Book picks similar to
The Assassin's Wife by Nikita Slater
mafia
dark
contemporary
anti-hero
Little Dove
Layla Frost - 2020
Yeah.Once upon a time.Isn’t that how all good fairy tales start? And Maximo and I, we were definitely a fairy tale.Not the cleaned-up, sanitized ones where life’s problems were solved with a smile and a song. We were the old-school kind. The twisted tales packed with murder, violence, and tragic beginnings.Okay, so maybe we weren’t a traditional fairy tale. After all, Maximo was more villain than prince. He was scarily sexy. Devilishly charming. Controlling, possessive, and dangerous.Especially when it came to me. His little dove.And heaven help anyone who tried to free me from my gilded cage.Warning: Recommended for readers 18+. This book features graphic language, sex, violence, and a Daddy obsessed with his little dove. If this doesn't sound like your kind of fairy tale, this may not be the book for you.
Deadly Vows
Haley Stuart - 2018
For Elise, it means something entirely different. Thrown into a marriage on her father’s orders, Elise isn’t prepared to be married to the man known as Luca Pasquino. Luca is the next capo in line to take over his father’s empire with an iron fist. He’s cruel, he’s evil, and he’s ready to destroy anything and anyone that gets in the way of his plans for complete control. Elise has no idea what is in store for her. All she knows is that she can try to survive her life for the rest of her days with Luca.
Whipping Girl
L. Jacobs - 2017
I was taken, trained and conditioned to be everything that they needed from me and as a reward I received a Gift. My name is Allyanna and I am that Gift. I was taken from my family and used by The Guard to keep Alexander in line, I am their insurance, their leash, and their whipping girl.***DISCLAIMER*** This is NOT a completely fluffy story. Although it contains some humor and sweetness, it also has dark elements that might make some uncomfortable. It also contains elements of dominance, obsession, discipline and dubious consent. There’s also some blood and violence doled out. If any of this offends you, this may not be the book for you.
The Bratva's Baby
Jane Henry - 2019
My orders are simple.Capture her.Marry her.Take her inheritance.Get rid of her.The bookish little recluse is worth more than she knows.She's an unassuming librarian.I'm the brigadier of the Russian Bratva.She has no friends.I command a small army.She's a modest virgin.And now she's mine.
Flawed
Francette Phal - 2014
That's the only memory he carries from a childhood he does not remember. And now it is all he knows. Blood is his life.Knox Bishop has done a lot of horrible things, all at the command of the man who holds his leash. It's a matter of loyalty for him. Allegiance to the man who saved his life when he was a child. So he goes where he is needed and does what he is told. He tortures. He kills. He kills. He tortures. It is an unrelenting cycle that he constantly craves and can never quite satisfy.Until her.Eighteen year old Lacey Barnes distributes her assets to fund her dreams. Medical school is the end game and she is determined to get there by any means necessary. But a family member's careless mistake derails her plans and now she must pay a price in order to save him. She goes to Knox willingly offering him the only valuable thing she has. Herself. In doing so he allows her into his world, a world she quickly realizes is void of any light and hope for escape is utterly elusive. But escape is something she finds that she no longer wants. "He lays a path of pleasure laced agony for me to follow and I do. Stupidly I follow him down the blinding darkness of his euphoric hell."Disclaimer: This is book is intended for mature audiences (18+) due to description of violence and sexual situations.
Run Posy Run
Cate C. Wells - 2021
He didn't care about my past. The talk. The stain on my family's reputation.Then he saw something I never wanted anyone to see.He cares now.This isn't a breakup, it's a warning shot, and if I want to get out of this bad romance alive, I have to run and never look back.Dario Volpe is no storybook hero. He's a psychopath, and he can't decide--kiss me? Or kill me?DarioI'm the man behind the curtain, the power behind the throne. I could have killed her, and no one would have blinked an eye. Posy Santoro isn't exactly a mafia princess.No one sees her as clearly as I can--the perfect mind hidden by that knockout body in the tight dress.I made a mistake, running her off, but now I get to play one of my favorite games.Posy can run, but she isn't made to be free. She's made for me. And when I catch her? Game over.Run Posy Run is a standalone mafia romance with dark elements. Intended for adult readers.HEA guaranteed.
Hearts of Darkness
Catherine Wiltcher - 2018
Then he blew my world apart …”He’s a criminal with no conscience. The whisper of a name, a faceless stranger… A man content to dwell in the shadows of his underworld. I’m the light to his dark, an investigative reporter intent on exposing dangerous men like him. We were worlds apart until I caught his attention. Now I’m his captive, kept at the whim of a devil with no kindness or morality.I may be an innocent but I have secrets too. For years I’ve been fighting a private war with the illegal drugs trade, with the cartel responsible for murdering my brother. I’m closer to revenge than I’ve ever been until his duplicity tears my life apart. Ours is a relationship borne of hate but we can't deny the fire that rages between us. But Dante’s a haunted man. He knows only pain and suffering until I see a spark of light buried deep within the shadows of his heart. Now I have two choices. Save Dante Santiago’s soul or lose myself to his darkness forever.
Dubious
Charmaine Pauls - 2017
Breaking people runs in my blood. The Haynes’ were supposed to be a straightforward job. Go in and pull the trigger twice. One bullet for Charlie, one for his sister. But when I saw Valentina, I wanted her. Only, in our world those who owe us don’t get second chances. No way in hell will my mother let her live. So I devised a plan to keep her.It’s depraved.It’s immoral.It’s dubious.It’s perfect.Just like her.(Dubious is Book 1 of The Loan Shark Duet and ends on a cliffhanger. The story is concluded in Book 2, Consent.)
