Books like 'The Beginning Of Us'
Readers who enjoyed The Beginning Of Us by Lylah James also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
contemporary dark romance fantasy love triangle mafia new adult cruel hero forced proximity friends to lovers college
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Eat Your Heart Out by Eden O'Neill
Cold.Cruel.Coward.Ares “Wolf” Mallick ripped my heart out. He ground it into mush and didn’t even grant me the courtesy of a goodbye. He just left me. He left and said our relationship, fake or otherwise, meant nothing to him.I made a mistake last semester, and it had nothing to do with our phony arrangement. I let him hurt me, and I refuse to make that mistake again...Categorized as:
new adult cruel hero from hate to love college forced proximity angst contemporary suspense -
![Irresistible Attraction by W. Winters]()
Irresistible Attraction by W. Winters
From USA Today bestselling author Willow Winters comes the complete heart-wrenching, edge-of-your-seat gripping, romantic suspense trilogy, Irresistible Attraction. Sometimes you meet someone, maybe meet isn’t the right word. You don’t even have say hello for this to happen. You simply pass by them and everything in your world changes forever...Categorized as:
new adult from hate to love mafia contemporary bdsm dual-pov age difference bad boys -
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![Scarred Souls: Raze & Reap by Tillie Cole]()
Scarred Souls: Raze & Reap by Tillie Cole
The first two books in the Scarred Souls series, in one volume! RAZEOne man stripped of his freedom, his morals... his life. Conditioned in captivity to maim, to kill and to slaughter, prisoner 818 becomes an unrivaled and unstoppable fighter in the ring. Violence is all he knows. After years of incarceration in an underground hell, only one thought occupies his mind: revenge.. -
![Tales You Win by Bea Paige]()
Tales You Win by Bea Paige
An Academy of Stardom spin off Grim A nickname given to me by my father, the Ruler of Tales, an East End underground fight club.Tales you win. Heads you lose.And the fighters of Tales never lose.As a kid I’d believed my father was a real king, like the ones found in myths and fairytales I once loved to read. The men he ruled were his faithful soldiers sworn to protect the club, him, me... -
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![Threaded Lies by K. Bromberg]()
Threaded Lies by K. Bromberg
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe heated follow-up to Twisted Knight and the second book in New York Times bestselling author K. Bromberg's Tangled Hearts series.A dark and sexy romance of revenge, betrayal… and falling in love with the enemy.HoldenI let my guard down.And got screwed over by a woman without even knowing why.But it won’t happen again.Because the only thing I care about is burning this whole place down... -
![Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy]()
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 81 ratings❤️ "All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way." ❤️Leo Tolstoy's Anna Karenina is one of the greatest novels ever written—a sweeping, emotionally charged portrait of love, betrayal, and the search for meaning in a world bound by duty and desire...Categorized as:
high-school love triangle other-man-woman historical suicide victorian death fantasy -
![Tempt Me: A Dark Billionaire Mafia Romance by Faith Summers, Khardine Gray]()
Tempt Me: A Dark Billionaire Mafia Romance by Faith Summers, Khardine Gray
Rated: 4.49 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsLove is a weakness for a man like me…Two years ago my enemies murdered my wife.They took away the mother of my newborn son.That’s how I became the beast…A merciless, heartless, soulless creature.That’s why I made the deal with Ava:Take her to repay her father’s debt…I couldn’t resist.Not when I saw she feared me as much as she wanted me.I wanted the beauty, a woman nearly half my age... -
![Hard Truths by Rebecca Royce]()
Hard Truths by Rebecca Royce
Rated: 4.34 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsI’m Everly Marrs, and I’ll be damned before I lose myself to the men that kidnapped me. I had plans, big plans. I had my pretty little life outlined: Graduate school and get a job in social work—maybe even one day marry a nice man who actually knew what he was doing in bed. But everything changed when I woke up in a strange place with five men who insisted I call them D, W, J, K, and T... -
![The Ritual by Shantel Tessier]()
The Ritual by Shantel Tessier
THE CHOSEN ONEBarrington University is home of the Lords, a secret society that requires their blood in payment. They are above all-the most powerful men in the world. They devote their lives to violence in exchange for power. And during their senior year, they are offered a chosen one.I VOW. YOU VOW. WE VOW.People think growing up with money is freeing, but I promise you, it's not... -
