spiral of monstrosity. A born monster shaped into an even worse monster by my father’s blade and fists and harsh words. I was raised to become Capo, to rule without mercy, to dish out brutality without a second thought. Raised to break others. When Aria was given to me in marriage, everyone waited with baited breath to see how fast I’d break her like my father broke his women. How I’d crush her innocence and kindness with the force of my cruelty. Breaking her would have taken little effort. It came naturally to me. I was gladly the monster everyone feared. Until her.Author's note: Bound By Honor in Luca's POV.

Confess


A. Zavarelli - 2018
    Two signatures. A marriage of inconvenience. Lucian West is one of the most hated men in America. He’s a ruthless attorney who gets what he wants in the courtroom, and outside of it. Now, he wants me. For reasons I can’t fathom, he’s determined to make me his wife. He makes it clear he’s not above blackmailing me to put a ring on my finger. But he should know I can’t be domesticated. I don’t know how to love men. I only know how to leave them… with everything I want. ***I don't do love. I don't even do relationships. But all of that changes when I stumble upon the tragic, beautiful woman confessing her sins in the dark of night. She’s a thief. A con. The essence of everything I loathe. And yet she lures me in with her lying eyes.I want to protect her. I want to bring her to heel. I want to teach her a lesson she’ll never forget. She belongs to me, she just doesn’t know it yet. I've already made her mine in name. Now it’s time to claim the rest of her.

Amore, Part 1


Bella Jewel - 2016
    It is love that destroys us.”I’m just a normal girl. Or so you would think. I’ve never thought of myself as anything different. Until I met him.He doesn’t think I’m normal. He thinks I’m special. Special enough to be in his life. Special enough to enter his world. Special enough for his bed. Rafael Lencioni. Dangerous. Beautiful. Terrifying. My story is the one that’s never told. I’m not the daughter. I’m not the wife. I’m not the forbidden lover. I’m not a sister or a mother. I’m not who you think I am. So for me to fit into their world, I have to do something I never wanted in my life. Something I would have frowned upon until I met him. I have to change who I am. I have to shut down my heart. I have to accept my place. My body belongs to him. My heart isn’t permitted to.Those are his rules. But rules were made to be broken…right?

Lord of London Town


Tillie Cole - 2020
    She has never wanted for anything. A comfortable future as a married London socialite ⁣awaits her. But since the age of thirteen, Cheska has harboured a secret—an unshakeable fixation on a boy who could never offer her anything close to ⁣comfort. A boy steeped in sin and draped in depravity. A boy born into the possessive embrace of darkness. ⁣⁣When Cheska’s seemingly perfect world is ripped apart by an unknown but deadly enemy, there’s only one person she can run to. One person in the world ⁣who has the power to keep her safe. The one person her weak and shattered heart craves. ⁣⁣Arthur Adley. The new head of the most feared crime family in London. ⁣⁣Forced too young to take the helm of the Adley firm, Arthur has become even more ruthless, formidable, and cold than ever before. His enemies are circling, and he must fight—and kill—to maintain his family’s place at the top of the London crime underworld. There is no room for weakness, emotion, or loss of control.⁣⁣But then Cheska smashes back into his life with the force of a wrecking ball. She has no place in this dark, vicious, and bloodthirsty world. And worse, she is the solitary chink in his impenetrable armour. He’s already pushed her away once, but this time she desperately needs him. She’s broken, lost, and in danger, and he is the only one who can help.⁣⁣Arthur must protect her. He must destroy those who dare to threaten her, hunt down those who would take what is his. He would raze all of London to the ⁣ground to keep her safe… but can he also protect himself?⁣⁣The infamous Dark Lord of London Town faces his most brutal battle yet—the crippling weight of the past, the unrelenting enemies lurking in the shadows… and the havoc that Cheska’s presence is wreaking on the granite fortress that was once his heart.⁣