Book picks similar to
Burned by Jennifer Bene


taboo
dark
abuse
keep-it-in-the-family

Desiccate


Charity B. - 2020
    Or some psychotic bullshit like that. The truth is, he’s completely insane. His mind’s been shattered by the sadistic belief that we’re meant to be his ‘family’. Everything about him makes my insides rot, yet on the outside, I remain Daddy’s good little girl. It may have been my mother’s choices that brought us here, but I don’t blame her for it. Besides, she hates herself enough for the both of us. The only thing that gets me through this horrific family portrait is dreaming about the day when I won’t have to see his smile, feel his touch or hear him call me that cringey nickname, Corie Bee, again.Every day, pieces of me wither away, like petals falling from a dying flower. Still, I bide my time, waiting until he least expects my betrayal. I refuse to let him desiccate me. Trigger Warning: If you’ve read the Inferno series, this warning is unnecessary. However, if you haven’t, please take note: this is not a romance. The taboo, explicit, and violent nature of this book may be unsettling for some readers.

Obloquy


Murphy Wallace - 2019
    Inconsequential. Nothing. That I’m not worth his time. He knows how I feel about him. That it’s not only his acceptance I want. I get off on the sting of his words as they roll off the tip of his tongue. He tells me that I am a fool to think that we are anything alike. I know that he’s enticing me in his own sick and twisted way. If I’m ever going to prove to him how wrong he is, the time is now. Just as he’s about to cast me out of his life, I meet Aurelia, and everything becomes clear. My world unraveled the day I met Samael. As a model, I rely on my image to survive. In this cut-throat industry, you can’t get too close to anyone, and thick skin is a must. I’ve been called greedy, selfish, and rude. It’s all true, but it’s imperative for self-preservation. I abide by a strict routine to stay relevant and strict values keep me pure. I was preparing for the biggest audition of my career when I was approached by a beautiful man full of promises and stardom. He was right. Aurelia Vega was about to become a household name. Only, it wasn’t for the reason I had always dreamed of. That dream had been decimated and my worst nightmare has come true.

Simmer: An Inferno World Novella


Measha Stone - 2020
    It's our job and we won't fail her.There are rules here. Don't eat until Papa has.Do all your chores. Learn your lessons. Be grateful.Don't break the rules. But I did...

Malignus


Dani René - 2019
    They hid me away, thinking they could cure me. Locked in the darkness, I was forced to forget her, but I couldn’t. Not even for a moment. When I turned eighteen I was taken from what I’d become accustomed to, and shoved into a life I never thought I’d have. She was my light. My everything. But she couldn’t be. It was forbidden in the eyes of the world. Each time I pushed, she pulled. The monster goaded us, he taunted us. I tried to be strong. I tried to refuse what was burning inside me. But I’m merely a broken man. One that needs her more than he needs his next breath. I need to make a choice—break the rules and devour her, or run far, far away and break the last remaining part of me, my heart.

Flagrant


Ally Vance - 2020
    It was always just me and Mom, until it wasn't. She left me alone in the world with nothing but a name, an obsession, and a fierce yearning to know where I came from.He doesn't even know I exist, but I found him, and he was everything I could want…Pater's blood runs in my veins, and the darkness inside of him paints my soul as black as his heart. I want to hate him, but all I can do is love him. There's no escaping what binds me to him, but I can still try.

Cognati


Elizabeth Gray - 2020
    All alone. Nothing but a bad boy trying so hard to be a good man.It’s time to leave everything I know and find them.My family.Uncle Charles is a real man. A strong, commanding man. Someone who teaches his two children how they must present themselves in this hard, confusing world.And he welcomes me with open arms.His world isn’t like mine, though.The rules are different.Dark. Confusing. Twisted. Wrong.But, still, I understand them.Rather than shy away from his unusual teachings, I thirst for them.Crave every lesson, each punishment, and all the rewards.I’m where I was meant to be.Most men want to be like their father when they grow older.I want to be like Uncle Charles.And when he is no longer able to teach, I have a few lessons of my own…Cognati is an Inferno World story that follows a young man named Luke Greene, or later known as Pater, just after the book Sparks and before the book Inferno by Yolando Olson. This book is written to fit in her world and is based on the character she created but may stand completely on its own. However, you’ll most certainly want to dive into Inferno after reading Cognati to see what the devious, yet oddly charming Pater, is up to next…if you dare.

