Book picks similar to
Hurt to Love by Nikki J. Summers


dark
dark-romance
romance
contemporary-romance

Into the Dark


Dana Isaly - 2021
    A sociopath. A murderer.I kill women who are guilty of nothing other than being in the wrong place at the wrong time.Women like Lyra.Her yellow raincoat flapped in the cool breeze when she walked by, that blonde hair making her look like a drowned rat as she stopped to taste the rain.She wasn’t like the others, but my demon wanted her.We followed her. Watched her. Obsessed over her.She is ours. Of that I’m certain.We will pull her into the depths of our darkness and keep her imprisoned there.Until we meet our end.LyraI am ordinary in every way.Average looks. Mundane job. Boring life.But when he looks at me, I become something else entirely.His gaze stalks and tracks me like a game of cat and mouse, his eyes licking fire over my skin every time they glance in my direction.My thoughts are consumed by him every moment he’s out of sight.He is my obsession. I can’t let him go.And once he shows me his true form, I know I’ve captured him forever.He is mine. Of that I’m certain.I will follow him to the depths of darkness and happily submit to his madness.Until we meet our end.

First Comes Blood


Lilith Vincent - 2021
    A virgin mafia princess to unite them. But first, there will be blood.On my seventeenth birthday, I learn a terrible secret about my family. My future is in the hands of four brutal men, and what awaits me at their hands is too terrible to imagine. Four men who desire me. Four men who vow to possess me. Four men who think they can destroy me.As the only daughter of Coldlake’s mayor, I should be kept far, far out of their reach. Instead, I’m being thrown to them as a sacrifice. My father insists only one of them can marry me, but all of them vow to secure my promise. A promise in blood. They take. I bleed. Happy birthday to me. AUTHOR'S NOTE: First Comes Blood is the first book in the Promised in Blood series and ends on a cliffhanger. These books contain dark themes, violence, and a Why Choose romance with ruthlessly possessive men. The story is dark, dirty and delicious so please read at your discretion.

Wolf


Penelope Black - 2020
    So when she invites me to stay with her for the summer, I don't hesitate.And I make a new summer plan: skip the vacation, take online courses, and dig up dirt on Mom's new fiancé.What I didn't plan for was Wolf Fitzgerald--and his brothers. Dangerously good-looking with tattoos and bad attitudes.And my new stepbrothers.

When Heroes Fall


Giana Darling - 2021
    A disappointment to my family. Haunted by my childhood traumas. I felt so much all my life that I resolved to feeling nothing at all. Until I met my match. As the most infamous mafioso of the 21st century, Dante Salvatore was madly passionate, unequivocally bad, and entirely too dangerous to know. He was everything I abhorred, yet I found myself representing him in the biggest criminal trial of the decade. I was so focused on winning and achieving the success I deserved that I didn't notice the gorgeous black-eyed man's effect on me until it was too late. My icy heart had been held too close to his flame and now I wouldn't let Dante go down without fighting with everything I had in me. Even if the cost of a new life with him meant the loss of my old life and everything I thought I held dear.

Nyx


Serena Akeroyd - 2020
    I feel it like it’s my own.He’s a killer. Shameless. Some might even call him a psycho. I just call him soul mate. We were born to raise hell together, born to make sick b*stards pay for their sins, born to be the king and queen of darkness…Now, the king just needs to get that memo. NYX is the first book in the eleven-book ‘A Dark & Dirty Sinners’ MC’ series. It is not a standalone.

Trouble


Tia Louise - 2021
    But his naughty eyes flashed, his full lips curled into a knowing smile, and I should have run.I didn’t. I kissed him instead.Then he gave me a job when I needed it the most.I never get involved with clients, but Spencer Carrollton is wickedly handsome in a bespoke suit. He’s devastatingly sexy out of it. He’s possessive, demanding, and the best sex I’ve ever had. He’s an arrogant billionaire, who thinks I’ll fall at his feet, but I’m not going down that road again.Until he pulls me out of danger and insists I move in with him to be safe.As the nights pass and we grow closer, I know I’m losing this fight.Spencer Carrollton always gets what he wants.The trouble is, he wants me.(TROUBLE is a STAND-ALONE, enemies-to-lovers, billionaire-boss romance. No cheating. No cliffhanger.)

The Ritual


Shantel Tessier - 2021
    You vow. We vow.Barrington University is home of the Lords, a secret society that requires their blood in payment. They are above all—the most powerful men in the world. They devote their lives to violence in exchange for power. And during their senior year, they are offered a chosen one.People think growing up with money is freeing, but I promise you, it’s not. My entire life has been planned out for me. I never got the chance to do what I wanted until Ryat Alexander Archer came along and gave me an option for a better life. He offered me what no one else ever had—freedom.I chose to be his. He made me believe that anyway, but it was just another lie. A way that the Lords manipulate you into doing what they want.After being sucked into the dark, twisted world of the Lords, I embraced my new role and allowed Ryat to parade me around like the trophy I was to him. But like all things, what started out as a game soon became a fight for survival. And the only way out was death.Things to know about The RitualIt is MFTRIGGER WARNINGS (Please see the author's note on the inside)J/P & OTT Hero (jealous/possessive & over the top)This is a 150K word dark romance and may contain triggers for some due to sexual situations, language, and violence.

