20 Dark Romance Books Every Reader Should Try in 2026
Dark romance continues to dominate the reading world, and 2026 promises to be one of the most exciting years yet for fans of ethically ambiguous protagonists, hazardous desire, and novels that blur the boundary between love and obsession. Whether you enjoy mafia tension, psychological twists, stalker intensity, or otherworldly horror, this year’s selection is jam-packed with unique characters and gripping, edge-of-your-seat storytelling.
From highly anticipated future releases to cult-favorite dark romances that are still must-reads, this handpicked list includes the books that will keep you flipping pages late into the night.
Here are the 25 Best Dark Romances to Read in 2026—stories that will haunt, absorb, and linger with you long after the last page.
1. Storm of Secrets and Sorrow
A decision to make.
Tessalyn Ausra has never been able to control her destiny. She still has a strong relationship with the Heir of Endings, but she now has more power than ever. She must pick a side because everyone wants something from her. But she has secrets of her own to conceal, and she doesn’t trust anyone in a world full of villains.
A salvage strategy.
Theon St. Orcas’s strongest weapons have always been control and knowledge, but both have eluded him. He is in a race against time to get his plans back on track after being given a duty by the realm’s rulers. But when myths come to pass, he finds himself battling more than time to hold onto his possessions or lose them all to rage.
A destiny to change.
It has never bothered Axel St. Orcas to socialize with the depraved instead of the elite. Among the corrupt, it is simpler to conceal his dishonor. But every day that goes by, he runs the risk of casting a curse and putting the people he loves most in danger. He will do all it takes to protect them, even if it means sacrificing everything he is.
2. Chasing Love
He was the older brother of my closest friend. My first love, who didn’t even say goodbye before leaving town…After eight years, I’ve decided to wed Julian Baker, who is incredibly ideal. At last, I’m prepared to let go of the past in favor of a fresh start. However, my past and future intersect in a horrible twist of fate, much like all heartbreaking love triangles.
He’s seated at the table beside me in a crowded restaurant, his eyes full with jealousy. And I have to confront the man who broke my heart in high school. The billionaire tycoon Lex Edwards is not one to back down. He is no longer the kind and compassionate college graduate pursuing a medical degree; instead, he is vicious and crafty.
He was broken by our turbulent affair, just like me. He is now determined to win me back, though. And even if it means reliving the past, Lex Edwards will do everything in his power to demonstrate the strength of our love.
3. Tempest of Wrath and Vengeance
A Destined Goal
Tessalyn Ausra’s retaliation has never tasted so delicious. She is protected by the Achaz Kingdom, where she can carry out her mission, despite being feared by the kings of Devram. But with uncontrollable power and the tie still intact, she encounters turmoil and temptation everywhere she looks. Even while destiny beckons, the dark still calls despite the promise of ultimate liberation that comes with correcting the balance. She had at last discovered her life’s mission. Will it result in devastation or salvation?
A Destiny Broken
For his entire life, Theon St. Orcas has been preparing for this occasion. At last, the Arius Lord is more isolated than before. He has no Source, two brooding strangers from another realm, and Axel is missing. Luka is in a different country. He is once more in a race against time to uncover a fabricated past. Demands for sacrifices are made while being pulled in all directions. When the greatest threat is the one he would sacrifice everything for, how can he defend his people?
A Seductive Betrayal
Luka Mors is sent to a foreign realm where he becomes the outsider he has always feared. In addition to being in the middle of a risky game and having to be at Tessa’s side, he is also compelled to remain near a temptation he has been resisting for years. He has always taken great pride in his loyalty, but what does he do when it begins to falter?
4. Dawn of Chaos and Fury
A Destiny to Resist
Tessalyn Ausra has experienced betrayals of her own as well as betrayals at every turn. She’s tired of letting other people define her purpose because of the implications of her decisions, but taking that route could be expensive. Luka is struggling with his own destiny, not knowing if it still involves her, after Theon sent her away.
Now that everyone has witnessed Tessa’s pandemonium and tasted her fury, the rest of her friends are cautious. Perhaps they ought to be. Perhaps the illusion of equilibrium has always existed. Perhaps she is at the same fork in the road—destruction or salvation—that she has been at since the beginning.
