Books like 'The Skull Ruler'

Readers who enjoyed The Skull Ruler by Penelope Sky also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.

contemporary  dark romance  suspense  alpha male  mafia  pregnancy  m-f  second chances  height-difference  masc-dom 

  • Buttons and Beauty by Penelope Sky

    Buttons and Beauty by Penelope Sky

    Rated: 4.52 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 5 of 5
    Explicit and plentiful [?] · 46 ratings
    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...
  • Eulogy by Rachel Van Dyken

    Eulogy by Rachel Van Dyken

    Rated: 4.61 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 5 of 5
    Explicit and plentiful [?] · 34 ratings
    The next book in the internationally bestselling mafia series… All is lost. All. I don't recognize myself in the mirror anymore. My thoughts are filled with hatred and dripping with rage. I've lost my soul. She took it to the depths of Hell with her and haunts me with images of what could have been. Sixty lives are mine to take. Sixty lives stand in the way of my vengeance...
    Categorized as:
    suspense  mafia  alpha male  m-f  new adult  angst  bad boys  dark
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  • Enrage by Rachel Van Dyken

    Enrage by Rachel Van Dyken

    Rated: 4.59 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 30 ratings
    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...
    Categorized as:
    suspense  mafia  m-f  new adult  contemporary  angst  dark  audiobook
  • The Black Wolf by J.A. Redmerski

    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...
    Categorized as:
    suspense  mafia  alpha male  m-f  dark  new adult  contemporary  abuse
  • Judge by Teagan Brooks

    Judge by Teagan Brooks

    Rated: 4.45 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 34 ratings
    Judge I moved into one of the rental houses owned by the club while my own house was being built. I wasn’t happy about it, but I was too old to move back in with my mother, even for just a few weeks. It was a nice, quiet neighborhood. Until the girl next door moved in and turned my world upside down before I even knew who she was. River I had the worst luck...
  • Behind the Hands That Kill by J.A. Redmerski

    Behind the Hands That Kill by J.A. Redmerski

    Rated: 4.45 of 5 stars
    · 30 ratings
    -Reading Order-#1 - KILLING SARAI#2 - REVIVING IZABEL#3 - THE SWAN & THE JACKAL#4 - SEEDS OF INIQUITY#5 - THE BLACK WOLF#6 - BEHIND THE HANDS THAT KILL#7 - SPIDERS IN THE GROVE---Even professional killers need vacations, but for Victor Faust, his vacation in Venezuela is about more than relaxation and time alone with Izabel Seyfried...
    Categorized as:
    suspense  mafia  alpha male  m-f  dark  contemporary  abuse  bad boys
  • Orbiting Mars by K.L. Savage

    Orbiting Mars by K.L. Savage

    Rated: 4.55 of 5 stars
    · 21 ratings
    I'm a car accident waiting to happen and it's only a matter of time before I crash into something.Every day that passes, every second I blink, the need to drink grows. Meetings aren’t enough. My willpower isn’t enough.Sunnie… The second I see her, I want to crash into her instead. But she may not be enough to kill the need.And when Sunnie tells me something that I can’t handle?I break. I run away...
    Categorized as:
    suspense  alpha male  mafia  m-f  bikers  dark  contemporary  bad boys
  • Copper by Teagan Brooks

    Copper by Teagan Brooks

    Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 32 ratings
    Copper I needed a break, so I took off to my friend’s cabin for a few days for some peace and quiet. Instead, I found an injured woman in the woods claiming to be a lost hiker. I immediately knew there was more to her story, and I was right, but the bombshell she dropped was the last thing I expected. Layla I wasn’t sure how much more I could take...
    Categorized as:
    alpha male  suspense  mafia  m-f  bikers  contemporary  dark  abuse
  • Rescuing Isabelle by Ellie Masters

    Rescuing Isabelle by Ellie Masters

    Rated: 4.80 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    Keeping her safe from a deadly cartel might be the easy part of our relationship…As a former NAVY SEAL and Guardian, rescuing Isabelle LaCroix was my job.Falling for her was not.But that didn’t stop me.Boy, did I fall hard.Just my luck… Izzy isn’t looking for happily ever after. Especially not with a guy like me...
  • Miles by Lane Hart, D.B. West

