Browse Romance ARCs

The Raven & the Lake, Book 1: Hoarfrost

by Rowan Ravenheart

Tropes: slowburn, forcedproximity, darkromance

THEY SAID FAERY NEEDED A KING. THEY LIED. For three years, Jesryn Hallows called survival peace. Hiding from a fractured past in the human world, she thought she had successfully severed the threads of a destiny meant to break her. But when Faery's ancient ley lines buckle, the deep places of the world remember her name—and the gods come calling. The Veil between worlds is failing, the ley lines are breaking and Faery is teetering on the edge of magical collapse. To save her world and her people, Jesryn must return to Arcadia and take up the mantle of the goddess she refused. But returning to Arcadia means facing the prince that nearly destroyed her. Owyn Corey, Regent Prince of the Lake, has spent three years searching for the woman who vanished without so much as a goodbye, spiraling into darkness and obsession. But Owyn is no longer the boy Jesryn loved. As old magic stirs and destiny closes its hand around them both, Jesryn must decide how much she is willing to sacrifice for a crown she never wanted—and a world that demands nothing less than her life. Perfect for readers who love: • Fated mates • Celtic-inspired fantasy • Gods and prophecy • Second-chance romance • Dark fae courts • Ancient magic and broken kingdoms • Slow-burn romantasy with epic stakes [Read More]

Her Heart's Wish

by Dawn Baca

Tropes: slowburn, characterdriven, multipov

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Can a woman who built her life around everyone else finally choose love? Leila Durand has spent years being exactly who her family needed: a devoted mother, a doting grandmother, and the steady heart of the farm that saved her after loss. But when Yuri Petrova asks her to come to Saint Petersburg, the quiet life she has carefully built begins to feel less like safety and more like a beautiful cage. Yuri has always been a man of stars, students, and solitude—until one unforgettable Frenchwoman makes his orderly world feel suddenly incomplete. From their first meeting at a family wedding, Leila’s warmth, strength, and laughter unsettled him in ways no equation ever could. After three years of calls, letters, and longing, he is ready to stop loving her from a distance. Leila is falling for Yuri, but loving him means facing the grief, guilt, and fear she has buried beneath decades of devotion. Yuri is falling just as hard, but winning Leila’s heart may mean leaving behind the life, career, and country that have defined him. When distance, family ties, and old wounds threaten to keep them apart, Leila must decide whether being wanted is worth the risk of finally being seen. Will she cling to the life that made her feel necessary—or open her heart to the man who makes her feel chosen? Her Heart’s Wish is an emotional later-in-life romance about second chances, found family, healing after grief, and the brave, terrifying joy of beginning again. Perfect for readers who love mature heroines, patient heroes, slow-burn longing, complicated families, European settings, and love stories where the biggest battle is learning to believe happiness is still allowed. Read Her Heart’s Wish today and fall in love with a romance that proves it’s never too late to choose your own happily ever after. [Read More]

The Penalty Box

by Rebecca Zorg

Tropes: slowburn, forcedproximity, firstperson

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He doesn't remember ruining her life. She's going to make sure he does. IVY Seven years ago, Gabriel Castellano took the best night of my life and turned it into a punchline. It cost me my spot on the national team and the only future I'd ever planned. Now he's here. Traded to Whistler, parked in my booth with his new teammates, telling me to surprise him like he's never seen my face before. As far as he knows, he hasn't. So I did what any professional would do. I "accidentally" poured a pint of our worst IPA straight down his six-hundred-dollar shirt. Surprise! Here's the problem: his team just partnered with The Penalty Box, keeping my late father's bar alive, and the town wants repairs that cost more than we clear in a season. Which makes the man I've spent seven years hating the closest thing I have to leverage. And every night he comes back, hating him gets more expensive. GABRIEL People have told me who to be since I was fifteen, and I've never once disappointed them. Golden boy. Franchise face. So I can't explain the bartender. She hates me. Openly. Specifically. Like she's had it ready for years. The worst part isn't that I don't know why. It's that I'm starting to think I should. A slow-burn, high-angst hockey romance with: - Enemies to lovers—he doesn't remember her. She remembers everything. - Forced proximity, one blizzard, one bar - A second chance carrying a seven-year grudge - A grovel that draws blood - Found family, a bar worth fighting for, and one mechanical wolf - Dual POV · Slow burn · Open door · Guaranteed HEA For readers who loved the grovel in Elle Kennedy's The Mistake and the BC-set slow burn of Stephanie Archer's Behind the Net. The First Line, Book One. [Read More]