A Not So Meet Cute


Meghan Quinn - 2021
    And the answer is usually some bubbly, lovey dovey tale of being struck in the bum by Cupid’s arrow.My meet cute (well not so meet cute) is slightly different. I was trolling a wealthy neighborhood in Beverly Hills, searching for someone to take me as their bride, you know, to make my arch nemesis jealous who consequently just fired me.He was stomping around the block like some sort of gorgeous ogre, mumbling about a business deal gone wrong and attempting to finagle his way out of it.And that’s when we bumped into each other.There were no sparks.Not even a hint of blossoming love.But next thing I knew, I was scarfing down free chips and guac, listening to this man lay out all of his problems which led to his big ask . . . he wanted me to be his Vivian Ward, you know, from Pretty Woman--minus the frisky behavior.We’re talking about living in a mansion, intimate double dates, and pretending we were head over heels in love . . . and engaged. Can you imagine?The absolute audacity.But people do crazy things when they’re desperate. And I reeked of desperation. So, I struck up a deal.My one big mistake, though . . . big . . . HUGE? I accidentally fell for the incomparable Huxley Cane.

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

Love Unexpected


Q.B. Tyler - 2020
    One kiss, under the dark of night, in a city where no one knew us. One kiss fueled by my hormones and alcohol and the blinding grief over losing my mother. One kiss from the man I told myself was untouchable. But, it didn’t stop at one kiss. And now we are running full speed down a road with no intention of stopping. His touch disarms me. His kiss revives me. But, our love, could destroy me. *This is a taboo novel and is intended for mature audiences only.

Freestyle


Bea Paige - 2020
    Dance is in my blood.It’s what keeps me sane, out of trouble. It used to keep them out of trouble too. A group of boys I grew up with.Xeno, York, Zayn and Dax.We were a crew once and we ruled the clubs.Separate we were insanely good, together we were unbeatable. F*&ing on fire. I was their girl and they were my Breakers.Until they did something they promised they never would; break my heart.We were sixteen when they left me.You see, for kids like us, dance was all we had.Growing up in a rundown housing estate in London with no prospects can make you view the world differently.It can make you choose the wrong path.I chose dance, and they chose crime.Three years later I’ve won a scholarship to Stardom Academy. I try to forget my past.But how can I do that when the four boys who hurt me are back?And this time they won’t walk away even when I ask them too.Freestyle is book one of this new gritty, contemporary reverse harem academy trilogy for 17+ readers and deals with adult themes and some subjects you may find upsetting. If you love dance, your men on the criminal side, alpha hot holes and the enemies-to-lovers trope, this is for you. Contains foul language and sexual scenes.

Follow


Tessa Bailey - 2017
    Too bad she already sold it. Family is everything to gambling den darling, Teresa Valentini. Blood comes first, especially before men. So when her brother lands himself in hot water, she’s willing to do whatever it takes to save him. And showing up topless in her unwitting savior’s motel room is turning out to be the furthest thing from a hardship…Will Caruso is the bad boy of New York’s financial scene…and he just found out the very thing that drives his success is a damn lie. Now, he’s exchanged his high-stress life for the open road, no one but his Great Dane…and half a million Instagram followers to keep him company. When a mysterious beauty arrives, her secrecy prods his suspicions, even while she tempts his lust to the breaking point.Teresa met Will under false pretenses, but the bond consuming them is real. They’re strong enough to overcome a little betrayal…aren’t they?

Grand Lies


J.C. Hawke - 2021
    While the city of London slept, he made good on our promise. Only to cut me with his words as the sun broke.I ran from him—I always ran. But Mason Lowell was different, and he wouldn’t let me go without a fight, finding my flaws and embedding himself into them. My push was strong. I spent my whole life perfecting it. But his pull was unashamedly stronger, and the rope he bound around my heart was his to pull at will.Love was shared—so much love. Promises were made—he broke every one. And then just when I think we are playing in the same key...The music stops.Grand Lies is book one of The Promise Duet. It is a Billionaire Contemporary Romance and contains themes suited to mature readers.This book is part of a Duet and is not a standalone.

Kiss of War


Clara Elroy - 2021
    His eyes fostered demons solely reserved for me. They craved to own my soul.And for the longest time, I took it, I bore his cruelty alone.But then... then I grew thorns of my own.And now?Now it's time for his torment to taste my kiss of war.Kiss of War is a complete standalone and a part of the City of Stars series.

Falcon's Prey


C. Lymari - 2020
    Diamond princess. Prey. Since I can remember, I’ve been a pawn in someone’s game.Danger was looming but never enough to harm me. Until now. Then he came along. My new bodyguard. The only person who saw past my edges. Meanwhile, I was rooted deep in a web of deception, trying to save myself.He was supposed to protect me and keep me from harm's way. Just like everyone else, he wanted to break me. Now we’ve both been thrown into a game neither one of us wanted to play. I was taught to be unbreakable like a diamond. I was a diamond, and diamonds don't break.