    Miles by Lane Hart, D.B. West

    Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 20 ratings
    Who could ever fall in love with a cold-blooded killer like me?The answer is no one. That’s why I’m giving up trying to find a woman who wants me for more than one rowdy night. I’m determined to find a wife instead. If I buy a mail order bride, then she’ll have no choice but to stick around...
  • Easy to Fall by W. Winters

    Easy to Fall by W. Winters

    Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars
    · 24 ratings
    From 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. The world could try to rip us apart, but it would fail...
  • Tiernan by Jane Henry

    Tiernan by Jane Henry

    Rated: 4.47 of 5 stars
    · 17 ratings
    When I knew Aisling, she was my sister’s best friend. Young.Innocent.Wild.But that was then.Now I’m hardened and ruthless.A bare-knuckle boxer. An enforcer for the Clan.And that carefree girl is a slave to her addictions with demons in her eyes.And I want her.When she witnesses a murder—a murder I committed—I have no choice but to take her.I’ll keep her silent.I’ll keep her hostage...
    Categorized as:
    mafia  spanking  alpha male  suspense  bdsm  dark  contemporary  angst
  • Saving Poughkeepsie by Debra Anastasia

    Saving Poughkeepsie by Debra Anastasia

    Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars
    · 19 ratings
    Beckett 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...
    Categorized as:
    alpha male  suspense  mafia  m-f  contemporary  dark  bad boys  angst
  • The Savage by Stella Andrews

    The Savage by Stella Andrews

    Rated: 4.46 of 5 stars
    · 15 ratings
    Ivan may be my name but I am best known as The Savage.Born and bred Bratva heir and loving every delicious minute of my life. That's why it was easy to kidnap the entitled Charlotte Richmond from her finishing school in England. It was my pleasure to hide her away while her depraved father searched for her.I have no heart, no emotion, and no morals.She is a bargaining chip, a means to an end...
  • The Nomad by Amelia Shea

    The Nomad by Amelia Shea

    Rated: 4.55 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    Broke and bitter, Karia Mitchell is just done. So damn tired of it all. After spending a decade in a loveless and toxic marriage, she’s finally breaking free and rebuilding her life. The prospect of starting over at forty-one is gut wrenching, but she’s willing to do whatever it takes as long as she’s rid of her ex...
  • Shattered by Bethany-Kris

    Shattered by Bethany-Kris

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 13 ratings
    “Don’t fall in love with me. I ruin beautiful things.” Love made him this way, but life makes him stay. Life doesn’t give a redo. There’s no rewind or pause button to take you back or stop time. Once something happens, it happened. The most tragic of those times in his life, the ones he wouldn’t get back and the moments he could never fix, reminded Demyan Avdonin of a bullet meeting glass...
  • King of Pain by Piper Stone

    King of Pain by Piper Stone

    Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars
    · 13 ratings
    My vows didn't make me his. My body did. Diego Santos may be wealthy, powerful, and sinfully gorgeous, but his slick veneer doesn't fool me. I know his true nature, and I had planned to end this arranged marriage before it even began. But it wasn't Diego waiting for me at the altar...
    Categorized as:
    spanking  mafia  suspense  alpha male  m-f  dark  contemporary  bdsm
  • Brutal Saint by Luna Kayne

    Brutal Saint by Luna Kayne

    Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    HARLOW IS HUNTING HER SISTER’S KILLER.AND COLE IS HUNTING HER.COLE SAINTThe 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...
  • Pretty Evil by Stella Andrews

    Pretty Evil by Stella Andrews

    Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    When the cage door opens, freedom is a difficult temptation to ignore.Serena VieriMafia princess, protected her entire life for a very good reason.There is a target on her back.Her family believed she was better off not knowing but with knowledge comes a certain kind of power that she could sure use right now...
  • Harlem by Crystal Daniels, Sandy Alvarez

