Book picks similar to
Darkest Night by Alessa Thorn


fantasy
romance
magic
fantasy-romance

Court of Dragons


Frost Kay - 2021
    Captured, she's dragged before the elvish king and given two choices.Death or marriage.She submits, biding her time as she plots and spies, determined to strike at the heart of the elvish royalty and take back her family's throne once more. But the more time she spends with her dangerous and achingly handsome husband, she finds herself wavering.Only the strong survive the hash moors of the Dragon Isles, and she can't afford to question her loyalties, leaving only one final choice.Strike hard and fast. Never waver. It's his heart or hers.A Court of Dragons is the first book in a new fantasy romance series, inspired by the tales of Beauty and the Beast with Reylo viking vibes. It's perfect for fans of From Blood and Ash, A Deal with The Elf King, and The Bridge Kingdom. If you're looking for enemies to lovers with a delicious slow burn romance, scroll up and read now!

The Amulet Thief


Luanne Bennett - 2015
    When she comes home to New York City, she wants just two things: a little peace, and answers about the unsolved murder and why she was abandoned in the middle of America at the age of eight.Greer Sinclair, an enigmatic stranger who knows a little bit more than he should, just might give her both–and more if she’ll let him.What is she?What is he? Who is this beguiling satyr who keeps coming between them? She attracts the otherworldly like moths to a flame. And why does every stranger on the streets of Manhattan want a piece of her and that pendant hanging around her pretty little neck?Maybe the answers are in a peculiar shop in the heart of Greenwich Village where ghosts, memories, and secrets are bursting from the walls and the books and the one person who knows her best. The line between the mundane and supernatural worlds is starting to blur. Which side will she choose? Which would you?

Spark


Sadie Moss - 2019
    I know—it’s in my blood.Unfortunately, not all people from magical bloodlines have powers, and at 22, I’m several years past the age they usually appear. So I’ve resigned myself to a boring, magic-less life.Then something strange happens…I get stuck in the middle of a bar fight, and instead of just punching the guy back, I blow a hole in the wall.So… I guess I do have powers. But they’re unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. This shit is definitely not normal.And it seems the magical authorities agree, because they give me a choice: either I go to school to learn to control my crazy new magic, or they’ll take it away. Permanently.Now if I can just survive the bitchy mean girls determined to take me down a peg, the mysterious attacks on students, the three hot-as-hell guys who don’t seem turned off by my prickly exterior, and the professor who makes me long for detention, maybe I’ll get out of here in one piece.Wouldn’t bet on it though.Welcome to the Academy of Unpredictable Magic.Spark is the first book in the Academy of Unpredictable Magic series, a medium-burn reverse harem story intended for ages 18+, featuring a badass chick and the four sexy men who fall in love with her.

Dark Stranger: The Dream


I.T. Lucas - 2015
    Kian's small clan championing progress, freedom and peace; their powerful enemy propagating ignorance, hate, and war.Leading the clandestine battle from his luxurious L.A. high-rise, Kian is surrounded by family, yet he feels alone. Descending from a single goddess – the only one to survive the ancient cataclysm that wiped out the gods and most of their immortal offspring – clan members are forbidden to each other. And as the only other known immortals are their hated enemies, Kian and his kin have been long resigned to a lonely existence of fleeting trysts with human partners. That is, until Kian's sister Amanda – a researcher of paranormal abilities – makes a game changing discovery; a mortal seeress who she believes is a dormant carrier of their genes. Ever the realist, Kian is skeptical and refuses his sister's plea to attempt the Dormant's activation. But when his enemies learn of the highly coveted soothsayer's existence and attempt to grab her, he rushes her to the safety of his keep. Inexorably drawn to Syssi's shy beauty, Kian is startled by feelings he had sworn off long ago. Tormented by past mistakes, he wrestles with his conscience as he is tempted to explore her budding interest in the spicy passions he favors.When Syssi's paranormal foresight lands her a job at Dr. Amanda Dokani's neuroscience lab, it fails to predict, not only that her boss is an immortal who would drag her into a secret, millennia-old battle over humanity's future, but the professor's imposing brother who would alter her own. Despite his better judgement, will Kian succumb to Syssi's irresistible pull? And will Syssi discover that the man igniting her startlingly dark desires is a nearly two-thousand-year-old immortal?Warning. This book contains hot scenes and adult themes. Reader discretion is advised.

The Bird and the Sword


Amy Harmon - 2016
    Lock them deep inside your soul, hide them ‘til they’ve time to grow. Close your mouth upon the power, curse not, cure not, ‘til the hour. You won’t speak and you won’t tell, you won’t call on heav’n or hell. You will learn and you will thrive. Silence, Daughter. Stay alive. The day my mother was killed, she told my father I wouldn’t speak again, and she told him if I died, he would die too. Then she predicted the king would trade his soul and lose his son to the sky.My father has a claim to the throne, and he is waiting in the shadows for all of my mother’s words to come to pass. He wants desperately to be king, and I just want to be free.But freedom will require escape, and I’m a prisoner of my mother’s curse and my father’s greed. I can’t speak or make a sound, and I can’t wield a sword or beguile a king. In a land purged of enchantment, love might be the only magic left, and who could ever love . . . a bird?

