This Rec League request is brought to you, selfishly, by me!
I want mafia romances but in a fantasy or sci-fi setting. GET ME OFF THIS PLANET.
Elyse: Oh. Now I want that too.
Shana: Taken to Kor by Elizabeth Stephens ( A | BN ) has space pirates. I’m not sure if that counts. It’s a dark romance. I’m not sure how well it would work as a standalone.
Susan: Hana Maruko’s Love Gamble With the Mafia ( A ) is sort-of fantasy; the protagonist gets reincarnated into the romance game she’s playing, obviously as the villainess, and decides that her best chance of survival is to team up with one of the game’s love interests. And by “team up with” I mean “match the freak of” and by “love interest” I mean “amoral assassin whose route is like 90% bad ends.”
It’s silly and melodramatic, but in a way that really scratches at the right parts of my brain
There’s Jordan L. Hawk’s Blind Tiger, ( A | BN | K | AB ) which is alternate history magical bootleggers?
What romances would you recommend? Let us know in the comments!
Now I really want this, too! There is a whole series of blue alien pirates that take in human women. Not mafia-ish, though. There is one that is more of a mafia setting where the males are huge/beserker mafia. Female with daughter is in danger because they are so rare? Horns removed by former boyfriend/owner? Cannot remember any authors! Aaagh! I will look at my reading history and try and find them.
Jessie Kwak’s Bulari Saga books.
Fonda Lee’s Jade trilogy? It has magic and a mafia-like organization.
@Viki: How strong are the romance elements? It’s been on my TBR pile for quite some time, but it always gets bumped for something that has more of a central romance.
In my folder labeled “side quests”, I have an outline for a book called “Married to the Lobster” which would be a crustacean-shifter/mafia romance and someday I will write it just for laughs.
@T.M. Baumgartner, I am reminded of the Lobster Princess from Cursed Princess Club. You must write this!
I think that Katee Robert’s Dark Olympus books have mafia feel with the politics between the different Olympian factions, though the setting might be more paranormal than fantasy.
@Amanda @Viki I love and adore Jade City and indeed the whole of the Green Bones Saga, Fonda Lee is a genius and I don’t understand why it hasn’t been adapted for TV yet. I still can’t quite believe that I can’t go to Kekon the whole thing is so real. I recommend it wholeheartedly and urgently. However. While I am deeeeeeply invested in the romantic relationships and there is even on page sex sometimes, I would not call it a romance, or romance centered, at all. And yeah it’s definitely got elements of organized crime from all over the world but… when I think of mafia novels much less mafia romances, I dunno, I think they’re something else completely? It’s absolutely wonderful but I wouldn’t have said it’s what you’ve requested. I don’t really have anything else that does, mind.
I had thought there was something but best I can figure what happened was I read a m/m werewolf series by Charlie Adhara at the same time I was reading some m/m mafia bodyguard romance series (cannot for the life of me figure out which one) and kind of conflated the two. Unless there is something like that with vampires?? I could swear there was.
Oh, and if the Jade City series counts as sufficiently romance and/or sufficiently mafia-like, possibly the Tarot Sequence by KD Edwards would also work? I don’t think it’s as good, but it’s got a kind of evil power structure prince/bodyguard slow burn thing going on that might work for you?
It’s not quite right, but The Highwayman by Kerrigan Byrne is basically a mafia romance in a Romancelandia Victorian setting.
@Amanda @kkw You’re right, it’s not a romance novel. It’s more of an urban fantasy with romantic elements and multiple main characters. The organized crime part seems mafia-like to me. I think it’s a really immersive story if you want to escape reality a bit.
I think maybe Heather Guerre’s sci-fi/alien Forbidden Mates series would work for this! They’re all so good and if I remember correctly they stand alone. My favorite is the second one, Moon Struck.