Books like 'Ruthless'

Readers who enjoyed Ruthless by Dani René also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.

contemporary  dark romance  suspense  mystery  bdsm

  • Lie To Her by Melinda Leigh

    Lie To Her by Melinda Leigh

    Rated: 4.47 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 2 of 5
    Behind closed doors [?] · 43 ratings
    Lies from the heart lead to a dangerously intimate case for Sheriff Bree Taggert in #1 Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Melinda Leigh’s novel of revenge and fatal deceptions. When a digital marketer is found murdered in his backyard—hands bound and face smothered by plastic wrap—Sheriff Bree Taggert and criminal investigator Matt Flynn respond to the call...
  • Can't Go Back by Debra Webb

    Can't Go Back by Debra Webb

    Rated: 4.47 of 5 stars
    · 30 ratings
    The past and the present collide in the final installment of USA Today bestselling author Debra Webb’s Devlin & Falco series, threatening everything these two detectives care about. Birmingham detectives Kerri Devlin and Luke Falco arrive at the scene of a double homicide to discover that nothing makes sense...
  • Sponsored links / Remove ads
  • Heartbreak Bay by Rachel Caine

    Heartbreak Bay by Rachel Caine

    Rated: 4.47 of 5 stars
    · 29 ratings
    They’re hunting a killer so silent, so invisible, that his unspeakable crimes are the only proof he exists. A car submerged in a remote pond. The bodies of two girls strapped into their seats. The mystery of their mother, vanished without a trace, leads Gwen Proctor and Kezia Claremont into dangerous territory...
  • Extreme Risk by Jane Blythe

    Extreme Risk by Jane Blythe

    Rated: 4.59 of 5 stars
    · 17 ratings
    Can she accept an offer of help from a patient she’s attracted to? Dr. Piper Hamilton is used to keeping on the fringes. She knows what it's like to be responsible for the death of someone you love and she'd do anything to protect herself from feeling that pain again...
  • Beneath Dark Waters by Karen Rose

    Beneath Dark Waters by Karen Rose

    Rated: 4.45 of 5 stars
    · 24 ratings
    Deadly secrets lie beneath the murky waters of the Louisiana bayou in this pulse-pounding new romantic suspense novel from New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Karen Rose. There's no safe place for a child to hide when danger comes from every direction. Public prosecutor J. P...
  • The Dark Bones by Loreth Anne White

    The Dark Bones by Loreth Anne White

    Rated: 4.37 of 5 stars
    · 28 ratings
    She’s come back to solve the mystery of her father’s death and confront her own dark past. When Detective Rebecca North left her rural hometown, she vowed never to return. Her father’s apparent suicide has changed that. The official report is that retired cop Noah North shot himself, knocked over a lantern, and set his isolated cabin ablaze. But Rebecca cannot believe he killed himself...
  • Killman Creek by Rachel Caine

    Killman Creek by Rachel Caine

    Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars
    · 63 ratings
    Every time Gwen closed her eyes, she saw him in her nightmares. Now her eyes are open, and he’s not going away. Gwen Proctor won the battle to save her kids from her ex-husband, serial killer Melvin Royal, and his league of psychotic accomplices. But the war isn’t over. Not since Melvin broke out of prison. Not since she received a chilling text…. You’re not safe anywhere now...
  • The Good Lie by A.R. Torre

    The Good Lie by A.R. Torre

    Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars
    · 59 ratings
    Six teens murdered. A suspect behind bars. A desperate father. In a case this shadowy, the truth is easy to hide. Six teenagers dead. Finally, the killer behind bars. But are the games just beginning? Psychiatrist Dr. Gwen Moore is an expert on killers...
  • I Belong to You by Lisa Renee Jones

    I Belong to You by Lisa Renee Jones

    Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars
    · 27 ratings
    Book 5 in the New York Times bestselling INSIDE OUT series now in development for TV with Marvista Entertainment! Master. .. Being that person, that man, is how I define myself, how I allow the rest of the world to define me as well. And now, with a terrible loss shredding me inside out and someone trying to destroy my family to punish me, control is more important than ever. It is everything...
  • The Demon by Stella Andrews

    The Demon by Stella Andrews

    Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars
    · 16 ratings
    They call me The Demon for a reason and Eliza Ortega is about to find out why. A runaway mafia princess who stumbled from one nightmare to an even bigger one. She has something I want and I intend on collecting. I will stop at nothing to deliver my promise and if there are casualties I will consider it a good day at the office. My hobby is testing limits...
  • Six Degrees of Separation by Taylor V. Donovan

