Book picks similar to
Embracing Fate by Ellie Masters


give-me-books-promotions
arc-author-publisher
4-star
contemporary

Accidental Witness


Sam Mariano - 2017
    We’d never spoken, but of course I heard the stories about his family. I know they’re dangerous. I know he’s dangerous. Vince never had a reason to notice me, anyway—until I inadvertently witnessed his first mob hit. His family doesn’t believe in leaving witnesses alive, but Vince seems different. He knows the best thing he can do for me is stay away, but something keeps drawing us together. Despite knowing the risks of getting mixed up with him, I can’t resist. Only problem is, Vince is a package deal—you don’t get him without getting swept up in his family’s dark games. Now entangled with a notorious Chicago crime family, will my life ever be mine again?**Obligatory trigger warning: While not wholly dark, this is a mafia romance with elements of DARK ROMANCE. There are no knights in shining armor to be found here.Sensitive content not recommended for those under 18, or those who loathe the dark romance genre. **This is a continuing story series. The story continues and evolves in each book until you get to the end.

Fight For Us


Jolie Vines - 2019
    She needs to save them both. Sharpshooter Kit never planned on joining the military, but her mom’s expensive medical care leaves her no choice but to sign up. Not that it matters. Her dream of a future with her childhood sweetheart is long over, and she’s on her own.Until years later when she receives orders to save his life.Green Beret Nate has Kit’s name tattooed across his skin and his soul. When he sees her face in a God-forsaken hellhole, he knows she’s walking into a trap, but damn if he can let her. Even if rescuing her destroys his best chance to avenge his murdered father.When Nate is sent back to the US before he can carry out his self-ordered mission, Kit has no illusions. He isn’t planning on staying. Helping him return becomes her priority, though it means risking her career and her heart. But love burns brighter than vengeance, and saying goodbye for good will be far harder this time around. --Fight For Us is a standalone steamy second-chance romantic suspense featuring one trigger-happy heroine and a warrior hero. The story centers on a childhood romance, intrigue, and betrayal, but naturally, it ends with a HEA.Buy this military romance now!

Cold Hearted Bastard


Jenika Snow - 2021
    and love and hate.He didn’t have a heart... but he wanted hers.All I knew about life was anger and violence. Pain and suffering. Kill or be killed.I was a “fixer” for the Ruin—a syndicate for the Bratva, Cosa Nostra, Cartel, and any other organized crime faction that dealt in the darker, crueler aspects of humanity.I was a free agent who was called upon to do things weaker men didn’t have the stomach for.And when you surround yourself with death for long enough, soon, you didn’t remember what it felt like to be alive.And then I saw her. She was a fragile little thing who tried to be strong. But I could tell she’d seen too much horror in the world, too much of the ugly within people. I should have stayed away. I’d only bring her farther down into the darkness.But for the first time in my life, I felt a stirring in my chest, this protectiveness and possessiveness toward another living person. And it was painful. It made me feel alive.Lina tried to hide how broken she was, but I was an old friend of being ruined. She held secrets I’d find out. Because for the first time in my miserable life, I wanted something for myself. I felt something more than apathy and indifference.I wanted to possess the innocence she clung to. I wanted to break it open and consume it for myself. I could look into her too trusting blue eyes and knew I’d maim for her. I’d kill for her. And that became our truth when her past finally came back for her when my present tried to destroy her. They thought they could take the one thing—the only thing—I’d ever wanted for myself. They were wrong.When I looked at her, I felt some of the monster that made me who I retreated back to my black soul. He’d never leave... but he’d share the space. For her.A complete standalone novel in the Underworld Kings series.

Give Me the Weekend


Weston Parker - 2020
    Or at least my mother does.But I'm the black sheep of the family. The one that left for bigger and better things.No farm for me. I'm a self-made billionaire bad boy now.Real Estate is the game and making money is my thing.All is well in my bachelor-like world until I rent a cottage on my property to a beautiful school counselor.Sweet. Curvy. Smart as hell.This woman shouldn't be out of my league, but it feels like she most certainly is.Good thing she falls for me too. I need a fake girlfriend to take back home, and I'm hoping she'll be up for the ruse.Which she is not. Go figure.Things don't always work out the way I plan, especially when she's hiding something from me.A baby. One I didn't think I wanted until it was inside of her.She's walking away and I'm begging. I don't need forever to win her back.Just give me the weekend.