A Destiny to Surpass
Sacrifice is nothing new to Theon St. Orcas. He has dedicated his entire life to making sure the people he cares about are secure. He simply wants to spend what little time he has left with the family that is still in Devram as he gets ready to confront the Fates and the devastation of their realm. However, when he is ready to locate his brother, certain secrets surface that make him doubt everything. Did the sacrifices ultimately prove to be in vain?
A Changing Future
Axel St. Orcas is thrown into a conflict with the evil and depraved just as he is beginning to settle into his new life in the Underground. He started forming alliances with the other Districts with Kat by his side.
However, he finds sabotage everywhere he looks, in addition to the kingdoms breaking apart outside the Underground. He won’t bow down to injustice, but can he truly make a difference in the lives of those who have been wronged?
5. The Ashes & the Star-Cursed King
Everything Oraya previously believed to be real has been destroyed in the wake of the Kejari. She is a prisoner in her own country, grieving the loss of her only family, and recovering from a heartbreaking betrayal. She is also unaware of the truth about her own ancestry. The only thing she knows for sure is that she can’t trust anyone, least of all Raihn.
A Turned monarch, particularly one who was formerly a slave, is not well received by Raihn’s own nobility. Additionally, the House of Blood threatens to destroy the kingdom from the inside out by digging their claws into it.
Oraya’s last opportunity to regain her kingdom and exact revenge on the lover who deceived her is to accept Raihn’s offer of a covert partnership. However, in order to accomplish this, she will have to use a terrible old power that is entwined with her father’s darkest secrets.
But nothing is as it seems since adversaries are encroaching from all directions. Oraya must decide between the terrible love that could lead to her demise and the brutal realities of gaining power as she confronts her destiny and unravels her history.
6. Wolf.e
The president of the Hounds of Hell motorcycle gang, Gabriel is a fallen dark angel. Since the day of his birth, darkness and trauma have permeated his life, necessitating more than just desensitization to chaos and violence. making him yearn for it in order to feel secure. Safe. entire.
Women are merely a tool, a means to an end, since he only cares about his family and those who cut him. Only to use, never to covet. They all blur into one another. He follows a straightforward formula. Death is waiting for you. You are a bedlam soldier. Nothing less, nothing more…
Until Brinley Beaumont becomes a target for him. He can see the dark desires she has concealed for so long, despite the fact that she appears to be so grounded and pure-minded. Despite her attraction to this gloomy alpha man, Brinley is not going to become engaged with him. Until he begins referring to her as his “little hummingbird” and she realizes he can fulfill all of her desires.
7. Distance
Keller
I became the world heavyweight boxing champion after rising from poverty as an underground street fighter. Nobody was aware that I was a shadow-hunting monster as well. I’m stuck in the mafia until my debts are settled. My freedom was secured by a straightforward agreement: unite my belts.
Before a charming British firecracker fell on my lap and knocked me sideways, it seemed easy. I took her even though it was risky for both of us to want her. leaving me to decide whether to fight for her freedom or mine. Could she still love me if the truth is revealed? Would love be sufficient to overcome our demons?
Sienna
I’ve vowed to stay away from males for the time being because I’m newly single and concentrating on establishing my life in New York. In any case, no one had ever stayed long enough for me to believe in fairy tales. Up until him, that is. Despite his attempts to conceal himself from me, I was unable to ignore him. Could I stay when the mask broke and the truth was exposed? even if it meant risking my life. Is it possible for us to overcome our fear of love and pursue our happily ever after?
8. Breaking His Law
I’ve come to look for the truth. to prosecute the law company for defending the man who destroyed my entire world. Hart Law has to take responsibility for their deeds. I had everything figured out. I would accept a position in their records department, gain access to the pertinent documents to reveal their cover-up, and then blow them up in the media. That is, until I saw Nathan Hart.
Head of the company, unquestionably attractive and unbreakable. I couldn’t help but spend one night with the enemy, even though I knew I shouldn’t have. However, that’s when everything went wrong.
