Romance books with: morally grey mmc

1. 

   Butcher & Blackbird

   Brynne Weaver · Book 1 of 3 in The Ruinous Love Trilogy

   Spice 5/5 · Scorching

   Two serial killers, a yearly kill competition and the funniest dark romance on the shelf.

   • Rivals to lovers
   • Touch her and die
   • Found family
2. 

   Fourth Wing

   Rebecca Yarros · Book 1 of 5 in The Empyrean

   Spice 3/5 · Steamy

   A deadly dragon-rider war college and Xaden Riorson. The book that made half of BookTok shop for dragon jewellery.

   • Enemies to lovers
   • Deadly trials
   • Touch her and die
3. 

   From Blood and Ash

   Jennifer L. Armentrout · Book 1 of 6 in Blood and Ash

   Spice 3/5 · Steamy

   A sheltered Maiden, her very flirty guard and one of the most talked-about twists in romantasy.

   • Secret identity
   • Forbidden love
   • Touch her and die
4. 

   House of Earth and Blood

   Sarah J. Maas · Book 1 of 3 in Crescent City

   Spice 3/5 · Steamy

   A party girl, a fallen angel and a murder investigation in a modern magic city. The last 200 pages are a ride.

   • Found family
   • Secret identity
   • Morally grey MMC
5. 

   Quicksilver

   Callie Hart · Book 1 in Fae & Alchemy

   Spice 4/5 · Spicy

   A thief, a fae warrior with a death wish and a portal into a frozen kingdom. Kingfisher is a menace and we are obsessed.

   • Enemies to lovers
   • Forced proximity
   • Road trip / vacation
6. 

   The Cruel Prince

   Holly Black · Book 1 of 3 in The Folk of the Air

   Spice 1/5 · Sweet

   A mortal girl schemes her way up a vicious fae court. Cardan is the original morally grey bully prince. Zero spice, maximum tension.

   • Enemies to lovers
   • Bully romance
   • Morally grey MMC
7. A Shadow in the EmberJennifer L. Armentrout

   A Shadow in the Ember

   Jennifer L. Armentrout · Book 1 of 4 in Flesh and Fire

   Spice 4/5 · Spicy

   A princess trained to seduce and kill the God of Death. Prequel to Blood and Ash, readable first.

   • Forbidden love
   • Secret identity
   • Arranged marriage
8. 

   A Touch of Darkness

   Scarlett St. Clair · Book 1 in Hades x Persephone Saga

   Spice 4/5 · Spicy

   Persephone is a journalist, Hades runs a nightclub, and they make a very bad bargain. Modern Greek myth with plenty of spice.

   • Retelling
   • Forbidden love
   • Rivals to lovers
9. 

   Burn for Me

   Ilona Andrews · Book 1 in Hidden Legacy

   Spice 2/5 · Simmer

   A struggling P.I. is kidnapped by the most dangerous magical billionaire in Houston. Fantastic slow tension.

   • Morally grey MMC
   • Alpha hero
   • Smart / nerdy heroine
10. 

    Corrupt

    Penelope Douglas · Book 1 of 5 in Devil's Night

    Spice 4/5 · Spicy

    Three years ago she sent him to prison. Now he is out, and it is Devil's Night. Dark Halloween romance.

    • Bully romance
    • Revenge plot
    • Enemies to lovers
11. 

    Den of Vipers

    K.A. Knight

    Spice 5/5 · Scorching

    Her father pays his debt to four mafia men with her. They were not expecting her to be this unhinged.

    • Captor / captive
    • Possessive MMC
    • Morally grey MMC
12. 

    Gild

    Raven Kennedy · Book 1 of 5 in The Plated Prisoner

    Spice 3/5 · Steamy

    King Midas's golden favourite in a golden cage. It starts slow, then turns into the revenge-and-rot fantasy of your dreams.

    • Captor / captive
    • Retelling
    • Revenge plot
13. 

    Hooked

    Emily McIntire

    Spice 4/5 · Spicy

    A modern Captain Hook as a crime lord, and Wendy as his ticket to revenge. First in the Never After villain retellings.