Power of Five


Alex Lidell - 2018
    One mortal female. A magical bond they can’t allow—or resist. Orphaned and sold to a harsh master, Lera’s life is about mucking stalls, avoiding her master’s advances, and steering clear of the mystical forest separating the mortal and fae worlds. Only fools venture into the immortal realms, and only dark rumors come out... Until four powerful fae warriors appear at Lera’s barn. River, Coal, Tye, and Shade have waited a decade for their new fifth to be chosen, the wounds from their quint brother’s loss still raw. But the magic has played a cruel trick, bonding the four immortal warriors to... a female. A mortal female. Distractingly beautiful and dangerously frail, Lera can only be one thing—a mistake. Yet as the males bring Lera back to the fae lands to sever the bond, they discover that she holds more power over their souls than is safe for anyone... especially for Lera herself. Power of Five is a full-length reverse-harem fantasy novel.

Lord of Eternal Night


Ben Alderson - 2021
    Jak, a boy born with power that the witches have not seen in a century, is their prophesied saviour. The one who is to kill the creature, break the curse and restore magic to his coven.Sent to the creature’s castle as the final Claim, Jak must get close enough to land the final blow. It is what he has trained all his life to accomplish.Not all is as it seems when Jak uncovers secrets and half-truths. The creature is not the haunting beast he had been brought up to hate. Emotions war as new feelings are uncovered. For what is more dangerous than hate? Lust.Lord of Eternal Night is a complete, M/M *stand-alone novel*, inspired by Beauty and the Beast… with added bite.

Releasing The Gods


Leia Stone - 2019
    Just good friends, good fun, and finally reaching one hundred thousand followers on Instagram. She’s well on her way to all of that, until one drunken dare ends up with a cut hand, blood sacrifices, and a thousand-year-old prison opening to reveal a giant of a man. Finding herself with a Titan of a problem, she does the only thing that makes sense in that situation: selfie. Because he’s beyond hot, and that has got to be worth twenty thousand followers. Only it turns out, this is no joke. Cronus is really a Titan, and he’s set out to destroy the leader of the Greek pantheon. When Maisy makes a colossal mistake, unleashing an untold evil on the world, Cronus is the only one that can help her. #oops Maisy is starting to see that she should have been less interested in Instagram and more interested in the impending end of the world. An end she quite possibly caused—not that she’s admitting to anything just yet.

Minotaur: Blooded


Naomi Lucas - 2018
    A labyrinth that spanned an eternity filled with creatures that howled through the night. She was a daughter to farmers that worked the fields and endured a quiet life as a peasant, away from the capital and its nihilistic celebrations; away from all that would look at her and discern her worth. Because to be chosen as a sacrifice was to be chosen to die. Until one night, while at the edge, she heard a husky voice in the darkness.Vedikus Bathyr.He prowled the overgrown passages at the farthest edges where the true, intelligent beasts roamed. They were all there for the same reasons: to kill each other and capture the humans that entered the labyrinth.On one fated night a human girl called out to him. A girl with a voice that quickened his blood. But he wasn’t the only one to hear her call...---Minotaur is a dark fantasy romance with explicit violence and possible triggers. Mature readers only.

Nightfall


L.H. Cosway - 2012
    None of them, however, have anything on the handsome stranger who comes in one night and helps her fend off an armed robber. He looks the thief directly in the eye and without confrontation convinces him to turn around and walk out the door.Tegan has never seen anything like it, nor does she understand why he then lays those mesmerising eyes on her and tells her to forget they ever met. She shrugs it off as just another weird night shift encounter, until the following evening when her best friend produces free passes to a new club in the city. Tegan agrees to go and is pleasantly surprised by the tasteful, classy décor and oddly beautiful, intensely ethereal clientele. To her surprise, her mysterious stranger is sitting smack dab in the VIP section. What are the chances?!Tegan is struck by the coincidence of bumping into him again so soon, while he is furious that she remembers him when he insisted she forget their meeting. Tegan has no idea that she’s taken a misstep into a whole new world inhabited by vampires, slayers, dhampirs, witches and warlocks. All of whom display a wholly disconcerting interest in what makes her unique from the rest of the clueless humans who populate the city. On top of this, her handsome stranger keeps turning up at her work and seems intent on getting to know her a whole lot better.Nightfall is book one in L.H. Cosway’s Blood Magic Series. A previous, unedited version of this story was published under the title Tegan’s Blood.