Relationships and commitment are not things I do. However, I’m not embarrassed to say that when the woman I had a memorable night with showed up in my office, I was both relieved that I wouldn’t have to think about her anymore and furious at her deceit. She is an expert in her field and knows precisely how to put me to the test.
However, I am the owner of this kingdom, and this is Hart territory. However, Arianna is putting me to the ultimate test, and I am voluntarily ceding control for the first time. However, there are numerous ways in which this could be risky.
9. The Fallen & the Kiss of Dusk
Mische put the world into an endless night by making the greatest sacrifice to save the people she loves. Asar is now determined to see her again after being imprisoned by the gods and is fixated on getting even.
Asar and Mische set off on a remarkable journey when a goddess offers them a last route to salvation and reunion. In order for Asar to accomplish the seemingly impossible—ascend to genuine divinity—they must band together and take control of the god of death.
They will go through both mortal and immortal realms with both merciless foes and longtime companions. However, Asar and Mische must choose what they are willing to give up in order to have the ability to resist death as the underworld is on the verge of collapse and the gods get ready for battle. There are some debts that even love might not be able to pay back in a game of ancient betrayals and furious gods.
10. The Songbird & the Heart of Stone
When Mische was forcibly transformed into a vampire, she lost everything: her humanity, her home, and—most heartbreaking of all—her love for the sun god, to whom she had dedicated her life. Redemption seems unattainable now that she has been given a death sentence for killing the vampire prince who turned her.
However, Mische is compelled to embark on a task worse than execution—a voyage to the underworld to resurrect the god of death himself—after being saved by Asar, the bastard prince of the House of Shadow with a past as violent as his wounds.
However, Mische’s punishment might hold the secret to her redemption. Her sun deity orders her to assist Asar in his goal at a covert meeting, but she betrays him. She will aid in the resurrection by slaying the very death god.
Traveling the perilous route to the underworld, Mische and Asar must contend with hardships, monsters, and the spiteful ghosts of their pasts. The most perilous of all, however, is the seductive lure of the dark and her forbidden desire to Asar, a developing relationship that could provoke the wrath of the gods.
The gods are getting restless and the underworld is closing in as her treachery approaches. Mische will have to decide between the damnation of the darkness and the redemption of the sun.
11. The Wicked
Elio
They refer to me as “The Wicked.” Blood, silence, and the weight of all my secrets have earned me that moniker. Nothing gets past me as the head of the Marino Family. Not falsehoods. not a sign of weakness. Not fear. But everything changes when she comes into my life.
Zahra
I’ve had to be hazardous. Bullets were treated like sugar cubes by the men I grew up with. I rose from the streets to form the nation’s most infamous gang of criminals. However, The Wicked captures my crew and me after a task goes bad, and I will stop at nothing to exploit this situation. Even if it means pulling off the largest robbery I’ve ever imagined and collaborating with the deadliest man I’ve ever met.
My body—my very soul—may be the price I pay for dancing with the devil. But if it means getting him, I’ll pay the price.
12. Fall of Ruin and Wrath
The gods destroyed the world long ago. There were just nine cities spared. Each city is now overseen by a guardian—royalty that feeds on mortal pleasure—and is surrounded by a vast forest full of monsters and unfathomable dangers.
Calista, who was born with an unfailing intuition, lives in secret as the Baron of Archwood’s courtesan since she is aware of how valuable her skills are to the world’s power-hungry. She gives him information in return for keeping him safe.
The voice inside her blazes with warning—and promise—when she follows her instincts and saves a traveling prince who is in serious danger. He will make her happy today. He will be her demise one day.
Calista becomes the traveling prince’s temporary companion when the Baron shows interest in him and the prince shows interest in her. However, with a hungry prince in her bed, knights and monsters outside her city gates, and the city simmering with revolt, intuition might not be sufficient to keep her safe.
13. The Dare
She shouldn’t have gone to the same Halloween party with a monster like him. In a game of Drink or Dare, he should never have been able to defeat her. It should never have been possible for him to degrade her in public.
If you lose the game, you risk being Manson’s slave for the entire night. Jessica’s pride and curiosity won’t let her turn down this challenge. A sinister game of pleasure and suffering, dread and want, results.
