Books like 'When the Iron Rusts: A Prequel Novella'

Readers who enjoyed When the Iron Rusts: A Prequel Novella by Kate Seger also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.

historical  dark romance  fantasy  military  horror  ancient times

  • Phantom by Susan Kay

    Phantom by Susan Kay

    Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars
    · 36 ratings
    "Phantom of the Opera fans no longer need to ponder what was in Erik's past, as Kay has created one for him in this deeply moving, poignant story. . . This sad, but beautiful, novel will be especially popular with [those] who have enjoyed the current musical . . . " – School Library Journal “A MUST READ! Haunting and riveting...
  • A Sea of Vows and Silence by Whit Stanfield

    A Sea of Vows and Silence by Whit Stanfield

    Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    Until the sea dries up. Until the moon burns out. Celestial events are untouched by mortals. But one morning, in the birth of spring, two sisters force a rare solar eclipse into the sky, silencing the sun to make a desperate plea to the moon. And the moon—seer, secret-keeper, and goddess of sea and sirens—answers. Her response summons a rift between Cebrinne and Selena...
    Categorized as:
    horror  ancient times  dark  fantasy  historical
  • Sponsored links / Remove ads
  • Clytemnestra by Costanza Casati

    Clytemnestra by Costanza Casati

    Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 3 of 5
    Open door [?] · 48 ratings
    "Fans of Circe and Elektra should pick up this powerful Greek myth retelling. " —Cosmopolitan. For fans of Madeline Miller, a stunning debut following Clytemnestra, the most notorious villainess of the ancient world and the events that forged her into the legendary queen. As for queens, they are either hated or forgotten. She already knows which option suits her best…...
    Categorized as:
    ancient times  fantasy  historical  war  vengeance  abuse  queer  dark
  • 余污 [Yu Wu] by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou, 肉包不吃肉

    余污 [Yu Wu] by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou, 肉包不吃肉

    Rated: 4.41 of 5 stars
    · 17 ratings
    The traitor Gu Mang returned to his home kingdom again. Everyone rejoiced in his banishment. It was said the one who hated him most was his closest friend – the cold and stoic Young Master Mo. A rumour: Young Master Mo prepared three hundred and sixty-five methods of torture to try on Gu Mang, enough to play with him for a year without repetition...
  • Lady of Istok by Isabelle Olmo

    Lady of Istok by Isabelle Olmo

    Rated: 4.67 of 5 stars
    · 6 ratings
    “The lies we tell to protect ourselves are the most important lies we ever tell. ". A heavily pregnant Almira forces Hira to return to Istok and lead her people. When Hira boards the Sea Wife, she doesn’t expect Commander Justan to be combative and surly. He questions her every decision and challenges her authority. He’s also clearly keeping his own secrets...
    Categorized as:
    horror  fantasy  historical  new adult  war  dark  length-epic
  • The Unforgotten Flame by Rebekah Sinclair

    The Unforgotten Flame by Rebekah Sinclair

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    "We should have seen this coming. I should have seen this coming. ". Calypso, a resilient Wind Siren, grapples with the aftermath of a devastating battle that thrusts her best friend, Rhea, into the clutches of their greatest enemy, Ares, the God of War...
  • Scars Beneath a Serpent's Scales by Nicole Platania

    Scars Beneath a Serpent's Scales by Nicole Platania

    Rated: 4.02 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 3 of 5
    Open door [?] · 11 ratings
    What is inevitable? Emmeline DeLeoste has always talked to the stars. As a member of a fortune-telling warrior clan, her exceptional magic allows her to read the Fates, earning her a prestigious Academy job. But it has also cost her everyone she loves. Roremar Silventa has more responsibilities than any man should...
  • A Taste for Poison by Aleksandr Voinov

    A Taste for Poison by Aleksandr Voinov

    Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    Even a king gets stung when he reaches for a scorpion. After barely surviving an assassination attempt, King Adrastes is a changed man—one who mistrusts even his allies and friends. He readies his Empire for war against an enigmatic enemy, the Elder of Vededrin, but not everyone approves...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-m  fantasy  historical  queer  suspense  mystery  dark
  • Lying with Scorpions by Aleksandr Voinov

    Lying with Scorpions by Aleksandr Voinov

    Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    If you lie with scorpions, you’d better have a taste for poison. Now that Kendras’s lover Adrastes has claimed the throne of Dalman, Kendras is tangled deeper than ever in politics and intrigue. As the new leader of the Scorpions and Adrastes’s one true friend, he and his men stand between Adrastes and those who wish him dead. And many do...
    Categorized as:
    military  m-m  fantasy  historical  queer  dark  suspense  war
  • The German by Lee Thomas

    The German by Lee Thomas

    Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    At the height of World War II, a killer preys on the young men of a quiet Texas town. The murders are calculated, vicious, and they are just beginning. Sheriff Tom Rabbit and his men are baffled and the community he serves is terrified of the monster lurking their streets. The only clues the killer leaves behind are painted snuffboxes containing notes written in German...
    Categorized as:
    horror  mystery  historical  m-m  suspense  war  fantasy  dark
  • Devout: An Anthology of Angels by Quinton Li