    Six Degrees of Separation by Taylor V. Donovan

    Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars
    · 20 ratings
    *WARNING FROM THE AUTHOR:. By Degrees is an ensemble serial with continuing story lines. Six Degrees of Separation is the second installment, and it must be read after Six Degrees of Lust. Thanks. In the sequel to Six Degrees of Lust, F. B. I. team leader Samuel Shaughnessy and bar manager Machlan O’Bannon are exploring a new phase in their non-relationship...
  • The Ink Black Heart by Robert Galbraith

    The Ink Black Heart by Robert Galbraith

    Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars
    · 48 ratings
    The latest installment in the highly acclaimed, internationally bestselling Strike series finds Cormoran and Robin ensnared in another winding, wicked case. When frantic, dishevelled Edie Ledwell appears in the office begging to speak to her, private detective Robin Ellacott doesn't know quite what to make of the situation...
  • A Dark Mind by T.R. Ragan

    A Dark Mind by T.R. Ragan

    Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars
    · 36 ratings
    A serial killer is terrorizing Sacramento, preying on happily married couples and unleashing unspeakable cruelties upon his victims. The ordeal rekindles disturbing memories for private investigator Lizzy Gardner, who barely escaped a serial killer clutches only years ago...
  • 30 Days of Shame by Ginger Talbot

    30 Days of Shame by Ginger Talbot

    Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars
    · 17 ratings
    The monster draws pleasure from my pain. Now, it's time to fight back. SERGEI. 30 days of pain have pushed Willow to her limits. My pretty prisoner is no longer meek. She's trying to resist. But my precious prize doesn't know what I know. Nobody has ever won a war against me. Nobody has ever bested me. And she's not going to be the first. Good luck, little Willow. .
    Categorized as:
    bdsm  suspense  dark  mafia  captive  contemporary
  • Inferno: Part 3 by T.K. Leigh

    Inferno: Part 3 by T.K. Leigh

    Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
    · 18 ratings
    My life has always been a series of carefully constructed roads. Always the passenger, never the driver. Always the puppet, never the master. Always the pawn, never the queen. Except with Dante. He makes me feel like a princess, a goddess, a queen. .. His queen...
  • Layered Lies by Kaylie Hunter

    Layered Lies by Kaylie Hunter

    Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars
    · 14 ratings
    Two years after her son was abducted, Kelsey Harrison rebuilds a new life for herself. She opens a store, makes new friends, and settles into a peaceful existence. At least, that’s what she hopes the world believes. Behind closed doors, Kelsey hunts her enemies, living a life of lies. She hasn’t forgotten, hasn’t forgiven. She searches for answers still...
  • I'm Watching You by Karen Rose

    I'm Watching You by Karen Rose

    Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 3 of 5
    Open door [?] · 48 ratings
    I Know Their Crimes. Star prosecutor Kristen Mayhew has a dangerous secret admirer. He seems to know her every thought, her every move. He sends her letters. And he kills the criminals she herself is powerless to stop. I Hunt Down the Guilty...
  • Dirty Ledger by Alta Hensley, Livia Grant

    Dirty Ledger by Alta Hensley, Livia Grant

    Rated: 4.47 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 11 ratings
    I’ve always chased after the bad boy. I just wasn’t prepared to actually catch one. He crashed into my life in my hour of need with his dark agendas, whispers, and lies. Dirty and dangerous, he’s the keeper of the worst kind of secrets, and now he owns mine. I’ve been thrust into the middle of a war I know nothing about, and he’s my only lifeline to safety...
  • Watch Her Bend by Emily Klepp, Jade Katzchen

    Watch Her Bend by Emily Klepp, Jade Katzchen

    Rated: 4.71 of 5 stars
    · 7 ratings
    For two long years, we kept our distance while also sitting on the same couch during my sessions. I kept my secrets tucked far away from my psychiatrist because revealing one thing would lead to the unveiling of my traumatic past. When I am forced to set aside my desire to weather this storm alone, Dr. Daxton Cooper is the one to catch me before I sink...
  • Texas Bodyguard: Chance by Janie Crouch

    Texas Bodyguard: Chance by Janie Crouch

    Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    She has secrets she prefers to keep hidden. Too bad he’s so good at getting to the truth. When a violent attack puts Maci Ford in the hospital, security expert Chance Patterson learns that she’s carrying his baby. Even though she ended their relationship, he’s determined to do whatever it takes to protect her and their child...
  • Last Resort by Janie Crouch

