Book picks similar to
Spectre by Shiloh Walker


romance
netgalley
dark
contemporary-romance

The End of Me


Tara Brown - 2013
    Now widowed and left to raise her children alone, Evie is prepared for anything. Well, almost anything. There are actually two things she isn't prepared for. The first being a sexy young man named Coop, a CI operative who is thrust into her world as her protector and handler. The other is an arms dealer named Servario, who the military has decided she must gain the trust of. But the world she left behind has changed and unfortunately, so has Evie. The minivan-driving mother of two couldn't be further from the woman she once was and she doesn't have time to catch up. At every turn there seems to be a secret or betrayal awaiting the inexperienced spy. But Evie has a secret too, she just doesn't know it yet. This hot, sexy ride is filled with espionage, secrets, and twists you will not see coming.Adult 19+

Blood to Dust


L.J. Shen - 2016
    Me.His name is Nate and I should hate him, but I don't.I'm not supposed to know his real name, even worse, I'm not supposed to care. He is nothing to me but means to an end. The plan is simple: break free, collect the pieces of my broken soul, kill the bastards and run away.His name is Nathaniel Thomas Vela, and I've never seen his face, though I hear that it's beautiful.Behind the rugged and handsome exterior, there's a quiet murderer, a killer who thinks guns are for pussies and ends people with his bare hands.His name doesn't matter, neither does his face, but what does matter is my heart. And right now, sadly, it's his. Blood to Dust is a standalone, full-length novel. It contains graphic violence and adult situations some may find offensive.

The Bastard's Betrayal


Katee Robert - 2021
    Violently over-protective parents. A giant extended family, all ready to kill anyone who looks at her wrong. Learning to run a business that isn’t exactly on the right side of the law. So, naturally, when she meets a nice guy who isn’t in the life, she falls hard… Right up until the she discovers her new boyfriend isn’t a civilian at all.But he betrayed her.When Dante Verducci was sent on an undercover mission to evaluate the Romanov family for weakness, he never expected to have an instant connection with their unlikely heir. There’s something fierce and feral about Rose that calls to him. They’re alike, even if they’re both lying to each other during the months they date. Before he could figure out a new plan, Rose finds out who he really is, dumps him, and immediately enters an engagement with the heir of a rival family. Yeah, no, that’s not going to work for Dante.Now he’ll do anything to reclaim her. Even go to war.Author's Note: For all tropes, tag, and CWs, please check the author's website.

Forget Me Not


Willow Winters - 2017
     I was only a small girl. Scared and frightened, I was taken from my home and held against my will. His father hurt me, but he protected me and kept me safe as best he could. Until I left him. I ran the first chance I got and even though I knew he wasn’t behind me, I didn’t stop. The branches lashed out at me, punishing me for leaving him in the hands of a monster. I’ve never felt such guilt in my life. Although I survived, the boy was never found. I prayed for him to be safe. I dreamed he’d be alright and come back to me. Even as a young girl I knew I loved him, but I betrayed him. Twenty years later, all my wishes came true. But the boy came back a man. With a grip strong enough to keep me close and a look in his eyes that warned me to never dare leave him again. I was his to keep after all. Twenty years after leaving one hell, I entered another. Our tale was only just getting started. It’s dark and twisted. But that doesn’t make it any less of what it is. A love story. Our love story.

Saved


Angel Payne - 2013
     Garrett Hawkins is the most valuable asset to his Special Forces unit, because, frankly, the guy doesn’t care if he lives or dies anymore. Since the love of his life, Sage Weston, was kidnapped and killed with her medical unit a year ago, Garrett has turned the shell of his soul into the armor of a finely tuned fighting machine. Being the first tapped for the unit’s craziest missions is just fine by him. The less time for memories and the agony they carve into his soul, the better. It’s a plan that works, until Garrett’s world is upended one night in the jungles of Thailand. Memories become reality when the unit is called to rescue a group of kidnapped aid workers, and they discover Sage and her teammate among the retrieved women. Now that Sage is back in his arms, Garrett doesn’t know what to do. He has changed in dramatic ways, especially in the darker tastes of his passion. If he touches Sage again, he’ll want to claim her, restrain her...dominate her. Is Sage’s love strong enough to let Garrett back in, not only as her fiancé but her Dominant? Can she trust that visiting the new shadows of his life will lead her to ecstasy and not ruin? Or can Garrett’s discipline be exactly what her soul needs to find its way back to life—and love—again?

Brick


Jen Davis - 2019
    During the day it’s mud and grime on the construction site. At night…it’s the blood I spill. A drug lord’s enforcer does what needs to be done. It’s my obedience, my loyalty to the boss that keeps my family alive. I know I’m teetering on the edge. I’m losing my humanity, I can feel it. It’s changing me, and it’s only a matter of time before the darkness takes over.Then I meet her. Liv. The only person who sees past my busted knuckles and brutal exterior. She sees…me. But being with me will get her killed. The only way I can keep her safe is by staying away. Until her own actions catapult her into the center of my world—a world which will swallow her whole. Now I’m forced to be the ruthless bastard I’ve been for so long. Only this time it’s not to destroy…but to defend.

Trigger


L.P. Dover - 2017
    . . that’s what I am. It’s what I do. It’s what I live for. I’m no longer the Preston Hale everyone knew. I left that life and the people in it a long time ago the second I made my first kill. I wasn’t going to give in, but when I heard the screams there was no going back. It triggered the pain, the need. I knew what I had to do, and I did it well. But I never expected for Emma Turner – the only link to my past – to come back into my life. She triggers a different emotion inside me, something I hadn’t ever felt. It’s not a want to kill . . . but a need to CLAIM.

