Buying Guides · Half or Nothing
Spicy romances and romantasy picks readers can't stop talking about, with a spice level guide, content warnings and Amazon deals at 50% off or more.
2026-10-11 · Written by Dann Nazario · 23 min read
In This Article
Oh my God, it is HOT in here.
This one is for those of you who are just as obsessed with these authors as I am. I have been putting together a little something for my fellow book lovers, a series of books I love and cannot wait to share with you. And honestly, is there anything better than a rainy day, or better yet, a rainy night, curled up somewhere comfortable with one of these books in your hands? Rain is preferred, of course, but let's be honest, any day will do.
And if you are still looking for your next obsession, I might have a few ideas. With more than 450 books read and logged on Goodreads, I have spent quite a bit of time getting lost in other people's stories, and romance is one of my favorite places to get lost. I am talking about the kind of books that make your cheeks burn, keep you reading until three in the morning when you know you should be sleeping, make you feel things, and leave you staring at the ceiling afterward thinking, what did I just read? In the best possible way, obviously.
If that sounds like your kind of reading, you are in the right place. I am starting with the straight romance side of this series, but don't worry, my sapphic readers. Your turn is coming, and I have plenty to share with you, too.
One more thing: I read in English and in Spanish, so you will find books in both languages in this series. The Spanish ones are marked as Spanish editions, so you always know which is which.
You might already know that I have a thing for classic dystopias, and I will definitely be sharing more of those. But romance is another one of my favorite things to get lost in, and I could not keep these books to myself. Some stories are just too good not to talk about, especially when they leave you wanting more.
So, tell me: which one is going to be your next obsession?
Spicy is not a genre as such. It is a term readers use for books of any genre with highly erotic scenes and plenty of sexual tension, as Planeta de Libros explains, in Spanish. It took off on BookTok. Readers share their favorite spicy reads there and often rate them with hot pepper emojis on a scale of one to five, as CBC News reported.
There is no official rating, so here is how I use the scale: one chili is mostly tension and kisses, and five is as explicit as it gets. Every book below shows my own rating. For the books I have not read yet, it is my best estimate from what readers say about them. Want a second opinion on heat? Reader sites like Romance.io and StoryGraph show how other readers rate each book.
| Spice level | What to expect |
|---|---|
| 🌶️ | Romantic tension and kisses |
| 🌶️🌶️ | A few open-door scenes |
| 🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Frequent scenes |
| 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Very explicit |
| 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Heat is a constant part of the story |
Source for the scale: Planeta de Libros.
| Spicy romance | Erotica | |
|---|---|---|
| The center of the book | The love story between the leads | The sex itself |
| Without the sex scenes | The story can stand on its own | There is usually very little plot left |
| What the scenes do | They can enhance the story | The scenes are the point |
Source: Book Riot. A spicy romance is still a romance.
| Term | What you find on the page |
|---|---|
| Clean or wholesome | No sex scenes on the page, only romance and kisses |
| Open door | You will see sex on the page |
| Spicy or steamy | Sex features heavily, with a sustained sexual connection the leads explore throughout the story |
Source: The Romance Genre Specialist. Every book below shows its spice level and content warnings, so you know what to expect before you start.
A trope is a narrative device with specific characteristics that keeps working with readers, as Planeta de Libros explains, in Spanish. These are the ones that show up in this post:
| Book | Author | Style | Half or Nothing deal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Twisted Love | Ana Huang | Billionaire, brother's best friend | 50% off or more |
| Kings of Sin, books 1 to 3 | Ana Huang | Billionaire, forced engagement | 50% off or more |
| The Fine Print | Lauren Asher | Billionaire, boss and employee | 50% off or more |
| The Love Hypothesis (Collector's Edition) | Ali Hazelwood | Rom-com, fake relationship | 50% off or more |
| Happy Place | Emily Henry | Rom-com, exes pretending | 50% off or more |
| It Ends with Us | Colleen Hoover | Contemporary romance | 50% off or more |
| Birthday Girl, Credence and Five Brothers | Penelope Douglas | Dark romance | 50% off or more |
| Neon Gods | Katee Robert | Hades and Persephone retelling | 50% off or more |
| Throne of Glass, Collector's Edition | Sarah J. Maas | Fantasy | 50% off or more |
| House of Earth and Blood | Sarah J. Maas | Urban romantasy | 50% off or more |
| Gild | Raven Kennedy | Dark romantasy | 50% off or more |
Deals checked October 11, 2026. Prices and availability can change. More deals are on the Half or Nothing Amazon Picks page.
