Books like 'Cruel Beginnings'
Readers who enjoyed Cruel Beginnings by Lili St. Germain & Lyra Parish also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
dark romance new adult forced proximity from hate to love suspense abduction strong heroine mystery
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The Body Keeper by Anne Frasier
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsThe Thriller Award–winning series continues as Detective Jude Fontaine finds a decades-old connection to missing children that will freeze her blood.A boy’s frozen body is found trapped in the ice of a Minneapolis lake. The horrifying discovery leads Detective Jude Fontaine and her partner, Uriah Ashby, to more bodies in the ice, all of twelve-year-old boys missing for twenty years...Categorized as:
mystery suspense strong heroine contemporary dark abuse heroine sleuth length-medium -
![Can't Go Back by Debra Webb]()
Can't Go Back by Debra Webb
Rated: 4.47 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsThe 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... -
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![Monsters in the Dark by Pepper Winters]()
Monsters in the Dark by Pepper Winters
Rated: 4.51 of 5 stars · 23 ratingsFrom New York Times Bestseller Pepper Winters comes the highly acclaimed USA Today Bestselling Series: Monsters in the Dark.Included in the following edition are: TEARS OF TESS"My life was complete. Happy, content, everything neat and perfect.Then it all changed.I was sold."Kidnapped. Drugged. Stolen. Tess is forced into a world full of darkness and terror... -
![Wasted Lust: Sasha by J.A. Huss]()
Wasted Lust: Sasha by J.A. Huss
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsA GIRL WITH REGRETS... Sasha Cherlin died the night she let Nick Tate walk out on her for a life of crime. Her very essence was destroyed when they broke their promise to one another. A MAN WITH REMORSE... Nick Tate made his choice with her future in mind. He loved Sasha enough to know that leaving her behind was the only way to keep her safe. A PATH TO REVENGE.. -
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![Beneath Dark Waters by Karen Rose]()
Beneath Dark Waters by Karen Rose
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 23 ratingsDeadly 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... -
![Away from the Dark by Aleatha Romig]()
Away from the Dark by Aleatha Romig
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsNine months ago, Sara Adams awoke with no memory. The man holding her hand told her she’s a member of The Light, a tight-knit religious group led by the terrifying and charismatic Father Gabriel. As a woman in the community of The Light, her duty is to be unquestionably obedient and to submit to the will of her husband... -
![The Elite Kings Boxset Vol. II by Amo Jones]()
The Elite Kings Boxset Vol. II by Amo Jones
Rated: 4.74 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsThe Elite Kings books 1-5MADSHIPMadison + BishopThe Silver SwanThe Broken PuppetTacet a MortuisNATILNate + TillieMalum: Part 1Malum: Part 2Riddle me this.. -
![Vicious Hate by Thandiwe Mpofu]()
Vicious Hate by Thandiwe Mpofu
Rated: 4.46 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsDevastation tastes a lot like ash in your mouth. It feels like looming death hanging over your bones. It sounds like the violent shattering of your soul. It has an acrid smell much like that of rotting hearts. . . But most of all, devastation looks a lot like the beautiful, fiery girl with her fake sincerity and lies...Categorized as:
new adult suspense from hate to love sports dark siblings-bff length-medium audiobook -
![Sinner by Sheridan Anne]()
Sinner by Sheridan Anne
Death surrounds me.Every step I take, there’s someone waiting for me in the shadows.There’s nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, and now, I’m out here on my own, my hands stained with the blood of those I’ve killed to survive.Zade DeVil was my executioner, my most feared enemy, but he was also my protector. I wasn’t willing to cross that line with him, despite how much I may have wanted to...Categorized as:
suspense new adult from hate to love forced proximity cruel hero contemporary dark length-medium -
![Bed of Roses by D.V. Fischer]()
Bed of Roses by D.V. Fischer
I never thought I'd fall for a murderer. As an old employee at a funeral home, Tegan's life had been full of corpses. When her parents died, she couldn't take being surrounded by death anymore. She had to get away, and to do that, she moved to a small, sleepy town in Utah. When Tegan rented a house sight-unseen, she had been told it would need a lot of work... -
