Book picks similar to
Deepening Dark by Vanessa Green


romance
hades-and-persephone
mythology
erotica

Hooked


Emily McIntire - 2021
     Once Upon A Time, there was a little boy. His belly full of laughter, his life full of joy. Until one day, something changed; stripped his innocence away.The hole inside making space for the devil to come and play. His dreams gone forever, he grew up way too fast. An endless night of crocodiles, and watches made of glass. He grew into a villain, the taste of vengeance on his tongue. Craving to make his enemies pay for the misdeeds they had done. Instead he found a darling girl, and refused to let her go. For what better way to make the man pay, than to steal his little shadow. *Hooked is a full-length, complete standalone and the first in The Never After Series: A collection of fractured fairy tales where the villains get the happy ever after. This is a DARK Contemporary romance (not a literal retelling and not fantasy) featuring mature themes and content that may not be suitable for all audiences. Reader discretion is advised.*

Saved by the Dragon


Vivienne Savage - 2015
    When a rainstorm strikes during a spontaneous mountain climb, she has no choice but to seek shelter - and become hopelessly lost within a dank and dismal cave system. There’s one more problem: her golden-eyed, incredibly sexy rescuer isn’t the average hiker. He’s also a dragon. This 25,000-word, humorous novella is the first part of a series of standalone stories featuring hot shifters. It contains strong sexual themes and is not intended for readers under adult age.

The Boss


Abigail Barnette - 2013
    But a delayed flight and a hot one-night stand with a stranger changed her mind, putting her firmly on track to a coveted position at a New York fashion magazine.When the irresistible stranger from that one incredible night turns out to be her new boss – billionaire and publishing magnate Neil Elwood – Sophie can’t resist the chance to rekindle the spark between them… and the opportunity to explore her submissive side with the most Dominant man she’s ever known.Neil is the only man who has ever understood Sophie’s need to submit in the bedroom, and the only man who has ever satisfied those desires. When their scorching, no-strings-attached sexual relationship becomes something more, Sophie must choose between her career and heart… or risk losing them both.

Stolen Magic


Marina Finlayson - 2016
    When a crooked fireshaper wants her to steal a ring from the boss of his order, she knows it’s a one-way ticket to sleeping with the fishes. Her answer is to drop off the face of the earth. Safely hidden in a quiet seaside town, she just needs to keep her head down and pretend to be a regular human. Since her only magical ability is the power to control animals, that should be easy, right? Then a new fireshaper shows up in town. He’s hot as hell but oddly hostile. With his suspicious eyes watching her every move, her safe haven starts feeling more like a trap. When her best friend disappears, Lexi knows the time for hiding is over. The fireshapers might be more powerful, but Lexi’s not one to abandon a friend. It will take everything she’s got to save them both from the flames.

Minotaur: Blooded


Naomi Lucas - 2018
    A labyrinth that spanned an eternity filled with creatures that howled through the night. She was a daughter to farmers that worked the fields and endured a quiet life as a peasant, away from the capital and its nihilistic celebrations; away from all that would look at her and discern her worth. Because to be chosen as a sacrifice was to be chosen to die. Until one night, while at the edge, she heard a husky voice in the darkness.Vedikus Bathyr.He prowled the overgrown passages at the farthest edges where the true, intelligent beasts roamed. They were all there for the same reasons: to kill each other and capture the humans that entered the labyrinth.On one fated night a human girl called out to him. A girl with a voice that quickened his blood. But he wasn’t the only one to hear her call...---Minotaur is a dark fantasy romance with explicit violence and possible triggers. Mature readers only.

Fifty Shades of Alice in Wonderland


Melinda DuChamp - 2012
    Her boyfriend is nice and polite, but he's also quick and careless in bed, and doesn't give Alice the attention and variety she craves. But he's not entirely to blame, because Alice herself doesn't understand her own needs. She's heard about what sex is supposed to be like, but has never felt anything remotely close to what she's read about in runaway bestselling books.Then Alice follows a vibrating white rabbit down a deep, dark hole, which leads to a place beyond her wildest imagination. There are no nice boys--or girls--down here. Only those who indulge in secret, forbidden, kinky fantasies. Alice is confused and frightened and... aroused. She is bound. Teased. Spanked. Toyed. Brought to the limits of sexual endurance. And during her trials, she begins to understand her body's needs for the very first time.This isn't the fairy tale you grew up reading. This isn't for children at all.This is for those with dark desires, who wish to explore erotic excess beyond the plain vanilla of everyday life. Follow Alice down the rabbit hole, if you dare...