His Little Witness

by Kindra Cress

Tropes: slowburn, forcedproximity, firstperson

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He was sent to make me disappear. He wasn't supposed to want me for himself. I recorded a murder. One shake video, one VIP room I should never have served, one man who looked straight into my phone and smiled, and now the most powerful men in the city want me erased before sunrise. Then he found me first. Silas doesn't ask. He doesn't comfort. He shows up like a blade in a tailored shirt and tells me I have ten seconds to choose: walk away and die, or come with him and lose every piece of the life I used to have. Cold-blooded, ruthlessly efficient, and absolutely not allowed to touch me, he's the man Blackwater sends when there's nothing left to save. But he touches me anyway.. Every safehouse gets burned. Every alias gets cracked. Someone inside his own organization is feeding me to the wolves, and Silas just promised he'd torch Blackwater to the ground before he let them take me. God help me, because I want to watch him do it. A dark, possessive, slow-burn romantic suspense for readers who like their heroes lethal, their heroines sharp-tongued, and their tension thick enough to cut. Forced proximity. One bed (eventually). A man who was supposed to be untouchable until he met her. HIS LITTLE WITNESS is Book 1 in the Blackwater series. Reader note:Steamy, explicit, and intense. Contains on-page violence, themes of stalking and surveillance, and a hero whose protective instincts run very, very dark. [Read More]

The Roman Prince of Chaos: A Spicy Slow-Burn Italian Football Romance

by Mara J. Ova

Tropes: slowburn, firstperson, characterdriven

He’s every woman’s dream. I’m just scared of what happens when I wake up. Alessandro Moretti is the most dangerous striker in Italy, a Golden Ball winner, and the Sexiest Man Alive. Watching him on screen has been my guilty pleasure for more than ten years. Then he became the face of my Baroque restoration campaign, said some stupid things about Baroque that I couldn’t let stand, and I corrected him. In front of a hundred people. It became a meme on Instagram. Now he wants me to teach him history—officially, so he doesn’t make an idiot of himself again. But I know why he suddenly pretends to admire Roman architecture. He wants me. On the pitch, Alessandro is hungry, aggressive, and used to taking what he wants. Off it, he’s a master seducer who knows exactly how to make a woman feel like she’s the only person in the room. But I mean to resist him, no matter how my pulse quickens when I feel his warmth. Because Alessandro Moretti loves the chase, and I refuse to become just another conquest. Except he says this isn’t about conquering me. He says he wants me. All of me. And he wants to make me happy. How am I supposed to believe that a man who has had a roster of supermodels on his arm could truly want a curvy scholar with limited time in Rome? And even if he does, the whole world will be watching, ready to decide whether I’m worthy of him. I’ve spent years building my professional reputation. I will not risk it for one charming, adorable footballer. Even if the most wanted man in Italy seems determined to prove that, for once, he isn’t playing to win. He’s playing for keeps. The Roman Prince of Chaos is a slow-burn, spicy sports romance packed with hilarious banter, irresistible pursuit, and electric chemistry, all against the beauty and chaos of Rome. Because Rome has been messing with young lovers since the beginning of time. Take a look inside and discover what happens when a legendary striker finally meets the one woman he can’t simply win. [Read More]