![Mystic River by Dennis Lehane]()
Mystic River by Dennis Lehane
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 72 ratingsWhen they were children, Sean Devine, Jimmy Marcus, and Dave Boyle were friends. But then a strange car pulled up to their street. One boy got into the car, two did not, and something terrible happened -- something that ended their friendship and changed all three boys forever.Twenty-five years later, Sean is a homicide detective. Jimmy is an ex-con who owns a corner store... -
![Chasing The Dragon by T.K. Leigh]()
Chasing The Dragon by T.K. Leigh
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsHe’s trying to protect his heart… She’s a shell of the girl she once was… Can he chase away the demons threatening to destroy her? Mackenzie Delano craves control. After tragedy strikes during her freshman year of college, she compensates for the helplessness she felt by micro-managing every aspect of her life, from her business life to her social life…to her love life... -
![Unholy Bonds by Maya Raine]()
Unholy Bonds by Maya Raine
Rated: 4.51 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThree serial killers connected by an unholy thread, tangled in a twisted chase for revenge and blood. In this game of hunters, who will become the ultimate prey?***He is every sin she wants to commit. Yara West spends her day as a Medical Examiner. At nights, she dons the mask of a twisted killer to satiate the demons in her head... -
![Emerald Bruises by Pepper Winters]()
Emerald Bruises by Pepper Winters
Rated: 4.61 of 5 stars · 11 ratings“I made a bargain with a monster. A vow to save both our lives. I thought our commitment would stay true. It didn’t.” I’ve spent my entire life alone. I’m well used to loneliness and the endless pain of having no one. Sure, we made a bargain. We shared our secrets and made a vow. But I warned her not to do one tiny thing. One very important thing. For a while, she obeyed me... -
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![Behind My Words by J.L. Drake]()
Behind My Words by J.L. Drake
Rated: 4.61 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsSpencerMy entire life vanished the day I found my parents’ bodies.It changed me, broke me, and I went from a bestselling author to a ghost writer hiding behind my words…Then an assignment pairs me with a new detective on a high-profile murder case.But things spiral out of control as bodies start piling up—a cruel reminder of a past I’m desperate to forget... -
![Home Town Knight by Hannah Shield]()
Home Town Knight by Hannah Shield
Rated: 4.58 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsHe's a cowboy with a sheriff's badge. And the last man she wants as a Protector.Investigative reporter Genevieve Blake rolls into Hartley County, Colorado on a mission. She's determined to expose the Last Refuge Protectors as vigilantes and the local sheriff as corrupt. The last thing she needs is a distraction—especially in the form of a handsome stranger at the hotel bar...Categorized as:
suspense mystery from hate to love forced proximity cowboys insta-love humor military -
![Pearl by Freya Barker]()
Pearl by Freya Barker
Rated: 4.75 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsa privately-funded organization operating independently in the search for-and the rescue and recovery of-missing and exploited children. Although at times working in conjunction with law enforcement, GEM aims to ensure the victims receive justice...by whatever means necessary.____Operator Pearl; layered, mysterious, a protector. She masks as delicate, analyzes, and moves stealthily...Categorized as:
suspense from hate to love forced proximity mystery abuse dark multicultural contemporary -
![Ship Happens by Lauren Biel]()
Ship Happens by Lauren Biel
Rated: 4.49 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsLove hurts, but I like the painMaverickThe second I board the Bruise Cruise, I’m ready to indulge—top-shelf liquor, five-star meals, and maybe a little pain to round out the night.What I don’t expect? Falling for the one woman guaranteed to ruin everything.A federal agent.She’s here to sink us, and I’m stuck sharing a suite—and a bed—with the enemy.FrankieGet in. Take down Jim and his crew...Categorized as:
from hate to love forced proximity suspense age difference death dark found-family humor -
![Murder Girl by Lisa Renee Jones]()
Murder Girl by Lisa Renee Jones
Rated: 4.34 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsNew York Times bestselling author Lisa Renee Jones returns with the second book in her electrifying series featuring Lilah Love, an FBI profiler who doesn’t fight her dark side—she embraces it. It’s Lilah Love’s job to inhabit a killer’s mind. The unapologetically tough FBI profiler is very comfortable there. But her latest case is making her head spin...Categorized as:
