Books like 'Heart of Steel'
Readers who enjoyed Heart of Steel by Meljean Brook also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical fantasy paranormal urban fantasy steampunk pirates dystopian mystery victorian m-f
-
Babel, or the Necessity of Violence by R.F. Kuang
A novel that grapples with student revolutions, colonial resistance, and the use of language and translation as the dominating tool of the British empire.Traduttore, traditore: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal.1828. Robin Swift, orphaned by cholera in Canton, is brought to London by the mysterious Professor Lovell... -
Three Charms for Murder by Honor Raconteur
It takes more than three charms to commit murder.When an old childhood friend comes to Henri asking for help in solving his parents’ murders, Henri agrees immediately. He knows this case is not going to be easy. Mr. and Mrs. Atwood’s bodies had been found magically posed to mimic a statue, and the investigator in charge ruled it a murder-suicide... -
Death Over the Garden Wall by Honor Raconteur
Three modus operandi to die. Four employees, six house guests, and not a single witness.Confusing clues and no helpful leads cloud the death of Countess Giada Barese, who washed up on shore two weeks after her mysterious disappearance. Henri and Jamie have no idea if her death is a homicide, suicide, or accidental death, for nothing adds up... -
Grimoires and Where to Find Them by Honor Raconteur
How do you catch an elusive thief?There is nothing more delightful than a bookfaire with his lady love. At least, until Henri learns that a grimoire belonging to the dangerous Reaper’s Set has been stolen without its protective box. When Henri and Jamie go looking for answers, they are horrified to discover more than one volume has been stolen without its protective box... -
-
Magic Outside the Box by Honor Raconteur
Henri is quite accustomed to dangerous and unusual cases landing in his lap. Being partnered to the Shinigami Detective likely has something to do with it. What he is NOT accustomed to is the queen herself marching into his lab and handing them such a case. Former Royal Mage Joseph Burtchell was found dead in his home, all signs pointing to murder... -
Breaking and Entering 101 by Honor Raconteur
Since Jamie and Henri agreed to be Kingsmen consultants, they’d not had much call to actually consult. Which is a fortuitous thing, as Henri is up to his neck in labwork and interviews for a new Magical Examiner due to Sanderson’s departing. He is hardly in any position to add more tasks onto his shoulders.Which, naturally, means two disasters strike at once... -
The Kraken King by Meljean Brook
A former smuggler and thief, Ariq—better known as the Kraken King—doesn’t know what to make of the clever, mysterious woman he rescues from an airship besieged by marauders... -
Disturbing the Dead by Kelley Armstrong
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsDisturbing the Dead is the latest in a unique series with one foot in the 1890s and the other in the present day. The A Rip Through Time crime novels are a genre-blending, atmospheric romp from New York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong.Victorian Scotland is becoming less strange to modern-day homicide detective Mallory Atkinson... -
Marking Time by April White
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsSeventeen-year-old tagger Saira Elian can handle anything... a mother who mysteriously disappears, a stranger who stalks her around London, and even the noble English Grandmother who kicked Saira and her mother out of the family... -
Bump in the Night by J.D. Robb, Mary Blayney
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsToday's most provocative authors, including Mary Blayney, Ruth Ryan Langan, and Mary Kay McComan, present new stories of paranormal romance. Includes a new Lt. Eve Dallas story by #1 "New York Times" bestselling author Nora Roberts, writing as J.D. Robb. Original. Including Haunted In Death by J.D...Categorized as:
strong heroine mystery fantasy historical contemporary urban fantasy futuristic suspense -
A Matter of Secrets and Spies by Honor Raconteur
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsHow many ways can a marriage proposal go wrong?One: the ring gets stolenTwo: a storm destroys the beachThree: a dead body, seriously?Four: A THEFT RING?!Come hell or highwater, he WILL propose before leaving this benighted island... -
Wolf Who Rules by Wen Spencer
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsThe popular fantasy novel Tinker introduced the inventor-heroine of the same name, who lives in a near-future Pittsburgh, which shares an interdimensional border with the land of the elves. In this sequel, Wolf Who Rules , the elven noble whose destiny is intertwined with Tinker, finds himself besieged from all sides... -
Tethered by Meljean Brook
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsSurviving on the treacherous Iron Seas requires a heart of steel…but how can Yasmeen hope to survive when her heart has already been stolen by Archimedes Fox…? Tethered along the south dock of Port Fallow, Captain Yasmeen Corsair’s magnificent new airship, Lady Nergüi, awaits its departure with adventurer and treasure-hunter Archimedes Fox... -
Vanished by Nicole McKeon