![Beyond Time by Lee McCormick]()
Beyond Time by Lee McCormick
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsHow many times will we kill each other? How many times can we fall in love?SETHI always thought my world would begin and end with Jayce Walker. When a sleep study offers us life-changing money, we jump at the opportunity. There’s only one I don’t have insomnia. Bluffing my way in is easy, but getting there and losing everything that’s ever mattered is a nightmare I can’t escape.Jayce is gone... -
![Wicked Deceit by Aly Beck]()
Wicked Deceit by Aly Beck
My enemy is The Apocalypse Society: Three brothers, a hidden agenda, distorted masks, and minions who do their dirty work.They tried to kill the rabbit.They injured two of the men I love.They thought they could cut me down.Not only my life, but the lives of my four men, are now in danger.Time is running out. The rabbit is almost in their trap. The next time they may succeed in killing me... -
![Fractured by R. Phillips]()
Fractured by R. Phillips
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 18 ratings"All of it existing somewhere in between everything."What is a life? A collection of memories? A series of glorious highs and heartrending lows? Is it a purpose, cumulative or singular? Or is it something more? Something beyond what is tangible or immaterial?Something beyond even what is found within us...Categorized as:
love triangle new adult other-man-woman dark contemporary fantasy mystery length-long -
![Redlined by Cala Riley]()
Redlined by Cala Riley
RoxanneRacing and Ross are the only two things I thought I could ever count on. That is, until one of them sends me far away, making me lose the other.Now, stuck with a cousin I’m not sure even wants me here trying to pick up the scattered pieces of my life, all I want to do is find my own way...Categorized as:
from hate to love angst love triangle new adult other-man-woman sports contemporary dark -
![Once a Myth by Pepper Winters]()
Once a Myth by Pepper Winters
Rated: 4.04 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsHe bought her. He trapped her. She belongs to him.Eleanor Grace is a naïve dreamer. Trusting and young, she believes her travel-loving boyfriend can save her when her freedom is snatched and sold. Squirrelled away to an island at dawn, delivered to a man even darkness won’t touch, she’s bound by a contract. Sullivan Sinclair is the giver of fantasies...Categorized as:
from hate to love mafia angst new adult forced proximity cruel hero dark contemporary -
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![Iblis’ Affliction by Nero Seal]()
Iblis’ Affliction by Nero Seal
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIblīs (Arabic إبليس)—the primary devil in Islam. “If you sleep with the Devil, don’t expect to get out of hell.” DEMANDING. NEEDY. DANGEROUS. Slater is everything Talha doesn’t want but everything the crime lord needs. The bloodiest ripper of Anatolia, nicknamed Iblīs, kills for him and warms his bed... -
![Beautiful Lies by Alta Hensley, Stasia Black]()
Beautiful Lies by Alta Hensley, Stasia Black
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsTwenty Beautiful Lies stand before me.I can feel one’s hatred from across the ballroom.She loathes me and all that I stand for... that’s why she will be my choice, my belle of the ball.Born into a secret society that strangles the life out of me, I have no choice but to face my demons head on.Inheritance isn’t about money or land, it’s much more twisted than that...A sinful birthright...Categorized as:
new adult from hate to love contemporary fantasy suspense dark length-short audiobook -
![Souls and Sorrows by Sav R. Miller]()
Souls and Sorrows by Sav R. Miller
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsNobody asked him to step in.I had everything under control, but by the time I shuffled onstage, there was no chance to stop him.Men ogled and touched as I offered my body and soul to the highest bidder, and I could tell my stranger didn’t like what he saw.Or maybe he did.Maybe he liked it too much, and that was why his number shot up... -
![Twisted Circles by Claire Contreras]()
Twisted Circles by Claire Contreras
Rated: 3.98 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsWhen someone tells you who you are, do you believe them? The first question the cops asked me was if anything out of the ordinary happened to me lately. When I woke up this morning in the room of a mental institution I couldn’t remember a thing – not my name nor how I got there. Not how I left or how I ended up in that interrogation room. The only thing I knew came from the contents inside my bag... -
![Savage Soul by Ella Jade]()
Savage Soul by Ella Jade
Rated: 4.01 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsI failed the woman I swore to protect, and now my enemies are after her. Jude I live by a code. I don’t tolerate lies, betrayals, or secrets. I seldom give second chances. When Emmie withheld the truth from me, I acted on instinct before I gave her a chance to explain. My actions put her in danger, and now it’s my responsibility to save her... -
