The Nora Theory

Your girl grew up on Sons of Anarchy, which my dad always knew would lead to problems. As a direct result, I love a good mafia romance. Yes, I know the Sons aren’t mafia, but any dark gangland romance is always going to have my heart. For years, I have been chasing the same feeling you got when Jax Teller shot a Fed to protect Tara, and then they *ahem* rekindle their relationship next to his corpse, and the only thing that comes close is mafia romance.

The books on this list are both Mafia and more broadly gang romances. There is a distinction but not one I am particularly interested in. These characters are criminals running criminal organizations and doing criminal things, so it fits.

Any of these romances are going to have morally grey heroes who don’t shy away from violence but would burn the world down for the people they love.

LA Ruthless by Sadie Kincaid

This entire series is great, as is anything written by Sadie Kincaid, but Fierce Betrayal and Fierce Obsession are especially wonderful. I’ve talked about these many times before, but they remain living in my head rent-free. Jax is the dreamiest book boyfriend, as long as you like your book boyfriends dirty talking and a little dangerous.

For the first two books, the LA Ruthless series is a fake-relationship enemies-to-lovers romance filled with a sweetheart female main character and the dark and dangerous man her father forced her to marry. The next two books are a father’s best friend romance with a female main character who has been through it and a big badass mafia enforcer who is determined to make sure that no one ever hurts her again. It’s a classic mafia romance, and it’s always worth the read.

Sinner’s Condemned and Sinner’s Consumed by Somme Sketcher

There are actually three books in the series, with two more forthcoming, but I am not a huge fan of the first book, Sinner’s Anonymous, due to the constant bird puns, which I have complained about before. It’s nit-picky, but I just can’t. The rest of the book is great, so I gave the next parts of the series a chance. I was rewarded, because the second and third in the series, following new main characters in the same universe, Penny and Rafe, are very exciting and undoubtedly sexy.

Sinner’s Condemned and Sinner’s Consumed are indie dark mafia romances with lots of violence and drama, but also lots of heart-melting sweetness and unmatched spice. Rafe is a mafia made man who owns and operates a string of casinos, and Penny is bad luck, not to mention a con artist. They are a match made in enemies-to-lovers paradise.

Kids of the District by Nicci Harris

These books are not necessarily the most well-written on this list, but that’s really not the point of a mafia romance. It’s about the drama and the high-stakes romance, not perfect prose, and Kids of the District brings all that drama in spades. This Australian take on mafia romance follows the Butcher brothers, the leaders of the Cosa Nostra in Australia. Each of the Butcher brothers gets their own love story, and each is more savage than the last.

Somewhere in this series is a trope for everyone, from age gap to second chance. Moments of toe-curling spice blend seamlessly with drama reminiscent of a teenage soap opera, but then there is also a deep well of love and emotion that ties it all together.

Dirty Broken Savages by Eva Ashwood

Dirty Broken Savages is a why-choose gang romance, with four love interests and one very formidable heroine. River is on a mission for revenge, and nothing and no one will get in her way. Except for the Kings of Chaos, who don’t take well to River shooting a man in the alley of their club. When she ends up chained in their basement awaiting punishment, they discover they might all be hunting the same monster.

The four love interests in this book embody the classic why choose dynamics, and every page is action-packed, whether it’s flying bullets or steamy group activities. If you are looking for your next why-choose read, or your next gang romance, you can’t go wrong with this series.

Bad Habits by Emma Cole

Warning: this duology is both extremely spicy and extremely dark. This is not where you should start reading mafia romance, or why choose, or romance in general. These books are for when you have been fully desensitized to all things trauma, violence, and kink. Once those things no longer phase you, these why-choose second chance dark mafia romances are the perfect choice.

Eden is a drug-addicted sex worker who finds herself witness to a mafia killing in the brothel where she works. Instead of killing her, they take her with them, and she finds herself held captive by her former best friends and the boy who broke her heart. Chaos of all kinds ensues, and it is glorious. If you’re brave enough, give these a try.

The Harlequin Crew by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti

The more this series comes up, the more I love it. This author duo is primarily known for their romantasy works, but in my opinion, it’s these new adult, why-choose books where Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti really shine. The Harlequin Crew is a second-chance enemies-to-lovers romance with one very (rightfully) pissed-off heroine and four boys who used to be her best friends, who are now set out to make her life as difficult as possible. Oh yeah, and they’re all in a gang.

Like any book by this author duo, this series is lots of fun with all kinds of twists and turns throughout. The gang elements are absolutely a significant part of this story, but there is also tons of interpersonal tension and a gorgeous fictional setting that gives readers a well-rounded adventure.

Legacy of Gods by Rina Kent

The Legacy of Gods series is a series of dark interconnected standalones, that are really more new adult than mafia, but there are ties to the Bratva all over this thing, and all the male main characters are involved in a gang in some capacity, so it counts. Each book in this series follows a different couple across the same groups of rivaling friends.

For readers looking for something fast-paced, unapologetically kinky, and oddly fun, the Legacy of Gods is perfect. If the rest of these books are a little too over the top with the mafia stuff for your tastes, this is an option that’s more character-focused with less influence from the gangland ties.

Note: some of the links included here are Amazon Affiliate links, which means if you purchase through said links, The Nora Theory gets a cut.