    Harlem by Crystal Daniels, Sandy Alvarez

    Rated: 4.37 of 5 stars
    · 14 ratings
    I’m a cold-blooded killer.The debt collector.Enforcer for Fallen Ravens MC.My roots run deep in the dark underbelly of New York. I was raised by the devil himself, groomed to kill and destined to one day rule his Empire. Until an unforgivable act of betrayal caused me to walk away from it all, vowing to never return.I’ve created my own destiny.I live by my own rules.My loyalty lies with the club...
  • A Shade of Evil by Stella Andrews

    A Shade of Evil by Stella Andrews

    Rated: 4.45 of 5 stars
    · 11 ratings
    Revenge is a dish best served cold.Shade Vieri has no mercy. No compassion and no empathy.He is cruel, enigmatic, and deliciously dark.His instructions are clear.Find the Achilles heel of the enemy and destroy it.The enemy is a woman who slides across his soul like spun silk.A breath of fresh air in a dark, depressing world...
  • Blackbird by Molly McAdams

    Blackbird by Molly McAdams

    Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars
    · 26 ratings
    From New York Times bestselling author Molly McAdams comes a powerhouse romantic suspense that will have you questioning your morals and second guessing your view on love. I live in a world few know exist. I’ve trained for this. I know what to say, what to do, and how to act. I’ve perfected the lethal calm required for this life. Now it’s time to buy my first girl...
  • Ruthless Prince by Piper Stone

    Ruthless Prince by Piper Stone

    Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars
    · 11 ratings
    Alexandra is a senator's daughter, used to mingling in the company of the rich and powerful, but tonight she will learn that there are men who play by different rules. Men like me. I could romance her. I could seduce her and then carry her gently to my bed. But that can wait...
  • Celt. by London Miller

    Celt. by London Miller

    Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    Welcome to the Den ... Six minutes is all he needs to get a job done … Kyrnon “Celt” Murphy is one of the best thieves in the world. After all, his childhood was spent with a caravan of Irish Travelers that taught him everything he knows...
  • Ruthless Redemption by Eden Summers

    Ruthless Redemption by Eden Summers

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    They 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...
  • Beautiful Devil by Piper Stone

    Beautiful Devil by Piper Stone

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    I made my name and my fortune carrying out every hit with absolute precision. But this time it wasn’t a job, it was personal, and something went horribly wrong. This time there was a witness...
  • Born Evil by Stella Andrews

    Born Evil by Stella Andrews

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    Some devils come dressed in sharp suits with eyes that seduce and a check box beside every wish you ever had. Some victims come dressed in innocence and ignorance, disguising a soul of pure fire. I am Troy Remington. Ruthless billionaire with a heart of steel. I offered Laura Kincaid the job of a lifetime for a very important reason...
  • Hold Me by LP Lovell

    Hold Me by LP Lovell

    Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars
    · 9 ratings
    I’m a former slave. The sister of death. Collateral. He’s a bad man. A cartel boss— and my everything. I thought I was done being someone’s toy, but I was so very wrong. Safety is nothing more than a premise in my world, and it seems my own sister can’t be trusted. Loyalties will be tested, and even my big bad wolf might not be able to save me this time. A priceless pawn...
  • Sinful Promise by B. B. Hamel

    Sinful Promise by B. B. Hamel

    Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    I’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...
  • Until the End by London Miller

    Until the End by London Miller

    Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars
    · 29 ratings
    Lauren Thompson After learning the truth behind her father's tragic murder, Lauren vowed never to go near another Volkov again, but sometimes matters of the heart are too strong to resist... Mishca Volkov As a Captain in the Volkov Bratva, Mishca has pledged his loyalty to the Vory v Zakone, but he soon finds himself at odds with the life he's always known..
  • Corrupted Vows by Kiana Hettinger

