Book picks similar to
Catalyst by Nicole Fanning


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contemporary-romance

The Virgin Clause (The Calegaris Book 1)


Caprice Langden - 2021
    He wasn't my type - tall, dark... dangerous. My stomach flipflopped whenever he was around and I got so tongue-tied I could never get words out of my mouth. But it didn't matter. He never talked to me. Barely knew I existed. Why did I just spend the last decade dreaming about him? I'm shy, quiet… still a virgin. A man like Dante Calegari would never be interested in a girl like me. So, I made him an offer he couldn't refuse. ~ She thinks I don't know how she feels, thinks she's hidden it all from me. She couldn't be more wrong. I've known Noemi since she was twelve, watched her grow up. She was sweet back then, a little shy, too quiet. Never talked to me. Just smiled, nodded, and walked away. Then the sweet girl I knew went away to college, traveled the world and came home to torment me. But it could never happen between us. I'm a ruthless killer and she's the girl next door.Then she made a decision that changed things. She handed me what I needed. A pass to my own personal paradise, or a one-way ticket to Hell, depending on how you looked at it. She gave me permission to ruin her. She asked me to agree to the Virgin Clause and I wasn't strong enough to say 'no.' Now, she's all mine. If I can keep her alive.

Sins of a King


Emma Slate - 2016
    Billionaire. Criminal.I should hate him for what he’s done to me, but I’m powerless to resist him.His touch engulfs me. His demands conquer me.But Flynn Campbell isn’t who I thought he was.Suddenly, I’m thrust into a world of seduction and sin.Ensnared by danger and power, foreign desires burn within me.It's time to embrace the darkness...And become a queen.

Sweet Mercy


K.A. Tucker - 2019
    Tucker comes the dark and steamy Empire Nightclub series.One visit to my father in prison—convicted for a murder he didn’t commit—and I’ve attracted the attention of the last man I’d ever want knowing that I exist.Gabriel Easton.Son of an infamous crime boss. Deplorable womanizer. Scoundrel to the core.Worse, he has figured out how desperate I am to protect my father from brutality behind bars. He has the power to grant that protection, and he has offered it … for a price.Me.I'll do anything for my father, including agree to Gabriel's cruel game. But I won't comply with his every whim and wish. Unfortunately for me, I think my loathing for him is what he’s enjoying most.That's fine. By the time I’m through with him, he’ll be crying my name.Mercy.

Savage


Michelle St. James - 2016
    Growing up on the mean streets of London, he clawed his way to the top of a criminal empire with nothing but sheer force of will and the determination to need no one. Ever. Then he met Jenna Carver, and all bets were off — until the day she walked out of his life without a backward glance. Leaving him was the hardest thing she’d ever done. As a kid, Jenna knew how people looked at her. Like she was stupid. Worthless. Poor. So she spent her life working to become someone else. Then she met Farrell Black, and their all-consuming passion blew a hole in everything she thought she knew about herself. Until she was forced to make a terrible choice. Now Jenna is back in London for her father's funeral, desperate to avoid the one man who can banish her hard-earned reason in favor of red-hot ecstasy. But when her father’s death is tied to an abuse of power at the highest levels, she has no choice but to ask Farrell for help. As they work together to find answers to a puzzle that could have dangerous implications, desire threatens to undo them both — and forces Jenna to choose between keeping the secret of a lifetime and having the one man who can command her body and soul. ***Approximately 325 pages and 75,000 words. Amazon's algorithms for calculating page count are sometimes incorrect.***

Nikolai: A Mafia Prince Romance


Shandi Boyes - 2018
    It is the women determined to tame the bad boys.By tame, we mean stake our claim.

Vow of Deception


Rina Kent - 2021
    My tormentor.The most notorious man in the city offers me a job.Act as his dead wife.Adrian Volkov isn’t the type of person who takes no for an answer.He commands with an iron fist and all his orders are met.When he approaches me with the offer, I have two options.Go to prison or put myself under his wrath.I choose to have a roof over my head. What’s so hard about acting, right?Wrong.The moment I step into his wife’s shoes, everything spirals out of control.My only way of survival is through Adrian.Or is it?This book is part of a trilogy and is not standalone

Ruthless Saint


S. Massery - 2021
    His gaze steals my breath.Even if my heart thinks this could work, my brain knows better.We say “I do” with his brother’s blood on our clothes,and the bars of my gilded cage slam closed.Our wedding vows are forever – ’til death do us part.But with enemies closing in from all sides, death might be closer than we think.Please note: this book contains dark content that some readers may find distressing.

Indebted


J.L. Beck - 2014
    That all changed in a blink of an eye the moment Bree came home for break. She didn't expect to find her dad strapped to chair, a gun pointed at his head. Alzerro “Zerro” King wasn't a man to be messed with. Women flocked to him and men ran from him. He ruled the mafia with an iron fist and no one ever crossed him unless they wanted to pay the price. He believed the only way to pay for something, if unable to do so, was to do it in blood. Nothing got him harder than stringing someone up, and putting a bullet in their head. That is until Bree. One look is all it took for him to know she could pay for her father’s debt in many other ways… Ways that could get him hard. Could a big city mafia king fall in love with the small town country girl? Would she be able to handle his dark and demanding ways? When push comes to shove, would Bree end up running only to be killed? Or would she sacrifice herself for love?

