Books like 'Contempt'
Readers who enjoyed Contempt by Bethany-Kris also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary dark romance new adult suspense angst mafia vengeance insta-love forbidden love sassy heroine
-
Buttons and Beauty by Penelope Sky
I’m supposed to be his prisoner—but I’m the one that won’t let him leave. Every time he has a new hit, the separation in unbearable. I wait for him to come home on pins and needles. I paint alone in the bedroom, and now my artwork has changed. I used to paint homes and landscapes…but now I’ve painted a person. A man standing on the bank of a lake surrounded by snow...Categorized as:
suspense alpha male mafia vengeance possessive hero new adult sassy heroine contemporary -
Enrage by Rachel Van Dyken
Enrage is the next standalone in the international best selling mafia series, Eagle Elite. Part of a world I loathe. Part of a family who hates me more than I hate myself. Living with a girl who reminds me of my darkness. I'm. In. Hell. Also known as the Cosa Nostra. My life was over the minute I stepped off that plane. Son to a murdered mob boss. Heir to a throne of murder and lies... -
Sponsored links / Remove ads
-
The Black Wolf by J.A. Redmerski
Rated: 4.49 of 5 stars · 34 ratings-Series Reading Order-. #1 - KILLING SARAI. #2 - REVIVING IZABEL. #3 - THE SWAN & THE JACKAL. #4 - SEEDS OF INIQUITY. #5 - THE BLACK WOLF. ---. Since devastating secrets were uncovered by Nora Kessler, Niklas Fleischer and Victor Faust have been divided as business partners and brothers... -
The Truth About Us by Aly Martinez
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsTruth: Penn Walker entered my life like a summer storm—dark, ominous, and filled with thunder. After witnessing my husband’s murder, I didn’t have much of a heart left to offer a man. But Penn took it all. Every jagged shard. Every broken bit. Even the dirty and twisted pieces that I wish never existed. Lie: I didn’t need him to save me. Lie: I knew exactly who he was... -
-
Buttons and Blood by Penelope Sky
Crow Barsetti knows about me—and he doesn’t like it. I know he’s paying his top guys to dig up every piece of dirt they can find, but I don’t care what he discovers. There’s nothing I’ve done that he hasn’t done himself. All that matters is I love his daughter—and he’s going to accept it. I get a call in the middle of the night while Vanessa is dead asleep—and it’s him... -
Hidden Monsters by London Miller
Rated: 4.46 of 5 stars · 21 ratingsUntil Luka…. Aleksandra Volkov happily escaped into the oblivion that alcohol and pills provided, longing to forget the memories that plague her. But sometimes, it takes someone as equally broken to mend the fractured pieces of her life. Until Alex…. Luka Sergeyev willfully courted death by living in the midst of the very people who would have him killed if the truth of who he was ever came out... -
Becoming Noah Baxter by J.M. Sevilla
Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars · 40 ratingsJay and Lily complete each other in ways no one else ever could, teaching one another things about themselves they wouldn't have known otherwise, but is it enough? Can two people from entirely different worlds find a way to make it last? Even if their love is strong enough, they still have an obstacle standing in their way... -
Easy to Fall by W. Winters
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsFrom USA Today bestselling author Willow Winters comes the epic conclusion to the heart-wrenching, edge-of-your-seat gripping, romantic suspense, Hard to Love series. With her I was always on the highest high. That's why it was so easy to fall. I never stood a chance without her. The two of us were made for one another. It's as simple as that... -
Saving Poughkeepsie by Debra Anastasia
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsBeckett Taylor’s quest to be a better man has brought Eve Hartt back into his life, but sometimes it feels like they’re bound together with barbed wire. Though he longs to love her without causing pain, the wreckage of their past continues to crash down around them. Yet with the help of this brothers—and for his brothers—Beckett won’t stop trying... -
The Red Cardinal by Mia Smantz
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsAfter their last encounter, Nikolai Ivanov proved that he's done toying aroung and is finally making his move. Callie Jensen and everyone she loves are more at risk than ever before. It's going to take the entire team working together if they all want to make it out alive...Categorized as:
mafia insta-love new adult suspense reverse harem contemporary dark friends to lovers -
Spiders in the Grove by J.A. Redmerski
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsIzabel and Naeva find themselves right where they wanted to be in Mexico: captured and held in the slave compounds owned by the Ruiz family. But the two are soon separated and forced into very different—but equally dangerous—situations... -
Shane by Nicole James
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 22 ratingsShane—. I live at the end of this dark deserted dead-end street for a reason. I don't like neighbors coming around my place. There's only one other house down here. It sits across the street from me, and has been deserted for years. I like my privacy, so I'm pissed to learn that that vacant house just got un-vacant... -
Mafia Don's Secret Twins by Vivy Skys