    Corrupted Vows by Kiana Hettinger

    Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 5 of 5
    Explicit and plentiful [?] · 17 ratings
    Caitriona I’m having my ex’s baby.Safe to say that’s not idealEspecially because he doesn’t even know that I’m alive. Now my son’s life is on the lineand I'll do whatever it takes to protect him,Including getting back togetherwith the man who tore my heart and soul apart. Gabe I saw her die in a fire...
  • When Angels Seek Chaos by Addison Jane

    When Angels Seek Chaos by Addison Jane

    Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    Angelo Moretti was a man I should have stayed far away from. When my world was torn apart before my eyes, and I was left vulnerable and damaged, he was sent to protect me. He was hard. He was patronizing. And he was the most beautiful man I’d ever met. Every bone in my body told me to hate him, to despise everything he stood for. But I couldn’t...
  • The Price of Honor by Aleatha Romig

    The Price of Honor by Aleatha Romig

    Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    THE PRICE OF HONOR: The making of a manFrom New York Times bestselling author Aleatha Romig comes the haunting story of love and honor. An epic tale of devotion and sacrifice spanning thirty years, bidding the characters, as well as readers to ponder the questions..
  • Claimed as Revenge by Piper Stone

    Claimed as Revenge by Piper Stone

    Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
    · 9 ratings
    A Dark Mafia RomanceI claimed her to send a message. I'll keep her for my pleasure.Valencia Rivera was given to me for a night to seal a deal offered to me by her father, but after that pact was broken I decided she was mine to keep. She thought she had a say in the matter, but she found out otherwise when the first stinging lash of my belt landed on her beautiful bottom...
    Categorized as:
    suspense  mafia  anal sex  m-f  spanking  contemporary  dark  audiobook
  • Made to Beg by Piper Stone

    Made to Beg by Piper Stone

    Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
    · 9 ratings
    First I made her beg. Then I made her mine.Sierra Fox showed up at my door to ask for my protection, and I gave it to her... for a price. She belongs to me now, and I'm going to use her beautiful body as thoroughly as I please. The only thing for her to decide is how sore her cute little bottom will be when I'm through claiming her...
  • Promised to the Killer by B.B. Hamel

    Promised to the Killer by B.B. Hamel

    Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 5 of 5
    Explicit and plentiful [?] · 9 ratings
    Her family tossed her aside like a broken doll.But she's my shining treasure and I'll kill to make her mine.Siena Bastone is going to die. She's the cast-off traitorous daughter of a minor mafia family with deliciously pouty lips and a wicked tongue.But after we spend one unforgettable night of sin in a hotel room, I can't walk away.I pull her from her family's clutches and make her my own...
  • Respect by Aleatha Romig

    Respect by Aleatha Romig

    Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    Respect - An Infidelity series Novel “The making of a man” An EPIC mafia love story not to be missed. From New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author Aleatha Romig comes a stand-alone novel, a spin-off from her beloved Infidelity series...
  • Storm by Rie Warren

    Storm by Rie Warren

    Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    Danger.Lust. Desire . . . Trust? STORM I’m headed back to the Blood Legion MC in New Orleans, my old stomping grounds. Guns. Thugs. Broads. Cocaine nightmares. A Mexican cartel, cracker coke runners, and now there’s a new international threat in town. Blaize Carmichael is my only partner in this op. Blaize. As a biker babe. Jeeesus...
  • Redemption by Nicolina Martin

    Redemption by Nicolina Martin

    Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    I can be a good soldier. Or I can claim what is rightfully mine. I have my Get rid of the pretty brunette with the sweet laugh and heart of gold. But as I watch her, waiting for the perfect moment to strike, I’m captivated by her. She is everything I’m not, pure where I’m tarnished, the light to my dark, and I’m suddenly desperate for the sun. Wanting her is a betrayal all of its own...
  • Bratva Bastard by Misty Winters

    Bratva Bastard by Misty Winters

    Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars
    · 7 ratings
    CrissyA kind stranger calmed me down from one of the worst flights of my life.I forgot my Xanax and started to have a panic attack, 30,000 feet in the air.Little did I know that day would change my life forever.Maxim Kozlov looked and acted the part of a kind stranger. He’s a massive, powerfully strong bastard with brutal, deep blue eyes that promise all kinds of delicious things...
  • Interrogated: A Dark Irish Mafia Romance by Piper Stone