Beast: The Beginning


Mary Catherine Gebhard - 2017
     I thought selling myself to a mafia boss was noble. So what if they called him the Beast? I grew up in rags, and he would lift me to riches. All I had to do was give him my soul. He was punishing. Insatiable. Captivating. Nothing like I expected him to be. Each day my reality blurred, leaving me wondering if I was slave or princess. The longer I stayed, the more I lost myself to him. Even after every cruelty the Beast visited upon me, I longed for his touch. Even after every savage word he spoke, I begged for his lips. I thought the worst thing he could take was my body. I was too naïve to guard my heart. Once upon a time, I thought love was a fairytale. Now I know better than to speak of happily ever afters. Beast is the first book in the Hate Story duet. About what it means to fall in love with the person who has absolutely destroyed you, it contains disturbing and graphic situations that may be a trigger for some.

Cruel Saints


Michelle Heard - 2021
    Loyalty is owned. Love is taken. Little did I know my love and freedom would be taken to form a new alliance.Brutal, possessive, and dangerous, Lucian is feared by all. Including myself. When his father is assassinated, Lucian takes his rightful place as head of the Cotroni family. They rule the Mafia with an iron fist, and he’s set his sights on my family.Until now, we’ve been the only threat, but when a new one emerges, my father is forced to arrange a marriage between Lucian and myself.He might be handsome but he’s not the kind of man who loves. He takes what he wants and right now, it’s my body. I might belong to him in name, but the question remains – will our union be consummated in blood or love? STANDALONE: Romance Suspense full-length novel.WARNING: This book contains subject matter that may be sensitive for some readers. There is dark and triggering content between these pages. 18+ only. Please read responsibly.

Velvet Fire


K.B. Winters - 2020
    Kill or be killed. I was born into this grim reality. MaisieI never thought I’d fall in love with a cold blooded killer.But with those dreamy eyes and that smile that won’t quit.I find I’m thinking of Virgil more and more.So what if he’s a criminal.My brothers are too. I’ve been around bad boys all of my life.And I’m not sure,Is he really that bad?Even after he saves my life?VirgilI’m not a knight in shining armor,Or even one of the good guys,But I really screw up when I kidnap the wrong girl.Maisie from Texas, with curves in all the right places.She thinks I’m her salvation—her rescuer.Not the guy who drugged her...But they say everything happens for a reason,And she’s my reason.For everything.I’ll rise up for her. Protect her.Crush those who are out to hurt her,And prove not all Prince Charmings ride a white stallion.Some wear a gun.And I’ll do it for her.For us.And when she’s safe, I’ll make her mine.

Thy Kingdom Come


Monica James - 2021
    My father says it’s my birthright, but all I see is a curse. It’s because of the Kelly name my mum was slain by the Doyles—our enemies in Dublin, the fellas livin’ on borrowed time. All of Belfast fears my family, especially me. I’m Puck Kelly, otherwise known as Punky; the lad ye don’t want to double cross. I don’t do feelings or emotions. I never have…until she walks into my world.Babydoll is a liar and a thief, but I can’t stay away. We both thrive in the darkness because that’s where our demons can play.No word af a lie, sixteen years later, those monsters still haunt my dreams. But every monster is scared of somethin’…and that somethin’ is me.No more hiding in the shadows because I’m huntin’ youse. Run, wee monsters, run.

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.

Lucian


Bethany-Kris - 2015
    Family in his world is more than blood and sharing a last name. It’s the honor, respect, business, and the life. Being a Capo is just a stepping stone until it’s time for him to take on the role of underboss but a chance meeting with her could be the one thing he’d risk it all for.She is exactly what he didn’t know he was looking for.Jordyn Reese spends her time trying to stay under the radar of a man who wouldn’t think twice about killing her. Unwillingly affiliated with a dangerous MC gang, her life is dominated by the men surrounding her and her future rests solely in how useful she can be for them. The last thing she needs is some Mafioso gaining her more unwanted attention from the club.He is everything she should stay away from but can’t.Notoriously violent when it comes to getting what he wants, Lucian will stop at nothing to make the target on Jordyn’s back disappear. But sometimes the worst threats are the ones you can’t see until it’s too late. The truth behind Lucian’s history is about to take center stage in more ways than one, and it’ll either save him … or kill him.This world leaves everyone a little filthy.Filthy Marcellos, Book One***Filthy Marcellos: La Cosa Nostra is not just a choice of regime and routine, it’s a culture. Born as mafia royalty, the Marcello brothers were raised ingrained with the beliefs and rules of what it meant to be a Mafioso prince. It is for life. Their status is considered a given right. They will always be these people. They will always be Marcellos.

Sparrow


L.J. Shen - 2016
    The son of a dead mobster. The heart throb with steel blue eyes. "The Fixer" who can make or break you in this city. Oh, and my new husband. Sparrow RaynesThat's me. No one seemed to remember my name up until he barged into my life. But then he caged me.Kidnapped me.And killed every chance I had to runaway from the place where we grew up.Put simply, Troy Brennan clipped my wings.I have dreams, big ones, but I doubt he'd ever let me chase them. I have no idea why he'd decided to take me as his wife. But I do know this: pissing off this man will not do me any good. At all.Sparrow is a standalone, full-length novel. It contains graphic violence and adult situations some may find offensive.