Embers


Yolanda Olson - 2019
    This is the conclusion to the Inferno series. It is highly advised to read Inferno, Cinere, and Sparks first. I swore to myself that I would never love you. I promised my children that they wouldn’t suffer for my sins. But it’s so hard, Daddy. It’s hard to not love the man that gave me life. It’s hard to not love the man that’s taken care of me the only way he knows how. I know it’s not your fault, and maybe one day, I’ll find out why you became a monster. While we still have time left together, I want you to know that I forgive you for everything you’ve done. I want you to know that I do love you, even if not in the way you would have hoped for. It’s almost over, Daddy. Close your eyes and go to sleep; I’ll be here with you, holding your hand and letting you know that everything will be alright. Because it will be, won’t it? That’s the promise that you made to me—that no matter what happens between us, everything will always turn out okay. I know you don’t care much for anything you can’t control, but sometimes life folds its cards and we have to go when it’s our time. Please stop fighting it, Daddy. It hurts me to see you suffering so much. I’ve done my best to take care of you, but it’s time to go. Hurry along and know that we’ll be behind you shortly because I can’t live in a world that doesn’t have you in it. I love you, Daddy. Always and forever.

Iniquity


Emery LeeAnn - 2019
    He has taught me every twisted desire I hold dear. My only goal is to please him. Do not think you know what happens behind closed doors because the truth will not set you free- it will only rip your insides out. Family ties can be deadly, but is it wrong I enjoy the pain?I am an Iniquity- a wicked act or thing because that is what pleases him.

Verboten: An Inferno World Novella


A.A. Davies - 2019
    Only she and I reside here, on opposite sides, both craving the same thing. I witnessed it in her eyes. I let it fester for years. I allowed myself to think I was different from them. I was wrong. I tried to resist. I tried to be different. But blood was thicker than water. I didn’t just want her. I needed her. I needed to own every single inch of her. She crooked her finger, beckoning me, and I drifted to her like helpless sails in the wind. A flicker inside me roared to life. She’d woken the beast. The flames burned bright, promising destruction to all those who obstructed our path. Ashes to ashes. Dust to dust.

This is the End, Baby


K. Webster - 2017
    First six books must be read in order to fully understand this story line. THIS STORY IS A NOVELLA AND SHORTER THAN THE REST.*** They say the king is the most powerful piece on the board. However, they haven’t met me. This queen knows all the rules. She plays the game better than him. In my game, the queen can knock the king right off the board. Game over. The END. But, I love him. The darkness threatens to make me lose sight of my strategy from time to time, but in the END, love always prevails. Problem is, my black king is playing by a different set of rules. His END game is one he shields from me. It’s a game he plays closely with the white king, the most brilliant player of all. Together, they want to END my game. They want to END me. This queen doesn’t go down without a fight. This queen makes her own rules. This queen will outsmart those who play against her. This is the END, baby. In the END, I am going to win it all. ***Warning*** This is the End, Baby is a dark romance. Extreme sexual themes and violence, which could trigger emotional distress, are found in this story. If you are sensitive to dark themes, then this story is not for you.

Protection


S.A. Reid - 2011
    Tough, smart, and ruthless in a fight, he quickly makes a name for himself inside. But Gabriel, saved from the noose by a social crusader, is serving two life sentences. And life is a very long time to endure Wentworth with no comforts but prison food, card games and cigarettes. To survive endless days without the touch of another human being...Five years after Gabriel’s incarceration, Joey Cooper arrives at Wentworth. Every convict claims imprisonment through a miscarriage of justice, but Joey is truly blameless. Trained at Oxford as a physician, the young doctor is innocent of prison culture and too handsome for his own good. Facing eighteen years behind Wentworth’s towering gates, Joey cannot hope to survive without protection. And protection is just what Gabriel MacKenna offers. At a price...