    Interrogated: A Dark Irish Mafia Romance by Piper Stone

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    He took me to interrogate me. He kept me to make me his.As Liam McGinty's belt lashes my bare backside, it isn't the burning sting or the humiliating awareness that my body's surrender is on full display for this ruthless mobster that shocks me.It's the fact that this isn't a scene from one of my books...
  • 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...
  • Borgata by Katarina E. Tonks

    Borgata by Katarina E. Tonks

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Samantha finds herself imprisoned in a world of illegal trade and criminal activity, where she must face the consequences of her actions and repay her father's debt. She also will try to resist a mob boss, who understands her on a much deeper level than her heart can allow...
  • Bloodlines by Bo Reid

    Bloodlines by Bo Reid

    Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars
    · 5 ratings
    Blood makes us a family, the blood just isn’t our own. Morana Valdis is finally free of her monster, or so she thinks. Living in the snowy mountains of Aspen Colorado with her family she no longer concerns herself with the spilled blood from her past...
  • Arrogant Monster by Nicole Fox

    Arrogant Monster by Nicole Fox

    Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 3 of 5
    Open door [?] · 33 ratings
    I just crashed my car in the middle of nowhere.Luckily for me, someone showed up to save me.Unluckily for me, that person is a runaway criminal.Daniil Vlasov.He’s six and a half feet of blue-eyed broodiness.He won’t tell me a single thing about who he is or what he’s doing out here.But it doesn’t take a genius to realize this man screams danger.I do the only thing I can do: play along...
  • Bratva Darling by Sabine Barclay

    Bratva Darling by Sabine Barclay

    Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 14 ratings
    I wasn’t prepared for her…She just got me to pay three times as much as I wanted for a company I’ll buy and destroy.She knows who I am. The bratva doesn’t scare her.Intelligent, brave, and unstoppable.I’ll make her mine.She doesn’t know it yet, but we’re soulmates.I’ll take her to her limits. Then give her all her heart desires...
  • Darkness Lurks by J.L. Drake

    Darkness Lurks by J.L. Drake

    Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars
    · 20 ratings
    Emily McPhee has struggled to overcome her father’s death... It’s not easy, but Emily finally has the life she wants. She’s an A student at Orange University and has a comfortable home and a great circle of friends. She’s also in love with handsome Orange PD officer Seth Connors. He doesn’t seem to return her feelings, though, so she tells herself his friendship is enough...
  • Inked For Life by Flora Ferrari

    Inked For Life by Flora Ferrari

    Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars
    · 11 ratings
    I’m inked for life—a red crosshair on my wrist, marking me as a traitor’s daughter. With my uncle, Nick, I’m forced to attend Cartel parties. I have to prove my loyalty. I have to prove I’m not like my dad. Otherwise, they’ll do the same to me. Then one night, at a party, I see him, Damien Dovlatov, the leader of the Bratva. As a supposedly loyal Cartel girl, I’m supposed to hate him...
  • Merciless Union by Faith Summers

    Merciless Union by Faith Summers

    Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars
    · 9 ratings
    Everything changed overnight.Truth became my enemy, and the sting of betrayal dragged me into a web of lies.I’m damned if I fight to live and damned if I die. Both will be dangerous for the child growing inside me. I can’t trust Lucca to save us.Love is a myth we shouldn’t have explored.He was always my enemy.Love just made me forget and blinded me to the truth...
    Categorized as:
    suspense  mafia  m-f  new adult  contemporary  dark
  • Thin Lives by Bethany-Kris

    Thin Lives by Bethany-Kris

    Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars
    · 13 ratings
    The Final Donati Bloodlines Novel *** Emma Donati Some days, it felt like Emma had just imagined it all. Like maybe everything she had been with Calisto was just a dream. Emma knew it was crazy—it was impossible to forget what she had shared with Calisto Donati. All their love, the stolen moments, their foulness together, and the beauty underneath it all were real. They were real...
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