Are you interested in ‘Bully’ romance novels?
Here are a handful of books I recommend if you’re looking for some terrific contentious relationships.
Let it be known: I do not, in any way, support physically or verbally abusive behaviour of Any Kind.
I do, however, enjoy a good challenge and(disregarding the questionable nature of these couples treatment of one another).. I believe these books have risen to the occasion and boldly declare:
Challenge accepted!
(Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. Any purchases made through my links may earn me a small commission at no additional cost to you.)
The Queen of All That Dies by Laura Thalassa
Publication date: January 2015
Pages: 327
Genre: Romance novel, Science Fiction, Dystopian fiction, Apocalyptic fiction
Series: Book 1 of 3: The Fallen World
In the future, the world is at war.
For the last decade, King Lazuli of the Eastern Empire has systematically taken over the world. No one knows much about him other than a series of impossible facts: he cannot die, he has not aged since the conflict began, and he wants to rule the world.
All Serenity Freeman has known is bloodshed. War has taken away her mother, her home, her safety. As the future emissary of the Western United Nations, the last autonomous region of the globe, she is responsible for forging alliances where she can.
Surrender is on the horizon. The king can taste it; Serenity feels it deep within her bones. There is no other option. Now the two must come face to face. For Serenity, that means confronting the man who’s taken everything from her. For the king, it means meeting the one woman he can’t conquer. But when they meet, something happens. Cruelty finds redemption.
Only in war, everything comes with a price. Especially love.
“I know I’m someone powerful, someone dangerous. A grim smile tugs at my lips despite my current circumstances. I know I’m not afraid of pain or death. And these men and women? They should be afraid of me. Because whoever I am, I am violent, and I will be having my revenge.”
Publication date: April 2016
Pages: 336
Genre: Novel, Fiction, Young adult, Contemporary romance
Series: Book 1 of 5: The Royals
From strip clubs and truck stops to southern coast mansions and prep schools, one girl tries to stay true to herself.
These Royals will ruin you…
Ella Harper is a survivor—a pragmatic optimist. She’s spent her whole life moving from town to town with her flighty mother, struggling to make ends meet and believing that someday she’ll climb out of the gutter. After her mother’s death, Ella is truly alone.
Until Callum Royal appears, plucking Ella out of poverty and tossing her into his posh mansion among his five sons who all hate her. Each Royal boy is more magnetic than the last, but none as captivating as Reed Royal, the boy who is determined to send her back to the slums she came from.
Reed doesn’t want her. He says she doesn’t belong with the Royals.
He might be right.
Wealth. Excess. Deception. It’s like nothing Ella has ever experienced, and if she’s going to survive her time in the Royal palace, she’ll need to learn to issue her own Royal decrees.
“This house is an illusion. It’s polished and pretty, but the dream Callum is trying to sell is as flimsy as paper. Nothing stays shiny forever in this world.”
Publication date: October 2012
Pages: 375
Genre: Romance novel, New adult fiction, Contemporary romance
Series: Book 1 of 7: Fallen Crest Series
Mason and Logan Kade are two brothers who did their own thing. They were rich and expected to attend Samantha’s school, Fallen Crest Academy. They chose public school and now she has to live with them. The problem is that she doesn’t care at all: about them, about her friends, about her cheating boyfriend, or even about her parent’s divorce. But maybe that’s a good thing. Maybe change is a good thing.
This book contains adult/mature young adult situations
Logan reached out and caught my shoulders when I started to leave. He pulled me back against his chest and enfolded his arms over my chest. “Ah, our little sister, trying to be all nice and saintly.”
Mason snorted and opened the door. “Saints don’t set cars on fire.”
Publication date: February 2013
Pages: 262
Genre: Romance novel, New adult fiction, Contemporary romance, Erotica
Series: Book 1 of 2: The BS Series
Alexandra’s older brother died the night he graduated. That day changed everything for her. No longer was she the party girl. No longer did she care about being popular and no longer was her family the happy unit she always thought existed. The only person who could help her heal is the same person who loved her brother as much as she did, his best friend. She only hopes to keep her entire heart from breaking when Jesse will move on, and she knows he will. After Ethan died, Jesse excelled at basketball, partying, and girls. He used it all to turn his emotions off, but the irony was that Alex was the only person who could do that for him. She helped him forget, but she was the one person he shouldn’t be with because the secrets he knows could shatter everything. They could shatter her.