Grabbed by Vicious


Lolita Lopez - 2013
    One of the frightening sky warriors from the warship Valiant is hot on her heels and intent on capturing her as his new bride. He takes her down and places his collar around her neck. With one word, he claims her.Mine.Born and bred for the military, Vicious has spent the last twenty-four years rising through the ranks. This dark-haired sprite ensnared him with one glance. Now she is his reward.Despite her fear of Vicious, Hallie surrenders under his skillful hands and mouth. Vicious makes a promise to her. If she’ll submit to him, she’ll know only pleasure and comfort. After a lifetime of hardship, his offer tempts her greatly.One night with Hallie and Vicious feels his protective instincts flaring. He’ll do anything to make her happy and keep her safe, even if that means surrendering his heart. Though he intended to master her, Vicious realizes it may be his sweet Hallie who masters him.Inside Scoop: Our heroine endures trials and violence with strength equal to that of her warrior mate. (She also witnesses F/F play, and endures a collar and light BDSM. Fortunately she likes that part.)Librarian Note: Per blog post from the author, this series has been put on hold and is unlikely to be completed. For more information, please see authors post.http://www.lolitalopezbooks.com/news/...

Queen Takes Knights


Joely Sue Burkhart - 2017
    Two vampire knights sworn to protect her.It's about to get very hot... and bloody...Ever since her mother was murdered by monsters five years ago, Shara Isador has been on the run. Alone, scared, and exhausted, she's finally cornered in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Out of hope with nowhere else to turn, she's ready to end it all when two men come to her rescue.They say she's a lost queen descended from Isis, and they're her Blood, vampire knights sworn to protect her. It all seems like a crazy nightmare, until the alpha offers his blood. Then she realizes she's never wanted anything more. Except maybe his body... and his friend's, too.But they're not the only ones searching for a lost queen. Shara must learn how to wield her new powers quickly and conquer her fears if she intends to keep them all alive.This is a MMFFM+ polyam series and Shara will never be forced to choose just one. #whychoose

Club Shadowlands


Cherise Sinclair - 2009
    At first shocked, she soon becomes aroused watching the interactions between the Doms and their subs. But she's a professional woman--an accountant--and surely isn't a submissive...is she?Master Z hasn't been so attracted to a woman in years. But the little sub who has wandered into his club intrigues him. She's intelligent. Reserved. Conservative. After he discovers her interest in BDSM, he can't resist tying her up and unleashing the passion she hides within.Publisher's Note: This book contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find objectionable: Anal play/intercourse, strong BDSM theme and content (including/not limited to bondage, caning, restraints, spanking, etc), exhibitionism, voyeurism.

The Dark Wife


Sarah Diemer - 2011
    Now, only a goddess can tell the truth. Persephone has everything a daughter of Zeus could want--except for freedom. She lives on the green earth with her mother, Demeter, growing up beneath the ever-watchful eyes of the gods and goddesses on Mount Olympus. But when Persephone meets the enigmatic Hades, she experiences something new: choice. Zeus calls Hades "lord" of the dead as a joke. In truth, Hades is the goddess of the underworld, and no friend of Zeus. She offers Persephone sanctuary in her land of the dead, so the young goddess may escape her Olympian destiny. But Persephone finds more than freedom in the underworld. She finds love, and herself.

Saving Me


Alannah Lynne - 2010
    Deceit. Backstabbing friends… Welcome to the jungle known as advertising… Kat Owens can tell you all about the snake-infested world of big-time advertising. Thanks to an ex-best friend co-worker and a gone-wrong love affair with a client, she’s forced to leave her large Charlotte agency for a small-town coastal one. It’s do-or-die time to prove she can be a success to the aging grandfather she adores. Which means she can’t afford to be distracted by a client who’s a walking, talking definition of sex… Even if he is the man who stole her heart thirteen months before in a one-night stand she can’t forget. Erik Monteague is a handsome, charismatic, highly respected businessman who has it all. Or so it seems. Only his closest friends know the truth about the guilt and emotional scars he carries, or why, following his fiancée’s death, he invoked the twenty-four/two rule. He never spends more than twenty-four hours with a woman, he rarely dates them twice, and he never thinks about them afterward. But Kat Owens is different. She cheated him out of twelve hours, and now he can’t forget her. At least that’s what he tells himself, because admitting the truth is too dangerous. When she suddenly appears in his hometown, he sets out to finish what they started thirteen months earlier. But while his perfectly executed seduction gets Kat back in his bed, the emotional fallout is more than he counted on. Will he face his tragic past once and for all… or spend the rest of his life running?

