9 Suspenseful Romances That Will Make Your Heart Pound
If you like a bit of action mixed in with your romance, then you've come to the right place. The nine suspenseful stories listed here feature passion, crime, and complicated love. Full of compelling characters and shocking plot twists, these books will have you hooked from start to finish. This video was made with Ezvid Wikimaker.
9 Suspenseful Romances That Will Make Your Heart Pound
Common Tropes in Romantic Suspense
While there are a million ways to tell stories in this genre, there are several tropes that writers return to again and again, often adding their own twists. Here are a few common examples:
Elements of Romance & Suspense
| Element | Romance | Suspense |
|---|---|---|
| Will they or won't they? | ||
| Characters in jeopardy | ||
| Sexual tension | ||
| Happily ever after | ||
| Foreshadowing & Clues |
Fun Date Ideas For Your Real-Life Romance
Hopefully your real relationship involves a lot less danger than these novels, leaving you plenty of time for romantic activities.
- Cook dinner together
- Go for a hike or a bike ride
- Get together for a karaoke night
- Go bowling
- Have a picnic on a sunny day
- Play a boardgame or video game together
- Go to a roller rink
- Have a candlelit dinner
- Join a book club together
How to Make Your Writing Suspenseful
In Depth
In romance novels, we typically only have to worry about whether or not the main characters will end up together. When elements of mystery are added to the mix, these stories turn into thrilling page-turners that are sure to keep readers glued to their seats, anxious to see if the protagonists will overcome their deadly adversaries in order to finally get their happy ending. Here are nine suspenseful romances that will make your heart pound, listed in no particular order.
First up, at #1, we have "Lies That Bind Us" by K.L. Clare. Ellie James is an art teacher living a seemingly normal life in a small town in Connecticut. One day, she comes home to find that her sister and grandmother have been murdered. She's immediately approached by a man named Will Hastings, who tells her that she's being targeted by a group of British assassins due to a plethora of family secrets that she was never aware of. Now, Ellie must learn to trust Will if she ever wants to survive and learn more about her own mysterious past.
Next, at #2, is "Dangerous Waters" by Anne Allen, in which a girl loses her parents in a tragic boating accident at the age of sixteen. Several years later, following another death in the family, she travels to the island of Guernsey to sell her grandmother's old cottage and reconnect with her high school friends. Upon arriving, she learns that the cottage holds secrets that date back to the Second World War. She soon realizes that her parents were actually murdered, and she must find the killer before she ends up becoming the next victim.
Several years later, following another death in the family, she travels to the island of Guernsey to sell her grandmother's old cottage and reconnect with her high school friends.
At #3 is "HellKat" by Robyn Roze. Kat James is a successful and independent businesswoman who comes from a very wealthy family. After a one night stand with a man named Tucker Williams, the two of them agree to never meet again. Sparks fly when fate brings them back together, but when shocking secrets about both of their families are revealed, Kat and Tucker have to work together in order to survive and confront their deceitful relatives.
Next up, at #4, we have "Cold and Deadly" by Toni Anderson. Rookie FBI agent Ava Kanas' mentor died after an apparent suicide, but she firmly believes he was actually murdered. During the funeral, a mysterious shooter claims the life of one person and nearly kills Supervisory Special Agent Dominic Sheridan. Convinced that someone is targeting the FBI, Ava and Dominic team up to find the killer, all while trying to resist their forbidden attraction to each other.
Next, at #5, is "Flirting with Fate" by Jerrie Alexander. Elle Reagan is frustrated at how slow the legal system is dealing with a con artist that stole her grandmother's savings. Taking matters into her own hands, she follows the thief to a ski resort in Colorado, where she finds out that her brother sent his best friend Logan over to protect her. Logan agrees to help her catch the elusive con man, but things get complicated when they find out that someone is trying to kill Elle.
Logan agrees to help her catch the elusive con man, but things get complicated when they find out that someone is trying to kill Elle.
At #6 is "Virgo's Vice" by Trish Jackson. Lexie King works as a camera operator for a reality show set in Africa, where contestants are dropped in the middle of nowhere and must survive for a few weeks. Over time, she starts falling for one of the contestants, a cowboy named Billy Murphy. When someone starts murdering the show's participants, Lexie has to rely on Billy for comfort, and together, they have to figure out who the killer is before more people die.
Next up, at #7, we have "Sworn to Secrecy" by Tammie Clarke Gibbs. US Secret Service agent Dak Bartholomew and a woman named Elizabeth Porter are two strangers who wake up to find that they're both being held captive for seemingly unknown reasons. After reluctantly working together to escape, they run into a cave that transports them into the future. Now, they have to find a way back to their original timeline, discovering shocking secrets about each other along the way.
At #8 is "Blue" by Zoe Dawson. After being captured and tortured during his last mission, Navy SEAL Ocean Beckett is rotated out of his unit and becomes a diving instructor in Florida. Eventually, he starts falling for one of his students, Charlotte Coventry, a petty officer who's haunted by the loss of her family. Their forbidden relationship helps them both heal from their traumatic experiences, but Ocean cannot easily overcome his severe PTSD, which causes him to do things that may drive them apart.
Their forbidden relationship helps them both heal from their traumatic experiences, but Ocean cannot easily overcome his severe PTSD, which causes him to do things that may drive them apart.
Finally, at #9, we have "The Colors Of My Life" by Linda Burson. When Caylie Lyon and her husband visit the bank, they find themselves in the middle of a bank robbery. The five robbers take Caylie hostage, and as she spends more time as their prisoner, she forms an odd friendship with one of them, Cole, whose life was ruined by a corrupt company. When she's finally freed, strange things start happening around her, and the only person who can protect her is one of her former captors.