    • Retelling
    • Villain gets the girl
    • Revenge plot
14. 

    Kingdom of the Wicked

    Kerri Maniscalco · Book 1 of 3 in Kingdom of the Wicked

    Spice 2/5 · Simmer

    A witch summons the Prince of Wrath to avenge her twin. Slow burn now, payoff later in the trilogy.

    • Enemies to lovers
    • Revenge plot
    • Morally grey MMC
15. 

    Neon Gods

    Katee Robert · Book 1 in Dark Olympus

    Spice 5/5 · Scorching

    Modern Hades and Persephone in a city run by the Thirteen. Very kinky, very fast.

    • Retelling
    • Forbidden love
    • Morally grey MMC
16. The RitualShantel Tessier

    The Ritual

    Shantel Tessier

    Spice 5/5 · Scorching

    A secret society of powerful men, a ritual and a heroine marked by one of them. Shock-value dark romance.

    • Morally grey MMC
    • Possessive MMC
    • Dark academia
17. The Serpent and the Wings of NightCarissa Broadbent

    The Serpent and the Wings of Night

    Carissa Broadbent · Book 1 in Crowns of Nyaxia

    Spice 3/5 · Steamy

    A human girl raised by the vampire king enters a deadly tournament and forms an alliance with her most dangerous rival.

    • Deadly trials
    • Enemies to lovers
    • Forced proximity
18. 

    The Sweetest Oblivion

    Danielle Lori · Book 1 in Made

    Spice 4/5 · Spicy

    He is engaged to her sister. She is the good girl he cannot stop looking at. Old-school mafia romance perfection.

    • Forbidden love
    • Morally grey MMC
    • Grumpy hero
19. 

    Vicious

    L.J. Shen · Book 1 of 4 in Sinners of Saint

    Spice 4/5 · Spicy

    The boy who tormented her in high school is now a ruthless lawyer, and she needs his help.

    • Bully romance
    • Enemies to lovers
    • Second chance
20. 

    When the Moon Hatched

    Sarah A. Parker · Book 1 in Moonfall

    Spice 4/5 · Spicy

    A brutal assassin, a dragon-riding ruler and a world-building chonk of a book. Bring snacks.

    • Captor / captive
    • Fated mates
    • Morally grey MMC
21. 

    A Dawn of Onyx

    Kate Golden · Book 1 of 3 in The Sacred Stones

    Spice 3/5 · Steamy

    A healer is conscripted into the enemy king's army and becomes part of his inner circle. Romantasy comfort food.

    • Forced proximity
    • Secret identity
    • Enemies to lovers
22. 

    Brutal Prince

    Sophie Lark · Book 1 of 6 in Brutal Birthright

    Spice 4/5 · Spicy

    Rival Chicago crime families settle a feud with a wedding. The bride and groom are not thrilled.

    • Arranged marriage
    • Enemies to lovers
    • Morally grey MMC
23. Captive in the DarkC.J. Roberts

    Captive in the Dark

    C.J. Roberts · Book 1 of 2 in The Dark Duet

    Spice 5/5 · Scorching

    A captor with a revenge plan and the girl he is training to sell. A foundational, brutal dark romance.

    • Captor / captive
    • Revenge plot
    • Morally grey MMC
24. 

    Dark Fae

    Caroline Peckham & Susanne Valenti · Book 1 of 4 in Ruthless Boys of the Zodiac

    Spice 4/5 · Spicy

    A fae girl in a supernatural prison with a gang of dangerous inmates who all want a piece of her.

    • Enemies to lovers
    • Forced proximity
    • Morally grey MMC
25. 

    Fall of Ruin and Wrath

    Jennifer L. Armentrout · Book 1 in Awakening

    Spice 4/5 · Spicy

    A courtesan with a sixth sense and the dangerous prince she is sent to spy on.

    • Forbidden love
    • Morally grey MMC
    • Badass heroine
26. 

    Her Soul for Revenge

    Harley Laroux · Book 1 of 3 in Souls Trilogy

    Spice 5/5 · Scorching

    A witch summons a demon to take revenge on the cult that hurt her. He is wildly, filthily devoted.

