Book picks similar to
Initiation by Heather Renee


fantasy
paranormal
dnf
reverse-harem

Crash


Helene Gadot - 2018
     Ridley Pierce doesn't believe in justice. She didn't find any when she was a child, and nothing she's seen since has changed her mind. She makes her home as far away from her dark past as she could find, spending her days restoring motorcycles and her nights handing out her own brand of justice to abused women, using her powers on the people who aren't big enough villains for the Legion of the Guards to worry about. When a team from the Legion interrupts her take down of an abusive creep masquerading as a hero and arrests her, she's thrust into the world she's long avoided. A world of heroes and villains. Ridley has no interest in being a hero or joining the Legion. But the villain the team is after is just the sort of scumbag she loves to take down and the four guys after him want her help. She has to decide if she's ready to step out of her shadows and nightmares or remain trapped by her past. *IMPORTANT NOTE: This is a reverse harem novel where the leading lady doesn't have to choose between love interests. The series will have MM themes and is intended for mature audiences due to graphic content. **Trigger warning for abuse and assault.

Brothers of the Flame


Mary Martel - 2017
    And it’s about to get a whole lot worse. After her mother meets a man online, Ariel is forced to move to a different state, leaving all that she has ever known behind. Any teenager’s nightmare. But Ariel isn’t like most teenagers, she’s different, and she has literally nothing to leave behind. No friends, no nothing. They move next door to a house that remains empty all summer long until the day before the first day of school. A school where the other kids treat Ariel like garbage because of who her mother is and the fact that she’s different from them, save for a few – her neighbors. Tyson, his mysterious Uncle, Quinton, and twins, Abel and Addison. They quickly become her only friends, but Ariel soon finds out they are hiding things from her, keeping secrets from her. And she wants answers. Surprisingly, they give them to her. What do you do when you find out you’re not who you always thought you were and your whole world gets flipped upside down? Ariel Kimber stumbles into a world she didn’t know existed, a world of magic and nothing is as it seems. Thankfully, she has the guys to guide her, to hold her hand along the way and she is going to need a whole lot of hand holding. -This is a Reverse Harem series. - There is adult langue and some mature content so be warned of that.

Moon Tortured


McKenzie Hunter - 2014
    Protect the pack. And yeah, protect the pack.I have my own goal: Live a simple life and hope no one ever discovers that the quiet young woman next door turns into a wolf.All my efforts go up in flames when a vampire attack draws the attention of the Midwest Pack. The next thing I know, I’m staring down Ethan, a handsome and alluring alpha, as he demands to know what I am. Not who. What. The pack was warned that I’m not just a werewolf but a weapon—one that could be used against them.A weapon? Me? I’d love to dismiss it as a case of mistaken identity, but I’ve become the supernaturals’ Most Wanted overnight. The vampires have put a bounty on my head. A necromancer attempts to kill me in a room full of people. And a mysterious witch is watching me far too closely for comfort.The only thing standing between me and certain death is the pack, but we’re definitely not on the same page. I want to lie low, go back to my typical life, and live to fight another day, while their MO is “seek, confront, and destroy.”And depending on the answers we find, the enemy they destroy … might be me.

Surviving Year One


Cara Wylde - 2019
     Just like all little girls, I hoped I was special and that one day my powers would be revealed. My parents would be bewildered, my friends would equally worship and envy me, and my bullies would run away in terror! Nothing happened when I turned 10. I didn’t grow wings at 12, still wasn’t able to make things move with my mind at 14, and at 16 I was already too old to believe in such nonsense. Well, what do you think happened the day I turned 18? I got the confirmation that I was only human. In the mail! Oh, and also an invitation to apply to the Grim Reaper Academy. Because, apparently, humans can be Grim Reapers, too. Fast forward to day one, semester one, year one. There’s a test! No one told me I’d have to take a test to enter! But there are only 22 Grim Reapers in the world, the competition is tough, so I guess it makes sense? If I pass, then I will be sorted according to what kind of Death I’ll make if I survive the rigors of the Academy. Merciful Death? Neutral Death? Oh, please God, don’t let me be sorted into the Violent Death Cabal! All the A-holes are there! And I don’t think I can compete with Holier-Than-Thou Sariel (cause he’s an archangel, you see), Jerkface-No-1 Pazuzu AKA Paz (cause all demons are major morons), Mr. Bow-To-Me GC Apis (ugh, false gods are the worst), and Francis (no idea what his deal is, he doesn’t talk much). But this is my chance, dammit! This is what I’ve been waiting for all my life! Okay, so I’m not a princess, or a mermaid, or Sailor Moon. But I can be a Grim Reaper one day. I’ll take it! ***Author's Note: This is book 1 in the Grim Reaper Academy series, intended for mature audiences. Please be advised that it may contain situations that are triggering to some, including explicit language and a lot of steam.