January


Audrey Carlan - 2015
    I needed money. A lot of money. One million dollars to be exact. The amount didn’t matter. All that mattered is that at the end of that price tag held my father’s life.No money. No life.The time limit was one year. On January 1st I had to pay up or my Father was going to be killed.When you’re faced with an ultimatum like this, you do whatever you have to do.And that’s exactly what I did.The job…Exquisite Escorts. My role, serve as high priced arm candy to anyone that can afford the $100,000 price tag for a month of my company. Sex is optional (for me) and a 20% increase on the price.***Mia Saunders just barely escaped a paltry life back home in Las Vegas until she gets the call that her Father has been beaten to within an inch of his life for not paying his gambling debt. Problem is, the lone shark is her lousy, ruthless ex-boyfriend. Another guy in a long line of men she’d fallen head over heels for. Not anymore. Mia’s mission is simple. Serve as a high-priced escort for her Aunt’s company and pay monthly against her Father’s bad debt. A month with a rich man who she doesn’t have to sleep with if she doesn’t want to? Easy money. At least that’s the way it was supposed to go.The stories will feature Mia, told from her perspective as she continues her journey as an escort to twelve clients in twelve different locations.Warning: This book is designed for audiences 18+ due to language and graphic sexual content.

I Married a Lizardman


Regine Abel - 2021
    A pretty face, top-notch skills, and hard work mean nothing if your dowry doesn’t include fertile lands. With her twenty-fifth birthday approaching, and no suitors even remotely sniffing in her general direction, Susan will be forced to leave the family lands to work as an indentured servant in the capital city. Her only way out is to settle for an arranged marriage through the PMA – the Prime Mating Agency. She just never expected to be paired to a grumpy, massive lizardman, and above all not to grow so fond of his scales and quirky ways.With everything going on, the last thing Olix needs is a mate, especially a squishy, scaleless, off-worlder with strange ways, and an obsession with farming. He is a Hunter, not a dirt digger. The Seer must have been mistaken when she insisted that, for the sake of the people, he take a mate from the stars. How can such a tiny thing be their salvation? And yet, his Susan’s softness is disturbingly addictive while hiding a surprising resilience.With his ancestral lands on the line and the future of the clans threatened, could this wisp of a woman turn their fate around?

Iron


Ronin Winters - 2015
    Sexy, sophisticated Doctor Isabella Santiago is not meant for pack life. He’s protecting them both from a life of misery and crushed dreams, the type of life his parents had. Bella, though, has her own idea about what’s best for her, and she’s done letting her werewolf dictate their relationship. This Mating Season she’s going to test Iron’s control, because while Iron may never break, she’s going to do everything possible to make him bend. *** This Werewolf Shifter BBW story is complete and total down to the HEA! Enjoy the read! ---------------------------- The mating moon is rising… Wherever that silver light touches, lone male werewolves are seized by the urge to find their mates. Join these six packs of growly alpha males (with six-packs!) as they seek out the smart, sassy women who are strong enough to claim them forever. The “Mating Season” werewolf shifter novellas are brought to you by six authors following the adventures of six different packs. Each novella is the story of a mated pair (or trio!) with their Happily Ever After. Enjoy the run!

Her Dragon To Slay


Julia Mills - 2013
    But will her moxie help when her destiny falls at her feet on a long dark trip home from work? Over 100 years of honor and commitment to his ancient clan’s Guard have made Rayne the fearless leader all are proud to follow into battle. When the long foretold pull of his mate makes the calm, cool and collected Commander fall from the sky will he be able to save his mate from his enemies in time? The chemistry between this strong-willed curvy girl and fierce warrior makes all the difference in the world where nothing is as it seems. The existence of an ancient race of honor-clad, tradition-bound protectors might be hard to accept but now the dead are coming back to life and holding a knife to her neck. The Universe made her for him now it’s up to them to stay alive long enough to live happily ever after.