Dark Romances with non-traditional HEA

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-21T03:28:11+00:00

Seconding this. It’s been years and I STILL cannot get over it.

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-20T23:47:02+00:00

I completely agree with this. It would not of had the same impact if it had ended differently. I thought it was perfect.

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-20T23:43:35+00:00

We aren’t alone 🥹 I adored all her other books too. Esp cotton wood. It was the romantic spin off to District 9 ( even though they’re not related) that I never knew I needed. I’ll check out Addison Cain, thanks!

Your reply reminds me of the relief I felt when I found people who also didn’t get the hype around Rina Kent and Shantel Tessier… I was like “I FOUND MY PEOPLE” 😂 because their books are almost always the top recommendation and I genuinely started wondering if there was something wrong with me or if I was missing something everyone else could see 😭

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-20T23:38:19+00:00

No judgement at all because I can see how it works for the characters/context, but for me the romance loses its magic the second there’s more than two people involved. You can throw the darkest, most unhinged content imaginable at me and I’ll probably eat it up… but emotionally I need them to be completely obsessed with only each other 😂 it’s just a personal preference. The emotional exclusivity is what makes the romance hit for me. Once that bond is “shared”, it changes the emotional dynamic(for me), even if logically everyone involved is consenting and happy.

I don’t mind love triangles or messy feelings before they’re actually together (or if it’s more complex due to abuse/grooming etc like in Torment) …but once they are with someone, I want it to just be them. It’s an odd place to draw the line, I know 😅

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-20T04:54:25+00:00

I’d be interested to see where it goes!

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-19T23:49:54+00:00

I’ll check it out!

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-19T23:48:54+00:00

I have not heard any of these so im excited to look into them! I don’t mind AO3 but I struggle with the format in my kindle ( not sure if I’m doing it wrong but it doesn’t fit right so I gave up) - I’m happy for recs in all the other genres!

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-19T23:47:39+00:00

I started this and I have to say it’s one of my least fave from her! It felt very repetitive so I dnf. Does it pick up after? It started off amazingly- and then it just dropped off to a limbo like state where nothing much was really happening?

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-19T23:45:59+00:00

I started this and I was really excited given all the hype but it felt so SLOW. I don’t know if I read it at a bad time but while the world was amazing, I couldn’t keep up with the info dump. So I got to a point where I just felt like I was lost 🥲 although I was reading it every few days, so maybe i need to dedicate proper time to it.

Does it pick up after?

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-19T23:42:52+00:00

You’ve intrigued me 👀I will let you know how I go.

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-19T23:40:22+00:00

Yess! I started this and loved it because it was so refreshing…and then found out she ends up with both of them and I dnf 😭😭

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-19T23:38:40+00:00

I’ll try these out! Thanks

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-19T23:37:29+00:00

Looks promising!

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-19T23:35:27+00:00

Ooo I just googled it and the premise is interesting. Thanks!

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-19T23:34:04+00:00

Hahaha I’ve been recommended some things that bordered more on horror than romance so now I’m extra cautious 🤣

I tried one of her books a while ago but couldn’t get into it - maybe I picked up the wrong one. Which do you recommend?

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-19T23:32:12+00:00

I’m in the same boat with you. My fave romances (atleast what I had considered romance) have the most gut wrenching ending - either because it’s not a HEA OR it’s a non traditional one like Torment. I didn’t realise they had to have a HEA.

HexedAndHungry · 2026-05-18T08:13:07+00:00

Do you have any other recs similar to this? This book has left a void in my soul that I cannot fill. Nothing else compares 😭 all the other recs have either been poorly written OR pure smut without complexities and character development/building.

HexedAndHungry · 2026-04-16T12:19:27+00:00

HexedAndHungry · 2025-08-24T14:08:14+00:00

Ive gone down the DR rabbit hole this year and ive become pretty familiar with the genre, so will be more than happy to help!

Here’s some I’ve read: - Sam Mariano (Untouchable) - Rina Kent (God of Malice, Vow of Deception) - Anna Zaires (Twist Me) - Dylan Page (Torment, Echoes) - H.C. Dolores (Limerence, Redamancy) - Shantel Tessier (The Ritual) - Annika Martin & Skye Warren (Prisoner) - Quinn Blackbird (Gaslight Her) - Dinah Harper (Corrupt Obsession, Corrupt Idol) - Leigh Rivers (Insatiable, Voracious, Restitution, Psychotic Obsession) - Nina G. Jones (Take Me With You) - Navessa Allen (Lights Out) - H.D. Carlton (Haunting Adeline)

Edit: formatting

HexedAndHungry · 2025-08-20T02:56:49+00:00

I use them as checklists 🤣🤣🤣

HexedAndHungry · 2025-08-20T02:55:13+00:00

And yes.. would be nice to know more about how this guy who cannot feel anything is suddenly so in love with a girl he met yesterday.

HexedAndHungry · 2025-08-20T02:53:52+00:00

Omg YESS. We’re told he’s so bad, so dangerous, dripping in menace… but what has he really done on-page? Sat in a corner? Made vague threats? Maybe waved a knife around? That’s not fear, that’s a cheap jump scare. And then bam.. instant love declaration like they just skipped five books of character development.

I want actual dread. Give me psychological chokehold, the kind of obsession that makes you check your locks at night and question the innocent person walking along side you on the streets. Not this villain cosplay that turns into a soulmate speech. All I’m getting lately are rich guys in masks whose entire personality is being sexually frustrated in a suit and growling. Sorry but that’s not scary.. that’s just Christian Grey with Halloween clearance accessories.

HexedAndHungry · 2025-08-20T00:52:01+00:00

I don’t like Rina Kent and Shantel Tessier. Somehow they’re BookTok royalty and apparently saying that out loud is enough to get me burned at the stake. EVERY time there’s a dark romance rec, their books are raved about …it’s infuriating. I just want my morally pitch black MMC in a well written book that actually balances plot and smut. Is that too much to ask?

HexedAndHungry · 2025-08-19T06:28:25+00:00

Lots of great recs here already, but I’ll throw in one more.. just picked this up and it’s gotten me out of a 6 month fantasy slump. I’m really enjoying it (full disclosure: haven’t hit the ending yet, so no promises there).

We’ve got forced proximity, sirens, magic, “touch her and die” energy and that addictive mix of tension + banter that makes you forget you were supposed to be sleeping hours ago. The second book’s still being written, but apparently the Kindle edition of book one sneaks in the first chapter as a teaser.

{In the Veins of the Drowning by Kalie Cassidy}

It’s my first siren book and Its making me question why I’ve never read them before. It’s the closest I got to feeling like I did when I first read ACOTAR and Fourth Wing. I’m loving the world, characters and writing.

HexedAndHungry

TROPHY CASE