The Penalty Box

by Rebecca Zorg

Tropes: slowburn, forcedproximity, firstperson

Instant download

He doesn't remember ruining her life. She's going to make sure he does. IVY Seven years ago, Gabriel Castellano took the best night of my life and turned it into a punchline. It cost me my spot on the national team and the only future I'd ever planned. Now he's here. Traded to Whistler, parked in my booth with his new teammates, telling me to surprise him like he's never seen my face before. As far as he knows, he hasn't. So I did what any professional would do. I "accidentally" poured a pint of our worst IPA straight down his six-hundred-dollar shirt. Surprise! Here's the problem: his team just partnered with The Penalty Box, keeping my late father's bar alive, and the town wants repairs that cost more than we clear in a season. Which makes the man I've spent seven years hating the closest thing I have to leverage. And every night he comes back, hating him gets more expensive. GABRIEL People have told me who to be since I was fifteen, and I've never once disappointed them. Golden boy. Franchise face. So I can't explain the bartender. She hates me. Openly. Specifically. Like she's had it ready for years. The worst part isn't that I don't know why. It's that I'm starting to think I should. A slow-burn, high-angst hockey romance with: - Enemies to lovers—he doesn't remember her. She remembers everything. - Forced proximity, one blizzard, one bar - A second chance carrying a seven-year grudge - A grovel that draws blood - Found family, a bar worth fighting for, and one mechanical wolf - Dual POV · Slow burn · Open door · Guaranteed HEA For readers who loved the grovel in Elle Kennedy's The Mistake and the BC-set slow burn of Stephanie Archer's Behind the Net. The First Line, Book One. [Read More]

How To Ruin A Princess: A Steamy Short Prequel Sports Romance Novella

by Mara J. Ova

Tropes: slowburn, firstperson, forbiddenlove

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She is ice and scandal. He is speed and sin. When they meet, their Olympic night turns heat into a weapon they cannot stop using. Nico Reiner is Austria’s new golden boy, hurtling toward an Olympic silver that could cement his place in ski-racing history. The world sees swagger and shine, but behind the grin and glory, every gate is a dare not to choke, not to prove his doubters right when it matters most. Élise Moreau is the exiled heiress of a disgraced French empire, trained to smile, obey, and weaponize her beauty for her father’s ambitions. Slipping into the Olympic Village under a stolen press badge, she wants one anonymous night where no one knows her name, no one owns her choices, and no one can turn her into a pawn. When Nico recognizes the mystery girl who once scorched him with a single look, their collision in a quiet athletes’ lounge detonates into flirting as combat, touch as challenge, and sex as the only language reckless enough to match them both. Silver Course is a steamy forbidden prequel to Carve Me Free, a high-stakes sports romance where a reckless speed king chases an uptown ice queen across the World Cup circuit. If you like scorching chemistry, messy rich-girl rebellion, and dangerous men who race as they love, you’ll devour this Maraverse novella. [Read More]

The Sicilian Trap: A Grumpy Coach World Cup Spicy Soccer Rom-Com

by Mara J. Ova

Tropes: forcedproximity, firstperson, forbiddenlove

He demands absolute control to win the World Cup. She is the sunshine that refuses to bend. Grumpy Meets Sunshine • Forced Proximity • Steamy Soccer Romance • Opposites Attract • Workplace Romance • Protective Hero • World Cup Stakes • Slow-burn With Sparkling Chemistry • Hilarious Banter • Found Family • Italian Vibes Vincenzo Messina is a tactical genius who demands absolute control to win the World Cup, but his new PR director is a walking distraction. Armed with weaponized sunshine, Sofia Hofer threatens his sacred locker room, igniting a fiery clash of wills and sizzling chemistry they both refuse to acknowledge. Arriving at the secluded Base Camp, Sofia's relentless optimism immediately collides with Vincenzo’s dictatorial temper. She treats football as a passionless branding puzzle to protect, while the volcanic coach fiercely shields his squad from the media. Bound by a lucrative Armani sponsorship, they are forced into thirty days of inescapable proximity within a secure compound and high emotion during the matches. As the grueling tournament progresses, their battle lines blur. Sofia discovers the devout heart beneath his melodramatic touchline theatrics, while Vincenzo realizes her efficiency actually protects his players, shattering his defenses. He engineered the perfect tactical trap on the pitch, but her weaponized sunshine cornered his heart. With the championship final looming, they must choose between maintaining their rigid professional boundaries or risking a catastrophic public scandal for a passion they cannot control. The Sicilian Trap is a standalone, fast-paced, steamy soccer romantic comedy by Mara J. Ova featuring grumpy-meets-sunshine and forced proximity tropes. It is a perfect read during the US-hosted World Cup, and the Italian vibes make it an ideal summer escape. Scroll up and look inside to experience the explosive chemistry and high-stakes tension. [Read More]