![Traces of Her by C.M. Radcliff]()
Traces of Her by C.M. Radcliff
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsI am a ghost, a captive stripped of my own identity. I’ve lived in solitude in the depths of hell until the devil appeared, pulling me out of the darkness and shoving me into the arms of my new prison. But sometimes a prison becomes a home. And sometimes that home is within the heart of a man. I have a debt to pay and my brother’s collecting. He makes the messes and I deal with the aftermath... -
![Reclaim by Jenna Daring, Belle Harper]()
Reclaim by Jenna Daring, Belle Harper
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 7 ratingsI’m being forced to marry a monster—a man who kills not only because he has to, but because he enjoys the hunt. No one can save me—not even my best friend, Emilio. What’s a girl to do but run away? Only when I try, my bodyguard finds me and returns me home. Even Arrow can’t help... -
![Zhànshì by Anna Edwards]()
Zhànshì by Anna Edwards
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 7 ratings“Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win” -- Sun Tzu, The Art of War Lia has known she was different since the age of five when her father taught her the skills of her ancestors. His stories of heroic exploits have fueled her fantasies for years... -
![약탈혼 3 [Yagtalhon 3] by Saha, 사하]()
약탈혼 3 [Yagtalhon 3] by Saha, 사하
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 5 ratings결혼식을 앞두고 유서를 작성했다.첫날밤을 치른 후 죽어버릴 것이기 때문이었다.평생 나라를 위해, 그리고 왕실을 위해 헌신한 왕녀의 비참한 최후였다.목숨을 내버리기 전에, 레아는 왕실을 향한 마지막 복수를 계획했다.순결하지 못한 새신부가 되는 것이었다.“왜 첫 경험을 내다버렸지? 도망치고 싶진 않나?”“나는…… 죽고 싶어.”하룻밤 상대이기에 충동적으로 털어놓은 말이었다.그렇게 끝날 인연이라고 생각했다.전혀 생각지도 못한 곳에서 다시 만나기 전까지는.그는 질서정연하던 일상을 침식해나갔다.위험한 관계임을 알면서도, 레아는 그를 거부할 수 없었다.도대체 저 남자는 무슨 생각을 하고 있는 것일까.“기억 안 나?”남자는 사납게 웃으며 말했다.“내가 네 인생 망쳐주겠다고 했잖아...Categorized as:
friends to lovers forced proximity fantasy dark suspense pregnancy contemporary bad boys -
![Pretty Monster by Sheridan Anne]()
Pretty Monster by Sheridan Anne
Rated: 3.93 of 5 stars · 38 ratingsEvery night a twisted game of cat and mouse has Kyah Bailey frozen in fear―and begging for more―in this sexy stalker romance from the author of Haunted Love.I’m not the kind of girl who likes to be tied down. Maybe tied up . . . Even though there are several men who would love to claim me, there’s only one I need―and he’ll probably be the death of me.Night after night, I feel him watching me...Categorized as:
forced proximity mafia from hate to love new adult love triangle other-man-woman dark bdsm -
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![Threaded Lies by K. Bromberg]()
Threaded Lies by K. Bromberg
Rated: 3.80 of 5 stars · 5 ratingsThe heated follow-up to Twisted Knight and the second book in New York Times bestselling author K. Bromberg's Tangled Hearts series.A dark and sexy romance of revenge, betrayal… and falling in love with the enemy.HoldenI let my guard down.And got screwed over by a woman without even knowing why.But it won’t happen again.Because the only thing I care about is burning this whole place down...Categorized as:
love triangle new adult from hate to love other-man-woman contemporary fantasy dark suspense -
![Beauty and the Villain by V.F. Mason]()
Beauty and the Villain by V.F. Mason
Rated: 3.84 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsOnce upon a time I had it all.I thrived in all the power and luxury this world had to offer.Until I found out the hideous truth.When a man I considered a friend betrayed me in the worst possible way.The scars on my body burned anew every single day as I only craved one thing.Revenge.And to execute it I had to strike him where it would hurt the most.His family...Categorized as:
mafia from hate to love new adult dark contemporary suspense age difference alpha male -
![It Starts with Us: Special Collector's Edition: A Novel by Colleen Hoover]()
It Starts with Us: Special Collector's Edition: A Novel by Colleen Hoover
Before It Ends with Us, it started with Atlas. Colleen Hoover tells fan favorite Atlas’s side of the story and shares what comes next in this long-anticipated sequel to the “glorious and touching” (USA TODAY) #1 New York Times bestseller It Ends with Us. Lily and her ex-husband, Ryle, have just settled into a civil coparenting rhythm when she suddenly bumps into her first love, Atlas, again...Categorized as:
friends to lovers new adult love triangle angst other-man-woman contemporary abuse dual-pov -
![Brutal Prince: Bonus Scene by Sophie Lark]()
Brutal Prince: Bonus Scene by Sophie Lark
Aida and Callum go to a Halloween event...Categorized as:
mafia from hate to love new adult dark age difference contemporary arranged marriage fantasy -
![Only Happy When It Rains by Selena .]()
Only Happy When It Rains by Selena .