At a Glance
Half or Nothing Find
Bloom Books paperback, 2022.
Checked October 12, 2026. Prices and availability can change.
Spice Level (My Take): 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 4 of 5
Content Warnings: Readers report content warnings for this book on StoryGraph. See the full list before you start.
What It Is About, No Spoilers
Alex Volkov is a ruthless billionaire with a past he cannot outrun. Ava Chen is his best friend's younger sister, and he has been asked to look after her. The ice around him starts to crack, and neither of them is ready for what that does.
Why You'll Get Hooked
Brother's best friend, grumpy and sunshine, billionaire romance.
At a Glance
Half or Nothing Find
Bloom Books boxed set, 2025.
Checked October 12, 2026. Prices and availability can change.
Spice Level (My Take): book by book:
Content Warnings: Readers report content warnings for each book on StoryGraph. See the full list before you start.
What It Is About, No Spoilers
The box set opens with King of Wrath. A billionaire CEO who never planned to marry is blackmailed into an engagement with a jewelry heiress. King of Pride and King of Greed follow in the same world of power, money and rules that are made to be broken.
Why You'll Get Hooked
Forced proximity, marriage of convenience, billionaire romance.
At a Glance
Half or Nothing Find
Special Edition paperback, 2021.
Checked October 12, 2026. Prices and availability can change.
Spice Level (My Take): 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 4 of 5
Content Warnings: Readers report content warnings for this book on StoryGraph. See the full list before you start.
What It Is About, No Spoilers
Zahra sends a bold, slightly tipsy proposal criticizing a theme park's most expensive ride, and ends up working for the billionaire behind it. Rowan Kane is her difficult boss, and the text messages he sends under an alias do not make things easier.
Why You'll Get Hooked
Boss and employee, billionaire romance, secret identity.
At a Glance
Half or Nothing Find
Berkley hardcover, Collector's Edition, 2025.
Checked October 12, 2026. Prices and availability can change.
Spice Level (My Take): 🌶️🌶️🌶️ 3 of 5
Content Warnings: Readers report content warnings for this book on StoryGraph. See the full list before you start.
What It Is About, No Spoilers
Olive Smith is a third-year Ph.D. candidate who does not believe in lasting relationships. To convince her best friend otherwise, she kisses the first man she sees, and a fake relationship between two scientists begins. This Collector's Edition adds new endpapers and a bonus chapter from Adam's point of view.
Why You'll Get Hooked
Fake relationship, scientists, rom-com.
At a Glance
Half or Nothing Find
Berkley paperback, 2024.
Checked October 12, 2026. Prices and availability can change.
Spice Level (My Take): 🌶️🌶️🌶️ 3 of 5
Content Warnings: Readers report content warnings for this book on StoryGraph. See the full list before you start.
What It Is About, No Spoilers
Harriet and Wyn broke up five months ago and have not told their friends. Now they share a bedroom at the Maine cottage where the whole group vacations every year, and they have one week to keep pretending.
Why You'll Get Hooked
Exes pretending to be together, forced proximity, friends group.
Reader approved: Happy Place won the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Romance in 2023 with 157,687 votes, according to Goodreads. Emily Henry won the category again the next year with Funny Story.
At a Glance
Half or Nothing Find
Atria Books paperback, 2016.
Checked October 12, 2026. Prices and availability can change.
Spice Level (My Take): 🌶️🌶️🌶️ 3 of 5
Content Warnings: Readers report content warnings for this book on StoryGraph. See the full list before you start.
What It Is About, No Spoilers
Lily has worked hard for the life she wants and has come a long way from the small town where she grew up. Now she is in a new relationship, and she cannot stop thinking about her first love.
Why You'll Get Hooked
First love, new relationship, emotional drama.
At a Glance
Half or Nothing Find
Berkley boxed set, 2025.