Hellebore Fields: A Dark Academia Hockey Romance

by Rivkah Plume

Tropes: darkromance, newadult, grumpysunshine

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He says I'm his light. But loving him feels like drowning in shadows. At UC Wisteria, I'm supposed to be chasing my future: books, scholarship, and a life I've fought tooth and nail to earn. But instead, I'm being chased by Branwen Atthill, the campus hockey star with sharp edges, hidden scars, and ice-blue eyes that track my every move like I belong to him. When his obsession transforms into something that looks like love, I fall headfirst into the dark fairytale I always craved—until I start losing myself in its twisted pages. Branwen is dangerous. Possessive. Beautiful in ways that make me forget to breathe. When the violence starts, I convince myself I can fix him. That if I love him hard enough, my light will chase away his darkness. But as secrets unravel and the campus grows more dangerous, I'm forced to confront the question I've been too terrified to ask: if I survive loving him, will I still recognize the girl I was before he consumed me? He's everything I was warned about, and the only boy I've ever wanted to burn for. Trigger Warning & Tropes: Contemporary, Dark Romance, Erotic Thriller, Dark Academia, Hockey Romance, Stalker, Grumpy/Sunshine, Dubious Consent, Possessive, Tortured Past, Rags-to-Riches, Murder [Read More]

Marked in Blood

by Emmett Vance

Tropes: forcedproximity, darkromance, dualpov

He cut his own hand instead of mine. It was the kindest thing he ever did to me. They sold me to the Sasso syndicate to seal ninety days of peace — a hostage, a clause in a contract, blood witnessed across two open palms while two armies watched. The new boss was supposed to be a monster. Kiril Sasso is worse than that, and better: a wreck of a man with shaking hands and a cruel mouth, so certain he ruins everything he touches that he'd rather bury me than risk keeping me. He locks the doors. He swears he'll end me when the ninety days run out. And when he reaches for me in the dark, he does it rough, like a man taking the one thing he's sure he isn't allowed. I was thrown away once, a long time ago. I learned the wrong lesson from it: I don't leave. Not when he's cruel. Not when he shoves me toward the door. Not when there's a debt in a ledger neither of us has seen, waiting a very long time to come due. So I'll do the one thing that terrifies a man who's never been kept. When the doors finally open — I'll stay. ═══════ WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT ═══════ ✦ Dark M/M Mafia Romance — Enemies to Lovers, Blood Vow ✦ Self-destructive boss × hostage who won't break (he cuts his own hand instead of yours) ✦ Forced Proximity — ninety days, one locked house ✦ Hurt/Comfort, Dual POV (Kiril + Eli) — broken man held, not fixed ✦ Explicit, on-page, 18+ — rough turning tender ✦ HEA guaranteed — Book 1 of a trilogy ═══════ CONTENT NOTES ═══════ Explicit on-page M/M sex (18+ / rough turning tender) / self-harm at the blood vow (he cuts his own palm) + blood / captivity + hostage / organized-crime violence / past child abandonment / HEA — not a cliffhanger, but one open season-thread. ═══════ FOR ARC READERS ═══════ If you're here for the dark, welcome home. Marked in Blood is for readers who want the broken one held instead of fixed. Book 1 of three. The Tally trilogy. HEA guaranteed. — Emmett Vance [Read More]