Blaire


Anita Gray - 2016
    Conditioned. Sold to the enemy.My name is Blaire. I'm head of security to a man who controls the Russian underworld in Europe. His name is Maksim and he's my master. He bought me ten years ago and conditioned me with brutality to worship and protect him. And I have protected him. I've slain everyone who has tried to do him harm. Everyone but a man he loans me to; a man who threatens to break me and everything I believe in. You're going to need a strong stomach and a strong heart to follow my story, because take my word for it, it's no fairy tale.

Mercy


Debra Anastasia - 2017
    Murder is in my blood now. It runs through my veins and though I hide the monster I see in the mirror with ink, it doesn’t keep him from coming out. My street name is Mercy, but I never show any. Except for her. I watch Becca, though she doesn’t know. She saved me a long time ago; the day my father killed my mother. Her bravery turned her into a target.My father holds a grudge and knife with the same proficiency, and Becca is the focus of his hatred. And I’m the only monster who can save her.

Stolen Hearts


M. O'Keefe - 2021
    To me, he was a mystery, but he was also the only man who ever knew me.In that single stolen moment before I had to give my life to someone else, I imagined myself with him, the man with scars and bruises. The one who knew what hurting meant far more than I did at that time.Instead I was given to another man, one who broke my soul right along with my bones.Through it all, there was always that memory of the man in the shadows, the one who said--not in words--that I was strong, that I could endure, that I was more than just a princess in a ballgown.Now Ronan is the only man who could keep me safe from two warring families that wanted my blood. The spark that started two years ago burned brighter with each touch, each glance, each kiss. He woke me from the nightmare, giving me life with soft touches and sharp words.Two years ago, Ronan gave me strength, but he took something in return. I never gave him my heart, but hearts like mine are made to be stolen.

He Is Poison


K.A. Merikan - 2014
    ---Domenico Acerbi. The Villani Family’s best assassin. Ruthless. Vicious. With no patience for weakness.Seth Villani. The Don’s son. Clueless. Stubborn. In dire need of someone to keep him in line.Domenico Acerbi grew up ready to give his life for the Family. Ready to follow orders and exceed expectations. A proud man of honor.The last thing he wants to deal with is training the Don’s son for his future role within the organization. Lazy, annoying, spoiled, and as hot as a Sicilian summer, Seth Villani is no mafia material. But a man who could never become a threat might just be what Domenico needs. Seth Villani wants nothing to do with the mafia. Unfortunately, he doesn’t get a say when he’s pulled back into the fold. Thrown into a den of serpents otherwise known as the Villani Family, Seth has to find a way to navigate the maze of lies. But when Domenico Acerbi, the most vicious snake of them all, sinks his fangs into Seth, letting go becomes impossible. If Seth is doomed to follow in his father's footsteps, he might as well enjoy himself with the most intoxicating man he’s ever met. Maybe he can even fool himself into believing that Domenico isn’t a handsome sociopath who kills for a living. POSSIBLE SPOILERS:Themes: Enemies to lovers, mafia, homophobia, assassin, organized crime, forced proximityWARNING: Adult content. Sizzling hot scenes. If you are easily offended, this book is not for you. ‘Guns n’ Boys’ is a gritty story of extreme violence, offensive language, abuse, and morally ambiguous protagonists. Behind the morbid facade, there is a splash of inappropriate dark humor, and a love story that will crawl under your skin.

Never Love An Outlaw


Nicole Snow - 2015
    I wasn't supposed to love it. I definitely wasn't supposed to crave his fiery kisses, beg for his touch, or ache to know the man behind the evil looking ink and scarred smirk.I was the good girl. He was the monster. Then everything changed.I became a prisoner. I prayed for Skin to save me. He did – and he kept me for himself.He's no saint, and I'm no angel. They've already taken so much from me. I'm scared he'll take what's left.Never love an outlaw, they said. I believed it. So why can't I stop myself from falling for this bad boy so hard I break?SKINI went psycho when I saw her in that dirty house. She's everything I never wanted, a spitfire with a body meant for claiming.Then she told me her secret, and I almost needed a straitjacket. I saved her life instead. I gave her a second chance.I know she's a marked woman, caught between my club and the b*stards I killed. Damn if I won't make her wear my name, even if she's trouble on two long legs I can't stop picturing wrapped around me.I'll brand her, bed her, own her, no matter how much hell I'll pay. Outlaws love like ticking time bombs, and I'm gonna blow Meg's world apart 'til she's begging for more...The Outlaw Love books are stand alone romance novels featuring unique lovers and happy endings. No cliffhangers! This is Skin and Megan's story in the Deadly Pistols MC series.