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsDino and Marisol's story. She's the ultimate prize—I'd risk my life just thinking about this mafia princess, let alone claiming her innocence. We had one night. Then she vanished. I found her. I thought that Marisol, my dream girl, was lost. After I woke up and never saw her again, it seemed like something that was a complete non-starter. She wasn’t with me. I didn’t know her last name... -
I Belong to You by Lisa Renee Jones
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsBook 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... -
-
Cor Amare by Pepper Winters
I made the worst mistake of my life when I was twenty-two. I let love and fear destroy everything I ever wanted, and now I have a choice to make. Run and hide, or stay and face the consequences. I'd always known I wasn't allowed to love her. I'd always accepted that I wasn't allowed to keep her. But that didn't stop me. I broke every rule and choked on every secret to have her... -
Haven by K.A. Merikan
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 9 ratings— Not the same river, not the same man. —. After seven years away, Seth and Domenico are back in Sicily with one goal in mind. Revenge. The man who’d hounded their family is still alive, and as untouchable as he’s always been. While they wait for the right moment to strike, reality clashes with fond memories of home... -
In Havoc Lays Chaos by Samantha Barrett
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsPain. Loss. Revenge. Are you ready to get to know the Dark Knight's twins? Will they be as dark as their father or will they follow after their mother? Are you ready for the final? *In Havoc Lays Chaos is the final book in the Memento Mori series. *. -
A Fine Line by MercyAnn Summers
Rated: 4.56 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThis book is an interconnected standalone within the Ends World. While you don't have to read the Ends Duet before reading this book, it is recommended that you do in order to understand the entire Ends World up to this point. Carolina. I didn’t mean for anyone to get hurt. That wasn’t my intention. And I knew he would come for me... -
Destiny Mine by Anna Zaires
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsFate made us enemies. I made us lovers. In a different world, we were meant for each other. This is not that world. Note: For optimal enjoyment, it’s recommended you listen to the Twist Me trilogy prior to starting this book. -
Dark Endings by Bella Jewel
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsOver a year – that’s how long he’s been gone now. Not knowing if he’s alive or dead, Willow has suffered through the hardest time of her life. With no ending in sight, it almost feels like she’ll never breathe again. Jagger saved her, gave up his life for hers, and left her alone and broken. Then, without warning, the gang left her, too. Leaving her with nothing. No one... -
Stolen Mafia Vows by Vivy Skys
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratings**An Age Gap Surprise Pregnancy Dark Romance**. “When can I touch you where no one else has? ”. One reckless text. That’s all it took to start a mafia war. She was untouched. And she let me watch her fall apart—moaning my name through the phone like I already owned her. So I married my wild Irish rose. Filled her with my seed. Marked her as mine. Then my father’s orders caught up to me...Categorized as:
mafia forbidden love suspense alpha male possessive hero length-medium contemporary dark -
Sax by Lane Hart, D.B. West
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsI never thought I would be stupid enough to make a deal with the devil, but here I am doing just that. It’s not like he really gave me a choice. I have to give the Governor what he wants, or he’s going to throw all of my Savage Kings MC brothers into prison for decades. And what exactly does Governor Satan need from me? That’s the real kicker because he’s insisting that I…date his daughter... -
The Devil's Crown-Part Two by Monica James
Rated: 4.52 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAll The Pretty Things Trilogy Spin-Off. With the enemy dead, my throne awaits my return. But the reason I’m still standing is being held captive by another foe. -
Ash by Sophie Lark
My Hostage. Her Secret. Our Enemy. Taking the commissioner’s daughter wasn’t part of the plan. It should have been an easy smash and grab. Instead I captured Lara, so scared and helpless…. I never want to let her go. I’m obsessed with her. A Bratva shouldn’t be this close to the law. But I can’t keep my hands off her... -
-
Brutal Saint by Luna Kayne
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsHARLOW IS HUNTING HER SISTER’S KILLER. AND COLE IS HUNTING HER. COLE SAINT. The woman my family is looking for is the one-night stand I can’t get out of my head, and her life depends on me getting to her first. Harlow is sunshine and light. I live in the shadows, among the dark and the damned, but there’s something about Harlow that makes me want to take care of her... -
Breathe Again by Nola Marie
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsFrom the flames of sin I rose, by her virtue, I fell. .. I found her in my eleventh hour. My whiskey-eyed canary. Quinn. Call it Fate or destiny or whatever, but she is the melody to calm my madness. With her, the demons inside me quiet. She doesn't have a hold on my heart, she owns it. She is my everything. I've been given a second-chance and I’m not about to squander it... -
Taking the Fall: The Complete Series by Alexa Riley