Crime Lord's Captive
Mia Knight - 2016
She created a new identity and has been living a quiet life, but that’s at an end. He’s found her and is bringing her back to where she belongs. As Lyla navigates through the dark secrets of her past, she’s forced to face a man who won’t accept no for an answer from the woman he still claims as his.
Dirty Angels
Karina Halle - 2014
Please see the bottom of this description to see if this is the kind of book that you'll love or piss you off**For Luisa Chavez, a twenty-three year old former beauty queen, a better life has always been just out of her reach. Sure, she’s had men at her feet since she was a young teenager but she’s never had the one thing she’s craved – security. Having grown up in near poverty, her waitressing job in Cabo San Lucas can barely let her take care of herself, let alone her ailing parents. Every day is another unwanted advance, every day is a struggle to survive.When Salvador Reyes, the depraved leader of a major Mexican cartel, takes an interest in her, Luisa is presented with an opportunity she can’t afford to pass up. She’ll become Salvador’s wife and exchange her freedom and body for a life of riches – riches she can bestow upon her deserving parents. But Luisa quickly finds out that even the finest wines and jewels can’t undo the ugliness in her marriage, nor the never-ending violence that threatens her every move.Soon, Luisa is looking for an escape, a way out of the carefully controlled life she’s leading. She finally gets her wish in the worst way possible.As it is, being the wife of Salvador makes her an ideal target for rival cartels and there’s one particular man who needs Luisa as part of his cartel’s expansion. One particular man whose quest for power has destroyed lives, slit throats and gotten him out of an American prison. One particular man who will stop at nothing until he gets what he wants.That man is Javier Bernal. And he wants Luisa. He wants to take her, keep her, ruin her.Unless she ruins him first.***WARNING*** This book deals with drug cartels and as such it contains a lot of sex and violence and some violent sex. It can get pretty ugly, pretty dark and pretty crazy. There is drug use, abuse, a bit of torture and dubious consent. The hero is not a hero and the villains...well, they're even worse. If this sort of thing bothers you, PLEASE DO NOT READ IT. This ain't no cupcake farting unicorn kind of book. If you are even a bit squeamish about violence, brutality and rape, this is your warning to stay away from a book that you certainly will not like (and why read books that you know you won't like?)******While this is a spin-off of The Artists Trilogy, prior knowledge of the books is not needed. DIRTY ANGELS is the first in a trilogy, however each book can standalone and follows or introduces different characters***
He Hates Me
Rina Kent - 2020
The entire duet will be released two weeks apart.
Broken
Eva Dresden - 2019
Slinging drinks in a nightclub with a wicked reputation, she just wants to make it to the next day. Her world is rife with an array of dangers, but it's hers and she answers to no one.Until Tobias Kahler appears and ruins everything, including her.The man who owns the city has set his eyes on the waitress, and he won't be denied. Merciless and without remorse, he'll do anything to make her his and keep her by his side for a purpose Quinn could never have guessed at.Even when broken, she will fight to keep her sanity and herself alive, enduring whatever evils are thrown at her.For the spark of hope buried under all the pain, she'll do a lot more than that. Broken is the first book in the Omega's Destruction Trilogy, a raw and thrilling Omegaverse tale. It is not a traditional romance, containing dark themes and complete power exchange. Scenes are not glossed over, which may be distressing for some readers.
Sweet Captivity
Julia Sykes
I’m the hacker-geek-goddess of the FBI. When I’m hiding behind my screen, I’m a safe distance from everyone; isolated, powerful. No man has ever touched me, but when I’m captured by Colombian drug lord Andrés Moreno, I no longer have the right to refuse. He’s scarred and scary, and his cruel brother Cristian has tasked him with breaking me. I try to fight, but I can’t escape his strong arms and harsh discipline. He demands that I accept his touch, and my virgin body can’t help but respond to his masterful manipulations.The longer I remain trapped with him, the more I come to suspect that I’m not the only captive in his brother’s home. Andrés’ scars go deeper than the wicked furrows carved into his flesh, his pain reflected in the dark demands he imposes upon me. His obsession is twisted and wrong, but maybe I’m twisted, too.Do I want to be rescued from him? Or is he the one who truly needs saving?
Savage Beginnings
J.L. Beck - 2020
Like a thief I came in the dead of night and stole her away from her protected castle and placed her in a gilded cage made of gold. The arrangement had been made. Her father knew I was coming, knew I had intended to make him pay. His empire was crumbling. He had no money, nothing of value to me, nothing except... her. Which is why he agreed. His precious, virgin daughter in return for a debt paid. He thought I would break her, kill her, he had no idea what I had really planned. She would become my wife. She would bear my children. She would bend to my will. And I would go to any lengths to keep her by my side. *This is a dark mafia romance that contains mature themes, graphic violence, and sexual content. This is a standalone with a HEA.*
Take Me with You
Nina G. Jones - 2016
A set of rules for myself. I don't take unnecessary risks. That's how I've been able to evade capture all these years.But there's something about this girl that is different than the others. When I finally meet her, the rules become a blur. And I break the most important one of all--I take her with me.-----It's just my imagination--that feeling of being watched. That those icy eyes-- a vivid turquoise with a distinct golden fleck--aren't watching me.It's just stress. I am the person everyone relies on. Maybe that's why I haven't been feeling so content with my life lately. Why I dream those eyes belong to someone who can tear me away from all of my responsibilities.But these are just shameful fantasies, never meant to breach reality.Then one night, the dream comes true, only it's a horrific nightmare.Now, I only have one task: survival.Trigger warning: If you need one, this is really not the book for you.