Torrent


Gemma James - 2014
    Now, eight years later, he's returning the favor...I've been obsessed with Rafe Mason since I was thirteen. The twisted part of this story is that I still want him even now that he's holding me captive on an island.Rafe has his reasons for doing what he's doing, and if I'm honest, I can't blame him. I'm the girl who sent him to prison for a heinous crime he didn't commit.But now he's free and the tables have turned...now he's the one driven by obsession.NOTE TO READERS: Torrent is a dark romance with kidnapping and other disturbing themes. Intended for mature readers. Not for the faint of heart. You've been warned. Part 1 in the Condemned series.

Acer


A.M. Hargrove - 2020
    Isla Chambers was a blinding vision wrapped in Kevlar and topped in a baseball cap with FBI stitched on it.With the sexy Isla working by my side, I gladly offered my assistance as the FBI’s only tether in uncovering this operation.Besides, this could launch my career even further so refusing wasn’t an option.The risk seemed small … or so I thought.Not only did it expose Isla to danger, it also placed a huge target on my back.It wasn’t long before I was drowning in unimaginable darkness.How could a world so cruel and inhumane exist?Days and nights merged until I was nothing but broken fragments.The beautiful face that had brought me so much joy, was stolen from memory as I surrendered to the blackness now ruling my soul. That carefree, innocent young man was beaten out of existence. In his place, only an empty shell remained.Until the day Isla walked back into my crumbling reality. Was I too lost for that dream to live on?If she still wanted me, I knew one thing.I wasn’t worthy of her purity anymore.

Total Exposure


J.A. Huss - 2018
    Jordan Wells says he can help me. Heal my soul and fix my fear so I can perform on stage again to a sold-out crowd. His game gives me a reason to go on, but his price is total exposure. The stranger watching my every move is anonymous.Or is he?The daily notes he leaves seem familiar. His unreasonable requests bring out all my hidden fears. And then one night in the dark… his touch is everything I ever wanted. It was supposed to be a guaranteed win.A way to move past the performance anxiety.One less thing to worry about in a sea of dreadful things to worry about. But what we do in the secret anonymity of night might be more frightening than anything else. Because I like it. And I want more of it. And I’m willing to give up everything just so I can play this game forever…

The Paris Apartment


Sophia Karlson - 2018
    Being free of her family and the restraints they put on her only adds to the pleasure of exploring Paris on her own. Except that James, her best friend's older brother, is in Paris too, in the same apartment, and claims his side of the only bed.They can't deny their mutual attraction and soon a one-night stand only leads to more temptation, but James has a secret. A secret that can kill their budding relationship. Can James steer clear and deserve Mila's love without revealing it all?

Brutal & Raw


Sonya Jesus - 2020
    He could have my nothings too.My whole life, I've been running, living just under the radar. The day I arrived on the East Coast, looking for a new start, I found an end instead. One careless night landed me in the hands of a dark mafia boss, who wanted nothing more than to render me a number—to eviscerate my identity with his brutal mind game.327.That’s what he called me. That’s all I was to him.At least at first, before Breaker Beneventi told me all his family secrets, trickled his way into my heart, and then ordered my death. He set me free, knowing the butcher would find me.Now, I'm the girl who escaped. The one with the power to destroy his organization. And he's relentlessly searching for Lyla Vaughn all over the country, spilling the blood of innocents and losing his control.But he's not going to find me. Because that's not my name.From Bestselling author Sonya Jesus comes "Brutal and Raw" a psychological thriller romance full of plot twists, interwoven with dark mafia romance.Disclaimer: Breaker's world is not suitable for all audiences! Venture only if you like thrills in the dark and have a night light.

Bad


L.P. Lovell - 2017
    And she and I are both villains… I stole her from her precious cartel, and now she's my pretty little pawn. She should fear me, but she doesn't. I'll have to teach her… I put a gun to her head and she holds a knife to my throat. Round and round we go, inviting the sickness that consumes us both. We play our twisted game with sweet threats and cruel promises, neither backing down. I crave her madness in the most depraved ways. Only a woman as ruthless as Camilla could ever make me weak, and she'd love to watch me crumble. Two very bad people who want very bad things are never safe together. Some love stories have no heroes.