This is part one, so expect a cliffhanger for an ending.
“I don’t want a girlfriend. I can’t do that, and if that’s where you want this to go, we need to stop right now. I can’t lose you in my life and I won’t risk it because of that. Sex is one thing, but sex before our friendship is another thing.”
Publication date: May 2019
Pages: 265
Genre: Fiction, New adult, Reverse harem, Bully romance
Series: Book 1 of 4: Kings of Miskatonic Prep
I should have kept my mouth shut.
I should have let them win.
Now the kings of the school are out for my blood,
… and they’re not the only ones.
The fire took everything.
My parents. My best friend. My life.
Now I have a second chance.
I only have to endure one year at this prestigious academy for rich snobs.
One year of being the charity case no one wanted.
One year of taunts and insults and bullying. Then I’m free.
But I didn’t count on Trey, Ayaz, and Quinn.
Arrogant, privileged, dangerous.
Drop-dead gorgeous.
They want me gone.
They want me to suffer.
They’re determined to make my nightmares real.
Tough luck, bully boys – I won’t hide away.
I’m not afraid.
But maybe… I should be.
HP Lovecraft meets Cruel Intentions in book 1 of this dark paranormal reverse harem bully romance. Warning: Not for the faint of heart – this story of three broken bad boys and the girl who stood her ground contains dark themes, crazed cultists, books bound in human skin, high-school drama, swoon-worthy sex, and potential triggers.
“These kids were going to grow up to run the country, the world, and even if they had to stare at my face on the other end of a boardroom, I would still be the gutter whore who served their fries.”
Publication date: February 2017
Pages: 333
Genre: Fiction, Contemporary romance, New adult & College romance
Series: Book 1 of 6: The Fall Away Series
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Penelope Douglas delivers an unforgettable romance that toes the fine line between love and hate….
My name is Tate. He doesn’t call me that, though. He would never refer to me by a friendly nickname. No, he’ll barely even speak to me. But he still won’t leave me alone.
We were best friends once. Then he turned on me and made it his mission to ruin my life. I was humiliated, shut out, and gossiped about all through high school. His pranks and rumors got worse as time wore on, and I made myself sick trying to stay out of his way. I even went away for a year just to avoid him.
But I’m done hiding from him now, and there’s no way I’ll allow him to ruin another year. He might not have changed, but I have. It’s time to fight back.
“The scariest thing about the world is knowing it goes on when you’re not there.”
Publication date: April 2016
Pages: 270
Genre: Fiction, Contemporary romance, Young adult, Bully Romance
Series: Book 1 of 3: Lovely Vicious
Previously published as Lovely Vicious, this fully revised and updated edition is full of romance, intrigue, and laugh-out-loud moments.
Don’t love your enemy. Declare war on him.
Seventeen-year-old Isis Blake hasn’t fallen in love in three years, nine weeks, and five days, and after what happened last time, she intends to keep it that way. Since then she’s lost eighty-five pounds, gotten four streaks of purple in her hair, and moved to Buttcrack-of-Nowhere, Ohio, to help her mom escape a bad relationship.
All the girls in her new school want one thing—Jack Hunter, the Ice Prince of East Summit High. Hot as an Armani ad, smart enough to get into Yale, and colder than the Arctic, Jack Hunter’s never gone out with anyone. Sure, people have seen him downtown with beautiful women, but he’s never given high school girls the time of day. Until Isis punches him in the face.
Jack’s met his match. Suddenly everything is a game.
The goal: Make the other beg for mercy.
The game board: East Summit High.
The reward: Something neither of them expected.
“Do not consort with the enemy. Even if those hot-ass actors in the movies make it look cuddly and nice and tempting, don’t fall for it. It’s the biggest bad in the world, the worst villain ever created by hormone-pumped pubescent morons. It’s the Joker, Lex Luthor, that one overweight guy who’s always messing with the Scooby-Doo gang. It’s the final boss in the massive joke of a video game you call your life.”
