Decode your taste →

Books like Kingdom of the Wicked

Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco reads as dark, emotional. These 12 books share its genome — matched by how they actually read, not just their shelf label.

What Kingdom of the Wicked is like to read

A propulsive Sicilian-flavored descent into a Hell court of seductive demon princes, where a grieving witch's revenge quest tangles with an increasingly irresistible enemy-ally. Atmospheric, romance-forward, and built on cliffhanger momentum rather than deep worldbuilding. Best for: readers who want dark romantasy with an enemies-to-lovers slow burn and a murder-mystery spine.

Heartless Hunter cover
Heartless Hunter
Kristen Ciccarelli · 2024
A fizzy enemies-to-lovers romance where the fun is in the double disguises and the dramatic irony of a witch hunter falling for the vigilante he's hunting — plot-forward and courtship-driven.
guaranteed HEAcliffhangerdeep cut
Queen of Shadows cover
Queen of Shadows
Sarah J. Maas · 2015
A propulsive, vengeance-driven turn in the series where Aelin steps into her queenship — multi-POV action, court intrigue, and simmering romance carry the reader through big set-piece fights.
happy-for-nowmildly eerie
Zodiac Academy: The Awakening cover
Zodiac Academy: The Awakening
Caroline Peckham · 2019
A twin heir to a Fae throne is thrown into a dangerous supernatural academy where vampires, werewolves and rival heirs all want her dead or dethroned — brash, trope-forward BookTok
high heatmildly eeriecliffhanger
The Wicked King cover
The Wicked King
Holly Black · 2019
A tense, deliciously scheming middle volume where every court alliance is a knife and Jude's tug-of-war with Cardan crackles with barbed longing.
YAcliffhanger
The Serpent & the Wings of Night cover
The Serpent & the Wings of Night
Carissa Broadbent · 2022
A deadly tournament backdrop fuels a slow-burn enemies-to-lovers arc where every alliance could be a trap.
mildly eeriecliffhangerdeep cut
Gleam cover
Gleam
Raven Kennedy · 2021
A captive heroine narrates her own turn from repression toward dark anger and dangerous attraction, caught in the schemes of rival kings — a plot of revenge, entrapment, and forbidden pull.
cliffhangerdeep cut
Legendary cover
Legendary
Stephanie Garber · 2018
A high-stakes return to the Caraval competition, this time following Tella as she chases Legend's true name through layers of deception and a doomed romance.
mildly eeriecliffhangerdeep cut
Kingdom of the Cursed cover
Kingdom of the Cursed
Kerri Maniscalco · 2021
A dark, decadent descent into the Seven Circles where court intrigue, revenge, and a seductive prince-versus-prince dynamic drive the pages forward.
high heatcliffhangerdeep cut
Midnight Sun cover
Midnight Sun
Stephenie Meyer · 2020
A companion retelling of Twilight from Edward's obsessive, tormented interior — the same beats you know, now saturated in a vampire's self-loathing and hyper-attentive longing.
happy-for-nowmildly eerieYA
Wretched cover
Wretched
Emily McIntire · 2022
A dark mafia-vs-DEA romance where a ruthless botanist heroine and her undercover enemy circle each other through attraction, deception, and violence.
guaranteed HEAhigh heatcomplete story
A Dowry of Blood cover
A Dowry of Blood
S. T. Gibson · 2021
Framed as a confessional letter across centuries, it's an intimate, sensuous reckoning with an abusive immortal marriage and the tenderness that grows between his consorts.
creepy, not gorycomplete storydeep cut
Interview with the Vampire cover
Interview with the Vampire
Anne Rice · 1976
A confessional, opulent monologue that turns vampirism into an existential ache — lush New Orleans and Paris settings, a doomed surrogate family, and a narrator who mourns his own damnation aloud.
creepy, not gorycomplete story

About Kingdom of the Wicked — what the genome says

Does Kingdom of the Wicked have a happy ending?

Mostly — it ends happy-for-now (HFN) rather than a sealed-forever HEA.

Is Kingdom of the Wicked a complete story or a cliffhanger?

It ends on a cliffhanger — plan on reading the next book.

How scary is Kingdom of the Wicked?

Mildly eerie — tension without real scares.

How spicy is Kingdom of the Wicked?

Moderate heat — some open-door scenes.

Find your next read by its genome

Tell Novelome one book you love — get recommendations tuned to your taste, including the ones other sites never surface.

Start free →
More readalikes: Books like THE LET THEM THEORY · Books like EXTREME OWNERSHIP · Books like WINGS OF STARLIGHT · Books like DON'T BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU THINK, EXPANDED EDITION · Books like I WILL TEACH YOU TO BE RICH, SECOND EDITION · Books like FAKE SKATING · Books like THE CREATIVE ACT · Books like IF ONLY I HAD TOLD HER