mystery suspense strong heroine heroine sleuth dark contemporary length-medium audiobook -
![Explode by E. K Hunter]()
Explode by E. K Hunter
Rated: 4.48 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsRileyOnce upon a time, I thought I didn't need friends. I thought I didn't need a man.But that changed when my path collided with Kai Wolfe. I fell in love with the devil, and I couldn’t have been happier. That was until my world imploded.Left with the weight of a responsibility I didn't want, I was backed into a corner. And there was only ever one thing I would do when backed into a corner... -
![Layered Lies by Kaylie Hunter]()
Layered Lies by Kaylie Hunter
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsTwo 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... -
![Vile Wicked Eyes by Candace Wondrak]()
Vile Wicked Eyes by Candace Wondrak
Rated: 4.54 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsMy name is Stella. I used to be empty, broken, a shell of a person watching as days passed me by.But then I found out the truth. What I’d done. What I wanted to do again. My three killers took me and shook my world upside-down, stopping only when I faced the fact that I was just like them.A brute. A monster. A beast with an innate craving to make others bleed... -
![The Marriage Auction: Season One, Volume Four by Audrey Carlan, Samantha Brentmoor]()
The Marriage Auction: Season One, Volume Four by Audrey Carlan, Samantha Brentmoor
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsFrom #1 New York Times Bestselling Author Audrey Carlan, discover The Marriage Auction: Season One, Volume FourWhat would you do for three million dollars?Four young women enter into a clandestine auction to be married to the highest bidders. For no less than a million dollars a year, for three years, each woman will do what it takes to secure her future... -
![Hear No Evil by Ivy Fox]()
Hear No Evil by Ivy Fox
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 17 ratingsEvil cannot take hold of an unconsenting soul.Do not be amazed that hell is empty, since all the devils live here.One by one, they will meet their hellish fate.One down…Three to go.EastonA tyrannous society has discovered our most atrocious secret and decided to wage war on us.They’ve had their fun with Finn, and now it’s my turn to be their little puppet...Categorized as:
suspense new adult mystery from hate to love dark college contemporary length-medium -
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![A Fractured Reign by Veronica Eden]()
A Fractured Reign by Veronica Eden
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe Crows are more than nightmares lurking in every shadow.They’re a brotherhood. Family. When threats creep in, they’ll protect what belongs to them.QuinnDoes a wrong make a right?In my case, it has to.The Kings gave me no choice, no chance to fold.I betrayed the guy who believed he was protecting me while I gave his secrets away.Now we’re enemies once more...Categorized as:
new adult suspense from hate to love forced proximity mafia cruel hero bad boys college -
![Desperate Lies by Ella Miles]()
Desperate Lies by Ella Miles
Rated: 4.71 of 5 stars · 7 ratingsI lied. He lied. His search for answers is unrelenting.It makes me hate him, but I also want him. No, I can’t want him. I want to kill him, but I’d also die for him. I’m done relying on men to protect me.I’m the huntress, about to become the killer. Desperate Lies is Book 2 in the Lies Series. Ends on a cliffhanger... -
![Texas Bodyguard: Chance by Janie Crouch]()
Texas Bodyguard: Chance by Janie Crouch
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsShe 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... -
![Opal by Freya Barker]()
Opal by Freya Barker
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsGEM: A PRIVATELY-FUNDED ORGANIZATION OPERATING INDEPENDENTLY IN THE SEARCH FOR—AND THE RESCUE AND RECOVERY OF—MISSING AND EXPLOITED CHILDREN. ALTHOUGH, AT TIMES WORKING IN CONJUNCTION WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT, GEM AIMS TO ENSURE THE VICTIMS RECEIVE JUSTICE…BY WHATEVER MEANS NECESSARY. ____GEM Operator Opal; multifaceted, versatile, a chameleon.She hides in plain sight, adapts, and infiltrates...Categorized as:
suspense mystery forced proximity single-father dark mature couple contemporary length-medium -
![Vicious Scars by Jane Blythe]()
Vicious Scars by Jane Blythe