The Decimation of Mae


D.H. Sidebottom - 2014
    Not in the physical sense, you must understand, but very much literally. He was persistent, resolute and tenacious. His ruthless greed to annihilate me was utterly disturbing. I am sure if he had hierarchy, the man at the top would have dragged his arse into Hell’s prison for his unscrupulous methods. I was just fifteen when I first became aware of what he was capable of. This initial taste of him set the playing field for how my life was to be lived – for want of a better word. He mocked me, showed me mercilessly how he played the game and how he liked to cheat at said game. He ridiculed and taunted me until, six months later, he won and took something of so much importance from me that I would never be the same again. His second visit was, in my eyes, so much more cruel and heartless. I know we’re talking about the Devil here, and yes, you have a right to say he had no heart but even then, even when I was so utterly broken, I begged to differ and hoped – no, prayed – that somewhere deep in the caverns of his black, tortured soul there was something that beat and confused his emotions once in a while. The third visit was somewhat different than the other two. He tried, and at first succeeded to bring me to my knees once and for all, but then something happened. God finally intervened and altered Satan’s intention; he sent hope and morphed the Devil’s minion into an Angel, hoping to break and shatter the anguish and suffering. He gave the ability for me to feel pleasure in pain, order in the chaos and light in the darkness. But in giving me a reprieve, he also gave me something that would finally and ultimately obliterate me. He gave me the capability to love, therefore giving me the ability to be destroyed. And Satan made sure that I was destroyed. Cruelly, viciously and sadistically. I am Mae Swift, and this is the story of my decimation. ***WARNING*** This story doesn’t contain hearts and flowers, it doesn’t even contain the word ‘love’. It isn’t for the fainthearted, nor those who want romance and happy ever afters. It’s dark, in fact it goes beyond the dark realms of misery and despair. It contains disturbing scenes of sexual violence, cruelty and torture. It also includes self-harm, pain addiction and brutalisation. Please bear this in mind before purchasing this book. Thank you.

Determined to Obey


C.J. Roberts - 2014
    Unbeknownst to Kid or Nancy, they are taken to the mansion of Felipe Villanueva, an eccentric crime boss with a taste for the taboo.We join Kid in the dungeon, where he is about to meet Felipe and his companion Celia for the first time…Warning: 18+ only. Very frank language, graphic sexuality and coercion. Do not read if M/M/F bothers you!Determined to Obey is being published independently at the request of thousands of fans who already own Captive in the Dark, Seduced in the Dark, and Epilogue: The Dark Duet--known together as the Dark Duet series.Determined to Obey was written as part of the bonus material for Dark Duet: Platinum Edition and not meant to be read as a stand alone. However, it is possible to enjoy it as such if one prefers.

Capture


Rachel Haimowitz - 2012
    Taken to a horrifying processing facility, they are assessed, microchipped, and subjected to unspeakable brutality—all in preparation for sale to the highest bidder.In a world where every person has a price, the beautiful and subduable PhD student Dougie is highly prized. His brother, a rough-edged MMA fighter, is less desirable—and potentially too dangerous—but he still has his own appeal.Abused and locked up under round the clock surveillance, with no idea where they are or even why they’ve been taken, escape seems impossible, which leaves staying together their only hope. And after being separated once by the foster system, they'll do anything to keep it from happening again. Anything at all.(Publisher's note: This title contains material some may find objectionable or trigger-inducing, including explicit violence, non-consent, and forced incest.)

Fable of Happiness


Pepper Winters - 2021
    A man who’s lived alone for a decade.A woman who trespasses on his solitude. A love full of hate as well as hunger. The thing about my life is... I was never in control of it.I just I thought I was.I thought I had everything figured out—a good career, fun hobbies, a bright future, but everything changed when I found an ivy-cloaked house, tucked in a forgotten valley, hiding the man who would corrupt my world forever.I thought I was successful, until he showed me fortune and happiness could be snatched away in an instant.I believed I was blessed, but really, I was cursed.Cursed to become a plaything for a monster.Cursed to become a prisoner just because I trespassed.Now, I know nothing.I am nothing.I’m just his.It’s the start of something huge. From New York Times Bestseller, Pepper Winters, comes a new Dark Romance full of decadent angst, monstrous heroes, and pages chock-full of lust.