Bound by Firelight by Dana Swift

After a magical eruption devastates the kingdom of Belwar, royal heir Adraa is falsely accused of masterminding the destruction and forced to stand trial in front of her people, who see her as a monster. Adraa’s punishment? Imprisonment in the Dome, an impenetrable, magic-infused fortress filled with Belwar’s nastiest criminals—many of whom Adraa put there herself. And they want her to pay. Jatin, the royal heir to Naupure, has been Adraa’s betrothed, nemesis, and fellow masked vigilante… but now he’s just a boy waiting to ask her the biggest question… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a parent
  • Torture
  • False imprisonment (on-page, protagonist)
  • War themes & mass death

Wild Sweet Love by Beverly Jenkins

Teresa July has led a hard life, but now she has a chance to put her train robbing past behind her. Armed with a new job as a cook to one of Philadelphia’s elite families, Teresa is determined to start her life anew, and nothing––not even her boss’s stuck–up (and far too handsome) son––is going to stand in her way. Madison Nance is sick of his mother taking in women from the wrong side of the tracks, just to see them turn on her generosity. That’s why it’s up to him to keep a close eye on Teresa’s every move. At least, that’s the only logical explanation for why he can’t get the… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Infertility & miscarriage mentioned
  • Death of a parent
  • Gun violence
  • Incarceration
  • Kidnapping

Indigo by Beverly Jenkins

When the notorious Black Daniel is carried, badly injured, into Hester Wyatt’s home, there is no question that he will be cared for and protected. Once a slave herself, Hester regularly gives shelter to runaways, yet the man of mysteries she now harbours brings greater danger than she’s ever known. He is Galen Vachon, a member of a unique elite class of pre-Civil War blacks. Handsome, arrogant, and accustomed to lavish living, he fears he’s been betrayed in his work with the underground and wants to move on quickly. Yet the magic healing caresses that flow from Hester’s lovely indigo-stained hands tear at his heart… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Racism, colourism & racial slurs, including discussions of slavery & forced conscription
  • Misogyny & slut-shaming
  • Infidelity*
  • Emotional, verbal & physical child abuse recounted
  • Threats of rape
  • Statutory rape recounted*
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Death during childbirth mentioned (secondary character’s daughter)
  • Minor physical injury & illness including broken bones, gunshot wounds, & fever
  • Death of an aunt & grandmother mentioned
  • Death of a father from wasting disease mentioned
  • Death of parents & grandfather in a boating accident recounted
  • Murder
  • Gun violence (secondary character shoots her abusive partner)
  • Kidnapping
  • Imprisonment recounted
  • Death from snakebite mentioned

*Context : The female protagonist was enslaved until she was nine-years-old. The male protagonist had sex with a 28-year-old woman when he was 17-years-old. The male protagonist kisses the female protagonist when she is engaged to someone else; however, it’s intended to be a celibate marriage of convenience and the fiancé turns out to be married. A secondary character’s wife is cheating on him. The male protagonist’s grandfather left his grandmother for his mistress.

The Extremely Inconvenient Adventures of Bronte Mettlestone by Jaclyn Moriarty

Bronte Mettlestone is ten years old when her parents are killed by pirates.This does not bother her her parents ran away to have adventures when she was a baby. She has been raised by her Aunt Isabelle, with assistance from the Butler, and has spent a pleasant childhood of afternoon teas and riding lessons. Now, however, her parents have left detailed instructions for Bronte in their will. (Instructions that, annoyingly, have been reinforced with faery cross-stitch, which means that if she doesn’t complete them, terrible things could happen!) She travels the kingdoms, perf… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Physical illness (on-page)
  • Death of a mother & father
  • Loss of autonomy (magical mind control)
  • Kidnapping & wrongful imprisonment

Death Note, Vol. 1: Boredom by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata

Light Yagami is an ace student with great prospects – and he’s bored out of his mind. But all that changes when he finds the Death Note, a notebook dropped by a rogue Shinigami, a death god. Any human whose name is written in the notebook dies, and now Light has vowed to use the power of the Death Note to rid the world of evil. But when criminals begin dropping dead, the authorities send the legendary detective L to track down the killer. With L hot on his heels, will Light lose sight of his noble goal… or his life?