    Devout: An Anthology of Angels by Quinton Li

    Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    Featuring work by Freydís Moon, Dorian Yosef Weber, Angela Sun, Ian Haramaki, Tyler Battaglia, Daniel Marie James, Morgan Dante, Cas Trudeau, Aurélio Loren, Rae Novotny, Rafael Nicolás & Emily Hoffman. A collection of stories, poetry, and art dedicated to the angelic. Here you will find the strange, the creepy, the funky, slightly silly, pieces with feeling...
    Categorized as:
    horror  fantasy  queer  dark  historical  length-short
  • This Wicked Fate by Amanda Aggie

    This Wicked Fate by Amanda Aggie

    Rated: 4.00 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 10 ratings
    For fans of The Witcher and Brave, this fantasy romance, featuring a fierce heroine and a druid with Golden Retriever energy, is both steamy and swoon worthy! I’m the Princess of Solaria, a realm full of beasts that could make the Devil cower. Except that title means nothing, because I’ll be dead by the week’s end...
  • A Royal Affair by John Wiltshire

    A Royal Affair by John Wiltshire

    Rated: 3.94 of 5 stars
    · 15 ratings
    A Royal Affair: Book One. Doctor Nikolai Hartmann represents himself as a learned man of science who believes wholly in the rational and scientific above all else. In reality, he is a man haunted by an unusual past and running from his own nature...
  • The Painter Knight by Fiona Patton

    The Painter Knight by Fiona Patton

    Rated: 3.95 of 5 stars
    · 12 ratings
    THE PASSING OF THE FLAME. Simon, the Court Painter of Branion, was the closest friend of the kingdom's ruler. Aristok Marsellus the Third...
  • The Ugly Empress by 云过是非

    The Ugly Empress by 云过是非

    Rated: 3.80 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 5 ratings
    After ten years on the battlefield, Teng Yun sees Xue Junliang protecting his country and conquering new territory, while he himself ends up with an arrow through his heart. When he wakes up, he becomes that man’s Ugly Empress. This is about a Prince who is captured as prisoner and killed, then he is reborn as his enemy country’s ugly empress...
  • Betrayal by J.C. Owens

    Betrayal by J.C. Owens

    Rated: 3.67 of 5 stars
    · 10 ratings
    Secrets, madness, lies…and a love forged in the flames of betrayal. Imprisoned, starved and abused by his captors, Darcel finds his only escape in the depths of madness. But he’s tormented by his own demons, who taunt him with the memories of his past and of his beloved prince, Alasar of Rais. The man who condemned him to this prison for killing the enemy’s high king...
  • Queen of the Sky: A Legend of the Painted Skies Prequel by Ky Venn

    Queen of the Sky: A Legend of the Painted Skies Prequel by Ky Venn

    Rated: 3.40 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 3 of 5
    Open door [?] · 5 ratings
    Aella thrives in chaos. It lives inside her. However, when the sky goddess is banished from Verus to the human realm for disobeying her parents and inflicting pandemonium on the humans one too many times, she discovers what she’s really made of. In her journey to get back home will she learn that destruction and hate don’t compare to true love? Or will her internal storm be her ultimate downfall?
  • A Dance Of Twilight by Melanie Davies

    A Dance Of Twilight by Melanie Davies

    Rated: 3.50 of 5 stars
    · 8 ratings
    Dark, gothic fae fantasy romance. 𝕬 𝕯𝖆𝖓𝖈𝖊 𝖔𝖋 𝕿𝖜𝖎𝖑𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙For fans of fae romances, dream walking, found families, book loving FMC, Goblin King vibes, Shadow Daddy villains and morally grey MC with spice...
  • The South Wind by Alexandria Warwick

    The South Wind by Alexandria Warwick

    Rated: 3.50 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 3 of 5
    Open door [?] · 12 ratings
    A sizzling standalone fantasy of second-chance love inspired by Sleeping Beauty and the Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur from the author of The North Wind. Princess Sarai of Ammara is cursed: on her twenty-fifth birthday she will fall into an endless, deadly sleep, plunging the kingdom into chaos and ruin...
  • Pilate's Wife by Antoinette May

    Pilate's Wife by Antoinette May

    Rated: 3.67 of 5 stars
    · 26 ratings
    A daughter of privilege in the most powerful empire the world has ever known, Claudia has a unique and disturbing "gift": her dreams have an uncanny way of coming true. As a rebellious child seated beside the tyrannical Roman Emperor Tiberius, she first spies the powerful gladiator who will ultimately be her one true passion...
  • The Maiden and Her Monster by Maddie Martinez

    The Maiden and Her Monster by Maddie Martinez

    Rated: 3.48 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 3 of 5
    Open door [?] · 16 ratings
    The forest eats the girls who wander out after dark . . . ‘A dark, atmospheric and riveting debut, wreathed around a love story like no other’ – Samantha Shannon, author of the million-copy bestseller The Priory of the Orange Tree. Rooted in fairytales, folklore, and sapphic romance, The Maiden and Her Monster by Maddie Martinez is perfect for fans of Katherine Arden, Ava Reid, and Naomi Novik...
    Categorized as:
    horror  fantasy  f-f  queer  dark  historical  audiobook  behind-doors
  • Married to a Pirate by Athena Rose