    Last Resort by Janie Crouch

    Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    From USA TODAY Bestselling Author Janie Crouch. Previously published as Texas Chance. She has secrets she prefers to keep hidden. Too bad he’s so good at getting to the truth. When a violent attack puts Maci Ford in the hospital, security expert Chance Patterson learns that she’s carrying his baby...
    Categorized as:
    mystery  suspense  dark  pregnancy  contemporary  military
  • Twist Me & Keep Me by Anna Zaires, Dima Zales

    Twist Me & Keep Me by Anna Zaires, Dima Zales

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    For a limited time, get the first 2 books in the New York Times and USA Today bestselling dark romance trilogy in one convenient bundle! A seductive, thrilling tale of abduction and dark love . . . On the eve of her eighteenth birthday, Nora Leston meets Julian Esguerra, and her life changes forever...
  • Angels and Ashes by Avelyn Paige, Alfie Gordillo

    Angels and Ashes by Avelyn Paige, Alfie Gordillo

    Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars
    · 17 ratings
    He’s the scorned President of the Heaven’s Rejects. She’s the widow of his best friend and former Vice-President. He shouldn’t want her, but he’ll move heaven and earth to have her. Left alone as a new widow to raise her family, Darcy Kyle’s life has spiraled out of control...
  • Amos y mazmorras: Segunda parte by Lena Valenti

    Amos y mazmorras: Segunda parte by Lena Valenti

    Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars
    · 27 ratings
    Chegou a hora de encarar o tão aguardado torneio Dragões e Masmorras DS. Entregue-se aos combates. Liberte seus desejos. Na busca pela irmã desaparecida, a agente Cleo Connelly conseguiu se infiltrar no ultrassecreto torneio de práticas BDSM, o Dragões e Masmorras DS...
  • The Last Party by A.R. Torre

    The Last Party by A.R. Torre

    Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars
    · 37 ratings
    A loving mother. A notorious murderer. They both have reasons to hide their secrets in a novel of escalating shock and suspense by New York Times bestselling author A. R. Torre. Perla Wultz lives with her husband, Grant, and their precious daughter, Sophie, in a gated Pasadena community. Affluent, sociable, and accomplished, Perla plays the part of loving wife and mother to perfection...
  • Tangled up in Hate by Charlotte Byrd

    Tangled up in Hate by Charlotte Byrd

    Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
    · 13 ratings
    Epic love requires an epic sacrifice…. A long time ago, I borrowed money from a very powerful family. I paid my debt, but they have come for more. They want everything that I have built and they will hurt her if I refuse. Harley doesn’t understand why I have to break her heart. She hates me, but at least she’s okay…for now...
  • Tease Me: A Stark International Novel by J. Kenner

    Tease Me: A Stark International Novel by J. Kenner

    Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
    · 13 ratings
    From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author J. Kenner comes a new story in her Stark International series…. Entertainment reporter Jamie Archer knew it would be hard when her husband, Stark Security Chief Ryan Hunter, was called away for a long-term project in London. The distance is difficult to endure, but Jamie trusts the deep and passionate love that has always burned between them...
  • Wishing Well by Lily White

    Wishing Well by Lily White

    Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    The perfect timing of a fairy tale is tied to its tragedy…. Journalist, Meadow Graham, is invited to interview death row inmate, Vincent Mercier. Given three days to hear his sordid confession, Meadow seeks to learn why a wealthy hotel owner killed four people, including her twin sister...
  • The Interrogation (Hunt&Cam4Ever) by Adira August

    The Interrogation (Hunt&Cam4Ever) by Adira August

    Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Hunter’s most twisted killer. Cam’s most dangerous case. A STAND-ALONE PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER. If you like a master gamesman for a detective and a few twists in your criminal cocktail, you want to read this.
    Categorized as:
    mystery  suspense  bdsm  m-m  contemporary  dark  queer  length-short
  • Guarded from Sabotage by Gia Cobie, Operation Alpha

    Guarded from Sabotage by Gia Cobie, Operation Alpha

    Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    I never imagined my life could fall apart so quickly. It all started when my credit card was stolen. I chalked it up to bad luck. A minor annoyance. Until more things started happening—fraudulent loans taken out in my name, my bank accounts drained, and I was even accused of a crime I couldn’t possibly have committed. And it became terrifyingly clear this wasn’t just bad luck...
  • Watch Her Burn by Emily Klepp