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsNo good deed goes unpunished.Tallulah Russel knows she's made a mistake. Unfortunately it's too late to do anything about it. Snatched from her home and held prisoner in a cabin by a man whose behavior grows more confusing by the minute, she has two choices... -
![Cold Spite by Toni Anderson]()
Cold Spite by Toni Anderson
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA disgraced former Navy SEAL is looking for revenge in this romantic thriller from author Toni Anderson... -
![Come Back To Me by Emily Catlow]()
Come Back To Me by Emily Catlow
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe life they've only ever dared to dream about is almost in Madison and Dean's hands.When a new player comes on the scene, Dean must move Rippers MC into new ventures to ensure peace is maintained with their rival club, the Sodom Saviours.Before any business is conducted though, threats are made, and trust between all parties is suddenly fraught... -
![Last Resort by Janie Crouch]()
Last Resort by Janie Crouch
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsFrom USA TODAY Bestselling Author Janie Crouch. Previously published as Texas ChanceShe 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... -
![Angel of Darkness: An Italian Mafia romance by Stephanie Amaral]()
Angel of Darkness: An Italian Mafia romance by Stephanie Amaral
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsBlood runs thicker than water, mine thicker than most. But my heritage weighs heavily on my sense of self, a misfit in a circle of Men of Honor.A Mafia princess without a crown. A queen without a reign.Great lessons come from ruin, as unraveled truths and shattered illusions break me beyond repair.But from ruin came bold decisions... -
![Tangled Promise by Ella Miles]()
Tangled Promise by Ella Miles
Rated: 4.56 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsI can’t keep my promises. I’ve made too many, to too many people. All the promises have tangled into a web of sin and truths. But there is one thing I’m certain of…I have to end this—us. This is Book 4 in the Sinful Truths series... -
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![Fallen Love by Ella Miles]()
Fallen Love by Ella Miles
Rated: 4.56 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsI’ve fallen in love, then out. In… Out… Now, I’m more confused than ever. I always thought falling in love would be easy. It would feel right when I fell for the right woman. With Siren, does it feel so right, yet so wrong? This is Book 5 in the Sinful Truths series... -
![Broken Anchor by Ella Miles]()
Broken Anchor by Ella Miles
Rated: 4.56 of 5 stars · 9 ratingsI’m broken. He’s broken. We are broken. But sometimes you have to shatter to pick up the pieces. To start over. To overcome our enemies. And find out if we can love again. He’s my anchor, but can our love be repaired? This is the final book in the Sinful Truths series... -
![Hostile Devil: Giovanni & India Duet by Autumn Archer]()
Hostile Devil: Giovanni & India Duet by Autumn Archer
Rated: 4.56 of 5 stars · 9 ratings6Hostile Devil : A Dark Age Gap Mafia Romance (Souza Cartel: Giovanni)by Autumn Archer (Author) , Hostile Kingdom (Author)4.8 out of 5 stars (9)He's my devil. My forever.I've grown up around the Souza cartel, never fully realizing the brothers would never let me go. That the powerful gangsters around me would protect me at all costs. And it just so happens that two of those lethal men look alike... -
![Harder Betrayal by Penelope Sky]()
Harder Betrayal by Penelope Sky
I knew a relationship with Cauldron wouldn't be easy.But I underestimated just how challenging it would be...Categorized as:
suspense new adult from hate to love contemporary super rich hero mafia dark explicit-plentiful -
![Yakuza Fiancé: Raise wa Tanin ga Ii Vol. 6 by Asuka Konishi]()
Yakuza Fiancé: Raise wa Tanin ga Ii Vol. 6 by Asuka Konishi
PLEASE DON'T SEND ME BACK TO WHERE I CAME FROMRipples travel out from the battle in Osaka, and Renji is none too happy with Shouma and Kirishima for involving his granddaughter. When a fight breaks out, Yoshino grabs a bat and breaks it up. But corporal punishment is not her style, never mind that Kirishima would absolutely take it and beg for more... -
![Darkness Follows by J.L. Drake]()
Darkness Follows by J.L. Drake
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsEmily McPhee is in the clutches of a monster… Despite the protection of her boyfriend Seth Connors and his colleagues with the Orange Police Department, Emily is imprisoned in a basement by her psychopathic stalker Jimmy Lasko. His bizarre behavior adds to her terror, and a video link forces Seth to witness her captivity, leaving him feeling helpless as he, the OPD, and the FBI search for her... -