Halfway to the Grave by Jeaniene Frost
Publication date: October 2009
Pages: 384
Genre: Romance novel, Paranormal romance, Fantasy fiction
Series: Book 1 of 7: Night Huntress
Half-vampire Catherine Crawfield is going after the undead with a vengeance, hoping that one of these deadbeats is her father—the one responsible for ruining her mother’s life. Then she’s captured by Bones, a vampire bounty hunter, and is forced into an unholy partnership.
In exchange for finding her father, Cat agrees to train with the sexy night stalker until her battle reflexes are as sharp as his fangs. She’s amazed she doesn’t end up as his dinner—are there actually good vampires? Pretty soon Bones will have her convinced that being half-dead doesn’t have to be all bad. But before she can enjoy her newfound status as kick-ass demon hunter, Cat and Bones are pursued by a group of killers. Now Cat will have to choose a side . . . and Bones is turning out to be as tempting as any man with a heartbeat.
“There is only one way to fight, and that’s dirty. Clean gentlemanly fighting will get you nowhere but dead, and fast. Take every cheap shot, every low blow, absolutely kick people when they’re down, and maybe you’ll be the one who walks away.”
Here Be Sexist Vampires by Suzanne Wright
Publication date: January 2012
Pages: 268
Genre: Paranormal romance, Fantasy
Series: Book 1 of 6: The Deep in Your Veins Series
Sam Parker is a vampire with a gift so strong and substantial that she is invited to partake in a test for a place in the Grand High Master Vampire’s private legion. She finds that not only has the army never included a woman, but it has never included a Sventé vampire – a breed that is regarded by the super strong Pagori breed and the hypnotically beautiful Keja breed to be too tame and human-like. Most refuse to take her seriously, especially dangerous Pagori commander, Jared, who she craves in spite of herself. The Grand High Master, however, sees her potential and offers her the position of Jared’s co-commander to help train the newest squad in time for the impending attack on his island. Sam has to demonstrate to Jared and the squad of chauvinists why it is incredibly foolish to underestimate a wilful, temperamental, borderline-homicidal Sventé female.
Warning: This novel contains an iron-willed female vampire with an energy whip, a sexist male vampire who is determined to have her, explicit vampy sex, and a romance story with real bite.
“How could you be attracted to someone who made you so pissed off that you’d considered burning their balls with a lighter?”
Pathfinder’s Way by T.A. White
Publication date: April 2016
Pages: 396
Genre: Romance novel, Fantasy fiction, Romantic fantasy
Series: Book 1 of 4: The Broken Lands
The Trateri are about to learn a vital lesson of the Broken Lands. Deep in the remote expanse where anything can happen, it pays to be on a pathfinder’s good side.
Nobody ventures beyond their village walls. Nobody sane that is. Monstrous creatures and deadly mysteries wait out there. Lucky for the people she serves, Shea’s not exactly sane. As a pathfinder, it’s her job to face what others fear and protect her charges from the dangers that await in the Broken Lands. It’s not an easy job, but she’s the best at what she does.
When the people she serves betray her, Shea must rely on her wits and skill to survive the Trateri, a barbarian horde sweeping in to conquer the Lowlands, and their warlord, a man as dangerous as he is compelling. Her actions and the decisions she makes might mean the difference between life or death. Danger looms on the horizon and a partnership with the Warlord may be the only thing preventing the destruction of everything she holds dear.
“Since she’d given up her opportunity to escape, she was back to playing the obedient soldier. One day she was going to get control of herself and stop doing stupid shit to save ungrateful idiots.”
Promise of Fire by Amanda Bouchet
Publication date: August 2016
Pages: 450
Genre: Fantasy fiction, Romantic fantasy, Paranormal romance
Series: Book 1 of 3: The Kingmaker Chronicles
Discover the white-hot fantasy romance that broke all the rules, where a fierce woman with powerful hidden magic goes toe-to-toe with the alpha warlord who abducted her…only to steal her heart.
KINGDOMS WILL RISE AND FALL FOR HER…
Cat Fisa isn’t who she pretends to be. She’s perfectly content living disguised as a soothsayer in a traveling circus, avoiding the destiny the Gods—and her dangerous family—have saddled her with. As far as she’s concerned, the magic humming within her blood can live and die with her. She won’t be a pawn in anyone’s game.