Checked October 12, 2026. Prices and availability can change.
Spice Level (My Take): book by book:
Content Warnings: Readers report content warnings for each book on StoryGraph. See the full list before you start.
What It Is About, No Spoilers
Three of Penelope Douglas's most talked-about novels in one box. In Five Brothers, a young woman spends the night at her ex's house with five brothers. One of them comforts her in the dark. In Credence, a remote cabin, three men and one woman make for a very tense winter.
Why You'll Get Hooked
Dark romance, taboo romance, found family.
At a Glance
Half or Nothing Find
Sourcebooks Casablanca paperback, 2021.
Checked October 12, 2026. Prices and availability can change.
Spice Level (My Take): 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 5 of 5
Content Warnings: Readers report content warnings for this book on StoryGraph. See the full list before you start.
What It Is About, No Spoilers
A modern retelling of Hades and Persephone set in the glittering city of Olympus. Persephone is promised to Zeus, flees to the forbidden undercity and makes a devil's bargain with the man everyone believed was a myth.
Why You'll Get Hooked
Greek myth retelling, enemies to lovers, forced engagement, devil's bargain. Trendencias also lists it among its best erotic romances and calls it enemies to lovers.
At a Glance
Half or Nothing Find
Bloomsbury hardcover, Collector's Edition, first book of the Throne of Glass series.
Checked October 12, 2026. Prices and availability can change.
Spice Level (My Take): 🌶️ 1 of 5
Content Warnings: Readers report content warnings for this book on StoryGraph. See the full list before you start.
What It Is About, No Spoilers
Celaena Sardothien lives in a land without magic, where the king rules with an iron hand. She is summoned to the castle, not to kill the king but to win her freedom. If she defeats twenty-three killers, thieves and warriors in a competition, she will be released from prison to serve as the king's champion. The Crown Prince will befriend her and the Captain of the Guard will protect her, but something evil lives in the castle of glass.
Why You'll Get Hooked
Assassin heroine, deadly competition, a prince and a captain by her side.
At a Glance
Half or Nothing Find
Bloomsbury hardcover, first book of the Crescent City series.
Checked October 12, 2026. Prices and availability can change.
Spice Level (My Take): 🌶️🌶️🌶️ 3 of 5
Content Warnings: Readers report content warnings for this book on StoryGraph. See the full list before you start.
What It Is About, No Spoilers
Bryce Quinlan had the perfect life, working hard all day and partying all night, until a demon murdered her closest friends. When the accused is behind bars but the crimes start up again, she finds herself at the heart of the investigation. Hunt Athalar is a notorious fallen angel, enslaved to the Archangels he once tried to overthrow. He is offered a deal: help Bryce find the murderer and his freedom will be within reach.
Why You'll Get Hooked
Murder investigation, a fallen angel, a deal for freedom.
At a Glance
Half or Nothing Find
Bloom Books paperback, first book of The Plated Prisoner series.
Checked October 12, 2026. Prices and availability can change.
Spice Level (My Take): 🌶️🌶️🌶️ 3 of 5
Content Warnings: Readers report content warnings for this book on StoryGraph. See the full list before you start.
What It Is About, No Spoilers
The first book in a fantasy series inspired by the myth of King Midas. In Highbell, in a castle built into the frozen mountains, everything is made of gold: floors, walls, furniture, clothes, even Auren. King Midas rescued her from the slums and placed her on a pedestal as his precious. She is the woman he Gold-Touched to show everyone what he can do.
Why You'll Get Hooked
King Midas retelling, a gilded cage, dark romantasy.
I have not read every book above yet, but they are all on my list. Here are three of my favorites that I have read and loved: two series, The Millennium Wolves and A Court of Thorns and Roses, and one book, Fresas con chocolate. I have not found a 50% discount on any of them yet, and the same goes for my other favorites, so those are not listed here. They are all on my radar, so stay tuned. When I find them at 50% off or more, I will tell you.
At a Glance
Half or Nothing Find
No deal yet. We have not found this one at the discount we want right now. Find it on Amazon
Paperback, first book of the series.
Spice Level (My Take): 🌶️🌶️🌶️ 3 of 5, for book 1
Content Warnings: Readers report content warnings for book 1 on StoryGraph. See the full list before you start.