Ruthless King


Meghan March - 2017
     New Orleans belongs to me. You don’t know my name, but I control everything you see—and all the things you don’t. My reach knows no bounds, and my demands are always met. I didn’t need to loan money to a failing family distillery, but it amuses me to have them in my debt. To have her in my debt. She doesn’t know she caught my attention. She should’ve been more careful. I’m going to own her. Consume her. Maybe even keep her. It’s time to collect what I’m owed. Keira Kilgore, you’re now the property of Lachlan Mount. *Ruthless King is book one of the Mount Trilogy*

The Bonus


A.J. Adams - 2013
    Facing a lingering and painful death at the hands of the Zeta cartel, Mexico’s most brutal organised crime syndicate, she persuades their enforcer to claim her.Ex marine and dark ops expert Kyle Suarez is chief enforcer for the Zeta cartel. Ruthlessly efficient, he is feared by his enemies. When he claims Chloe, he simply expects to enjoy a well-deserved and disposable bonus.Has Chloe made a huge mistake, or will her choice prove her salvation - and his?Warning: This bad boy dark romance contains explicit scenes of dubious consent, graphic violence and sex. It is for adults only.This bad boy dark romance is a compelling tale of vengeance, murder, cartel violence and finding love in the darkest of times. It is the first in the Zeta Cartel novel series, and can be read as a standalone.

Six


K.I. Lynn - 2016
    It wasn’t my first, but it would be my last.A gun to the head.A trained killer.A deadly conspiracy.Kidnapped and on the run, my life and death is in the hands of a sadist captor who happens to be my one-night stand. Armed with countless weapons, money, and new identities, the man I call Six drags me around the world.The manhunt is on and Six is the next target. Can we find out who is killing off the Cleaners before they find us?Two down, seven to go.When it’s all over he’ll finish the job that dropped him into my life, and end it.Stockholm Syndrome meets bucket list, and the question of what would you do to live before you died. The questions aren’t always answered in black and white. Gray becomes the norm as my morals are tested.Death is a tragedy, and I’ll do anything to stay alive.Are you ready for the last ride of your life? Six has a gun to your head—what would you do?This isn’t a love story.It’s a death story.**Due to the dark and explicit nature of this book, it is recommended for mature audiences only as some scenes may be particularly disturbing.**

The Tutor


K. Larsen - 2017
    She accepts a summer long live-in tutoring job for a handsome man and his little sister at a secluded home deep in the mountains.There is no running water.No electricity.No internet or cell service.When her tutoring job ends she's hit with a brutal turn of events ... she's not permitted to leave. After months in captivity, she makes a harrowing escape with her student that ends in a car accident on a desolate road. When Nora comes to, her student is missing. In a desperate attempt to find the girl, Nora will have to recount her time held captive. The good and the bad. Can Nora and the authorities work together to find the man who took her? Will they rescue the girl Nora tried to save?Author’s Note: This is a dark romantic suspense. Trigger warning: all of them. This will not elicit warm fuzzy feelings

Dark Protector


Celia Aaron - 2017
    Charlie shone like a beacon in a world that had long since lost any light. But she was never meant for me, a man that killed without remorse and collected bounties drenched in blood.I thought staying away would keep her safe, would shield her from me. I was wrong. Danger followed in my wake like death at a slaughter house. I protected her from the threats that circled like black buzzards, kept her safe with kill after kill.But everything comes with a price, especially second chances for a man like me. Killing for her was easy. It was living for her that turned out to be the hard part.Author's Note: This is a full-length romance novel. It's not a super-dark read, no trigger warning. Explicit violence and hot sex included. HEA, no cheating.

Keep Me Safe


Maya Banks - 2014
    Every time she uses it, it costs her a piece of herself. Helping the infuriatingly attractive and impatient Caleb successfully find his sister nearly destroys her. Even though his sexual intensity draws her like a magnet, she needs to get as far away from him as she can.Deeply remorseful for the pain he’s caused, Caleb is determined to make things right. But just when he thinks Ramie's vanished forever, she reappears. She’s in trouble and she needs his help. Now, Caleb will risk everything to protect her — including his heart....

Translucent


Erin Noelle - 2014
    The day I watched my husband murder the woman who was pregnant with his child, my point didn’t just break, it exploded like a full magazine’s worth of hollow points firing through the barrel of a fully-automatic AK-47. Literally. I am no longer his American Princess, nor am I his slave. Now, I’m a murderer in hiding. My name was Bryleigh Carter Oliveira, and that was my story. Translucent is one woman's story of breaking free, starting over, and learning to trust again through willful submission.

Richer Than God


Amelia Wilde - 2020
    And I'm the only one who can save her.In a life like mine, there is only danger dressed up in money and power. I'm a monster in expensive suits and an opulent home. Brigit is an innocent angel with only the clothes on her back.She's on the run from a nightmarish arranged marriage, and I'm her only hope in the city. If she works my business she'll be able to buy herself a new life.But the moment she steps into my life is the moment she's trapped forever.She thinks she can tempt me and slip away like a thief in the night. She thinks I can make her mine and then let her go.She's never been so wrong.Richer Than God is an intense dark billionaire romance. It is the first in a breathtaking new trilogy.