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsLayla O’Leary has had enough. For years she has been haunted by the night she can’t remember. When she learns the only man she's ever loved has betrayed her, she escapes and crafts a new identity. She's finally free. .. Carter has waited eight years to claim his woman. Locking him up only fueled his obsession. The day he gets out he's coming for her. Taking the Fall was just the start...Categorized as:
alpha male insta-love mafia suspense forbidden love vengeance new adult possessive hero -
King of Souls by L.A. Cotton
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 15 ratingsFrom bestselling author L A Cotton comes the highly anticipated conclusion to Nicco and Arianne’s duet. Arianne Capizola is living a lie. Angry. Abandoned. Afraid. She'd rather spend her days locked away on her father's estate than with the guy who stole her innocence: her fiancé. Niccolò Marchetti is living a nightmare. Broken. Banished. Betrayed... -
The Final Hour by London Miller
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsThree months pass without incident, leading Mishca and Lauren to believe they can finally move on from the past and build a life together. . .. but enemies both old and new lurk in the shadows, waiting for the opportunity to strike. When a dangerous threat presents itself, Lauren is forced to turn to the one person that would rather see Mishca dead than live happily ever after. . . -
A Peek Beyond the Consequences by Aleatha Romig
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsNo longer available: Previous available in BREATHLESS - An Anthology. Due to reader request. .. this novella has been expanded (tripled in length) and will be release in January of 2015 as Beyond the Consequences. Anthony Rawlings is a man most women love to hate or hate to love... -
Worth of Waste by Bethany-Kris
Rated: 4.41 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsDeLuca Duet, Part Two. The Chicago Mob is the same as it has always been—violent, greedy, and excessive. The Outfit families have turned their backs when they were needed the most one too many times, but Dino DeLuca didn’t expect anything different. His whole life has been lived for the Outfit—for his family. He has a whole new set of reasons to live and fight now... -
Blowback by Monica James
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThis was supposed to be simple. Vengeance was mine. But I should know by now that nothing in life is easy. My endgame has changed all because I met someone who wishes I was dead. Yet her hatred is the only thing saving her from The Big Bad. My lies protect her, so the harder she hates, the safer she is. The thing about love and hate—it skates a very thin line. I need to stay away... -
Amos y mazmorras: Segunda parte by Lena Valenti
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsChegou 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 Company by J.A. Huss
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsSome people are above the law. Those people are called COMPANY. Twenty-eight-year-old James Fenici has been an assassin since he was sixteen. He's amassed debts and favors from countless Company brothers and participated in hundreds of Company jobs. But there are not enough favors in the world to clear his debt and make him worthy of the only girl he's ever wanted... -
-
Break Me by C.D. Reiss
Rated: 4.34 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIt was always Sarah. And she was always mine. I woke up in a nightmare. I woke up alone. There was a reason I never let myself have feelings before. Emotions make you stupid. They make you miscalculate. If someone gave me the choice, I’d do it all over again. Only this time, I’d stop everyone who ever looked at the woman I love before they had the chance to hurt her... -
Vengeful Hearts by S. Lexi
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsErika grew up on the streets of New York City. When her baby sister got kidnapped by the most extensive human trafficking ring in the area and eventually murdered, she swore to avenge her death. Blaise grew up in the Italian Mafia; his father was the don...Categorized as:
mafia suspense vengeance contemporary from hate to love strong heroine dark length-long -
Dreams of the Vengeful by Adelaide Forrest
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsOur love was written in blood, but our dream was born from death. Once upon a time, I had it all. Born heir apparent to one of the Six Families,. I was destined for greatness. Wealth and power were in my blood, and. sweet Thalia was one more means to an end. Until they banished me from the watchful city,. stripping me of everything I possessed,. my name, my home, all I’d come to hold dear,...Categorized as:
suspense new adult mafia contemporary arranged marriage dark length-novella cliffhanger -
Make Me by C.D. Reiss
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars · 7 ratingsDario Lucari kidnapped me when I was just a bride sold for territory…and made me a captive wife. He will never free me. I am his property and he lets me know that every time he hurts me. My hate for him burns hotter than the embers of love. But for how long? ***. Make Me is the second book in the trilogy.Categorized as:
forbidden love mafia alpha male suspense new adult from hate to love contemporary abduction -
Ruthless Redemption by Eden Summers
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThey say love hurts—but they never mentioned it could make you bleed. His deceit was like wine. I drank it in. Let it intoxicate me. But he’s not the man I fell for. Matthew Langston is a lie. I’d run from him if I could. I’d flee. If only he hadn’t turned my family against me. Now, I have nothing. There’s no money, phone, or external support. Only him, and his obsession with winning me back... -