What It Is About, No Spoilers
When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a terrifying creature arrives to demand retribution. She is dragged to a magical land she knows only from legends. There she discovers that her captor, Tamlin, is one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled her world. Her feelings for him transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion.
Why You'll Get Hooked
Fae romance, a beast and a huntress, hostility that turns into passion.
My Rating: I read the series and I gave it 3.5 of 5.
At a Glance
Half or Nothing Find
No deal yet. We have not found this one at the discount we want right now. Find it on Amazon
Kindle edition.
Spice Level (My Take): 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 5 of 5, for book 1
Content Warnings: Readers report content warnings for book 1 on StoryGraph. See the full list before you start.
What It Is About, No Spoilers
A werewolf series that starts with Sienna, the only unmated virgin in her pack. With the Haze approaching, her future feels uncertain. When the mysterious Alpha Aiden marks her as his, their bond ignites a passion neither of them is ready for. As secrets surface, she has to face her feelings for him. She also faces the danger of being marked, in the middle of a rivalry between werewolf packs.
Why You'll Get Hooked
Werewolf romance, alpha and mate bond, pack politics, forbidden romance, a long series to binge.
My Goodreads Rating: I read the whole series and I gave it 5 of 5 on Goodreads.
At a Glance
Half or Nothing Find
No deal yet. We have not found this one at the discount we want right now. Find it on Amazon
Spanish edition, Kindle.
Spice Level (My Take): 🌶️🌶️🌶️ 3.5 of 5
Content Warnings: None listed on StoryGraph yet.
What It Is About, No Spoilers
Francesca, a young Argentine architecture student, goes on an exchange year in Spain and soon dares to go further than she ever allowed herself. The story has foreign roommates, parties, extravagant fashion shows and beautiful Barcelona as the backdrop. She learns that freedom in sexuality only needs willing partners and consent.
Why You'll Get Hooked
Study abroad, sexual freedom, Barcelona.
My Goodreads Rating: I gave this book 4 of 5 on Goodreads.
I read in Spanish too, so here are the Spanish editions of some of the books above. I have not found any of them at 50% off or more yet, so there are no prices here. In the next post of this series you will find Spanish-language authors too. When I find a deal on any of these, I will tell you.
| Book | Author | Edition | Where to find it |
|---|---|---|---|
| La hipótesis del amor | Ali Hazelwood | Spanish edition, paperback | Find it on Amazon |
| Romper el círculo | Colleen Hoover | Spanish edition, paperback | Find it on Amazon |
| Rey de la ira (Pecados 1) | Ana Huang | Spanish edition, paperback | Find it on Amazon |
| Twisted love | Ana Huang | Spanish edition, hardcover | Find it on Amazon |
| Una corte de rosas y espinas | Sarah J. Maas | Spanish edition, paperback | Find it on Amazon |
| Trono de cristal, edición especial limitada | Sarah J. Maas | Spanish edition, hardcover | Find it on Amazon |
Spanish editions found on amazon.com on October 11, 2026. Prices and availability can change.
Spicy is not a genre as such. It is a term readers use for books of any genre with highly erotic scenes and plenty of sexual tension, as Planeta de Libros explains, in Spanish. It took off on BookTok, where readers often rate spicy reads with hot pepper emojis on a scale of one to five, as CBC News reported.
In a clean or wholesome romance there are no sex scenes on the page, only romance and kisses. In an open door romance you will see sex on the page. Spicy or steamy books sit at the open end, where sex features heavily, as The Romance Genre Specialist describes it.
Every book in this post shows my own spice rating, from one to five chili peppers, and a link to the content warnings readers report on StoryGraph. Check that list before you start, especially for dark romance and romantasy, which can carry heavy themes.
These are only some of the books in my romance series. As I keep finding books at 50% off or more, I will keep adding them in new posts. A sapphic edition is coming too. Is there a book or an author you would like me to look up? Send me a message on social media and I will go find the deal. Browse everything on the Half or Nothing blog.
About the author: Dann Nazario is a reader with more than 450 books logged on Goodreads. Dann writes about book deals for Half or Nothing.
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