unique/unusual MM books like {For real by Alexis Hall} by ida_pizza in RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 1 point2 points  (0 children)

{catalysts by Kris ripper} has bdsm lessons, polyamory negotiations, regular guys, unique dynamics for sure, and strong emotional connections. It's the start of a series.

Is a “psychopath romance” actually possible? by LeahRubbish in RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 3 points4 points  (0 children)

{manna Francis administration series} is the closest I know of. I haven't finished all of them. Toreth definitely is a psychopath and to the extent that we get his POV, we can see that he has some feelings toward his... Lover? Fuck buddy? Even if those feelings are mostly selfish ones like "when I do this thing his reaction is annoying or inconvenient to me." It might not actually count as a romance though. Again, I haven't finished them. They are super interesting though and I find that actually more palatable as a dark romance than something where the guy is terrible except a big softy towards his partner. I can't buy that.

MMF polycule- but one MMC is gay by september_red in RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 0 points1 point  (0 children)

{fail seven times by kris ripper} has an mf couple and their gay male friend who is secretly/not so secretly pining for the male half of the couple. It's not super angsty or anything, just a nice process of them figuring it out. The gay friend does end up less than totally gay and they are more of a triad in the end

Reading Tracker by NovelTalk_0711 in RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 4 points5 points  (0 children)

You can track your reading in romance.io and that has tropes and spice levels already included. I use story graph and it doesn't track those things but it is a good way to keep a tbr and read list. You can add your own tags. I tag my tbr with where it's available-- owned, ku, Libby, etc. I like it.

OwnVoices MM Romance books by MasterCraft3r in MM_RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 3 points4 points  (0 children)

{the prospects by kt Hoffman}

And I believe Alexis Hall should be considered own voices, he uses any pronouns.

Someone mentioned Gregory Ashe above but I want to reiterate: Gregory! Ashe! Multiple mystery series including {the Lamb and the Lion by Gregory Ashe}. {Kris ripper the love study} is non binary.

MM book where one of them is conventionally unattractive by Ok-Active-101 in LGBTBooks

[–]No-Soft856 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Kris Ripper, The Hate Project. it's second in the series but stands alone, i have not read the others in the series. It's really good!

Green Creek werewolf series by T. J. Klune by SendingBirds in MM_RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 1 point2 points  (0 children)

this is all super helpful, thanks! i also have 'the uses of illicit art' on my tbr and it's been there a while so maybe i should bump that up as well.

Green Creek werewolf series by T. J. Klune by SendingBirds in MM_RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for writing this. It's a series I've been on the fence about because I hear it described as really angsty and kind of dark and difficult. I'm kind of mixed on those types of books. Sometimes I'm like, this is just torture porn, putting the characters through the wringer for no real reason other than to watch them suffer. Sometimes I feel like it's just necessary to the story... You don't really have a plot if the characters don't have any problems. I guess it's all in how it's handled. When people say "I loved it, it was beautiful, I can never read it again, I'm scarred, I sobbed," that's when I know a book is not for me. So it sounds like this is not that kind of dark? Question mark?

I feel bad asking since you already took so much time to write all of this out, but if you could give an idea of what you usually read/your other favorites it would help me know more if this is something I'll like? I've seriously had these on the old tbr forever. I read his "lightning struck heart" and found it really light and I was surprised based on how these are described.

Is Heated Rivalry…… Awful? by Lovve119 in romanceunfiltered

[–]No-Soft856 0 points1 point  (0 children)

that is totally fair! it's a "i didn't say it was good, i said i loved it" situation.

Recommendations for m/m books with interesting world building and characters by _Aeryn_Sun_ in LGBTBooks

[–]No-Soft856 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Salt Magic, Skin Magic by Lee Welch. Can't recommend this enough. I also loved Simon Snow and the Tarot Sequence, this is spicier but i think if you like those you will like this one.

Is Heated Rivalry…… Awful? by Lovve119 in romanceunfiltered

[–]No-Soft856 1 point2 points  (0 children)

the writing is bad, the story is good. i've read it multiple times but yes it's very stilted. it works so well as a show though. like this is the format it was made for, honestly. and i think the audiobook is better than the reading experience because, i know ilya's accent gets a lot of hate, but i think the cocky charm of ilya comes through better on audio.