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsThe Dresden Files meets The Parasol Protectorate in the first book of this clever, fast-paced Gaslamp Fantasy series about a woman ahead of her time who knows too much about magic, and not enough about self-control.Eccentric social outcast Lady Gwenevere St. James knows many secret things: magic, alchemy, artifice, and even the truth about the long-forgotten faeries... -
-
A Death at the Dionysus Club by Melissa Scott, Amy Griswold
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsIn the sequel to Lambda Literary Award-winning Death by Silver, metaphysician Ned Mathey and private detective Julian Lynes again challenge magical and murderous threats in a Victorian London not quite the city in our history books. Mathey is recruited by Scotland Yard to assist the new Metaphysical Crimes Squad in the case of a literally heartless corpse... -
Beneath a Waning Moon by Elizabeth Hunter, Grace Draven
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsTwo delightfully dark tales of Gothic romance from Elizabeth Hunter and Grace Draven. In A VERY PROPER MONSTER, Josephine Shaw spends long nights filling the pages of her Gothic stories with the fantastic and the macabre, unaware that the suitor her father has arranged is one of the dark creatures she’s always dreamed...Categorized as:
victorian steampunk fantasy historical urban fantasy vampires paranormal length-short -
Valour and Vanity by Mary Robinette Kowal
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 30 ratingsAcclaimed fantasist Mary Robinette Kowal has enchanted many fans with her beloved novels featuring a Regency setting in which magic--known here as glamour--is real. In Valour and Vanity, master glamourists Jane and Vincent find themselves in the sort of a magical adventure that might result if Jane Austen wrote Ocean's Eleven... -
Murder at Spindle Manor by Morgan Stang
Rated: 4.09 of 5 stars · 21 ratingsMysteries abound in Spindle Manor.For Huntress Isabeau Agarwal, the countryside inn is the last stop in a deadly hunt. Armed with gaslamp and guns, she tracks an insidious beast that wears the skin of its victims, mimicking them perfectly. Ten guests reside within Spindle Manor tonight, and the creature could be any one of them... -
Seeing Darkness by Heather Graham
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 22 ratingsShe’s being murdered.It was supposed to be a fun girls’ weekend in Salem, but when a past-life regression session instead sends a terrifying vision of murder to Kylie Connelly, she’s shaken and doesn’t know what to think. Worse, later she identifies the attacker from her vision: he’s a prominent local politician... -
Of Charms, Ghosts and Grievances by Aliette de Bodard
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsFrom the author of the critically acclaimed Dominion of the Fallen trilogy comes a sparkling new romantic adventure full of kissing, sarcasm and stabbing.It was supposed to be a holiday, with nothing more challenging than babysitting, navigating familial politics and arguing about the proper way to brew tea... -
Ferromancer by Becca Andre
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsSolutions aren’t always black and white—sometimes they come in shades of iron gray.Captain Bridget “Briar” Rose wants for nothing. Each day is a new adventure, living the life she loves, running cargo on the Ohio & Erie Canal. That is, until her cousin decides to sell the family boat to finance a new business venture... -
Raven of the Inner Palace Vol. 3 by Kouko Shirakawa
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA tale of dark magic and court intrigue in a setting inspired by historical China–now an anime!Deep within the palace’s walls lives the secluded and mysterious Raven Consort. Some say she is an old woman, while others claim she is young and beautiful. What all stories agree upon is that she has the power to exorcise spirits, lay fatal curses, and find lost objects—for a price... -
Tinker by Wen Spencer
Inventor, girl genius Tinker lives in a near-future Pittsburgh which now exists mostly in the land of the elves. She runs her salvage business, pays her taxes, and tries to keep the local ambient level of magic down with gadgets of her own design. When a pack of wargs chase an Elven noble into her scrap yard, life as she knows it takes a serious detour... -
The Bedlam Stacks by Natasha Pulley
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsAn Indie Next PickNow in paperback, Natasha Pulley's "witty, entrancing novel . . . burnishes her reputation as a gifted storyteller" (Publishers Weekly, starred review).In 1859, ex–East India Company smuggler Merrick Tremayne is trapped at home in Cornwall with an injury that almost cost him his leg... -
-
Mina Wentworth and the Invisible City by Meljean Brook
Eight months after The Iron Duke, can their marriage survive a new danger? After Mina is called in to investigate the murder of an aristocratic bounder, her husband Rhys—known to the world as the Iron Duke—must overcome his fear for his new bride before his need to protect her tears them apart... -
Anarchist on the Orient Express by Suzannah Rowntree