But then she locks eyes with an ambitious warlord from the magic-deprived south and her illusion of safety is shattered forever.
Griffin knows Cat is the Kingmaker—the woman who divines truth through lies—and he wants her to be a powerful weapon for his newly conquered realm. Kidnapping her off the street is simple enough, but keeping the fierce beauty by his side is infuriatingly tough. Cat fights him at every turn, showing a ferocity of spirit that burns hot…and leaves him desperate for more. But can he ever hope to prove to his once-captive that he wants her there by his side as his equal, his companion…and maybe someday, his Queen?
“Men don’t understand discretion. My goal is to survive on my weakest abilities. That saves other talents for when I really need them and doesn’t reveal important skills to any idiot who might be watching.”
Some Girls Bite by Chloe Neill
Publication date: February 2009
Pages: 356
Genre: Urban fantasy, Fantasy, Paranormal romance
Series: Book 1 of 13: Chicagoland Vampires
First in a brand new series about a Chicago graduate student’s introduction into a society of vampires.
Sure, the life of a graduate student wasn’t exactly glamorous, but it was Merit’s. She was doing fine until a rogue vampire attacked her. But he only got a sip before he was scared away by another bloodsucker and this one decided the best way to save her life was to make her the walking undead.
Turns out her savior was the master vampire of Cadogan House. Now she?s traded sweating over her thesis for learning to fit in at a Hyde Park mansion full of vamps loyal to Ethan Lord o the Manor Sullivan. Of course, as a tall, green-eyed, four-hundred- year-old vampire, he has centuries? worth of charm, but unfortunately he expects her gratitude? and servitude. But an inconvenient sunlight allergy and Ethan?s attitude are the least of her concerns. Someone’s still out to get her. Her initiation into Chicago’s nightlife may be the first skirmish in a war and there will be blood.
“I wouldn’t go with you even if my other option was Hades dragging me to the Underworld for an eternal threesome with Persephone.”
Publication date: March 2009
Pages: 368
Genre: Paranormal romance, Fantasy fiction, Occult fiction
Series: Book 1 of 14: Guild Hunter
FIRST IN THE GUILD HUNTER SERIES from “a major new talent” (CHRISTINE FEEHAN).
View our feature on Nalini Singh’s Angels’ Blood.Nalini Singh introduces readers to a world of beauty and bloodlust, where angels hold sway over vampires.
Vampire hunter Elena Deveraux is hired by the dangerously beautiful Archangel Raphael. But this time, it’s not a wayward vamp she has to track. It’s an archangel gone bad.
The job will put Elena in the midst of a killing spree like no other—and pull her to the razor’s edge of passion. Even if the hunt doesn’t destroy her, succumbing to Raphael’s seductive touch just may. For when archangels play, mortals break.
“Option 1: Attempt to back out.
Probable result: Death after painful torture.Option 2: Do the job and hope.
Probable result: Death but probably no torture (good)”
Publication date: April 2011
Pages: 340
Genre: Romance novel, Fantasy Fiction, Romantic fantasy
Series: Book 1 of 6: Chronicles of the Warlands
The daughter of a Warrior King, Lara was trained as a healer. With her father dead and her incompetent half-brother on the throne, the kingdom is in danger of falling to warring Firelanders. Unable to depose her sibling or negotiate peace, Lara serves her people by healing the warriors—on both sides of the conflict—who are injured in battle.
Lara finds herself educated in her enemy’s language and customs in return for her attention and compassion. She never expects that her deeds, done in good faith, would lead to the handsome and mysterious Firelander Warlord demanding her in exchange for a cease-fire. To save her land and her people, Lara trades her freedom to become the Warprize.
“Want to know the best part of being a warlord?” came a hoarse whisper. I bit my lip, puzzled by the question. Keir’s mouth curled up slowly into a smile. “I always get what I want.”
As you can see, there’s no ‘Prince Charming’ here but…
Everyone loved the beast more anyway.
Curious: Do you think books like these are a bad example for what a ‘healthy’ relationship should look like for younger readers?