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Sexual harassment
  • Heart attack
  • Murder (on- & off-page)
  • Gun violence
  • Car accident (on-page)
  • Hostage situation (on-page)
  • Imprisonment mentioned
  • Bullying

Death Note, Vol. 7: Zero by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata

After a high-speed chase, Light and the task force apprehend the newest Kira. Light regains his Death Note and his memories, and the depths of his cunning are revealed as the plans he carefully put in place before going into confinement are slowly unveiled. His masterful manipulation of both humans and Shinigami lead him to the strongest position he’s yet enjoyed. But the glow of his victory is marred when a new threat appears. Can Light withstand a surprise attack on two fronts?

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Sexual harassment
  • Heart attack
  • Murder (on- & off-page)
  • Gun violence
  • Car accident (on-page)
  • Hostage situation (on-page)
  • Imprisonment mentioned
  • Bullying

Redemption Point by Candice Fox

When former police detective Ted Conkaffey was wrongly accused of abducting Claire Bingley, he hoped the Queensland rainforest town of Crimson Lake would be a good place to disappear. But nowhere is safe from Claire’s devastated father. Dale Bingley has a brutal revenge plan all worked out – and if Ted doesn’t help find the real abductor, he’ll be its first casualty. Meanwhile, in a dark roadside hovel called the Barking Frog Inn, the bodies of two young bartenders lie on the beer-sodden floor. It’s Detective Inspector Pip Sweeney’s first homicide investigation – c… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Paedophilia, grooming & child sexual abuse recounted
  • Rape recounted
  • Cheating
  • Blood & gore depiction
  • Death of a friend
  • Murder
  • Gun violence
  • Police corruption mentioned
  • Wrongful incarceration
  • Animal cruelty

Salt Magic by Hope Larson and Rebecca Mock

When Vonceil’s older brother, Elber, comes home to their family’s Oklahoma farm after serving on the front lines of World War I, things aren’t what she expects. His experiences have changed him into a serious and responsible man who doesn’t have time for Vonceil anymore. He even marries the girl he had left behind. Then a mysterious and captivating woman shows up at the farm and confronts Elber for leaving her in France. When he refuses to leave his wife, she puts a curse on the family well, turning the entire town’s water supply into saltwater. Who is this lady dressed all… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Cheating mentioned
  • Body horror (characters magically turned into gems)
  • Imprisonment
  • Threats of gun violence to a child
  • Animal attack (snake), including death from snakebite

Zeus: King of the Gods by George O’Connor

Here’s Where It All Starts: the beginning of everything – the world, the gods, and even humanity. Mighty Kronos, the most terrifying of all the Titans, reigns as the unchallenged tyrant of the cosmos…until his son, the god Zeus, stands up and takes on his own father in a battle intense enough to shatter the universe! Who will emerge triumphant?

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Infanticide & patricide
  • Imprisonment
  • War themes & battle scenes

Blood in the Water by Tiffany D. Jackson

Kaylani is a born-and-bred Brooklyn girl. She expects to feel like a fish out of water spending the hot and sticky summer on Martha’s Vineyard with family friends, the Watsons. But her mother insists, especially since Kaylani still spends long hours on the phone with her imprisoned father. The Watsons live in the town of Oak Bluffs, a place with a rich Black history that fascinates Kaylani. Though the Watsons’ daughter, London, is snobby and unfriendly, Kaylani ends up connecting with some other kids in the town, who show… Read more.

GoodreadsThe Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Classism
  • Emesis
  • Blood depiction
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a child
  • Murder
  • Imprisonment
  • Bullying