Rest in Pieces


Lucinda Dark - 2019
    Dust to Dust. If vampires kill your entire family, vengeance is a must. I can’t say my parents never warned me about vampires. I just never believed them. Not—that is—until six months ago when vampires broke into my home and killed my family. Thanks to all the skills my parents taught me, I managed to escape but I couldn’t save them. Two vampires down and the rest of the world to go. My bid for revenge is going to have to wait, though, because until I turn 18, I’m being placed in the loving care of Elizabeth and Jonathan McKnight—godparents I didn’t even know existed. The clock is ticking until I can get back to my goal of eradicating the vampire race. But something is amiss at my new high school. According to my parents, vampires can’t walk in daylight. So, why then, does Torin Priest? If he’s not a vampire, then what is he? Because unlike the obnoxious asshole, Maverick McKnight, who sees me as some sort of bloodsucking leech on his wealthy family, Torin Priest is most certainly not human. To stake or not to stake, that is the question.

Bitter Night


Diana Pharaoh Francis - 2009
    AND SOMETIMES, THEY CHOOSE YOU... Once, Max dreamed of a career, a home, a loving family. Now all she wants is freedom...and revenge. A witch named Giselle transformed Max into a warrior with extraordinary strength, speed, and endurance. Bound by spellcraft, Max has no choice but to fight as Giselle's personal magic weapon—a Shadowblade—and she's lethally good at it. But her skills are about to be put to the test as they never have before....The ancient Guardians of the earth are preparing to unleash widespread destruction on the mortal world, and they want the witches to help them. If the witches refuse, their covens will be destroyed, including Horngate, the place Max has grudgingly come to think of as home. Max thinks she can find a way to help Horngate stand against the Guardians, but doing so will mean forging dangerous alliances—including one with a rival witch's Shadowblade, who is as drawn to Max as she is to him—and standing with the witch she despises. Max will have to choose between the old life she still dreams of and the warrior she has become, and take her place on the side of right—if she survives long enough to figure out which side that is....

Vile Trials


Isabella King - 2019
    But the night I’m convicted of a crime I don’t remember committing, I’m sentenced to an unbearable fate—I’ve been enrolled in the Magic Academy for Troubled Monsters. Without so much as a goodbye, I’m shipped off to the haunted old campus in Upstate New York and stripped of all contact with the outside world. But I don’t belong here. I’m not a monster. And despite badass students, a weirdly cool atmosphere, and a trio of gorgeous, wildly different boys that are inexplicably interested in me? I can’t stay here. And there’s only one way out—the Vile Trials. Wickedly difficult, totally unpredictable, and grossly public, the Trials are the only hope I have of returning to my normal life. And if I want to pass them, I have to push away the fear of my power, and learn to embrace it. Even if that means opening myself up to danger, daring, and most frightening of all—love. Welcome to the MAFTM—get ready for a badass heroine, a college academy brimming with every monster imaginable, and a steamy reverse harem—no choosing necessary.

Touch Of Regret


Autumn Reed - 2018
    I would manage the antique shop she left me and marry a kind, stable man. Most importantly, I would never tell a soul about my psychic abilities.But with a single, intentional touch and a vision of the past, I set events in motion that expose my secret. I’m part of a world I never knew existed, and my new allies are dismantling my carefully constructed walls.Except, those walls had a purpose--they kept me hidden.Now, my abilities make me a target.And my mere existence is endangering everyone I care about. My name is Adele Rose, and I know nothing but regret.

A Hidden Fire


Elizabeth Hunter - 2011
    Giovanni Vecchio back on the path of a mysterious manuscript he's hunted for over five hundred years. He never expected a young student librarian could be the key to unlock its secrets, nor could he have predicted the danger she would attract. Now he and Beatrice De Novo follow a twisted maze that leads from the archives of a university library, though the fires of Renaissance Florence, and toward a confrontation hundreds of years in the making.