Snubbed. Jilted. Exiled. Being left at the altar would have been better. Instead, I'm sent away to a secluded spot where I can't disturb the happy couple--on my honeymoon without a bride.Left to lick my wounds and recover from the ultimate betrayal, I do what I do best.No, not admit defeat. Not recover my dignity like I'm unaffected.Plot revenge... -
![Savage Impulses by Michelle Hercules]()
Savage Impulses by Michelle Hercules
Rated: 3.67 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsEveryone knows to stay away from the heirs of Olympus Bay. They rule the city through savagery and blood like the heartless assholes they are.A streak of bad luck puts me on the path of the most ruthless of them all. Hades. The black sheep of the family, his reputation for debauchery and violence precedes him. No wonder he’s the king of Olympus U... -
![A Tale of Vengeance: Part 1: A Dark, Mafia, Enemies-to-Lovers Romance (Vengeance Compilations) by Michaela Jackson]()
A Tale of Vengeance: Part 1: A Dark, Mafia, Enemies-to-Lovers Romance (Vengeance Compilations) by Michaela Jackson
Rated: 3.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsRevenge is a dish best served cold.And this one has been chilling for a while.But she’s hiding something.A better man would just trust her.I’m not a better man.I’ve let her go twice.Once by choice.Once by force.I won’t let her go again.Vengeance will be mine.With her as my queen.No one will stop it.Not even her.This is parts 4-5 of a 5 part dark romance series. Includes Vicarious and Vengeance... -
![The Capo's Boy by Aja Foxx]()
The Capo's Boy by Aja Foxx
Rated: 3.76 of 5 stars · 18 ratings~ Nicky ~I never intended to be a mobster's secret lover, but somehow I found myself in that position. It's been two years now and I can't say I hate it. It only becomes a problem when Vinnie's family tries to marry him off to someone else. I may be his little secret, but I refuse to be his side-piece... -
![Blood Stained Tea by Amy Tasukada]()
Blood Stained Tea by Amy Tasukada
Rated: 3.68 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsA bloody past haunts him. A devastating present calls him back…Nao hides from his violent past in the Japanese mob by opening a teahouse in Japan's cultural center, Kyoto. His past comes flooding back when he discovers a gravely injured man with a tattooed chest, a bloody knife, and a Korean business card.Saehyun would've died if not for Nao's help... -
![Poisoned Throne by Nikita.]()
Poisoned Throne by Nikita.
