It was the Marvel Cinematic Universe fandom’s shot heard ’round the world — the midnight premiere of The Avengers: Infinity War. While half (most?) of the internet is busy melting down over Cap’s new look, especially THE BEARD, we are marveling over the sheer number of characters this movie brings together.
Pun intended.
To stop ourselves from seeing the movie 10 more times this weekend, we decided to put our brains to work on book recommendations based on that huge cast. No matter who your favorite Avenger is, the romance genre has a book for you.
IF YOUR HERO IS CAPTAIN AMERICA:
THEN YOUR BOOK IS:
A Lady By Midnight by Tessa Dare
Captain America has always been sweet and steady, but the Star-Spangled Man with a Plan has gone a little rogue lately. He’s seen some stuff—just like the hero in Tessa Dare’s A Lady by Midnight. Though Corporal Samuel Thorne is a bit grumpier than Cap, he also has a soft spot for the special person in his life.
In Thorne’s case, that’s Miss Kate Taylor, an orphan who finds that her past, present, and future are all inextricably linked to Thorne’s. It’s a beautiful read full of beautiful relationships, and the setting of Spindle Cove is a character all its own. If you’re a completionist (you know who you are), start with the first book, A Night to Surrender, and make your way to Thorne.
He’s a patient man. He can do this all day.
IF YOUR HEROINE IS BLACK WIDOW:
THEN YOUR ROMANCE NOVEL IS:
Bullet to the Heart: No Mercy by Lea Griffith
If you like your heroines a little more in the “cold blooded assassin who would probably/definitely kill you” neighborhood, meet Bullet. She’s a member of an all-lady team of assassins who were brutally trained from childhood to be the perfect weapons. She and her sisters Arrow, Bone, and Blade (books #2, #3 and a forthcoming #4!) are like a team of Natasha Romanovs, if Natasha had three fellow assassins and they decided to singlehandedly take down a corrupt S.H.I.E.L.D.
The path to love and happily ever after is plenty rocky in Bullet to the Heart by Lea Griffith, but if you’re down for violence, bloodshed, and mayhem mixed in with your hot & steamy enemies-to-lovers romance, you’re in for a treat. (And if you act fast, you can even download it for free!)
IF YOUR HERO IS BLACK PANTHER:
THEN YOUR ROMANCE NOVEL IS:
A Princess in Theory by Alyssa Cole
Did you fall in love with the ruler of Wakanda? Honestly, no one can blame you. If you need more in the Hot As Heck Royalty From Fictional African Countries You Wish You Could Visit genre, have we got the book for you. And the new heartthrob prince of your dreams. (Superhero status unconfirmed—but possible!)
In Alyssa Cole’s A Princess in Theory, Ledi is a broke epidemiology grad student in New York who’s really tired of getting spammed by someone swearing she’s a secret African Princess. The only thing is…she is a secret African Princess, and her prince has come to collect her. Thabiso isn’t above posing as a regular guy to woo his long-lost betrothed, but the responsibilities of royalty wait for no Prince.
Once Ledi and Thabiso get back to his home country of Thesolo, get ready to fall in love. Marriages of convenience, secret identities, palace intrigue—Thesolo has it all. Especially the Happily Ever After.
IF YOUR HERO IS IRON MAN:
THEN YOU ROMANCE NOVEL IS:
The Iron Duke by Meljean Brook
You can’t make a list of Avengers recs without Tony Stark. Love him or hate him, (or both! Both is okay too!), he is without doubt one of the biggest personalities in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. So who do you turn to when you want a little of that swagger in romance?
To Meljean Brook’s The Iron Duke, of course. Now, now—before you accuse me of picking this rec just for the—admittedly epic—pun value, let me make my case. Rhys Trahaearn (the aforementioned Iron Duke) has enough ruthless arrogance to give Tony Stark a run for all his money. If you like your heroes rich, cocky, and powerful enough to make rules while simultaneously breaking them, Rhys is your man. The Iron Duke also kicks off Brook’s popular Iron Seas series, which combines futuristic technology in an alternate history that gives the books a cinematic, action-hero feel. There may not be aliens falling out of the sky, but you’ll hold your breath as Rhys and his heroine battle zombies on their way to happily ever after.
CAN’T COMMIT TO JUST ONE HERO? WELL, THEN…
Are you the kind of person who can’t pick just one? Are you ready to commit to the otherworldly romance lifestyle? Strap in, because this monster series has it all. In Nalini Singh’s Psy/Changeling series, the power in the world is divided between the shapeshifting Changelings and the psychic Psy. With fifteen novels in the series, you will find what you’re looking for.
ARE COLD-BLOODED SUPERSOLDIERS (WITH A HEART) YOUR TYPE? THEN…
Do you like cold-blooded supersoldiers who are trained to kill and know they can never move past all that blood on their hands? Jud, the hero of Caressed by Ice, is an assassin and a member of the elite Arrow squad, with a telekinetic gift so strong that he doesn’t need supersoldier serum—he can tear you apart with his brain.
Of course, the right person might be able to melt all that ice…
YOU’RE INTO HEROINES WITH UNCONTROLLABLE GIFTS:
Are you more into heroines who possess gifts they aren’t sure they can control? Sienna, whose story comes to the forefront of the series in Kiss of Snow, has a dangerous secret and an even more dangerous power. Living with the knowledge that there’s a force inside you terrifying enough to destroy the people you love is no easy task.
But the right partner, one strong enough to stand with you, doesn’t hurt.
IF YOU’RE INTO SUPERHUMANS:
Maybe your poison is an intellect so cool, so logical, so completely focused on reason that the man wielding it might not even seem human. Maybe you like him even better if he has the knowledge of the world at his fingertips. Maybe your very favorite part is if, even in the face of all this logic and reason, there’s that oooone person who seems to sneak beneath his skin and make him do things that aren’t logical at all.
Heart of Obsidian is the book for you.
Kaleb Krychek is the dangerous enigma at the heart of much of the series. In the beginning, he seems like an enemy. But even when he turns ally, how can anyone trust someone whose mind is utterly, ruthlessly focused on his goals, to the exclusion of all emotion?
(Spoiler alert: love. You trust love.)