    Watch Her Burn by Emily Klepp

    Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    That night was supposed to be the happiest night of my life. Graduating at the top of my class with a master's degree in cyber security engineering set me up to live a comfortable life until I was forced into constant paranoia by someone I trusted. Silas broke me…. burned me…. but Landon loves me anyway...
  • Duck's Salvation by Andi Rhodes

    Duck's Salvation by Andi Rhodes

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    Duck…. I finally have the life I want: an amazing fiancée, a baby on the way, Satan’s Legacy MC as my family. And then an accident, or my own stupidity, changes the course of my life forever. Unable to look at me, my fiancé removes herself from the picture, leaving me with a premature baby who requires more love and care than I know how to give...
  • Gabby's Protector by Janie Crouch, Regan Black

    Gabby's Protector by Janie Crouch, Regan Black

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    After a heart-shattering tragedy, Tony Marino bottled up his emotions and gave more than twenty hard years to the SEAL teams. Now, he’s enjoying a later in life career in paradise in the Ellington Cove special security office. The best part? Working with their research expert, Gabby Ladd...
  • MARCUS: Sins of the Father by Nicole James

    MARCUS: Sins of the Father by Nicole James

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    From USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author, Nicole James, comes a. STEAMY, FORBIDDEN MC ROMANCE! The SECOND GENERATION has arrived! This is the first book in her spin-off from her bestselling Evil Dead MC series. Brandy--. When a bunch of bad-boy bikers walk through the door to the bar, one catches my eye. He's got a killer smile, and an air of wickedness about him that draws me in...
  • Love Op by Devon Atwood

    Love Op by Devon Atwood

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    She’s on the run. He’s on the hunt. But who will get caught in the end? Mattie Thorne has been on the run from her parents for almost two years. She’s being chased by a ruthless mercenary named Ghost, but somehow, she always manages to escape his capture attempts. Until one day, her time is finally up...
  • Wicked and Bare by Shayla Black

    Wicked and Bare by Shayla Black

    Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    Join Matt and Madison for the conclusion of their Wicked Lovers: Soldiers For Hire love story. Coming July 18, 2023! **Wicked and Bare is part of the Wicked Lovers: Soldiers for Hire romantic suspense series. Stories in this series are told in a duet of two full-length novels. Each duet can be read as a standalone...
  • A Cry in the Dark by Jessica R. Patch

    A Cry in the Dark by Jessica R. Patch

    Rated: 4.37 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    Deep in the Kentucky hills, three women have been found brutalized and murdered. But the folks in Night Holler have their own ways and their own laws. And they’re not talking…. Led to an isolated Appalachian Mountain town by a trail of disturbing murders, FBI special agent Violet Rainwater’s determined to catch a serial killer with a twisted agenda...
  • Beauty & the Rose by Lee Savino, Stasia Black

    Beauty & the Rose by Lee Savino, Stasia Black

    Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars
    · 23 ratings
    The conclusion to the Beauty's Beast trilogy. They say the gods will accept no small sacrifice. To appease them you must give your all. I’ve sacrificed everything. Lived through loss, and learned to love. To take the beauty with the pain. The rose with the thorns. This love story isn’t perfect, but it’s ours. We’ll hold onto it forever. And hope our forever is longer than a day.
  • False Hope by Meli Raine

    False Hope by Meli Raine

    Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars
    · 19 ratings
    She thinks she’s fooled me. But I’ve known all along. Almost. Lily is hiding something, a secret so big, she came out of a year-long coma and her first instinct was to lie. Who does that? Someone who is afraid. No—not afraid. Terrified. And it’s my job to take that fear away. My partner and I have spent countless man-hours hunting down the cold-blooded killer who did this to her...
  • Angel of Mercy by Cara Malone

    Angel of Mercy by Cara Malone

    Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    “Angel of mercy. It was the stuff of legend, and nightmares. The caregiver who was supposed to heal and protect, who chose instead to kill. ”. In her very first case with the FCPD homicide division, Tate Macawi is investigating a death at one of Fox County’s most upscale nursing homes. With no evidence of foul play, it looks like the family is unduly suspicious…...
    Categorized as:
    mystery  suspense  f-f  queer  dark  contemporary  length-short
  • Wrath by Gwyn McNamee