14. Detained
I no longer need to conceal myself behind a mask. New York is under my control. It’s time to demolish the man who killed me, like I started ten years ago. Nobody is able to obstruct me. That is, until I get arrested for murder and meet Detective Zara O’Reilly for the first time. The woman is determined to sabotage my plans.
She believes that I am unaware that she is observing everything I do in order to pull me back into that prison cell. She is free to act as though I were the adversary. She really wants me just as much as I want her. Despite our best efforts, I grow obsessed with my stalker. She is unaware of the influence she has over the city and me. If she allows me to break her, we will be unstoppable together.
15. Diamond Dust
I am viewed as a toy by the fairy royalty. their amusement. However, the only thing separating their bright world from the darkness that is ready to devour mine is me.
Tarian drags me into the court games, a blood sport for the cruel and bored, in order to buy us some time. No allies. No defense. Just creatures watching me fall, grinning while donning crowns. How likely am I to survive? slender. My determination? Unbreakable. I’ve always been undervalued by them. In the shadows, I am. There, I flourish. And if they push me too far, they’ll discover just how destructive a cornered human can be.
16. The Morozov Bratva Saga
The Russian Bratva King of New York City, Maksim Morozov, is a billionaire. He gets what he desires. Regretfully, I am included in that. When you’re in the wrong place at the wrong moment, that’s what occurs.
He believes that I will be imprisoned like a princess in a tower in his penthouse. Like every other woman raised in his environment, he views me as a commodity to be used. What is worse? Maksim Morozov desires to possess my entire being. He’s going to discover that owning me won’t be so simple in the weeks between a forced Christmas wedding and Valentine’s Day.
17. Blackthorn
The debris of her mother’s strange murder was left behind when Maven Blackthorn left her small hamlet twelve years ago. However, when Maven returns to Blackthorn for her grandmother’s funeral, she is met with a new nightmare: her grandmother’s body has disappeared.
The brutal titans of Croft Pharmaceuticals, whose violent blood feud with the Blackthorns has lasted for centuries, are immediately suspected by the Blackthorns. However, Maven finds that the illicit desire they once had is still alive and perilous when she meets Ronan Croft, the only man she has ever loved and the son of her mother’s accused killer.
Betrayal lurks behind every whisper, long-forgotten family secrets struggle to emerge, and ancient grudges flare up again. The game gets trickier the further Maven searches for solutions. And the one man she can’t seem to get away from is concealing a reality that has the potential to destroy their entire universe. Is love the most deadly game of all in a town where the dead refuse to stay buried?
18. The Dark One
I didn’t feel alive till Pan and Neverland. However, the island is not all magical and sunny. The forest is haunted by something darker and more terrible. Even worse, Captain Hook and the fae queen are prepared to battle for control of Neverland and will do whatever it takes to achieve their goals.
Can the Never King reclaim his shadow and take the kingdom that is rightfully his? War is imminent. And where will I fit in if he does? Or will my dark, twisted heart and all of Neverland be in danger?
19. Enigma
Death fascinates Salem Salazar. The scandal-plagued, affluent family’s black sheep, she comes to Mortimer University as a legacy seeking the truth about what happened to her ideal, older sister. There, she learns that her sister is by no means the only female who has vanished from Mortimer. Even if it means using herself as bait, Salem will stop at nothing to find out what evil powers are murdering Mortimer’s students.
Cazimir van der Waal has also detected her fragrance. The enigmatic teaching assistant and artist has a sinister past, a secret motive, and an intense desire for a stunning girl with golden eyes who is willing to put her life in danger. He is fire where she is ice. He is chaos where she is order. He is passion where she is accuracy. They are explosive together, their futures intertwined as death and secret groups pursue them both.
20. Illicit Vows
Long before I said my vows, I was his.
Whether Alexander Prince is a notorious mafia leader or not, all I can think of when his icy blue eyes meet mine is what it would be like to be completely destroyed by this demon wearing a designer suit.
However, I didn’t really anticipate that he would carry me out of the courthouse, strip me naked, slap my ass red for attempting to flee, and then make me scream as I turned into a very, very terrible girl for him. Or that one day he would marry me…