    • Revenge plot
    • Villain gets the girl
    • Morally grey MMC
27. 

    King of Battle and Blood

    Scarlett St. Clair · Book 1 of 3 in Adrian x Isolde

    Spice 4/5 · Spicy

    A princess is married off to the vampire king she plans to kill. He is far too into it.

    • Arranged marriage
    • Enemies to lovers
    • Morally grey MMC
28. 

    Losers: Part One

    Harley Laroux · Book 1 of 2 in Losers

    Spice 5/5 · Scorching

    The rich girl who made their lives hell in high school, and the four "losers" who now own her. Divisive and delicious.

    • Revenge plot
    • Morally grey MMC
    • Small town
29. 

    One Dark Window

    Rachel Gillig · Book 1 of 2 in The Shepherd King

    Spice 2/5 · Simmer

    A girl with a monster in her head and a cursed card heist. Moody, foggy and gorgeous.

    • Forced proximity
    • Secret identity
    • Morally grey MMC
30. 

    Phantasma

    Kaylie Smith · Book 1 in Phantasma

    Spice 3/5 · Steamy

    A necromancer enters a deadly carnival-esque game run by the devil's own manor. Gothic, creepy and sharp.

    • Deadly trials
    • Morally grey MMC
    • Demons / devils
31. 

    Rhapsodic

    Laura Thalassa · Book 1 in The Bargainer

    Spice 4/5 · Spicy

    A siren with a debt to the Bargainer: one favour, one bead on her wrist at a time. Yearning cranked to eleven.

    • Second chance
    • Villain gets the girl
    • Secret identity
32. 

    Tears of Tess

    Pepper Winters · Book 1 in Monsters in the Dark

    Spice 5/5 · Scorching

    Kidnapped and sold, she ends up with a man darker than the ones who took her. Very dark, very intense.

    • Captor / captive
    • Morally grey MMC
    • BDSM / dom-sub
33. The Hurricane WarsThea Guanzon

    The Hurricane Wars

    Thea Guanzon · Book 1 of 3 in The Hurricane Wars

    Spice 3/5 · Steamy

    Two enemy weather mages trapped together in the desert. Reylo-coded and proud of it.

    • Enemies to lovers
    • Forbidden love
    • Forced proximity
34. 

    The Kiss Thief

    L.J. Shen

    Spice 4/5 · Spicy

    One stolen kiss, one ruthless senator and a forced engagement. Angsty and sharp.

    • Arranged marriage
    • Enemies to lovers
    • Age gap
35. 

    The Never King

    Nikki St. Crowe · Book 1 of 5 in Vicious Lost Boys

    Spice 5/5 · Scorching

    Wendy's granddaughter, a feral grown-up Peter Pan and his Lost Boys. A deliciously dark Neverland.

    • Retelling
    • Villain gets the girl
    • Captor / captive
36. 

    The Shadows Between Us

    Tricia Levenseller

    Spice 1/5 · Sweet

    A ruthless girl plans to seduce and kill the Shadow King. He is just as ruthless. Slytherin romance.

    • Villain gets the girl
    • Morally grey MMC
    • Royalty
37. 

    Throne of the Fallen

    Kerri Maniscalco · Book 1 in Prince of Sin

    Spice 4/5 · Spicy

    The Prince of Envy and a rebellious princess on a quest together. Spicier spin-off from Kingdom of the Wicked.

    • Forced proximity
    • Enemies to lovers
    • Morally grey MMC
38. 

    The Risk

    S.T. Abby · Book 1 of 5 in Mindf*ck

    Spice 4/5 · Spicy

    A woman with a long revenge list and the FBI agent closing in on her. A twisty, divisive cult favourite.

    • Revenge plot
    • Villain gets the girl
    • Morally grey MMC
39. Twisted HeathensJ. Rose

    Twisted Heathens

    J. Rose · Book 1 of 3 in Blackwood Institute

    Spice 4/5 · Spicy

    A girl sent to a corrupt psychiatric institute and the damaged boys who become hers. Dark and different.

    • Found family
    • Morally grey MMC
    • Gothic

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