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsRevenants, revolution…and an amnesiac lady’s maid on the loose.A trip to Europe is all in a day’s work for Liz Sharp—that is, until an anarchist throws a bomb at her employer.As a lady’s-maid/bodyguard to royalty, Miss Sharp’s duty seems clear: protect Princess May, defuse the bomb, and hand over the would-be-killer to the police... -
Tall & Dark by Suzannah Rowntree
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsGhosts, grifters…and a missing heir in 1890s Europe.It’s easier to conduct a séance when the dead aren’t trying to contact you. As Molly Dark knows all too well, the problem with being able to see ghosts is that they never tell you what you wish to know. For instance, how a proper young lady like Miss Dark is supposed to support an impoverished family after her father has died a ruined man... -
The Bandalore by D.K. Girl
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratings1885 London, England Silas Mercer died once. He'd rather not do it again.On his return to the world of the living, Silas finds himself in the hands of the mysterious Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. The Order has London society clamouring for their services, with tarot readings, seances and exorcisms among their arcane specialities. Now they seem intent on making Silas their newest recruit... -
A Castle in the Air by Kelley Armstrong
Portia Hastings has spent her life rescuing her younger sister from one scrape or another. Now, she has to step through time to do it, following Miranda from the nineteenth century to the eighteenth. Almost immediately, Portia is beset by highwaymen, which might be the most exciting thing to happen to her in a long time, even if she'd never admit it...Categorized as:
victorian mystery time travel historical paranormal urban fantasy fantasy length-medium -
Possession by C.J. Archer
Rated: 4.03 of 5 stars · 15 ratingsWhen the ghost of a notorious killer possesses the body of an upper class youth, London's pre-eminent medium, Emily Chambers, must exorcise it before the spirit goes on a rampage. As if this isn't distraction enough, she must fight her feelings for brooding ghost, Jacob Beaufort, who doesn't like the new man in her life - the handsome and very much alive, Theodore Hyde... -
Without a Summer by Mary Robinette Kowal
Up-and-coming fantasist Mary Robinette Kowal enchanted fans with award-winning short stories and beloved novels featuring Regency pair Jane Ellsworth and Vincent. In Without a Summer the master glamourists return home, but in a world where magic is real, nothing—even the domestic sphere—is quite what it seems... -
A Golden Grave: A Rose Gallagher Mystery by Erin Lindsey
Rated: 4.01 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsThe follow-up to Murder on Millionaires' Row , Erin Lindsey's second historical mystery follows Rose Gallagher as she tracks a killer with shocking abilities through Gilded Age Manhattan.Rose Gallagher always dreamed of finding adventure, so her new life as a freshly-minted Pinkerton agent ought to be everything she ever wanted... -
Sojourn by Jana Oliver
Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsWinner of 7 awards including the prestigious Prism Award for Time Travel London, September 1888. An aged Queen Victoria rules. The threat of anarchy hovers in the air. A new kind of evil lurks in the back alleys of Whitechapel. Enter Jacynda Lassiter, a Time Rover on a mission—find an overdue ‘tourist’ and return him to 2057 before he changes history...Categorized as:
victorian steampunk fantasy historical time travel urban fantasy paranormal length-medium -
The Angel of Khan el-Khalili by P. Djèlí Clark
Rated: 3.94 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsA girl visits a bazaar in Cairo, seeking a favor from a mysterious angelic being.This story first appeared in the anthology Clockwork Cairo: Steampunk Tales of Egypt... -
-
The Clockwork Menace by Bec McMaster
Rated: 3.95 of 5 stars · 21 ratingsFriends, partners, and professionals. So just why is this case coming between them? In a Victorian London ruled by the blood-drinking elite, Perry Lowell is a logical and accomplished Nighthawk: a rogue blue blood who tracks murderers and thieves for the Guild... -
The Mystery Woman by Amanda Quick
Beatrice Lockwood, one of the intrepid ladies of Lantern Street, is in the middle of a case when her past comes back to haunt her. Joshua North, a former spy for the Crown, has come out of a self-imposed retirement after a disastrous case that left him scarred and forced to use a cane. He is hunting the villain who is blackmailing his sister... -
The Werewolf of Whitechapel by Suzannah Rowntree
Rated: 3.92 of 5 stars · 13 ratingsMurder, monsters…and a disreputable lady’s-maid on a mission.A killer prowls the grimy streets of Whitechapel. Scotland Yard seems determined to turn a blind eye. But with one look at her best friend's corpse, Liz Sharp knows the truth: the killer is a werewolf, one of the monsters that rules Europe.If she doesn't hold the monster accountable, no one else will... -
The Perilous Prophecy of Guard and Goddess by Leanna Renee Hieber
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe Goddess: In the beginning, there were lovers: a winged deity of power and light, and a queen of grace and beauty. Phoenix was murdered, his beloved stolen away to the Whisper-world. But their passion inspired the Muses. Through great sacrifice, it could live again. The Guard: There are always six, mortal hosts for the divine... -