    Wrath by Gwyn McNamee

    Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars
    · 7 ratings
    All I see is red. Blood. Pain. Rage. It consumes me. The moment he took her, wrath invaded my soul. I only have one purpose. End him and take back what’s mine. Love isn’t always clean, and wrath is the deadliest sin.
  • Two For The Show by Elizabeth Knight

    Two For The Show by Elizabeth Knight

    Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 7 ratings
    Hey, it’s your girl Von again. Remember when I said hunting down those two Accardi heirs would be a piece of cake? Well… I found one of them, only to realize he’s a guy I hit and quit two years ago. What's even worse is the fact I still remember him. I never remember my flings, I’m the girl who scratches the itch and moves on...
  • Tink by D.M. Earl

    Tink by D.M. Earl

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Working to rid the world of human traffickers has been Tink’s life’s calling. It’s very close to her heart and only those in her inner circle know the real reason why...
  • The Lavender Phantom by Lainey Delaroque

    The Lavender Phantom by Lainey Delaroque

    Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars
    · 5 ratings
    𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆, 𝗜’𝗺 𝗦𝗼𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗲 𝗧𝗮𝘆𝗹𝗼𝗿. 𝗜 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮 𝗻𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗹 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲, 𝗮 𝗻𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗹 𝗷𝗼𝗯 𝗜 𝗵𝗮𝘁𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮 𝘀𝗲𝗺𝗶-𝗻𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗹 𝗵𝗼𝗯𝗯𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝘂𝗽. It’s all for my little sister Melanie. After our parents died, I took her to Chicago, and we started a new life. A normal life. But she’s growing up. Getting into trouble...
  • Pleasure & Prey: vol. 1 by A.J. Merlin

    Pleasure & Prey: vol. 1 by A.J. Merlin

    Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 5 of 5
    Explicit and plentiful [?] · 5 ratings
    Depraved. There’s nothing out there. That’s what I keep telling myself while I walk back from a campfire to my isolated cabin. Brutal. Nothing bad happens at summer camp. That’s what my fellow camp counselors have convinced me of when the nights around the lake get a little eerie. ViciousOne, two, he’s coming for you. Three, four, better run some more...
  • Wicked Little Words by Stevie J. Cole

    Wicked Little Words by Stevie J. Cole

    Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars
    · 15 ratings
    Edwin Allen Mercer. I want them all to read my words. And they do. Every last blood-stained sentence, they've read and praised me for. They love the gore and violence, the realness. And I get a sense of power with it all because I know a secret: the victims in my books—they’re real and have all died on my table. And maybe that’s why the last book had such awful reviews...
  • Finding Claire Fletcher by Lisa Regan

    Finding Claire Fletcher by Lisa Regan

    Rated: 4.09 of 5 stars
    · 26 ratings
    Newly divorced and with his career in jeopardy, Detective Connor Parks takes solace in the arms of a beautiful woman he meets at a bar. The next morning, Claire Fletcher is gone, leaving nothing behind but an address and a decade-old mystery...
  • A Faint Cold Fear by Karin Slaughter

    A Faint Cold Fear by Karin Slaughter

    Rated: 4.02 of 5 stars
    · 55 ratings
    An apparent student suicide has brought medical examiner Sara Linton to the local college campus, along with her ex-husband, police chief Jeffrey Tolliver. But a horribly mutilated corpse yields up few answers...
  • Serial, Volume Three by Lily White, Jaden Wilkes

    Serial, Volume Three by Lily White, Jaden Wilkes

    Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars
    · 11 ratings
    With Donovan closing in, his feelings growing for Ronnie, and the sudden realization where their paths crossed before, Jude's composure might be cracking...
  • Tell No One by Barbara Elsborg

    Tell No One by Barbara Elsborg

    Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    It’s not every day that a total stranger asks Tag if he’s…ahem…well endowed. Of course he’s not going to say no. When he’s offered a life-changing amount of money to go to a party, he’s not going to say no to that either, even though he suspects sex will be involved. But sense prevails and Tag decides to stick to his principles and not go, except things take an alarming turn...
Fantastic book recommendations by romance book lovers for romance book lovers.
Find out more about romance.io.


Get recommendations by genres & tropes

Use the romance book finder to mix and match over 100 content keywords to find the books that match your preferences

romance book finder

Looking for more inspiration? Enter another book title to get more suggestions on what to read next.


Or - use our amazing romance book finder to get recommendations based on your favorite content tropes and themes. Mix and match at will.