Carnage by Ker Dukey
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsEzekiel “Carnage Creator” Ford. Brother of the Royal Bastards MC. Brutality incarnate. A lone wolf. The one they call in from the dark when they need shit done—and there’s no one better for the job than me. I have a tainted soul, oil black, and hungry for bloodshed. The world is a cesspit... -
Bridges Burned by Marie James
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsI didn’t swear vengeance on the Severino Family after Ellie’s death. I was only a child after all. I didn’t swear vengeance when my father, a coward who wasn’t man enough to seek justice for her, drank himself into a divorce. Going after them would be a death sentence. I chose to live my life in the shadows, seeking revenge for others. That was until I ran into the very man that took Ellie’s life... -
Fair Game by Amelia Wilde
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsGabriel Hill has always been too charming for his own good. Women. Money. Information. Sex got him everything he ever wanted, until it almost killed him. A price he was willing to pay, before he met Elise. Before he fell for her. Now revenge isn't enough for him. He wants it all. The most beautiful woman. The most dangerous game. And a happily ever after, if it's not too late to save them both. -
Crown of Bliss: A Billionaire Mafia Romance by B. B. Hamel
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsHis obsession. Her salvation. At my lowest, I accept an unimaginable clean up a murder scene to earn one-hundred-grand. Problem is, my employer doesn’t plan on letting me survive the night. That’s when I meet Lanzo Torrent. He’s gorgeous, chaotic, frustrating, and my only salvation. He says he can save my life, but I have to trust him first. Lanzo drags me into his war...Categorized as:
suspense new adult vengeance mafia contemporary forced proximity age difference length-medium -
The Way We Are by Shandi Boyes
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsSeven years in heaven awarded me seven years in hell. I’ve admired Savannah Fontane since I saw her whizzing down our street on her hot pink bike with rainbow tassels taped on the handlebars. I was in awe someone so small could ride without training wheels, I asked my mom to remove mine that same afternoon. Savannah drew a rainbow heart on my cast the very next day. From then, we were inseparable... -
-
Brother's Best Friend by K.C. Crowne
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsMy brother's best friend is a fierce underground fighter. .. And I'm his eager new understudy. Samuil Nicolaevich haunted my fantasies as a teen. And based on the way his gaze lingers on my lush curves. . He clearly appreciates how much I've blossomed. In the dark world of underground fights,. Women like me are rare victorious warriors...Categorized as:
mafia forbidden love new adult fighters super rich hero dark forced proximity contemporary -
Possessive Devil by B. B. Hamel
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsGive me what I want and I'll obey. Calvino is a nightmare wrapped in a million dollar suit. He has eyes like the black between stars and his toned body is a sculptor's dream. And someone in his family murdered my cousin. When Calvino catches me drugging and stealing from his brother, my life hangs in the balance... -
Cross + Catherine: The Saga by Bethany-Kris
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsOnce upon a time, a wild boy fell in love with a sly girl …. From high school sweethearts to a criminal King and Queen, Cross Donati and Catherine Marcello’s love became a force—even destructive, it was unstoppable. They were meant to be. Even when everything stood in the way. Always. Fall in love with the saga of Cross + Catherine, and their story of a love revered, and a life lived so unruly... -
Sinful Promise by B. B. Hamel
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsI’m in his bed learning the limits of my body. Peter Calimeris. Greek mafia son, monster in a perfect suit, and the only man keeping me alive. He’s supposed to be my bodyguard, but he barely notices me. At least until Peter gets involved in a business deal with my half-sister... -
Reckless & Ruined by Bethany-Kris
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsPlay dirty. It’s the only way to win in a war. Alessa Trentini follows the rules, or so it seems on the outside. A certain Conti has always been able to sway her inner rebel and keep her out of trouble, but even Adriano won’t be able to get her out of her brother’s mess. In a war, no woman is safe if her hand in marriage can advance her family in the world of the mafia...Categorized as:
suspense mafia alpha male forbidden love new adult virgin heroine contemporary abuse -
Broken Edges by Jessie Evans, Everly Stone
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 15 ratingsLoving Gabe made me stronger than I was before. Better. He taught me that love is both beautiful and vicious, terrifying and intoxicating. I’m not afraid anymore. I know that it’s possible for two imperfect people to have a bond worth risking everything for. After all we’ve been through, I thought I was ready to fight any battle. But nothing could have prepared me to face this new nightmare...
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
Or - use our amazing romance book finder to get recommendations based on your favorite content tropes and themes. Mix and match at will.