Heart's Blood by Gail Dayton
Rated: 3.83 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsMaster conjurer Grey Carteret regains consciousness in a London gutter next to a concerned street urchin and not far from the body of a man murdered by magic. Some fool is hoping to use murder to raise a demon. Arrested for the crime, Grey must rely on the street urchin for help. But the lad turns out to be a comely lass, and she wants something in exchange... -
A Thousand Recipes for Revenge by Beth Cato
Rated: 3.88 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsA world on the brink of war and a mother and daughter on the run, in a thrilling novel of swashbuckling adventure, culinary magic, and just desserts.Adamantine “Ada” Garland has an empathic connection to food and wine, a magical perception of aromas, flavors, and ingredients... -
A Sanctuary of Spirits by Leanna Renee Hieber
Rated: 3.80 of 5 stars · 5 ratingsNew York, 1899, and the police department’s best ally is the secret Ghost Precinct, where spirits and psychics help solve the city’s most perplexing crimes . . . There’s more than one way to catch a killer—though the methods employed by the NYPD’s Ghost Precinct, an all-female team of psychics and spiritualists led by gifted young medium Eve Whitby, are unconventional to say the least... -
Crystal Gardens by Amanda Quick
Rated: 3.88 of 5 stars · 33 ratingsEvangeline Ames has rented a country cottage far from the London streets where she was recently attacked. Fascinated by the paranormal energy of nearby CrystalGardens, she finds pleasure in sneaking past the wall to explore the grounds. And when her life is threatened again, she instinctively goes to the gardens for safety... -
The Moonstone and Miss Jones by Jillian Stone
Rated: 3.75 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsWhen he is hired by Professor Lovecraft, who has been tinkering with the secrets of life and death, to find the fabled Moonstone, Phaeton Black brings his lady friend Miss America Jones, the daughter of a Cajun witch, along on an adventure that leads them Title: The Moonstone and Miss Jones Author: Stone, Jillian Publisher: Kensington Pub Corp Publication Date: 2012/09/25 Number of... -
The Dastardly Miss Lizzie by Viola Carr
Rated: 3.75 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsDr. Eliza Jekyll must turn to her dark side, Miss Lizzie Hyde, to stop a madman targeting London’s most important scientists and sorcerers terrorizing the city with dark magic in this third Electric Empire novel—a dazzlingly original steampunk fantasy set in the gritty world of alternate Victorian London, with echoes of H G. Wells classic, The Time MachineBeing two people in one body isn’t easy... -
-
The Iron Duke by Meljean Brook
Rated: 3.84 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsAfter the Iron Duke freed England from Horde control, he instantly became a national hero. Now Rhys Trahaearn has built a merchant empire on the power-and fear-of his name. And when a dead body is dropped from an airship onto his doorstep, bringing Detective Inspector Mina Wentworth into his dangerous world, he intends to make her his next possession... -
Scoundrel by Zoe Archer
The Blades of the Rose are sworn to protect the sources of magic in the world. But the work is dangerous—and they can’t always protect their own… Ready For Action London Harcourt’s father is bent on subjugating the world’s magic to British rule. But since London is a mere female, he hasn’t bothered to tell her so. He’s said only that he’s leading a voyage to the Greek isles... -
Otherwise Engaged by Amanda Quick
Miss Amity Doncaster, world traveler, is accustomed to adventure and risk. Benedict Stanbridge, a man of science and a spy for the Crown, has faced danger in the darker corners of foreign lands. But they are about to face a threat that is shockingly close to home . . . One does not expect to be kidnapped on a London street in broad daylight... -
Gilded by Karina Cooper
The second book in Karina Cooper's stunning steampunk series featuring fearless heroine Cherry St. Croix, in which she is faced with two men after her heart—and one killer out for her blood. In the gleaming heights of Victorian London, a world of deception awaits an unconventional Society lady whose taste for adventure makes her a most formidable adversary . . -
The Hexologists by Josiah Bancroft
The first book in a wildly inventive and mesmerizing new fantasy series from acclaimed author Josiah Bancroft where magical mysteries abound and only one team can solve The Hexologists. The Hexologists, Iz and Warren Wilby, are quite accustomed to helping desperate clients with the bugbears of city life... -
With This Ring by Amanda Quick
Synopsis Leo Drake, the "Mad Monk of Monkcrest," is notoriously eccentric and unquestionably reclusive. But he is also a noted antiquities expert, which is why Beatrice Poole has demanded his reluctant assistance. The freethinking authoress of "horrid novels," Beatrice is searching for the Forbidden Rings of Aphrodite, a mythic treasure she suspects played a role in her uncle's death...
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.