Stone Cold Magic


Jayne Faith - 2016
    . .Demon patrol officer Ella Grey was pronounced dead after an accident on the job. Eighteen minutes later she woke up on a gurney bound for the morgue. But she didn’t return to the living alone. The soul of a reaper followed her back from the grave, and it’s not just along for the ride. The reaper gives her glimpses of the brother she feared was dead, but it's also trying to use her for its morbid work. The reaper could be her biggest ally in her battle for her brother, if it doesn't eat her soul first.Perfect for fans of Kim Harrison, Seanan McGuire, Patricia Briggs, Ilona Andrews, and Jim Butcher!Ella Grey Series (series is complete):Stone Cold MagicDark Harvest MagicDemon Born MagicBlood Storm Magic

Burden


Lila Felix - 2014
    The characters were likable and intriguing, the males were protective and dominant but not obnoxious and her lead female was truly an enjoyable character. She got it right, and there is nothing better when you finish a book and want to start it right back over because it was just that good. If that's your cup of tea then you need to read Burden by Lila Felix." Quinn Loftis, USA Today Bestselling Author of The Grey Wolves Series. In the depths of the Louisiana swamps, clans of bear shifters roam freely. Hawke Turnclaw, the Alpha over all of his kind, is drowning in the legacy left to him by the Alpha before him, his own father. When he goes on a rescue mission to save a rogue Black bear from the clutches of a Grizzly clan, he finds more than just a Black bear, he finds his mate. Echo has always been told she's an anomaly, a fluke. She's the only bear of her kind and that makes her a hindrance to her clan. She's tried to run away, but they keep her tethered through guilt and a shock collar around her neck. And then someone shows up claiming he's her mate. Now belonging to a new clan, will she ever be able to understand that she's so much more than just a burden?

Spellcrest Academy


Michael Pierce - 2019
    However, when she stumbles upon a fallen, elderly woman, she stops and tries to do the right thing. Little does she know that this chance encounter will forever change the direction of her life.Marked with a new tattoo emblazoned across her chest and struggling to control a whole host of new powers, Maeve finds her life spiraling out of control. That is, until one more chance encounter offers an explanation… and a privileged opportunity to attend Spellcrest Academy.Paired with a shy elf and a moody Nephilim, Maeve quickly takes to her new home at the premier magical institution. Not to mention the dreamy senior advisor whom, for some idiotic reason, she can’t stop thinking about. Love at first sight is sappy sh—crap for fairy tales, not real life. However, she can’t deny the instant connection.As the school year progresses, Maeve discovers her invitation to the academy might not have been so innocent after all. Sinister forces want her unique abilities and are willing to kill for them.Maeve doesn’t just need to survive her classes, she must survive the plots against her, a decades-old magical war, and following her capricious heart. She’s never been a stranger to diving into danger. But this time, she might be in over her head.Start a fun and fierce magical adventure full of mystery and intrigue, laughs and sass, and unexpected turns sure to take your breath away.If you’re a fan of Bella Forrest or Leia Stone, then this will be one hell of a ride you won’t want to miss.

A Life of Shadows


Kristen Banet - 2018
    She's become a master at doing awful things with good intentions, terrible things for the sake of those who need her. She's long given up on being the hero, trying to find peace in no longer being the villain. When her past comes back and she finds herself caught by the International Magi Police Organization, she'll have to revisit her own personal hells and finally confront the very monster that made her what she is. The very monster that has already killed her once before. Will the “dead” Magi assassin Shadow finally come out of the dark to begin a fight for a redemption she doesn't believe she deserves? Or will her nightmares drag her back into the shadows that have defined her life? *This is an Urban Fantasy reverse harem series of full length novels where the leading lady doesn’t have to choose from her romantic interests. This series will have M/M content. These books are rated for mature audiences, 18+ due to violence, language, and sexual themes. This series deals with several triggering topics including, but not limited to, suicide, child abuse, rape, and PTSD.*

The Beautiful Ashes


Jeaniene Frost - 2014
    don’t miss this fan-favorite tale from New York Times bestselling author Jeaniene Frost.Ivy has always seen things that she cannot explain. Strange things. Otherworldly things. But when her sister goes missing, Ivy discovers the truth is far worse--her hallucinations are real, and her sister is imprisoned in a realm beyond Ivy’s reach. The one person who can help her is the dangerously attractive rebel who’s bound by an ancient legacy to betray her.The fate Adrian has fought to escape is here - but he never expected the burning need he feels for Ivy. With destiny on one side and desire on the other, Adrian must help Ivy search for the powerful relic that can save her sister. Yet he knows what Ivy doesn’t: the truth about her own destiny, and a war that could destroy the world. Sooner or later, it will be Ivy on one side, Adrian on the other, and nothing but ashes in between...Originally published in 2014

Dates from Hell


Kim Harrison - 2006
    3 Chaotic by Kelley Armstrong - Half-demon Hope is sent to museum gala by mentor Tristan to catch werewolf thief Mateson. 4 Dead Man Dating by Lori Handeland - On their first date, Kit goes too far with Eric, shot by bystander Chávez, then wakes to no blood, no body.