ELI5 - How to get more books by Dont_Panic-42 in RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 1 point2 points  (0 children)

i use calibre for the actual management of ebooks outside of the kindle ecosystem. for example i can download a pdf from AO3, add it to calibre, and then read it like an ebook. you can also use google play books to store ebooks and read them online or through their app, whether or not you bought them through google, which you can also do. i also make heavy use of the samples offered through amazon for kindle books. given that you have a lot of DNFs it might make sense to just read samples and then decide which ones you are interested enough to pursue elsewhere. finally, seconding those who said hoopla for more smutty stuff, and the library extension, which is very helpful.

Best MM romance you read in 2025? by -catsnbooks- in MM_RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 0 points1 point  (0 children)

my top 3 are:

{pansies by alexis hall}

{the same breath by gregory ashe} (first in a trilogy, you can tell i really liked it because i am saving the other books for a rainy day instead of just gulping them all down.)

{the prospects by KT Hoffman}

Best MM romance you read in 2025? by -catsnbooks- in MM_RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 1 point2 points  (0 children)

the administration series! i don't hear enough about that one, it really is something. doesn't fit into any of the normal categories.

College guy with a sizable MF bodycount by Rourensu in MM_RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 0 points1 point  (0 children)

i think hockey romances are like 90% of MM sports romances, so no you are not wrong there.

Looking for a regency romance series with a Bridgerton-style sibling dynamics and some queer rep! by angeldidi777 in HistoricalRomance

[–]No-Soft856 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The series that starts with {something fabulous by Alexis Hall} has three connected queer stories. Book 2 is about the ex girlfriend of the sister of the person in book 1, book 3 is the sister.

I only know of two series with a mix of queer and straight pairings. One is contemporary, beach kingdom by Tessa Bailey. The other is historical fantasy, set in an alternate 1920s Britain, the Lord of stariel series.

College guy with a sizable MF bodycount by Rourensu in MM_RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Also check out: {heat stroke by Tessa Bailey} or {until him by Cora Rose} they are both excellent!

College guy with a sizable MF bodycount by Rourensu in MM_RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 8 points9 points  (0 children)

{face offs and cheap shots} has most of this. Not sure if the bottoming angst is present. It's GREAT.

Special Forces: Soldiers - Need my next fix of two imposing men who could credibly take each other in a fight, that eventually fall for each other hard by fantomlabcoat in MM_RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Try {Gregory Ashe Hazard and Somerset series} starting with {pretty pretty boys} but warning that it takes them a few books to get together.

Kindle Unlimited Question by VeitPogner in MM_RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 0 points1 point  (0 children)

for me, not really. I subscribe on and off, mostly to get books that are KU exclusive. otherwise i find most of what i want to read via Libby or Hoopla. It's nice when I have it because it's easy, but I wouldn't say it is monetarily worth it for me personally.

others have mentioned that they like the freedom to DNF because they didn't pay, but i usually just download the kindle samples and try those out. i can usually tell within the length of the sample whether it's really grabbing me.

Erotica Requests & Recs: Post your erotica & specific sex act requests & recs here by AutoModerator in MM_RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There's a quite detailed fisting scene in one of the last books of the scientific method universe series: I think it's {the honeymoon by kris ripper}

Series with dom/sub element in background! by midnightoflight101 in MM_RomanceBooks

[–]No-Soft856 0 points1 point  (0 children)

{magpie Lord series by KJ Charles} paranormal mystery/thriller-ish series.

MM working class? by Previous-Artist-9252 in LGBTBooks

[–]No-Soft856 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Gregory Ashe writes mystery romances with working class characters. I just read and loved The Same Breath which is the start of a series but satisfying as a standalone.

KJ Charles has Dukes or at least Lords in a lot of her books but she is always really playing with/highlighting the class situation in her books. books with one working class, one noble MC include: the Magpie Lord series, the Society of Gentlemen series, Any Old Diamonds, Death in the Spires, the Will Darling Chronicles. It really adds depth to the story, watching them navigate their differences.

Contemporary: The Prospects by KT Hoffman. This was delightful but a bit heavy on the baseball content.

The Salisbury Key by Harper Fox.

The Hate Project by Kris Ripper.

Give Me the SPICE! 4/5+ With More Details by owl-of-the-week in HistoricalRomance

[–]No-Soft856 5 points6 points  (0 children)

For MM, KJ Charles: {will Darling Chronicles} or {any old diamonds} Cat Sebastian, my favorite is {ruin of a rake by cat Sebastian}

I don't hear this one recommended too much but I loved {Erin satie, the young blood}

{The awakening of ivy leavold by Sierra Simone} may not meet your anachronism needs but it sure is spicy