The Sweetest Oblivion


Danielle Lori - 2018
    . . Nicknamed Sweet Abelli for her docile nature, Elena smiles on cue and has a charming response for everything. She’s the favored daughter, the perfect mafia principessa . . . or was.Now, all she can see in the mirror’s reflection is blood staining her hands like crimson paint. They say first impressions are everything . . . In the murky waters of New York’s underworld, Elena’s sister is arranged to marry Nicolas Russo. A Made Man, a boss, a cheat—even measured against mafia standards. His reputation stretches far and wide and is darker than his black suits and ties. After his and Elena’s first encounter ends with an accidental glare on her part, she realizes he’s just as rude as he is handsome. She doesn’t like the man or anything he stands for, though that doesn’t stop her heart from pattering like rain against glass when he’s near, nor the shiver that ghosts down her spine at the sound of his voice.And he’s always near. Telling her what to do. Making her feel hotter than any future brother-in-law should. Elena may be the Sweet Abelli on the outside, but she’s beginning to learn she has a taste for the darkness, for rough hands, cigarettes, and whiskey-colored eyes. Having already escaped one scandal, however, she can hardly afford to be swept up in another.Besides, even if he were hers, everyone knows you don’t fall in love with a Made Man . . . right?This is a standalone forbidden romance.

Oath Taker


Audrey Grey - 2019
    Maas and Emily R. King, this first book in a dark and action-packed new series is impossible to put down! Light magic is forbidden.  Dark magic spells death.  Haven has both. ​ After the Prince of Penryth saved her from captivity, seventeen-year-old Haven Ashwood spends her days protecting the kind prince and her nights secretly fighting the monsters outside the castle walls.  When one of those monsters kidnaps Prince Bell, Haven must ally with Archeron Halfbane and his band of immortals to rescue her friend.  Her quest takes her deep into the domain of a warped and vicious queen where the rules are simple: break her curse or die. Lost in a land of twisted magic and fabled creatures, Haven finds herself unprepared, not just for the feelings she develops for Archeron, but for the warring powers raging inside her.  Her rare and forbidden type of magic may be their only hope . . . but mixing light and dark comes with a steep price.  Haven’s soul. Faced with impossible love, heartbreaking betrayals, and a queen intent on destroying the realm, only one thing remains certain.  Haven must shatter the curse or it will devour everything she loves.  Welcome to the Kingdom of Runes where immortals and humans clash, light and dark magic reign, and mythical creatures lurk in the shadows. If you like fierce heroines, enemies-to-lovers romance, wild plot twists, and endearing characters that stay with you long after you reach the end, you need to discover the book readers are calling dark fantasy at its best. Just make sure to clear out some space on your calendar first! **Oath Taker was previously published in the boxed set Shattered Worlds under the name Curse Breaker. This is a revised second edition. The Kingdom of Runes series is upper/mature YA and contains mild cursing and adult situations, including romance.**

Wounded Kiss


Willow Winters - 2020
    His chiseled jaw and silver gaze, I’ve only ever gotten a glimpse of, haunts both my nightmares and my dreams. There’s a treaty between us and them; mere mortals and the ones who terrify but keep us safe. The contract demands that every year there’s an offering and this year I’ll walk across that stage presenting myself. We have no idea what to expect if they choose someone, they haven’t in generations. The only thing we know is that the ones they take belong to them forevermore. If chosen, you don’t come back, or so the story of the treaty goes. Gather and present yourself.This is the offering…… and I… belong to him.

Wraith


Helen Harper - 2018
    Shadows. Adventure. Romance. Saiya Buchanan is a wraith, able to detach her shadow from her body and send it off to do her bidding. But, unlike most of her kin, Saiya doesn't deal in death. Instead, she trades secrets - and in the goblin besieged city of Stirling in Scotland, they're a highly prized commodity. It might just be, however, that the goblins have been hiding the greatest secret of them all. When Gabriel de Florinville, a Dark Elf, is sent as royal envoy into Stirling and takes her prisoner, Saiya is not only going to uncover the sinister truth. She's also going to realise that sometimes the deepest secrets are the ones locked within your own heart. This is a stand-alone urban fantasy novel.

The Necromancer's Bride


Brianna Hale - 2018
    Since that day I have borne his mark, a black star in the center of my left palm. The villagers say it brands me as evil. I think it means something far worse. It marks me as his. The disease that nearly killed me has returned to the village and children are dying. I’m the only one who dares to climb the mountain and learn his secrets. In exchange I’m to clean his house and help with his strange experiments, but Meremon wants more. He wants me. And it isn’t long before I discover that his demands are as twisted as his experiments. Warning: This story is a dark fantasy romance with scenes of non-consent and dubious consent. Additionally, Meremon is a necromancer and enjoys unusual things. Some sex scenes might be strange or creepy for some readers. As always with Brianna Hale books, no cheating, and a guaranteed happily ever after. THE NECROMANCER’S BRIDE is a novella of 16,000 words.