Like many little girls, I too used to dream of fairytales.Until that illusion was shattered, and I saw firsthand just how cruel life could be.Now I just wished my nightmare would end.The life I knew ceased to exist as I suffered at the hands of my stepmother, who hated me... -
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![Blood Stained Tea by Amy Tasukada]()
Blood Stained Tea by Amy Tasukada
Rated: 3.67 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsA bloody past haunts him. A devastating present calls him back…Nao hides from his violent past in the Japanese mob by opening a teahouse in Japan's cultural center, Kyoto. His past comes flooding back when he discovers a gravely injured man with a tattooed chest, a bloody knife, and a Korean business card.Saehyun would've died if not for Nao's help... -
![Hades & Persephone by Amelia Wilde]()
Hades & Persephone by Amelia Wilde
He wants her submission. She demands his secrets.Hades has acres of diamonds and precious little patience for a world that has stolen his compassion. So, when lifegiving medication is withheld from him, Hades steals something more valuable—the daughter of his enemy—and holds her for ransom.The night Persephone left home, she had just one thing on her freedom...Categorized as:
new adult from hate to love mafia super rich hero contemporary suspense dark virgin heroine -
![Love After Never: A Steamy, Enemies to Lovers Dark Romance: Empire Bay Book 1 by Melanie Kingsley]()
Love After Never: A Steamy, Enemies to Lovers Dark Romance: Empire Bay Book 1 by Melanie Kingsley
Rated: 3.56 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsEven the blackest souls need love… Seedy underbellies and dark depravities don’t scare me. I’ve seen the worst and survived. I’ve never seen a man like him before. Gabriel Blackwell, the raven-haired demon of the underworld. He’s the sickest bastard of them all. He might also be a murder suspect. If I’m going to do this job and see him behind bars, then I need to use my wits... -
![Entangled by Vera Kane]()
Entangled by Vera Kane
Rated: 3.47 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsI’ve lived the last several years of my life under the control of my step-mother.Every decision taken away from me, completely suffocating me. At eighteen, she sold me off to the highest bidder and traded one gilded cage for another. I’ve never been anything but a dollar sign to her.Until two years later Kade Luchetti kidnapped me from my tower, making me yet another dictator’s rag doll...Categorized as:
mafia from hate to love forced proximity new adult contemporary fantasy dark length-short -
![Love After Never by Melanie Kingsley]()
Love After Never by Melanie Kingsley
Rated: 3.39 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsEven the blackest souls need love… Seedy underbellies and dark depravities don’t scare me. I’ve seen the worst and survived. I’ve never seen a man like him before. Gabriel Blackwell, the raven-haired demon of the underworld. He’s the sickest bastard of them all. He might also be a murder suspect. If I’m going to do this job and see him behind bars, then I need to use my wits... -
![Broken Beauty by Jaclin Marie]()
Broken Beauty by Jaclin Marie
Rated: 3.20 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsAshI hated her. I thought I liked this.This summer seemed like such a blissful memory but god when I found out who she was I swear I saw red.Then I decided that I’m going to fucking ruin her.AriellaIf I knew what his last name was I swear I never would have spoken to him.I never would have spent my summer with Ash Jones...Categorized as:
from hate to love cruel hero dark contemporary age difference forbidden love dual-pov fantasy -
![The Black Fox by Brianna Hale]()
The Black Fox by Brianna Hale
Rated: 3.25 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsFor fifteen years I was the Black Fox, the hero of Spain, the good-luck devil. I made my enemies dance to my tune and fall to my sword. The day must come when every hero hangs up his cape, and for me, it was the day I outsmarted the curse. I would not die for love, because I didn’t love the woman I married. Valeria Hernandez didn’t love me. Then I met her. Lolita...Categorized as:
from hate to love new adult other-man-woman dark bdsm fantasy age difference daddy-kink -
![All He'll Ever Be by W. Winters]()
All He'll Ever Be by W. Winters
A USA Today bestselling, gripping and heart-wrenching romantic suspense. I get why Beauty fell in love with the Beast, but it doesn’t change who Carter is. There’s no magical rose or kiss that will turn him into a prince. All Carter Cross will ever be is a beast. A cold-hearted and ruthless, mafia king, trapped in a castle of his own making I’m the daughter of his enemy and his new possession... -
![Toxic: A Dark Romance by Nicole Blanchard]()
Toxic: A Dark Romance by Nicole Blanchard
My life has been a series of bad decisions.Marrying an abusive man was the first... but falling for a dangerous inmate where I’m a nurse may be the worst.He’s brutal, heartless, and twisted.But he’s also the only one to notice the bruises on my skin.His forbidden touch becomes my addiction.His drugging kisses my obsession...Categorized as:
mafia forced proximity from hate to love angst new adult other-man-woman dark contemporary
![약탈혼 3 [Yagtalhon 3] by Saha, 사하](https://s3.amazonaws.com/romance.io/books/small/68ff3255a3d74b8a9ac7020a.jpg)
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