    Married to a Pirate by Athena Rose

    Rated: 3.47 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 25 ratings
    "You enslaved me! ". "Nay, I liberated you, my lady. And there will be more liberating to come if you behave. ". Imagine you escape the pirate captain who you were forced to marry. He’s dark and brooding and you’re convinced he’s happy to be rid of you. But just when you think you’re free, you’re captured by another band of pirates who take great delight in telling you the plans they have for you...
  • Heaven Official's Blessing: Tian Guan Ci Fu Vol. 6 by Mò Xiāng Tóng Xiù, 墨香铜臭

    Heaven Official's Blessing: Tian Guan Ci Fu Vol. 6 by Mò Xiāng Tóng Xiù, 墨香铜臭

    Rated: 4.64 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 2 of 5
    Behind closed doors [?] · 97 ratings
    NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER! The blockbuster danmei/Boys’ Love novels from China that inspired the animated series! This epic historical fantasy about a prince and the mysterious man by his side is now officially in English, for the very first time! Born the crown prince of a prosperous kingdom, Xie Lian was renowned for his beauty, strength, and purity...
    Categorized as:
    horror  m-m  fantasy  historical  young adult  queer  asia  dark
  • Wrath by John Gwynne

    Wrath by John Gwynne

    Rated: 4.53 of 5 stars
    · 41 ratings
    Events are coming to a climax in the Banished Lands, as the war reaches new heights. King Nathair has taken control of the fortress at Drassil and three of the Seven Treasures are in his possession. And together with Calidus and his ally Queen Rhin, Nathair will do anything to obtain the remaining Treasures. With all seven under his command, he can open a portal to the Otherworld...
    Categorized as:
    horror  fantasy  high fantasy  magic  war  demons  dark  found-family
  • Ruin by John Gwynne

    Ruin by John Gwynne

    Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars
    · 41 ratings
    The Banished Lands are engulfed in war and chaos. The cunning Queen Rhin has conquered the west and High King Nathair has the cauldron, most powerful of the seven treasures. At his back stands the scheming Calidus and a warband of the Kadoshim, dread demons of the Otherworld. They plan to bring Asroth and his host of the Fallen into the world of flesh, but to do so they need the seven treasures...
    Categorized as:
    military  horror  fantasy  high fantasy  magic  war  demons  dark
  • Valor by John Gwynne

    Valor by John Gwynne

    Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars
    · 44 ratings
    The Banished Lands is torn by war as High King Nathair sweeps the land challenging all who oppose him in his holy crusade. Allied with the manipulative Queen Rhin of Cambren, there are few who can stand against them. But Rhin is playing her own games and has her eyes on a far greater prize. .
    Categorized as:
    military  fantasy  high fantasy  magic  war  demons  dark  historical
  • The Heroes by Joe Abercrombie

    The Heroes by Joe Abercrombie

    Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars
    · 57 ratings
    They say Black Dow’s killed more men than winter, and clawed his way to the throne of the North up a hill of skulls. The King of the Union, ever a jealous neighbour, is not about to stand smiling by while he claws his way any higher. The orders have been given and the armies are toiling through the northern mud...
    Categorized as:
    military  horror  fantasy  war  high fantasy  dark  magic  medieval
  • Between the Moon & Her Night by Jaclyn Kot

    Between the Moon & Her Night by Jaclyn Kot

    Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars
    · Steam rating: 4 of 5
    Explicit open door [?] · 19 ratings
    “It was like he had lifted the lid to a small locket box, because a soft, beautiful melody began to play—happy and sad, and filled with love and loss. It was the song of us. The song of Life and Death. ”. Centuries before the events of Between Life and Death and Between Sun and Moon . . . Centuries before she was Sage . . . She was Aurelia, the Goddess of Life...
  • Academ's Fury by Jim Butcher

    Academ's Fury by Jim Butcher

    Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars
    · 57 ratings
    In Furies of Calderon, #1 New York Times bestselling author Jim Butcher introduced readers to a world where the forces of nature take physical form. But now, it is human nature that threatens to throw the realm into chaos…For centuries, the people of Alera have harnessed the furies—elementals of earth, air, fire, water, wood, and metal—to protect their land from aggressors...
  • Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie

    Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie

    Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars
    · 66 ratings
    Springtime in Styria. And that means war. There have been nineteen years of blood. The ruthless Grand Duke Orso is locked in a vicious struggle with the squabbling League of Eight, and between them they have bled the land white. While armies march, heads roll and cities burn, behind the scenes bankers, priests and older, darker powers play a deadly game to choose who will be king...
Fantastic book recommendations by romance book lovers for romance book lovers.
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

romance book finder

Looking for more inspiration? Enter another book title to get more suggestions on what to read next.


Or - use our amazing romance book finder to get recommendations based on your favorite content tropes and themes. Mix and match at will.