Books Like A Court This Cruel and Lovely
If you finished A Court This Cruel and Lovely and want more fae, enemies to lovers, deals and bargains, start here. Each pick shares at least two tropes with it, and we've rated every one for spice and darkness so you know what you're getting into.
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The picks
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1. A Court of Thorns and Roses
Shares: fae, enemies to lovers, curses
Beauty and the Beast with fae and a lot more blood. The first half is slow and the second half under the mountain is why everyone kept going. Book two is where it gets good, honestly.
- Fae
- Enemies to Lovers
- Fairy Tale Retellings
- Curses
Content warnings
Graphic violence, Torture, Murder, Dubious or non-consent
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2. A Dawn of Onyx
Shares: enemies to lovers, forced proximity, fae
A healer gets caught fleeing her village and ends up working in the enemy king's castle, and yes, the brooding commander is more than he looks. If you've read ACOTAR, you'll know exactly where this is going, and that's sort of the point.
- Captor and Captive
- Enemies to Lovers
- Forced Proximity
- Slow Burn
Content warnings
War, Graphic violence
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3. A Cursed Kiss
Shares: fae, curses, enemies to lovers
Keelynn's sister died from a Gancanagh's cursed kiss, so she teams up with a witch and the half-fae Tadhg to bring her back. Irish folklore all the way down. There's a lot of miscommunication, but Tadhg carries it.
- Fae
- Curses
- Enemies to Lovers
- Morally Gray
Content warnings
Death of a loved one, Murder, Graphic violence
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4. Curse of the Wolf King
Shares: fae, curses, forced proximity
Beauty and the Beast with a bookworm who'd rather be a spy. Gemma Bellefleur needs King Elliot's curse broken so she can buy her freedom, and he needs someone to fall for him before it kills him. Funny, cozy, a good palate cleanser between dark reads.
- Fae
- Fairy Tale Retellings
- Curses
- Forced Proximity
Content warnings
Graphic violence
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5. The Veiled Kingdom
Shares: fae, enemies to lovers, forced proximity
Nyra has spent her whole life hiding that she's really Verena, the lost fae princess of Marmoris, and Dacre, the man she can't stop wanting, has no idea. Fast and very spicy, light on worldbuilding. That's either the appeal or the problem.
- Fae
- Enemies to Lovers
- Forbidden Love
- Forced Proximity
Content warnings
Graphic violence, Murder, Death of a loved one
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6. These Hollow Vows
Shares: fae, deals and bargains, enemies to lovers
Brie hates the fae, then her little sister gets handed over to the Unseelie to pay a debt. Her way in is posing as a bride for the Seelie prince Ronan while the shadowy Finn works his own angle. Pick a team early, because readers are still arguing.
- Fae
- Love Triangle
- Court Intrigue
- Deals and Bargains
Content warnings
Kidnapping, Graphic violence, Death of a loved one
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7. These Vile Hearts
Shares: deals and bargains, curses, enemies to lovers
Maddox is type 1 diabetic, just lost her job and her insurance, and makes a deal with a dryad queen: kill the Redwood King and get cured. Then she mistakes his cursed brother Castor for him. Funny, angry about real healthcare, and a very good debut.
- Deals and Bargains
- Curses
- Enemies to Lovers
- Forbidden Love
Content warnings
Murder
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8. Throne of the Fallen
Shares: forced proximity, enemies to lovers, curses
Envy gets his own book and Maniscalco cranks the spice way past Kingdom of the Wicked. A spin-off you can read on its own.
- Demons
- Forced Proximity
- Enemies to Lovers
- Curses
Content warnings
Graphic violence, Murder
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9. Quicksilver
Shares: fae, enemies to lovers, forced proximity
Saeris is a thief who touches the wrong thing and gets hauled into the fae realm by a very rude fae warrior. Long, crude in a fun way and properly spicy once it gets there.
- Fae
- Enemies to Lovers
- Forced Proximity
- Morally Gray
Content warnings
Graphic violence, Gore, Murder
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10. A Deal with the Elf King
Shares: fae, deals and bargains, curses
A village healer gets claimed as the elf king's bride. Softer than most on this site, but it's a full fae-bargain story in one book.
- Fae
- Arranged Marriage
- Deals and Bargains
- Curses
Content warnings
Death of a loved one
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11. An Enchantment of Ravens
Shares: fae, forced proximity, curses
Isobel paints portraits for fae patrons who pay in enchantments. She paints human sorrow into the eyes of Rook, the autumn prince, and he hauls her off to stand trial for it. Short and pretty, a little thin on romance, but the fae are genuinely uncanny.
- Fae
- Forbidden Love
- Forced Proximity
- Curses
Content warnings
Graphic violence
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12. Fortuna Sworn
Shares: fae, deals and bargains, enemies to lovers
Fortuna is a Nightmare who can see the fears of anyone she touches, and when her brother goes missing she ends up a prisoner of the Unseelie Court. Getting out costs her something very fae. Bleak, messy, and the love interest debate is half the fun.
- Fae
- Captor and Captive
- Deals and Bargains
- Morally Gray
Content warnings
Physical or emotional abuse, Torture, Kidnapping, Human trafficking, Graphic violence
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13. The Wren in the Holly Library
Shares: enemies to lovers, forced proximity, fae
Kierse is a thief in a New York still scarred by a war with monsters, and she gets caught breaking into the house of Graves, a centuries-old something who offers her a job instead of killing her. Beauty and the Beast bones and plenty of heat. The first act is slow.
- Enemies to Lovers
- Fairy Tale Retellings
- Morally Gray
- Forced Proximity
Content warnings
Graphic violence, Murder, Death of a loved one
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14. A Promise of Fire
Shares: enemies to lovers, forced proximity
Cat is a soothsayer hiding in a traveling circus until Griffin, a warlord, figures out what she can do and carries her off. The Greek gods meddle constantly. Banter-heavy and steamy, and Griffin is an alpha who actually listens.
- Gods and Mythology
- Captor and Captive
- Enemies to Lovers
- Forced Proximity
Content warnings
Kidnapping, Graphic violence, Physical or emotional abuse
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15. Court of Ruins
Shares: fae, enemies to lovers
Reyna Darragh would rather swing a sword than smile at court, but a political marriage could end the war faster than her blade ever will. A short, steamy KU fae romance that doesn't waste your time.
- Fae
- Arranged Marriage
- Enemies to Lovers
- Court Intrigue
Content warnings
Graphic violence, War
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