![Pitch Dark by A.M. Wilson, Alex Grayson]()
Pitch Dark by A.M. Wilson, Alex Grayson
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsOne girl disappeared. After fifteen years, her cold lifeless body was found on the damp forest floor. Not an inch of her was unmarked by the horrors she endured. Alone, malnourished, abused in horrific ways; this was how she died. One girl was found walking the streets, covered in dirt and scars. She had no memory of who she was, where she came from, or what happened to her... -
![Delude by Jacob Chance]()
Delude by Jacob Chance
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsShe wasn’t part of my original plan for revenge, but one glance at her and I was entranced. I followed her for weeks, observing her habits. I’ve been in her apartment numerous times, learning anything and everything I can about her. She’s become an obsession and I’ll do whatever it takes to make her mine. It’s only a matter of time before I have her where I want her.. -
![Naked Truth by Lisa Renee Jones]()
Naked Truth by Lisa Renee Jones
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsJax North. He's handsome, brutally so, and wealthy. Our first encounter is intense and sex is my escape. I go with it. I go with him and what a ride it is. And then, I say goodbye. Only you don't say goodbye to a man like Jax if he doesn't want you to. I've challenged him without meaning to. He wants me. I don't want to want him, and yet, I crave him. And he tears me down, my resistance, my walls...Categorized as:
mystery suspense from hate to love contemporary dark super rich hero dual-pov length-epic -
![Thirty Days of Shame by Ginger Talbot]()
Thirty Days of Shame by Ginger Talbot
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA dark romance with trigger warnings! Book 2 of a 3 part serial. My captor's rules have changed ...I’m still Sergei's prisoner. Freedom seems further away than ever. I swore I’d endure everything, and make him care for me. I accepted every cruel word, every punishing blow, until one day he looked at me with stark, naked hunger instead of hatred... -
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![Kisscut by Karin Slaughter]()
Kisscut by Karin Slaughter
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 52 ratingsSaturday night dates at the skating rink have been a tradition in the small southern town of Heartsdale for as long as anyone can remember, but when a teenage quarrel explodes into a deadly shoot-out, Sara Linton--the town's pediatrician and medical examiner--finds herself entangled in a terrible tragedy... -
![Amos y mazmorras: Segunda parte by Lena Valenti]()
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... -
![Priest and his Anarchist by Amo Jones]()
Priest and his Anarchist by Amo Jones
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsPeople said he was emotionless. Cold. But he burned her to the ground every chance he got. Priest Hayes thought he knew everything there was to know about the society of outlaws who ran by their own set of rules, and right now, he’d just taken the gavel. It didn’t feel heavy. It felt like it belonged there all along.In his hand.Just like her.But Luna Nox was the one girl he could never have... -
![Wishing Well by Lily White]()
Wishing Well by Lily White
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe 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... -
![Reclaiming Lola by Kylie Kent]()
Reclaiming Lola by Kylie Kent
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 12 ratings⚠⚠⚠This is a dark romance containing scenes that could be triggering to some. This is not for the fainthearted.⚠⚠⚠LolaThey want me to be her. Lola.I’m not though. I haven’t been that girl for the last ten years.My childhood was stolen from me.And the monsters who took me, they make the devil look like a saint.I was nothing more than a slave, trapped in a nightmare with no way out...Categorized as:
suspense forced proximity new adult suicide mafia dark age difference friends to lovers -
![Savage Kingdom by C. Lymari]()
Savage Kingdom by C. Lymari
Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe Sekt does not forgive.The Sekt does not forget.Keeper of secrets and dealers of lies.We bow to no king, nations, or men.Crossing us is certain death. • • • • • •He was a mercenary, and I a slave. He wanted to save me, but I liked the pain. We stole, cheated, and lied. Through a savage kingdom, we found a divide. He betrayed me, but so did I...
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