Cover of House of Shadows

Affiliate links — we may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. Learn more

House of Shadows

Darcy Coates · House of Shadows #1

268 pagesgothic romance
(10k)Mild

Married to a brooding stranger to save her family, Sophie discovers their gothic mansion is haunted — and so is her husb

Content Warnings
violence/gore

Description

Sophie's world is shattered when disaster bankrupts her family. She's still reeling from the news when she's offered an unexpected solution: Mr Argenton, a wealthy stranger, asks for her hand in marriage.Marrying Mr Argenton will restore her family's fortunes and save them from scandal, but condemns Sophie to a life in Northwood, a vast and unnaturally dark mansion situated hours from civilisation.Sophie struggles to adjust to her new position as mistress over the desolate house. Mr Argenton's relatives are cold, and Mr Argenton himself is keeping secrets. Even worse, the house is more than it seems.Mr Argenton's young cousin, Elise, draws terrifying images. Doors slam. Inhuman figures slink through the forest surrounding the house. A piano plays in the middle of the night. Blood drips from the ceilings.Sophie is inevitably pulled towards the terrifying truth: Northwood's ancient halls are haunted by the family's long-dead ancestors. The malevolent spirits--produced by grisly deaths--resent her intrusion into their home.Trapped in Northwood and desperate for an escape, Sophie's fate is further complicated as she finds herself irrevocably drawn to the tall, dark-eyed man she married. She suspects her feelings are returned, but Mr Argenton is hiding the truth about the house--and his secrets are so dangerous that they might just be unforgivable.

Books like this

Cover of Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre

Charlotte Brontë

500 pagesgothic romance
(2.3M)Mild

A plain governess falls for her brooding employer — but Thornfield Hall hides a devastating secret.

8 tropes in common

Cover of Rebecca

Rebecca

Daphne du Maurier

488 pagesgothic romance
(733k)Mild

A shy new bride discovers her husband's first wife may never truly be gone — and Manderley holds dark secrets.

8 tropes in common

Cover of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue

V.E. Schwab

448 pagesgothic romance
(1.5M)Warm

Cursed to be forgotten by everyone she meets, Addie LaRue finds the one man who remembers her name.

6 tropes in common

Cover of Wuthering Heights

Wuthering Heights

Emily Brontë

359 pagesgothic romance
(2.2M)Mild

A fierce, doomed love between a foundling and a gentleman's daughter tears two families apart across generations.

5 tropes in common

Cover of Greygallows

Greygallows

Barbara Michaels

342 pagesgothic romance
(2k)Mild

A naive young woman marries a mysterious baron and finds his grand estate holds deadly secrets she may not survive.

10 tropes in common

Cover of Kirkland Revels

Kirkland Revels

Victoria Holt

365 pagesgothic romance
(3k)Mild

A young bride moves into a brooding Yorkshire mansion — and discovers its secrets may cost her life.

7 tropes in common

Cover of Seven for a Secret

Seven for a Secret

Victoria Holt

370 pagesgothic romance
(2k)Mild

A young woman falls for an enigmatic man whose family secrets may be her undoing.

8 tropes in common

Cover of The Cruel Dark

The Cruel Dark

Bea Northwick · The Cruel Dark #1

226 pagesgothic romance
(5k)Warm

A haunted woman takes a job with a brooding widowed professor — and his crumbling estate holds darker secrets than eithe

10 tropes in common

Cover of The Master of Blacktower

The Master of Blacktower

Barbara Michaels

352 pagesgothic romance
(2k)Mild

A scarred, bitter Scottish lord harbours deadly secrets — and his new governess is determined to uncover them.

8 tropes in common

Cover of The Pride of the Peacock

The Pride of the Peacock

Victoria Holt

281 pagesgothic romance
(5k)Mild

A woman's strange inheritance forces her into marriage and halfway across the world — where opals hide deadly secrets.

6 tropes in common

Cover of Menfreya in the Morning

Menfreya in the Morning

Victoria Holt

256 pagesgothic romance
(4k)Mild

A bride arrives at her husband's brooding Cornish manor and finds its dark legend may be coming for her next.

7 tropes in common

Cover of Silence for the Dead

Silence for the Dead

Simone St. James

363 pagesgothic romance
(17k)Warm

A runaway nurse and a shell-shocked soldier uncover dark secrets in a haunted WWI asylum.

9 tropes in common

Cover of Bride of Pendorric

Bride of Pendorric

Victoria Holt

271 pagesgothic romance
(5k)Mild

A new bride discovers the ancient Pendorric estate may be cursed — and her charming husband its instrument.

7 tropes in common

Cover of Doctor D'Arco, Sorcerer of London: A Victorian Gothic Romance

Doctor D'Arco, Sorcerer of London: A Victorian Gothic Romance

Kathryn Colvin

900 pagesgothic romance
(925)Warm

A destitute Victorian widow apprentices under a fearsome, masked sorcerer — and falls dangerously in love.

8 tropes in common

Cover of The Secret Woman

The Secret Woman

Victoria Holt

374 pagesgothic romance
(3k)Mild

A governess swept to sea by a dashing captain discovers he carries secrets as dark as the waves.

6 tropes in common

Cover of The Quicksilver Pool

The Quicksilver Pool

Phyllis A. Whitney

304 pagesgothic romance
(913)Mild

A Civil War bride uncovers dark secrets her new husband will do anything to keep buried.

6 tropes in common

Cover of The Phantom of the Opera

The Phantom of the Opera

Gaston Leroux

116 pagesgothic romance
(281k)Mild

A disfigured genius haunts the Paris Opera House, obsessed with the singer he loves and will never have.

7 tropes in common

Cover of Ravenscroft

Ravenscroft

Dorothy Eden

gothic romance
(621)Mild

Rescued from criminals and married to her saviour, Bella finds Ravenscroft haunted by his first wife — and old enemies s

6 tropes in common

Cover of Nocticadia

Nocticadia

Keri Lake

682 pagesgothic romance
(176k)Steamy

A med student on a haunted island falls for her darkly brilliant professor — and his dangerous secrets.

6 tropes in common

Cover of Wings of the Falcon

Wings of the Falcon

Barbara Michaels

304 pagesgothic romance
(2k)Mild

Adrift among hostile Italian relatives, Francesca's only hope is a masked horseman known only as the Falcon.

7 tropes in common

A work in progress, built for my wife with love. Suggestions welcome